Writing - positive pasts & best futures
9th August 2009
If you would like a printable handout of this blog post click here. There is lots of research - approaching two hundred studies - on the physical and mental benefits of writing about emotional upheavals in our lives. Professor Jamie Pennebaker gives further details of this approach on his excellent …
Recent research: 3 studies on diet & (cardiovascular) health, 2 on fish oil, dementia & postpartum depression, and 1 on walnuts!
6th August 2009
Here are half a dozen studies on diet (see below for all abstracts and links). The first three are about the benefits of healthy lifestyle. Trichopoulou & colleagues evaluated the contribution of nine widely accepted components of the Mediterranean diet (high intake of vegetables, fruits and nuts, legumes, fish, and …
The health professions: selfless vocation or well-paid career?
2nd August 2009
The overlap between money and the health professions seems to involve a complex, multi-faceted set of issues. I was triggered into thinking about this by the coincidence of three events. One was a conversation at the recent annual BABCP psychotherapy conference, a second was reading Lewis Hyde's book "The gift", …
Recent research: 3 studies on internet-delivered therapy, 2 on speed of antidepressant response, and 1 on therapy effectiveness
30th July 2009
Here are three studies (for all abstracts & links see below) highlighting the increasingly encouraging results being reported for internet-delivered psychological interventions. Van't Hof, Cuijpers et al report on " ... a systematic review of meta-analyses on the efficacy of self-help interventions, including internet-guided therapy, for depression and anxiety disorders". …
Autogenic training: first session
27th July 2009
Here are handouts and Autogenic relaxation exercises from the first "lesson" of an eight session Autogenic Training (AT) class. This first "class" concentrates on relaxation of the voluntary muscles of the arms & legs. It is probably sensible to stay with this focus for at least a week or two …
Recent research: six articles on wellbeing – meaning in life, reappraisal, positive emotions, and neighbourliness
23rd July 2009
Here are six research articles (see below for abstracts and links) loosely falling into the overall area of wellbeing. Boyle, Barnes et al report on the association between purpose in life and mortality in older people. They found that greater purpose in life was associated with considerably reduced mortality even …
Autogenic training: an introduction
20th July 2009
Autogenic Training (AT) is a method of producing deeply relaxed, peaceful states of mind and body. AT can accurately be viewed as both a form of relaxation and a form of meditation - the "Four aspects of inner focus" chart illustrates mechanisms of action. Autogenics is often taught as a …
Exeter conference day 3: positive psychology, imagery symposium, compassion lecture, & closing remarks
18th July 2009
Third and last day of the full conference. In fact we finish at lunch time today. Up, then an interesting conversation about bipolar disorder at breakfast. It's fun how I can chat with almost any of the well over 1,000 conference participants and almost certainly we'll have a whole lot …
Exeter conference day 2: mindfulness & health anxiety, body dysmorphic disorder, therapeutic alliance, and politics
17th July 2009
Second day of the full conference. Again good conversation at breakfast ... great. Then off along small tracks through the university grounds to end up at a symposium on research using Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) to help people suffering from severe Health Anxiety Disorder. Four papers were presented. Although the …
Exeter conference day 1: resistant depression, thought suppression, self-help, & rumination from the horse's mouth
16th July 2009
So we're past yesterday's workshops and into the first day of the conference proper. Two and a half days now involving about 51 symposia, 5 panel debates, 8 open paper sessions, 2 poster sessions, and 17 keynote addresses. I really like this Exeter campus with it's trees and little paths. …