No- a hypochondriac does not know that they are a hypochondriac. If you have hypochondria, then you have constant fears and worries that you may have a serious illness. Even if you go to your doctor, and the doctor does a full history, physical examination, and laboratory studies, and the doctor tells you that nothing […]
Does social isolation affect the brain? Here are the 5 tips to overcome social isolation
A warm welcome to our guest blogger, James Crook, who is a frequent visitor of Anxiety Boss and wanted to contribute his article to our platform. Foremost, let’s begin by clarifying the difference between social isolation and solitude. Being in a state of solitude is different in a sense that it is by choice. The […]
How To Tell If Someone Is Anxious Or Depressed On Facebook, And How To Help
On Facebook and other social media platforms, we all have friends who actively post pictures and their thoughts. Most of the posts and pictures on Facebook are of a happy nature, with posts of special events, vacations, selfies, and other uplifting content. In fact, many people post their happiest moments and their best selfies on Facebook, […]
What Are The Early Signs Of Depression?
The early signs of depression occur during times of stress. During these times of stress, then you have to look at your thoughts and reactions to these stressors. It is these thoughts and reactions to stress that determine if you will go on to develop depression or anxiety. As an example, let’s say you are […]
How Depression Evolves- The Negative Cycle of Depression
Depression is a mood disorder, and is characterized by low moods, apathy, sleep problems, decreased interests, feelings of guilt, feelings of hopelessness, low energy level, poor concentration, poor appetite, and thoughts of self-harm. Depression is also known as major depressive disorder. In this article, I discuss how depression develops as illustrated in a flowchart. Here is […]
Does Chronic Stress Lead to Anxiety or Depression?
Stress is part of everyday life for everyone…we all have disappointments, make our mistakes, and endure daily mishaps. Perhaps you lost your keys today and it made you late for work…maybe you let a friend down and are now feeling guilty about it…or maybe you are just experiencing a lot of pressure and deadlines at […]
How Do Antidepressants Cause Seizures?
Seizures can be a serious adverse effect of antidepressant medications. Antidepressant medications induce seizures by lowering the seizure threshold. Tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs) and bupropion (Wellbutrin) are the antidepressants most associated with seizures. TCAs, which includes imipramine (Tofranil), induce seizures at a rate of 0.3% to 0.6% at effective doses (Rosenstein et al., 1993). Bupropion induces […]
Do People With Depression Often Take Shortcuts?
Asking this question is indicative of society’s view of depression and mental illness in general. Shortcuts have a negative connotation, as it implies that those who take shortcuts are not doing the necessary work for a desired outcome. In addition, those who take shortcuts have outcomes that are attained at the expense of someone else, […]
Study shows two different types of depression may be addressed with different antidepressants
A big problem with treatment of depression with antidepressants is that it is literally a guessing game, as there are dozens of antidepressants to choose from. There is no scientific process in choosing which antidepressant to start…basically, psychiatrists choose the antidepressant they are most comfortable prescribing. However, this guessing game has bad outcomes, as most […]
What is the association between antidepressants and violent behavior?
The recent news of a Germanwings pilot with depression who appeared to commit murder-suicide has people wondering about what could cause this. All we know from news reports is that he was treated for “suicidal tendencies,” and received psychotherapy, or counseling. But nothing has been reported about whether he took antidepressant medication. It’s a valid […]