They say gardening is good for the soul. Apparently many Canadians agree as they have opted to ‘pandemic garden’ this year. The Agri-Food Analytics Lab at Dalhousie University, in partnership with Angus Reid, recently released a study on home gardening, just in time for Thanksgiving. The survey was conducted earlier this month and included more…
Study assessing physical, mental health effects of treating COVID-19 patients one of two U of A projects receiving federal funding
There’s heightened anxiety among physicians and jumps in depression among nurses, health-care aides and personal support workers, according to early data from a University of Alberta study. The study is looking into the effectiveness of safety measures to protect the physical and mental health of Canada’s health-care workforce treating those with COVID-19. Occupational epidemiologist Nicola Cherry,…
Form a mental picture of what is causing your anxiety to take control and set your feet on a better path
Calm down. Seriously. We all have things that leave us on edge. Sometimes it’s an event or a person (like a visit from your mother-in-law). Sometimes we’re more anxious due to more significant issues, leaving us unsure of our safety and well-being, like when a severe illness is going around. Whatever the case, anxiety is…
When you become accustomed to worrying, you have a constant stream of negative feedback and information in your brain
Worry can derail an entire day if you let it. But you have the power to stop it in just 30 minutes, freeing up the rest of the day to really live. The strategy is more straightforward than you might think. When you become accustomed to worrying, you have a constant stream of negative feedback…
It may be that the impact stress has on our health has less to do with its cause and more to do with how we think about it
Social science seems to have found the secret to a long and happy life. Psychologist Kelly McGonigal tells us, “Go after what creates meaning in your life and then trust yourself to handle the stress that follows.” In recent years, however, we’ve looked at stress as our enemy, seeking instead to live in complete ease.…
Kevin Zentner turned his academic career around by getting involved, working with the less fortunate
In the weeks before his first University of Alberta classes in 2016, Kevin Zentner nervously paced the campus, trying to keep the acronyms straight. “I had no idea what everyone was saying when they said SUB or HUB or CAB or whatever else,” said Zentner. “It sounds funny but that anxiety was massive for me.”…
U of A grad student designs augmented reality game that lets users see and touch virtual spiders that get more realistic as they level up
A University of Alberta fine arts student has designed an augmented reality (AR) gaming platform to help arachnophobes overcome their fear of spiders. “The idea is, if I'm sitting here with an AR headset on, I can see a spider right in front of me,” said Anna Chakravorty, who submitted the project for her master’s…
Not only are women more likely to have a mood disorder, but women experience different symptoms than men
Almost anyone can attest to the fact that men and women are different in many ways. Scores of books – which have achieved varying degrees of success and acclaim – have been published that attempt to quantify and explain the differences. In the field of psychiatry, gender differences are an important phenomenon as men and…
Getting enough sleep and regular exercise and avoiding stimulants such as caffeine are among the effective treatments available for panic disorder
Panic. Your heart races, palms sweat and body shakes. You feel as though you’re choking and losing your breath as a bout of dizziness overtakes you. This is out of control. Imagine feeling this way on a regular basis. People with an anxiety disorder called panic disorder experience recurring panic attacks – brief but intense…
Even with treatment, people with these disorders will not become the life of the party
Shyness is something many people experience both as children and adults. Most of us probably feel somewhat unsettled when we meet new people or are expected to give a presentation to our peers. However, severe shyness can be a hallmark of several anxiety disorders and can cause real problems in work and social settings. Social…