Exploring people’s experiences of psychotherapy for self-harm: the importance of the therapeutic alliance

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Hannah Wallace summarises a systematic review exploring people’s experiences of psychotherapy for self-harming behaviours, which highlights the importance of therapeutic rapport and the clinical competencies that support developing a good relationship between clinicians and service users.

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Are Discharge to Assess services delivering on their promise?

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Daisy Long reviews E.W Gadsby, G Wistow & J Billings article A critical systems evaluation of the introduction of a ‘discharge to assess’ service in Kent

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Exercise for depression: an evidence-based treatment option

Physical activity engagement, even at low volumes, is associated with a reduced risk of depressive symptoms.

Ross Nedoma summarises the biggest review yet on exercise for depression, which strengthens the case for making exercise a key component in our fight against depression.

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New meta-analysis finds methadone better than buprenorphine for treatment retention in opioid dependence

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Ian Hamilton considers a new Lancet Psychiatry systematic review and meta-analysis that examines the effectiveness of buprenorphine versus methadone for the treatment of opioid dependence, drawing from observational and randomised controlled studies.

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How do friendships influence adolescent self-injurious thoughts and behaviours?

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In her debut blog, Bella Brereton writes with Rasanat Fatima Nawaz to summarise a systematic review that explored the associations between self-injurious thoughts and behaviours and school-based friendship networks in adolescents, using sociometric data.

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Sitting in the waiting room: what happens when anxiety disorders are left untreated?

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In her debut blog, Beth Hindhaugh summarises a systematic review and meta-analysis of 173 studies examining the untreated course of anxiety disorders, which finds that for some people, anxiety disorders can improve without treatment.

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The burden of perinatal mental illness in migrant women: new evidence on prevalence and risk factors

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In her debut Mental Elf blog, Gilda Spaducci explores the global prevalence of perinatal mental disorders among migrant women; summarising a recent review which finds that “one in four experience perinatal depression, one in five perinatal anxiety, and one in eleven perinatal PTSD”.

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Sharpening the focus: viewing self-harm images online – harmful and protective?

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Jo Lockwood, Camilla Babbage and Ellen Townsend consider a systematic review exploring the impact of viewing self-harm images online, which finds that images can trigger powerful emotions and may relate to a change in cognition, affect and behaviour.

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Suicide and self-harm in children: prevalence rates cause for concern

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In Mahmoud Arif’s debut blog, he and Rasanat Fatima Nawaz summarise a meta-analysis published in The Lancet Psychiatry, which estimated the prevalence rates of self-harm behaviours and suicidal ideation in children aged 12 years and under.

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Cellular immune phenotypes of depression: a gateway to precision medicine 

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In her debut blog, Fabiana Corsi-Zuelli summarises a recent systematic review and meta-analysis investigating the role of peripheral immune cells in depression, with a focus on implications for future immunotherapy trials.

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