When OCD takes a sexual form

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, commonly known as OCD, can be extremely debilitating.  About two percent of adults suffer from this disorder.  In popular media and culture, OCD is often represented as manifesting itself as excessive hand-washing and concern with tidiness.  However, it can also manifest itself in other ways, as is demonstrated in this article and video.

http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/video/2016/apr/27/my-sexual-thoughts-drove-me-mad-then-i-realised-it-was-ocd-video?CMP=share_btn_fb

New Evidence suggests that Freudian-style Dynamic Psychotherapy is more effective than CBT

For those of you who are interested in therapy-outcomes research, there is some new information about the effectiveness of dynamic psychotherapy versus cognitive behavioral therapy.  I was really encouraged by this article since I tend to practice a mix of the two.

https://www.theguardian.com/science/2016/jan/07/therapy-wars-revenge-of-freud-cognitive-behavioural-therapy

Fighting every day Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)

Did you know that getting a song stuck in one's head is one of the most common symptoms of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder?  Here's some practical advice, from the research, for getting that tune out of your head?

A number of Beatles songs have been shown to be among the most annoyingly easy to become obsessive about.  Read this article for more information.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/science/science-news/9950143/Get-that-tune-out-of-your-head-scientists-find-how-to-get-rid-of-earworms.html

How is trauma passed down through the generations?

It's well known that children of trauma survivors often experience secondary trauma-- a kind of stress reaction that is 'caught' by someone, simply by hearing about the original trauma.  A substantial amount of literature, for example, has been written that examined Second Generation Holocaust Survivors.  The children of Holocaust survivors often went on to have a unique constellation that seemed to be related to their parents' trauma. Recent research suggests that our DNA may actually store our memories, and pass them down to our children.  Who knows-- perhaps Jung was correct when he postulated a collective unconscious.DNA transmits memories through generations

A great new podcast!

The hidden brain podcast

I've reviewed this and it looks like it will be phenomenal.  Thanks, NPR!

Individuals do not just suffer with Psychiatric symptoms.  Instead, they have a complex relationship with their symptoms.  A depressed person may both love and feel intimate and secure with the familiar feeling of melancholy, and a person with occasional bouts of psychosis may strongly believe that the perceptions they have are helpful at
times.

What kind of relationship did Robin Williams have with his illness?

I stumbled across this article from the New York Times in my Newsfeed (Zite).  I really enjoy the way it supposes we are individual in our relation to our symptoms (for example, some might find it helpful to receive a diagnostic label whereas others might find it harmful) and that the window to understanding someone is, of course, through relationship.  I have treated numerous people with symptoms they didn't want to change, which to me, has always seemed to be a morally valid and acceptable choice.  Have a look and let me know what you think:

Redefining Mental Illness

When a loved one suffers from mental illness

I found this poignant article on one of my news feeds and want to share it on this site.  Where do you turn, when a loved one becomes mentally ill?  How can you help alleviate suffering, and foster understanding?  This author's take is a frank look at how difficult it can be for the partners of those who have been debilitated by major mental health problems.


When a loved one is hospitalized in a psychiatric unit