In a greater than 1,700-word piece, the New York Times (11/11, Carey) reports on the increasing rates of “cutting and other forms of self-injury…among adolescents.” Currently, “there are very few dedicated research centers for self-harm, and even fewer clinics specializing in treatment,” and “because self-injury is considered a ‘symptom,’ and not a stand-alone diagnosis like depression, the testing of treatments has been haphazard and therapists have little evidence to draw on.” Some experts posit that “people who become dependent on self-harm often come to treasure it as their one reliable comfort.” Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) appears to be “the one treatment that appears to be most effective for breaking the habit of self-harm,” according to an 800-participant study published in the April issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “Getting a Handle on Self-Harm, “Benedict Carey, The New York Times, November 11, 2019

According to experts, a “culture shift toward openness, from the C-suite on down,” is the most effective employee assistance program, Reuters (11/8, Pinsker) reported. “That translates to peer counseling, colleagues sharing their experiences and open dialogue.” Reuters added that “many companies also turn to web-based mindfulness apps,” which “are helpful to those without access to in-person counseling.”

Related Links:

— “Culture change is the cutting edge of mental health benefits at work, “Beth Pinsker, Reuters , November 8, 2019

HealthDay (11/10, Preidt) reports the results of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine’s September poll indicate that almost 90% of adults in the US “lose sleep to binge watch TV.” The same poll found that adults ranked sleep as their top priority below family, but in addition to binge-watching TV, adults also reported losing sleep to play video games, read, and watch sports.

Related Links:

— “TV Binges, Video Games, Books and Sports Taking Toll on Sleep, “Robert Preidt, HealthDay, November 10, 2019

Healio (11/9, Buzby) reported, “Patients aged 50 years or older with depression were found to have a significantly greater risk for abdominal aortic aneurysm than those without depression,” researchers concluded. The study abstract disclosed that data on 59,136 people were included in the study. The findingswere published online Oct. 23 in the Journal of the American Heart Association.

Related Links:

— “Clinical depression confers elevated risk for abdominal aortic aneurysm, “Scott Buzby, Healio, November 9, 2019

Reuters (11/8, Carroll) reported, “Many insured Americans go out of network for mental health services…despite the higher costs to them and despite a federal law mandating that policies’ mental health coverage be at least as good as their physical health coverage,” research indicated. After “focusing on data from 2012-2017” and identifying “3.2 million adults with mental health conditions, 294,550 with alcohol use disorders, 321,535 with drug use disorders, 178,701 with heart failure and nearly 1.4 million with diabetes with coverage under employer-sponsored insurance plans,” investigators found that “Americans with health insurance were spending more out of pocket on mental health services, such as treatment for substance abuse, than on conditions like diabetes and heart failure,” mostly because “many were getting mental health care out of network.” The findings were published online Nov. 6 in JAMA Network Open.

Related Links:

— “Americans spending more out-of-pocket on mental health than physical health, “Linda Carroll, Reuters, November 8, 2019