Tagged With "Centre for Addiction and Mental Health"
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Re: How mental illness is discussed on the internet
There are so many horrible things and misinformation on the internet regarding mental health and addictions. In a sea of confusion, it's hard to find the truth. I think it's critical for those of us working in this field to stop using jargon and psychobabble to reach the general population. People are looking for credible information that they can understand and share on social media. I saw a "problem solving" cartoon the other day that showed someone who hung himself and the other person...
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Re: How mental illness is discussed on the internet
Alison, That is a horrific image that was posted on FB. I can't believe that nothing was done even after you notified FB. It's interesting that those platforms (ie FB and IG) will remove and mark as inappropriate a picture of a woman breast feeding her child but not what you reported. I was listening to a podcast where people who have diagnosed OCD talked about their experiences, shared parts of their daily lives that have been impacted by their OCD and talked about how hurtful it is when...
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Re: Lots of video gaming online: problem ?
Hi Suzie, Thanks for joining our community and posting your question. ConnexOntario is a great resource for information about referrals for mental health and addiction services that you and/or your son can access. You can reach them through online chat or email at https://www.connexontario.ca/ or by phone at 1-866-531-2600. If you reside outside of Ontario, they also provide a list of services in Canada and internationally: http://www.connexontario.ca/Home/Links . Since you mentioned that...
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Re: The first long-term study on how screen time affects children's brains
It will be interesting to see if they control for things like income and other social determinants of health. I have a sense that it might be more likely for parents with fewer resources to use the phone/TV as a coping strategy, especially if they don't have as much support as other more affluent parents.
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Re: The first long-term study on how screen time affects children's brains
Hi Nimira, You make an excellent point. Another thing to consider, on the opposite spectrum, is that many middle class to upper class schools now utilize tablets and laptops as part of the school curriculum. Does the content matter? Or is it just screen time. I wonder if the added family resources outside of school, that may support vacations, hobbies and sports (events away from screen time) and resources that support enhanced learning, is large enough to combat the effects of increased...
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Re: The first long-term study on how screen time affects children's brains
I was just about to say that Aaron! Content matters! This has been an ongoing debate and I'm afraid I'm on the pro-screen time. I find these studies skewed... "If you give a child an app where they play with virtual Legos, virtual blocks, and stack them, and then put real blocks in front of them, they start all over," Why would you test block-building capacity and say this skill isn't transferable when using real blocks? Seems pretty obvious. I'm sure if you tested for non gross motor skills...
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Re: Bell Let's Talk - part of the problem?
With Bell ,there were Incredible Long-distance Bills many struggled to pay over decades of people calling family members and friends to talk about problems. Way past time for Bell to send Billions to badly needed Mental Health Services. I worked in Supportive Housing -where are the new buildings and Group Homes?Family and Friends often fall-away and abandon people who have problems or seem different or weird. Been reading NOW Magazine since the start as a source of Free or Low-cost...
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Re: Bell Let's Talk - part of the problem?
I really don't think there is much substance to this article. Screen time, social media and all-the-time internet access is the reality of today. Not everyone abuses or is negatively affected by these mediums just as not every person who drinks is addicted to alcohol. I agree that there does seem to be some sort of shallowness to the campaign but it does get people talking. Moreover, I agree with the possible negative effects of these new communication mediums. However, it is not as if this...
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Re: Bell Let's Talk - part of the problem?
I completely agree Aaron! Bell is not to blame for mental health prevalence, stigma, and or self-esteem issues. It is merely a medium, as you put, a vessel by which content is delivered. People like to make the argument that perhaps Bell is enabling mental health issues but perhaps it is also enabling change - which is exactly the purpose of the BellLetsTalk campaign. For a campaign that brought in $7.2M in grants (800k being put towards Indigenous communities), not to mention the level of...
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Re: Bell Let's Talk - part of the problem?
