Anxiety sensitivity, or the fear of feeling anxious, may put people who are already above-average worriers at risk for depression, according to Penn State researchers. Understanding how sensitivity to anxiety is a risk factor for depression may make anxiety sensitivity a potential target for treating depression in the future. [continue reading…]

A group of investigators of the University of Bologna suggest a new way of approaching emotional disturbances in children by improving their psychological well-being. The study is published in the current issue of Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics.

Anxiety, mood disorders and somatoform disorders are among the most prevalent forms of psychological suffering during childhood and adolescence. A specific psychotherapeutic strategy for enhancing well-being (well-being therapy; WBT) has been developed from the multidimensional model of psychological well-being by Ryff. The aim of this study was to apply a modified form of WBT to a child population of patients with mood, anxiety and conduct disorders, and to test its effects in reducing symptoms and in improving new skills and competencies in children. [continue reading…]

This next item is a sort of sequel to the previous post which discusses how the clergy dismiss anxiety and depression as mental health disorders. I came across this excellent article in the New York Times by Robin Maranz Henig “Understanding the Anxious Mind”. Are we born anxious? Jerome Kagan, a professor of psychology at Harvard discusses his findings on assumptions about innate temperament.
Link to read this article

Source: The New York Times (Magazine Preview)