Category: Anxiety

It may be possible to stop the transmission from mother to child.

Anxiety, a heightened response to stress and other psychiatric problems can be passed by non-genetic means, new research finds.

For example, it is well known that Holocaust survivors pass on an increased vulnerability to stress to their children.

Professor Miklos Toth, a senior author of the study, said:

“Genetic and nongenetic inheritance are different but complementary mechanisms to pass information from one generation to the next.

It will be necessary to develop tools to determine if the familial occurrence of a disease is based on a nongenetic, as opposed to genetic, mechanism.

On a positive note, nongenetic, in contrast to genetic, inheritance of disease is not inevitable and, if recognized in time, may be prevented.”

The conclusions come from a study of mice, in which it is possible to separate out genetic influences from others.

Professor Toth said:

“Our study helps explain why individuals, even within the same family, can display various combinations of anxiety, depression, bipolar disease and schizophrenia symptoms.

We found that, at least in mice, each symptom can be passed on by a distinct mechanism.”

The study was published in the journal Nature Communications.

Network brain image from Shutterstock

People do better when their environment fits their personality, study finds.

People prone to anxiety may recover from stress better in a busy urban environment.

The findings fly in the face of research finding that natural environments restore people’s cognitive abilities.

For more neurotic people, busy urban environments may beat quiet natural environments for helping them calm down.

Dr Kevin Newman, the study’s first author, said:

“Previous literature says that natural environments tend to restore cognitive abilities better than urban environments, but we questioned whether this one-sided perspective was accurate.”

For the research people were asked to perform tasks that exhausted them mentally.

For example, they had to write sentences without using the letters ‘A’ or ‘N’.

Afterwards they were given tasks that exposed them to words that either suggested an urban environment or a natural setting.

Surprisingly, those with more neurotic personalities did better when the test suggested a busy urban environment.

People lower on neuroticism, though, did better when peaceful natural settings were suggested.

Dr Newman said:

“People tended to do better in environments that fit with their personality.

Imagine someone with a neurotic personality like Woody Allen.

If you put him in a forest it could be very off-putting rather than rejuvenating.”

Neurotic people also showed better performance when exposed to words that were frenetic but related to nature, such as ‘cliff’ and ‘thunder’.

Similarly, non-neurotic people did better when exposed to calm words related to the city.

For the non-neurotic, seeking out a quiet place in the city like a library or bookstore could provide the required cognitive recovery.

The study was published in the Journal of Consumer Psychology (Newman & Brucks, 2016).

The two behaviours that make people seem the most creepy.

Clowns and taxidermists head the list of most creepy professions, new research finds.

In general, men are considered creepier than women, the study also found.

Particularly creepy behaviours include touching others too frequently, watching them too intently and steering the conversation towards sex.

Here are the top 10 list of creepiest professions, according to the research:

1. Clown
2. Taxidermist
3. Sex Shop Owner
4. Funeral Director
5. Taxi Driver
6. Unemployed
7. Clergy
8. Janitor
9. Garbage Collector
10. Guard

The study’s authors explain:

“It is our belief that creepiness is anxiety aroused by the ambiguity of whether there is something to fear or not and/or by the ambiguity of the precise nature of the threat (e.g. sexual, physical violence, contamination, etc) that might be present.”

The conclusions come from a survey of 1,341 people aged 18 to 77.

They were asked about a series of behaviours and which were considered most creepy.

The most creepy behaviour was watching someone too closely before starting a conversation.

The second most creepy behaviour was too frequent, unnecessary touching.

The authors write:

“Everything that we found in this study is consistent with the notion that the perception of creepiness is a response to the ambiguity of threat.

Males are more physically threatening to people of both sexes than are females and they were more likely to be perceived as creepy by males and females alike.

The link made by females between sexual threat and creepiness is also consistent with the fact that females are simply at greater risk of sexual assault and have potentially greater costs associated with it than males.”

They conclude:

“Interestingly, our results indicate that we do not necessarily assume ill intentions from people who are creepy, although we may still worry that they are dangerous.

Most of our subjects believed that creepy people cannot change, and only a small minority of our subjects [less than 10 per cent] believed that creepy people are aware that they are creepy.”

The study was published in the journal New Ideas in Psychology (McAndrew & Koehnke, 2016).

After combined therapy, people were five times more likely to be free of a severe anxiety disorder.

Using modern motivation techniques along with cognitive-behavioural therapy improves anxiety treatment, a new study finds.

People who are experiencing severe anxiety need more than just the tools for change.

They also need the motivation to use them.

Motivational interviewing is a way of asking questions that helps overcome ambivalence to change.

Many of these are incorporated in my recent motivation ebook: Spark: 17 Steps That Will Boost Your Motivation For Anything (ebook)

Professor Henny Westra, the study’s first author, said:

“Our research shows that therapists need to have two sets of skills — to help people become ready for change, and then to help them accomplish that change.

