Articles from the Week of May 19, 2023
Interesting Quotes
Our greatest fear should not be of failure but of succeeding at things in life that don’t really matter.”
Francis Chan
“Love begins by taking care of the closest ones - the ones at home.”
MOTHER TERESA
“It’s not what you gather, but what you scatter that tells what kind of life you have lived.”
Helen Walton (wife of Sam Walton, the founder of Sam’s Club)
"Behind all your stories is always your mother's story, because hers is where yours begins."
MITCH ALBOM
"The greatness of a community is most accurately measured by the compassionate actions of its members."
CORETTA SCOTT KING
The quality of our relationships determines the quality of our lives.
Esther Perel
Fascinating Facts
Ben and Jerry learned how to make ice cream by taking a $5.00 correspondence course (Source: InterestingFacts.com)
Silly Putty was developed during World War II as a potential substitute for rubber. During the war rubber was in short supply, especially after Japan invaded Southeast Asia, which was a major supplier of American rubber. What became known eventually as silly putty was invented by two researchers working independently. It wasn’t similar enough to rubber to serve as a rubber substitute, but one entrepreneur saw its financial possibilities, purchased the rights to it, renamed it, and Silly Putty was born (also from InterestingFacts.com).
Emperor of the United States? “In 1859 Joshua Abraham Norton declared himself Emperor of the United States. Norton had made—and lost—his fortune in San Francisco shipping, but he wanted a new identity: America’s first emperor. When the San Francisco Evening Bulletin printed “Emperor” Norton’s announcement, most readers laughed. Norton made pronouncements aimed at correcting society’s ills, printed his own currency, and even wrote letters to Queen Victoria asking her to marry him and unite their kingdoms. He wore royal military uniforms designed by local tailors” (Quoted material from Our Daily Bread for May 16, 2023.)
Counseling Articles
The grief, guilt and joy of being a caregiver for my mom
A very honest description by a daughter of her experiences caring for her mother with dementia in the last years and months of her mother’s life.
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Survey: Liberal Kids are FAR More Depressed and Unhappy than Conservative Kids, Especially Girls
Interesting survey done by Columbia University found that children who endorsed liberal values were significantly more depressed than children who endorsed conservative values, and that the liberal girls in this survey were the most depressed of everyone surveyed.
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Leaked Docs Show that Biden Administration Classifies Pro-Life Mothers as ‘Domestic Terrorists’
If you are a pro-life middle-aged woman, apparently the Biden administration considers you a “domestic terrorist.” Just thought you would want to know in case the police or FBI come knocking on your door.
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FDA Updates Warnings on All Stimulants for ADHD, Other Conditions
Those who are given prescriptions for ADHD medication (and some others) increasingly are asked to share their medications with peers or others. These medications will be receiving new warning about misuse of medications. Deaths from medications often result from taking multiple medications and from taking illicit medications rather than prescribed ones.
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Adorable Girl With the Nickname ‘Baby Einstein 2.0’ Has Blonde Hair That Grows in Multiple Directions
Each child presents a unique set of challenges for parents, and this adorable girl has her own, which has been diagnosed “uncombable hair syndrome.” It is believed that Einstein may have had the same, and because she hit many developmental milestones early, she was given the moniker “Baby Einstein 2.0.” You might be interested to know that her mother is studying for a master’s degree in counseling. See this article for some endearing pictures and more information.
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When ADHD (Literally) Runs in the Family
ADHD is very heritable, so it is not uncommon for a mother with ADHD to be raising a child who also has it. This article discusses some of the common challenges that such mothers experience.
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Husband Assures Wife He Only Looks At Song Of Solomon For The Theology
If you needed a little humor in your day, check out this article from the Babylon Bee. I’m sure that’s the only reason husbands read the Song of Solomon.
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How A Left-Wing Activist Group Teamed Up With Big Pharma To Push Radical Gender Ideology on American Hospitals
If you take your child to a hospital, don’t be surprised if they ask your child for their preferred pronouns. A gender activist group is now rating hospitals on how well they conform to the new transgender ideology.
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Be Careful What You Put in Your Sock Drawer!
This is definitely not a counseling article, although some might say it could be used in an advice column. A 21-year-old Japanese man was hosting his grandmother for a visit. Her feet became cold, so she was searching for some socks to warm her feet. She looked in his sock drawer and found what she thought were some thermal socks. Instead they were artificial vaginas that her grandson used for solitary sex play. He was quite embarrassed when his grandmother appeared wearing two of them to keep her feet warm!
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Kids Who Get Smartphones Earlier Have Worse Mental Health, Especially Girls
Parents of young children often are pressured by their kids to be given a smartphone at younger and younger ages. This multi-year research study of young people from around the world was done by Sapien Labs, which studies the effect of new technology on people. Their research included 1 million children and young adults, and their measure of mental health is quite extensive, including 47 elements of mental, social and emotional functioning (see article for details). What they found was that young girls who got their first smartphone before the age of 10 were doing worse than those who received their first smartphone in their teens.
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Surgeon General: Church Attendance Is Healthy
A couple weeks ago the Surgeon General of the United States, Vivek Murthy, surprised us when he said the epidemic of loneliness and isolation many Americans are experiencing has the negative medical consequences equivalent to smoking 13 cigarettes per day. Now he surprises us again by saying that church attendance makes for greater health.
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Medication for Bipolar Does Not Affect My Creativity
One of the reasons those with bipolar disorder sometimes give for being unwilling to take medication is that it will lower their creativity. In this article an author with bipolar disorder who has written several best-selling books discusses that belief.
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10 Life Hacks To Help You Stop Looking At Porn
The Babylon Bee’s tongue in cheek suggestions for how to break the habit of looking at porn.
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How ADHD Impacts Dating Relationships
Some honest comments from women about how their ADHD impacted their dating relationships. If you are counseling young adult females with ADHD this article would probably be very helpful to them.
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Research Suggests How Working Memory Retains, Manipulates, and Deletes Specific Items
New research on how working memory works.
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Prenatal Marijuana Use Results in Babies With Multiple Risks: Study
Another study has confirmed that prenatal use of marijuana during the first trimester is associated with lower birth weight and smaller heads, which are associated with a number of neurological, psychological and medical problems. Continuing marijuana use in later pregnancy increases the likelihood of such problems. At present 20 states allow the recreational use of marijuana and marijuana is also the most commonly-used illicit drug in states where recreational pot is illegal. This is why doctors encourage pregnant women and women who are hoping to become pregnant and those who are nursing to discontinue any use of pot.
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Further Argument Against Recreational Pot
This information came from a radio broadcast, so I don’t have a hypertext link to include, but for those states that have legalized recreational pot and then kept track of accidents occurring at the workplace, New York state says there has been a 200% increase in workplace accidents, even though workers say they only used pot during their breaks or during non-working hours. Since pot stays in the system for several hours after being ingested, it seems very possible that these workers are not using pot during working hours, but the increase in accidents is caused by the fact that pot stays in the system for many hours after being ingested.
For Children With Autism, Water Can Be A Real Danger
When children with autism get overstimulated, either by a stimulating environment or conflict, they tend to wander off to an environment that is calmer. That tendency can lead them to bodies of water and lead to unintentional drowning. Even adults with autism tend to do the same thing, although the possibility of drowning is less. Therefore caregivers need to be aware of this tendency, and make special precautions for things like birthday parties or other highly stimulating situations.
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I hope you have a wonderful week or weekend!
Henry Virkler