News about mental health from Sharp Mesa Vista Hospital, San Diego’s largest provider of behavioral health care.
Addiction & Recovery
Treating Mental Illness and Addiction: People with mental illness are twice as likely to develop a drug or alcohol addiction than the rest of the population.
From Addiction to Recovery: Understanding the 6 stages of change helps those with addiction problems recover.
Helping Someone with Substance Dependence: A psychologist offers advice on how to support someone with encouragement and empathy.
Kevin’s Road to Sobriety: An aftercare group at Sharp Mesa Vista helped Kevin sustain sobriety from addiction.
Effective treatment for opioid and alcohol addiction – Medication-assisted treatment (MAT) offers FDA-approved medications – alongside individual and group therapy -- to support lasting recovery from addiction.
Bipolar Disorder
Destroying the Stigma of Bipolar Disorder: Actress and author Carrie Fisher worked to remove the stigma surrounding mental illness.
Children and Adolescents
I Think My Child is Depressed — Now What? New AAP guidelines help doctors and parents support kids with depression.
Talking to Your Teen About Suicide: Talking about suicide can lead to prevention rather than ideation.
Normal Teen Behavior or a Reason for Concern? All teens go through changes and challenges — learn how to tell what’s normal, and what’s not.
Recognizing Substance Abuse in Teens: When teenage curiosity turns into something more serious.
Self-harm and your teen -- Self-harm is not a mental illness, but rather a behavior used as a coping mechanism.
Depression
Can ‘Special K’ Treat Depression? Ketamine therapy is a potential option for treatment-resistant depression.
3 Ways Depression is Different for Men: Depression looks different in men and requires a different approach. Here’s what you need to know.
A Surprising Way to Treat Depression: Patients with long-term depression may find relief with ECT.
How to help those coping with grief and loss -- Grief is a natural — and necessary — healing process. But it takes time.
Beyond depression — understanding postpartum anxiety -- More women experience postpartum anxiety than depression.
Domestic Abuse
Help After Leaving a Violent Relationship: Cognitive behavioral therapy can help patients who have experienced domestic violence.
Eating Disorders
The Most Common Eating Disorder Isn’t What You Think: Binge eating disorder affects more Americans than anorexia and bulimia combined.
Eating Disorders: Not Just for the Young: Experts report higher rates of anorexia and bulimia among women over age 50.
Senior Mental Health
‘Here I am, at the other end …’: A patient from Sharp Mesa Vista Hospital’s senior program talks about his experience.
Caring for a Loved One with Dementia: Providing care for someone with dementia is challenging, but you don’t need to do it alone.
Coping with life's transitions -- Life can get more difficult as we age. Learn how to help cope with challenges.
Memory loss? There’s a screening for that -- A simple wellness tool can evaluate one’s memory and provide some answers.
Suicide Prevention
Recognizing the Warning Signs of Suicide: Important information from a licensed mental health therapist that could save a life.
Destigmatizing Suicide: For every person who dies by suicide, 25 make an attempt. But prevention is possible.
Talking to Your Teen About Suicide: Talking about suicide can lead to prevention rather than ideation.
How you can help prevent suicide -- Suicide is the 10th leading cause of death in the U.S. But it doesn't have to be. We can all help by educating ourselves on suicide — and helping friends and loved ones take care of their mental health.
Mental Health for Veterans
Returning to the Homefront: Ronnie’s Story: A Navy combat veteran shares his challenges after his honorable discharge.
Help for Veterans with PTSD: Personalized care and innovative therapies helped Brandon leave bad memories in the past.
