Category: Mental Health
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What Is Normal Sleep? From A Sleep Science Perspective
Introduction There’s a lot of myths out there when it comes to sleep and what is normal sleep. For example, many people fall victim to the idea that everybody needs at least eight hours of sleep to feel good and healthy. This is actually not true. Moreover, for people who are shorter sleepers (e.g., those…
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Facing Our Fears: Cognitive Behavioural Strategies For Dealing With Specific Phobias
What is specific phobia? Specific phobia is an anxiety disorder characterized by an unreasonable fear and avoidance of some type of stimuli (the phobia). The stimulus expands a broad range of different possibilities, such as animals or insects, situations in the nature or environment (e.g., storms, heights), specific situations (e.g., being on a plane or…
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Incorporating Values To Guide Activity Scheduling In Depression
Introduction Depression tends to really limit a person’s world. When we are depressed, our body pulls for rest and our brain tells us to sit down and do nothing. Consequently, the lack of activities and positive reinforcement in our lives perpetuate the cycle of depression ad infinitum. Activity scheduling is an evidence-based cognitive behavioural strategy…
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What Are Good Sleepers Actually Like?
Introduction I often hear my patients who have chronic insomnia talk about what they think a good sleeper should be like. In their perspective, they usually think of a good sleeper as somebody who goes to bed, falls asleep immediately, wakes up 8 hours later feeling refreshed and energized for the day. These beliefs typically…
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The Difference Between Acute And Chronic Insomnia
Introduction Although people often think of insomnia as a general sleep problem, it is important understand the difference between acute insomnia and chronic insomnia. Understanding which category you fall into is essential in deciding how to approach the problem and whether treatment may be necessary. Before we discuss acute and chronic insomnia in more detail,…
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Using The Best Friend Technique For Depression
Introduction When it comes to ourselves, we are often our own worst critics. This can be helpful at times if it’s used in a way to support our goals and continue improving. But when we are too self-critical, it can lead to negative feelings (e.g., guilt, shame, etc.), and put us into a depressive spiral.…
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Seven Ways To Get Into Wise Mind
Introduction In dialectal behaviour therapy, ‘Wise Mind’ refers to a state of mind that honours both what our emotions (Emotion Mind) and what our logic (Reasonable Mind) is telling us. Through wise mind, we reduce the risk of neglecting important components of ourselves and invalidating our feelings. Moreover, wise mind allows us to move towards…
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Common Avoidance Behaviours In Social Anxiety Disorder
A Brief on Social Anxiety Disorder Social anxiety disorder is characterized by a fear of different social situations. At its core, people with social anxiety disorder fear negative evaluation. Specifically, they are afraid of how people will perceive them in social situations. “He’s so boring” “She’s stupid and doesn’t seem like she knows what she…
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Sleep Restriction Therapy Does Not Reduce Sleep Time
What is sleep restriction therapy and how it does it work? Sleep restriction therapy is an evidence-based treatment of chronic insomnia. It was developed by Glovinsky and colleagues (1991) and is one of the most effective treatments for people who are experiencing sleep disturbances. Sleep restriction therapy works by limiting the amount of time people…
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Knowing When You Might Have An Anxiety Problem
What is anxiety? Anxiety can be thought of as a response to a perceived threat or potential danger. This can be specific to a person, object, or situation (e.g., anxiety about planes) or more general uncertainty about something that could happen down the line. People often distinguish worry in anxiety and depressive rumination by its…
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