OAD Fellow Dominic Vertue has published an article on the “Intersection Between Astronomy and Mental Health” in the Mental Health Matters magazine. Dominic together with Armine Patatanyan and Sandra Benitez has been studying the opportunities that arise where astronomy and mental health intersect. They are examining the link between astronomy activities and the change of negativism in people with depression as they shift from a fixation on their own feelings to a larger perspective.
The article mentions some of the ways astronomy and mental health intersect:
• use the awe of nature to grab attention.
• focus away from the mental health issue and allow our mental energy to be restored.
• engage in a shared activity and thereby experience social integration, connectedness and belonging.
• learn more and expand our understanding leading to new questions, interests and ideas.
• share stories about our experiences, discover, and explore.
• opportunities to change our perspective and reframe our problems.
The OAD is on an exciting journey and would like to invite anyone who wants to get involved, find out more or share their ideas and questions to reach out to the team. Please email to mentalhealth@astro4dev.org