Good thoughts

“Love looks not with the eyes but with the mind.”

Shakespeare

"Think twice before you speak, because your words and influence will plant the seed of either success or failure in the mind of another."

Napoleon Hill

‘What Can I Do to Support My Newly Sober Partner?’

People in Al-Anon often tell people who are early in recovery that they should leave a person who is still drinking or is in early recovery themselves. Ana Marie Cox, who has experienced substance abuse recovery herself, shares a more nuanced view. Although you, like I, may have never experienced this situation, having an idea of possible ways to respond to a client who asks this question might be helpful. Click here to read full article.

‘Brainy Bunch’: Parents Homeschool Their 10 Kids With All of Them Graduating High School at 12

Fascinating story of one family who decided to homeschool their children, and the result. Their Christian faith plays an integral role in all of this. Click here to read full article.

Busting 4 Harmful Myths About Introverts and Extroverts

Here is another interesting article from the Amen Clinic. I think every counselor will get some useful information from this article. Click here to read full article.

10 Toxic Products to Ditch Today

This article was published before by the Amen Clinic, but I guess they thought the information was so important that it deserved republishing. The article describes how toxins affect the brain, identifies 10 products they recommend not using, and then give a plan for ridding your brain of toxin damage if you’ve been using one or more of those products. Click here to read full article.

How the Placebo Effect Works—And How to Make Use of It

This article is primarily about placebo effects in medicine, so it is not exactly parallel to how placebo effects work in psychotherapy, although it shares some effects. Especially if you are designing an efficacy study or are in a doctoral program with a dissertation ahead of you this article (by a psychiatrist educator), this article might be worth reading. Click here to read full article.

How to Find Meaning in Life’s Struggles

This is a nice review of the experiences of Victor Frankl and the horrendous experiences that helped him develop the theory of logotherapy. I think that adding the components of the Christian faith to logotherapy makes for a particularly helpful way of viewing life. Click here to read full article.

Facts About DSM-5-TR

This is a good summary of the changes from the DSM-5 to the DSM-5-TR. If you’re in private practice and diagnosing clients you probably should read this article to help you decide whether to purchase this text revision. Click here to read full article.

 When Perfectionism Stems from ADHD: Challenging the Fallacy of “Not Good Enough”

People with ADHD sometimes struggle with perfectionism that is tied to their ADHD. This is a particularly good article about how that works and has a good section suggesting practical ways to deal with that perfectionism. Click here to read full article.

Managing Disruptions to Daily Routines to Minimize Impact on Mood

One of the most effective psychotherapies for people with bipolar disorder is interpersonal and social rhythm therapy, often abbreviated as IPSRT. To get a glimpse of this therapy, the following article gives a good introduction. Click here to read full article.

A Couple Shares Their Greatest Lessons Learned in the Search for a Diagnosis

When one person in a marriage has bipolar disorder it often results in divorce. Here is the story of one couple who eventually learned that the husband had bipolar disorder (after many incorrect diagnoses) and how they have learned to cope with the ups and downs associated with bipolar. The wife openly credits their Christian faith with helping them both deal with their challenges. Click here to read full article. 

More People Are Microdosing for Mental Health. But Does It Work?

Since this is a New York Times article, you may not be able to read it unless you have a subscription. Microdosing, according to the article, “is typically defined by experts as taking 5 percent to 10 percent of a full dose of a psychedelic, usually LSD or psilocybin, as a way to get the supposed mental health benefits of the drug without the hallucinogenic high.” At this point most of the “evidence” for the effectiveness of microdosing are anecdotal and experts are unsure whether it actually works or whether the reported results are the result of placebo expectations. Click here to read full article. 

Renowned NASA Engineer Known as the Fourth ‘Hidden Figure’ Took Inspiration from the Bible

This is not a counseling article, but is an inspiring article to all of us who are Christians. Probably many of us are familiar with the story of “Hidden Figures”—those incredibly important female mathematicians who played such an important role in America’s early space race. Here is a bit of the story behind a fourth “hidden figure” who was not featured in the movie but whose life was inspired by the Bible. Click here to read full article. 

Missouri university slammed for referring to Women's History Month as 'Womynx History Month'

In an apparent attempt to be inclusive and up to date with the latest trends, one university in Missouri changed the spelling of Women’s History Month. It appears that my education is horribly outdated. Click here to read full article. 

Multivitamins Slow Cognitive Aging in Older Adults

This article is from Medscape Psychiatry: This is an initial study so it needs to be replicated, but preliminary results were that taking a multiple vitamin helped slow cognitive aging in older adults. Since multivitamins probably help us stay healthy in a variety of ways, even if these results aren’t replicated, taking a multivitamin is probably a good habit. Click here to read full article. 

How not to help a friend in need

Based on a recent experience when her father had a serious illness, Tara Parker Pope suggests some things that people do with the intention of being supportive that may instead be burdens for the person trying to recover or their caregiver. Some worthwhile ideas that most of us may not have thought of. Click here to read full article. 

Can Villages Of Tiny Homes Help America’s Homeless Veterans?

America has 38,000 homeless veterans. Often these men and women have PTSD, and are uncomfortable living in homeless shelters with others, so they often live in the woods or other secluded places. These tiny homes are intended to shelter veterans for six months while they receive counseling and job skills training, although that time can be extended if needed.

Tiny homes, measuring from 240 to 400 square feet, are under construction in several states now. For more information, read this brief article. It is amazing what can be designed into a home as small as 240 square feet. Click here to read full article. 

How To Treat Autism

This article, by a medical doctor, talks about the large number of possible causes of autism. While interesting in that regard, it doesn’t have much to say about treatments, so don’t read it with the expectation that it will give you much information about treatment. Click here to read full article. 

Vaping spikes risk of high blood sugar, diabetes: Johns Hopkins researchers

Initially vaping was promoted because it was thought to help people stop smoking or to be a less-serious alternative to smoking cigarettes. Probably some users still believe these ideas, or at least use them as rationalizations for their continued use. But now with more longitudinal research available, we now know that vaping has serious repercussions for its users. Click here to read full article. 

The Hidden Epidemic of Brain Injuries from Domestic Violence

Since this is from the New York Times you may not be able to access it. The major point of this article is that domestic violence recipients are more likely to have brain injuries than professional football players, and yet are rarely diagnosed. Often the symptoms overlap with symptoms of PTSD, which victims often have as well. If you are a counselor to someone who is a victim of domestic violence, don’t overlook encouraging them to have this checked out. Click here to read full article. 

5 Critical Life Skills That Build Independence & Confidence

Although this article is written for parents who have a child with ADHD, I think these life skills are good for every child to learn and every parent to teach. Click here to read full article. 

Please continue to pray for the citizens of Ukraine!

Henry Virkler