Toxic positivity

The first ever edition of All in the Mind was broadcast in October 1988. For its 25th anniversary, Claudia Hammond is joined by community psychiatrist, Graham Thornicroft, Paul Farmer, chief executive of Mind and by the artist, Bobby Baker to look back at archive editions of the programme and explore how attitudes to mental health have changed in the last 25 years. Have campaigns to raise awareness of mental health been successful and how far is there still to go? More and more public figures are talking about their own experience of mental illness. Even last year MPs made history by opening up to the House of Commons about their own mental health problems. How much do these kinds of conversations help change attitudes?

12 Marras 201328min

The introduction of the equality act has focussed attention on mental health services for older people. Sixty five used to be the cut off point for adult services, after which people were referred to old age psychiatry departments. Now though there is a trend towards ageless psychiatry and a one size fits all service. As the Baby Boomers hit sixty five is this a welcome move or will it lead to a loss of expertise and worsening services?Understanding the structure of DNA has revolutionised how neuroscientists understand the brain, and a new exhibition "photo-51 From DNA to the Brain" at the Kings Cultural Institute celebrates the impact of DNA on neuroscience. The work will feature three artists: photographers Christine Donnier Vallentin and Marcus Lyon and glass sculptor Shelley James.Recipes for Life is a project where Vietnamese people with mental health problems meet once a week to cook together and they have developed a recipe to protect themselves from homesickness.

18 Kesä 201328min

The Case of the Bipolar Sufferer and her Legal Battle for an Abortion S.B. is a 37 year old woman with a diagnosis of bipolar disorder. She wanted a baby but when she was pregnant, became ill, and was sectioned under the Mental Health Act. She then said she couldn't cope with having a baby and began requesting an abortion. Her husband, her mother and the psychiatrists treating her argued that the termination shouldn't go ahead, because S.B. wasn't of "sound mind". Deborah Bowman, Professor of Bioethics, Clinical Ethics and Medical Law at St George's, University of London, discusses why this case, which went to the Court of Protection, is so important for people with mental health problems. The Complex Psychology Behind Wind Farm Opposition National polls consistently show that a majority of people support wind power in principle, but when it comes to local schemes, there's often vociferous opposition. NIMBYs often get the blame. They're portrayed as selfish individuals who say no, for purely self interested reasons. Claudia talks to Dr Chris Jones, social and environmental psychologist from the University of Sheffield, on the windy hills North of the City, about why opposition to wind farms is a complex matter and that the "Not In My Back Yarders" can have valid and varied reasons for being turbine-rejectors. Syrian Children and the Mental Health Impact of War Hundreds of thousands of Syrian children have fled their country as the war there reaches new levels of brutality. All in the Mind has been following the efforts of one Syrian psychologist, Masa Al-kurdi, to provide targeted support for child refugees that specifically address the war trauma they have experienced. Her group of volunteers, the Arab Foundation for the Care of Victims of War and Torture, has been using interventions developed by the Children and War Foundation, specifically designed to teach coping strategies and techniques to as many children as possible. In Jordan, the courses are now in place and Claudia hears from Masa that thousands of children will have been through the courses by the end of 2013. Producer - Fiona Hill.

11 Kesä 201328min

An ancient memory training technique is being used to help people with depression. When someone is depressed they can find it hard to remember happier times. Dr Tim Dalgleish's study used the method of loci, associating familiar places with positive memories.What is the best way to treat mental health problems around the world? Vikram Patel, a Wellcome Trust Senior Fellow with the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and the Sangath Centre in Goa in India, and Professor Pat Bracken, Psychiatrist and Clinical Director of the Mental Health Service in West Cork in Ireland, debate the extent to which a western psychiatric model can be used in low and middle income countries.New research by Helen Weng from the University of Wisconcin Madison has shown that a short course in meditation can increase altruism.

