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Suicide ideation, anxiety, and depression: are children a protective factor for male Veterans?
- Authors:
- WEISENHORN David A., et al
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Family Social Work, 20(1), 2017, pp.41-51.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
- Place of publication:
- Philadelphia, USA
Numerous mental health disorders plague our veterans when they return from deployment including anxiety and depressive disorders, which have been linked to elevated suicide risk when left untreated. Family factors, such as parenthood status, may serve as a protective factor against these mental health issues. This study examined the role of parenthood status of male veterans (N = 234) based on age of the child in order to determine whether a child’s age (minor children v. adult children) affects the likelihood of meeting diagnosis criteria for anxiety, depression, and suicide ideation after controlling for marital status. Three hierarchical binary logistic regression models were constructed to assess the predictive influence of children 18 years old and younger, children older than 18, and no children with the results indicating that parenthood status did meaningfully enhance the prediction of suicide ideation. Complete findings, clinical implications, and future considerations are discussed. (Publisher abstract)
Challenging times: prevalence of psychiatric disorders and suicidal behaviours in Irish adolescents
- Authors:
- LYNCH Fionnuala, et al
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Adolescence, 29(4), August 2006, pp.555-573.
- Publisher:
- Academic Press
Against a background of a lack of systematic epidemiological research in Ireland in the area, this study set out to determine prevalence rates of psychiatric disorders, suicidal ideation and intent, and parasuicide in a population of Irish adolescents aged 12–15 years in a defined geographical area. All 12–15-year olds attending eight secondary schools were eligible for inclusion. A two-stage procedure was used involving a screening and an interview phase. Those scoring in the clinical range on the screening measures were interviewed, along with a comparison group matched for gender, school and school year. 19.4% of the 723 screened were identified as being ‘at risk’. This ‘at risk’ group was interviewed along with a comparison sample. 15.6% of the total study population met the criteria for a current psychiatric disorder, including 4.5% with an affective disorder, 3.7% with an anxiety disorder and 3.7% with ADHD. Significant past suicidal ideation was experienced by 1.9%, and 1.5% had a history of parasuicide. Binge drinking was associated with both affective and behaviour disorders. Rates of psychiatric disorders and suicidal behaviours are similar in young Irish adolescents to those in other Western cultures. Mental health promotion should be given priority in schools.
Cheers?: understanding the relationship between alcohol and mental health
- Author:
- MENTAL HEALTH FOUNDATION
- Publisher:
- Mental Health Foundation
- Publication year:
- 2006
- Pagination:
- 40p.
- Place of publication:
- London
While much debate has taken place recently about alcohol, researchers have failed to draw out the reasons why so many people have troubled relationships with it. The reasons we drink and the consequences of excessive drinking are intimately linked with our mental health, and this holds the key to dealing with growing worries about alcohol misuse. Evidence outlined in this report shows that: there are significant connections between reported alcohol use and depressive symptoms; people report using alcohol to help them sleep people drink more when experiencing moderate to high levels of shyness or fear; anxious people use drinking ‘to cope’ and are more likely to avoid social situations where alcohol is not available; as many as 65% of suicides have been linked to excessive drinking 70% of men who kill themselves have drunk alcohol before doing so almost a third of suicides amongst young people are committed while the person is intoxicated; anxiety and depressive symptoms are more common in heavy drinkers; heavy drinking is more common in those with anxiety and depression; there is a significant relationship between job stress and alcohol consumption. Many GPs believe that alcohol is a cause of mental health problems.
