Posts Tagged body
Depression And Sleep Disorders – How One Affects The Other
Posted by admin in Depression, Info on March 5, 2011
By Rose White Young
When a person has enough sleep (assuming they are fit and healthy), they have enough motivation and energy to go about their activities for the day. Sleep deprivation is a common problem and can cause many medical and emotional problems. Also many underlying medical conditions such as depression and mental health illness can cause sleep deprivation and sleep problems in general. Sleep is often considered a luxury by many. A lot of people do not get enough sleep. It is important to get a good night’s sleep everyday because of a number of reasons.
Melatonin, a hormone secreted by the pineal gland (a small, cone-shaped gland found in the roof of the brain’s third ventricle) is responsible for the sleep-wake cycle of a human being. The levels of melatonin rise and fall during the course of the day. The levels peak during the night, thus making people drowsy and the lowest levels occur around noon. Melatonin is believed to trigger sleep and it helps to establish the body’s day-night cycle.
It is a well-known fact that when a person doesn’t get enough sleep, his or her performance the next day is greatly affected. But how much sleep is enough? Everybody’s needs are different and it is advisable to know how many hours are considered enough for a person. For adults, the range could be from a measly 3 hours to ten hours. It actually depends on a person’s basal sleep need (the amount of sleep needed by the body in order to perform in its optimal phase) and the sleep debt (the amount of missed or lost sleep because of factors like poor sleeping habits and the like). Read the rest of this entry »
Social Media Isn’t Always Child’s Play
Posted by admin in Depression, Info on March 1, 2011
By Marc LeVine
Consider this…You are contacted by a childhood friend on Facebook, who has 1200 friends. You, on the other hand, have just over 100 friends listed on your own Facebook page. What kind of thoughts immediately run through your mind?
Might you wonder why this friend of yours is so popular and you are not? Or, might you feel slightly embarrassed that this other person may perceive you as something less than a people person, even if you really are – perhaps, just not on Facebook?
The World to a Child is Imposing Enough without New Threats
As an adult, you may be much better-equipped and emotionally mature enough to deal with these types of (sometimes) unsettling thoughts and emotions. To an already at-risk child, the misinterpretation of the written word and/or a misunderstanding within the context of some casual situation may be harmful to his or her mental health. The child is much more apt to internalize and dwell on feelings of rejection than most adults, who are able to reconcile these emotions with the understanding that we are all capable of making misinterpretations and having misunderstandings; that it is perfectly acceptable to have fewer friends than someone else (often it’s a quality over quantity matter anyway); and that rejection – when it inevitably does come- is a part of normal, daily living.
The first week of May is Children’s Mental Health Awareness Week. It is the proper time to reflect on how the changing ways of the world may be impacting our children’s mental health. Actually, we should be interested in this area of concern, every single day of the year. It is a critical consideration. If we can shield a child from any form of mental illness, we can help assure them of a happy and productive future. The cumulative effect of this kind of pro-activity is a much better world filled with well-adjusted children and adults. That being said, we have our work cut out for us with many great mental health challenges ahead. Read the rest of this entry »