Reading Roundup | May 14, 2021

Posted May 14, 2021

Mental health and the economy, how imagery can help with SAD, and a continuing look at how the pandemic, or an end to it, continues to shape our feelings.

• “Major Depressive Disorders Have an Enormous Economic Impact” — Paul E. Greenberg, Scientific American (5/5/2021) [article]

  Although the primary focus of this article is on the economic impact of Major Depressive Disorder (MDD), a key finding of the study is that more younger individuals are suffering from MDD than before: "Of the 15.5 million MDD sufferers in 2010, 5.4 million (35 percent) were between 18 and 34 years of age. In contrast, there were 17.5 million people who suffered from MDD in 2018, 8.3 million (47 percent) of whom were in this younger age cohort. This shift to a younger age mix likely results in added burdens at work, home, and school."

• “7 Steps to Nip Social Anxiety in the Bud with Imagery” — Psychology Today, (5/8/2021) [article]

  Some tips for dealing with Social Anxiety Disorder (SAD) by reimagining one's past experiences. The process is meant to give insights into your past and how that past has an effect on your present (especially through your automatic thoughts, i.e., the thoughts that occur naturally due to a trigger).

• “How To Manage Anxiety About Returning To The Office” — Ashley Stahl, Forbes (5/13/2021) [article]

  A look more specifically about post-pandemic life as it pertains to returning to a shared workspace, as well as some suggestions for ways to navigate anxieties about such a return. Stahl highlights the difficulties we may face when approaching our workplace over concerns about safety precautions and how that differs from our interactions with friends and family. One key part of this article is highlighting the difficulty we all have with living with uncertainty. It is also important to remember that we have had a great deal of practice living with uncertainty for over a year now and that those experiences can help guide us in the future.