Push aside stigma of mental illness

We know about celebrities’ dating lives, but we don’t always know about their struggles with mental illness.

Gina Rodriguez (anxiety), John Hamm (chronic depression) and Demi Lovato (bipolar disorder) have been willing to talk about what it takes to manage their disease.

That’s enormously important, because stigma against mental illness keeps many people from getting the treatment they need to manage it and to accomplish their life goals.

So, how do you dodge the negative effects of stigma?

1. Talk openly about your condition when appropriate. Hiding it only fosters shame and self-doubt.

2. Don’t go it alone.

Seek professional help to manage the physical and emotional aspects of the disease.

3. Replace “I am bipolar,” with “I have bipolar disease.” You are not your condition.

4. Join a support group and find a buddy.

The healing touch

When “The Big Bang Theory’s” Sheldon Cooper (Jim Parsons) finally capitulates to girlfriend Amy Farrah Fowler’s (Mayim Bialik) insistence that he hold her hand, he can’t help but list what he says are the downsides of such unseemly personal contact : sweatiness, deficient hygiene and, well, “It just looks dumb.”

Just goes to show, understanding string theory isn’t much use when it comes to uncovering the powers of intimate human contact. Luckily, research scientists from the University of Colorado, Boulder and University of Haifa in Israel were fascinated by the power of pain to disrupt relationships — and the power of touch to heal them. In their new study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 22 committed heterosexual couples, 2332 years old, were tracked before and after the woman was exposed to mild pain. The researchers found that the twosome’s brain waves fell out of sync when the woman experienced pain, and back in sync when they held hands. The brain-syncing touch eased the woman’s perception of pain.

So-called interpersonal synchronization happens when people who are close mirror one another’s physiology. But — say the researchers — it appears that pain totally interrupts interpersonal synchronization between couples — and, amazingly, touch restores it.

Hugs, gentle massage, holding hands, simple gestures of touching affection between various partners (how about kids and parents?) can help the person in pain feel better.

Email questions for Mehmet Oz and Mike Roizen to youdocsdaily@sharecare. com.