Adolescent mental health evidence brief 1: prevalence of disorders
- Authors:
- CLARKE Aleisha, POTE Ines, SORGENFREI Miriam
- Publisher:
- Early Intervention Foundation
- Publication year:
- 2020
- Pagination:
- 9
- Place of publication:
- London
This briefing provides data on the prevalence of mental disorders among adolescents, aged 11–19 years, in England, including data gathered during the Covid-19 national lockdown. Key points include: more than one in seven young people (15.3%) aged 11–19 in England had at least one mental disorder in 2017; a follow-up survey carried out during the Covid-19 lockdown (July 2020) indicates that one in six young people (17.6%) aged 11–16 years were identified as having a probable mental disorder – this figure increases to one in five (20.0%) among young adults aged 17–22; emotional disorders such as anxiety and depression are the most common mental disorders experienced by young people; the rate of mental disorders among 11–15-year-olds in England seems to be increasing, having risen from 11.4% in 1999 to 13.6% in 2017 – the latest data from 2020 suggest that young people’s mental health has further deteriorated; similar to mental disorders, rates of self-harm and attempted suicide among the adolescent population are increasing, with reported self-harm having increased from 5.3% in 2000 to 13.7% in 2014 (11–16-year-olds); while these increases over the last two decades may reflect more accurate reporting, they may also represent an increase in prevalence rates; the increasing concern around young people’s mental health, particularly in relation to the Covid-19 pandemic, highlight the need for immediate action to support young people most at risk; early intervention, including promotion and prevention strategies, has the potential to produce the greatest impact on young people’s mental health and wellbeing by taking action before mental health problems worsen and preventing the onset of mental disorders. (Edited publisher abstract)
Not alone anymore. Childline annual review 2016/17
- Author:
- NATIONAL SOCIETY FOR THE PREVENTION OF CRUELTY TO CHILDREN
- Publisher:
- NSPCC
- Publication year:
- 2017
- Pagination:
- 73
- Place of publication:
- London
Annual review providing key statistics on the numbers of children and young people contacting Childline in 2016/17, the reasons for contacting the service, the numbers of children referred from Childline to external agencies and the reasons for referral. The review provides detailed information on children contacting Childline due to anxiety and suicidal thoughts or feelings - two areas that have shown substantial year-on-year increases in counselling sessions. It also looks at the experiences of children contacting Childline who were d/Deaf, disabled, had special educational needs or a health condition. The review reports there were 295,202 counselling sessions in 2016/17, of which 71 per cent took place online compared with 29 per cent on the telephone. Mental and emotional health, family relationships and bullying were the three most common reasons for children contacting Childline. Other main concerns include: suicidal feelings; sex, relationships and sexual health; friendship issues; self-harm; problems in school; sexual abuse and online sexual abuse; and physical abuse. Appendices provide statistical breakdowns by age, gender, and type of concern. (Edited publisher abstract)
Disentangling depression and anxiety in relation to neuroticism, extraversion, suicide, and self-harm among adult psychiatric inpatients with serious mental illness
- Author:
- SUBICA Andrew M.
- Journal article citation:
- British Journal of Clinical Psychology, 55(4), 2016, p.349–370.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Objectives: Little is known about depression–anxiety comorbidity and its association with personality traits and suicide/self-harm in adult psychiatric inpatients with serious mental illness (SMI), impacting clinical assessment and treatment. This study sought to determine the symptom structure of depression–anxiety comorbidity and its relation to neuroticism, extraversion, and suicide/self-harm behaviour in this high-risk population. Design: Nine hundred and sixty-two adults receiving inpatient care at a private psychiatric hospital completed questionnaires at admission. Methods: Confirmatory factor analyses compared a bifactor solution specifying a general distress factor and two specific depression and anxiety factors against unidimensional and correlated factors solutions. The bifactor solutions' factors were subsequently correlated with neuroticism and extraversion subscales and pre-hospitalisation suicide/self-harm behaviours. Results: The bifactor model rendered superior fit to sample data and a robust general factor – accounting for 77.61% of common item variance – providing the first evidence for a tripartite structure of depression and anxiety among adult inpatients. The bifactor solution-outputted independent general distress, depression, and anxiety factors positively correlated with neuroticism, the personality dimension corresponding to trait negative affectivity. The general distress and depression factors associated with recent self-harm, but factors showed no associations with prior suicidal behaviour. Conclusions: In adult psychiatric inpatients, general distress substantially underlies comorbid depression and anxiety symptom variation and may contribute to recent incidence of self-harm. Transdiagnostic assessments and interventions targeting general distress may temper depression, anxiety, and self-harm in adult inpatients. Practitioner points - Clinical implications: a) Depression–anxiety comorbidity symptomology in adult psychiatric inpatients is primarily composed of general distress; b) General distress and specific depression are associated with recent self-harm but not suicidal behaviour; c) Assessing and treating general distress rather than depression or anxiety specifically may best mitigate comorbid depression and anxiety, and reduce self-harm behaviour in this clinical population. Cautions and limitations: a) The large sample lacked ethnocultural diversity, and data were cross-sectional; b) The use of brief self-report measures to assess depression and anxiety may have reduced measurement range. (Edited publisher abstract)
Parent psychopathology and offspring mental disorders: results from the WHO World Mental Health Surveys
- Authors:
- MCLAUGHLIN Katie A., et al
- Journal article citation:
- British Journal of Psychiatry, 200(4), April 2012, pp.290-299.
