Health and Psychology

What is Therapy?  

There are different types of therapy.  Some types of therapy are classified as evidence based-meaning they have research to support the fact that they are effective.  These include types of therapy for anxiety, depression, personality disorders, and trauma.  The main therapies are that are considered evidence based are Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Acceptance and Committment therapy, Mindfulness Therapy, Behavior Therapy, Trauma Focused ther...

A friend of mine went to a psychiatrist recently to look into getting medication for his depression and was surprised when the psychiatrist referred him to therapy instead.  "Medication for mild to moderate depression, just isn't that helpful, but therapy is far more effective."  

That's true, for the most part.  It depends on the type of therapy being offered.  It also depends on making sure the actual diagnosis is depression.  Supportive psychother...

The DIagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders Fifth Edition (DSM V) is published by the American Psychiatric Association.  It is due out next year.  Already the complaints are coming in about it not having an adequate research basis for many diagnostic categories.  The is another diagnostic system: The International Classification of Disease 10th Edition (ICD 10).  As a result of problems with the DSM system many psychologists will be switching over to the ICD ...

Evaluations are as minimal as a good clinical interview and as complex as a 12-20 hour testing battery.  An evaluation is as complex or as simple as what is required to answer a referral question.  

I teach psychological testing, but it's not always indicated as a requirement for an evaluation.  Some people want to know if they have a specific diagnosis.  In many cases the symptoms they have do NOT match the DSM-IV-TR (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of...

We're coming up on the holidays and there are the normal stresses of family drama, and there are the stresses of those with health conditions and food issues.

Family Drama Tips:

1.  Recognize that you cannot control the behavior of others.

If you tend to excessively worry about how people will "be" with each other, challenge yourself to stop taking on other people's issues. If there is an issue between two adults, let them work it out. It's not yours to ow...

I've posted on this before, but it's still fall and a relatively new school year so it's time again.  Behavior therapy, quite simply, is a therapy designed to change a specific behavior.  It does not change thoughts or feelings.  It does not require the assent of the person getting the treatment, although a lot of people will explain to a child or adult what they are doing and why.  It can be done with animals in addition to people.  The behavior must be described in ...

The American Psychological Association is doing promotional spots promoting therapy over medication.  I'm often asked why is therapy so expensive?  The short answer is "It isn't." Medication requires a visit to a physician's office.  It requires renewals of refills.  At the end of the treatment the person taking medication has the same set of skills they had prior to taking the medication.  If symptoms return, they will need medication again.

Th...

I'm very concerned.  A couple of weeks ago I saw a child in preschool diagnosed with bipolar disorder. PRESCHOOL!  The treating physician had wanted to start the child on an antipsychotic drug known to cause diabetes.  The parent was skeptical about the treatment being suggested.  

Let me explain a couple of things.  First, bipolar disorder used to be known as manic-depressive disorder and was diagnosed exclusively in adults with the onset of a manic...

When a child attends school they undergo a series of evaluations.  They are evaluated primarily by their teacher.  If the teacher suspects the child may be having a problem with learning, they will suggest the child be evaluated to see if they require an individual educational program or IEP be developed for them.  This is the start of a special education process.  

Individual education programs are regulated under Federal Education law.  The program...

I testified in a hearing this past week about an individual I had evaluated.  The person had been evaluated on multiple occasions by multiple people.  I was seated across a table from another evaluator that had also evaluated the same person.  We were in front of a judge because we disagreed about diagnosis.  We weren't far apart diagnostically.  We were literally one check off box apart.  Other evaluators weren't even on the same page, making things even less cl...