A particular feature of the demographic change is the growing proportion of elderly and very elderly people. In Western countries, this is largely due to improved medical care for age-associated diseases. There is still comparatively little knowledge about mental health disorders in old age, their age-typical clinical presentation and specific psychotherapeutic treatment.

The "Questionnaire of Thoughts and Feelings" (QTF) is being used as screening instrument as well as tool for treatment planning and treatment evaluation for patients with borderline personality disorder (BPD). The primary goal of this study was the validation of the dimensional structure of the short version with 14 items, QTF-14. Additionally, item characteristics, reliability and evidence of convergent validity were examined. A diagnostically homogenous sample of patients with BPD (N=3035) of a psychosomatic clinic was presented with several self-assessment inventories, including the QTF-14. The expected single-factor model of the structure of the FGG showed unacceptable model fit indices (CFI=0.751; TLI=0.706; RMSEA=0.115; SRMR=0.073). Exploratory factor analysis showed evidence of two or three specific factors. In a subsequent confirmatory factor analysis, a bifactor model with two specific factors proved to be preferable (CFI=0.956; TLI=0.936; RMSEA=0.054; SRMR=0.034). The internal consistency of the total scale as well as the suggested subscales "Relationship Difficulties and Emotional Dysregulation" and "Autoaggression" was acceptable to good (ω=.81-.84; α=.79-.85). Associations with similar scales were as expected. Good psychometric properties of the QTF-14 can be confirmed in this study. Using the suggested subscales could support treatment planning.

Delusional beliefs can have serious impact on peoples' everyday life. They are often associated with strong negative emotions and can complicate relationships with other people- In severe cases, patients may even organize their everyday lives entirely around their delusional beliefs. In recent years, psychological approaches have come to be seen as an essential parts of an integrative treatment concept. This article gives an overview of the cognitive-behavioural approach to delusions.

For families of chronically ill children with a high level of psychosocial stress, it is necessary to involve child and adolescent psychiatric or psychosomatic specialists directly in the pediatric treatment process. For this purpose, a family consultation was set up in the Heidelberg University Pediatrics as part of a model project, which deals with these families in an interdisciplinary and systemic way. It shows that the implementation of the consultation works despite a high organizational effort and is regularly used. The first evaluation results confirm the already described high levels of psychosocial stress in the affected families. They indicate a positive assessment of the consultation and a desire for a permanent offer. First follow-up results indicate a significant decrease in treatment-related concerns, uncertainty and a reduction in treatment-related problems. The lack of a viable funding model poses a challenge for long-term implementation.

Premenstrual symptomatology is a widespread and yet under-researched problem. To date, there is no German instrument for assessing the broad spectrum of possible symptoms and their degree of expression. For this reason, the short versions of the Premenstrual Assessment Form with 20 and 10 items were translated and validated in a sample of N=147 menstruating persons. The internal consistencies of the 20-item and 10-item versions are high (Cronbach's αPAF20=0.93 and αPAF10=0.88, respectively) and comparable to the original versions. Factor analysis identified two scales that assess psychological and physiological symptoms. Convergent validity was demonstrated by a correlation with the PMS Impact Questionnaire (rPAF20=0.66, p<.001). This association was significantly higher (z=2.67, p=0.004) than the correlation with the Brief Symptom Inventory-18 (rPAF20=0.50, p<0.001), which verifies divergent validity. Additionally, cut-off values for suspected diagnoses based on DSM-V diagnostic criteria for both short forms were calculated. The translated Premenstrual Assessment Form is a valid, reliable, and parsimonious instrument that can be used flexibly. It is suitable for quantifying premenstrual symptomatology in research.

