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Latest News Around the Web

Experts Offer Tips To Avoid Financial Stress During Holiday Season

The AP (12/18, Morga ) reports that although “the holidays are meant to be a time of celebration with family and friends…they can also bring pressure to spend money on gifts, gatherings and plane tickets home, exacerbated by brand emails, social media influencers and family expectations.” With credit card debt increasing “and prices for many items still high due to inflation, overspending during the holiday season can add to the financial stress many Americans are already experiencing, said Dr. Marketa Wills, CEO and medical director of the American Psychiatric Association.”

Wills said, “The idea that one is on the hook for buying gifts for all their friends and families adds an enormous amount of stress on someone trying to have a perfect holiday.” The AP offers “expert recommendations to avoid financial stress this holiday season,” including “setting expectations with your family,” making a budget, and “gifting experiences rather than things.”

Related Links:

— “How to avoid financial stress during the holiday season,” Adriana Morga, Associated Press, December 18, 2024

Children, Young Adults Who Undergo Surgical Removal Of Tonsils Or Adenoids Have Higher Risk For Stress-Related Disorders Later In Life, Study Finds

Healio (12/18, Jenkins ) reports, “Children and young adults who underwent surgical removal of tonsils or adenoids had a higher risk for stress-related disorders later in life vs. those who did not undergo either procedure, according to a study.” The investigators “noted that these associations were independent of sex, age at surgery, time since surgery, parental educational attainment or parental history of stress-related disorders.” The findings were published in JAMA Network Open.

Related Links:

— “Tonsil, adenoid removal in early life may up risk for stress-related disorders later on,” Cassandra Jenkins, Healio, December 18, 2024

Team Sports In Childhood May Help Sharpen Children’s Brains, Research Suggests

HealthDay (12/17, Mundell ) reports, “There may be something special about team sports in childhood that helps sharpen a kid’s brain, new research shows.” Investigators found that “children who were on soccer or volleyball teams scored higher on tests of ‘executive function’ – thinking skills needed to organize, remember details, make decisions and stay focused – compared to kids who didn’t play sports or played individual sports only.” The findings were published in JAMA Network Open.

Related Links:

— “Team Sports Score Big Points for Your Child’s Brain, Study Finds,” , HealthDay, December17 , 2024

Teen Drug Use Has Not Rebounded From Drop During Early Years Of COVID-19 Pandemic, Survey Finds

The AP (12/17, Stobbe ) reports, “Teen drug use hasn’t rebounded from its drop during the early years of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the results from a large annual national survey released Tuesday.” Roughly “two-thirds of 12th graders this year said they hadn’t used alcohol, marijuana, cigarettes or e-cigarettes in the previous 30 days.” That is “the largest proportion abstaining since the annual survey started measuring abstinence in 2017.” The Monitoring the Future survey found that “among 10th graders, 80% said they hadn’t used any of those substances recently, another record.” Meanwhile, “among 8th graders, 90% didn’t use any of them, the same as was reported in the previous survey.”

Related Links:

— “Most US teens are abstaining from drinking, smoking and marijuana, survey says,” Mike Stobbe, Associated Press, December 17, 2024

Over Half Of Patients Want To Be Notified When AI Is Used In Healthcare, Study Suggests

Psychiatric News (12/16) reports a study “suggests that more than half of patients wish to be notified when AI is used in their health care.” The researchers said their “findings suggest that notification about AI will be necessary for ethical AI and should be a priority for organizations and policymakers.” The findings were published in JAMA Network Open.

Related Links:

— “ Majority of Patients Want to Know if AI Is Used in Their Health Care ,” Psychiatric News, December 16, 2024

Foundation News

Depressed Adolescents Often Struggle Alone

The Los Angeles Times (4/29, Healy) “Booster Shots” blog reported that although “some 2-million Americans adolescents experienced a bout of major depression last year,” only about one-third of them received help, according to a report released by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration to “kick off a month of national activity aimed at raising awareness of childrens’ mental health.”

Overall, about “8.1% of the population between 12 and 17 years old reported experiencing a period of depressed mood lasting two or more weeks in the preceding 12 months.” Depressive episodes increased with age; and adolescent boys were “consistently less likely to report depression.” Nearly 15 percent of “girls 15 to 17 years old” described a “major depressive episode in the preceding year, compared to an average of 6.4% of boys” of the same age “who did so.”

Related Links:

– “Depressed teens mostly struggle alone,” Melissa Healy, Los Angeles Times, April 29, 2011.

John Plaskon Wins 2011 Outstanding Merit Award

At the MPS annual meeting in April, the Maryland Foundation for Psychiatry presented its 2011 Outstanding Merit Award to John Plaskon, executive director of Crossroads Community, Inc. in Centreville, for his vision and leadership in opening a new mental health clinic in rural Queen Anne’s County during the height of the recession.

The Maryland Foundation for Psychiatry established the annual Outstanding Merit Award for a worthy program in Maryland that accomplishes one or more of the following:

  • Increases public awareness and understanding of mental illness
  • Enhances the quality of care for psychiatric illness
  • Reduces the stigma of mental illness

The award, open to the entire Maryland community, carries a prize of $500. Find information on nominating for the 2012 award here.

2012 Outstanding Merit Award Entries Open Now

Nominations are now being accepted for the Foundation’s 2012 Outstanding Merit Award.

The annual Outstanding Merit Award is given for a worthy endeavor in Maryland that accomplishes one or more of the following:

  • Increases public awareness and understanding of mental illness

  • Enhances the quality of care for psychiatric illness

  • Reduces the stigma of mental illness

Nominations for this award of $500 are being invited from the entire Maryland community. A short nomination form must be submitted with a cover letter by March 1, 2012, to the Maryland Foundation for Psychiatry, 1101 Saint. Paul Street, Suite 305, Baltimore, MD 21202-6405. The form is available as PDF or Word document.

Foundation’s Latest Radio Spot Examines Disaster and Crisis

The Maryland Foundation for Psychiatry, Inc. recently began airing a new public service announcement on local Maryland radio stations. It focuses on the psychological effects of disasters such as the recent tragic earthquake and tsunami in Japan as well as the toll personal crises can take on the mind.

You can listen to the ad using the player in the upper right of the website’s homepage. All past public service spots are also available for listening or to download on our Radio Advertisements page.

Adolescent Depression Awareness Program Wins 2010 Outstanding Merit Award

At the MPS annual meeting in April, the Maryland Foundation for Psychiatry presented its 2010 Outstanding Merit Award to the Adolescent Depression Awareness Program of the Department of Psychiatry at Johns Hopkins.

The Board was particularly impressed with this outstanding program, which through student, parent and teacher education seeks to increase awareness of adolescent depression and bipolar disorder while reducing the stigma associated with these illnesses.

In addition, the foundation awarded Honorable Mentions to the Southern Maryland Community Network in Prince Frederick, which offers essential services to persons with severe and persistent mental illness, and to Helping Other People through Empowerment, Inc. Wellness and Recovery Center in Baltimore, which assists adults with mental illness in becoming empowered to rejoin mainstream society by increasing awareness of available resources through peer support.

The Maryland Foundation for Psychiatry established the annual Outstanding Merit Award for a worthy program in Maryland that accomplishes one or more of the following:

  • Increases public awareness and understanding of mental illness
  • Enhances the quality of care for psychiatric illness
  • Reduces the stigma of mental illness

The award, open to the entire Maryland community, carries a prize of $500.

Related Links:

– Johns Hopkins Adolescent Depression Awareness Program (ADAP)
– Southern Maryland Community Network
– Helping Other People through Empowerment