Saya Des Marais, MSW

If you try one or two forms of antidepressant medication and don’t feel any relief from your symptoms, medical professionals may consider this “treatment-resistant depression.”

Culture plays an important role in every facet of our lives, including substance use. Practicing cultural humility is crucial for effective treatment for everyone.
Culture can be defined as a shared set of beliefs, values, experiences, and more. It affects everyone, no matter who you are or where you live.
Our culture plays a role in how we think, behave, and communicate.
Substance use is no different.

If you live with OCD, your symptoms may begin to affect your identity — including your gender, sexual orientation, moral beliefs, and more.

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a complex mental health condition.
Its primary symptoms are obsessions and compulsions. Obsessions are unwanted thoughts, urges, or images that cause fear or anxiety. Compulsions are repetitive behaviors done with the purpose of escaping anxiety caused by obsessions.

Key takeaways:
Overall, using alcohol can harm your self-esteem in many ways.
Although some people experience a temporary rise in feelings of self-esteem while they’re under the influence of alcohol, this effect almost always goes away.
People often get “hangxiety” after a night of drinking or an increase in anxiety as alcohol leaves their system. This can lower self-esteem.

Boys are at least twice as likely to be diagnosed with ADHD. Some reports state that girls are up to 16 times less likely to receive diagnosis and treatment. These numbers don’t mean that girls are less likely to have ADHD, but rather that girls are less likely to receive the correct diagnosis and treatment.

Having an adult child with OCD can be challenging. But there are ways to manage symptoms and strengthen your relationship.

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a condition that affects the entire family.
This condition can begin in childhood or adolescence. The International OCD Foundation estimates that around one-third of adults with OCD develop their symptoms during childhood.

Parents of adults with OCD may have been dealing with these symptoms since childhood.

Migraine pain getting in your way? Relaxation techniques can help.

When you live with migraine, it’s critical that you are equipped with effective relaxation techniques. Stress is a common headache trigger for many people with migraine, but there are relaxation techniques for migraine that can help you manage stress and reduce the odds of getting a migraine attack.

One of the oldest, most effective relaxation techniques for migraine is progressive muscle relaxation, or PMR.

Have you experienced a migraine attack during a stressful time? What about after a stressful event or period?

If you’ve ever wondered, “Can stress cause migraine attacks?” you may be onto something.
To be clear, migraine is a chronic illness. There is a genetic predisposition to have migraine, meaning it runs in families. There is nothing you’ve done that has “caused” you to live with migraine.

Distorted physical sensations can be a common — but distressing — symptom of OCD. Although they may feel real, approaching them like any other OCD-related obsession can help.

Key Takeaways:

Alcohol use disorder is a serious health condition. Many people who live with alcohol use disorder have difficulty accepting or recognizing their problem with drinking.

There are many reasons that people with alcohol use disorder may engage in denial, including shame and a lack of education about alcohol addiction.

Friends, parents, and spouses of people with alcohol use disorder should be empathetic and supportive when talking to the person and confronting their disorder.

Research shows that parent involvement makes child therapy more effective. But that doesn’t mean that you’ll be present during all sessions.

It can be a confusing process when your child first starts going to therapy.
Whatever the reason for it, you’ve already made the best decision for your child, which is to get them the mental health support they need. But what’s next?

By Saya Des Marais, MSW
When most people think about migraine treatment, they think of medications. Although medications are often an important part of treatment, behavioral interventions – like biofeedback and relaxation – are very effective tools for people with migraine as well. And you don’t have to choose between them; you can participate in behavioral therapies at the same time as medications, or on their own.
Another proven treatment for migraine prevention is cognitive behavioral ther...

The basics
Addiction is a chronic disease. That means that there’s no lifelong cure for it, but it can be treated. The symptoms of substance use disorder can be managed to the point where they’re no longer interfering with your everyday life.
Recovery from substance use disorder is rarely linear. Most of the time, the road to recovery is long and complex. In other words, recovery is a journey — and not a destination. And along that road, there may be times when you take some steps back.
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