Research

Thriveworks conducted an in-depth analysis of over 54,000 data points to identify the Top Mental Health Terms for 2021, determined by how each term has grown in usage over the past five years. This research assessed how 71 mental health terms were used across online, print, and broadcast sources. The…

The COVID-19 crisis has incentivized innovation and transformation in many industries around the world, healthcare included. Even if we didn’t have a global pandemic on our hands, it’s important to note that the healthcare sector is constantly evolving and changing. This is a natural process, as companies and healthcare institutions…

Fredericksburg, VA. 10/20/2020 — Amid a jarring presidential election and an overall difficult year, US adults in counseling are feeling stressed, fearful, depressed, and/or hopeless about the election. This, according to a survey conducted by Thriveworks Counseling and completed by 275 mental health professionals. Are your clients talking about election-related…

New research finds that people with PTSD who do not receive treatment have a higher risk of developing dementia later in life. This research also finds that veterans diagnosed with PTSD (who are more likely to receive treatment for PTSD compared with the general population) have a reduced risk of…

Quick Summary A new study from Baylor University “Parental divorce in childhood is related to lower urinary oxytocin concentrations in adulthood” finds that oxytocin levels are significantly lower in adults whose parents divorced when they were children. Researchers say that this might help to explain the difficulty that many children…

A new study says that using cannabis as a teen or adolescent can have negative impacts on cognitive functioning, especially verbal memory. Researchers at the University of Colorado School of Medicine tested and analyzed siblings (unlike other similar studies) to rule out familial factors. The study used interviews and neuropsychological…

A new study published in The Medical Journal of Australia suggests that online symptom checkers only provide accurate diagnoses 1/3 of the time. A team of researchers from Edith Cowan University (ECU) evaluated the accuracy of 36 different symptom checkers, inputting symptoms of 48 different “patients.” They pulled clinical information…

A new study says binge drinking rates among college students are dropping significantly in states where marijuana is legalized. Researchers looked at data from seven different states and 135 colleges where marijuana was legalized by the year 2018 as well as 41 states and 454 colleges where recreational marijuana use…

According to a new study “Distinct neural mechanisms for the prosocial and rewarding properties of MDMA,” published in Science Translational Medicine, MDMA (ecstasy) could improve trust between patient and therapist, thereby enhancing treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder. Researchers from Stanford University School of Medicine differentiated two molecular pathways, one responsible…

New research says that construction workers are more likely to use cocaine and opioids than workers in other industries; they are the second most likely to use marijuana. Researchers used the National Survey on Drug Use and Health to analyze a dataset of 293,492 adults, including 16,610 construction workers, from…

New research suggests certain positions and longer careers increase an NFL player’s risk of developing cognitive and mental health issues.  Researchers analyzed career length, position history, head and neck injuries, concussion symptoms, depression and anxiety symptoms. They found that players with the longest careers were twice as likely to report…

New research shows that spicy food—chili in particular—might lead to a greater risk of dementia. Participants who ate more than 50 grams of chili a day had a higher risk of experiencing cognitive decline with age. Researchers analyzed 4582 Chinese individuals over the age of 55 for 15 years: the…