Mental health services for sexual minorities: experiences of discrimination, barriers to services and priorities for improvement

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In her latest blog, Siobhan D’Almeida appraises a qualitative study exploring the experiences of sexual minorities when accessing mental health services, with a specific focus on the impact to the therapeutic relationship.

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Serotonin hypothesis of depression: balance (and imbalance) is in the eye of the beholder

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The 2022 review by Moncrieff et al on the serotonin theory of depression received a great deal of media coverage. In this blog, Rebecca Wilkinson and Sameer Jauhar shed fresh light on this research and what it means for mental health science and practice.

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The term ‘borderline personality disorder’ is misunderstood by almost everyone; it needs to go

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Many people feel very strongly about the term ‘personality disorder’. It is not the adjective that troubles; it is the noun. ‘Disorder’ is used as from 1980 onwards every mental health diagnosis has been listed as a disorder even if the final word is not mentioned. You cannot make a mental diagnosis without using it, [read the full story…]

Care or punishment? Black service users’ experiences of inpatient mental health care under detention

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Ian Cummins summarises findings from a recent qualitative study by Solanki et al. (2023), which explores the experiences of individuals from Black Ethnic backgrounds detained under the Mental Health Act (1983).

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The problematic politics of LGBT+ suicide prevention in the UK

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Sarah Carr considers an analysis of the UK parliamentary debates and national policies on LGBT+ suicide representation in political and policy spheres.

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Does a diagnosis of borderline personality disorder help or harm? #BIGSPD23

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As we prepare for #BIGSPD23 in Glasgow (starting tomorrow), a psychiatrist and mental health occupational therapist explore a review of stigma occurring as a result of a borderline personality disorder diagnosis, coming to their own conclusions on the key messages.

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Computerised CBT for youth anxiety and depression: a growing evidence-base

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In her debut blog, Jemma Baker reports on a systematic review and meta-analysis investigating the effectiveness of computerised cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) for depression and anxiety in adolescents.

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Does what you eat affect how you feel?

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Daisy Crick summarises a recent paper on the casual relationship between polyunsaturated fatty acids and depression.

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What treatment outcomes are important to adolescents with depression? Novel findings from a Q-study

While this study demonstrated strengths in participant involvement and novelty, participants identified important missing outcomes, and the recruitment method excluded participants who may have prioritised different outcomes.

In her debut blog, Danielle Brocklebank summarises a Q-sort study which sought to identify which treatment outcomes are the most important to young people with depression.

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Parental mental illness a key risk factor for offspring mental illness: new evidence from Australia

The prevalence of developmental vulnerabilities in children increased with the number of parental comorbidities, with overall stronger associations for mothers compared to fathers.

Francesca Zecchinato summarises a new study which suggests that children of parents with experience of mental illness comorbidities represent a vulnerable population and should be prioritised in prevention and intervention efforts.

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