Streaming Media

Acute anxiety, one of the most common psychiatric illnesses, makes everyday experiences like walking down the street or talking on the phone a source of potential terror. This program explains how and why this happens as it examines the physiology and psychology of anxiety, its symptoms, its highly maladaptive consequences, and treatments such as cognitive behavioral therapy. Case studies involving panic disorders and social phobia are spotlighted. (48 minutes)

Eating disorders are not about the desire to be thin. Eating disorders are severe psychological illnesses that usually take years to overcome and can be accompanied by devastating and sometimes deadly physical side effects. In this powerful program, four young women and men from a variety of ethnic backgrounds share their stories of the physical pain and emotional torment caused by eating disorders. Medical, psychological, and nutritional experts explain the types of eating disorders, their causes, and who is most at risk, as well as treatment options. A Cambridge Educational Production. (30 minutes)

The snack bowl at a “pharm party” includes a mix of prescription drugs—from Adderall to OxyContin to Xanax—and most of them come directly from the household medicine cabinet. This ABC News program examines a disturbing and rapidly growing trend in teenage drug abuse: getting high on legal drugs, often obtained through parents’ prescriptions or from questionable sources over the Internet. Presenting studies showing a rapid spike in pharmaceutical abuse among students as young as eighth-graders, the program visits a Houston substance-abuse treatment center where recovering teenage addicts and their parents share their eye-opening experiences. (21 minutes)

After a traumatic shock, most people experience immediate symptoms of stress—and for some, the feelings do not fade away. In this program, psychiatrist Cécile Rousseau, psychologist Déogratias Bagilishya, and other specialists in the field of emotional trauma discuss the causes, symptoms, and treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder. The effects of adrenaline and cortisol on the body and the mechanics of narrative and emotional memory are also examined. Stories of trauma caused by child abuse, spouse abuse, war atrocities, and terminal illness are related by patients recovering from PTSD. (53 minutes)

In this edition of Investigative Reports, interviews with physicians, psychiatrists, and patients create a composite portrait of schizophrenia. Distributed by A&E Television Networks. (45 minutes)

Over 40 million American adults suffer each year from a variety of chronic sleep problems, prompting extensive research into sleep patterns and potential obstacles to healthy sleep. This program explores sleep disorders, how they are diagnosed, and how they can be easily managed or treated. Viewers will learn how various disorders are usually classified into three major categories: lack of sleep, or insomnia; disturbed sleep, such as obstructive sleep apnea; and too much sleep, known as narcolepsy. Factors such as stress, biology, diet, and environment are overviewed. Several case studies and expert interviews are included. (28 minutes)

Over the last three decades, science has been advancing the understanding of stress—how it impacts the human body and how social standing can make a person more or less susceptible. Through studies of baboons on the plains of Africa and research in the neuroscience labs of Stanford University, scientists are discovering just how lethal stress can be. Understanding how stress works can help people figure out ways to combat it and how to live a life free of the tyranny of this contemporary plague. As Stress: Portrait of a Killer shows, stress is not just a state of mind; it’s something measurable and dangerous. A National Geographic Production. (56 minutes)