The study results suggest that integrating motivational interviewing (MI) with CBT is more effective than CBT alone for long-term improvement.”

It is perfectly normal to feel that change presents a frightening prospect — especially for someone who experiences a lot of anxiety.

Motivational interviewing is a way to work through this common road-block.

Professor Westra said:

“Because MI is focused on listening and drawing out client ideas, patients feel more confidence in coping with issues facing them even after therapy ends in contrast to having to rely on the therapist’s expertise.”

The study, which lasted five years, involved 85 people who all had severe generalised anxiety disorder.

Half were given 15 sessions of standard cognitive-behavioural treatment alone.

The other half received 4 sessions of motivational interviewing on top of 11 sessions of CBT.

Those who received both therapies were five times more likely to be free of a severe anxiety disorder diagnosis one year later.

Professor Martin Antony, one of the study’s co-authors, said:

“This study highlights the importance of studying the long term impact of our treatments, as the enhanced improvements seen in people who received the integrated MI and CBT treatment were greatest sometime after treatment had ended.”

The study was published in the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology (Westra et al., 2016).

→ 10 Signs of Anxiety Everyone Should Know.

Scared image from Shutterstock

Mood swings, weight change and shifts in everyday habits are just a few of the signs to look out for.

It can be difficult to spot the signs of anxiety and depression in young people.

Teenagers in particular experience moods swings as a natural part of puberty.

Although mood swings are normal in young people, one warning sign is if they become much more extreme than before.

Dr. Aaron Krasner, an adolescent psychiatrist, explains:

“Only 20 percent of children with mental disorders are identified and receive necessary mental health services.

As a society, we have to do a lot better than that.”

Here are 10 warning signs to look out for:

1. Self-injury or self-destructive behaviour.
2. Changes in physical health or appearance.
3. Frequent outbursts of aggression or anger.
4. A new group of friends.
5. Weight gain or loss.
6. Neglecting personal hygiene.
7. Difficulty coping with problems and daily activities.
8. Alcohol and/or drug abuse.
9. Threats of harm to themselves or others.
10. Persistent nightmares.

Similarly, large changes in performance at school or in everyday behaviour can also be important signs.

https://www.spring.org.uk/2013/11/depression-10-fascinating-insights-into-a-misunderstood-condition.php

Dr. Aaron Krasner said:

“Teen mental health issues are ‘family affairs’—they can have a devastating effect on families, and it’s essential that the entire family is involved in working through them.”

If you know someone who seems to be showing these signs, keep the lines of communication open.

They may need to talk.

https://www.spring.org.uk/2014/09/the-5-biggest-reasons-people-get-anxious-or-depressed.php

Brain question image from Shutterstock

Don’t let FoMO get you down.

Fear of missing out — known by some as FoMO — is the feeling that someone else is having more fun or doing something better than you.

The fear is often aroused by seeing exciting posts on social media of what other people are up to.

The fear of missing out is linked to feelings of dissatisfaction and may lead to depression and anxiety.

Dr Darlene McLaughlin, a behavioural health specialist, says:

“FOMO is especially rampant in the millennial community because they see a peer achieving something they want, and somehow in their mind, that achievement means something is being ‘taken away’ from them.”

So it is important to fight back against it.

Try these three steps:

1. Track negative thoughts: keeping a diary of negative thoughts can help you identify ones that are not helping you.
2. Replace negative thoughts: ask yourself if the thoughts are reasonable and use milder words to describe your feelings.
3. Challenge assumptions: for example, other people present their best, most exciting side on social media. This is not the whole truth of their lives.

Dr McLaughlin said:

“The problem with FOMO is the individuals it impacts are looking outward instead of inward.

When you’re so tuned in to the ‘other,’ or the ‘better’ (in your mind), you lose your authentic sense of self.

This constant fear of missing out means you are not participating as a real person in your own world.”

FOMO may well be problematic, although it is not a mental health condition, Dr McLaughlin said:

“FOMO certainly instills anxiety and depression, but, we need to push back against framing this ‘fear of missing out’ as a mental health condition.

FOMO is an emotion — driven by thoughts — that can create the fear and anxiety which leads to a mental health diagnosis.

It’s a symptom of a larger problem at hand.”

However, FOMO can interact with other problems like social anxiety:

“Part of social anxiety is the fear of being judged by others or embarrassing oneself in social interactions.

FOMO is very damaging to someone suffering from this anxiety disorder because it fuels a lack of self-confidence and social avoidance.”

Jealousy image from Shutterstock

Why anxious people are agreeable, the supplement that reduces anxiety, dangers of anxiety drugs, the benefits of optimistic thinking and more…

Ten new psychology studies reveal why some people are anxious, how to reduce anxiety and much more.