4 Kesä 201327min

Education NeuromythsMany teachers are interested in the workings of the brain and how neuroscience might help their students to learn. But new research suggests that like the rest of the us, teachers have picked up many myths about the mind. Common neuromyths in wide circulation are that children have to be taught in their preferred learning styles in order to absorb information; that we only use 10% of our brains and that doing special co-ordination exercises helps the two hemispheres our our brains work together. Paul Howard Jones, reader in Neuroscience and Education at Bristol University, tells Claudia Hammond why he believes neuromyths are so widespread in the classroom.Prisons and PsychosisPrisoners are supposed to have exactly the same access to healthcare as everybody else, but in reality, there are big gaps in the service. When it comes to mental health care, the need for specialised care is clear to see. 5.2% of prisoners (compared to 0.4% of the general population) experience psychosis. Now a project in South East London aims to identify and treat prisoners before their illness escalates into a full-blown psychotic episode. Lucia Valmaggia of the Oasis in Prison project talks to Claudia about the sucess of this world-first project.The case of "H.M." and emerita Professor Of Neuroscience, Suzanne CorkinH.M., or Henry Gustave Molaison, is the world's most famous neurological patient. A case study in any neuroscience or psychology text book, Henry had amnesia, caused by an operation in 1953 to cure his serious epilepsy. His seizures were cured but the removal of a part of his brain left him unable to form new memories. For the next fifty years until his death in 2008, he was studied and researched, his condition revolutionising what we now know about memory. Emerita Professor of Neuroscience, Suzanne Corkin, at M.I.T. in the USA, and author of a new book, Permanent Present Tense, studied him for almost four decades. All in the Mind listeners get to hear original interviews, recorded back in 1977, whith Henry himself and Suzanne describes to Claudia, Henry the man and Henry's contribution to science.Producer: Fiona Hill.

28 Touko 201328min

In the US scientists are working out the details of President Obama's $100 million BRAIN initiative, and the EU is funding the billion euro Human Brain project. What will these expensive projects tell us, and are we even asking the right questions? Mind Hacker Vaughan Bell analyses the debate.Novelist Alex Peston talks about his essay on creativity and antidepressants, and Claudia Hammond asks Nooreen Akhtar of Aberdeen University about her analysis of how antidepressants are portrayed in the press.Noelle Blackman of Respond discusses the benefits of bereavement counselling for adults with learning disabilities.

21 Touko 201327min

Revision Techniques That WorkStudents up and down the UK are busy revising for exams. Claudia Hammond discovers which methods are effective from Professor John Dunlosky, and the results will send a shiver down the spine of those who've left their revision to the last minute.His review concludes that using a highlighter pen, underlining, reading and re-reading, and using mnemonics are the least effective techniques. Instead, students should do lots of practice tests and plan their revision sessions over time.Right or Wrong ? - Therapists Who CryLast week's research paper from the USA on therapists who cry when their clients disclose something sad prompted scores of All in the Mind listeners to share their experiences. Claudia reviews the responses and airs a range of views.Out Of Area Hospital Care for Detained PatientsAn investigation by Community Care journal has disclosed an increase in the numbers of patients, detained under the Mental Health Act, who are being sent, many miles away from their homes, to be treated in private hospitals. Community Editor, Andy McNicoll tells Claudia Hammond about suspicions that out-of-area care is linked to acute bed closures and describes the concerns this practice raises for the care of vulnerable patients.Psychological Treatments for Skin DisordersMore than half of the UK population experience a skin condition in any given 12 month period and the psychological impact on the individual can be enormous. The All Party Parliamentary Group on Skin has just published an updated report, a decade since they last investigated, criticising the lack of access to psychological help for sufferers and the trivialisation of skin disease in general. Dr Andrew Thompson, clinical psychologist and researcher at the University of Sheffield, talks to Claudia Hammond about the scale of unmet psychological need and Emma Rush, chairwoman of The Vitiligo Society, describes her personal experience of living with such a visible difference.Producer: Fiona Hill.

14 Touko 201328min

The new edition of the American Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders will be launched later this month, Professor Simon Wessely discusses its potential impact in the UK. A new survey discovers that 72% of therapists have cried during a therapy session, Claudia Hammond asks should therapists cry? What is the link between sleep and mental illness? A study from Oxford University shows how chaotic sleep can be in people with schizophrenia.

7 Touko 201327min