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Tag: depression symptoms

  • Tips For Handling The Summertime Blues

    Tips For Handling The Summertime Blues

    Symptoms of summer-onset seasonal affective disorder include insomnia, weight loss, agitation, anxiety and reduced appetite. 

    While it’s expected that wintertime, with its long, dark days, cold weather that prohibits socialization, and stressful holidays, would co-habitate with depression – it’s not the only season of sadness.

    Summer can bring on or increase depression, too, and just like in wintertime, there are coping mechanisms that can reduce the impact of the struggle.

    Seasonal affective disorder, which is more commonly associated with winter months, can also relate to the summertime as well. Specifically called summer-onset SAD, Mayo Clinic notes the symptoms as insomnia, weight loss, agitation, anxiety and reduced appetite. 

    If you have a family member with summer-onset SAD, have major depressive or bipolar disorder, or in some cases have a trauma associated with hot summer months, you may be more at risk for this mental health issue.

    To reduce the impact of summer-onset SAD, Dr. Norman Rosenthal, M.D. and the first psychiatrist to describe and label SAD, tells Self magazine that reducing light might be a key factor. While those who struggle with winter SAD can buy light lamps to increase their exposure, reducing exposure to bright lights is recommended for the hot months. 

    A light-sensitivity could also be a trigger for summer-onset SAD. It’s understood that light deeply impacts the brain and our hormones; melatonin, the “sleep hormone” is released only when triggered by a dramatic light reduction, for instance. 

    While there is no research supporting a light reduction, it is simple to experiment with and without negative side-effects. Dr. Rosenthal told Self, “These people [might] benefit from dark glasses, blackout shades in their bedroom, and other measures that reduce the amount of ambient light.” 

    Traditional cognitive behavioral therapy can be an important tool for those with summer SAD. A therapist can assist in identifying triggers for worsening symptoms, as well as unearthing the most effective treatment. 

    If the heat itself causes agitation or worsening symptoms, some people find that staying indoors during midday and utilizing cooling methods such as cold packs, air conditioning, and fans, can be helpful. Swimming is a good option for both cooling down and assisting the body in balancing hormones that can worsen depression.

    Those who experience summer-onset SAD and are already being treated for depression or anxiety with medication may find it helpful to work with their psychiatrist to increase their medication in the beginning of every summer, before the symptoms begin to present.

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • Study: Psychedelics Change The Way People With Depression Read Faces

    Study: Psychedelics Change The Way People With Depression Read Faces

    Researchers believe that even one dose of a psychedelic could change the way that people read facial expressions.

    Psychedelics may help alleviate the symptoms of depression and anxiety by making sufferers more adept at reading other people’s facial expressions, according to a recent review of scientific studies.

    The review, published in the journal Therapeutic Advances in Psychopharmacology, looked at eight previous studies that examined the effects of psychedelics. The authors of the review found that psychedelics changed how people read facial expressions, and that change had an effect on their symptoms of mental illness.

    “Our most consistent finding was that these drugs reduced the recognition of negative emotions and modulated amygdala activity to these stimuli. This effect was correlated with antidepressive effects in depressed patients,” study authors wrote.

    They noted that the pool they reviewed was small, so there is a need for further review. Still, they said the results were promising.

    “Despite the small sample sizes, results suggest that serotonergic hallucinogens show promising beneficial effects on deficits in recognition of emotions in facial expressions,” they wrote.

    People with depression and anxiety often have unusual patterns of social cognition, in particular when it comes to interpreting other people’s facial expressions.

    “Some studies show that people with anxiety and mood disorders have deficits in the recognition of facial expressions,” study authors wrote. “For example, in social anxiety disorder, which is characterized by fear of undergoing criticism or negative judgment in social situations, there is hypervigilance to facial expressions of fear, sadness, and joy, and these expressions act as indicators of threat or social reinforcement according to the phenotype of the disorder.”

