The UCL Brain and Escitalopram in Anxiety and Depression Study - BEADS

05/08/2022

📣 Take part in crucial research to improve our understanding of how and affect cognition:
We’re recruiting UK-based adults aged 18-64 who are either currently experiencing persistent depression and/or anxiety OR who have no current or previous mental health problems.
Participation is confidential and voluntary; it involves two online sessions reimbursed at a rate of £8 per hour.
More info here: 👉 https://linktr.ee/ICN_mental_health👈

15/04/2022

📢Take part in mental health research at UCL and earn £50!

We're running crucial research to try and understand how antidepressants work in anxiety. We're recruiting adults aged 18-64 to complete behavioural and neuroimaging (fMRI) testing before and after 2 weeks of treatment with a commonly prescribed antidepressant medication.

Find out more:
👉https://linktr.ee/BEADS_study👈

15/04/2022

📢Take part in mental health research at UCL and earn £50!

We're running crucial research to try and understand how antidepressants work in anxiety. We're recruiting adults aged 18-64 to complete behavioural and neuroimaging (fMRI) testing before and after 2 weeks of treatment with a commonly prescribed antidepressant medication.

Find out more:
👉https://linktr.ee/BEADS_study👈

19/05/2021

📣 Take part in crucial research to improve our understanding of how affects decision-making:

We’re recruiting adults aged 18-64 who are either currently experiencing persistent anxiety or who have no current or previous mental health problems, and who are not currently undergoing mental health treatment via therapy or medication.

Participation is confidential and voluntary; it involves two online sessions reimbursed at a rate of £7.50 per hour.

More info here: 👉 https://linktr.ee/BEADS_study👈

10/05/2021

Today marks the start of the 21st annual . The theme this year is Nature, after research showed that being in nature was one of the most popular ways we've tried to sustain good mental health during the pandemic. The goal is to and notice how this affects your mental health. We're challenging ourselves to do something to appreciate nature every day this week and would love for you to join us. ⁠
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A few easy switches we'll be trying to make throughout the week are:⁠
Eating lunch/drinking morning tea or coffee outside in the garden or local park instead of at our desk⁠
Listening to nature sounds (rain, ocean, birdsong etc.) instead of music⁠
Watching a nature documentary instead of other TV⁠
Sitting close to a window ⁠
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Other things you could try include getting outside for a walk, planting some seeds or buying a plant, doing a drawing or painting of a nature scene, feeding birds, watching the sun rise or set.⁠
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Will you be doing any of these switches/activities? Have any other ideas of how to spend more time appreciating nature this week? We'd love to discuss in the comments!
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22/04/2021

A review of the impact of climate change on mental health found that climate-related events such as heatwaves, wildfires, floods, droughts, deforestation and forced migration have been shown to impact the mental health of affected populations, resulting in increased rates of PTSD, depression, anxiety, substance use, and su***de.

Today, 22nd April, is 🌏Earth Day🌏 which started in 1970 to call for greater protections for our planet. Head over to https://www.earthday.org/ to find out more, including a link to the live digital event which features workshops, panel discussions, and special performances, beginning at 5pm UK time.

Reference: Hayes et al. (2018) Climate change and mental health: risks, impacts and priority actions. International Journal of Mental Health Systems; 2:28

24/12/2020

Our mental health advent calendar is now complete! If you took part, we hope completing these activities helped you discover techniques to manage your own mental health, support other people in your life, and contribute to shaping the future of mental health.

Regardless of whether you took part in the advent calendar, we've put the activities into a bingo template so you can return to these activities whenever you so wish!⁠ If you complete any activities, go to our 'Bingo' highlight for a template you can add to your story!

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Did you enjoy the advent calendar? How much of it did you take part in? What was your favourite activity? We'd love to hear what you thought!⁠
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Please remember that these activities are not intended to be an alternative to supervised treatment- if you need support, please reach out to a helpline (Samaritans, SANE Mental Health Charity, Mind etc.) or arrange to speak to a healthcare professional.⁠
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24/12/2020

Day 24 of our Mental Health Advent Calendar

Note an achievement or memory which made you happy this year.
This year has been particularly challenging for most people. Today, for the last day of our advent calendar, we'd like you to reflect on something you've accomplished this year (big or small) and/or a memory which has made you happy.

If you join in today's task, please share this post so that others can join in the calendar! We hope completing these activities will help you manage your own personal mental health, support other people in your life, and contribute to shaping the future of mental health.

23/12/2020

Day 23 of our Mental Health Advent Calendar

Thank somebody you're grateful for.
The NHS recommend connecting with people and having good relationships for mental wellbeing. Expressing gratitude to somebody who cares about you will usually make them feel good about themselves and help your relationship. Today's activity is to do just that!

If you join in today's task, please share this post so that others can join in the calendar! We hope completing these activities will help you manage your own personal mental health, support other people in your life, and contribute to shaping the future of mental health.

22/12/2020

Day 22 of our Mental Health Advent Calendar

Plan something to look forward to in the New Year.
This time of year can be stressful and overwhelming. One way to help combat negative feelings around this time is to plan something in the New Year that you can look forward to. This year, it's probably best to plan something like a walk with a friend or family member you enjoy the company of, so you can avoid disappointment about plans changing as a result of Covid-19 restrictions.

If you join in today's task, please share this post so that others can join in the calendar! We hope completing these activities will help you manage your own personal mental health, support other people in your life, and contribute to shaping the future of mental health.

