Non-drug Approaches

In this week’s NY Times Modern Love blog Hannah Louise Poston tells the story of living with her severely depressed boyfriend, Joe, and how her decision to buy a kitten improved their relationship. “The next morning when we woke up, the first words out of Joe’s mouth were, ‘Where’s the kitten?’ And the kitten’s first act, when she heard his voice, was to ice-pick her way up the quilt and jump on his face. That same summer, Joe mustered the energy to make major changes in his life…”

I'd like to share some personal thoughts on the nature of the Hearing Voices group method, and the insights that this kind of support generates. Through these groups, a tradition of mutual healing is being created that honors subjective experiences, and sharing our stories with each other in this way propels this exciting movement forward.

“When people with early-stage symptoms took omega-3 supplements for three months, they had much lower rates of progression than those who did not,” according to research out of Australia covered in this month’s issue of the New Scientist.

Julia Belluz at Vox interviews Russ Poldrack, the director of the Center for Reproducible Neuroscience, on recent efforts to “clean up the house of...

Seniors are twice as likely to receive psychotropic prescriptions than younger adults but are much less likely to receive mental health care from psychiatrists or to receive psychotherapy, according to a recent study published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society. "Our findings suggest that psychotropic medication use is widespread among older adults in outpatient care, at a far higher rate than among younger patients," the study’s lead author Dr. Maust said in a press release. “In many cases, especially for milder depression and anxiety, the safer treatment for older adults who are already taking multiple medications for other conditions might be more therapy-oriented, but very few older adults receive this sort of care."

The majority of children, adolescents and young adults prescribed antipsychotic medications have not been diagnosed with a mental disorder, according to a recent study published in JAMA Psychiatry.

-A "fact checker" investigates a statement by an Australian politician describing the government's supportive employment initiative as a "prescription" for young people struggling with mental health problems.

-On the Oxford University Press blog, a professor of psychiatry and psychology weighs in on recent studies using therapy as a response to problematic psychosis symptoms.

-BPS Research Digest reviews some of the key research into the role of mindfulness meditation in therapeutic contexts, looking at both the apparent positives and possible negatives.

An independent health research organization created to advise the Quebec government on best-evidence guidelines has called for psychotherapy to become the "front-line treatment choice in the mental-health system."

About a year ago, my partner Ron Coleman said to me "let's have a recovery camp." I said "what’s one of those?" and he said "I'm not sure, but let's invent it." And so, from June 7^th to 12^th 2015, we created a community of recovery for a week. The next step is to create communities of recovery around the world — not just as temporary camps, but long-lasting oases within our communities.

-"Mindfulness has been separated from its roots, stripped of its ethical and spiritual connotations, and sold to us as a therapeutic tool."

-A residential facility for people experiencing psychological crises who do not want to take medications has launched in Burlington, Vermont.

-Mental "imagery" plays a role in psychological suffering prompted by vivid memories, and also in healing modalities such as creative visualization.

-Some nursing homes are changing their approaches since the US federal government began more closely regulating the use of antipsychotic medications in elderly patients with dementia.

-Therapist and herbalist Jon Keyes discusses approaches to helping people in psychological distress that have been practiced in other cultures.

-London, England's Maytree Suicide Respite Centre runs with a few paid staff and nearly a hundred volunteers.

-An article in Canada's Globe and Mail makes the case for expanding public funding of mental health services beyond psychiatrists.

-An accessible explanation of what fMRI brain scan devices actually measure.

-Neuroskeptic critiques the premise of a journal article that declared that "neuroscientists who research mental health problems ought to listen to the views of people who have experienced those conditions."

-Stateline investigates new respite centers in New York City, where people in psychological crises can find an alternative to checking into a hospital.

-A Colorado rancher was initially diagnosed with bipolar disorder after a serious head injury, but actually had developed emotional blunting, synesthesia and high-level math skills.

-Duncan Double critically evaluates a recent article by National Institute of Mental Health Director Thomas Insel about a "tectonic shift" towards "precision" psychiatry.

-Sharon Packer describes the therapeutic impacts of getting a patient to play multiple roles, presenting evidence to prove and disprove beliefs about himself and his experiences.

-Nature News reports on the first wave of findings in the "crowd-sourced" effort to reproduce 100 of the most important studies in psychology.