OCD and The Blue Moon of August 2012

On Friday, August 31, 2012, the second full moon of August will glow in the sky. When two full moons occur in the same month, the second moon is referred to as a "Blue Moon," and since this only happens about once every two and a half years, the term "Once in a Blue Moon" was coined. The next Blue Moon will be in 2015.

There had been much speculation, superstition, and folklore surrounding Blue Moons. I found a cool website, Keith's Moon Facts.http://home.hiwaay.net/~krcool/Astro/moon/

You can find! Moon phases, facts, events, travel, eclipse info, photos, maps,folklore,and some great links.

On a more serious note, The moon and mental health

(Following are excerpts from "Lunacy revisited: The influence of the moon on mental health and quality of life," published in the May 2000 issue of the Journal of Psychosocial Nursing.)

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Research has shown that a high proportion of health professionals continue to believe the moon affects the mental health of their patients.

According to CAPT Outreach magazine, "Evidence for the supposed influence of the moon on human behavior has proved elusive, but this has not deterred researchers. There is some evidence that there may be a greater amount of abnormal behavior at the times of full moon and third quarter (waning moon).

Researchers discovered an increased number of mental health admissions at full moon. Others have reported a relationship between the full moon phase and homicide rate."

I read many similar reports about increased emergency room visits, accidents, mania, etc. during the full Moon, so despite concrete scientific evidence, it must mean something. The conclusion of this article says..."For example, during the week of the full moon, extra attention could be given to the reduction of environmental stresses in individuals particularly vulnerable to the lunar effect. Similarly, increased counseling could be made available to vulnerable patients at critical times of the month." 

I think that there is something to these claims because personally, I can nave trouble sleeping when the moon is full. I hope people will be aware that a full moon can exacerbate certain states of mind and prepare for it.  Having said that- Look up at the sky, enjoy the moon, and have a lovely day!