Free Webinar: Mother’s Day with ADHD: How to Keep it Happy!

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World of Psychology

Free Webinar: Mother’s Day with ADHD: How to Keep it Happy!

Date:  Tuesday, May 7 @ 7:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. (EST)

Register:  https://www4.gotomeeting.com/register/469236071

Description:  This special Mother’s Day webinar features best-selling author and Psych Central blogger Zoë Kessler (ADHD from A to Zoë) and special guest Lisa Aro, aka “Queen of the Distracted.”

Mark it on your calendar now, and check out additional information about the webinar inside…

Aro has earned her crown as the busy mom of 7 kids (6 with ADHD), and a husband who also has ADHD. Aro chronicles her family life at her blog, Queen of the Distracted. No family is without its challenges; when you add ADHD into the mix, family life gets even more complicated.

Join Zoë and Lisa for an informal and informative chat on parenting ADHD kids from the perspective of a grown-up ADHD kid (Zoë) and a non-ADHD mom (Lisa) with lots of insights on how to manage the many foibles and follies while still enjoying the fun of an active ADHD family.

You’ll get lots of tips on how prevent burnout and bring out the best in your ADHD bunch as Lisa and Zoë share their stories with honesty and insight.

We look forward to having you join us on Tuesday, May 7 at 7:00 p.m. (EST) for this special one-hour pre-Mother’s Day event.

Register today!

Click here to register: Mother’s Day with ADHD: How to Keep it Happy!

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6 Steps Toward Resilience & Greater Happiness

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World of Psychology

6 Steps Toward Resilience & Greater Happiness

The opposite of depression is not happiness, according to Peter Kramer, author of “Against Depression” and “Listening to Prozac,” it is resilience: the ability to cope with life’s frustrations without falling apart.

Proper treatment doesn’t suppress emotions or dull a person’s ability to feel things deeply. It builds a protective layer — an emotional resilience — to safeguard a depressive from becoming overwhelmed and disabled by the difficulties of daily life.

However, the tools found in happiness research are those I practice in my recovery from depression and anxiety, even though, theoretically, I can be happy and depressed at the same time. I came up with my own recovery program that coincides with the steps toward happiness published in positive psychology studies.

1. Sleep

Sleep is crucial to sanity because sleep disturbances can contribute to, aggravate, and even cause mood disorders and a host of other illnesses. The link between sleep deprivation and psychosis was documented in a 2007 study at Harvard Medical School and the University of California at Berkeley. Using MRI scans, they found that sleep deprivation causes a person to become irrational because the brain can’t put an emotional event in proper prospective and is incapable of making an appropriate response. Chronic sleep deprivation, especially, is bad news. It often affects memory and concentration. And, according to one recent study, it can cause a decline in cognitive performance similar to the intoxicated brain.

2. Diet

My mouth and brain are in constant negotiation with each other because while one loves white bread, pasta, and chocolate, the other throws a hissy fit whenever they enter my blood stream. My diet has always been an important part of my recovery from depression, but two years ago — after working with the naturopath and reading Kathleen DesMaison’s “Potatoes Not Prozac” — I could more competently trace the path from my stomach to my limbic system. Moreover, I recognized with new clarity how directly everything that I put in my mouth affects my mood.

Here are the bad boys: nicotine, caffeine, alcohol, sugar, white flour, and processed food — you know, what you live on. Here are the good guys: protein; complex starches (whole grains, beans, potatoes); vegetables; vitamins (vitamin B-complex, vitamins C, D, and E, and a multivitamin); minerals (magnesium, calcium, and zinc); and omega-3 fatty acids. I’m religious about stocking up on omega-3 capsules because leading physicians at Harvard Medical School confirmed the positive effects of this natural, anti-inflammatory molecule on emotional health.

