restore calm after stressful events.  Can I have a shot, please?

The link between a heightened level of NPY and resilience to depression has been studied before, at least as it applies to combat exposed veterans.  Word has been out for a while describing how this brain chemical makes some soldiers stress free under fire.  And if them, why not the rest of us mortals too?

Anyway, this news is based on research done by a team at the University of Michigan.  Which mightn’t interest you too much.  Until you learn that they have a Depression Centre which is doing some really great work.  While flicking around their website I came across some goodies I’d like to share with you.

There is a good, short article on managing depression by positive self-talk.  Other aspects of the ‘depression tool-kit’ provided include advice on diet, exercise and goal-setting.

Another point that struck me was the link between junk food and depression.  This in a week where the news was that junk food lowers IQ in children.  If you are what you eat, and you eat junk food, then…

For those who would rather watch a vid than read an article, there is an excellent short series of videos on managing depression.

For primary care workers, there is a selection of treatment guidelines designed to increase your knowledge.

And for those, like me, with a special interest in the mental health of men, there’s a good article on men and depression, as well as a link to a relevant section in the site of the National Institute of Mental Health.

So maybe depression is in your genes.  But it doesn’t always have to be in your life!

Maybe you’ve heard the saying: What doesn’t kill me makes me stronger.  At first flush it seems like nonsense, while sounding sort of cool.  If someone almost stabs you to death, surely that makes you weaker?

The phrase is from the German philosopher Fredrich Nietzsche.  Now psychologists have discovered he was right, if you make it a matter of resilience.

Resilience is the emotional skill that equips you to persevere in the face of setbacks, to bounce back after initial defeats, and to overcome obstacles in achieving your goals.  Resilience is very much related to the skill of optimism and is thus an aspect of positive psychology.  It is also related to emotional intelligence through motivation.

It was the tabloid headline that grabbed my attention.  WHAT DOESN’T KILL YOU DOES MAKES YOU STRONGER.

We seem to fare better after facing a few knocks compared to those who sail through life with no problems.

A study has demonstrated how adverse experiences foster adaptability and resilience, with resulting advantages for mental health and well-being.

Suffering from life’s ups and downs also means that we are better equipped to deal with adverse events in the future compared to those who have not experienced any difficulties.

For a more in-depth account of this research, look up the following:

• Study Confirms: Whatever Doesn’t Kill Us Can Make Us Stronger
• Whatever does not kill us: Cumulative lifetime adversity, vulnerability, and resilience. (original article)
• Mark Seery (information about the main researcher)

It seems those ol’ philosophers knew a thing or two after all…

Image credit: krossbow.

This is another selection of juicy-but-overlooked news stories that I found interesting and that have some relevance – promise – to the services of Sensei.

How good software makes us stupid is a quality article about a fascinating book called The Shallows: What the Internet is Doing to Our Brains.  The books author is Nicholas Carr, an American writer on technology, business and culture.  His basic thesis is that the web specialises in giving us a broad, superficial knowledge at the expense of deeper thinking skills.  I concur, although I don’t believe it’s an either/or between the net and books.  It is true however that the objects of our thinking shapes the structure of our brains.  This is a sobering thought for Glee addicts.

On a related theme, Is our relationship with books changing? We’re abandoning public libraries, but buying more books first-hand and enjoy doing so in a cafe-cum-shop setting.  Thanks to Ophera, book clubs are enjoying a renaissance.  But will e-books replace paper?  My opinion – only when 3D movies replace 2D i.e. never beyond the odd blip.

Read all about it, good news for footballers!  It’s good to think – but not too much, scientists say.  Well, kind of.  If you think more about your decision-making then you will more cells in the part of your brain that deals with decisions.  But if you brood too much about ‘life in general’ you’ll have a poorer memory and greater proneness to depression.  Which takes us nicely back to the first article.

So be careful what you think about, what thoughts you allow into your brain.  Remember my question from weeks ago: What is the most resilient virus?

Any ideas?

Image credit: rutlo.

The title for this blog comes from the mouth of one of my favourite stand-up comedians, Rich Hall.  (See him say those words live at the Apollo on YouTube from 6:31 to 7:40).  They came to my mind as I read an article about how creative minds ‘mimic schizophrenia’.  Apparently, high levels of creativity can be associated with mental illness and lead to it.

I’ve blogged before how I admire comedians as a creative type, and on the link between depression and humour.  This is not a vague association.  According to creativity expert Edward de Bono, there is a definite relationship between creative insight and humour.

“There is often an alternative way to arrange information. This means there can be a switchover to another arrangement. Usually the switch is sudden. If the switch is temporary it gives rise to humour. If the switch is permanent it gives rise to insight.”

But as we know, a disproportionately high percentage of comedians seem to suffer from depression.  Add to this the stereotypes of the mad scientist and the tortured artist, and we’ve got a pattern.

In the 1990′s, Apple Computers encouraged us to Think Different.  Many large groups within humanity already do.  Among those groups who see the world differently from each other are:

• Westerners and Easterners
• Left-handers and Right-handers
• Introverts and Extroverts
• Religious and Secular
• Men and Women

I think a creative person is someone who narrows down this range of shared perspective on the world even further until they find themselves in a group of one.  They see past the limits imposed by their upbringing, their environment, their education, and even their genes.  They don’t just take up an opposing view, but shift their perspective to a different place entirely.  Such a change requires herculean effort and leads to isolation.  The structure of their brain is literally changed by it.

So see the world differently if you will.  See the world differently if you can pay the price!

As Nietzsche said, “How much truth can a spirit bear, how much truth can a spirit dare?”

And he should know.

Image credit: pasukaru76.

There is a difference, you know.

One my most read and commented blogs is one I wrote earlier this year called I’m OK, You’re An Introvert.  The title was a play on Thomas Harris’ famous book I’m OK, You’re OK.

In that blog I tried to banish the popular notion that introversion is a personality defect or a character flaw.  I even had the audacity to encourage introverts to use their more reflective nature as an advantage in life.

I was reminded of this issue again recently while reading an excellent article called What’s the difference between being lonely and a loner? “Just under half of us have felt depressed because we have felt alone, says a report. But not everyone who is alone is sad about it, so what is the difference between being lonely and being a loner?”

The article makes the powerful point that you can be surrounded by people – even friends – in your life but still feel alone.  Conversely, psychologist Anthony Storr has argued that solitude is necessary for mental health and creativity.

Related to this, a recent survey called The Lonely Society reports that loneliness is more prevalent among the young than those past retirement age.  Despite the rise of social media, people still seem to need the actual presence of another person to achieve emotional satisfaction.  The breakdown of the traditional family seems too to have played a part.

When it comes to loneliness, genetic factors could play a part; living in a large city almost certainly does.  Loneliness even increases your risk of heart disease, at least in men.

So what can a lonely person do?  Night-courses.  Weekend workshops.  Communal sports.  Special interest or hobby groups.  These are the answers that first came to my mind.  (This is where the Internet becomes useful – as a means of obtaining information, not as substitute for socialising.)  Then, courage to switch off the TV and take that first step out!

Any more ideas, anyone?