Call it trickle-down anxiety.

The effects on children are showing up at schools, where kids are complaining about stomachaches and sleep problems.

Some researchers estimate that 2 million children will be affected by the nation's foreclosure crisis. Meanwhile, jobs are being cut, too.

Although the worries — especially housing issues — are not hitting Rochester as hard as other areas, school counselors and social workers are seeing some of the same concerns among area students. They say some children are dealing with the strain of family incomes dipping because of layoffs or other concerns. They say these concerns manifest themselves in stress and in practical concerns such as college considerations.

20 Twenty Quick Ways to Reduce Your Stress

Achieve calm in 60 seconds or less with  foolproof tips

Is there an association between a Mother's Mood and Her Baby's Sleep Patterns?

Babies born to depressed mothers may have much more chaotic sleep patterns early in life.

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Babies born to depressed mothers may have much more chaotic sleep patterns early in life. (Credit: Image courtesy of University of Michigan Health System)

 ANN ARBOR, Mich. — If there's one thing that everyone knows about newborn babies, it's that they don't sleep through the night, and neither do their parents. But in fact, those first six months of life are crucial to developing the regular sleeping and waking patterns, known as circadian rhythms, that a child will need for a healthy future.

Some children may start life with the sleep odds stacked against them, though, say University of Michigan sleep experts who study the issue. They will present data from their study next week at the European Sleep Research Society meeting in Glasgow, Scotland.

Babies whose mothers experienced depression any time before they became pregnant, or developed mood problems while they were pregnant, are much more prone to having chaotic sleep patterns in the first half-year of life than babies born to non-depressed moms, the team has found.

Bill Broadly Outlaws Health Insurance Discrimination;
Recognizes Importance of Mental Health to Overall Health

ALEXANDRIA, Va. (October 3, 2008) — Mental Health America today hailed as “a great civil rights victory” the approval of mental health parity legislation that will broadly outlaw health insurance discrimination against Americans with mental health and substance-use conditions in employer-sponsored health plans.

The legislation, which recognizes the importance of mental health to overall health, bans employers and insurers from imposing stricter limits on coverage for mental health and substance-use conditions than those set for other health problems.  It will provide parity for 82 million Americans covered by self-insured plans and another 31 million in plans that are subject to state regulation. 

It is estimated that roughly 67 percent of adults and 80 percent of children requiring mental health services do not receive help, in large part because of discriminatory insurance practices

Mental Health America, which has worked for years to pass mental health parity, applauded Senators Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) and Pete Domenici (R-N.M.) and Representatives Patrick Kennedy (D-R.I.) and Jim Ramstad (R-Minn.), as well as Senate and House leadership key committee chairmen for championing the legislation and their long-standing commitment to ending this civil rights inequity.  This victory also owes much to tireless champions such as Rosalyn Carter, David Wellstone and tens of thousands of Americans who have pressed for this historic reform.

“This is a historic day and a great civil rights victory for millions of Americans who have been unable to access mental health treatment,” said David Shern, Ph.D., president and CEO of Mental Health America. “With approval of this bill, we will tear down the walls of stigma and discrimination and the open the doors to the power and promise of treatment and recovery.  It recognizes that mental health disorders are every bit as debilitating, and just as treatable, as cancer and diabetes. 

“With economic problems making it even harder for Americans to afford treatment and driving up rates of depression and family difficulties, passage of this law is even more important.”

Untapped Potential Of Antidepressants For Cancer

ScienceDaily (Sep. 13, 2008) — A comprehensive review of current scientific literature, published in the peer-reviewed journal ecancer, has suggested that antidepressants can help the human body fight cancer by boosting its own immune response, amongst other mechanisms.

Not only this but they can help with side effects from chemotherapy such as aiding sleep, stimulating appetite, combating pain and avoiding depression.

Antidepressants work by affecting levels of chemicals known as prostaglandins. These are ephemeral, infinitesimal signallers self-regulating every cell in the body, including those serving mood and immunity. When first discovered they were perceived as a master switch, but are now believed to regulate every component of cellular microanatomy and physiology, including those of the organelles, cytoskeleton, proteins, enzymes, nucleic acids and mitochondria.