3. Exercise

Dr. James A. Blumenthal, a professor of medical psychology at Duke University, led a recent study in which he and his team discovered that, among the 202 depressed people randomly assigned to various treatments, three sessions of vigorous aerobic exercise were approximately as effective at treating depression as daily doses of Zoloft, when the treatment effects were measured after four months. A separate study showed that the depressives who improved with exercise were less likely to relapse after 10 months than those treated successfully with antidepressants, and the participants who continued to exercise beyond four months were half as likely to relapse months later compared to those who did not exercise.

Even as little as 20 minutes a week of physical activity can boost mental health. In a new Scottish study, reported in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, 20,000 people were asked about their state of mind and how much physical activity they do in a week. The results showed that the more physical activity a person engaged in — including housework, gardening, walking, and sports — the lower their risk of distress and anxiety.

Exercise relieves depression in several ways. First, cardiovascular workouts stimulate brain chemicals that foster growth of nerve cells. Second, exercise increases the activity of serotonin and/or norepinephrine. Third, a raised heart rate releases endorphins and a hormone known as ANP, which reduces pain, induces euphoria, and helps control the brain’s response to stress and anxiety. Other added benefits include improved sleep patterns, exposure to natural daylight (if you’re exercising outside), weight loss or maintenance, and psychological aids.

4. Relationships and Community

We are social creatures and are happiest when we are in relationship. One of the clearest findings in happiness research is that we need each other in order to thrive and be happy, that loving relationships are crucial to our well-being. Relationships create a space of safety where we can learn and explore. Belonging to a group or a community gives people a sense of identity. Studies indicate that social involvement can promote health, contribute toward faster recovery from trauma and illness, and lower the risk of stress-related health problems and mental illness.

Plenty of evidence indicates that support groups aid the recovery of persons struggling with depression and decrease rates of relapse. The New England Journal of Medicine published a study in December 2001 in which 158 women with metastatic breast cancer were assigned to a supportive-expressive therapy. These women showed greater improvement in psychological symptoms and reported less pain than the women with breast cancer who were assigned to the control group with no supportive therapy.

Another study in 2002, published in the American Journal of Psychiatry, followed a group of more than 100 persons with severe depression who joined online depression support groups. More than 95 percent of them said that their participation in the online support groups helped their symptoms. The online groups here on Psych Central are a great resource where you can find support from people going through similar struggles.

5. Purpose

The father of positive psychology, Martin Seligman, explains in his book, “Authentic Happiness,” that a critical element to happiness exists in using your signature strengths in the service of something you believe is larger than you. After collecting exhaustive questionnaires he found that the most satisfied people were those that had found a way to use their unique combination of strengths and talents to make a difference. Dan Baker, Ph.D., director of the Life Enhancement Program at Canyon Ranch, believes that a sense of purpose — committing oneself to a noble mission — and acts of altruism are strong antidotes to depression. And then there’s Gandhi, who wrote: “the best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.”

6. Gratitude

Gratitude doesn’t come easily to me. When my girlfriend sees a half-full glass of fresh milk, I see a half-empty glass of cholesterol-rising, cardiac-arresting agents. And when the kids’ school is called off because some road somewhere in our county apparently accumulated a half of an inch of snow, she thanks God for an opportunity to build snowmen with she kids. I have a conversation with God, too, but it’s much different.

However, I train myself to say thank you more often than is natural for me because I know that gratitude is like broccoli — good for your health in more than one way. According to psychologists like Sonja Lyubomirsky at the University of California Riverside, keeping a gratitude journal — where you record once a week all the things you have to be grateful for — and other gratitude exercises can increase your energy, and relieve pain and fatigue.

 

Shameless plug! Join me at one of three private screenings of “Happy,” a film that explores what makes us happy, followed by a discussion on depression and happiness and a book signing. Click the following links for more information:

• Washington, D.C. (May 21)
  
  
• NYC (May 22)
  
• Chicago (May 30)
  

 

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Could Your Nose Help Diagnose Schizophrenia?

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Psych Central News

Could Your Nose Help Diagnose Schizophrenia?