21/12/2020

Day 21 of our Mental Health Advent Calendar

Get outside during the daylight.
Today is the shortest day of the year, so try to get outside for a walk whilst the sun is up! Natural sunlight can be particularly beneficial if you experience Seasonal Affective Disorder.

If you join in today's task, please share this post so that others can join in the calendar! We hope completing these activities will help you manage your own personal mental health, support other people in your life, and contribute to shaping the future of mental health.

20/12/2020

Day 20 of our Mental Health Advent Calendar

Watch your favourite Christmas film.
It's the last Sunday before Christmas; take some time out to watch your favourite Christmas film!

If you join in today's task, please share this post so that others can join in the calendar! We hope completing these activities will help you manage your own personal mental health, support other people in your life, and contribute to shaping the future of mental health.

19/12/2020

Day 19 of our Mental Health Advent Calendar

Cook your favourite meal.
Lots of people find cooking soothing, so much so that culinary therapy is sometimes recommended to people with mental health disorders. Research has shown cooking may increase psychological wellbeing and self esteem and decrease anxiety and agitation, although most studies aren't of good quality. If cooking is something you enjoy (or think you might enjoy), try to set aside some time today to cook one of your favourite meals; this could be something you cook often, attempting to recreate a meal from your favourite restaurant, something you've always meant to try making, etc.).

If you join in today's task, please share this post so that others can join in the calendar! We hope completing these activities will help you manage your own personal mental health, support other people in your life, and contribute to shaping the future of mental health.

18/12/2020

Day 18 of our Mental Health Advent Calendar

Set yourself a mental health resolution for 2021.
We're two weeks away from New Years Day, after a year which has been difficult mentally for everyone in so many ways. Typically New Years Resolutions are too ambitious or vague - it's estimated that the majority of people don't achieve them - and are often focused on weight loss. Today, we're encouraging you to set one goal for yourself for the upcoming year which is focused on your mental health. It could be one of the activities you've completed as part of the advent calendar- meditating, reading, writing gratitudes, exercising, baking- or another idea, e.g. spending more time with your friends. Try to be specific with your resolution and think about what is realistic and how you'll achieve it. We'd love to hear what you come up with in the comments!

If you join in today's task, please share this post so that others can join in the calendar! We hope completing these activities will help you manage your own personal mental health, support other people in your life, and contribute to shaping the future of mental health.

17/12/2020

Day 17 of our Mental Health Advent Calendar

Get involved in mental health research.
Why participate in mental health research?
👉 Research is crucial for understanding how mental illness develops and how treatments work for patients, so that we can work towards improving diagnosis, preventing the development and relapse of symptoms, and improving/developing treatments
👉 Participating in research is a way to contribute to improving outcomes for people will mental illness. You don't necessarily need personal experience with mental illness in order to participate in research
👉 People who are currently being treated for mental illness are benefitting from past research. Research being carried out now will benefit people with mental illness in the future, so that we can continue to improve lives

If you're interested you can read more about the research we're currently recruiting for at https://linktr.ee/BEADS_study, or sign up to MQ: Transforming mental health's Participate platform (https://participate.mqmentalhealth.org/)

16/12/2020

Day 16 of our Mental Health Advent Calendar

Try out a mental health app.
There are an increasing number of apps claiming to help with wellbeing and mental health. It can be overwhelming to try and choose one, and to know which are reliable: a recent study* found that only 3.41% of apps claiming to treat symptoms of anxiety and depression have scientific evidence that they work. The NHS has a list of (mostly free) apps which they have reviewed as safe and trusted, which can be found here: https://www.nhs.uk/apps-library/category/mental-health/. Today's activity is to choose a mental health app to try out and see if it's helpful to you! Please note that whilst you may find these apps useful, they are not a replacement for medical advice or treatment.

*Marshall et al. (2019) Frontiers in Psychiatry

If you join in today's task, please share this post so that others can join in the calendar! We hope completing these activities will help you manage your own personal mental health, support other people in your life, and contribute to shaping the future of mental health.

The NHS Apps Library helps patients and the public to find trusted health and wellbeing apps. These digital tools have been assessed by the NHS as clinically safe and secure to use.

15/12/2020

Day 15 of our Mental Health Advent Calendar

Get 30 minutes of exercise.
Studies have shown that depression and anxiety scores are lower in groups randomised to do exercise than in control groups (no exercise), suggesting that exercise may improve symptoms of these disorders. The typical recommendation is 30 minutes 3 times per week, so today we're encouraging you to tick off one 30 min workout for the week! Running, dancing, HIIT, pilates- do whatever works for you!

If you join in today's task, please share this post so that others can join in the calendar! We hope completing these activities will help you manage your own personal mental health, support other people in your life, and contribute to shaping the future of mental health.

14/12/2020

Day 14 of our Mental Health Advent Calendar

Help increase awareness about stigmatising language.
These may seem trivial, but stigmatised language around mental health disorders can perpetuate harmful stereotypes and stop people from accessing support.
When we use mental health issues as adjectives, it:
👉 trivialises the experiences of people with those conditions, so the impact on people's lives is underestimated
👉 misrepresents mental health disorders, which can make people unaware of the disorder they're living with and prevents diagnosis
👉 makes people feel embarrassed and discouraged from seeking help
In this post are some examples of commonly used stigmatising words and phrases, and simple swaps you can make to avoid using language which is detrimental- today's advent calendar task is to share this post or share some stigmatising language you've encountered which you think is harmful.

We hope completing these activities will help you manage your own personal mental health, support other people in your life, and contribute to shaping the future of mental health.