Publications on Mental Health Topics

Intellectual Disability and Higher Education, by Michael Gill, Ph.D. , Psychology Today, Oct 21 2015.

“Those involved in higher education can trace how “inclusion” is deployed on college campuses, and whether students are integrated into all aspects of campus. In addition, I welcome ideas about the ways in which higher education can actively challenge assumptions of intellect that persistently exclude those labeled with intellectual and developmental disabilities. ”

Police say they want to aid, not arrest, addicts, by Felice J. Freyer, Boston Globe, Oct 13 2015.

“"'There has been a growing movement for many years in policing to recognize drug addiction as a health problem rather than a criminal problem,' said Jim Bueermann, president of the Police Foundation, a national nonprofit that promotes innovation in policing. Helping people into treatment, he said, becomes a means of crime prevention." ”

Anorexia May Be Habit, Not Willpower, Study Finds, by Erica Goode, New York Times, Oct 12 2015.

“Women who suffer from anorexia are often thought of as having an extraordinary degree of self-control, even if that discipline is used self-destructively. But a new study suggests that the extreme dieting characteristic of anorexia may instead be well-entrenched habit — behavior governed by brain processes that, once set in motion, are inflexible and slow to change. ”

Therapy program may improve function for depressed kids, by Kathryn Doyle, Reuters , Oct 5 2015.

“A cognitive-behavioral prevention program to prevent depressive symptoms among at-risk youth may still be effective years later, according to a new study. ”

The Mothers Who Can't Escape the Trauma of Childbirth, by Ilana E. Strauss, The Atlantic , Oct 2 2015.

“Many people, including doctors, confuse postpartum PTSD with postpartum depression, even though the two disorders are quite different: Mothers with postpartum depression generally don’t suffer from the intrusive memories and flashbacks that plague PTSD sufferers. Instead, they most commonly deal with things like sadness, trouble concentrating, difficulty finding joy in activities they once enjoyed, and difficulty bonding with their infants. Postpartum depression is also unique to new mothers, but any traumatic experience can bring on PTSD. Postpartum PTSD sufferers experience typical PTSD symptoms like hyper-vigilance, intrusive memories, flashbacks, severe emotional distress, irritability, trouble sleeping, and nightmares, explains Anastasia Pollock, a therapist who specializes in treating trauma. Mothers who suffer from PTSD often end up structuring their lives around their disorder, doing everything they can to avoid triggers that remind them of their trauma. ”

Caring for loved one with Alzheimer’s may be most stressful for spouse, by Lisa Rapaport, Reuters , Oct 2 2015.

“Caring for a loved one with Alzheimer’s disease isn’t easy under the best of circumstances, but it may be much more stressful for spouses and people who suffer from depression, a Finnish study suggests. Researchers followed 236 family caregivers of Alzheimer’s patients for three years after the diagnosis. Caregiving appeared to be much more stressful for people who were married to the patients or who suffered from depression when the study began. ”

Drugs and Talk Therapy Affect the Brain in Different Ways, by Christian Jarrett, New York Magazine , Sep 30 2015.

“This raises an interesting question: Are the brain changes induced by psychotherapy the same or different from those induced by antidepressant medication? A new meta-analysis (the kind of research that looks at results across many previous studies) published recently in Brain Imaging and Behavior looks at this very question in relation to major depression. The researchers, based at several institutions in Italy, say their results suggest psychotherapy and drugs affect the brain in different but complementary ways. ”

Parents Can Learn How To Prevent Anxiety In Their Children, by Lynne Shallcross, NPR , Sep 25 2015.

“Children of anxious parents are more at risk of developing an anxiety disorder. But there's welcome news for those anxious parents: that trajectory toward anxiety isn't set in stone. Therapy and a change in parenting styles might be able to prevent kids from developing anxiety disorders, according to research published in The American Journal of Psychiatry Friday. ”

Feeling anxious? Check your orbitofrontal cortex, cultivate your optimism, by Diana Yates, ScienceDaily , Sep 22 2015.

“A new study links anxiety, a brain structure called the orbitofrontal cortex, and optimism, finding that healthy adults who have larger OFCs tend to be more optimistic and less anxious. The new analysis, reported in the journal Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience, offers the first evidence that optimism plays a mediating role in the relationship between the size of the OFC and anxiety. ”

Survey: 1 in 4 college women reports unwanted sexual contact, by The Associated Press, Aljazeera America , Sep 21 2015.

“Nearly a quarter of undergraduate women surveyed at more than two dozen universities say they experienced unwanted sexual contact sometime during college, according to a report released Monday. The results of the Association of American Universities Campus Climate Survey come at a time of heightened scrutiny of the nation's colleges and universities and what they are doing to combat rape. Just last week, Vice President Joe Biden visited Ohio State University to highlight several new initiatives, including mandatory sexual violence awareness training for freshmen beginning next year. ”

Watchful parents help early-maturing girls avoid alcohol abuse, by Anne Harding, Reuters, Sep 21 2015.

“Girls who hit puberty early are at sharply higher risk of abusing alcohol as teens if their parents don't keep tabs on them, new research shows. 'Early-maturing girls whose parents gave them free rein at age 13 showed a dramatic increase in alcohol abuse over the next four years compared to early-maturing peers who were supervised more closely', Dr. Brett Laursen of Florida Atlantic University in Fort Lauderdale and colleagues found. ”

In 'hidden epidemic,' senior citizens getting hooked on painkillers, by Laila Al-Arian, Aljazeera America, Aug 30 2015.

“More than 16,000 Americans die each year after overdosing on opioid painkillers, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention-a number that exceeds those who die from cocaine and heroin overdoses combined. While the image of the typical opioid addict is still that of a young or middle-aged drug abuser, that perception is slowly changing. When you look at the groups that have had the greatest increase in problems associated with prescription opioids-for example, visits to hospital emergency rooms because of opioid misuse-it’s Americans over 65,aid Andrew Kolodny, the executive director of Physicians for Responsible Opioid Prescribing. ”

Suicide-risk behaviour patterns identified - study, by BBC, BBC , Aug 30 2015.

“Depressed people who display "risky behaviour", agitation and impulsivity are at least 50% more likely to attempt suicide, a study has found. Research by the European College of Neuropsychopharmacology (ECNP) concluded that the behaviour patterns "precede many suicide attempts". The study said effective prevention measures were "urgently needed". ”

Collateral damage: Harsh sex offender laws may put whole families at risk, by Steven Yoder, Aljazeera America , Aug 27 2015.

“In 1996, Congress passed Megan’s Law, which allowed states to publicize the names of those convicted of sex offenses. A wave of federal and state laws followed that created online sex offender registries, broadened who is listed and restricted where registrants can live. But today there’s a growing body of research and court opinions questioning those laws’ effectiveness and constitutionality. No studies have looked at what proportion of the country’s nearly 850,000 people on state registries are providing for families of their own. Activists say, however, that thousands of female partners and children are being hurt by laws that aim to protect kids. ”

Spousal abuse: The 'silent illness' driving women into homelessness, by Lisa De Bode, Aljazeera America, Aug 14 2015.

“Domestic violence is the leading cause of homelessness for women, according to John Lozier, the executive director at the National Health Care for the Homeless Council (NHCHC).That link is nothing new. A study of 220 homeless families in sheltered accommodation that was published in The American Journal of Public Health in 1997 found that two-thirds of mothers have a history of domestic violence. Yet medical practitioners don’t routinely screen for the abuse and aren’t trained to act on the symptoms, missing opportunities to rehabilitate women and help them stave off homelessness. ”