References: Coping with health & body

The key studies and reviews behind these pages – organised by topic, so you can see exactly what each claim on the site is based on.

A serious diagnosis

  • Salander, P. (2002). “Bad news from the patient’s perspective: an analysis of the written narratives of newly diagnosed cancer patients.” Social Science & Medicine, 55(5), 721-732. A patient-perspective study of the moment of diagnosis itself – the source behind this page’s point that hearing the words is its own kind of shock, separate from whatever comes after, and that it draws a line through time regardless of what was expected beforehand.
  • Dugas, M.J., Gagnon, F., Ladouceur, R. & Freeston, M.H. (1998). “Generalized anxiety disorder: A preliminary test of a conceptual model.” Behaviour Research and Therapy, 36(2), 215-226. The source behind the “intolerance of uncertainty” model referenced on this page – why the gap between referral and answer often does more damage to peace of mind than the diagnosis itself.
  • Baile, W.F., Buckman, R., Lenzi, R., Glober, G., Beale, E.A. & Kudelka, A.P. (2000). “SPIKES—A six-step protocol for delivering bad news: application to the patient with cancer.” The Oncologist, 5(4), 302-311. The foundational clinical protocol for breaking bad news – the source behind this page’s point that measured, clinical delivery can feel strangely distant from the emotional reality of the news itself.
  • Mitchell, A.J., Chan, M., Bhatti, H., et al. (2011). “Prevalence of depression, anxiety, and adjustment disorder in oncological, haematological, and palliative-care settings: a meta-analysis of 94 interview-based studies.” The Lancet Oncology, 12(2), 160-174. A large-scale review of mental health outcomes following serious diagnosis – the source behind this page’s point that persistent low mood or dread in the weeks that follow is worth raising with a GP.

The body changing with age

  • Rubin, D.C. & Berntsen, D. (2006). “People Over Forty Feel 20% Younger Than Their Age: Subjective Age Across the Lifespan.” Psychonomic Bulletin & Review, 13(5), 776–782. Found that people’s sense of their own age stays roughly 20% younger than their chronological age from around 40 onward, and doesn’t close with time – the source behind this page’s point that the inner sense of age barely moves.
  • Featherstone, M. & Hepworth, M. (1991). “The Mask of Ageing and the Postmodern Life Course.” In The Body: Social Process and Cultural Theory (pp. 371–389). Sage. Two British sociologists’ influential account of the ageing body as a mask concealing a self that doesn’t feel like it’s aged at the same rate – the source behind this page’s central framing.
  • Levy, B.R. (2009). “Stereotype Embodiment: A Psychosocial Approach to Aging.” Current Directions in Psychological Science, 18(6), 332–336. Shows that internalised beliefs about ageing measurably affect physical outcomes, including memory, cardiovascular stress and recovery – the source behind this page’s point that what you believe about ageing shapes how your body copes with it.
  • Tiggemann, M. (2004). “Body Image Across the Adult Life Span: Stability and Change.” Body Image, 1(1), 29–41. A review of how body image actually shifts, and doesn’t shift, across adulthood – the source behind this page’s point that the change tends to be cumulative rather than a single dramatic shift.

Menopausal mood swings

  • Freeman, E.W., Sammel, M.D., Lin, H. & Nelson, D.B. (2006). “Associations of Hormones and Menopausal Status with Depressed Mood in Women With No History of Depression.” Archives of General Psychiatry, 63(4), 375–382. An 8-year study finding new-onset depressive symptoms tracked closely with hormone fluctuation during the menopause transition – the source behind this page’s point that mood swings have a real hormonal basis.
  • Bromberger, J.T. & Kravitz, H.M. (2011). “Mood and Menopause: Findings from the Study of Women’s Health Across the Nation (SWAN) over 10 Years.” Obstetrics and Gynecology Clinics of North America, 38(3), 609–625. A decade-long study finding significantly higher odds of frequent irritability and nervousness during early perimenopause, and an elevated risk of a first depressive episode among women with no prior history – the source behind this page’s points on irritability, anxiety, and new-onset depression risk.
  • Gordon, J.L., Rubinow, D.R., Eisenlohr-Moul, T.A., Xia, K., Schmidt, P.J. & Girdler, S.S. (2018). “Efficacy of Transdermal Estradiol and Micronized Progesterone in the Prevention of Depressive Symptoms in the Menopause Transition: A Randomized Clinical Trial.” JAMA Psychiatry, 75(2), 149–157. Found hormone therapy reduced the likelihood of depressive symptoms independently of its effect on physical symptoms like hot flushes – the source behind this page’s point that treatment can target mood specifically, not just physical discomfort.
  • National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (2015, last updated 2024). “Menopause: Identification and Management.” NICE guideline NG23. UK clinical guidance recognising psychological symptoms, including low mood and anxiety, as a legitimate and treatable part of the menopause transition, with cognitive behavioural therapy recommended as one option – the source behind this page’s point that these symptoms are a recognised, treatable pattern, not something to push through unnamed.