Blog Entries - February 2009

The inherent dangers of narcissism in the young

editor@uticopa.com — Sun, 01 Mar 2009 00:00:00 +0100

In the press recently has been an account of how Julie Myerson, an author mother, wrote the true story of her anguish in ordering her drug-taking son permanently from their home. If nothing else, it shows the huge gulf between the mindsets of parents and their offspring. But, who is at fault: the mother for apparently ‘failing to understand' her son's behaviour and for failing to nurture him no matter what, or the son for his supposedly narcissistic attitude to life? The m [...]

Laughter is the best medicine

editor@uticopa.com — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 00:00:00 +0100

Of all the tools to combat depression and negativity, humour is by far the best medicine - for both patient and doctor! Television and radio are both under-rated as purveyors of exactly this kind of medicine, no data ever being collected on the numbers of sick people made to feel appreciably better by switching-on at home and laughing uncontrollably at the comic of the day. From the comedians of yesteryear like Laurel and Hardy or Jack Benny, to Tommy Cooper or that special bran [...]

The Winter Blues

editor@uticopa.com — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 00:00:00 +0100

Have you ever wondered why people living in the Mediterranean always seem so much happier than us? Picture for a moment the old women sitting in the evening sunshine outside their crumbling village homes - yet smiling and content with their lives. Well, why can't we be like that?

It's called Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) or the Winter Blues and is now officially recognised as a medical condition that affects two million people in the UK.

Centuries ago most [...]

Post-natal depression: let your voice be heard

editor@uticopa.com — Fri, 06 Feb 2009 00:00:00 +0100

We've all read about celebs who talk about suffering from post-natal depression (PND). In the old days, women in the news were often reluctant to discuss such problems, fearing they would be branded weak in a macho, male-dominated world. However, in recent times some well-known celebrities have spoken openly about their own PND. The list includes Sadie Frost (actress), Natasha Hamilton (former Atomic Kitten singer), Elle Macpherson (model), and TV presenters Melinda Messenger [...]

Post-natal depression (PND): causes and solutions

editor@uticopa.com — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 00:00:00 +0100

I've been diagnosed with post-natal depression - why me?

It's not clear exactly what causes PND, although there are things that seem to increase the risk.

Like depression which occurs at any other time, PND doesn't have one definite cause - but it's likely to result from a combination of factors. A mixture of physical, biological and hormonal factors seem to put women at risk of experiencing depression following the birth of a baby including:

a past history of dep [...]

Could levels of childhood IQ be linked to dementia?

editor@uticopa.com — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 00:00:00 +0100

As Gordon Brown unveils his new package of proposals offering special dementia ‘memory clinics' where the man in the street can go to check out his own susceptibility to the disease, it is interesting to note how even our childhood can have an effect. So now, as people are asked to ‘count backwards progressively from 100 by 7 each time' - making them recall their mental arithmetic lesson from school - there may be further links hitherto unrealised.

Scientists have [...]

From cyberspace to mental disorder?

editor@uticopa.com — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 00:00:00 +0100

Modern technological advances have brought hitherto undreamed of possibilities for young people today. From Facebook to i-Pods to i-Phones, the world is your oyster today. But are we deluding ourselves? Have we introduced our youngsters to dangers that many of us don't even realise yet alone understand?

In post-war Britain, children had a ready-made structured society where there were definite limits and guidelines to their well-ordered lives. Whether they liked it or not, soc [...]

Are we ruining our toddlers' mental health?

editor@uticopa.com — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 00:00:00 +0100

Many years ago, long before the advent of the computer age, the upbringing of our young children during school holidays and weekends followed a similar pattern. Children would be sent out to play and told to return at tea-time.

Those of us who remember such a time recall long, long days of imaginative play with other children who lived in the same street. Rarely did a child have something constructive to play with; rather, children constructed thei [...]

Overcome your fears

editor@uticopa.com — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 00:00:00 +0100

Have you ever felt that you don't fit in at social gatherings? Maybe you have always had a low opinion of yourself, expect others to be equally critical and are constantly attuned to that first sign of rejection? This oversensitivity leads you to interpret benign feedback as negative, leaving you feeling distressed and wanting to go home again.

We are all meant to be sociable creatures. One of the first things we learn as babies is to copy mother's smile as she ga [...]

I wish I'd known - Learning from our mistakes and living your life to the full

editor@uticopa.com — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 00:00:00 +0100

When we reach that point in life when the middle years have passed, would we have done things differently if we had somehow gained the wisdom that comes from learning from our own mistakes?

They say that education is wasted on the young. When we are adolescent, suffused by swirling hormones and an intolerable need to impress our peers, how can we concentrate on learning those school subjects that will be so essential to our future life? How to show due diligence at scho [...]

Love, marriage and relationships

editor@uticopa.com — Mon, 02 Feb 2009 00:00:00 +0100

How many of us recognise this scenario: your partner comes home from work, makes a beeline for the drinks cabinet and then sulks off silently. You haven't had a real conversation for weeks. Lately there have been more and more arguments over money or late nights out, especially since you lost your job a few months ago, but no heart-to-hearts. Sex? What's that?

2008 was definitely a bad year, but for many couples this year has started out even worse. There seems to be no end in sigh [...]

Asperger's Syndrome - recognising the signs

editor@uticopa.com — Sun, 01 Feb 2009 00:00:00 +0100

Alan, 36, is a software programmer who met and fell in love with his girlfriend Lisa via an internet matchmaking site. They emailed for a few months before meeting face to face on their first date. At first Lisa was surprised that he didn't seem that interested and, at the end of the night, he kissed her on the cheek and asked to see her again. However, the more she saw of him, the more she relished his offbeat, quirky company. Also, she really appreciated his old-fashioned manner of [...]