About

Newsletter

Subscribe to this blog's feed

Add to Google Reader or Homepage

Answers.com

Psychopharmacology Associates of New England's Facebook Page
Psychopharmacology Associates of New England's Facebook Page
Promote Your Page Too

Poll

Blogged Rating

Google

Categories

Recent Posts

Twitter Updates

    follow me on Twitter

    Ezine

    Youtube Video

    Tip Jar

    Change is good

    Tip Jar

    Archives

    More...

    Archives

    More...

    Pages

    Extreme Tracking

    • eXTReMe Tracker

    Google Analytics

    • Google Analytics

    « April 5, 2009 - April 11, 2009 | Main | May 3, 2009 - May 9, 2009 »

    April 26, 2009 - May 2, 2009

    What Every Parent Needs to Know About Adolescent Depression

    Check out The Parent's Guide to Understanding Adolescent Depression authored by Dr. Jeff and Dr. Tanya and now available in a great informational website hosted by Squidoo.com. Below is a sneak preview of the website's Table of Contents:

    Dr. Jeffrey Speller

    Dr. Tanya Korkosz

    Psychopharmacology Associates of New England

    www.psychopharmassociates.com

    Posted by on May 02, 2009 at 09:54 AM in Psychiatry: Adolescents and Young Adults | | Comments (0)

    What Increases the Risk of Depression in Adolescents and Young Adults?

    Mental health professionals have long debated about whether adolescent TV watching increases the risk of depression in adolescents when they become young adults. A article published in HealthDay News January 26, 2009, “Adolescent TV Time Affects Adult Risk of Depression” examines this issue.The article reports on two studies published in the February 2009 issues of the Archives of General Psychiatry and the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine. The researchers studied the electronic media exposure of 4,142 and 93,297 subjects. “In the first study, [the researchers] studied the electronic media exposure of 4,142 non-depressed adolescents who were assessed for depression over seven years of follow-up, and found that greater television time was associated with higher odds of developing depression as young adults.” In the second study the researchers “..conducted a study of 93,297 students (aged 15 years) from 31 largely European and North American countries and regions, and found that the more evenings the subjects spent out with their friends, the more likely they were to use cannabis.”  The researchers conclude that “There is a great need to learn more about the nature of evenings out with friends and related factors that might explain changes in adolescent cannabis use over time….Because there are many benefits to adolescent social interaction, it is important to determine how best to foster it without unduly increasing exposure opportunities for cannabis use." Based of our experience and expertise in treating adolescent substance abusers and depressed young adults, we offer several tips for parents First, parents should significant limit the amount of time that adolescents spend watching TV to two hours a day during the week and three hours a day during the weekend. Second, parents who suspect that their adolescent child is exhibiting the signs and symptoms of depression or engaging in the use and abuse of cannabis should seek an evaluation from a qualified mental health profession. Third, parents with adolescents who have been diagnosed with depression and/or a substance abuse problem should seek treatment from a qualified medical professional who can provide appropriate counseling, psychotherapy, and medication if necessary. Fourth, parents should know who their adolescents are socializing with and educate their adolescents about the dangers in the use of cannabis.

    The Bottom Line: The results of these studies strongly support the conclusions that excessive TV watching in adolescence increases the risk of developing depression as an young adult and that adolescent socializing with friends increases the risk of cannabis use.

    Resources:

    How to improve your understanding of depression. View this top rated video from Youtube:



    Ten Great Books on Depression

    1. Anxiety & Depression Workbook For Dummies (For Dummies (Psychology & Self Help)) (Paperback) by Charles H., PhD Elliott (Author), Laura L., PhD Smith (Author), Aaron T., MD Beck (Author)
    2. Depression for Dummies (Paperback) by Laura L., PhD Smith (Author), Charles H., PhD Elliott (Author)
    3. Overcoming Depression One Step at a Time: The New Behavioral Activation Approach to Getting Your Life Back (New Harbinger Self-Help Workbook) (Paperback) by Michael E., Ph.D. Addis (Author), Christopher R. Martell (Author)
    4. Overcoming Depression: A Step-by-Step Approach to Gaining Control Over Depression (Paperback) by Paul Gilbert(Author)
    5. Overcoming Depression, 3rd edition by Demitri Papolos (Paperback - Jan 10, 1997)
    6. Overcoming Depression (Victory Over the Darkness) by Neil T. Anderson and Joanne Anderson (Paperback - Jul 2004)
    7. Woman's Guide to Overcoming Depression, A by Archibald Hart and Catherine Hart Weber (Mass Market Paperback - Nov 1, 2007)
    8. Overcoming Anxiety and Depression: Practical Tools to Help You Deal with Negative Emotions by Bob Phillips (Paperback - Aug 15, 2007)
    9. Overcoming Depression (Overcoming) by Paul Gilbert (Paperback - May 25, 2000)
    10. Overcoming Anxiety, Panic, and Depression: New Ways to Regain your Confidence by James Gardner, Arthur H. Bell (Paperback - Feb 1, 2005)