Despite the devastating effects of schizophrenia, the mental illness is often difficult to diagnose early.

As with all mental disorders and many other diseases, mental health professionals rely on a set of diagnostic criteria in which to diagnose schizophrenia. The criteria list symptoms and is usually based upon self-report or the report of family members. Sometimes when further information is needed, additional psychological testing may aid in an accurate diagnosis.

Provocative new pilot research suggests collecting tissue from the nose through a biopsy — a surgical incision that removes physical material for analysis — may provide better another set of diagnostic capabilities.

Researchers from Tel Aviv University and Johns Hopkins Hospital believe this method to collect and sequence neurons from the nose may permit earlier detection of the disease, giving rise to helping people who are at risk for developing schizophrenia earlier access to treatment.

The finding is reported in the journal Neurobiology of Disease.

Investigators say that until now, biomarkers for schizophrenia had only been found in the neuron cells of the brain, which can’t be collected before death.

By that point it’s obviously too late to do the patient any good, says Dr. Noam Shomron. Instead, psychiatrists depend on psychological evaluations for diagnosis, including interviews with the patient and reports by family and friends.

To help improve earlier diagnosis, the researchers turned to the olfactory system, which includes neurons located on the upper part of the inner nose.

Investigators at Johns Hopkins University collected samples of olfactory neurons from patients diagnosed with schizophrenia and a control group of non-affected individuals, then sent them to Dr. Shomron’s TAU lab. Dr. Shomron and his fellow researchers applied a high-throughput technology to these samples, studying the microRNA of the olfactory neurons.

Within these molecules, which help to regulate our genetic code, they were able to identify a microRNA which is highly elevated in those with schizophrenia, compared to individuals who do not have the disease.

However, the study could not say whether the microRNA changes were a result of the schizophrenia, or a possible precursor biomarker. Further research is needed to determine whether such findings actually could predict schizophrenia or not, or whether it’s simply an expression of fully-developed schizophrenia.

If this change comes near the beginning of the timeline, it could be invaluable for early diagnostics. This would mean early intervention, better treatment, and possibly even the postponement of symptoms. If, for example, a person has a family history of schizophrenia, this test could reveal whether they too suffer from the disease.

“We were able to narrow down the microRNA to a differentially expressed set, and from there down to a specific microRNA which is elevated in individuals with the disease compared to healthy individuals,” explains Dr. Shomron.

Afterwards, additional research revealed that this particular microRNA controls genes associated with the generation of neurons.

In practice, material for biopsy could be collected through an outpatient procedure, using a local anesthetic, says Dr. Shomron. Getting microRNA results would likely take most offices a few additional days, since most doctors’ offices do not have the necessary equipment to perform such testing.

Source: American Friends of Tel Aviv University

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Body Obsession Linked to Disordered Brain Wiring

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Psych Central News

Body Obsession Linked to Disordered Brain Wiring

In a new study, Jamie Feusner, M.D., and colleagues report that individuals with body dysmorphic disorder (BDD) have, in essence, global “bad wiring” in their brains — that is, there are abnormal network-wiring patterns across the brain as a whole.

BDD sufferers feel they are disfigured and ugly, even when they look normal to others. The discovery that abnormal connections between regions of the brain lead to problems in visual and emotional processing builds upon earlier research.

The findings, published in the May edition of the journal Neuropsychopharmacology, suggest that these patterns in the brain may relate to impaired information processing.

“We found a strong correlation between low efficiency of connections across the whole brain and the severity of BDD,” Feusner said. “The less efficient patients’ brain connections, the worse the symptoms, particularly for compulsive behaviors, such as checking mirrors.”

People suffering from BDD tend to fixate on minute details, such as a single blemish on their face or body, rather than viewing themselves in their entirety.

They become so distressed with their appearance that they often can’t lead normal lives, are fearful of leaving their homes and occasionally even commit suicide.

