My Sister Jill disrupts ideas of colonial glory with a troubling depiction of family violence, PTSD, homophobia and the ruinous intergenerational impacts of patriarchal oppression on everyone.
You have probably heard of ‘fight or flight’ responses to distressing situations. You may also be familiar with the tendency to ‘freeze’. But there is another response a person can have: ‘fawn’.
Cognitive immobility, brought on by being separated from family, can lead to emotional exhaustion, anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder.
Psychological debriefing usually involves counsellors providing survivors with a single counselling session soon after an event. But ‘talking through’ trauma can over-consolidate painful memories.
According to recent by the University of Birmingham, 37% of analytical practitioners have been diagnosed with severe depression, while approximately 55% of them suffer from moderate depression.
University of Birmingham/Author
The mental health of front-line officers has drawn considerable attention, yet research shows that justice professionals working with traumatic material can also suffer psychological distress.
Having witnesses or recording devices during procedures requiring anesthesia could help prevent opportunities for sexual assault.
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Sedative-hypnotic drugs can distort a patient’s perception of reality. Some patients wake up from a procedure believing they have been sexually assaulted.
The stress of experiencing high levels of community violence harms entire families.
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Chronic stress from living with systemic racism and gun violence can lead to increased symptoms of PTSD and depression as well as elevated cortisol levels.
Mourners preparing to bury the remains of 104 Yazidi victims in a cemetery in Sinjar, Iraq on Feb. 6, 2021. The Yazidis were killed by the Islamic State group in 2014, and were given a proper burial after the bodies were exhumed from mass graves and identified through DNA tests.
(AP Photo/Farid Abdulwahed)
For the Yazidi communities in northern Iraq, there is a need to improve mental health. The sense of cultural identity has the potential to improve psychological well-being.
Psilocybin and other psychedelics could help patients process the challenges of a cancer diagnosis.
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Receiving a cancer diagnosis and undergoing cancer treatment can be a traumatizing experience. Psychedelics like LSD, psilocybin and MDMA could help alleviate symptoms from cancer-related PTSD.
Be it violence, war or natural disasters, there is no shortage of trauma which to adapt. A psychologist takes us through our full arsenal of coping mechanisms.
Recovery efforts in regions hit by Cyclone Gabrielle need to ensure support and care is provided to pregnant mums to prevent life-long consequences for babies in-utero.
Damaged: war in Ukraine has caused a massive rise in PTSD, especially in young women and soldiers.
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The war in Ukraine has traumatised many people, military and civilian. But the country’s health service was already ill-equipped to deal with mental health issues.
There are some possible health issues with the drugs, including cardiovascular risks.
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From July this year, some psychiatrists will be able to prescribe psychedelics to some patients. Responses from experts working in the field are mixed.
Researching and reporting on traumatic events can affect journalists’ mental health.
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While most journalists don’t develop PTSD or depression, many will struggle with the stress of their work. Knowing the warning signs can help deal with trauma.