[THREAD] memory loss and mental health. It is something that we don’t often put together. However, it is a very common issue for many individuals whose mental health is not doing well. So why do we get that memory loss? Is it permanent? Are there ways to cope with that?

[THREAD] In our last thread, we talked about the physical symptoms of mental health. Let's focus this one on the psychological symptoms, mainly intrusive and racing thoughts. Why do they happen? What are the solutions for them?

While physical symptoms can be very hard to deal with, psychological ones are not easy. Intrusive thoughts are some of the most troubling to deal with. It is important to note that every single person on this planet gets intrusive thoughts. No exceptions!

Why do they seem to impact some more than others? That's because in someone who does not have anxiety, they will simply overlook these thoughts. They know they are thoughts that they won't act on. However, in someone who is suffering from anxiety, those thoughts will stick.

That's because the intrusive thought(s) will induce a lot of anxiety, and the more emotion we attach to a thought, the more likely it is to be saved in our memory and come back often. Therefore, a thought that should have left right away stays for a long time.

The reason why intrusive thoughts are scary to begin with is because they are often of sexual, violent, and dark thoughts. Therefore, we get scared that we may lose control and act on these thoughts or turn into a bad person. However, the fact that they are scary means a lot.

TW: Abuse

[THREAD] Let's talk about recognizing signs of emotional abuse. For a lot of people, it can be hard to recognize those signs, especially early on, or we may not realize what they were until we have suffered under them and it affected our mental health.

For the most part, people who engage in a lot of emotional abuse won't show it at the very beginning. They need feelings to develop or an attachment to happen in order to be able to show those signs when it is harder for the other person to leave. It can also be progressive.

However, there are some ways to recognize those signs early on. One of the main ones is how these people talk about others they shared a relationship with in the past. If every ex was a bad person or every friendship has issues, then it is generally a bad sign.

This is especially true for men who may badmouth women they have been it by calling them names that are not worth typing. That's a big red flag because it means that this man is likely to be the bad person here. They may be volatile even in their friendships.

They seemingly seem to lose friends quickly and get new ones quickly. This is because these friends may recognize the toxic tendencies of the person and leave them, and they constantly have to integrate with new people that they want to use for one purpose or another.

[THREAD] I saw a few of us saying that their 2021 resolution was to improve their mental health. So I decided to write this guide in terms of what steps we can take to improve our mental health for 2021 and beyond. The most important step is to start some form of treatment.

While finances can be a huge barrier to getting treatment, there are a few things around that. Medications (especially those that have been around for a while) are generally much cheaper because they exist in generic form. They are safe, have decades of research behind them.

Antidepressants are not addictive at all and while there are a few side effects at the beginning, they tend to go away after the first few weeks. While it is hard to get rid of superstition and myths around meds, taking that first step of just taking it will help so much.

For therapy, there are always some free or low cost options. Sometimes, there are students about to graduate from their post grad who offer free or low cost therapy as experience (under the supervision of a fully licensed psychologist and legally).

They are the equivalent of a resident doctor, meaning they have the knowledge and expertise but lack the experience and both of you can benefit from working with each other. I remember when I was in that position and worked, I had my supervisor guide through every client.

[THREAD] I want to talk a little bit about how people who are struggling with their mental health may appear to the outside world and why some things contribute to stigma even when we are not aware of them. I often complaints from families or partners.

They would say this person no longer listens, is absent, always on their own and may take it personally. Let’s go through why that happens and what explanations we have for these shifts. First of all, social withdrawal is one of the main symptoms of many forms of psych issues.

Social situations (yes that includes family and loved ones) takes a lot of energy. We don’t notice that for the most part when we are doing well but when we start struggling, every word, listening to conversations, etc...takes so much energy and can be hard to maintain.

This is why they may get irritated and lash out. It is because the energy is gone and they can no longer keep up the mask of normalcy. It is important to respect their space and boundaries while they are going through this hard time. Don’t force them to do things they don’t want.

Also, if you talk to someone who is struggling with their mental health, they may seem absent or like they are not caring at all. Well, from the perspective of the person who is struggling, their concentration is on their thoughts, their bodies, checking for panic attacks.

[THREAD] I want to revisit a topic I get asked about almost everyday. Physical symptoms in mental health. They are so scary and can be so hard to believe that something like anxiety can cause such devastating symptoms. Let’s break it down and see how that happens.

