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When asked what they’d like to be when they grow up, most children will reply with some profession or other, and while the field and the exact position may change greatly with age and experience, it is rare to find an answer which focuses simply on the desire to enjoy whatever is done. Yet a large number of people around the world are unsatisfied with their jobs. From difficulties with managers, supervisors, and other personnel to issues of long hours or other difficulties and the demands of long commutes and short work breaks, employees often feel stress within the workplace. Though such stress may seem tame to the untrained eye, it can have a significant impact on personal health and well-being, and indeed accounts for billions of dollars lost each year throughout most industries due to absenteeism and health care costs. In an attempt to rally greater support for the relief of workplace stress in the UK, public sector union UNISON has demanded that companies take greater responsibility for their internal practices and environments, and investigate why their workers experience stress.

Suggesting that employers have been “burying their heads in the sand” in relation to the issues surrounding workplace stress in the UK, UNISON recently noted that businesses stood not only to enjoy happier, more productive environments should they devote more time and resources to the investigation of stress, but that they could also save a great deal of expense. Read the rest of this entry

© Copyright 2009 by http://www.GoodTherapy.org Therapist Rolling Hills Estates Bureau - All Rights Reserved.

By Peggy Gold, MS, NCC, LMHC, Narrative Therapy Topic Expert Contributor

Click here to contact Peggy and/or see her GoodTherapy.org Profile

What’s your “Holiday Story”? For some, it may be about connecting with friends and family, eating hearty meals and treats, singing songs, or getting in touch with one’s spirituality. For others, it may be laced with groans and moans, trepidation, loneliness, frustration, angst, and bouts of depression and anxiety. Often both “stories” can somehow co-exist.

I used to spend quite a bit of time worrying about the holiday season and what it would hold. With increased obligations, people really are in demand this time of year! With so much more on our plate (literally and figuratively) it’s easy to feel overloaded and disconnected from what the holiday season is supposed to mean. Combine that with mandatory or obligatory time spent with relatives or coworkers that may not normally spend time together, and it can be a recipe for STRESS. All of a sudden our holiday stories are about shopping, traveling, running from place to place, and making small talk. They are frenzied and lack depth and feeling. I call this type of story a “thin story” (lacking depth). When life gets taken over with thin stories, we can start to retreat inside ourselves, which only feels worse. It can become a very vicious cycle. Read the rest of this entry

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In the gym, the notion that one has to suffer a bit to succeed in building muscle or losing weight is a common one, yet this idea is rarely applied to life in general. Seeking to discover the roots of happiness as they relate to stress or discomfort, a study sponsored by San Francisco State University has found that this same principle is relevant in the mastering of skills which in turn promotes happiness. Asking participants to report both during skill-aquiring and honing activities, and at a later point, the researchers found that momentary stress and discomfort were present initially, but that a positive memory emerged at a later point, in which the participants described the activities as adding happiness to their day. The work has recently been published in the Journal of Happiness Studies.

© Copyright 2009 by http://www.GoodTherapy.org Therapist Naperville Bureau - All Rights Reserved.

A GoodTherapy.org News Headline

Recent debates about the acceptability of torture in certain situations has led to renewed academic interest in the subject, and a study at Harvard University has examined the effects of complicity on perceptions of guilt among people submitted to pain or stress. The study split participants into those who met and did not meet a woman who was later heard being “tortured” over an intercom by having her hand placed in ice water, based on the accusation that she had cheated to secure money. Those participants who met the woman and responded to the feigned torture reported higher levels of suspected guilt the more the woman appeared to suffer, whereas those who did not meet the woman–-thus not taking part in the witnessing of ongoing torture–were more likely to suspect less guilt as apparent pain level and distress rose. The study may have important implications for understanding the psychology of torture administration and prevention.

© Copyright 2009 by http://www.GoodTherapy.org Therapist Columbia Bureau - All Rights Reserved.

A GoodTherapy.org News Headline

Though the emergency of mental health difficulties can be greatly challenging in its own right, such an emergence is often accompanied by a range of issues that may create debilitating situations for some mental health clients. Among these issues, high incidences of stressful conditions, high-exposure jobs, and stomach and intestinal discomfort and complications are common, prompting the work of two studies recently presented to a conference on gastrointestinal medicine. While the studies largely considered the impact of stressful environments on stomach and intestinal health, the clear links between such elements and a decline in mental health suggest a need for more extensive cross-screening among clients exhibiting such symptoms.