    Researchers found that even one dose of a psychedelic could change the way that people read facial expressions, and help alleviate depression symptoms.

    “Indeed, the studies reviewed showed that a single dose or a few doses of LSD or psilocybin was associated with a modified pattern of recognition of negative emotions that could be interpreted as beneficial, since several of these studies showed that these modifications were correlated with increases in positive mood and/or anxiolytic and antidepressant effects,” the study authors wrote.

    Psychedelics weren’t the only drugs that changed emotional facial perceptions. The study authors also found that MDMA (ecstasy) has similar effects.

    “There is also evidence that the serotonergic drug MDMA consistently reduces identification of negative emotions in tasks of face recognition and decreases the activity of the amygdala,” they wrote, adding that this could be similar to the way pharmaceutical antidepressants work.

    ”These mechanisms, associated with the capacity of MDMA to enhance serotonergic tone in the prefrontal cortex, could be shared mechanisms with traditional antidepressants and classic hallucinogens for emotional regulation in subjects with mood and anxiety disorders.”

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • Virtual Reality Could Be Used To Treat Stubborn Depression Symptoms

    Virtual Reality Could Be Used To Treat Stubborn Depression Symptoms

    One research team is on a mission to treat one of the most difficult and overlooked parts of depression to treat using virtual reality.

    Researchers are currently testing virtual reality programs on depression patients with the idea that going through positive experiences, even virtually, and focusing on the positive aspects of the experience could effectively treat anhedonia.

    This symptom, characterized by a lack of interest in anything and an inability to feel pleasure, is one of the most difficult parts of depression to treat and is often overlooked, according to University of California psychiatry researcher Michelle Craske.

    “Most treatments, up until now, have done an OK job at reducing negative [symptoms of depression], but a very poor job at helping patients become more positive,” said Craske to STAT.

    Using virtual reality, Crask and her colleagues guide patients through dives into coral reefs and tours through Venice, instructing them to report every pleasurable detail. This approach, called positive affect therapy, trains patients to pay more attention to what makes them feel good and hopefully amplifies feelings of pleasure and joy.

    Thanks to the development of virtual reality technology, it’s possible to bring all kinds of incredible experiences into one office or into people’s homes. Patients can return to their favorite experiences and explore what makes them happy without spending a ton of money.

    “Mental health and the environment are inseparable,” said University of Oxford psychologist Dr. Daniel Freeman. “The brilliant thing about virtual reality is that you can provide simulations in the environment and have people repeatedly go into them.”

    Research on this therapy is still in preliminary stages, but the early results of Craske’s work look promising. In fact, Craske’s team is looking to work with virtual reality companies specifically to develop a program that adapts to patient mood indicators.

    “If, for example, a patient smiles at a VR character who waves and says hello, that character might walk over and strike up a friendly conversation.”

    Virtual reality is currently being tested for possible application in all steps of mental health treatment, including the earliest ones.

    According to an article in WIRED earlier this year, researchers are exploring whether this new technology could be used to better diagnose mental and neurological conditions such as depression, PTSD, and Alzheimer’s.

    “With some psychiatric disorders, for example OCD or panic disorder, patients usually experience their symptoms in their personal environment or in crowded places, and not in the clinician’s room,” said University of Amsterdam’s Department of Psychiatry researcher Dr. Martine van Bennekom. “With VR it is possible to immerse patients in an exterior environment while the clinician can observe symptoms and interview the patients about these symptoms and underlying thoughts.”

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • Some Pregnant Women Turn To Substance Use When Depression Is Untreated

    Some Pregnant Women Turn To Substance Use When Depression Is Untreated

    A new study investigated why pregnant women had a lower treatment rate of depression than non-pregnant women. 

    A large percentage of pregnant women who are experiencing symptoms of depression do not get help, and sometimes turn to substance use to self-medicate, risking harms to themselves and their fetus. 

    A study published in Psychiatric Services found that just 49% of pregnant women who had experienced a major depressive episode were treated. This is compared with 57% of non-pregnant women who had a major depressive episode. 

