New Traction for Art Therapy as a Treatment for Depression
New study investigates the acceptability of a phenomenologically informed, manual-based art therapy for clients diagnosed with moderate to severe depression.
Outcome Reporting Bias in Antipsychotic Medication Trials
A new study in the journal Translational Psychiatry, an influential journal in biological psychiatry published by Nature, challenges the state of the research on antipsychotic drugs.
Duration of Untreated Psychosis Revisited: Response to the Goff Paper
Based on the studies cited, it seems hard to support the assertion that “early initiation of antipsychotics may improve long-term course of the illness.” This raises an urgent question about initial treatment. Doesn’t it make sense to try to capture all of those individuals who might get through a psychosis without drugs?
Agency and Activism as Protective Factors for Children in the Gaza Strip
Researchers recommend a ‘politically-informed focus', including activism, when assessing children and designing interventions in areas of chronic political violence.
More Bad News About Smartphones – When Will We Heed the Warnings?
We might expect that there would be a reasonable response to an overwhelming body of evidence that our tech usage patterns must be altered or consequences will only become more dismal. Yet as we are learning, trends seem to be running contrary to what the advice begs us to consider.
Dr. Jay Joseph: Why Schizophrenia Genetic Research is Running on Empty
Dr Jay Joseph discusses the evidence that psychiatry puts forward in support of the claim that mental disorders have an important genetic basis and the reasons why psychiatry is still searching after many decades of failed attempts.
Why Disease and Illness Are Concepts of the Body
If you loosen the association between the concepts of illness and disease and the body, the words cease to have any discriminative power. They are no longer able to pick out a particular category of unwanted situations and become synonymous with generic terms like ‘problem’ or ‘difficulty’. They become meaningless.
Pharmaceutical Industry Gifts Linked to Costlier Prescribing Practices
New study finds that pharmaceutical industry gifts to medical providers in Washington D.C. are associated with higher cost, higher volume prescribing behavior.
Crazy or Wise? Learning From Those Who Have Transcended Psychological Crisis
The documentary CRAZYWISE, released earlier this year, challenges Western ideas of human suffering by considering the concept that extreme states can be processes of transformation and that other cultures might have something to teach us.
Treatment of Insomnia Reduces Paranoia and Hallucinations
Treating insomnia using online cognitive-behavioral therapy appears to improve a variety of mental health concerns.
Mental Illness Vs. “Bad” Behavior
Allen Frances has claimed that "It's a great mistake to confuse bad behavior with mental illness." Yet two of the so-called mental illnesses (conduct disorder and antisocial personality disorder) consist essentially of "bad" behavior, while in at least six others, "bad" behavior is an integral part of the problem.
The Power of Placebo is Strengthened by Having a Warm and Competent Practitioner
The effect of individual expectations on treatment outcomes is found to be influenced by physician attributes.
SSRI Ineffective at Treating Depression in Individuals with Chronic Kidney Disease
Dr. Madhukar Trivedi and colleagues find that the SSRI sertraline does not reduce depressive symptoms any more than placebo in people with Chronic Kidney Disease.
Psychiatry’s Greatest Harm: Its Lies Have Poisoned Our Entire Culture
Psychiatry’s harms extend far beyond those people it ‘treats’ — they are undermining our society’s entire foundation. In just thirty years in America, the medical model's widespread acceptance has largely undone the huge adaptive potential that millions of years of brain evolution had provided.
Dr. David Healy: Seeking a Cure for Protracted, Medication-Related Sexual Dysfunction
An interview with Dr. David Healy, internationally respected psychiatrist, psychopharmacologist, scientist, and author, discussing Post SSRI Sexual Dysfunction (PSSD) and his innovative approach to finding a cure.
Bias and Deception in Behavioral Research
Contrary to popular belief, science is not immune to the corrupting influences of the society it operates in. When false results produced by p-hacked research have social, scientific, and political importance, and affect or harm the lives of millions of people while entire fields look on, it constitutes a scientific scandal.
Western ‘Depression’ is Not Universal
Derek Summerfield, consultant psychiatrist at South London and Maudsley National Health Service Foundation Trust, challenges the assumption that Western depression is a universal condition.
A Brave New World – Somatic Psychiatry in the Spotlight
Historically, psychiatric diagnoses were never intended to signify literal brain diseases. They used to be a shorthand and a guide to point to the psychological issues that presented. This is how it still should be today. The way diagnosis is now used is a travesty.
Mirror, Mirror: Study Challenges Notion of a Narcissism Epidemic Among Youth
One study indicates that pointed fingers incriminating youth for narcissism may be pointed in the wrong direction.
Rigorous Study Finds Antidepressants Worsen Long-Term Outcomes
A new study conducted by Jeffrey Vittengl at Truman University has found that taking antidepressant medications resulted in more severe depression symptoms after nine years.
Dualism and the Mind-Body ‘Problem’
The proposal that there are differences in the way we understand the human body and human activity seems to make people particularly uneasy. It is often misunderstood as illustrating the ‘mind-body problem,’ and held up as an example of the great crime of ‘dualism.’
Investigation Reveals Alarming ECT Practices in England
Audit of ECT usage, demographics, and adherence to guidelines and legislation raises concern over its continued use.
Mortality of People Using Mental Health Services and Medications
153,451 deaths were registered in Australia in the period 10 August 2011 to 27 September 2012. 75,858 of these deaths were registered for persons who had accessed mental health-related treatments. These deaths accounted for 49.4% of all deaths in this period.
Dr. Gordon Warme: The Relationship Between Culture and Psychiatric ‘Disorders’
This week we interview Dr Gordon Warme on the dominance of biological psychiatry and the relationship between culture and psychiatric ‘disorders’.
The State of Animal Psychiatric Research
Since animal research is the foundation for moving on to clinical trials despite its poor quality, it is likely that this leads to many superfluous trials in humans based on false hopes. This leaves a risk of adverse events for the participants in the trials, and subsequently the patients.
