Young men whose partners have had an abortion or miscarriage are twice as likely to develop depression than those whose partners have never been pregnant, a new study has found. While previous studies…
Women who are raped, sexually assaulted, bashed by a partner or stalked are much more likely to develop mental health problems than women who do not experience gender-based violence, a study has found…
The Commonwealth Ombudsman yesterday launched an investigation into rising rates of self-harm among detainees of Australia’s immigration detention centres, after it emerged that 50 instances of cutting…
Around 20 minutes of tiny electric shocks to the scalp may improve brain function in schizophrenia patients, a study has found. Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) involves passing a mild, painless…
The last Federal Government budget announcement revealed funds dedicated to “early intervention” mental health services for youth. But whether this intervention takes place in a timely manner for optimal…
Arthur Freeman’s involvement in an altercation in Victoria’s Barwon prison this week has again highlighted the fraught issue of how we deal with offenders who commit crimes that many of us assume could…
“One of the most exhilarating experiences I know of is performing in public, especially when there is a magnificent piano under my fingers, great music in my head, and the feeling that there are no technical…
Early intervention mental health policies may be gaining favour in Australia, Europe and the U.S. but there is limited evidence to show they help sufferers of psychosis in the longer term, a major literature…
GAMBLING IN AUSTRALIA – Why do some people develop gambling addictions while others can dabble for years at the pokies or the track without issue? The Productivity Commission’s 2010 report on gambling…
As if any further proof were needed that traffic jams and overcrowding make us anxious, scientists have concluded that city-dwellers are more sensitive to stress than country folk. Urban environments have…
More than 40% of Australian adult diabetics also experience mental health problems, according to a report released by the government’s Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW). More than 800,000…
Even a cursory glance at Australia’s mental health system indicates shortcomings in the provision of a range of services to people with mental impairments. Since 1993, when the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity…
It’s normal to feel down in the dumps from time to time, so drawing a line between low moods and mental illness is understandably fraught. But are health professionals treating normal sadness as a clinical…
A controversy is brewing on the website Psychology Today and subsequently in The Australian newspaper. At the heart of the issue is US psychiatrist Dr Allen Frances’ comments on the Australian Federal…
Almost half of all cigarettes smoked in Australia, the US and the UK are smoked by people with a mental illness. It’s a startling statistic and it paints a grim picture for the physical health of the one…
Having a “broken” or a “heavy” heart is a description often used by people who are feeling down or depressed. It turns out they’re not that far off the mark. People with depression are three to four times…
Professor, Canada Research Chair in Determinants of Child Development, Owerko Centre at the Alberta Children’s Hospital Research Institute, University of Calgary