© Copyright 2009 by http://www.GoodTherapy.org Therapist Santa Rosa Bureau - All Rights Reserved.

A GoodTherapy.org News Headline

The use of anti-depressant medications is steeply on the rise, with many mental health professionals concerned about the frequency with which people experiencing mental health difficulties rely entirely on pharmaceuticals to relieve symptoms. Part of this concern stems from the fact that for many clients, anti-depressants simply don’t work, a problem that a recent study conducted at Northwestern University has suggested can be explained in the preoccupation with treating symptoms of stress. The research provides evidence for clear genetic distinctions between stress and depression, noting that the latter is an entirely different phenomenon within the brain and suggesting that it should be treated differently, as a result. The study may help wean Americans and concerned clients worldwide from modern dependency on psychiatric medications.

© Copyright 2009 by http://www.GoodTherapy.org Therapist Lafayette Bureau - All Rights Reserved.

By Evelyn Goodman, Psy.D, LMFT, Anxiety Topic Expert Contributor

Click here to contact Evelyn and/or see her GoodTherapy.org Profile

What causes someone to develop an anxiety disorder? This question is one asked by many people struggling with an anxiety disorder, be it panic, phobias, social anxiety or any of the various manifestations of severe anxiety conditions. Someone with social anxiety might start to sweat and shake and be unable to concentrate when meeting someone new. Another person with agoraphobia might want to avoid driving a certain distance from home since that’s the circumstance of the first panic attack. However the anxiety manifests it is helpful, and part of the healing process, to understand the variables that contributes to the making of an anxiety disorder.

The development of an anxiety disorder can be looked at from a “bio-psycho-social” perspective. The “bio” is one’s genetic inheritance or inborn temperament. What one inherits is a predisposition toward anxiety, not a specific gene that predicts one will be anxious. However, temperament can be seen very early in childhood. Some babies are very sensitive to change, easily upset, extremely uncomfortable with people they don’t know well, or quiet and introverted. Read the rest of this entry

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The University of Cincinnati’s psychiatry team has recently announced that parents should be on the lookout for the establishment of mood difficulties and feelings of depression and anxiety in their young children as the new school year emerges from its short “honeymoon” phase. The professionals have noted that while the establishment of a routine can lead families to feel secure about school, many children develop mental health concerns after the novelty of the new year wears off, and have suggested that mental health treatments be considered for children who exhibit signs of suffering during this time. Mental health professionals in Cincinnati and across the country may experience an increased young client base as a result.

© Copyright 2009 by http://www.GoodTherapy.org Therapist Tampa Bureau - All Rights Reserved.

A GoodTherapy.org News Summary

Commonly-held ideas about the superiority of mental health and personal well-being in many European countries are often backed up by statistics about the average workweek in such countries, and among the nations with the most coveted working conditions, France is typically vetted as the best. With shorter, thirty five hour weeks, ample time for lunch breaks, and generous vacation packages, French jobs are often considered to be especially luxurious and beneficial for the avoidance of stress and other taxes on mental health. A recent series of suicide incidents, both attempted and successful, at a major French organization, however, has brought the national working conditions into question, under a particularly bright media spotlight.

France Telecom, a major employer, has recently been hit with thirty eight suicides–-twenty four of which have been successful–within the past twenty months. A remarkably high number of attempts and successful suicides, the figures have created an outrage amongst the public as well as throughout the company itself, where workers complain that a new modernization and globalization scheme has created excessive stress and disappointment among employees. Some of those who ended their lives and their careers-–or attempted to do so–at the company left notes or otherwise described unacceptable management and excessive criticism. Throughout the country, in fact, a push towards integrating traditional French business values and practices with those of the United States and other leading economies has suggested that workers are enjoying their famously relaxed conditions less. Read the rest of this entry

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A GoodTherapy.org News Headline

Severe and prolonged bouts of stress have been identified as playing crucial roles in a number of physical health problems, but in many cases, the extent of the impact of stress on physical health is imprecise at best. A new study produced by the Sahlgrenska Academy at the University of Gothenburg in Sweden, along with the school’s hospital, has found direct links between high levels of self-reported stress and certain types of stroke. The researchers noted that among the over six hundred participants involved, those who suffered from strokes not caused by blood clots from the heart were significantly likely to self-report high levels of stress. Managing psychological stress, especially in the later stages of life, may prove an increasingly important aspect of physical health.

© Copyright 2009 by http://www.GoodTherapy.org Therapist Baltimore Bureau - All Rights Reserved.