Our online activity generates a wealth of data that may help with predicting and preventing mental health challenges before they unravel. This summer, Google rolled out a depression assessment tool, the PHQ-9, to US-based mobile users. The PHQ-9 [you can read a study on it here] is a standardized set of questions that’s commonly used […]
The US Food and Drug Administration recently asked Endo Pharmaceuticals to take their “uncrushable” opioid painkiller, Opana ER, off the market because of public health concerns about the potential for abuse. “FDA requests removal of Opana ER for risks related to abuse” Not only is this the first time the FDA has recalled a drug […]
As difficult as it may be, try to set aside the Trumpian focus here for a moment, and let’s just talk about the DSM diagnostics–the criteria set by the American Psychiatric Association that are used widely in many parts of the world to diagnose mental illnesses. What you see there in Dr. Frances’ tweets are […]
Forest Grove is a city of around 22,000 in the US state of Oregon and the police log from the last couple days of June, 2016, and the start of July, illustrates why training on mental health skills and services is so important for police officers: because they’re essentially dealing with mental health issues, from delusional episodes to […]
Google is rolling out new search tools aimed at your medical symptom queries. Search results will return a list of related conditions and, for some symptoms, a description along with self-treatment options and info to help you decide when it’s time to see a doctor (other than Dr. Google). They’ve also been working with Harvard Medical […]
Scientists have long puzzled over why some species of birds, with their teeny tiny bird brains, are able to solve complex problems, create tools, recognize their own reflection, find their way home without GPS, form lasting monogamous partnerships, sing, understand causal relationships, and make long-term decisions about resources–all things that you, with your grotesquely oversized adult primate brain, […]
When I was doing Exposure & Response Prevention (ERP) therapy for OCD, it was very behavior-focused. It was all about progressively cutting out compulsions, starting from the easiest and working up to the most difficult. Although ERP is a form of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), it’s generally heavier on the B than the C. But […]
A recent study in the Canadian province of Quebec, surveying the sexual fantasies and behaviors of 1040 people, found that around 45% had fantasized about doing things the DSM 5 labels as atypical or paraphilic, and about 33% had acted on those fantasies. You can check out the study, published in the Journal of Sex […]