    Researchers were surprised to find that pregnant women had a lower treatment rate, since they are visiting healthcare providers more often than non-pregnant women, and therefore—in theory—should have more access to screening and treatment. 

    “What we would expect is that pregnant women are visiting the ob-gyn more and they should have more opportunities to see a psychologist or psychiatrist,” study author Maria X. Sanmartin told The Philadelphia Inquirer. “But that is not what we found.”

    Instead, researchers saw that all women had low treatment rates, but pregnant women fared especially poorly. 

    “In general, treatment rates are very, very low,” Sanmartin said. 

    The lack of treatment could lead women—including pregnant women—to self-medicate. The study found that in the month before the study, 6% of pregnant women used opioids, 17% used marijuana, and 23% used alcohol. The real rates may be even higher, since pregnant women may underreport their substance use for fear of facing criticism or punishment. 

    For pregnant women who did seek help, medication was the most common form of treatment. While this is a good start, people with depression also need access to talk therapy to see optimal results, Sanmartin said. 

    “The easiest way to cope with these things is to just give medication, but medication alone might not be what would help the patient,” she said. Earlier this year, a government task force recommended that all pregnant women be screened for depression. Although this is a massive initiative, proponents say that the effort is well worth it. 

    “The benefits of increased maternal and infant wellness and decreased stigma to seek mental health assistance would likely lead to less of a toll on our healthcare system than when mental health concerns are unaddressed,” American Counseling Association president Simone Lambert said.  

    Jeff Temple, a University of Texas psychologist in the department of obstetrics and gynecology, told Time that the measure is important, but will require significant mental health resources. 

    “I am very happy to see anything related to prevention, whether it’s mental health generally or perinatal depression specifically. If we can prevent problems from occurring, not only do we do a great service to humans, but [the health care system] saves a great deal of money,” he said. 

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • Ketamine's Effect On Depression Examined

    Ketamine's Effect On Depression Examined

    A new study offers a better understanding of the way ketamine helps lift depression symptoms.

    Last month, the FDA approved a ketamine-based depression treatment for certain patients.

    The drug, esketamine, is said to relieve depression symptoms “in hours instead of weeks,” marketed for people who haven’t found success in other antidepressants.

    While it is yet unknown how exactly ketamine helps lift depression symptoms, a new study gives us a better understanding of how it works.

    The research confirms that ketamine triggers synapse growth, effectively rewiring the brain, Scientific American reports. They were able to “visualize and manipulate” the brains of stressed mice—demonstrating how ketamine first changes brain circuit function that improved behavior in “depressed mice” in up to 3 hours. Later, the drug stimulated regrowth of synapses in the brain.

    “It’s a remarkable engineering feat, where they were able to visualize changes in neural circuits over time, corresponding with behavioral effects of ketamine,” said Carlos Zarate of the National Institute of Mental Health, who was not involved in the study. “This work will likely set a path for what treatments should be doing before we move them into the clinic.”

    “Our findings open up new avenues for research, suggesting that interventions aimed at enhancing the survival of these new synapses might be useful for extending ketamine’s antidepressant effects,” said study lead Conor Liston of Weill Cornell Medicine.

    In March, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved esketamine (also known as Spravato) for people who did not respond to at least two other antidepressant treatments. The drug can only be administered under supervision by one’s doctor, and is said to relieve depression in just hours.

    “There has been a long-standing need for additional effective treatments for treatment-resistant depression, a serious and life-threatening condition,” said Dr. Tiffany Farchione of the FDA.

    Ketamine differs from traditional antidepressants by acting on glutamate, a chemical messenger in the brain, rather than the “monoamine” neurotransmitters (serotonin, norepinephrine, dopamine) that traditional antidepressants act on. Glutamate plays an important role in the changes that synapses undergo in response to experiences that underlie learning and memory, Scientific American explains.