I echo a lot of what has been said by Aaron and Michelle above. Pointing the finger at a company like Bell without looking at the wider social structures (hyper-capitalism, an increasingly digital world, the shift towards the singularity of human/tech interaction) does miss the mark in my opinion. I actually studied smartphone dependency/addiction for my MSc thesis and do very much think that we're still figuring out that 'sweet spot' between tech being beneficial or detrimental to our...
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Re: "An age-by-age guide to kids and smartphones"
Thanks for sharing, Matt! I think this article provides a lot of great discussion points and things to consider. As mentioned in the article, guidelines from the Canadian Paediatric Society and American Academy of Pediatrics suggest limiting recreational screen time for youth to minimize the risk of future problem technology use but I think this is just a starting point. Risk factors such as a child's developmental stage, any existing mental health problems and even what the child is doing...
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Re: ADHD study links teens' symptoms with digital media use
Great article, Howie. And thanks for shedding light on your personal experiences, Elaine. It's interesting because most of the theories I've heard concerning the link between ADHD and digital media use focus on how the symptoms of ADHD (e.g., inattentiveness, impulsivity, etc.) put a person at risk for developing problematic technology use as an unhealthy way of coping with/expressing these symptoms. However, in your son's case, it appears that his video gaming preceded his ADHD symptoms.
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Re: Gambling, Gaming, and Technology Use Knowledge Exchange
Thank you for posting this article, Elaine! I think it is relevant food for thought for both parents and professionals. I especially like that she talks about the importance of ruling out and addressing electronics in mental health assessments. In the article, Dr. Dunkerley also says, “ Time and again, I’ve realized that regardless of whether there exists any “true” underlying diagnoses, successfully treating a child with mood dysregulation today requires methodically eliminating all...
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Re: is the news the new FOMO?
Thanks for sharing this, Beth. This is a really interesting perspective and one that could play a role in harm reduction, as you mentioned. I think more research is needed to understand the interplay between social media and mental health. I came across a news article entitled "Does social media actually decrease anxiety?" that was recently featured in the Globe and Mail and discusses some of the different findings in the research about whether social media decreases or increases anxiety,...
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Re: Can anyone suggest an gambling clinical practice guide, that incorporates "cultural competency" on the idea of "lucky?"
Hello Bill, Please find the attached document, "A Guide for Counsellors Working with Problem Gambling Clients from Ethno-cultural Communities." On page 16 there is content related to your question. Best, Lisa
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Re: Teens in Urban Regions Are More Likely To Experience Problem Video Gaming
I like your idea Tiffany of adding safer gaming practices into curriculum with safer gambling information. I also think that there is a need for a paired curriculum for parents/guardians on both of these topics, especially as technology use is so ubiquitious. I wonder how influential overall wellness and mental health education would be at addressing some of those underlying issues and how students would respond if the curriculum not only taught safer gambling and gaming practices, but...
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Re: Gambling, Gaming, and Technology Use Knowledge Exchange
Thank you so much for sharing the article, Elaine. It was very thought provoking. I had some initial responses to his article (in italics). My Responses to “Why Is There a ‘Gaming Disorder’ But NO ‘Smartphone Disorder’ article in The Atlantic by Ian Bogost on June 28, 2018. The ICD has not "decided" that if you play video games a lot, you might suffer from a mental health issue: Gaming disorder.” They have determined based on research and consultations with experts that those that are...
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Re: Blog on WHO's decision to include gaming disorder in the ICD-11
This story was in the CBC yesterday: https://www.cbc.ca/news/health...g-disorder-1.4746637 In it, CAMH's Dr. Nigel Turner raises the point that its important to proceed with caution when labeling people when the research is still in quite early days. Thoughts?
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Re: Blog on WHO's decision to include gaming disorder in the ICD-11
Interesting article and I do agree that caution is always a good thing when it comes to diagnosing people. I think it is important to continue to do research to help us better understand this issue. I am hoping that the inclusion of gaming disorder in the ICD-11 will contribute to further research and clarity around this problem. In response to Nigel's comment, "My caution is that we shouldn't be too quick to label people who play games a lot as having an addiction problem," I would say that...
