Researchers Propose a New Understanding of Dopamine's Role in Learning and Memory
Dopamine is released in the brain in response to drugs of abuse, and so is commonly thought of as the “pleasure chemical.” However, it also plays a role in a number of mental disorders, and these researchers recognized that it plays a much more complex role in the brain than just being a pleasure chemical. If you’re interested in learning a little more about what they discovered you can find it here. Click here to access the full article.
We might soon be getting fewer robocalls
See article for details. I think I’ll believe it when it happens. Click here to access the full article.
How can a Christian not believe in the existence of the Holy Spirit?
Two recent surveys have found that a majority of people who identify themselves as Christians do not believe in the Holy Spirit. This article discusses that issue. So if you are counseling with someone who identifies themselves as a Christian, don’t assume that they believe in the same way you do. Click here to access the full article.
Is bad indoor air dulling your brain?
Although this article was published in India, it actually looked at indoor air in offices in six countries, including the U.S., and found that poor air quality was associated with decreases in cognitive functioning. If you are experiencing poor air quality at home or at work, there are air cleaners that can be purchased to improve the air you’re breathing. Click here to access the full article.
How to Make Friends: A Guide for Kids with ADHD (and Their Parents, Too)
Children with ADHD often have more difficulty than the average child making and keeping friendships. Here is a list of some practical things that parents can do to help their children get along better with their peers. Click here to access the full article.
Top 3 reasons some believers are vaccine resistant
This is a thoughtful message by a pastor who is in touch with many pastors and laypeople across the country. I think his article is worth reading. Click here to access the full article.
ADHD: A Complex Disorder of the Brain’s Self-Management System
This is a very comprehensive article by a psychiatrist who specializes in treating people with ADHD. If you are a counselor who is already working with clients with ADHD, or if you have not been working with ADHD clients but would like to consider it, this article would be worthwhile reading. Click here to access the full article.
A ‘Pacemaker for the Brain’: No Treatment Helped Her Depression — Until This
The subject of this article experienced severe depression that didn’t respond to a 20 different antidepressants, ECT, TMS, and several months in a day treatment program at a hospital. She became so suicidal that she had to move back home and had to quit her job. She is the first person to be involved in a very personalized type of brain investigation, where over several days, scientists watched her brain scans to identify those brain impulses that were leading to her depression. They then devised a type of deep brain stimulation that can interfere with those impulses. (This is similar to a treatment for some people who have some types of chronic pain. A device can be placed near your spinal cord that recognizes when pain sensations are going to your brain, and then sends signals that interrupt those pain sensations.) The difference is that this “pacemaker” interrupts signals causing depression rather than signals causing pain.
The treatment has been so effective that she is now living on her own and taking classes. The treatment is too expensive to be used unless less expensive treatments have not been effective, but it is one more treatment that may become available for severe, intractable depression in the future. Click here to access the full article.
The Devastating Ways Depression and Anxiety Impact the Body
Some people live with chronic depression or anxiety without getting it treated through counseling or medication, but research has shown that untreated anxiety or depression can cause a number of other problems. This article discusses some of those, and might be useful if someone is ambivalent about whether to get treatment. Click here to access the full article.
Why Exercise Is More Important Than Weight Loss for a Longer Life
People who are overweight sometimes take up exercising to lose some of those extra pounds, and often become discouraged because, in many cases, exercise does not cause them to lose much weight, and in some cases, increases their appetite and they gain a little weight.
If you or your client become discouraged when hearing this, do not give up exercising. Multiple meta-analyses have shown is that increasing your fitness, even though you do not lose those extra pounds, produces more health benefits and increases longevity more than the normal-weight person who is out of shape. This article discusses that research, which is quite solid. Click here to access the full article.
Interesting Quote from a book I was reading this week: “It is not true that people stop pursuing dreams because they grow old, they grow old because they stop pursuing dreams.” —GABRIEL GARCÍA MÁRQUEZ
Canadian tribunal rules that using ‘wrong’ pronouns violates human rights, awards $30K to trans-identified woman
In case you think some in the U.S. have lost their minds, it could be worse—we could be living in Canada, where a waitress who insisted that the restaurant where she worked use non-binary pronouns, was fired, and then was awarded $30,000.00 for violating her human rights. I think the last two paragraphs in the article make a very valid point. Click here to access the full article.
Parent Alert! Sexual Content on Roblox Plus 3 Safety Tips
Reportedly half of 16-year-olds in the U.S. have used a game called Roblox, probably many without their parents knowing it. This article contains several cautions and three practical tips on some safety procedures they can use if their children do use the software. Click here to access the full article.
Trans doctor warns against puberty blockers: Medical community ‘zigged’ too far Left
This is a summary of an interview between Abigail Shrier (author of Irreversible Damage) and a medical doctor and psychologist who are both “trans-identified” but are saying that we are rushing to give children puberty blockers too quickly. The medical doctor gives some of the medical consequences of puberty blockers. Worthwhile reading. And if you haven’t read Abigail Shrier’s book, I highly recommend it to you. Click here to access the full article.
The number of babies infected with syphilis was already surging. Then came the pandemic
This is a very sad story. Syphilis is a very treatable condition, but many of these women didn’t go for prenatal care because they were using illegal drugs. And when their babies become infected in utero it can often cause stillbirths or serious medical problems if the baby survives.
While this is a story out of California, I have no doubt that the same phenomenon is present here in Florida. Click here to access the full article.
Drug Use a Factor in COVID Breakthrough Infections
A recent study found that substance using persons, especially those using cocaine or marijuana who have been vaccinated against COVID, have a higher rate of breakthrough infections when compared with vaccinated people who are not abusing drugs. Click here to access the full article.
More Than Just Genes: How Environment, Lifestyle, and Stress Impact ADHD
Even though we know that ADHD is partially genetic, it is also becoming clear that it manifests because of a combination of a genetic predisposition and environmental factors. This article is a good summary of some of the latest thinking on ADHD and its causes. Click here to access the full article.
When Your Teen Refuses to Take ADHD Medication
As adolescents go through their teen years, it is not uncommon for them to go through a stage when they refuse to take their medication. This often leads to decreases in academic achievement, increased difficulties with peers, and power struggles with parents. The reasons for medication refusal are not the same for each child. This article discusses the range of reasons, as well as some strategies for parents to use to help their child get back on a medication regimen. Click here to access the full article.
Have a wonderful weekend!
Henry Virkler