LiveWellTalk - Overcoming Mental Health Challenges

Depression: Your Questions Answered Q1. Is depression an illness of the brain or a psychological problem? A. In psychiatric illnesses there are indisputably both biological and psychological causes. However, when evaluating a depression it is not helpful to search for biological or psychological causes exclusively but to consider both. This gives a broader understanding of patients, their psychological life, the onset and development of their disorder. Q2. What is the relationship between life events and depression? A. Any "unpleasant" life event can cause worry, sadness, anxiety or physical malaise in any person. In these cases, within certain limits, depression can be considered a normal and comprehensible reaction. However when the depression lasts much longer than it would be logical to expect, when the capacity to work, study, carry on family and social relations is hindered, we are looking at a depressive disorder that must be treated. Q3.  Can a disorderly lifestyle c

How to Deal With Exam Stress and Anxiety To manage exams well, we need to stay at the peak of our functioning capacity. Too much stress and anxiety can spoil our performance, but we all need a certain amount of adrenalin in our bodies to take on the challenges ahead. Hence it’s important to know How to Deal with Exam Stress and Anxiety . How to Reduce Stress Before Exams Here are some tips for you, to reduce stress and anxiety before your exams, and to improve your performance: Practice deep breathing and/or other relaxation techniques before the exam. List your achievable targets and tick them off when completed. This is planning your revision. Don’t let your mind indulge in negative thoughts like "I can't understand this chapter", " I'm going to fail this paper" or "I'm not going to pass the exam". Have some fun, but stay away from alcohol or drugs, as they can affect your memory and de-skill you. Avoid going to sleep soon after revision, o

Cutting and Self-Harm Can you identify with this story of cutting and self-harm? Nancy likes the feeling she gets from taking a razor blade to her skin. The ruby blood that oozes from the narrow crevasse of the fresh cut isn’t terrifying. Instead, she is comforted because the pain she feels deep inside her is released. It’s as though by cutting her flesh Nancy is exorcising her fears, guilt, self-loathing, and other pain too complex to understand. For a brief time, Nancy feels totally in control that is until the next cutting session. Do you know someone like Nancy? Millions of people like Nancy choose to cut or injure themselves not from the need for attention, but as a way of coping with emotional hurt, anger, sadness, and guilt. What is self-harm? Self-harm is any behavior that someone engages in to intentionally hurt themselves. This can include cutting, burning, scratching, hitting, or other forms of physical injury. Self-harm can also include non-physical behaviors, such as binge