Mental Health and Wellness - Western State Hospital Internship Program

December 12 2014

Friday Factoid: Vitamin D Has a Mental Health Connection

An article from U.S. News & World Report wrote about the importance of vitamin D and how our lives could depend on it! The article noted that some studies suggest that half of the world’s population has a vitamin D

deficiency. They went on to discuss the conditions to which vitamin D deficiency can lead including cancer, heart disease, multiple sclerosis, tuberculosis, brittle bones, the common cold, and depression. A study released in August noted a link between vitamin D deficiency and increased risk of developing Alzheimer’s. Furthermore, a study published this week even found a link between low levels of vitamins D and risk of early death. The article quoted John Cannell, found of the Vitamin D Council who stated, “Thirty-seven different tissues in the human body utilize vitamin D and need it for adequate functioning.”

How can you get enough vitamin D?

1. The sun! Although the article stated that production of vitamin D from the sun

decreases with age and those individuals with darker skin need more sun exposure for sufficient levels of vitamin D. Furthermore, sunscreen decreases the production of vitamin D (Sunscreen is very important! There are other ways to get vitamin D. Read on!)

2. Some foods: egg (especially egg yolks), fatty fish (e.g. salmon, mackerel, and tuna), fo

rtified cow’s milk, fortified cereals and bread products.

3. Supplements. According to the article, 800 international units of vitamin D per day is typically advised. It is possible to take in too much vitamin D, so do your research!

Woodham, C. (November 20, 2014). Are you getting enough vitamin D? U.S. News & World Report Health.

Brittany Best,
WKPIC Intern

November 11 2014

Friday Factoids: Is the Internet Destroying Reading Habits?

Is the proliferation of technology and social media destroying the reading habits of young people?

It seems commonplace to assume that America’s younger generation has been inundated with technology driven efficiency to the extent of being devoid of the sustained attention and patience required to soak in a nice novel. However, a recent Pew Research study piloted by Katherine Zickuhr and Lee Raine (2014) found that Americans ages 29 and younger were more likely to read a book in the past year than those ages 30 and older. When compared to their elders, Millennials possess similar reading habits, as nearly 43% of each group endorsed reading a book on a daily basis in the past year. Despite this, 88% of Millennials were found to have completed a book in the past year, compared to 79% of those older than age 29.

Reading a book via tablet has traditionally been a practice most prevalent within older generations; however, research now suggests that 37% of individuals between the ages of 18-29 read an ebook last year, a rate similar to those within their 30’s and 40’s. Adults ages 65 and older were the least likely to have read a book in the past year (67%), while teens ages 16-17 demonstrated the strongest reading habits, with 90% having read a book in the past year, and also reading books in print more than any other age group. Also interesting, people under 30 were more likely to say that there is “a lot of useful, important information that is not available on the internet.”

Based on these findings, it appears that the book, either print or electronic, is alive and well.

Reference
Zickuhr, K., & Raine, L. (September 10, 2014) Younger Americans and Public Libraries. How those under 30 engage with libraries and think about libraries’ role in their lives and communities. Pew Research Internet Project.

Graham Martin, MA
WKPIC Doctoral Intern

November 11 2014

Friday Factoids: That’s such great news! But why am I crying?

Discordant expressions of emotions, such as crying at a wedding, or laughing when one hears a sad story may actually play an important role in our psychological functioning. Yale researcher Oriana Aragon has been studying this phenomenon via experiments in her lab, and she posits that when people are at risk of being overwhelmed by their emotions, the outward display of the opposite emotional state functions to restore balance.

Our threshold for emotional intensity tends to vary, which is why some individuals are more prone to ill-fitting responses than others. This is why some, but certainly, and thankfully, not all, might be witnessed crying during a wedding. Adults possess a more highly developed capacity for emotional regulation, which is why children more often provide responses that signify discordant emotional expressions. This concept is vividly and hilariously depicted within 2011’s viral video of Lily being informed that she was going to Disneyland.

In her lab experiments, Aragon and her colleagues asked participants to imagine a scenario in which they were informed that they had just won the lottery. Most participants responded as one may expect, with intense expressions of joy. A smaller percentage of participants, however, responded to the news with facial expressions of sadness, and occasionally tears. More subtle demonstrations of discordant expressions of emotions were also witnessed in examining participants’ responses to pictures of infants. Common expressions of affection that highlight this phenomenon included, “I want to pinch those cheeks. That baby is so cute I want to eat it up.” Younger babies tended to elicit expressions of playful aggression more often when photographs of younger babies were presented. Furthermore, participants who displayed discordant emotional reactions via expressions of playful aggression also endorsed the tendency to cry when reuniting with a loved one.