Patients frequently have to be hospitalized. BDD affects approximately 2 percent of the population and is more prevalent than schizophrenia or bipolar disorder. Despite its prevalence and severity, scientists know relatively little about the neurobiology of BDD.

In the current study, Feusner and his colleagues performed brain scans of 14 adults diagnosed with BDD and 16 healthy controls. The goal of the study was to map the brain’s connections to examine how the white-matter networks are organized.

White matter is made up of nerve cells that carry impulses from one part of the brain to another.

Researchers used a sensitive form of brain imaging called diffusion tensor imaging, or DTI to perform the study. DTI is a variant of magnetic resonance imaging that can measure the structural integrity of the brain’s white matter.

From these scans, they were able to create whole brain “maps” of reconstructed white-matter tracks. Next, they used a form of advanced analysis called graph theory to characterize the patterns of connections throughout the brains of people with BDD and then compared them with those of healthy controls.

The researchers found people with BDD had a pattern of abnormally high network “clustering” across the entire brain. This suggests that these individuals may have imbalances in how they process “local” or detailed information.

During the research, investigators discovered specific abnormal connections between areas involved in processing visual input and in brain regions involved in recognizing emotions.

“How their brain regions are connected in order to communicate about what they see and how they feel is disturbed,” said Feusner.

“Their brains seem to be fine-tuned to be very sensitive to process minute details, but this pattern may not allow their brains to be well-synchronized across regions with different functions,” he said. “This could affect how they perceive their physical appearance and may also result in them getting caught up in the details of other thoughts and cognitive processes.”

Feusner says the study advances the understanding of BDD by providing evidence that the “hard wiring” of patients’ brain networks is abnormal.

“These abnormal brain networks could relate to how they perceive, feel and behave,” he said. “This is significant because it could possibly lead to us being able to identify early on if someone is predisposed to developing this problem.”

Source: UCLA

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Illusion of Understanding Can Lead to Extreme Political Attitudes

It has often been said that teaching a concept is the best way to learn the concept. New research presents a corollary to the adage as investigators learn that having to explain a political policy reduces extreme attitudes toward the policy.

The research suggests that people may hold extreme policy positions because they are under an illusion of understanding. Attempting to explain the nuts and bolts of how a policy works forces them to acknowledge that they don’t know as much about the policy as they initially thought.

The work of Phillip Fernbach, Ph.D., of the University of Colorado, Boulder, and colleagues is published in the journal Psychological Science.

Fernbach and his co-authors were interested in exploring some of the factors that could contribute to what they see as increasing political polarization in the United States.

“We wanted to know how it’s possible that people can maintain such strong positions on issues that are so complex — such as macroeconomics, health care, foreign relations — and yet seem to be so ill-informed about those issues,” said Fernbach.

Drawing on previous research on the illusion of understanding, Fernbach and colleagues speculated that one reason for the apparent paradox may be that voters think they understand how policies work better than they actually do.

In one study, researchers asked participants taking an online survey to rate how well they understood six political policies.

Issues included raising the retirement age for Social Security, instituting a national flat tax, and implementing merit-based pay for teachers.

The participants were randomly assigned to explain two of the policies and then asked to re-rate how well they understood the policies.

As the researchers predicted, people reported lower understanding of all six policies after they had to explain them, and their positions on the policies were less extreme.

In fact, the data showed that the more people’s understanding decreased, the more uncertain they were about the position, and the less extreme their position was in the end.

The act of explaining also affected participants’ behavior. People who initially held a strong position softened their position after having to explain it, making them less likely to donate bonus money to a related organization when they were given the opportunity to do so.

Notably, the results affected people from all sides of the political spectrum, from self-identified Democrats to Republicans to Independents.

Investigators believe these findings illuminate a psychological process that may help people to open the lines of communication in the context of a heated debate or negotiation.

“This research is important because political polarization is hard to combat,” Fernbach said.

“There are many psychological processes that act to create greater extremism and polarization, but this is a rare case where asking people to attempt to explain makes them back off their extreme positions.”