    A 23-year-old man suffering from depression, anxiety and other mental disorders shared his experience with ketamine infusion therapy with The Fix. “It helped with every aspect: anxiety, depression, psychosis. I know that’s not what it’s for, but in my case it changed everything,” he said.

    However, medical providers caution that while ketamine shows a lot of promise, there’s still more research to be done on its long-term effects on mental health patients.

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • Can Anti-Inflammatory Meds Help With Depression?

    Can Anti-Inflammatory Meds Help With Depression?

    Previous research has shown that inflammation can increase risk of depression and make antidepressants less effective. 

    Anti-inflammatory medications designed to treat conditions like arthritis can help alleviate depression symptoms, according to recent research conducted in Denmark. 

    The research looked at 36 studies conducted around the globe, covering nearly 10,000 patients who had depression. 

    “Our study shows that a combination of anti-inflammatory medicine, which is what arthritis medicine is, and antidepressants can have an additional beneficial effect on patients with a depression,” said researcher Ole Köhler-Forsberg. “The effect was also present when anti-inflammatory medicine was compared with a placebo in patients with a physical disease and depressive symptoms.”

    Köhler-Forsberg said that the findings could help improve care for people with depression, many of whom do not experience relief by using depression medications alone. 

    “This definitely bolsters our chances of being able to provide personalized treatment for individual patients in the longer term. Of course we always have to weigh the effects against the potential side-effects of the anti-inflammatory drugs,” he said. “We still need to clarify which patients will benefit from the medicine and the size of the doses they will require. The findings are interesting, but patients should consult their doctor before initiating additional treatment.”

    Previous research has shown that inflammation can increase risk of depression and make antidepressants less effective. 

    “Crosstalk between inflammatory pathways and neurocircuits in the brain can lead to behavioural responses, such as avoidance and alarm, that are likely to have provided early humans with an evolutionary advantage in their interactions with pathogens and predators,” authors of one study wrote. “However, in modern times, such interactions between inflammation and the brain appear to drive the development of depression and may contribute to non-responsiveness to current antidepressant therapies.”

    Michael Eriksen Benros, research director at the Mental Health Centre Copenhagen, said that the new study is important because it shows significant improvements for people with depression. 

    “What’s persuasive is that we’ve found that several of the anti-inflammatory drugs have what can be characterized as a medium to a large effect on depression and depressive symptoms, in particular because the results build on almost 10,000 people who have participated in the placebo-controlled studies with anti-inflammatory treatment,” he said.

    “The results from the meta-analysis are particularly promising not only because of an effect of the anti-inflammatory medicine on its own but also due to the supplementary effect when the anti-inflammatory medicine is given simultaneously with the antidepressants that are used today.”

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • Rejected Depression Drug Could Provide Relief For Opioid Withdrawal

    Rejected Depression Drug Could Provide Relief For Opioid Withdrawal

    A rejected depression drug is being reexamined as a potential non-addictive treatment for opioid withdrawal symptoms. 

    A drug that was developed to treat depression but was ultimately shown in clinical trials to be ineffective could have a new purpose: helping people overcome withdrawal symptoms when they stop using opioids. 

    The drug, rapastinel, binds to the same receptors as ketamine, NMDA receptors, and was being explored as a treatment for depression, similar to the newly-approved esketamine. However, in March, clinical trials showed that rapastinel was not effective in alleviating depression symptoms. 

    Yet, researchers found that in rats, rapastinel provided relief from opioid withdrawal symptoms, according to a press release. The findings were presented at the 2019 Experimental Biology Meeting of the American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics, held April 6-9 in Orlando. 

    Researchers Julia Ferrante, an undergraduate at Villanova University, and Cynthia M. Kuhn, a professor of pharmacology and cancer biology at Duke University, say that rapastinel could serve as a non-addictive medication to treat opioid withdrawal symptoms. 