Reference
Wray, H. (2014, November, 6). Nervous Laughter, Tears of Joy.

Graham Martin, MA
WKPIC Doctoral Intern

November 11 2014

Friday Factoid: The Power of Positive Thinking. . .with a Healthy Dose of Realism

Many of us have been advised to “think positive”, but is this platitude truly helpful? The ubiquity of such advice is undeniable, and its efficacy seems intuitively strong, but the bulk of research is now showing that optimism may actually serve as a hindrance. While a happy-go-lucky attitude may work wonders in reducing stress, it also depletes us of the energy we need to successfully pursue our goals.

Individuals who are particularly adept at imagining positive results fool their brains into reacting as if the positive outcome occurred in reality. This, in turn, slackens ones readiness to actively pursue his or her goals. Think of a time during which you felt particularly optimistic about an exam, only to feel confounded and ambushed on test day, earning a score far below that which you expected. Now think of a time during which you were notably anxious about an upcoming exam, with the potential for flunking ever salient. Such a pessimistic outlook, if entertained early enough, may have led to a great deal of studying and preparation in order to minimize the chances of receiving a failing grade, leading to a performance on the exam that far exceeded your expectations.

Acknowledging the notion that optimism and positive thinking might hinder performance does not, however, imply that negative thinking and pessimism is the optimal strategy for success. Rather, researchers have endorsed a hybrid theory which recommends blending positive thinking with a healthy dose of realism. This can be applied by spending a few minutes vividly imagining a wish coming true, followed by a few minutes imagining all of the potential obstacles that might get in the way. This process, referred to as mental contrasting (Oettingen, 2014), has produced powerful results in experiments, leaving participants feeling more energized and subsequently resulting in greater success, compared to groups tasked with positive thinking alone.

So the next time you are faced with a challenge, expect to succeed, but also prepare for the various contingencies that might get in your way. As Zig Ziglar famously stated, “Expect the best. Prepare for the worst.”

Reference
Oettingen, G. (2014, October 24). The Problem with Positive Thinking. Retrieved from nytimes.com .

Graham Martin, MA
WKPIC Doctoral Intern

November 11 2014

Friday Factoids: New iPhone or Famous Pancakes?

Last weekend I waited in line for an hour and a half to try the famous pancakes from The Pancake Pantry in Nashville, Tennessee. During my ample time to ponder, I wondered about whether or not such a long wait time would enhance or hinder my dining experience. Also while waiting in line, I noticed myself staring into the screen of my old iPhone, which is due for an upgrade.

Somewhat serendipitously, I came across an article this week on npr.com that addressed the concept of happiness, and whether or not it can be purchased. The article cited a growing body of research that suggests experiences tend to make people happier than the acquisition of material possessions, and referenced an article entitled Waiting for Merlot: Anticipatory Consumption of Experiential and Material Purchases that tracked 100 college students and more than 2,200 randomly selected adults in order to assess their feelings about material possessions compared to lived experiences. The findings suggest that, while people tend to feel excitement about both, they express more positive feelings about experiences. This is likely due to the creativity involved in planning and executing an experience, while making a new purchase tends to be more concrete. We know what to expect when we buy a new computer, because we have likely done the necessary research in order to make an informed purchase, but planning a vacation or an afternoon on the town tends to offer more fluidity and more anticipatory excitement.

As I waited in line, I engaged in a pleasant conversation with my girlfriend about what kind of pancakes to order, did some people watching, and my appetite and excitement seemed to grow as I inched ever closer to the dining area. In the end, I was more than satiated, and left the restaurant feeling better than I had when I arrived. More importantly, the memory of this experience gets better with each reflection, which cannot be said about recollections of past purchases. So when you ask yourself which experience might yield the most happiness, try to recall how you felt before and after waiting in line for that big Black Friday sale, versus how you felt before and after a great ride at Six Flags, or a delicious meal with friends.

Graham Martin, MA
WKPIC Doctoral Intern

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Category Archives: Mental Health and Wellness

Friday Factoid: Vitamin D Has a Mental Health Connection

Friday Factoids: Is the Internet Destroying Reading Habits?

Friday Factoids: That’s such great news! But why am I crying?

Friday Factoid: The Power of Positive Thinking. . .with a Healthy Dose of Realism

Friday Factoids: New iPhone or Famous Pancakes?

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