“As Opioid Deaths Reach Record High, Drug Industry Resists Efforts to Rein in Prescriptions”
“In 2014, the number of people who died from drug overdoses in the United States reached 47,055 — an all-time high, according to a disturbing report published Friday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC),” but “the effort to get physicians to curb their prescribing of these drugs may be faltering amid stiff resistance from drugmakers, industry-funded groups and, now, even other public health officials.”
Writing Reduces Depression in Seniors
A study of 45 participants in the "Share Your Life Story" writing program in four senior residences in New York City found that depression...
“Woman Can Sue Study Sponsor for Suicide Try”
A woman in Texas attempted suicide while in the active group of a clinical trial for smoking-cassation drugs Chantix and Zyban, both known to...
Schizophrenia-Immune System “Link” Opens the Door to Research
"In order to expose people to dangerous treatments - and immunosuppresive drugs do carry risks - you need serious evidence to suggest those drugs...
Understanding Madness as Revolution, Then Working Toward Peace
While some will frame Eleanor Longden’s story, told in her awesome TED video (which has now been viewed about 1/2 million times!), as the triumph of an individual struggling against “mental illness,” I believe the story might better be seen as a refutation of the whole “illness of the mind” metaphor, and as an indication of a desperate need for a new paradigm.
University of Minnesota Ends Recruiting of Research Subjects on Involuntarily Holds
The University of Minnesota announced a change to its research ethics policies this month after coming under criticism “following the recruitment of a schizophrenia...
A Memoir of Escape From Psychiatric Treatment
Attorney Lynn Garson memoir of escape from psychiatric drug treatment, "Southern Vapors", is the Atlanta Journal-Constitution's highlighted book of the month. "The idea that...
Ireland to Decriminalise Heroin, Cocaine and Cannabis
The UK Independent reports that Ireland is moving toward a policy of decriminalizing small amount of drugs like heroin, cocaine, and cannabis in what amounts to a “radical cultural shift.” While it would remain a crime to profit from the sale of these substances, users will have specially designated areas for safe use. The chief of Ireland’s National Drugs Strategy told the paper: “I am firmly of the view that there needs to be a cultural shift in how we regard substance misuse if we are to break this cycle and make a serious attempt to tackle drug and alcohol addiction.”
Nursing Homes Shift Tactics on Dementia
As part of a series on the inappropriate use of antipsychotics in nursing homes, the Boston Globe explores alternative approaches, such as llama therapy,...
Oxytocin – “The Love Hormone” – Improves Cognition in Schizophrenia
Oxytocin, which has "shown promise as a novel antipsychotic in multiple clinical trials," improved cognition in a small sample (n=15) of people with schizophrenia...
Spontaneous Improvement in Depression, With and Without Placebo
Researchers at Columbia University and Queens College reviewed 10 trials of antidepressants that used wait-listed controls in order to determine the contribution of spontaneous...
Sunday Morning Channel: “Has Psychiatry Silenced God?”
-The Edinburgh International Book Festival hosted a discussion exploring religious beliefs, creative inspiration, and whether hearing "the voice of God" should be regarded as a symptom of mental illness.
Ongoing Brain Changes With Antipsychotic Treatment
Nancy Andreasen's 2003 study finding ongoing brain changes in persons with schizophrenia diagnoses, despite antipsychotic drug treatment.
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Fewer Antipsychotics, More Nurses Will Improve Care and Save Money in Nursing Homes
The Center for Medicare Advocacy advised yesterday that nursing facilities could realize huge savings by eliminating "inappropriate and life-threatening" antipsychotic drugs. The statement added...
It Remains Unclear How Head Blows Affect Behavior Over the Long Term
It's not clear how repeated injuries to the head that lead to neurodegeneration actually affect people's behaviors, argue University of Buffalo researchers in The...
Insanity on Trial
The trial of Anders Breivik, who confessed to killing 77 people last summer in Norway, has become a test of the concept of insanity...
Explorations in “Post-Traumatic Growth”
US News interviews people who've been touched by tragedies, and then found ways to "embrace pain" and experience revelations about their lives followed...
“Why Does Psychiatry So Often Get a Free Pass on Standards of Evidence?”
Rob Wipond takes HealthNewsReview.org to task for its coverage of a Philadelphia Inquirer article about a medical device designed for people experiencing panic. He writes that “hyperbolic psychiatric and psychological claims frequently get free passes from otherwise thoughtful medical critics.”
“Suicide, Mental Illness Risks Increase During Recessions”
The latest economic recession led to a spike in diagnoses for mental illnesses, suicide attempts, and suicide, according to report out of the University...
Recovery: Personal, Achievable, and Multidimensional
Interviews with 30 individuals three to five years after initial treatment for a first-episode psychosis found that a majority considered themselves to be recovered,...
“Is the World More Depressed?”
Tanya Luhrmann writes in the NY Times that, although diagnosis and pathologization of human experience has increased, "there is reason to believe that mental...
Exercise, Depression, and Bias
Scientific American reviews the effect of exercise on depression, the effect of encouragement to exercise on exercising, the effect of bias on the consumption of...
“Dr. Lieberman and ’60 Minutes’”
Phil Hickey of Behaviorism and Mental Health picks apart 60 Minutes' segment interviewing E. Fuller Torrey (Untreated mental illness an imminent danger?), and APA...
Effort to Curb Antipsychotics for Dementia Announced
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services is launching an initiative to curb the use of antipsychotic medications for nursing home residents with dementia....
Mental Illness Mortality is Climbing
Mortality rates in schizophrenia and bipolar patients in the year after hospitalization were about double the national average and rising, according to this study...