Source: Association of Psychological Science

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Fear of Missing Out Drives Use of Social Media

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Psych Central News

Fear of Missing Out Drives Use of Social Media

Emerging research implies that fear of not keeping up with friends, and consequently missing some fun, motivates use of Facebook or Twitter.

Experts say the rise in social media, where we can keep up-to-date with each other’s every movements like never before, has led to the curse of “fear of missing out” (FoMO). And a new study develops a way to measure the concept of FoMO.

The study, to be published in the journal Computers in Human Behavior, is the first study to investigate the fear of missing out phenomenon — an occurrence that only came to light about three years ago as social media become ever-more accessible with the increase in smart phones.

Lead researcher and psychologist Dr. Andy Przybylski explains that the fear of missing out is not new, but the rise is social media offers a window into other people’s lives like never before.

The problem for people with a high level of FoMO is they may become so involved is seeing what their friends are doing and they are not, they often ignore what they are actually enjoying themselves.

“I find Facebook rewarding to use, but how we are using social media is changing,” said Przybylski. “It is no longer something we have to sit at a computer and log into as we have access all the time on our phones. It is easier to get into the rhythm of other people’s lives that ever before as we get alerts and texts.

“We have to learn new skills to control our usage and enjoy social media in moderation. Until we do, it creates a double-edged sword aspect to social media.”

The research team, which included academics from the University of California and University of Rochester in the United States, devised a way of measuring an individual’s level of FoMO. (If you wish to test yourself to see what your level of FoMO is compared to the people taking part in the study, go to: www.ratemyfomo.com.)

Perhaps it comes as no surprise that researchers found that people under the age of 30 were more affected than others from the fear of missing out. This group saw social media as an important tool for them and they were more dependent on social media as part of their social development.

Przybylski also discovered that social factors were important. That is, if people’s “psychological needs were deprived” they were more likely to seek out social media. In this case, the FoMO concept explains how individuals feel more connected and why some people use social media more than others.

Researchers found that individuals with a high level of fear of missing out were more likely to give into the temptation of composing and checking text messages and e-mails while driving. These individuals were also more likely to get distracted by social media during university lectures, and had more mixed feelings about their social media use.

Investigators hope that the findings will prompt more investigation into the fear of missing out and how it influences people’s well-being.

Source: University of Essex

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Best of Our Blogs: April 30, 2013

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World of Psychology

Best of Our Blogs: April 30, 2013

Labels can haunt you forever. What makes them particularly insidious is how unaware most of us are to its debilitating affects.

A diagnosis from a doctor, for example, can render you helpless. For some, it can be a death sentence.

Thoughtless words from an insensitive relative or a classmate can be hard to forget even years after the words were spoken.

Unlike the wounds that heal when physically hit, seemingly innocuous words from others, can last a lifetime.

How do you prevent words from doing more harm to you?

This week our top posts addresses some of these issues. One way is by refusing to accept insults thrown at you and focus instead on finding where they are coming from. Maybe someone made you feel bad about your weight, being single, or put you down in front of others. Instead of taking those words in, think about who’s throwing them at you. Is it the result of an old way of thinking, a negative and incorrect belief propelled by society, or an unjust boss? Knowing where these hurtful labels came from can help you to take matters into your own hands. You don’t have to absorb the hurt and pain sent from insensitive people. As you’ll read below, what you do with what others say to you is your choice.

{Flickr photo by Karina}

What’s the Impact of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM5)?

(Mental Health Humor) – Just in time for its arrival, Chato B. Stewart shares his visual interpretation regarding the aftermath of the new DSM5.

Parental Influence – It Matters More Than You Think, Part 2

(Family Mental Health) – You might think that when it comes to academics, exercise and sex, you have no influence over your children. According to this, you do.

Suicide: Is It Less about Mental Health Than Integration into Society?

(Single at Heart) – Does suicide have to do with fitting in with society? And does being married have anything to do with it? This blogger addresses an old and interesting theory on suicide that brings the importance of social belonging to light.

