Psychoworld.sk – human psychology news

A quarter of young cancer specialists in the UK are suffering from stress which can lead to depression and affect their care of patients and their families, researchers have found.
In a survey of 401 oncology registrars, 102 scored above the threshold for possible psychiatric morbidity and more than one in ten showed clinically important levels of depression.

The main reasons cited include being over-stretched, keeping up-to-date with knowledge, fear of making mistakes, talking with distressed relatives, and poor senior support and team relations.

The team was established to survey all the palliative medicine, medical oncology and clinical oncology registrars in the country – 63% of the UK’s cancer specialist registrars replied- with a questionnaire and a test for short-term changes in mental health.

They found 102 with levels of psychological distress, 44 had scores indicating depression and 15 expressed suicidal ideas. The study also found that the effect of stress on personal/family life was the dominant predictor of depression, which tallied with studies of other specialties. If interested in more details, please click here.

Women whose sexual desire diminishes during menopause are more likely to report disturbed sleep, depression symptoms, and night sweats, according to Group Health research in the June American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology.

To the best of the research team’s knowledge, this marks the first time that sleep disturbance has been independently associated with diminished sexual desire during or after menopause. With age, sexual desire may be diminished for both women and men, said Dr. Reed, whose clinical practice is at the Women’s Clinic at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle.

But gender differences may complicate matters. “For women, greater intimacy tends to open the door to more sexual desire,” she said. “That’s not always true for men.” However, changes that happen with menopause can disturb women’s sense of well-being . But experts recommend a variety of steps that women can take on their own to feel better through the transition.

Here are some of them:

Depression:

• Support ongoing regular physical exercise whatever works for you (be it yoga or karate)
  to promote fitness, balance, social networking, and an energetic approach to life.
• Eat small, balanced meals, including snacks, at regular intervals. Avoid getting too hungry or overeating, because a full stomach can make you feel glum.
• Try new activities.
• Spend some time every day outside in the daylight.

Low libido:

• Address the changes that menopause and age–including changes in male sexual response–can bring to relationships.
• Be aware that both women and men may need more time for arousal.
• Try learning to massage each other.
• Talk to your doctor about solutions for vaginal dryness, e.g., lubricants and topical estrogen.

For more useful hints look here.