    Twelve Resource and Support Groups for Depression

    1. Broken Smiles 
    2. Journey Towards Freedom
    3. Depression Forums
    4. Depression Boards  
    5. Depression Resources
    6. Depression Understood  
    7. Depressionsupport1  
    8. Yahoo Depression Support Groups
    9. The Depression Support Group
    10. Depression and Bipolar Support
    11. Alliance
    12. Families for Depression Awareness

    Great Informational Websites Created by Dr. Speller and Dr. Korkosz:

    Sources: National Institute of Mental Health, See blogposts in Psychiatric Disorders: General and Psychiatric Disorders: Depression, Youtube

    Reference:     HealthDay News January 26, 2009, “Adolescent TV Time Affects Adult Risk of Depression."

    Additional Resources:

    • For related articles on the Web, click on: “Sphere: Related Content” located at the bottom of this blog post.
    • For related books or blog posts with related content in Dr. Jeff’s and Dr. Tanya’s Blog type in the keywords into “Google Search” located in the sidebar.
    • For more books with related content, type in the keywords into “Amazon Search” on the Amazon banner located in the side bar.

    Dr. Jeffrey Speller

    Dr. Tanya Korkosz

    Psychopharmacology Associates of New England

    www.psychopharmassociates.com


    Posted by on April 29, 2009 at 08:27 AM in Psychiatry: Adolescents and Young Adults | | Comments (0)

    What Can Help the Thinking of Older Adults?

    Mental health professionals have long debated about what can help the thinking in older adults. A article published in HealthDay News January 15, 2009, “Video Gaming Improves Cognitive Function in Adults,”examines this issue. The article reports on a study published Psychology and Aging. The researchers studied 40 adults, “…who were divided into two groups. One group received training in "Rise of Nations" -- a nation-building and territorial expansion video game -- while the other group received no training. Participants were assessed in several parameters of their executive control functions prior to, during and after video game training.” And the results? “…video game training improved the performance of the study participants on a number of tests. The adults gained significant improvements in executive control functions. These functions included task switching, working memory, visual short-term memory and reasoning, the researchers report. However, the video game had no impact on the ability of the participants to recall a list of words in order or enumerate lists, the investigators found. Importantly, improvements in an individual's performance in the game positively correlated with improvements in task switching.” The researchers conclude that “…these findings are meaningful because they show that multi-dimensional training can affect many individual components of cognitive function…This study has implications for the enhancement of executive control processes of older adults." Based on our expertise and experience in treating older adults, we offer several tips on how to improve one’s thinking. First, if you or your family suspects that you may have a problem with cognitive functioning then seek a cognitive evaluation from a qualified mental health professional. Second, if your evaluation shows that you have some mild cognitive impairment, seek treatment from a cognitive specialist who can help you improve your cognitive performance. Third, seek the support of family and friends in helping you keep cognitively active by playing challenging video games.  

    The Bottom Line: The results of this study strongly support the conclusion that playing video games may improve cognitive function in older adults.

    Resources:

    Great Informational Websites Created by Dr. Speller and Dr. Korkosz:

    Sources: National Institute of Mental Health, See blogposts in Psychiatric Disorders: General and Psychiatric Disorders: Aging

    Reference:     HealthDay News January 15, 2009, “Video Gaming Improves Cognitive Function in Adults.”

    Additional Resources:

    • For related articles on the Web, click on: “Sphere: Related Content” located at the bottom of this blog post.
    • For related books or blog posts with related content in Dr. Jeff’s and Dr. Tanya’s Blog type in the keywords into “Google Search” located in the sidebar.
    • For more books with related content, type in the keywords into “Amazon Search” on the Amazon banner located in the side bar.

    Dr. Jeffrey Speller

    Dr. Tanya Korkosz

    Psychopharmacology Associates of New England

    www.psychopharmassociates.com

    Posted by on April 29, 2009 at 08:26 AM in Psychiatric Disorders: Aging | | Comments (0)

    What is an Effective Treatment for Patients with Fibromyalgia Syndrome?

