General:
American Psychological Association Dictionary of Psychology
Mental Disorders as Brain Disorders: Thomas Insel at TEDxCaltech
Please stop calling me “high functioning”
Accommodations Rant
Accommodations for people who are neurodiverse (or disabled in any way, really) are not a "leg up" or an easy way out, but they are a way for people with disabilities to be able to do the things that need to or want to in the way it works for them. We live in a system that was designed for people who do things a certain (often arbitrary) way, not for everyone. Many of the limitations faced by disabled people are nothing more than unnecessary obstacles placed in our way and if they are removed we can do things successfully our own way.
Treating Depression:
The serotonin theory of depression: a systematic umbrella review of the evidence
Evidence shows that the serotonin uptake inhibition of SSRIs is NOT the way that those drugs treat depression. This video by Dr John Campbell discusses the this article. It contains a good description of how nerve impulses are sent over the synapse between two neurons via neurotransmitters, including serotonin. People who have depression don't have less metabolites of serotonin (levels of H1AAA and levels of serotonin in plasma), indicating that they don't have lower levels of serotonin, so their depression must have a different cause. Cells increase the number of receptors that they have for something if there is not enough of it because they are competing for a scarce resource, but the cells of people with depression don't have more serotonin receptors. The amino acid tryptophan is a precursor to serotonin, so it should follow that people with low levels of tryptophan should produce less serotonin and therefore be depressed if serotonin causes depression, but there is not correlation between tryptophan levels and depression. Humans have a gene that codes for a molecule called SERT that transports serotonin back into the cell from the synapse, so the more of these molecules a person has, the less serotonin will be available in the synapse to stimulate the other neuron. This is the process of re-uptake that SSRIs are inhibiting. However, depression again does not correlate to the levels of SERT that a person has.
Dr Campbell tells us that SSRIs do work to treat depression, but that the theory of why they do- that they increase available levels of serotonin thus correcting a deficiency- is shown wrong by the evidence, and the actual mechanism by which these drugs work is not known.
Papers referenced in this video include:
5-HIAA as a Potential Biological Marker for Neurological and Psychiatric Disorders
New treatment for depression in this video Dr Campbell talks about the new research and use of psychedelic drugs, including DMT, to treat depression. Psilocybin was found to increase the psycho-motor abilities of older adults. Studies refreneced include:
Magic mushrooms set to become UK’s ultimate weapon against depression
Psilocybin for depression could help brain break out of a rut, scientists say
Psilocybin, in 10mg or 25mg doses, has no short- or long-term detrimental effects in healthy people
The therapeutic potential of microdosing psychedelics in depression
Specific Symptoms and Conditions:
Addiction and substance abuse
The Best Explanation of Addiction I’ve Ever Heard – Dr. Gabor Maté
Addiction is not a choice, moral failure, or disease, it is caused by human suffering. It is an attempt to escape suffering that has resulted from trauma that has not been addressed. What people need to end their addictions is help to heal their trauma. Addictions are the result of people trying to deal with problems that they don't know how to fix.
Shifting the conversation about substance use disorder with Bobby Mukkamala, MD
This is a podcast about harm reduction, a strategy to help people with substance use disorder avoid the worst outcomes before they achieve recovery.
Everything you think you know about addiction is wrong
Alice in Wonderland Syndrome: The People Who Can't Comprehend Space and Time
Alogia is when a person has trouble speaking or carrying on a conversation.
Anhedonia is a symptom of some mental health conditions in which a person either feels less enjoyment or no enjoyment at all from things that used to bring them joy or pleasure. It can occur as part of some mental health conditions, most notably depression, but can also be a side effect of some medications used to treat psychiatric conditions.
Asociality is the lack of motivation to engage socially.
Avolition is the complete lack of motivation to do anything, including basic things such as getting out of bed or standing up from the couch. It is the inability to act as if paralyzed by apathy. People with avolition may miss important events, leave bills unpaid, not keep up with hygiene or chores. It is hypothesized to result from low dopamine levels and can be a side effect of some medications (antipsychotics?).
The Science & Treatment of Bipolar Disorder | Huberman Lab Podcast #82
(Long, but excellent current information about Bipolar Disorder and treatment)
Conversion Disorder/Somatiform Disorder is a very controversial subject in the chronic illness community. Many chronically ill people feel that it is used to minimize or dismiss their symptoms and the fact that they are sick at all. This video explains the concept well When Dissociation Gets Physical . I'm posting this because I think it's important to be informed so that you can best advocate for yourself, not because I'm endorsing it.
