ABSTRACT Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental health condition that can develop following exposure to a traumatic event, often with persistent anxiety and depressive symptoms. Recent research suggests the microbiome-gut-brain axis may play an important role in the etiology and pathophysiology of PTSD. At the same time, retreats incorporating psychedelic-assisted therapies have...
ABSTRACT Background Poor sleep quality has emerged as a risk for coronary artery disease (CAD) and is also associated with poor prognosis and increased mortality. Sleep aids, among CAD patients, lead to increased heart failure, hospitalisation, and mortality. Yoga Nidra, a form of guided meditation, has been shown to improve sleep quality and duration. The aim of the study is to evaluate the...
Treatment-resistant depression (TRD) is associated with severe depression, low quality of life (QoL) and reduced work productivity, which may increase risk of relapse, suicide and suboptimal response to treatment. Esketamine nasal spray plus a newly-initiated oral antidepressant (esketamine+OAD) has been shown to improve depression symptoms, QoL and productivity in patients with TRD; however...
Adjustment Disorder (AjD) is a common stress-related condition, yet evidence-based interventions remain scarce. Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) targets transdiagnostic mechanisms such as cognitive fusion and low self-compassion, which may be particularly relevant for AjD. This randomized controlled trial tested the efficacy of a brief, guided, asynchronous internet-delivered MBCT...
This study examined the role of perceived stress in intervention-related change during a mindfulness-based intervention (MBI) for emotional distress across two randomized controlled trials. In Study 1, 636 participants (Mage = 31.06, SDage = 9.54; 83.18% female) with high psychological distress were randomized to an MBI group (N = 318) or a Waitlist control group (N = 318), measuring perceived...
Theoretically, home practice of mindfulness is a critical mechanism underlying the benefits of mindfulness-based intervention (MBI), but rates of adherence to home practice recommendations are low for youth participants in MBI. In the current study, we test the extent to which the first supplement delivered via cellphone to an MBI increases rates of home practice, and to what extent home...
A 16-year-old post-pubertal female presented with mixed anxiety-depressive symptoms, prominent obsessive rumination, relationship-centered guilt, reassurance-seeking, fantasy intrusions, and difficulty separating fantasy from reality during periods of distress. Baseline scores were in the moderate range for depression and severe range for anxiety, with a Patient Health Questionnaire-9 score of...
Psychedelics are a broad category of compounds that induce altered states of consciousness. These drugs have shown remarkable promise for the treatment of debilitating disorders ranging from posttraumatic stress disorder to depression and addiction. Although early studies focused on linking binding targets of psychedelics to their therapeutic effects, these pharmacological and biochemical...
Abstract Aim Ketamine is increasingly used for treatment-resistant depression, bipolar disorder, PTSD, chronic pain, and other psychiatric conditions[8,9]. As more adults receive serial ketamine infusions or intranasal esketamine, perioperative considerations with ongoing NMDA-receptor modulation. However, perioperative guidance remains limited, creating uncertainty around anesthetic dosing,...
INTRODUCTION: Ketamine, initially developed as an anesthetic and now increasingly prescribed for treatment-resistant depression, is also widely misused in recreational contexts. Chronic ketamine use, often leading to dependence, has been associated with severe physical complications, including ulcerative cystitis and gastrointestinal dysfunction, as well as cognitive, affective, and psychotic...