Autism Spectrum Disorder: An inside look to CATs

Recently there has been discussion about alternative treatments for Autism Spectrum Disorder.  The acronym CAT is used to describe these complimentary and alternative treatments. CAT is a great approach to treatment for individuals that are concerned with potential negative effects of taking medication. Some examples of CATs include melatonin, RDA/RDi multivitamin/mineral, massage therapy, acupuncture, exercise, music therapy, and animal-assisted therapy. …

Runner’s High

A great way to gain both physical and mental strength is to make running a part of your workout. A lifestyle that includes running promotes well being and reaps both cognitive and mental benefits. When running, the body releases endogenous opioids, like endorphins, that relieve stress. The feeling some people call a runner’s high is due to the activation of …

When Your Mirror Lies

When an individual spends massive amounts of time obsessing about minor defects or even normal elements of their appearance that it begins to impair daily life, then they are said to be plagued by Body Dysmorphic Disorder. Eve Fisher tells her personal story about BDD recovery. When Eve was 16 she began looking in the mirror for long periods of …

SHUTi: Work towards a better night’s sleep

Having trouble sleeping? We think the website SHUTi may be helpful to you. Sleep is a crucial component for the happiness and well being of an individual. An appropriate amount of sleep can lower anxiety levels, help prevent overeating, and improve memory. On the moodsurfing website, we recommend SHUTi as a resource to individuals struggling with insomnia. SHUTi provides an …

Know Your Body

Geneen Roth talks about how infatuated she was with her imperfections while growing up. She was constantly thinking of how much better looking she would be if she didn’t have certain features. If only she could cut out all the flaws, so just her best features would remain she could be happy.  Roth tried to reach self improvement through shaming …

The U Pattern of Depression

Over time researchers have observed that depression follows a U pattern. First depression symptoms are high in young adulthood. Like the dip of a U, depression symptoms decrease in midlife, and the rounding back up of the U signifies the return of greater depressive symptoms in later years. The results of some long-term longitudinal studies that investigated the peak in …

Sleep Deprivation and Increased Hunger

Often, after a late night with little sleep, we wake up the next day and are starving! This phenomenon is no coincidence. A study was conducted with healthy non-obese adults to see the effects of sleep deprivation on appetite levels. The results revealed that students that had four-and-a-half hours of sleep compared to students who had eight-and-a-half hours of sleep …

The No Motivation Blues

Today, I met with a couple of women whose central concern was the fact that they felt a complete loss of motivation. One of these women is finishing graduate school. Only a few weeks away from graduating, she has found that she is not completing the assignments that she needs to in order to graduate. She knows that she can do …

Odd Couple’s Therapy

I met today with two interesting people: they’re both attorneys. They have a remarkably different style and presentation. One of them is usually animated, energetic, and optimistic. However, he also has bipolar mood cycles. Sometimes his energized vibe may get a bit intense, while at other times he will be in a depressed state that makes it hard for him …

A Spoonful of Courage

In a previous post, I shared Linda Graham’s views on resilience from an excerpt from her article Bouncing Back :Rewiring the Brian for Maximum Resilience and Well-Being. After further reading, Graham also discusses the importance of having courage when creating a more positive outlook on life. We have the ability to experience great personal growth when engaging in new things. …

Chronic Depression: What You See Depends on Where You Look

It can be hard to sit with someone with depression, especially chronic depression. For me it is the fact that I am trained to try to enter a person’s world, and understand that world… but the visit to the world of someone who is depressed can be depressing. One of the reasons for this is that they describe lives where …

The Pressure of Perfectionism

  In today’s society, many people struggle with the desire to be perfect. Perfectionism is the view that anything done in a less than perfect fashion is unacceptable.  In a PowerPoint presentation found at this website, Jennifer Marten explains how striving for perfection can take away from personal happiness and success. Perfectionists can be identified by a series of habits. …

Strategies for Bipolar Disorder

Living with Bipolar Disorder is not an easy feat. On the bright side, there are different strategies for coping with and managing the various symptoms.  By making healthy choices and pairing medication and therapy, individuals with Bipolar Disorder can gain more control of their lives. Some factors that are necessary for maintaining a healthy lifestyle with bipolar disorder include hope, …

Losing Control: A Tale about Binge-Eating Disorder

Individuals facing stress, anxiety, or depression will sometimes fall prey to eating disorders. While anorexia and bulimia have received a lot of attention, one of the most prevalent eating disorders is binge-eating disorder. Binge-eating disorder can be detrimental to both a healthy mental and physical state. A man who suffered from binge-eating disorder shared his story with the New York …

Sleep Strategies

One of the most frequent causes of insomnia is anxiety. Insomnia of this kind is caused by increased activation of the sympathetic nervous system at night. The body releases norepinephrine (the flight or fight hormone) at night when that system should be inactive. You wake up and you feel “wide awake.” A current patient of Dr. Forster’s is having difficulty sleeping …

Destructive Duo: Diabetes and Depression

According to Dr. Coleman M.D., it is common for individuals to experience comorbid Diabetes Mellitus and Depression. Diabetes Mellitus is also known as Type 2 diabetes. On its own, each diesase acts as a risk factor for the other disease. For those with diabetes, the chances of also experiencing depression is 15-30%. In addition, individuals with depression have twice the …

Food for Thought

Studies have shown that what you eat affects the way you feel. However, there are so many diet plans out there that it is hard to know which diets promote the best physical and mental health. The Paleo diet is rumored to help with weight loss and mood improvement, so I decided to investigate. The goal of the Paleo diet …

The Value of Mood Charting

When it comes to understanding the factors that cause us to feel a certain way, mood charting can be extremely useful. Recently, Dr. Forster met with a patient named David that claimed he was “doing better than he should.” He felt that his overall mood was pretty good, but he was also experiencing difficulty with his memory and concentration. David …

Gambling: Sucked into the Slots

Dr. Howard Forman interviewed Dr. David Forest about the reasons behind the great appeal of slot machines. Gambling is a phenomenon that has been sweeping the nation. People are simply captivated by the machines. Dr. Forest attributes the allure of the slots to both players and professionals to the bio-psycho-social attractiveness of the machines. The machines attract so many players …