    “We have found that rapastinel has potential as a new treatment for opioid dependence, as it is effective in reducing withdrawal signs and has not been shown to produce any negative side effects,” Ferrante said. “By reducing withdrawal symptoms, the patient feels less discomfort during treatment, and we hypothesize this would lead to a decreased risk of relapse.”

    Currently, buprenorphine and methadone are used to manage symptoms of opioid withdrawal, but since both are opioids they are problematic for people with opioid use disorder. Ketamine has been explored as a possible way to manage withdrawal symptoms, but it also has the possibility for abuse, and can cause hallucinations that are particularly problematic for people with underlying mental health issues. 

    During the research, rats with opioid dependence were given saline, ketamine, or rapastinel. Those given rapastinel showed the fewest withdrawal symptoms. With that data in mind, Ferrante said that in humans rapastinel could potentially be delivered intravenously in an outpatient setting, in order to help people through the painful opioid withdrawal process. 

    “Our research suggests that new alternatives to standard treatments for opioid dependence have potential to be safer and more effective,” Ferrante said. 

    Unfortunately, that goal may be a long way off, since additional research is needed before rapastinel could even begin human trials. 

    “Rapastinel research for opioid dependency is currently only being done in rodents, but if the drug continues to have successful trials, it may enter clinical trials for use in humans,” Ferrante said. 

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • Veterans Affairs To Offer Ketamine-Based Nasal Spray For Depression Treatment

    Veterans Affairs To Offer Ketamine-Based Nasal Spray For Depression Treatment

    The recently approved drug is said to relieve symptoms of depression as well as suicidal ideation in a short timeframe. 

    Veterans Affairs officials are now allowing VA doctors to prescribe Spravato, a medically viable variation of ketamine, to service members who suffer from depression.

    The drug has been known to beat some symptoms of depression extraordinarily quickly—taking just a few short days, or hours instead of weeks. Suicidal thoughts have been seen to dissipate in a timeframe as short as 40 minutes.

    “That first skyrocket up was my first infusion,” said Matthew Ayo, a 23-year-old who underwent ketamine treatment. “I went from severe depression to no depression symptoms.”

    Doctors will be able to prescribe Spravato only if at least two other antidepressants have been tried and failed to produce results.

    “We’re pleased to be able to expand options for Veterans with depression who have not responded to other treatments,” said VA secretary Robert Wilkie.

    Of the United States’ 20 million veterans, an estimated 14%—or 2.8 million veterans—are diagnosed with depression. Of those veterans, one-third to one-half may suffer from treatment-resistant depression, which is why it was so critical to find something new and fast.

    “Controlled clinical trials that studied the safety and efficacy of this drug, along with careful review through the FDA’s drug approval process, including a robust discussion with our external advisory committees, were important in our decision to approve this treatment,” said Dr. Tiffany Farchione, acting director of the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research Division of Psychiatry Products.

    Spravato isn’t without side effects, however—including sedation, blood pressure spikes, and dissociation, including feeling paralysis or out-of-body sensations. Ironically, misuse may lead to suicidal thoughts and behaviors. Hence, the FDA approved the drug for VA prescriptions with restrictions.

    Veterans approved for the treatment would use the nasal spray under medical supervision. Afterwards, medical staff would monitor the patient for two hours. The patient would have to return for two doses a week for the first month, and one dose every two or three weeks in the months following. To prevent potential misuse, there is no option for home treatment.

    Ketamine’s new role is a far cry from its former life as “Special K,” an anesthetic that saw use on the dance floor as well as the battlefield. In the latter usage, military medical staff found that those prescribed with ketamine for pain also had fewer symptoms of PTSD.

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • How Working Long Hours & Weekends Affects Mental Health

    How Working Long Hours & Weekends Affects Mental Health

    Working longer hours during the week increased depression symptoms in women, according to a new study.

    Working longer hours is associated with increased risk of depression in women, but not men, while working weekends increased symptoms of depression in both genders, according to a recent study. 