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Re: Is Screen Time Hurting Your Heart?
Thanks for sharing. As a mom with an adult son who is now 14 months detoxed from gaming, I can't say enough about how much exercise played a huge part in getting into recovery and continuing it with success for my son. It not only helps with keeping his heart healthy but also gives him the dopamine high he was addicted to with gaming. He is still working hard at keeping the balance as his work in in a maintenance software company doesn't provide the needed movement and cardio. He uses a...
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Re: Is Screen Time Hurting Your Heart?
Thanks for sharing, Howie! I think it's so important to highlight how sedentary behaviour, including screen use, has multiple risks associated with it across different dimensions of wellness. In other discussion threads we've discussed some of the psychosocial risks associated with screen use, and it's also important to highlight some of the physical health risks (as the article you posted suggests). The Canadian Pediatric Society has released a guide for physicians focusing on sedentary...
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Re: WEBINAR! Coping Strategies of Partners of Individuals with Problem Gambling
But are these webinars open to caregivers/parents or only health care/social service professionals ?
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Re: WEBINAR! Coping Strategies of Partners of Individuals with Problem Gambling
Hi Suzie, Although our webinars are geared towards health care service providers, all are welcome to attend! Best, Tanya
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Re: INQBOARD: Older Adults & Problem Gambling
Thank you for this Kim. I love the infographic and was enticed to read the report. It was interesting to note: “Casinos have been shown to use marketing and services targeted specifically at older adults. These services include free transportation from older adult living facilities, low cost food and alcohol, needle disposals for diabetes sufferers and defibrillators, and entertainment options directed towards older adults, including recording artists from the 1960s and 1970s (Bjelde,...
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Re: CTV interview Should addiction to video games be considered a disease?
This is an article that features the concerns some scholars have about gaming being included in the ICD-11: "Scholars' open debate paper on the World Health Organization ICD-11 Gaming Disorder proposal"
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Welcome to members of the Gambling Issues International list serve.
The Gambling Issues International listserve was created in 1999 by Nina Littman-Sharp when she was with the gambling service at CAMH. It brought together clinicians, researchers, educators, public health professionals, community workers, policy makers, and many others in the field of problem gambling. It was hosted using Yahoo Groups which is closing down at the end of today. Members have been invited to join this group and we are pleased to welcome them. Stephen Meredith
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Welcome to new members and some orientation information
A warm welcome to all new members, and a big hello to all those who have been part of the subgroup for a while. To introduce myself, my name is Anita Corsini and I recently joined the Gambling, Gaming, and Technology Use (GGTU) team here at CAMH. Part of this new role will involve facilitating conversation on this online subgroup, as well as organizing other knowledge sharing activities relevant to researchers and practitioners in the field of gambling, gaming, and technology use. Please do...
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Gambling, Gaming and Technology Use Training Needs Assessment
The Gambling, Gaming and Technology Use (GGTU) team at CAMH has been delivering quality professional development and support to service providers for over 20 years. To help us continue to deliver high-quality products and support, we would like to better understand the populations we are serving and their training needs. By filling in this needs assessment survey, you will help us develop better training deliveries to you and service providers like you. This survey should take approximately...
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Re: Research/Stats on Professional Gamblers and their income
Hi Shannon, This article we published in 2013 is dated but has information income from a small US sample of professional gamblers. I hope it helps. It's a starting point. Jeremiah
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Podcast recommendation: Digital wellness, tech use and video game addiction
Hi folks, I'm hoping to share interesting resources each week on the topic of problem tech use and digital wellness. This week, one of my favourite podcasts tackled this topic along with problem gaming. It's about a 45-50m listen, perfect for a socially distanced walk or to help you get through the weekly chores: https://open.spotify.com/show/3YJVMZhsHlrQq3PKf6p7mo Description: Nadja Streiter, LMSW is a psychotherapist and parent coach, as well as Director of Programs at Game Quitters. She...
