Mental Health is For Life Psychology

A person with social anxiety disorder has a fear or anxiety about social situations where they may be scrutinised by others and be humiliated or embarrassed. The fear is out of proportion to the situation, lasts for at least six months, and causes the person to avoid the situation or endure it with intense anxiety (APA 2022)

Social Anxiety: More Than Just Shy or Self-Conscious Most people worry about what other people think about them sometimes: “Do I look okay?” “Did what I just say make sense?” But for some people, these thoughts can be intense, troubling and persistent.

The amygdala is a small but powerful part of the brain that serves as the seat of your emotions. Ordinarily, the brain works like this: the thalamus (the central processing system) takes in data, and then sends it on its way, first to the frontal cortex (the centre of your logic and reason) and finally to the amygdala.

Your amygdala also stores some of your long-term memory, including emotional trauma. And when it receives data from the frontal cortex, it compares your present experience with your past experiences, looking for patterns.

How to stop your amygdala from hijacking your emotions The amygdala can hijack your brain's response if it recognizes past trauma in a current situation. To regain control, simply press pause.

If trauma can result in chronic inflammation or autoimmune disease, one might argue that the expression of these conditions itself is no less valid than the brain’s construction of an emotionally triggering experience. The question then becomes semantic: “Keeping the score” doesn’t have to mean being conscious of keeping the score. Lymphocytes, white blood cells that promote adaptive immunity, “keep score” of every antigen they’ve encountered, forming memory cells in the immune system. The heart and enteric system can function independently of the brain, keeping their own score of metabolic processes. More often than not, what happens inside us is a two-way partnership between the brain and viscera, but it’s not always clear who’s in charge.

Does the body really “keep the score” of trauma? Some neuroscientists are skeptical about the notion that the body can “keep score” of anything in a meaningful way.

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The study, published today in Nature Mental Health, used UK Biobank data from more than 18,000 people. 7,749 people in the study had no major clinically diagnosed medical or mental health conditions, while 10,334 reported a diagnosis of either schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, depression or anxiety.

Using advanced statistical models, the researchers found poorer organ health was significantly associated with higher depressive symptoms, and that the brain plays an important role in linking body health and depression.

Pathways linking organ and brain health, and impacts to mental health revealed Pathways linking organ and brain health, and impacts to mental health revealed

When someone in your life has been affected by a traumatic event, learning safe and sensitive ways to communicate with them could make all the difference.

Veterans and their families may feel particularly vulnerable after the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Su***de final report is released on 9 September.

Ahead of the final report’s release, Mindframe is offering free online training to support safe and sensitive public communication about su***de and mental health concerns.

The sessions are intended to support veterans and their families, and those who work closely with them, to discuss and publicly communicate about su***de and mental health concerns.

To find out more and book the 20 August session:
https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/mindframe-training-communicating-about-su***de-mental-health-concerns-tickets-969345326967?aff=oddtdtcreator

To find out more and book the 28 August session:
https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/mindframe-training-communicating-about-su***de-mental-health-concerns-tickets-969400532087?aff=oddtdtcreator

If you are a veteran or part of their immediate family, we provide free, military-aware mental health support 24/7.

☎️ 1800 011 046

For more information on Mindframe go to https://mindframe.org.au

"It has been proven to successfully reduce the number of flashbacks people experience, and in some cases improve other symptoms of PTSD, like anxiety. "

Love playing Tetris? Its effects on your brain are surprisingly profound Scientists are harnessing the Tetris effect, a phenomenon described by people who play the classic 1980s video puzzle game, to help unlock dreams and treat post traumatic stress disorder.

Staying in touch with family and extended family is an essential part of a happy and fulfilled life for everyone. (There are exceptions especially if the family member is cruel or abusive).

How to Connect Older and Younger Family Members — Tunstall Healthcare Sometimes it seems there’s a gulf between the interests of children and their older relatives, which makes connecting difficult. Here’s an easy guiding to bridging the generational gap and building long-lasting relationships independent of age difference.

We cannot separate the importance of a sense of belonging from our physical and mental health. The social ties that accompany a sense of belonging are a protective factor helping manage stress and other behavioural issues. When we feel we have support and are not alone, we are more resilient, often coping more effectively with difficult times in our lives. Coping well with hardships decreases the physical and mental effects of these situations.

Is a sense of belonging important? When you feel supported and not alone, you can better cope with difficulty in your life. Boost your sense of belonging with these 5 tips.

The benefits of having extended family in our lives are numerous and well known and mental good health requires this sense of belonging and connectedness. It is especially good for children to know of whence they came and the family stories and culture spanning differing generational times

The Benefits Of Having Extended Family Nearby | Regain This article explores advantages and disadvantages of the extended family unit, including when it comes to raising children, financial support, and more.