- Publisher:
- Cambridge University Press
Parent psychopathology is strongly linked with offspring psychiatric disorders. A central unanswered question is whether this is through a generalised vulnerability or confined to the particular disorder. Much of the research to date has examined a single or limited number of parent disorders without accounting for comorbidity which may have partially inflated specific associations. This study examine data from the World Health Organization (WHO) World Mental Health Surveys (n = 51 507, covering 22 countries). Respondent disorders were assessed with the Composite International Diagnostic Interview and parent disorders with informant-based Family History Research Diagnostic Criteria interviews. Although virtually all parent disorders examined (major depressive, generalised anxiety, panic, substance and antisocial behaviour disorders and suicidality) were significantly associated with offspring disorders in multivariate analyses, little specificity was found. Comorbid parent disorders had significant sub-additive associations with offspring disorders. Population-attributable risk proportions for parent disorders were 12.4% across all offspring disorders, generally higher in high- and upper-middle- than low-/lower-middle-income countries, and consistently higher for behaviour (11.0-19.9%) than other (7.1-14.0%) disorders. The authors conclude that parent psychopathology is a robust non-specific predictor associated with a substantial proportion of offspring disorders.
Health status and suicide in the second half of life
- Authors:
- CONWELL Yeates, et al
- Journal article citation:
- International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 25(4), April 2010, pp.371-379.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
This paper examines the associations of suicide in older people with medical and psychiatric illness and functional limitations. A retrospective case-control design was used to compare 86 people over 50 who committed suicide with a comparison group of 86 participants that were individually matched on age, gender, race, and locality. Findings showed that suicide victims had mood and anxiety disorders, worse physical health status, and greater impairment in functional capacity. They were more likely to have required psychiatric treatment, hospitalisation in the last year, and a visiting home care service. In a multivariate model, the presence of any active disorder and any impairment in instrumental activities of daily living made independent contributions to suicide risk. The authors concluded that mental and physical illness along with functional impairments increased risk of suicide in this age group. In addition to individuals with psychiatric illness, those with severe or comorbid physical illness and functional disability who require inpatient and home care services should be targeted for screening and preventive interventions.
The mental health children and parents in Northern Ireland: results of the Youth Wellbeing Prevalence Survey
- Authors:
- BUNTING Lisa, et al
- Publisher:
- Northern Ireland. Health and Social Care Board
- Publication year:
- 2020
- Pagination:
- 147
- Place of publication:
- Belfast
Findings from the Youth Wellbeing NI Survey, which provides estimates of rates of a range of mental health problems based on a representative sample of children and young people and their parents. This study provides data on more than 3,000 children and young people in Northern Ireland, and on more than 2,800 parents and caregivers. The report focuses on emotional and behavioural problems; oppositional defiant and conduct disorders; mood and anxiety disorders; stress related disorders; young people at risk of other mental health problems; behaviours and experiences; parental mental health; and predicting mental health problems. A significant proportion of children and young people in Northern Ireland experience mental health problems, including diagnosable mental health conditions. The data reveals that one in eight children and young people (12.6%) had an emotional disorder such as anxiety or depression. The most commonly reported traumas by adolescents were witnessing violence (17.0%), having a serious accident (16.8%), and sudden death of a loved one (10.7%). The prevalence of any stress related disorder was 4.9%, for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) it was 1.5%, and for Complex PTSD (CPTSD) it was 3.4%. Almost one in ten (9.4%) 11-19 year olds reported self-injurious behaviour and close to one in eight (12.1%) reporting thinking about or attempting suicide. (Edited publisher abstract)
Older people's mental health today: a handbook
- Editors:
- WILLIAMSON Toby, (ed.)
- Publisher:
- OLM-Pavilion
- Publication year:
- 2009
- Pagination:
- 212p.
- Place of publication:
- Brighton
This handbook is a collection of chapters written by experts in the field of older people’s mental health. It is divided into two sections: mental health and well-being of older people; care and support of older people with mental health problems. Individual chapters discuss topics such as old age and mental health in the context of lifespan; depression and anxiety; families, carers and friends; housing and environment issues; legal issues; adult protection and risk; dignity in care; current best practice for dementia.