Depression During Pregnancy
Posted by on April 22, 2014 - 9:53am

Depression, especially in pregnancy, is a sensitive subject.  It impacts the woman, her child and her family and it affects between 14 and 23% women during pregnancy.  Because of hormonal changes during pregnancy, a woman may not realize she is suffering from depression.  A new, comprehensive guide about this condition that discusses symptoms and treatment to help  women and their family members understand and cope with this issue is now available from the a site called PsychGuides.   For a helpful resource visit   Living with Depression during Pregnancy

Also, if you live in the Chicago area, the Asher Center for the Study and Treatment of Depression and Mood Disorders  has just opened at Northwestern Medicine that provides expertise in hormone-related depression.

The Love Hormone is Two-faced: Oxytocin
Posted by on July 25, 2013 - 11:00am

It turns out the love hormone oxytocin is two-faced. Oxytocin has long been known as the warm, fuzzy hormone that promotes feelings of love, social bonding and well-being. It’s even being tested as an anti-anxiety drug. But new Northwestern Medicine® research shows oxytocin also can cause emotional pain, an entirely new, darker identity for the hormone.

Oxytocin appears to be the reason stressful social situations, perhaps being bullied at school or tormented by a boss, reverberate long past the event and can trigger fear and anxiety in the future.

That’s because the hormone actually strengthens social memory in one specific region of the brain, Northwestern scientists discovered.

If a social experience is negative or stressful, the hormone activates a part of the brain that intensifies the memory. Oxytocin also increases the susceptibility to feeling fearful and anxious during stressful events going forward.

(Presumably, oxytocin also intensifies positive social memories and, thereby, increases feelings of well being, but that research is ongoing.)

The findings are important because chronic social stress is one of the leading causes of anxiety and depression, while positive social interactions enhance emotional health. The research, which was done in mice, is particularly relevant because oxytocin currently is being tested as an anti-anxiety drug in several clinical trials.

“By understanding the oxytocin system's dual role in triggering or reducing anxiety, depending on the social context, we can optimize oxytocin treatments that improve well-being instead of triggering negative reactions,” said Jelena Radulovic, the senior author of the study and the Dunbar Professsor of Bipolar Disease at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine.  The paper was published July 21 in Nature Neuroscience.

To read more about this story and oxytocin click HERE

Older Adults and Anxiety Disorders
Posted by on December 28, 2010 - 3:53pm

Anxiety caused by stressful events like moving or losing a job is a normal part of life. Anxiety disorders, on the other hand, are characterized by persistent, excessive and disabling fear and worry and get progressively worse if left untreated. It is estimated that anxiety disorders affect between 3 and 14 percent of older adults in a given year. To provide an older audience with additional information, NIHSeniorHealth, the health and wellness website for older adults from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), has added a topic about anxiety disorders (http://nihseniorhealth.gov/anxietydisorders/toc.html).

Visitors to the website can learn about the risk factors, symptoms and treatments for generalized anxiety disorder, social phobia, panic disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) and specific phobias such as fear of flying or fear of public speaking. Anxiety disorders can severely affect a person’s life, and they are often overlooked in older adults.

"Conditions that commonly occur with age, such as depression, heart disease and diabetes, may have symptoms that mimic or mask anxiety symptoms, making diagnosis in older adults difficult," says Thomas R. Insel, M.D., director of the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH).  "Often, these health conditions will need to be addressed before a person will respond to treatment for an anxiety disorder."

It can sometimes be difficult to distinguish between common anxiety caused by adapting to difficult life changes — such as fear of falling after a hip replacement—and an actual anxiety disorder. The new topic on NIHSeniorHealth is a good way for older adults to learn more about the way these disorders can affect them.

Information about anxiety disorders is the latest addition to the roster of health topics offered on NIHSeniorHealth (www.nihseniorhealth.gov). A joint effort of the National Institute on Aging (NIA) and the National Library of Medicine (NLM), the website features research-based, easily accessible information on a range of health issues of interest to older people. To improve access for older adults, NIHSeniorHealth includes short, easy-to-read segments of information in a number of formats, including various large-print type sizes, open-captioned videos and an audio version.

Free Information on Anxiety Disorders
Posted by on December 9, 2010 - 11:57am

The holiday season is a wonderful time to spend with family and friends but it can be stressful, especially if you have an anxiety disorder.   The latest e-newsletter from the Institute for Women's Health Research focuses on the most common anxiety disorders, especially in women.  Click HERE to view our December e-newsletter.