Depression Alliance Scotland Email Announcement September 2005

News From Depression Alliance Scotland

Newsletter

Our latest newsletter has been published. It features an article on postnatal depression as well as news and other features. If you would like a copy please email info@dascot.org

Living Life to the Full Website

A new free online mental health life skills course - Living Life to the Full www.livinglifetothefull.com - has been produced by Glasgow Institute for Psychosocial Interventions and Depression Alliance Scotland.

Based on the evidence-based Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT) approach, teaching sessions include:
- discovering why we feel as we do
- building problem solving skills
- rebalancing relationships
- becoming more active and rediscovering the fun in life
- developing helpful responses to life stress
- discovering how to sleep better
- learning how to change unhelpful and undermining thinking
- focusing on key elements of healthy living

The site is sponsored by the Scottish Executive Health Department and the Centre for Change and Innovation.

Information

SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder)

The nights are starting to draw in which means for some people the onset of Seasonal Affective Disorder.  It is a type of depression that affects an estimated half a million people every winter between September and April. It is caused by the brain reacting to lack of sunlight and the shortening of daylight hours in winter. Treatment can consist of drug therapy and use of a lightbox.  For more information visit the Seasonal Affective Disorder website www.sada.org.uk

National Review Of Mental Health Nursing In Scotland

The first national review of mental health nursing in Scotland commenced in April 2005 and will report in March 2006. The review's aim is to examine how mental health nursing should be developed in the future to enable continual improvement in the experience and outcomes of care for service users and their families and carers. There are approximately 7,142 registered mental health nurses employed in NHS Scotland. Mental health nurses work in variety of services, with a variety of people who experience mental health problems, in hospital inpatient care and community settings.  The review is looking for contributions on people’s experiences of mental health nursing and how this contributed to their recovery and examples of positive and innovative practice.  For more information visit:
http://www.show.scot.nhs.uk/sehd/nrmhns/

Events

Anxiety Disorders Awareness Week – 21-26 November 2005

The National Phobics Society and sister organisation Destigmatize are organizing the first Anxiety Disorders Awareness Week from 21-26 November 2005 to raise awareness for anxiety disorders and phobias. The theme for the Anxiety Disorders Awareness Week will be: FEAR NOT! The Anxiety Disorders Awareness Week will end with the national Anxiety Conference in London on 26 November 2005. The National Phobics Society (NPS) wants that with this awareness campaign both the general public and the medical profession recognise anxiety disorders in an earlier stage. Anxiety Disorders Awareness Week is necessary because these disorders are very common and affect a lot of people in the UK, in people of all ages, including children and elderly people. The support the Anxiety Disorders Awareness Week, the National Phobics Society will sell special wristbands with the slogan FEAR NOT! The NPS also has a wristband with the slogan Just a thought. These wristbands can be ordered for £1.99 each through the NPS website: http://www.phobics-society.org.uk

Edinburgh - Free Courses in Asperger Syndrome and High Functioning Autism

Number 6 a project whose aim is to support adults with Asperger Syndrome or High Functioning Autism living in Edinburgh and the Lothians
is providing free training open to voluntary organisations starting in October. There is a two hour session, which is just a basic introduction, and a full day session, which is the introduction and some more specific practical working methods The prevalence of depression in people with Asperger Syndrome is quite high.

For more information contact veronica.moodie@number6.org.uk  or telephone: 0131 240 2370.

News

Drug can trigger suicide in adults

A Norwegian study published on August 22nd found that there was a strong suggestion that the use of SSRI medications such as Seroxat (paroxetine) in adults is connected with increasing intensity per year of suicidal attempts Dr Ivar Aursnes and his colleagues found that in 16 trials there were seven attempted suicides among people taking Seroxat compared to one among those who were given a placebo. They obtained the original trial results from the Norwegian regulatory authorities and say that the data that the Medicines and Healthcare Regulatory Authority in the UK used in their enquiry into the drug contained distortions by the drug company. SSRIs (selective seerotonin reuptake inhibitors) such as Seroxat are banned for use in children and adolescents but last December the MHRA said they were safe for adults.
Guardian August 22nd

Depression drugs 'can raise birth defect risk'

Babies born to women taking common anti-depressants during pregnancy are substantially more likely to suffer birth defects and to be born prematurely, according to research.
A study of more than 1,000 expectant mothers found use of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), including Prozac and Seroxat, during the first three months of pregnancy was associated with a 40 per cent increase in the risk of congenital defects.   Danish researchers said the study suggested use of the drugs by pregnant women led to a 60 per cent greater chance of heart defects in their babies and a 40 per cent greater likelihood of a premature birth.
The study's results were published in Pulse, the weekly newspaper for GPs.
The researchers stressed their results were only initial findings and that there was a possibility they could be linked to the depression of the mother rather than the drugs.
Nic Fleming Daily Telegraph 01/09./2005

 

Standards fall in ‘shabby’ mental health units

The standard of mental health accommodation in Scotland has declined significantly in the last two years and would not be acceptable elsewhere in the NHS.  The Scottish Executive’s Mental Health Services Accommodation and Risk Management Survey revealed that just 76% of accommodation received a fair or very good assessment of decor, floor coverings and furniture compared to 84% in 2002 .  Jamie Malcolm of the Mental Welfare Commission for Scotland who regularly visits mental health units,said that “The conditions you get in psychiatric wards wouldn’t be tolerated in other health settings. People in those situations are less able to speak out about the conditions they are in .”
Rachelle Money Sunday Herald 14th August 2005

Therapy by e-mail?

