Category Archives: Mental Health

Mental Health Awareness Month: New Breakthroughs in Gene Editing for Alcohol-Related Damage and Anxiety

May 13, 2022

The topic of mental health has been catapulted to the forefront of the healthcare community, with chronic stress, burnout, and loneliness rising significantly due to the pandemic and its long-lasting aftereffects. Each year, May celebrates Mental Health Awareness Month, a national movement working to raise awareness about mental health and its escalating prevalence, combat stigma, provide support, and educate the public.

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Stress Awareness Month: 5 Healthy Coping Methods For Stressed Patients 

April 8, 2022

April marks the beginning of Stress Awareness Month. This national observance aims to raise public awareness of the far-reaching, systemic consequences of chronic stress on physical and mental health.

While stress is a natural part of life, chronic stress and severe stress levels can have significant adverse effects when not managed effectively. In individuals with pre-existing genetic vulnerabilities to mental illness, high stress levels can actually trigger mental illness. Severe stress can greatly worsen symptoms for those who already have mental illness, especially when combined with common unhealthy coping strategies such as substance abuse, social withdrawal, and overworking.

Learning and implementing healthful coping skills is essential for supporting patients’ whole-body health. To successfully help manage stress year-round, it is essential to educate patients about wellness-focused coping methods that not only mitigate stress levels but also promote improved health.

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The Children’s Mental Health Crisis: How Social Isolation in Childhood Alters Brain Development and Function 

November 12, 2021

Last month, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP), and Children’s Hospital Association declared a national emergency in children’s mental health. Exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, mounting challenges across the spectrum of childcare have deepened disparities in pediatric primary care and are particularly evident in racial and ethnic minority groups. At the same time, pandemic conditions have led many children to lose their caregivers and forced them into increased social isolation – all of which has culminated in a mental health crisis among the youngest of the population.

Current statistics reveal the urgency of the problem at hand. According to the latest data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, emergency department visits for mental health emergencies rose by 24% in children aged between 5 and 11 years and by 31% in children aged between 12 and 17 years during March through October of 2020. In early 2021, emergency department visits for suspected suicide attempts increased by 51% among girls aged between 12 and 17 years as compared to data from the same period in 2019.

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