MindDoc for iPhone or Android – Developed by clinical psychologists in close collaboration with leading researchers for those who want to learn about emotional well-being or who suffer from mild-to-moderate mental illness including depression, anxiety, insomnia, and eating disorders.

TalkLife for iPhone or Android – TalkLife is all about support. Our community is full of people who have also felt alone, battled depression or living with anxiety and needed somewhere safe to talk. TalkLife is a positive community where people have real conversations about how they feel - lonely, misunderstood, unhappy, or actually feeling alright.

Anxiety is experienced by a significant number of medical trainees. In fact, 33.8% of medical students globally experience anxiety (Tian-Ci Quek et al., 2019). Accordingly, it is imperative to know the signs and when to seek treatment.

Signs of Anxiety

Feeling fearful, nervous, uneasy or on edge
Worrying
Difficulty concentrating
Muscle tension

Research indicates that mindfulness practices are helpful in reducing psychological and emotional distress (Hofmann, Sawyer, Witt, & Oh, 2010). Mindfulness is the practice of being aware in the present moment without judgment (Kabat-Zinn, 1990). Below are three meditations to help you get started:

Breathing Meditation – This meditation guides you through a five-minute breathing exercise.
Body Scan – This exercise helps you to check in with your body.
Relieve Stress Meditation – This meditation guides you through the practice of relaxing, grounding, and clearing to alleviate anxiety.

Below are two additional practices to help you regulate anxiety:

Progressive Muscle Relaxation – Progressive muscle relaxation provides a systematic approach of relaxing the body and mind from head-to-toe. This meditation takes you through this process.
Self-Compassion – Self-compassion is the practice of speaking kindly to yourself when suffering, whether emotionally or physically (Neff, 2003). Here, you find guided meditations to help build this skill in your life.

Informational resources for anxiety:

The statistics surrounding depression and suicidality among medical trainees are staggering. Studies suggest that 27.2% of medical students experience depressive symptoms and 11.1% have had suicidal ideation in the past year (Rotenstein et al., 2016). Have you been feeling… Worthless?
Like there is nothing to look forward to?
Helpless?
Sad?
Like a failure?
Depressed?
Unhappy?
Hopeless?
Like you want to die?

Please reach out to us if you answered yes to any of these questions. If you are in need of urgent assistance, our 24-hour mental health crisis number for IU School of Medicine learners is 317-278-HELP (4357).

Additional information about depression:

For more information about depression, burnout, or suicidality in health care providers, please visit the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.

Substances abuse/misuse is a growing problem among medical trainees, and while it is difficult to obtain an accurate representation of its prevalence, we know that the statistics for the general population are similar (Dumitrascu, Mannes, Gamble, & Selzer, 2014). In 2014, an average of 250 million people worldwide, or 1 in 20 people, ages 15-64, used an illicit substance at least once that year (United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, 2016).

There are a number of national, state, and local resources to help you with substance abuse/misuse concerns:

Adult Children of Alcoholics World Service Organization

Alcoholics Anonymous

Central Indiana Area of Narcotics Anonymous

Find Indiana Narcotics Anonymous meetings near you

Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation

Indianapolis Intergroup Alcoholics Anonymous

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration

Learn more about substance use disorders in physicians: Epidemiology, clinical manifestations, identification, and engagement

The following websites provide additional information on mental health and counseling:

American Counseling Association – ACA is the leading professional association for mental health counselors.

American Psychiatric Association – APA is the leading professional association for psychiatry.

American Psychological Association – APA is the leading professional association for clinical psychologists.

Indiana Professional Licensing Agency – IPLA is the professional credentialing body for the State of Indiana.

National Academy of Medicine

Society of Clinical Psychology – This website provides up-to-date information on research-based psychological treatments

This page serves as an online resource for the Indiana University School of Medicine community. The use of any of the resources provided on this page does not imply any affiliation with or endorsement by Indiana University or the School of Medicine. For more information, please contact the Department of Mental Health Services at 317-278-2383.

Reference Materials

Department of Mental Health Services Resources

Traumatic Event Stress Support

Mental Health Apps

Anxiety

Depression

Substance Abuse Disorder

Professional Associations