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Mandala 4 Coloring Page
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Seguy Art Deco Designs 97
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Watching Birds, Trees is Good for Mental Health
According to a study led by University of Exeter researcher Daniel Cox, people living in neighborhoods with more birds, shrubs and trees are less likely to suffer from depression, anxiety and stress.
Dr. Cox and his colleagues from the University of Maryland, the University of Queensland in Australia, the British Trust for Ornithology and the University of Exeter in the UK, surveyed mental health in 263 people from different ages, incomes and ethnicities.
“All the participants lived within the urban limits of the so-called ‘Cranfield triangle,’ a region in southern England, UK, comprising the three adjacent towns of Milton Keynes, Luton, and Bedford,” the researchers said.
They found benefits for mental health of being able to see birds, shrubs and trees around the home, whether people lived in urban or more leafy suburban neighborhoods. They also found that those who spent less time out of doors than usual in the previous week were more likely to report they were anxious or depressed. MORE
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Movement Therapies May Aid Those with Schizophrenia
Interesting post from Psych Central:
A study using a procedure called the “rubber hand illusion” has found new evidence that people experiencing schizophrenia have a weakened sense of body ownership.
It has also produced the first documented case of a spontaneous, out-of-body experience in the laboratory.
These findings suggest that movement therapy, which trains people to be focused and centered on their own bodies, including some forms of yoga and dance, could be helpful for many of the 2.2 million people in the United States who suffer from schizophrenia.
Movement Therapies May Aid Those with Schizophrenia
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Modern Slavery
Nearly 30 million people around the world are living as slaves, according to a new index ranking 162 countries. The index was compiled by Australian-based rights organization Walk Free Foundation using a definition of modern slavery that includes debt bondage, forced marriage and human trafficking.http://www.globalslaveryindex.org/
http://www.walkfree.org/
US trafficking report reveals ‘modern slavery’ toll
New global index exposes ‘modern slavery’ worldwide
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Fall transition
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Resiliency
What does it mean to be resilient? Bounce back, bounce off of, withstand, remain standing. Is it a part of our hereditary, our inborn temperament? Perhaps it’s a positive self concept. An ability to remember the past, live in the present, and look to the future. Could it also involve hitting rock bottom, being aware of limitations, seeking support? Perhaps it’s a mentor, a will to live, a focus on healing.
Could it be that resiliency is a connection with spirituality, a commitment to listen to others, a willingness to be truthful? One thing is certain that resiliency is different for everyone, with some commonality mixed in here and there.
AS a child, I found/rediscovered resiliency outside, often in my favorite tree.
A tree stands alone
Wind rustles leaves together
We sway arm in branch
As an adult, I have found resiliency many places and many ways. Often, in combining the practice of creative movement, tai chi and hatha yoga.
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Yoga may help treat depression
Antidepressant medication is considered a primary treatment for major depression, but the drugs fail to fully work for more than half of Americans who use them. Now, researchers suggest a way to boost their effectiveness: breathing-based yoga.
Sudarshan Kriya yoga may be an effective add-on therapy for patients with major depression who fail to respond to antidepressants, say researchers.
In a pilot study published in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, researchers reveal how 8 weeks of Sudarshan Kriya yoga improved symptoms of anxiety and depression in patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) who were not responding to antidepressants.
According to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America, depression is the most common mental illness in the United States. In 2014, around 15.7 million adults experienced at least one major depressive episode in the past 12 months.
Symptoms of depression may include persistent sadness, feelings of hopelessness, pessimism, guilt or worthlessness, fatigue, loss of interest in activities, reduced appetite, weight loss, and insomnia.
An individual is usually diagnosed with MDD if they experience at least five of these symptoms for at least 2 weeks, and such depressive episodes may commonly occur after a traumatic event, such as the death of a loved one or a medical illness.
Antidepressants – such as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) – are often the first port of call when it comes to treatment for MDD, but patients do not always respond to the drugs. While additional medication may be offered, this can lead to unpleasant side effects that cause patients to stop treatment completely, making relapses more likely.
Now, Dr. Anup Sharma, a neuropsychiatry research fellow at the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Pennsylvania’s Perelman School of Medicine, and team suggest Sudarshan Kriya yoga may be an effective, low-cost, non-drug approach to help patients who do not respond to antidepressants.
Investigating how yoga might benefit patients with MDD
Sudarshan Kriya yoga is a meditation technique that focuses on rhythmic breathing exercises, with the aim of placing the mind into a deep, restful state.
“Sudarshan Kriya yoga gives people an active method to experience a deep meditative state that’s easy to learn and incorporate in diverse settings,” notes Dr. Sharma.
While previous research has suggested Sudarshan Kriya yoga to be beneficial for patients with MDD, Dr. Sharma and colleagues say there have been no clinical studies assessing whether the practice is beneficial in outpatient settings.
What is more, the researchers note that there has been a lack of well-designed studies investigating the possible benefits of yoga for depression, despite a significant rise in the number of Americans taking up the practice.
For their study, the team enrolled 25 adults who had been diagnosed with MDD. All patients had been taking antidepressants for at least 8 weeks but had seen no significant improvement in symptoms.
Patients were randomized to one of two groups for 8 weeks: a Sudarshan Kriya yoga group or a “waitlist” group.
Subjects in the yoga group were required to take part in a six-session program in the first week, which incorporated Sudarshan Kriya yoga exercises, yoga postures, sitting medication, and stress education. For the remaining 7 weeks, participants were asked to attend a once-weekly Sudarshan Kriya yoga follow-up session, as well as complete a practice session at home.
Subjects in the waitlist group – acting as the control group – were offered the yoga intervention at the end of the 8 weeks. Both groups continued with their antidepressant therapy during the study period.
Yoga improved symptoms of anxiety, depression
At study baseline and after the 8 weeks, participants’ symptoms of anxiety and depression were measured using the 17-item Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS-17). Subjects’ mean score at baseline was 22.0, representing severe depression.
After the 8-week study period, participants in the Sudarshan Kriya yoga group saw their HDRS-17 score improve by an average of 10.27 points, while the control group showed no significant improvement.
As a secondary measure, the researchers monitored participants’ anxiety and depression symptoms using the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) and Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI).
Again, the control group showed no major improvement over the 8 weeks, while the Sudarshan Kriya yoga group showed an average 15.48-point improvement in BDI score and a 5.19-point improvement in BAI score.
Based on their results, Dr. Sharma and team say Sudarshan Kriya yoga may be a promising add-on therapy for patients with MDD for whom antidepressants are ineffective.
“With such a large portion of patients who do not fully respond to antidepressants, it’s important we find new avenues that work best for each person to beat their depression. Here, we have a promising, lower-cost therapy that could potentially serve as an effective, non-drug approach for patients battling this disease.”
Dr. Anup Sharma
The researchers now plan to assess the effects of Sudarshan Kriya yoga in a larger group of patients with depression, with a particular focus on how the practice affects brain structure and function.
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US Army and augmented reality goggles for dogs
The US Army has shown off augmented reality goggles for combat dogs, designed to let them receive orders at a distance.
The technology, made by a firm called Command Sight, is managed by the US Army Research Laboratory.
Military dogs can scout ahead for explosives and other hazards, but need instructions.
The goggles are designed to let their handlers direct them, safely out of harm’s way. READ ARTICLE AT THE BBC HERE
Not a combat ready dog -
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