Also, you may be interested in PsyBlog’s anxiety ebook.

1. Why anxious people are too agreeable

Disagreeing with others activates areas of the brain linked to anxiety in some people, new research finds.

This helps to explain why some choose to agree all the time — it spares them psychological discomfort.

Dr Juan Dominguez, one of the study’s authors, explained:

“People like to agree with others, a social default known as the truth bias, which is helpful in forming and maintaining social relationships.

People don’t like to say that others are not telling to truth or lying because this creates an uncomfortable situation.”

2. Omega-3 supplementation reduces anxiety

Omega-3 supplements reduce anxiety and even lower inflammation in healthy people, research finds.

A high quality study has shown that the supplement reduces anxiety by an average of 20%.

Professor Martha Belury, one of the study’s authors, explained:

“The supplement was probably about four or five times the amount of fish oil you’d get from a daily serving of salmon, for example.”

3. Optimistic thinking benefits the anxious brain

Optimistic thinking could change areas of the brain related to anxiety, a new study finds.

The orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) is an area of the brain important in anxiety and optimism.

Now researchers have found that people who are more optimistic have larger OFCs.

Professor Florin Dolcos added:

“If you can train people’s responses, the theory is that over longer periods, their ability to control their responses on a moment-by-moment basis will eventually be embedded in their brain structure.”

4. Being neurotic predicts anxiety

Neuroticism has been found for the first time to predict the development of anxiety and depression in young people.

Neuroticism is characterised by negative thinking in a range of areas.

It includes high levels of moodiness and worrying.

5. Get enough REM sleep

A lack of REM sleep may raise the risk of chronic depression and anxiety, a new study finds.

REM or Rapid Eye Movement sleep is when we dream.

REM sleep occurs throughout the night as we cycle up and down into deep sleep.

Typically a person might have six periods of REM sleep in a night separated by an hour or less.

During REM sleep it may be that critical emotional memories are processed and resolved.

The study found that when people’s REM sleep was disturbed, they had more trouble getting over emotional distress.

6. Online therapy for anxiety

After nine weeks of online therapy, people experiencing social anxiety disorder show distinct changes in their brains, new research finds.

Online cognitive behavioural therapy can reduce anxiety and change brain volumes in critical areas.

Mr Kristoffer NT Månsson, one of the study’s authors, said:

“The greater the improvement we saw in the patients, the smaller the size of their amygdalae.

The study also suggests that the reduction in volume drives the reduction in brain activity.”

The amygdala is an area of the brain vital to the processing of the emotions.

7. The neurocircuitry of anxiety

Stress and anxiety have been linked to the same neurocircuitry in the brain as depression and dementia.

The new study suggests people need to find ways to reduce chronic stress or they could be putting themselves at increased risk of mental health problems.

Neuroscientists have found there is an extensive overlap between neurocircuitry for anxiety, depression and dementia.

8. Brain training could reduce anxiety

Computer training can change how the brain regulates emotional reactions, a new study finds.

Researchers have found that a simple attentional training task encourages the brain to ignore irrelevant information

The task involves identifying whether arrows on the screen are pointing left or right.

At the same time people were asked to ignore other arrows on the screen placed there to distract them.

Brain scans showed that people who practised a difficult version of this task later coped better with negative emotions.

9. Stop anxiety passing from parent to child

A new study finds that a family therapy intervention can help break the cycle of anxiety from parent to child.

The study included 136 families where at least one parent struggled with anxiety.

After just one year, 31% of children of parents with anxiety who did not go to therapy or get instructions had developed anxiety.

However, in the group that received therapy the number of children that developed anxiety in one year was just 9%.

Families in the therapy group were taught to identify the signs of anxiety and how to deal with them.

One is called ‘the reality check’.

It’s all about deciding which anxieties are worth paying attention to, explained Dr Ginsburg:

“We taught the kids how to identify scary thoughts, and how to change them.

For example, if a child is afraid of cats and encounters one in the street, the child can first identify the scary thought: “That cat is going to hurt me.”

Then the child can test that thought — is it likely that the cat will hurt me?

No, the cat doesn’t look angry.

It isn’t baring its teeth or hissing, it’s just sitting there.

OK, I can walk past that cat and it won’t do anything.”

10. Dangers of anxiety drugs

Benzodiazepines carry an increased risk of dementia and even death.

Benzodiazepines include drugs marketed under the names Valium, Ativan, Klonopin and Xanax.

These drugs are often prescribed for anxiety and other mental health issues such as OCD, insomnia and post-traumatic stress disorder.

Research has now repeatedly linked these drugs to dementia and Alzheimer’s.

A recent study found that taking benzodiazepines for three to six months increased the Alzheimer’s risk by 32%.

Taking the drug for more than six months increased the risk by 84%.

Anxiety image from Shutterstock