“Breaking the Silence: How I Conquered Selective Mutism”
-Danica Cotov discusses her many and varied efforts to deal with selective mutism throughout her childhood and teen years.
What Do the OCTET Outpatient Committal Trials Really Tell Us?
-Two commentaries in The Lancet Psychiatry debate what the OCTET trials have shown about community treatment orders.
Lancet History of “Crank” Surgeries for Mental Diseases Includes Noteworthy Omission
-A history of "crank" psychosurgeries in The Lancet Psychiatry
Critics Attack Headline-making Marijuana-Psychosis Study
-James Coyne and others criticize a UK study for deliberately trying to be politically manipulative.
Negative Studies about Antidepressants (Still) Less Likely to Be Published
-Pharmaceutical companies and psychiatric researchers still "aren't telling you the whole truth" about treating anxiety.
Brain Injuries Change Lives — Some Find New Pathways, Some Don’t
-Two stories explore devastation and hope in response to brain injuries.
Veterans’ Mental “Wounds” Treated Differently in Courts
-An Australian legal researcher discusses the different ways in which courts have handled cases involving war veterans.
No Philosophy of Neuroscience?
-Neuroskeptic wonders why neuroscience has apparently never had any "big ideas" or schools of thought.
Relaxation Techniques for Depression and Anxiety in the Elderly
-Time magazine looks at the effects of a number of relaxation techniques on depression and anxiety in elderly people.
The Test Result that Gets You Locked Up Indefinitely
-People who've been arrested for sexual offences can end up indefinitely incarcerated in a psychiatric hospital, depending on their answers to a ten-question form.
The Ethical Challenges of Early Intervention in Psychosis
-Columbia University psychiatrist Paul Applebaum reviews the challenges of intervening early in psychosis before symptoms emerge, and of doing so in an ethically responsible manner.
Artistic Depictions of Madness Through History
-A historical article by MIA Blogger Andrew Scull in The Paris Review includes early artistic depictions of madness.
Neurobabble Proves to be Highly Persuasive
-Adding irrelevant information about neuroscience made psychological theories seem much more convincing to psychology students.
Can Bloggers Save Science?
-Mind the Brain's James Coyne talks about why so many news stories about health and psychology studies are so bad.
How Can We Build a Better Evidence Base for Treating Psychosis with Therapy?
-A commentary suggests that the evidence to support the use of cognitive behavioral therapy for psychosis is tenuous, in part because CBT itself is so variable.
Study Shows Depression to Blame for Violent Crime — Not Exactly…
-Psychologist Laurence Palfreyman critically reviews a recent study that made global headlines, purporting to have found that depression made people three times as likely to commit violent crimes.
The Mad Music of Seeing Sounds and Hearing Light
-Paintings by an artist who has synesthesia, and a study that found no brain-based evidence to support it being a "disorder."
More Discussion of Antidepressant Withdrawal Effects
-Forensic psychiatrist Andrew Shepherd reviews a recent study on withdrawal effects from coming off antidepressant drugs.
Do Magical Cats Really Save Lives?
-Alan Cassels reviews news stories that fawn over the "magical" positive (and negative) psychological and physical health benefits of having cats as pets.
“Learning to Be with Ourselves”
-Elisabeth Svanholmer explores the meaning and nature of "hearing, seeing and sensing things that others don’t."
Like A Useless Drug Calling Psychotherapy Ineffective
-Does prominent Canadian child psychiatrist Stanley Kutcher have different standards for evidence depending on whether he's evaluating psychotherapy or psychotropics?
“What Can Patients Do In The Face Of Physician Conflict Of Interest?”
-Surgeon James Rickert discusses financial conflicts of interest which affect physician decisions, and how patients can protect themselves.
Brain Drugs and Corporate Climbers
-There's rising use of "cognitive enhancement" and energy-increasing psychiatric drugs among stressed workers and ambitious executives.
Alaskan Indigenous Peoples Experiencing High Rates of Trauma
-Two reports found Alaskans of aboriginal descent experiencing very high rates of many different types of trauma.
Re-telling Our Stories: Liberation or Re-oppression?
-When we "re-narrate" our own stories and identities, it may be an opportunity for either liberation or re-oppression.
