General - MGH Center for Women's Mental Health

Metformin May Help to Treat Menstrual Irregularities in Women Treated with Antipsychotics

Menstrual irregularity is a common side effect of antipsychotic treatment in women, occurring more commonly in those treated with risperidone and the older antipsychotic medications. New research presented at the APA earlier this month indicated that the addition of metformin at 500 mg bid resolved menstrual irregularities in most women treated with antipsychotic medications. (Metformin is a medication used alone or with other medications, including insulin, to treat type 2 diabetes.) In addition, women receiving metformin lost an average 2.4 kg of weight after 6 months of treatment.

By MGH Center for Women's Mental Health|2015-08-12T15:29:58-04:00May 23rd, 2012|Antipsychotic Medications, General|Comments Off

Depression in Women: Is There a Role for Vitamin D?

Sources of vitamin D include sunlight (ultraviolet B, or UVB, rays), dietary intake, and supplements. Sunlight is the main source of human vitamin D. Vitamin D refers to different forms of a steroid hormone. Vitamin D3 (also called 1, 25-dihydroxycholecalciferol or calcitriol) is produced by the body when ultraviolet light (in the form of UV B) interacts with 7-dehydrocholesterol . Vitamin D3 is thought to be more potent than vitamin D2, with D3 and D2 being the two forms of vitamin D contained in supplements.

By MGH Center for Women's Mental Health|2015-08-12T17:00:04-04:00January 24th, 2012|Depressive Disorders, General|Comments Off

Tragedy and Coping

On Saturday, January 8, a gunman opened fire at a local community event in Tucson, Arizona, targeting U.S. congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords. Giffords was shot in the head and underwent immediate surgery, and there were a total of at least 18 other victims that were killed or wounded. The dead included bystanders and colleagues of the congresswoman, including a nine year old girl and a federal judge. The tragedy unfolded in the midst of the most ordinary of circumstances, a Saturday morning at a neighborhood grocery store, in the context of a casual event in which a political representative made herself available to constituents. The tragedy quickly stunned and horrified the community of Tucson and the entire country, and received national and international coverage through television, the internet, and other types of media, including social networking.

By MGH Center for Women's Mental Health|2015-08-13T12:03:31-04:00January 11th, 2011|General|Comments Off

Antidepressants and Weight Gain

Many individuals have the experience of weight gain while receiving treatment with an antidepressant, and often wonder if selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are associated with weight gain. This is an excellent, complex, and clinically important question.

By MGH Center for Women's Mental Health|2015-08-13T11:41:37-04:00November 4th, 2010|Antidepressants, General|Comments Off

Omega-3 Fatty Acids: The Basics for Clinicians and Patients

By MGH Center for Women's Mental Health|2015-08-13T11:26:19-04:00September 21st, 2010|Alternative & Complementary, General, Treatment|Comments Off

Massage Therapy for Depression

There are currently 100 clinical trials registered on clinicaltrials.gov using massage as a treatment. Six are listed for the indication of depression. A small minority are focused specifically on treating depression or anxiety, while in many the effects of massage for patients with serious medical conditions are being explored. Infant massage is also under study for developmental benefits. The number of randomized trials for verified psychiatric disorders using massage as an intervention are limited to date.

By MGH Center for Women's Mental Health|2015-08-12T16:56:28-04:00August 23rd, 2010|Alternative & Complementary, Depressive Disorders, General, Treatment|Comments Off

Anticonvulsants and Bone Loss

Anticonvulsants are not only used for the treatment of epilepsy but are now used with increasing frequency for the treatment of mood disorders, such as bipolar disorder. Recent studies have indicated that anticonvulsants may negatively affect bone mineral density, as well as increase fracture risk. This seems to be especially common with the older anticonvulsants (e.g., phenobarbital, carbamazepine, phenytoin, and valproate); however, the data regarding lamotrigine and other newer anticonvulsants is much more limited. While bone loss is more often seen with long-term use of these medications, several reports indicate that decreased bone density may also be detected within the first 1-5 years of use.

By Ruta Nonacs, MD PhD|2025-06-26T09:08:18-04:00May 18th, 2010|Anti-Epileptic Drugs, General, Mood Stabilizers, Outcomes|Comments Off

New Oral Contraceptive Approved

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved a combination oral contraceptive (OC) tablet called Natazia (Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals). It is a bit different from other OC preparations in that it contains 4 progestin/estrogen dosing combinations during each 28-day cycle (instead of being monophasic or triphasic), and it contains estradiol valerate (instead of ethinyl estradiol).

By MGH Center for Women's Mental Health|2015-08-12T16:36:46-04:00May 12th, 2010|Contraception, General|Comments Off

When Health Care Providers Say the Wrong Thing

With increasing frequency, postpartum women who have taken antidepressants during pregnancy have shared – usually in tears – that while in the hospital for their labor and delivery hospitalization, a health care provider at the hospital said something judgmental about their being on an antidepressant. For example, one woman said that a nurse told her, “I can’t believe you took that during pregnancy.” Or, “Don’t you know how risky that is?!” Or “How could you do that to your baby?” This is often in the context of women using other medications in parallel for non-psychiatric indications, of which less may be known about the reproductive safety profile, but not addressed by the health care provider.

By MGH Center for Women's Mental Health|2015-08-12T16:30:09-04:00April 14th, 2010|Contraception, General|Comments Off

Diet and Nutrition May Influence Risk for Depression

There has been a long held belief that diet may influence well-being. The phrase “you are what you eat” suggests that nutrition has an impact on physical as well as mental health. Until recently, however, there have been few studies that provide data to support this idea.

By MGH Center for Women's Mental Health|2015-08-12T16:25:39-04:00March 18th, 2010|Alternative & Complementary, Depressive Disorders, General, Prevention|Comments Off