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Assessing gaming disorder: Expert opinions
Gaming disorder can be difficult to assess, as there are concerns about over pathologizing normal or potentially healthy behaviours. A new study surveyed 29 international experts until consensus was reached about useful criteria for assessing gaming disorder. This study helps clinicians with creating their own assessments to ensure they're looking at the most relevant features in their assessment to target as well as ensure they're not problematizing less relevant features. An interesting...
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Mindfulness and problem gambling treatment.
A few years ago, problem gambling clinicians in Ontario began introducing mindfulness groups to clients as they felt that they could benefit from cultivating greater awareness of their thoughts and emotions while detaching from and not giving in to them. This practise is particularly relevant to people with gambling problems who tend to hold incorrect or erroneous beliefs about the nature of random chance (Toneatto et al., 1997; Turner, 2006) and engage in automatic thinking before, during...
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Re: Getting started on our online community
Hi Andrew, I am a public health nurse working on the gambling file in Ottawa. Do you know if any organizations supporting homeless individuals in Ottawa are aware of higher rate of gambling harm with homeless individuals? They are certainly a group I want to reach out to but thought I would see if you had any links to Ottawa.
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Re: Getting started on our online community
Hi, My name is Flora Matheson. I am a scientist at the Centre for Urban Health Solutions at St. Michael’s Hospital and work in the area of gambling, poverty and homelessness. I have been working with Good Shepherd since 2014 on this issue. We’ve been finding that there is a lack of awareness in general among this population. We have been developing guides and information to create awareness. We also have a training module on poverty, gambling and homelessness that we are happy to deliver.
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Mindfulness-based relapse prevention for problem gambling manual
In Ontario, treatment for people with gambling problems was first implemented in 1995, in response to the opening of the province’s first commercial casino in Windsor. With extensive clinical experience and excellent research since then, knowledge about what constitutes effective treatment has been growing, but no one approach suits everyone. Treatment services have instead tended to adopt an eclectic and holistic approach, incorporating a biopsychosocial-spiritual model that draws on...
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Re: Movies on problem gambling, gaming & tech use
Amazing @Registered Member! Thank you so much, I have already downloaded a copy (and attached here in case others are curious to check it out). Also, I would welcome an updated article.
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Gaming and Youth - Health Matters
Anyone know of expert resources examining the negative effects of gaming addiction on eyesight, eye health, and vocabulary / language development? Asking for a friend.
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Re: Gaming and Youth - Health Matters
It's an interesting question - I did a bit of digging and found some papers that mention it, however there's limited empirical evidence actually suggesting or examining this area from what I can tell. A recent review about internet gaming disorder (IGD) as an emergent health concern for men by Chen and colleagues (2018) discusses eye strain. However when you look at the refence they cite a Young paper from 2009 , that discusses it's something to look out for without any citation or empirical...
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Serious games, mental health apps, and gambling disorder
The title of a recently published article, A Serious Game to Improve Emotion Regulation in Treatment-Seeking Individuals With Gambling Disorder: A Usability Study , peaked my interest for a few reasons. First, being part of a group of folks who design and create learning opportunities for mental health and addictions clinicians, we have talked about integrating "serious games" (broadly defined as games with educational or informational aims, vs. purely entertainment) into our course design.
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The Therapy-App Fantasy
https://www.thecut.com/article...867882719.1617151112 With the arrival of a global pandemic, a boom in app-based therapy soon followed as many people struggled to navigate this difficult year. While these apps claim to improve accessibility to therapists and may be a life-line for many, this article looks at how damaging these kinds of apps can be to some clients and also the therapists managing large caseloads whilst being expected to be on demand 24-7. This article is a fascinating read...
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Re: Behaviour change techniques used by family and friends of individuals with problem gambling
Family members who want to save the family home and/ business act quickly to get ownership in their names. Also,by getting money away from gambler,someone with no bank account can apply for Disability. People who have a Major Mental Illness like Mania get approved.