    Mental health professionals have long debated about the best treatment for patients with Fibromyalgia Syndrome. An article published in HealthDay News January 13, 2009, “Antidepressants May Be Useful in Treating Fibromyalgia,”examines this issue.The article reports on a study published in the Jan. 14, 2009 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association. The researchers reviewed “18 randomized controlled trials with 1,427 participants…The authors found strong evidence for reduced pain, fatigue and depressed mood, and improved sleep associated with antidepressants…amitriptyline showed large effect sizes on reducing pain and sleep disturbances, the report indicates, and duloxetine showed strong evidence for efficacy in reducing pain and sleep disturbances and improving depressed mood, though these effect sizes were small.” The researchers concluded that “Short-term usage of amitriptyline and duloxetine can be considered for the treatment of pain and sleep disturbances in fibromyalgia syndrome…Before treatment is initiated, concomitant diseases related to potential adverse effects of the drugs and patients' preferences should be considered. Goals of pharmacological therapy should be defined (no cure, but possible symptom reduction).” The researchers conclude “…Since evidence for a long-term effect of antidepressants in fibromyalgia syndrome is still lacking, their effects should be reevaluated at regular intervals to determine whether benefits outweigh adverse effects." Based on the results of this research, we offer several tips to patients who have fibromyalgia syndrome. First, you should seek an evaluation by a qualified medical professional to determine if you are a candidate for the use of amitriptyline or duloxetine in the treatment of your chronic pain and sleep disorder. Second, if you are prescribed one of these medications for your syndrome, be sure to have regular follow-up visits with your medical professional who will monitor your progress. Third, if you experience side effects due to your medications be sure to contact your medical provider immediately to request an appointment

    The Bottom Line: The results of this study strongly suggest that patients who carry the diagnosis of fibromyalgia syndrome may benefit from the use of antidepressants to treat their chronic pain and their sleep disturbance. 

    Resources:

    Youtube on understanding Fibromyalgia Syndrome:


    Great Informational Websites Created by Dr. Speller and Dr. Korkosz:

    Sources: National Institute of Mental Health, See blogposts in Psychiatric Disorders: General and Psychiatric Disorders: Depression, Youtube

    Reference:     HealthDay News January 13, 2009, “Antidepressants May Be Useful in Treating Fibromyalgia.”

    Additional Resources:

    • For related articles on the Web, click on: “Sphere: Related Content” located at the bottom of this blog post.
    • For related books or blog posts with related content in Dr. Jeff’s and Dr. Tanya’s Blog type in the keywords into “Google Search” located in the sidebar.
    • For more books with related content, type in the keywords into “Amazon Search” on the Amazon banner located in the side bar.

    Dr. Jeffrey Speller

    Dr. Tanya Korkosz

    Psychopharmacology Associates of New England

    www.psychopharmassociates.com



    Posted by on April 29, 2009 at 08:25 AM in Psychiatric Disorders: General | | Comments (0)

    Are Adolescents Who Spend Large Amounts of Time Socializing with Their Friends and Peers at Risk for Cannabis Use.?

    Mental health professionals have long debated the relationship between adolescent socialization and cannabis use. A article published in HealthDay News January 26, 2009 examines this issue.The article reports on a study published in the February 2009 issue of the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine. The researchers studied “ …93,297 students (aged 15 years) from 31 largely European and North American countries and regions, and found that the more evenings the subjects spent out with their friends, the more likely they were to use cannabis.” The researchers concluded that “There is a great need to learn more about the nature of evenings out with friends and related factors that might explain changes in adolescent cannabis use over time…..Because there are many benefits to adolescent social interaction, it is important to determine how best to foster it without unduly increasing exposure opportunities for cannabis use." The take home message for parents who have adolescent children who socialize a great deal with their friends and peers, is that constant viligance is important. If the parent has any supiciions that their adolescent child is engaging in cannabis abuse, then swift intervention is important.

    The Bottom Line: Adolescents who spend large amounts of time socializing with their friends and peers at risk for cannabis abuse and use.

    Resources: 

    Youtube on overcoming marijuana and other addictions


    Facts every adolescent needs to know about Marijuana

    Facts every parent needs to know about Marijuana

    Great Informational Websites Created by Dr. Speller and Dr. Korkosz:

    Sources: National Institute of Drug Abuse, See blogposts in Psychiatric Disorders: General and Psychiatric Disorders: Marijuana, Youtube

    Reference:     HealthDay News January 26, 2009

    Additional Resources:

    • For related articles on the Web, click on: “Sphere: Related Content” located at the bottom of this blog post.
    • For related books or blog posts with related content in Dr. Jeff’s and Dr. Tanya’s Blog type in the keywords into “Google Search” located in the sidebar.
    • For more books with related content, type in the keywords into “Amazon Search” on the Amazon banner located in the side bar.

    Dr. Jeffrey Speller

    Dr. Tanya Korkosz

    Psychopharmacology Associates of New England

    www.psychopharmassociates.com

    Posted by on April 29, 2009 at 08:25 AM in Addictions: Marijuana | | Comments (0)

    Next »