What To Do When You Fear Weight Gain Or Do Gain Weight

(Weightless) – Scared of gaining weight? It’s no wonder with society blurring the lines between worthiness and weight. Find out how you can mitigate the negative effects of societal pressures to be thin.

Assertiveness for Beginners

(Bonding Time) – Your boss just said something demeaning to you in front of others. What should you do? This post discusses if and when you should say something and how to appropriately respond.

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10 Best Tips for Being a Good Friend to a Sick Friend

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Relationship Tips and Advice

10 Best Tips for Being a Good Friend to a Sick Friend

Many of us become ill more frequently than the rest and in some cases, we need to be in a hospital to fully recover. If that sick person is someone you truly care about, like a relative or a close...



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Staying Friends after Divorce

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Relationship Tips and Advice

Staying Friends after Divorce

Marriage can be difficult; two people joining forces can seem like such a good idea. But if things don’t go smoothly, and all the arguing and fighting is unavoidable, sometimes the only solution is...



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Relationship Tips: The Impact of Words on Your Relationship

Words can build and words can break. Over the years man has come to know the importance of words and the effects it can create in the lives of individuals. In every one’s life, one can attribute the...



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Not All Honesty Builds Stronger Trust

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Relationship Tips and Advice

Not All Honesty Builds Stronger Trust

Heidi can’t understand why her husband Rick gets so offended so easily. They’re trying to pick up the pieces of their relationship after Heidi had an emotional affair with a co-worker...



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Taking SSRI Antidepressants Increases Post-op Surgery Risks

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Psych Central News

Taking SSRI Antidepressants Increases Post-op Surgery Risks

A new study suggests the people who take the most popular class of antidepressants are at increased risk for medical complications after surgery. The risks include increased need of a transfusion, bleeding, and hospital readmission.

The scientists from University of California San Francisco and Baystate Medical Center in Springfield, Mass. looked at the medical records of more than 530,000 patients who underwent surgery at 375 U.S. hospitals between 2006 and 2008.

“There have been small studies that suggested there was a problem, but it has never been well-proven,” said lead author Andrew D. Auerbach, M.D., M.P.H., a UCSF professor of medicine.

Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are the most popularly prescribed class of antidepressants. They are prescribed for a wide variety of conditions, ranging from chronic pain to clinical depression. Most SSRI prescriptions are written by primary care or family physicians.

“With this huge data set, we feel confident in saying that SSRIs are associated with about a 10 percent increased risk for these adverse outcomes.” Adverse outcomes the study identified include an increased risk of bleeding, transfusion, hospital readmission and death when SSRIs are taken around the time of surgery.

The study authors noted that patients on SSRIs are more likely to have conditions that in themselves increase surgical risk, such as obesity, chronic pulmonary disease and depression.

To address the question of whether these factors might have accounted for the differences in outcomes, they retrospectively matched patients who had taken SSRIs with patients who were not taking the drugs.

After matching and controlling for variables such as age, gender, medical condition and depression, they found that patients on SSRIs still were at increased risk.

The scientists also looked at whether the increased risk could be accounted for by patients receiving SSRIs for the first time before surgery. “This was not the case,” said Auerbach. “These drugs are almost never used acutely. They are prescribed for chronic conditions such as depression, almost always for long-term use.”

The study was not designed to look at possible causes for the increased risk.

However, noted Auerbach, SSRIs are known to interfere with the functioning of platelets — blood cells that play a crucial role in blood clotting. In turn, platelet dysfunction can lead to excess bleeding.

Auerbach cautioned that since the study was retrospective, “a prospective observational study, in which patients are randomly assigned to take SSRIs around the time of surgery, is still needed.”

He said that while it would be premature to advise patients not to take SSRIs before surgery, “it’s definitely worth discussing with your surgeon or primary care physician.”

Their results are published today in the journal, JAMA Internal Medicine.