The second wave of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic was characterized by drastic restrictions. From previous pandemics as well as from the first wave, it is known that especially individuals with a history of mental disorders may be highly vulnerable to develop poor mental health. Therefore, this paper examines the association of prior mental disorders (PMD) and depressiveness in the 2nd pandemic wave, considering general stress, perceived isolation, perception of political measures to curb the pandemic, fears regarding consequences of the pandemic and changes in the employment and income situation. A cross-sectional analysis was conducted with data of 812 participants of the health related beliefs and health care experiences in Germany study (HeReCa). The association between PMD and depressiveness was studied by means of weighted (for education and age) logistic regression, adjusted for the named variables as well as sociodemographic characteristics. Individuals with PMD displayed substantially more often higher depressiveness than individuals without PMD (OR: 25.1; 95% CI: 11.0-57.3). This association decreased partially by accounting for higher general stress and stress from isolation. Lack of partnership, low income, and male sex were associated with higher depressiveness, but only marginally changed the association of PMD and depressiveness. Overall, during the pandemic, persons with PMD were more likely to develop higher depressiveness than persons without. It is strongly advised to provide care for mental illness in pandemic times, which can be completed by E-Mental-Health or professional support for coping with stress.

So far, little is known about the number and extent of physical illnesses in older patients in psychosomatic clinics. In the present study, the number and frequency of physical illness and its relationship to psychological symptoms were investigated in a group of 150 patients in the second half of life (50 each in the age groups 40-54, 55-69 and 70). Method: The CIRS (Cumulative Illness Rating Scale), an established third-party assessment method for physical illness on 14 scales, was used to record physical illness. The results show the greatest frequency and severity of physical illness in the oldest group. In addition, physical illness was found to be more strongly related to mental illness with increasing age. In the discussion, aspects of health care policy and therapy are addressed.

Being diagnosed with cancer is commonly associated with psychological distress. Especially patients with advanced disease report a range of distinct symptoms that are referred to as existential distress. The conceptualization of existential distress is mainly characterized by the loss of a sense of meaning and purpose in life resulting from the confrontation with a life-threatening disease. Existential distress has a significant impact on health care outcomes and quality of life. It has been found to be associated with suicidal ideation, even in the absence of mental disorders such as depression. Meaning-centered psychotherapy offers effective interventions with regard to reducing existential distress in cancer patients.

The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the world of work. Due to additional occupational health and safety measures early childhood professionals were faced with an increased workload, which may lead to an increased risk for their individual health. The aim of this cross-sectional study was to obtain updated prevalences of psychosocial work stress (effort-reward imbalance, ERI), overcommitment as well as somatic symptoms and their association during the COVID-19 pandemic. Early childhood professionals from a large city in North Rhine-Westphalia (N=1009) participated in the survey between June 2020 and May 2021. The Effort-Reward Imbalance at work questionnaire (16 items version) was used to assess work stress, and the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-15) was used to assess somatic symptoms. A multiple logistic regression tested the association between work stress and somatic health. In total, 72.3% of the sample showed an effort-reward imbalance, 25.0% showed a high overcommitment. The overall prevalence of somatization at a moderate to high level was 45.2%. Effort-reward imbalance and high overcommitment increased the odds of severe symptom presence by a factor of 4.12 and 5.20, respectively. This study shows the high number of effort-reward imbalances, the high overcommitment and the above-average prevalence of somatic complaints among early childhood professionals during the COVID-19 pandemic. In view of these high prevalences and their relationships, there is still a strong need for action and research to reduce work-related stress in this occupational group as well as to investigate the persistence of and the management of somatic symptoms in order to develop long-term preventive measures.

The training of the present work was designed based on the study by Demarzo and colleagues (2017), in which a four-week mindfulness-based intervention showed a similar effectiveness as the eight-week mindfulness-based stress reduction training. A sample of 120 participants was divided into an experimental group (n=80) and a control group (n=40) which filled out questionnaires about their mindfulness (Mindful Attention and Awareness Scale (MAAS)) and life satisfaction (Fragebogen zur allgemeinen Lebenszufriedenheit (FLZ), Kurzskala Lebenszufriedenheit-1 (L-1)) at two measurement times. It was shown that the mindfulness ability of the experimental group increased after the training and differed significantly (p=0,05) both from the first measurement point and from the control group at both measurement points. The same was true for life satisfaction, which was measured using a multi-item scale.