ABORIGINAL MEMORY CODE

Long before the ancient Celts, Aboriginal people were recording vast scores of knowledge to memory and passing it to successive generations.

The people from the First Nations demonstrate that their oral traditions are not only highly detailed and complex, but they can survive – accurately – for thousands, even tens of thousands, of years.

Yet most of us struggle to remember what I did last Tuesday. So how did they do it?

Researcher Lynne Kelly was drawn to this question while investigating Aboriginal knowledge about animals for her PhD.
It was evident to Kelly that Aboriginal people catalogued huge scores of information about animals – including species types, physical features, behaviour, links to food and plants – and wondered how they do it.

A MEMORABLE THING

Aboriginal elders explained to her how they encode knowledge in song, dance, story and place. This led to a theory that may revolutionise archaeology.

It has long been known that the human brain has evolved to associate memory with place, referred to as the method of loci. This means that we associate memory with a location. How often do memories come flooding back to us when we visit our childhood haunt?

Loci (Latin for “place”), can refer to landscape features, ceremonial sites, abstract designs – anything with distinct features where information can be linked to memory.

Kelly developed this into a framework that may explain the purpose of famous sites such as Stonehenge, the Nasca lines and the Moai of Easter Island.

The meanings of these sites have been a topic of controversy for decades. What Kelly proposes in her new book The Memory Code is that sites such as Stonehenge and the Nasca lines are actually memory spaces.

KNOWLEDGE IS POWER

In oral cultures, knowledge is power. It is imperative that the most important knowledge be maintained and preserved by a few select custodians who have proven their worth.

In Aboriginal cultures, elders who have passed the highest levels of initiation hold the deepest levels of knowledge.

This is reflected in ceremonial sites where knowledge is passed down. Aboriginal initiation sites include a secret area where the most sacred knowledge is discussed.

We also see this at Stonehenge, where the perimeter of standing stones shields the centre of the ring, where the most important aspects knowledge are passed on through ceremony.

These sites include features that are unique in shape and form. At Uluru, the Anangu elders associate every crevice, bump, and notch around the perimeter of the mountain with knowledge that is stored to memory.

STAR MAPS AND MEMORY

But loci is not only linked to places you can touch or visit. Aboriginal people also use the stars as memory spaces.

For example, groups of stars can represent features on the landscape. Aboriginal Law Man Ghillar Michael Anderson explains how the Euahlayi people were able to travel long distances for trade and ceremony.

The Euahlayi would memorise star maps at night and learn the songs that talk about their relationship to the land. Each star was associated with a landscape feature, such as a waterhole.

Later in the year, they would sing the song as they travelled across country by day. These songline routes became the foundation of some of our highway networks that criss-cross the country.

Rather than navigating by the stars, the stars themselves serve as a memory space.

In The Memory Code, Kelly provides new insights into how oral societies are able to store vast quantities of knowledge to memory without it degrading over time.

It may explain how Aboriginal memories of land that existed before it was flooded by rising sea levels during the last Ice Age survived in oral tradition for more than 7,000 years.

To test it herself, Kelly used the technique to memorise all of the world’s countries in order of population by linking them with features around her neighbourhood, including buildings and gardens – making up her own stories for each one. And she can now recite them flawlessly.

You might be surprised how easy it is to do yourself.

LISTEN TO LYNNE KELLY INTERVIEW

ABC RN 'Conversations' with Michelle Ransom-Hughes
(Sovereign Union Audio online) https://bit.ly/3JGl49M
Another related podcast link: https://bit.ly/3HGtvjz

THE BOOK
Available to buy online or borrow from your library
The Memory Code by Lynne Kelly https://shorturl.at/DFwgt

"The feminine cannot, will not surrender
To the wounded masculine...

A man who criticizes her
Belittles
Dishonours
Controls
Manipulates
Abuses
Or attacks her

Her own inner masculine will not allow it
He will rise fiercely to the forefront
To stand guard
To do the job himself

The feminine can and will only surrender
To the divine masculine...

A man who is devoted to her
Elevates
Honours
Cherishes
Supports
And protects her

A man with boundaries
Presence
Direction
Integrity
Accountability
And humility

In this space
She will feel him penetrating her very essence...

Her body
Her mind
Her heart
Her soul

And she will feel safe...
Safe enough to surrender

This is the natural law
This is the dance of healed polarities

This is surrender...
To Love"

Words and pic - Ouvesha Rabinund Moodley

Unhealthy behaviours in relationships include: stonewalling, contempt, criticism, and defensiveness and Gaslighting. These behaviours have no place in a relationship and can cause irreparable harm