Cyclothymia (a subcategory of Bipolar Disorder)
Dysthimia (often called "high functioning" depression)
Eating Disorders (see this post)
Flat Affect (in schizophrenia)
Hallucinations
Hypervigilance resulting from childhood trauma and C-PTSD
Intrusive Thoughts: Psychologist Answers Your Questions
bipolar episode caught on tape | manic night
Nightmare Disorder
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder Science of How OCD Works
The Orbital Cortex, a part of the frontal lobe, is the part of the brain that senses whether you've made a mistake or done a task correctly. Experiments in monkeys established that the orbital cortex is very active when it detects that something is not right. The next brain region involved is the cingulate gyrus which causes a state of anxiety in order to keep your attention on the perceived mistake. Once you have either corrected the error or established that the task actually was done properly, the caudate nucleus allows you to move on and focus on another task without being preoccupied about the mistake. These 3 brain regions are over-active in people with OCD. The feeling that something is wrong is much more intense for them and can be about something that seems like a trivial detail to other people. They then feel compelled to repeatedly attempt to correct whatever the perceived error is, often repetitively, trying to make that intense discomfort go away. The understanding of this process has led to the development of a type of behavioral therapy in which the person with OCD reminds themself that the strong compulsion that they feel to try to "fix" an obsessive worry is just a brain state and there is no actual risk if they don't give in to it. Compulsions are so powerful that a person will start by delaying the compulsion for a short period of time, and then extending that to a longer and longer time period until they are able to not do the compulsion at all. This process is explained in detail in the book "Brain Lock" by Dr. Jeffrey Schwartz.
Panic Attacks are "a sudden onset of intense anxiety" (quotes are from linked video). Symptoms come on suddenly and become intense within minutes, at least 4 symptoms must be present to qualify. Symptoms include heart palpitations (when you can feel your heart beating in your chest) and/or racing heartbeat, chest pain, sweating, trembling or shaking, shortness of breath or other difficulty breathing, choking, chest pain, nausea or abdominal pain, dizziness, lightheadedness, feeling unsteady, feeling hot or having chills, numbness or tingling, derealization (when things around you don't seem real), depersonalization (feeling detached from yourself, feeling like you are "going crazy" or dying,
Panic Disorder (also from above link) is when a person has repeated panic attacks that can cause serious ongoing distress, and a person may avoid people and situations that they fear will trigger a panic attack. Panic attacks can be part of other mental health disorders, such as depression, and are sometimes medication side effects. Body vigilance is when a person is hyper aware of sensations in their body and afraid that those symptoms indicate physical illness (which they can, more often than the medical profession understands) can predispose someone to having panic attacks.
PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder)
What is the Difference Between Acute Stress Disorder and Posttraumatic Stress Disorder?
Psychosis
What is Psychosis?
How to Talk to a Delusional Person
What are Misidentification Delusions? | Why do people see strangers in the mirror?
What are Depression and Bipolar with Psychotic Features?
Brief Psychotic Disorder
This is caused by a drop in progesterone, which results when no fertilized egg embeds in the uterus, which occurs 1 to 2 weeks before your period starts. Progesterone is converted to another hormone called Allopregnenalone, which binds to GABA A receptors. This is the same receptor that alcohol and benzodiazepines bind to and decreases anxiety and depression. For women who are more sensitive to the drop in progesterone it can feel like going into withdrawal from alcohol or benzos. Diagnosis of PMDD is done based on a diary of symptoms (which you can download here). The most common treatment is with SSRIs (Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors) which help in several ways. SSRIs increase the amount of available serotonin, but they also speed up the conversion of progesterone to allopregnenalone which also helps.
Schizophrenia
Schizophrenia: The Most Horrifying Mental Illness
I’m Not Sick, I Don’t Need Help! | Dr. Xavier Amador | TEDxOrientHarbor
Schizoaffective Disorder, Schizophrenia, and the spectrum of psychosis-related disorders
How Paranoid Schizophrenia Impacts My Life - A Day in the Life
AFTER WINTER : A Real Life Schizophrenia Treatment Story
My Story | Living with Schizophrenia
Cecilia's Life with Schizophrenia (Living with Hallucinations)
I Am Not A Monster: Schizophrenia | Cecilia McGough | TEDxPSU
Catatonic Schizophrenia
Schizophrenia May Be an Autoimmune Condition
Personality Disorders
What are personality disorders?
What Everyone Can Learn From Personality Disorder Treatments | Dr Lois Choi-Kain
My Friend with Borderline Personality Disorder
What It's Like to Live With Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD)
An Interview with a Sociopath (Antisocial Personality Disorder)
A Scientist's Journey Through Psychopathy
Living life as a fully functional sociopath ASPD
Covert Narcissism (by Darren Magee)
Vindictive Narcissism (by Darren Magee)
The Key to Treating Malignant Narcissism - FRANK YEOMANS
