CREDITS By Dr Melane Van Zyl What we can learn from it I am revisiting the chakras for the umpteenth time. However, this time, I am privileged to learn from Anodea Judith, the Eastern Body, Western Mind writer. I promise anyone with a more profound interest in yoga...

CREDITS Psychology Today What is heart rate variability? Heart rate variability (HRV) is a physiological marker of how we experience and regulate our emotions. But before we discuss HRV and emotion regulation in greater detail, let’s take a quick biology refresher....

CREDITS Kind Mind Psychology Ever had a moment where you feel like your brain is in “crisis mode”. The moment when you are trying to figure out how to calm yourself down, but none of your normal coping mechanisms are working. In fact, you may not be able to think...

Treatment Resistant Depression (TRD) What is Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS)? In the previous article, we looked at what it means to say a patient’s depression is treatment resistant.Many patients are treatment-resistant, meaning medication alone is...

CREDITS  Dr Melane Van Zyl What is mental awareness? Articles about mental awareness usually explain what symptoms and signs to look out for to get diagnosed with a mental disorder. But what does it mean to be aware of your mind? First, let us consider what mental...

DBT is a broad-based cognitive behavioural treatment originally developed for patients who were diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD), and were chronically suicidal. DBT has been shown to be effective in multiple trails not only for BPD, but also...

CREDITS  Dr Melane Van Zyl About 33% of patients with depression are still depressed after two different types of treatment. These are the patients that should be treated by psychiatrists. The psychotherapist in me wants to validate and reassure patients with...

Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR) 1. WHAT IS EMDR? EMDR was discovered in 1987 by American psychologist, Francine Shapiro, when she noticed that eye movements influence the way we react to emotions, memories and behaviours. This process can...

According to the Mayo Clinic examples of signs and symptoms include: • Feeling sad or down• Confused thinking or reduced ability to concentrate• Excessive fears or worries, or extreme feelings of guilt• Extreme mood changes of highs and lows• Withdrawal from...

CreditsBy Dr Melané van Zyl In July, I visited Israel for a leadership coaching course. As part of the sightseeing, we saw the wailing wall. It was Sabbath, so we were not allowed to take photos or even write notes to stick on the wall. Lifts, toasters, coffee...