Month: September 2014
Mental Illness Affects Everyone, Show Your Support October 5 through 11, Mental Illness Awareness Week, wear a green ribbon.
Mental Illness Affects Everyone, Show Your Support October 5 through 11, Mental Illness Awareness Week, wear a green ribbon.
Weight restoration, nutritional support, coping skills instruction and disease management assistance are features of this Eating Disorders Partial Hospitalization Program for adults.
MASON – (Sept. 26, 2014) – Beginning Monday, September 29, Lindner Center of HOPE will offer an expanded partial hospitalization program for patients 18 and older struggling with eating disorders.
For those who suffer with eating disorders, food and mealtimes become a source of fear, panic, anxiety and pain. Managing this illness often requires an intermediate level of care between acute inpatient care and outpatient care; this level of care is available at Lindner Center of HOPE for adults age 18 and older.
The Eating Disorder Partial Hospitalization Program at Lindner Center of HOPE (EDO PHP) is a treatment program designed to provide intensive treatment for eating disordered patients who do not meet criteria for inpatient hospitalization but who are not stable enough to be treated in the traditional outpatient setting. The goal of EDO PHP is weight restoration, nutritional support and planning, instruction of cognitive coping skills, and to assist patients in the management of their disease and symptoms to the point that traditional outpatient services will be effective. EDO PHP is often used as step-down treatment from inpatient hospitalization with the intent of transitioning the patient back into their home environment and healthy routines. As such, EDO PHP is a cost effective option for patients who meet admission criteria for this program.
EDO PHP operates Monday through Friday (except legal holidays), 7:30 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. on the campus of the Lindner Center of HOPE at 4075 Old Western Row Road, Mason, 45040. Duration of the program is based on individual progress towards established goals; however the average length of stay for the EDO PHP is four to six weeks. The program features:
The EDO PHP at Lindner Center of HOPE operates in conjunction with Lindner Center of HOPE’s Adult Partial Hospitalization Program, available for adults who are experiencing emotional or behavioral issues significant enough to affect daily functioning or quality of life. Patients may be suffering with diagnoses, including but not limited to: mood disorders, anxiety disorders, eating disorders, adjustment disorders and thought disorders not requiring hospitalization.
For more information, individuals may call (513) 536-4673 to speak to an intake expert.
Lindner Center of HOPE provides excellent, patient-centered, scientifically-advanced care for individuals suffering with mental illness. A state-of-the-science, mental health center and charter member of the National Network of Depression Centers, the Center provides psychiatric hospitalization and partial hospitalization for individuals age 12-years-old and older, outpatient services for all ages, diagnostic and short-term residential services for adults and adolescents, intensive outpatient program for substance abuse and co-occurring disorders for adults and research. The Center is enhanced by its partnership with UC Health as its clinicians are ranked among the best providers locally, nationally and internationally. Together Lindner Center of HOPE and UC Health offer a true system of mental health care in the Greater Cincinnati area and across the country. The Center is also affiliated with the University of Cincinnati (UC) College of Medicine.
Contact:
Jennifer Pierson Lindner Center of HOPE (513) 536 -0316 [email protected]
With National Depression Screening Day® approaching, learn about some statistics surrounding depression.
To complete an anonymous screening, click here.
Individuals can locate a mental health screening site or take an online screening by visiting www.HelpYourselfHelpOthers.org (beginning September 1, 2014).
Screening for Mental Health, Inc. (SMH), the pioneer of large-scale mental health screening for the public, provides innovative mental health and substance abuse resources, linking those in need with quality treatment options. SMH programs, offered online and in-person, educate, raise awareness, and screen individuals for depression, bipolar disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, posttraumatic stress disorder, eating disorders, alcohol use disorders, and suicide. Thousands of organizations worldwide including hospitals, military installations, colleges, secondary schools, corporations, utilize our educational and screening programs, and in turn, have reached millions of people ranging from teenagers to adults.
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By: Erik Messamore, MD, PhD
Dr. Messamore is both a clinical psychiatrist and psychiatric researcher at the Lindner Center of HOPE. He reviews new or little-known clinical research findings at his website – DrErik.com
Borderline personality disorder is characterized by mood disturbance and impulsivity. Moods in borderline personality can shift rapidly and are often intense. Anger problems are common. In its most severe forms, people with borderline personality may dissociate or experience brief episodes of psychosis. Self-injury (often from cutting) and frequent suicide attempts are common. Borderline personality disorder affects about 3% of the adult population and accounts for over 20% of outpatient psychiatric visits.
Psychotherapy is the treatment of choice for borderline personality disorder, and Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) is often the most well suited form of therapy for patients with borderline personality. DBT fosters mindful awareness and teaches coping skills that can significantly improve emotional regulation.
Unfortunately, there are no medications specifically designed to treat borderline personality disorder. Antidepressants, or “mood-stabilizing” agents, or antipsychotic medications may help reduce the severity of some of the symptoms. However the response to these treatments is highly variable. There is strong need for more options with less risk for side effects. Emerging research points to a possible benefit from omega 3 fatty acids.
Omega-3 fatty acids are important components of cell membranes, and they seem to be particularly important in brain function. Omega-3s such as EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) and DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) are present in the brain and exist in relatively high concentrations in the nerve terminal regions, where most cell-to-cell communication takes place. Depression is less common in people whose regularly consume omega-3-rich foods such as fish. Even schizophrenia appears to be less disabling in countries with higher consumption of vegetables or fish. Laboratory research has firmly established that experimental creation of omega-3 deficiency causes abnormal behavior in lab animals. And in human studies, researchers have repeatedly discovered associations between omega-3 fatty acid levels and symptoms of psychosis, depression, impulsivity and self-harm.
Emerging research suggests that omega-3 fatty acids can be used therapeutically in borderline personality disorder. In treatment studies, researchers rely on just two omega-3 components: EPA and DHA. Silvio Bellino and colleagues from the University of Turin in Italy showed that EPA (1200 mg per day) plus DHA (800 mg per day), when added to therapeutic doses of Depakote, reduced impulsivity, anger, and self-harm in a group of patients with borderline personality disorder. In a separate study from Harvard University, Mary Zanarini and Frances Frankenburg showed that an 8-week course of treatment with EPA (1000 mg per day) outperformed placebo treatment in reducing depression and aggression in women with borderline personality. Research from Brian Hallahan’s group in Dublin, Ireland showed substantial reductions in suicidal thoughts and depression among patients with a history of multiple self-injury attempts (70% of the study sample had borderline personality disorder). Treatment in this study consisted of 12 weeks of daily EPA (1,220 mg per day) and DHA (908 mg per day). And finally, Paul Amminger led a study at the University of Vienna in Austria. The study focused on a group of adolescents with borderline personality disorder whose symptoms also suggested high risk of progression to psychosis. Volunteers in the study received either placebo capsules or active treatment with daily EPA (700 mg) plus DHA (480 mg) for twelve weeks. The EPA+DHA produced large decreases measures of depression, tension, anxiety, and impulsivity. The omega-3 fatty acids also prevented psychosis in the high-risk patients.
Side effects from omega-3 fatty acids are usually very mild. They are “generally regarded as safe” in the eyes of the FDA at the doses used in these studies. Scientists still have much work to do in figuring out which types of patients may most benefit from this kind of treatment, and what would be the best doses or durations of treatment.
Borderline personality disorder is a potentially severe condition that can be improved substantially with treatment. Psychotherapy is the most effective evidence-based treatment for borderline personality. It is encouraging to learn that EPA and DHA may help to reduce symptoms. These natural substances may prove to be useful parts of a combined biological and psychological treatment approach.