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Positive Affect Treatment

All articles tagged with #positive affect treatment

health23 days ago•7 min saved

Joy-Rewiring Therapy Shows Promise Against Depression

A randomized trial of 98 adults with severe anhedonia, depression, and anxiety found Positive Affect Treatment (PAT)—a 15-session therapy designed to boost positive emotions and retrain the brain’s reward system—outperformed a conventional negative-emotion-focused therapy, with improvements in overall clinical status persisting at one-month follow-up and notable reductions in depression and anxiety symptoms. PAT targets the brain’s positive pathways (anticipation, response to reward, and reward learning) and may reduce key depression risks by enhancing meaningful activity, gratitude, savoring, and social connection.

via SciTechDaily|

#anhedonia #depression #health

health28 days ago•7 min saved

Joy-First Therapy: A New Approach to Depression Shows Promise

Three randomized trials published in JAMA suggest positive affect treatment (PAT) can be more effective than traditional therapy at lifting mood and reducing negative symptoms in depression by teaching patients to add and savor positive activities and retrain the brain’s reward system. While replication across studies is encouraging, researchers call for larger samples. The article also outlines practical PAT strategies for everyday life, such as planning enjoyable activities, savoring moments, finding silver linings, and practicing generosity to boost mood, alongside the reassurance that professional help remains important when needed.

via The Washington Post|

#anhedonia #brain-reward-system #depression

health1 month ago•7 min saved

Joy-Focused Therapy Shows Stronger Results in Depression Treatment

A new study argues that treating depression by boosting positive emotions—rather than just removing negative ones—may be more effective. Positive Affect Treatment (PAT) is a 15-session therapy designed to rebuild the brain’s capacity for joy, motivation, and reward through savoring, gratitude, and loving-kindness. In a randomized trial with 98 adults, PAT yielded greater overall clinical improvement and reduced suicidality and relapse risk compared with conventional therapies that target negative affect, with improvements linked to modulation of reward and threat processing.

via Neuroscience News|

#anhedonia #depression #health