Category: Aging & Geriatric Issues
The Good Therapy Blog
January 19th, 2012 |
Caring for an aging parent can cause increased stress and decreased mental health. In recent years, the number of people who provide eldercare services for family members while employed outside of the home has increased dramatically. Studies have shown that the demands of eldercare have negative impacts on mental health, which in turn results in lower work performance. But until now, no study has directly examined the link between eldercare demands and job performance. Additionally, no previous studies have identified why... Read More
© Copyright 2012 by http://www.GoodTherapy.org Therapist Newport Beach Bureau - All Rights Reserved.
January 11th, 2012 |
Socioeconomic status (SES) influences many facets of a person’s life. Researchers have theorized that low SES is associated with poor physical and mental health throughout life, but few studies have examined the long-term effects. Even fewer studies have examined how positive or negative mood, resulting from SES, influence physical health. “Given this background, the present study examines inter-individual differences in the development of positive and negative affect and physical health as well as in the dynamic associations... Read More
© Copyright 2012 by http://www.GoodTherapy.org Therapist Centennial Bureau - All Rights Reserved.
December 26th, 2011 |
Older adults face unique life conditions that can contribute to stress, including declining health and loneliness. Conversely, stressful conditions can cause people to become physically and psychologically ill. “Specifically, prior to determining which characteristics of an individual may modify the effect of perceived stress, it is useful to explore which features of a person’s life contributed to him or her appraising life as stressful in the first place,” said Stacey B. Scott of the School of Psychology at the Georgia Institute... Read More
© Copyright 2011 by http://www.GoodTherapy.org Therapist Anchorage Bureau - All Rights Reserved.
December 19th, 2011 |
The saying, “You’re only as old as you feel,” may be more than just wishful thinking. According to a new study conducted by Steven E. Mock of the Department of Health Studies and Gerontology at the University of Waterloo in Ontario, peoples’ attitudes toward aging directly influence their psychological well-being. Previous research has shown that positive beliefs about aging lead to feeling younger and negative beliefs make people feel older. “To be specific, those who report feeling relatively old experience lower positive... Read More
© Copyright 2011 by http://www.GoodTherapy.org Therapist Albany Bureau - All Rights Reserved.
December 9th, 2011 |
More people will care for an aging parent in the coming years than ever before. Advances in modern medicine have extended life expectancy and the relationship between the aging and their caregivers, whether they are family members or not, is of critical importance. “Arguably, at no time is understanding care-seekers’ wishes more important than when care-seekers are incapacitated, especially when life-or-death decisions about medical interventions are required,” said Bulent Turan of the Department of Psychology at the... Read More
© Copyright 2011 by http://www.GoodTherapy.org Therapist Dallas Bureau - All Rights Reserved.
December 1st, 2011 |
The majority of Americans will not have enough money in retirement to maintain their current standard of living. “One provocative explanation for this problem involves the notion, advanced by theorists in philosophy and economics, that a person at two different points in time is not really the same person,” said Christopher J. Bryan of the Department of Psychology at Stanford University. “Moreover, the tendency to think about the future self as another is associated with a reluctance to make short-term sacrifices to ensure longer-term well-being,... Read More
© Copyright 2011 by http://www.GoodTherapy.org Therapist Lakewood Bureau - All Rights Reserved.
October 18th, 2011 |
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Symptoms of anxiety can often first appear in the later years of life. “Twelve-month prevalence of anxiety disorders in late life has been estimated at 7%; however, a far greater number experience impairing anxiety symptoms, with estimates ranging from 15– 45%,” said Jan Mohlman of Rutgers University, and lead author of a new study identifying which type of anxiety treatment older adults prefer. “First, and contrary to the widespread assumption that older adults prefer pharmacological interventions, psychotherapies... Read More
© Copyright 2011 by http://www.GoodTherapy.org Therapist Albany Bureau - All Rights Reserved.
October 12th, 2011 |
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“By 2020, the first cohort from the baby boomer generation will have reached or passed 65 years of age, bringing with them a history of mental disorder and substance abuse distinct from the histories of earlier cohorts,” said Michele J. Karel of VA Boston Healthcare System and Harvard Medical School, and lead author of a recent article highlighting how psychologists can assist baby boomers in need of mental health care. “Approximately 80% of older adults have at least one chronic health condition, and approximately 60%– 65% have two or... Read More
© Copyright 2011 by http://www.GoodTherapy.org Therapist Washington, DC Bureau - All Rights Reserved.
October 7th, 2011 |
The degree to which we have separated/individuated from our parents has consequences when parents become elderly and /or ailing and no longer feel like the all knowing and all powerful people that we experienced in our earlier relationships with them.
Typically, we look to parents for support and love. When we are children, parents are the source of our values and ideas of how to be in the world. In the process of normal development, we separate and individuate. While most of us integrate some of our parent’s “voice”, we also replace some of our parent’s ways with our own. In contrast,... Read More
October 4th, 2011 |
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You are only as old as you feel. Now there is evidence to suggest that people who feel younger than their actual age experience many positive mental and physical health benefits, and those who feel older experience worse health. “To be specific, those who report feeling relatively old experience lower positive and higher negative affect, lower life satisfaction, lower self-esteem, lower self-efficacy, lower meaning-focused coping, higher pessimism about aging, and higher work strain than those who feel younger relative to their chronological... Read More
© Copyright 2011 by http://www.GoodTherapy.org Therapist Berkeley Bureau - All Rights Reserved.
September 30th, 2011 |
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As people age, they experience a natural decrease in functional abilities. This decline has been linked to increased depression in many adults, mostly due to loss of independence or inability to perform activities. However, a new study suggests that adults who disengage from the goals that become unattainable due to decreased functionality actually experience fewer depressive symptoms than people who continue to pursue unattainable goals. Erin Dunne of Concordia University and lead author of the study, said, “These beneficial effects are likely... Read More
© Copyright 2011 by http://www.GoodTherapy.org Therapist Fort Collins Bureau - All Rights Reserved.
September 19th, 2011 |
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“The coexistence of depressive symptoms and cognitive decline in older adulthood is well established, whereby greater depressive symptoms are associated with poorer cognitive functioning and cognitive decline,” said Allison A.M. Bielak of the Centre for Mental Health Research at the Australian national University in Australia. “However, the mechanisms through which depressive symptoms relate to increased decline in perceptual speed are uncertain, and either end of the functioning spectrum may be driving the effect.” Bielak and her colleagues... Read More
© Copyright 2011 by http://www.GoodTherapy.org Therapist Chapel Hill Bureau - All Rights Reserved.
September 9th, 2011 |
Depression affects people of all ages. But until recently, there has been no clinical evidence linking symptomology in later life to ethnicity. Researchers at the University of Michigan, the Oregon Health & Science University and VA Medical Center in Portland, Oregon, collaborated on a study to determine exactly how race influences depressive symptoms in older Americans. Statistically, older adults will continue to experience symptoms of depression that exceed the 85th percentile. In an effort to gauge which segment of the population was at... Read More
© Copyright 2011 by http://www.GoodTherapy.org Therapist Pasadena Bureau - All Rights Reserved.
September 7th, 2011 |
According to a new study conducted by researchers from Concordia University and the University of British Columbia, older adults who have high levels of perceived stress actually engage in lower levels of physical activity which result in decreased physical health over time. The benefits of physical activity have been well documented, but these benefits are extremely evident in older adults who experience elevated stress levels. “Some of the benefits of physical activity are attributable to modulation of biological processes involved in disease... Read More
© Copyright 2011 by http://www.GoodTherapy.org Therapist Westlake Village Bureau - All Rights Reserved.