Source: JAMA Internal Medicine

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Can We Stamp Out Thinspiration on Twitter? Torri Singer Thinks We Can

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World of Psychology

Can We Stamp Out Thinspiration on Twitter? Torri Singer Thinks We Can

Pro-anorexia (or “pro-ana”) groups have been around online for over a decade, and we first discussed them here five years ago. More recently, with the rise of social networks such as Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest, these groups have found a new life. Often associated with the label “thinspiration,” these groups elevate the idea of being thin to a virtual religion.

People who are all about thinspiration engage in disordered eating in order to be as thin as possible — a common symptom of anorexia. But they don’t see it as a disorder or a problem, making this an insidious problem.

Nonetheless, such eating and self-image problems can result in health problems, even putting the individual’s life at risk.

Some people have sought to get common words or terms that people engaged in thinspiration use banned from social networking websites. One such woman is Torri Singer, a broadcast journalism major who has recently begun a petition to get such terms banned from Twitter.

Many social networks have already climbed aboard the bandwagon, including Tumblr, Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest. And while such policies have been implemented, thinspiration content is still easily found on many of these networks. I suspect that’s one of the challenges of implementing a policy like this — it’s extremely difficult to police, especially if people can just slightly alter the terms they use to talk about these issues.

But that hasn’t stopped Torri from putting Twitter on notice.

“[I want] to raise awareness about the harm of destructive thinspiration messages, and to prompt Twitter to make real change in order to stop the spread of this preventable growing trend,” Singer recently told me. Her inspiration for this campaign came from family:

My sister suffered on and off with eating disorders in her early adult life, so preventing other intelligent, strong, and beautiful girls from forming or elongating their disorders has always held a place of importance in my life. I know how difficult it is to be a girl and have constant exposure to beauty ideals, I don’t think we need any more pressure from self-generated pro-eating disordered “lifestyle” hashtags.

But when a website or social network changes its Terms of Use to remove such discussion from their networks, can it be an effective deterrent? “There is no doubt that other media sites such as Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and Tumblr have a long way to go before they are really safe and free of thinspiration triggers,” replied Singer.

“But they have made the first steps toward taking action and being responsible for the safety of their users.”

She also addressed people trying to change the spelling of terms they were using to get around the service’s policing efforts: “Instagram’s initial attempt to limit thinspiration led users to create new spellings (such as thynspo). Instead of giving up on the effort, Instagram revised the policy, stating it will disable “any account or hashtag found to be encouraging eating disorders.”

“The first step is ensuring that these messages are not readily available, and that is where policy change comes into play and really matters.”

Of course, trying to stamp out discussion of a topic on the Internet is impossible, given the hundreds of millions of websites, social networks, forums, and online communities. “By reducing the number of mainstream venues where these pro eating disorder messages are displayed,” Singer says, “we are reducing the exposure, and therefore the dangerous behavior that results (or continues) because of these online interactions.”

I agree — efforts such as Singer’s can make a perceivable impact on the popular, mainstream sites, reducing the likelihood of exposing this ideology to a new, naive audience. Especially when that site is a social network as large as Twitter.

“Banning thinspiration terminology means less accessibility to damaging phrases, encouragement, and images that propel disorders,” notes Singer. “It will prevent susceptible people from forming eating disorders, and people recovering/struggling with eating disorders from exposure to triggers.”

“In my mind, just getting people to have this conversation means that it has been some degree of successful. It is really amazing to see people who sign generating comments about their personal stories and their struggles. Many have said that thinspiration has been a big trigger in their lives and that they support any effort to ban it from impacting others like them.”

Efforts such as Singer’s are a good attempt at bringing attention to the problem and helping people understand that use of these kinds of keywords and hashtags only reinforce the disordered behavior — on a scale that wasn’t readily possible just five years ago. We applaud and support Singer’s petition and efforts to help reduce thinspiration messaging on mainstream social networks.

We encourage you to sign the petition:

Twitter: Restrict use of thinspiration language and hashtags

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