    The study, published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, found that men who worked all or most weekends had 3.4% more symptoms of depression than men who didn’t work weekends, while women who worked weekends experienced 4.6% more depressive symptoms than their counterparts who didn’t work weekends. 

    Interestingly, working more hours during the week increased depression symptoms in women, but not in men. Women who worked 55 hours a week had 7.3% more depressive symptoms than those who worked 30-40 hours. 

    Lead study author Gill Weston told Science Daily that there are likely social aspects at play to explain the difference between how men and women respond to extra work hours. 

    “This is an observational study, so although we cannot establish the exact causes, we do know many women face the additional burden of doing a larger share of domestic labor than men, leading to extensive total work hours, added time pressures and overwhelming responsibilities,” Weston said. 

    The results also likely have to do with the type of jobs that people are working, she added. The study found that people of both genders who worked weekends were less satisfied with their careers and were more likely to be doing low-skilled work. 

    “Additionally women who work most weekends tend to be concentrated in low-paid service sector jobs, which have been linked to higher levels of depression,” Weston said. 

    She added that factors outside of work hours also contribute to the risk of depression. 

    “Women in general are more likely to be depressed than men, and this was no different in the study,” she said. “Independent of their working patterns, we also found that workers with the most depressive symptoms were older, on lower incomes, smokers, in physically demanding jobs, and who were dissatisfied at work.”

    Weston suggested that having more flexible schedules could help counteract depressive symptoms that are connected to work, particularly for women. 

    “We hope our findings will encourage employers and policymakers to think about how to reduce the burdens and increase support for women who work long or irregular hours—without restricting their ability to work when they wish to. More sympathetic working practices could bring benefits both for workers and for employers—of both sexes.”

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • "Smiling Depression" Explained

    "Smiling Depression" Explained

    Low mood is not the only feature of depression. 

    Depression is associated with sadness, crying and an inability to get out of bed. However, up to 40% of people who have depression may have “smiling depression” and not exhibit these symptoms.

    “It can be very hard to spot people suffering from smiling depression. They may seem like they don’t have a reason to be sad – they have a job, an apartment and maybe even children or a partner. They smile when you greet them and can carry pleasant conversations. In short, they put on a mask to the outside world while leading seemingly normal and active lives,” Olivia Remes, a doctoral candidate at the University of Cambridge, wrote for Science Alert.

    Many people are able to “keep up appearances” even while they’re feeling down. Marissa, a 22-year-old from New Jersey, posted a picture of her smiling at an adorable puppy, with the caption, “Sometimes it’s the little things that bring the most joy.”

    However, Marissa told Women’s Health how she really felt that day: “I wish I had half of this puppy’s joy. Earlier today I was driving, and looking for objects to crash into. My life feels so overwhelming that I just can’t deal.”

    Smiling depression isn’t a medical term, but depression with atypical features is. People who suffer from depression with atypical features might have primary symptoms including weight gain or appetite increase, sleepiness, or social isolation.

    However, they can still experience positive reactions to good events, whereas many people with typical depression might not be able to tap into the joy brought by good news or positive occurrence. 

    This can make it hard for some people to recognize that they’re depressed, Dr. Michelle B. Riba, of the University of Michigan Comprehensive Depression Center, told Health.

    “Many people will come to their doctor complaining about sleep problems, or headaches, not realizing that it’s a mood disorder because they don’t have low mood. Not all symptoms of depression always occur at once.”

    Another woman who spoke with Women’s Health posted a picture of herself in a shirt that said “Be kind always.” However, that didn’t actually fit her mood, she explained. 

    “I feel so down I almost broke into tears at the grocery store today. I wish I could have extended this kindness to myself,” the 33-year-old said. 

    The feelings of smiling depression can sneak up and be surprising, said Rebecca, 36, who posted a photo of herself smiling at a friend’s wedding. 

    “After this, I snuck out of the reception to cry in my hotel because I suddenly felt depressed without knowing why,” she said. 

    View the original article at thefix.com