Generally speaking, mental health symptoms are divided into 3 distinct categories: physical, psychological and social. Psychological would be racing thoughts, intrusive thoughts. Social is withdrawal from loved ones and other social symptoms.

Physical symptoms are definitely those that feel that we notice the most because they can look like potentially dangerous illnesses. Usually, we experience those symptoms, go to the emergency room, and the doctors can’t find anything.

It leaves us feeling puzzled and wondering what’s happening. What happens is that our mind identifies some type of danger. After that, it is time for the endocrine system to start working. It releases hormones that send signals to our body.

These hormones (cortisone, adrenaline) tell our body to prepare to fight or run away. Blood goes to our muscles, meaning our brain doesn’t have enough blood pumping. That’s why we feel that brain fog, racing thoughts, tunnel vision and we get that burst of energy.

I gave masks the benefit of the doubt in the spring/summer of 2020. I have since changed my mind and see no scenario where it makes sense to wear them in public.

Even if they provided 100% protection, I believe masks to be harmful. An explanation below 👇👇👇

Let's say masks provide 100% protection to both the wearer and others (perhaps non-masked individuals) in close proximity. This is perhaps the worst scenario.

The immune system requires a consistent influx of both microbes and viruses to remain trained.

Halting the exposure to microbes and viruses is extremely harmful in the long run and leaves you exposed to enormous risk in the future.

Without training, you will become susceptible to even weaker microbes that your immune system would have normally handled with ease.

This is no different than laying in bed for a prolonged period of time. Walking up stairs, an activity that normally would not be a challenge, would all of a sudden become difficult.

Your immune system would slowly degrade similarly not able to complete previous tasks.

This is particularly harmful to children who's immune systems do not have the training of adults and would leave them more vulnerable. Children have the most life to lose so it harms them the most.

[Thread]: Old school "medicine" ads obviously created by aliens.

Let's begin with cocaine toothache drops, for only 15 cents.

Dr. Batty’s asthma cigarettes were not recommended for "children under 6.”

Best prescription for malaria, chills and fever: Grove's tasteless Chill Tonic, obviously.

"It is simply iron and Quinine in a tasteless form".

The cheapest specific for the relief of cough: heroin.

There's also Dr Williams' Pink Pills for Pale People.

1/23 We haven't had a lot to celebrate during this pandemic. But achieving the milestone of offering vaccine to the over 70s, health and care workers and the most clinically vulnerable just before target date is a huge cause for celebration, given the scale of the achievement.

2/23 When Margaret Keenan got her first jab in Coventry on December 8th last year, who’d have thought that, by Valentine’s Day, we’d have vaccinated over fourteen million people across the UK in just ten short weeks? Amazing, extraordinary and truly, really, world class!

3/23 I’ve been struck by how much joy and relief has been brought to those doing the vaccinations and those receiving them. A GP told me yesterday that nothing had given him greater pleasure in his long career. And that the patient's relief was sometimes overwhelming.

4/23 It's vital to recognise the extraordinary contribution of the staff and volunteers who have made this happen. One of my close family had their jab yesterday and was in awe of the volunteer standing outside in the freezing cold for a four hour shift meeting and greeting.

5/23 What I wanted to share in this thread was the slightly untold story of some of the extraordinary challenges the NHS has had to overcome to deliver this target. Requiring superhuman effort from NHS leaders and staff, way beyond the call of duty. Five challenges set out below.

Want to include the menstrual cycle in your scientific work, but aren't sure how to do it? My lab (@katjaschmalen) have just published an article on best practices for observational studies of the cycle! Thread below! 🧵

Despite decades of research on the menstrual cycle, empirical studies have not adopted consistent methods for operationalizing the menstrual cycle, resulting in confusion in the literature and limited possibilities to conduct systematic reviews and meta-analyses.

Below, I summarize this "how to" article, and relay some of the key points!

PARTICIPANTS: All participants should be naturally-cycling people with ovaries (remember that they are not necessarily "women"! 🏳️‍⚧️ ⚧).

We provide a Reproductive Status Questionnaire with rules for identifying naturally-cycling people (current function of the sexual organs and hormonal/other medications that stop the cycle).