Around The Web

-Does prominent Canadian child psychiatrist Stanley Kutcher have different standards for evidence depending on whether he's evaluating psychotherapy or psychotropics?

-Surgeon James Rickert discusses financial conflicts of interest which affect physician decisions, and how patients can protect themselves.

-There's rising use of "cognitive enhancement" and energy-increasing psychiatric drugs among stressed workers and ambitious executives.

-Two reports found Alaskans of aboriginal descent experiencing very high rates of many different types of trauma.

-When we "re-narrate" our own stories and identities, it may be an opportunity for either liberation or re-oppression.

-Georgetown University in Washington, DC, will host the next "Pharmed Out" conference on June 11-12, 2015.

-Johanna Ryan writes about her efforts to avoid following psychiatrists' pressures to take antipsychotics for her depression.

-Elif Batuman reviews the science and recounts his experiences with transcranial direct-current stimulation in The New Yorker.

-Amy Johnson writes about how neuroscientific perspectives on her psychological struggles have helped her feel more agency in her growth as a person.

-BBC psychologist Claudia Hammond discusses topics such as what psychology can tell us about how we decide to vote and portrayals of mental health in comedy.

-The Council for Evidence-based Psychiatry reports that antidepressant use in the UK has increased 7.5% since 2013, and over 500% since 1992.

-A co-founder of Retraction Watch suggests editors of scientific and medical journals could learn some things from Rolling Stone about correcting errors.

-The Atlantic reports on the growth of "autism-friendly" movie theaters, sports arenas and now live theaters.

-MIA Bloggers Jonathan Leo and Jeffrey Lacasse review the New York Times' history of reporting on ADHD and the ensuing epidemic of ADHD.

-Law student Renwei Chung discusses the current Supreme Court case looking at police shootings of people with disabilities.

-Psychiatry Advisor reviews the scientific evidence about using video games and virtual reality tools in psychiatric treatment.

-University College London researchers review the primary physiological mechanisms by which gut microbes can influence the human brain.

-Counselor Tori Rodriguez discusses how biofeedback works, and what the research has shown about its efficacy.

-A selection of recent commentaries from around the web about the Germanwings plane crash...

-Eamon Armstrong describes the Zendo Project, and his own experience providing support for people taking psychedelic drugs.

-Two neuroscientists call for "immediate action" to better understand the risks of using drugs like Ritalin and Provigil to "enhance" cognitive functions.

-Psychiatrist Allen Frances discusses his mixed feelings about many commonly used but misleading psychiatric terms.

-"I knew my psychiatric practice was forever changed the day a patient arrived with a manila folder stuffed with printouts and announced that it contained the contents of a Google search that he had done on me."

-Two Harvard University psychologists discuss how to be a more "mindful" clinician.

-Ashley Zlatopolsky writes about how receiving a benzodiazepine for anxiety led to a severe, problematic addiction.