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New gaming / gambling resource for parents & caregivers
The Young Gamers and Gamblers Education Trust (YGAM) just launched a new online resource - the Parent Hub - that provides parents/caregivers with information and guidance to help support young people to engage with and enjoy the world of video games while being safe online. Although designed for parents/caregivers, this is also a great resource for teachers, youth workers, mental health clinicians, and anyone who works with young people and their families. (Note: YGAM is a UK-based...
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Re: Funding for Interventions
Hi Olive Here in Ontario, Canada, a certain amount of annual gambling revenues is directed towards gambling research, prevention, and treatment. I believe this was based on an agreement that accompanied the opening of casinos in the Province in the 1990s. The money is directed through our Ministry of Health. I think it was 2% of slot machine revenues from the slots at racetracks program. In my view, we were well funded as a result of that original decision and it worked well for many years,...
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Re: Funding for Interventions
Hi Stephen It is great to read your post. Can you let me know where I could find a reference for this? Is it in legislation, an annual report or suchlike? It would be wise to add the reference to my report. Olive Olive M. Moase Policy Analyst, Health Policy and Programs Section, Health Policy and Programs Division, PEI Department of Health and Wellness, Sullivan Building, Room #307, 16 Fitzroy Street, P.O. Box 2000, Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, Canada C1A 7N8 E-Mail:...
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Re: Funding for Interventions
Hi Olive I can't find the original document but it is called Ontario's problem - gambling Strategy and it has been in existence since 1996. Since 1999, it has been funded by a formula of 2 percent of gross slot machine revenue from charity casinos and slots at racetracks. The Strategy has a three-pronged approach consisting of treatment, prevention/awareness and research. I have attached a review of the strategy that was conducted in 2005. You can also find some information about it at the...
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Re: Problem Gaming Q&A with Elaine Uskoski (May 6-7, 2021)
Thanks for asking me to be a part of this event, Marie-Claire. I'm happy to answer questions in order to help others have a good understanding of gaming addiction from mine and my son's experience. Q What were some of the things that you and Jake worked on together during that time when he was first stopping/reducing his video gaming? A The first time Jake detoxed from gaming, after he had time to rest and get back on a regular sleep cycle, he joined me in morning fitness classes in order to...
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Re: Problem Gaming Q&A with Elaine Uskoski (May 6-7, 2021)
Thank you for participating Tara. Q What are some of the main challenges parents/caregivers face when addressing gaming / video game addiction with their children/kin? What have you found to be effective in addressing these challenges? A The biggest challenge I see is that parents do not follow through with consequences of poor behaviour of their child. They don’t have clear rules in place, and so the child ends up making decisions on what is acceptable behaviour. Restrictions are not made...
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Time spent gaming and psychiatric symptoms in childhood
Many parents of young children worry about how much time their kids play video games and if that may cause mental health problems later on. However, few longitudinal studies have been done to examine how playing games at a young age impacts psychiatric symptoms later in life. A Norwegian team of researchers looked into this and found the following in a sample of 791 children: More ADHD symptoms at age 8 predicted more gaming at age 10 Gaming did not predict any more psychiatric symptoms The...
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YGAM report to MPs highlights online abuse of girl gamers
Sharing this interesting report from YGAM * about the experiences of girl gamers of a variety of ages. This report summarizes the experiences of harassment and misogyny experienced by gamers who are women in online gaming communities. The report sets out recommendations that will be presented to UK MPs on the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Video Games and E Sports about how to safeguard young women, educate parents and young boys about topics such as rape culture and discrimination. It's...
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JGI Fall 2021 - Issue 48 - Now Available!
The JGI Fall 2021 Issue is now available - all issues are open access. This quarterly issue features work by Canadian researchers, including Michael Wohl and Nassim Tabri, as well as international scholars, Sally Gainsbury, Bowden-Jones, and others. Original research by a Toronto-based team examined the high prevalence of problem gambling - but low rate of treatment participation - among people experiencing poverty and homelessness and showed that social, financial, housing, and health...