A safe place to talk openly about mental health & illness
I got thinking about this after watching an interview with Steven Pinker, one of my academic crushes, and then another interview with Jordan Peterson. Both referred to biological differences between men and women, although in different ways, and I wanted to do a post exploring my own take on sex and gender differences, and the… Continue reading Separating Out Sex/Gender, Biology and Social Construct
Have you ever wondered why antidepressant side effects seem to be worse at the beginning, or why it takes so long for them to actually start doing what you expect of them? There is actually some rhyme and reason for it, so let's talk about it. Let's talk serotonin People with depression don't have enough… Continue reading Antidepressant Side Effects & Delayed Therapeutic Effect
In this series, I dig a little deeper into the meaning of psychology-related terms. This week's term is executive functioning. The idea for this post came from Meg of Where Good Advice Happens. Executive functioning refers to higher-level cognitive processes related to organization and regulation. It's the C-suite of your brain, or kind of like… Continue reading What Is… Executive Functioning
Rewire Your OCD Brain by Catherine M. Pittman and William H. Youngs explains how your brain works and how you can take advantage of that to manage OCD. The book focuses on the two main areas in the brain that are relevant to OCD, the cortex and amygdala. It explains the role of each, how… Continue reading Book Review: Rewire Your OCD Brain
We all have trillions of microbes living in our intestines. This microbiome, which develops in infancy, plays a major role in our digestion, but there's growing evidence that it affects more than just our digestive system. Role of the microbiome This collection of critters weighs about 2 kg and includes bacteria, fungi, and viruses. There… Continue reading Does the Gut Microbiome Affect Mental Health?
Remember by Lisa Genova is a non-fiction book that explores how we do, and don't, remember. Genova is a neuroscientist who's also the author of five fiction books, all of which I've read. They feature characters with neurological conditions like Alzheimer's (Still Alice) and Huntingdon's (Inside the O'Briens). The book begins by describing how memories… Continue reading Book Review: Remember
In this series, I dig a little deeper into the meaning of psychology-related terms. This week's term is polyvagal theory. Polyvagal theory was developed by Dr. Stephen Porges in 1994 to describe how the nervous system relates to the environment. The vagus nerve The name polyvagal theory comes from the multiple circuits that involve the… Continue reading What Is… Polyvagal Theory
In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts by Dr. Gabor Maté offers powerful insights into the vulnerable, human side of addiction. It draws on his encounters with patients while working as a staff physician at the Portland Hotel, an ultra-low barrier supported housing building in Vancouver's downtown eastside, Canada's poorest postal code. Ultra-low barrier housing like… Continue reading Book Review: In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts
In this series, I dig a little deeper into the meaning of psychology-related terms. This week we're going to look at the psychology of cuteness. Whether your preference is human babies or babies of the animal variety, they're cute. Even if the associated adults are rather unattractive, the babies just tug at the heartstrings. And… Continue reading What Is… the Psychology of Cuteness
In this series, I dig a little deeper into the meaning of psychology-related terms. This week we're taking a bit of a detour to look at neuroplasticity. Neuroplasticity is the brain's ability to make changes to itself in response to conditions and experiences, including forming new neuronal connections. This ability is maintained in adulthood, although it's… Continue reading What Is… Neuroplasticity