Sweden - Psychological treatment of patients by e-mail could become a cheaper alternative to face-to-face counselling, psychologists in Sweden said after conducting a pilot study of 90 people with depression.
A research group at the University of Norrkoeping, in southeast Sweden, treated 90 patients for depression via e-mail only throughout the spring, a first in Sweden.
Patients and therapists exchanged longer e-mails once a week, and shorter ones whenever needed.
Vernmark said many patients liked to be able to write about their problems whenever they occurred to them, rather than wait for a weekly appointment with their therapist”.  Some also found it hard to reveal their emotions in person.
http://www.news24.com/News24/Technology/News/0,,2-13-1443_1753575,00.html 13th August

Illness that’s hard to swallow

According to experts growing numbers of middle aged women are being diagnosed with anorexia nervosa and other eating disorders such as bulimia and binge eatings.  There is a lot of awareness about ue of anorexia in teenage girls and in men but not so much awareness of it among women aged 45 – 60.  There has been a marked increase in more mature women being admitted to the Priory Hospital in Glasgow, the only institution in Scotland to treat people with eating disorders.  Some have had life long eating problems but others are experiencing it for the first time.

Specialists say spotting an eating disorder in a more mature woman, far less tackling it, is a major problem for family, friends, doctors and often the woman herself.   Usually, the causes of the illness are as wide-ranging as they are complex. Big life events, combined with society's attitude that thin is best, can trigger the illness.
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Eleanor Cowie  August 15th 2005 The Herald  

Mental health projects get funding boost

HUNDREDS of community-based mental health projects are set to benefit from radical new changes to the rules that govern Scottish Executive grants.
Instead of only being for one year, grants to the voluntary sector under the Mental Health Specific Grant (MHSG) scheme will now be awarded for three years.
The changes were announced by Deputy Minister for Health Lewis Macdonald.
He said: "Bringing greater financial security to the voluntary sector by increasing the funding cycle from one year to three will benefit not only the organisations concerned but, of course, all those who benefit from their activities.
"Grass-roots projects working to support people with mental health problems and their families are very important."
Evening news 19th August 2005

Walking back to happiness –

A recent study by the Mental Health Foundation showed that aerobic exercise (such as brisk walking or running) can be just as effective in treating depression as conventional medicine, and may even prevent you developing depression in the first place. Otherwise referred to as 'walkers' high', the Foundation also states that even short bursts of walking can boost the level of endomorphines in your body, and thus your mood.

Andrea Sutherland joined a hillwalking club after suffering from postnatal depression. She discovered that getting exercise and also taking time away from her busy life as a wife and mother gave her self-worth and confidence and she became mentally and physically stronger.   Climbing Ben Nevis was one of her greatest acheivements.

• For more information on local walking groups contact The Ramblers Association on 020 7339 8500 or visit www.ramblers.org.uk
• If you would like to start a walking group in your area visit The Paths to Health Project website www.pathsforall.org.uk
Scotsman  1 September 2005

Mentally Ill Kids Scandal

One in 10 Scots kids aged from five to 16 has a clinically recognised mental illness, figures show.  Between the ages of five and 10, one in 10 boys had a disorder, compared with only one in 20 girls. Among 11 to 16-year-olds, the rates rose to more than one in eight boys and one in 10 girls. 

The figures were compiled last year by the Office for National Statistics from a survey of 7977 children.  They show the family environment affects the likelihood of a disorder. In single-parent families, the overall rate was almost one in six.
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One in five children of unemployed parents had mental disorders, compared with fewer than one in 12 of those who worked

Daily Record 1 September 2005

Students: Carefree Image but plenty to be worried about

Although student life has a happy carefree image, research shows that students suffer high levels of stress and anxiety and for some, this period will bring the first brush with serious mental illness.
According to a report on the mental health of students in higher education for the Royal College of Psychiatrists (RCPsych): "There has been a progressive increase in the number of students presenting to counselling and student health services, and in the severity of their mental health problems... “and "students have increased mental health problems compared with age-matched controls".
Barbara Lantin Telegraph 5th Sept 2005

Everyone can help to prevent suicides

Although suicide is a rare event but every life lost in this way is tragic.  Suicide prevention is everyone’s business.  Most people have been affected by it in some way.  Last year, 835 people in Scotland lost their lives to suicide or suspected suicide. More than two people, on average, dying every day. Of these deaths, 73 per cent were men.  Scotland along with other countries highlighted the problem in National Suicide Week at the beginning of September.   This week focused attention helping those who are suicidal and also on the need to support people whose lives have been affected by a suicide. Reducing the rate of suicide is not something we can achieve overnight, as tackling it requires addressing a whole range of wider issues
Lewis Macdonald Evening News Tues 6th September

Mental health care 'suffers gaps'

There are gaps in NHS mental health services despite most patients being satisfied with the staff treating them, according to a study.
A Healthcare Commission poll of 26,500 people found 80% of patients said they were treated with respect and dignity.
But the survey also said many did not have access to emergency support, were not involved in decisions and were not told about the side effects of drugs.  Campaigners said mental health patients were "still getting a raw deal".

BBC News 11th September

 

Workers 'need mental health help'

Employers should do more to help support workers who are suffering from mental health problems, a study says.  The British Occupational Health Research Foundation said counselling could help staff to stay in work.  One in four people in the UK develop mental health problems each year, costing the economy £11.6bn in lost working days.
Unions said the report was welcome as employers' were doing "very little" to help staff with mental health problems.

BBC News 14th September

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Websites

A new website www.chooselife.net launched on Monday 5th September to coincide with National Suicide Prevention Week. It  makes local suicide prevention action plans accessible to everyone, and features an online "toolkit" database of suicide prevention resources.

 

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This email announcement is published by Depression Alliance Scotland
Website: www.depressionalliancescotland.org Email: info@dascot.org
Tel 0131 467 3050 (Mon, Tues, Thurs and Fri 10am – 2pm)
Fax 0131 467 7701

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