When it comes to various psychiatric illnesses migrants suffer more from conditions including depression and anxiety than the indigenous population of the new country. But it is hard to generalise because migrants are not a homogenous group and people may migrate for all sorts of reasons from political to personal, economic and social. The pop […]
Many people feel unhappy or insecure about their physical appearance during some point in their lives. However, individuals can become obsessed with the way that they look and worry excessively about small, or imagined, flaws within their appearance leading to a little known illness called Body Dysmorphia. Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD) is estimated to affect […]
Sexual anorexia, which is a set of attitudes and behaviours to sex very much like a food anorexic’s attitudes and behaviours towards food, is on the rise. They are separate conditions but there is some overlap as people with food disorders also often have issues with intimacy and building relationships. In both cases, people are trying […]
Stroke patients experience sustained problems with insomnia potentially reducing their ability to relearn key skills and putting them at increased risk of depression, a new study in the journal Scientific Reports finds. In the first study of its kind, researchers from the University of Surrey, University of Freiburg, Germany, and the University of Bern, Switzerland, […]
Panic attacks can happen to anyone, without any obvious cause or warning and can be extremely alarming both for the person experiencing the attack and anyone trying to help. Exams increase stress – and children and teenagers up and down the country will be sitting in exams halls, waiting to hear the famous words “you […]
Circadian rhythms, the natural variations in our behaviour and activity throughout a 24-hour period, are known to affect everything from hormones to eating habits. Now, a new study led by the University of Glasgow and published in The Lancet Psychiatry, has found that disrupted circadian rhythms are associated with increased risk of mood disorders, including […]
As figures show that those in professional jobs are much more likely to be regular alcohol drinkers than those on average incomes, it just proves, once again, that alcohol addiction is no respecter of income. Excess champagne is just as toxic as excess corner shop vodka but it’s probably true to say that some wealthy […]
Dr Emma Vardy is speaking today at the Royal Society of Medicine’s meeting, People ‘need’ pets: exploring the psycho-social benefits of the human/animal relationship. ‘We know that animals can be beneficial when it comes to improving mental health and wellbeing. Therapy dogs, which are specially selected and trained because of their calm, placid natures, are […]
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Latest research suggests we are going through a sleep deprivation epidemic and we are getting between one to two hours less sleep than we were getting 60 years ago. On average adults need around 7-9 hours sleep each night while children need 9-13 hours sleep. However, although insomnia – that is characterised by difficulty falling […]
It’s just common sense that doctors who have empathy make better doctors. However, until now, the benefit to patients has not been quantified, which makes it difficult for doctors and quality controllers to put a value on being nice. For our research paper, which is published in the latest issue of the Journal of the […]