Shawn Achor: The happy secret to better work – YouTube

Posted on February 9, 2012 by

Here embedded is a brief talk by Shawn Achor, author of the Happiness Advantage.  He gives a quick overview of such principles as focusing on health rather than illness, meditation, acts of kindness, journaling about gratitude, and exercise.  An enjoyable and fast-moving presentation concerning  positive psychology.   Happy Secret to Better Work.

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Stopping Self-Harm Urges Using Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) | Bipolar Burble | Natasha Tracy | Writer

Posted on February 1, 2012 by

I’m posting from Natasha Tracy’s blog the following, with the thought that this is basic but useful information concerning DBT and avoiding self-harm.

Self-Harm Avoidance Techniques

T – Change your body temperature to change your autonomic nervous system (the part of your body that handles unconscious functions like breathing and heart rate)

Take advantage of your dive reflex, seen when you dive into cold water. Hold your breath and submerge your face into ice water or hold cold packs up to your face. It’s important that you get the eye socket area and under the eye cold.

Warm your body to relax. Soak in a warm bath or put your feet in hot water.

I – Intensely exercise to calm down a body revved up by stress and emotions.

Engage in intense exercise even if only for a short time

Expend your body’s pent up energy and strength by running, walking fast, walking up stairs, playing basketball, weightlifting, etc.

P – Progressively relax your muscles. (There are many relaxation and meditation techniques that work to do this.)

Starting with your hands and moving to your forearms, upper arms, shoulders, neck, forehead, eyes, cheeks and lips, tongue and teeth, chest, upper back, stomach, buttocks, thighs, calves, ankles and feet – tense for 10 seconds the relax each muscle and move onto the next.

Putting Self-Harm Avoidance Techniques into Practice

Only you can stop your own self-harm. You have to trust that some of these techniques are going to work for you but you have to actually do them for them to work. You have to want to stop your self-harm. You have to reach out to others. You have to get help. You can stop self-harming, but you have to do the work to make it happen.

Note: TIP self-harm avoidance techniques provided by local DBT practitioners.

via Stopping Self-Harm Urges Using Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) | Bipolar Burble | Natasha Tracy | Writer.

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Prognosis with bipolar label is worsened with drug treatment – National health | Examiner.com

Posted on January 25, 2012 by

Is bipolar disorder over-diagnosed?  Are too many people prescribed medication to treat bipolar disorder?  I’m no expert in diagnosis and demographics, but it seems so to me. Harold Mandel, MD provides an insightful perspective on bipolar treatment below.  His view may be controversial, but what do you think?

Bipolar disorder has become a trendy diagnostic entity. However, in spite of the wide appeal of the over-glamorization of this entity in the tabloids which have run scores of stories about the extremely popular singer Britney Spears who it is said has been diagnosed as suffering from this disorder, it should be kept in mind that it is not a joke to be hit with this label which can in itself be very damaging.

Keeping in mind that there are actually no biological markers for the myriad of diagnoses of the psychiatrists as pointed out by the Citizens Commission on Human Rights, and that Britney may have in fact therefore never suffered from such a disorder whose existence must in itself be placed in question, nevertheless she is a very lucky young woman whose presence as a Hollywood singer has opened up opportunities for her to flourish in life and to become independently wealthy in an industry which obviously does not respect psychiatric labeling and associated discrimination.

If Britney, as clearly a warm person and talented performer, characteristics which in themselves make one wonder who is responsible for having labeled her with bipolar disorder, was not well known in Hollywood circles it is possible she would be living a lonely, isolated, and poverty stricken life today. As Jim Gottstein, JD, the founder of PsychRights has pointed out in his blog post “Diagnosing Dangers” in Mad in America “People with such labels can immediately lose their jobs and essentially become unemployable. They often become social outcasts, that has been described as ‘social death.’”

Another serious problem for people labeled with bipolar disorder aside from the painful stigmatization is the drug treatments themselves which generally make things worse for the patients. The negative effects of drug treatment on people labeled with bipolar disorder are discussed on the Mad in America Blog. It is pointed out that prior to 1955, bipolar illness was considered a rare disorder. In 1955 there were only 12,750 people hospitalized with that disorder. Furthermore, there were only about 2,400 “first admissions” for bipolar illness yearly in the country’s mental hospitals. And outcomes were relatively good too. It was found that seventy-five percent or so of the first-admission patients would recover within 12 months. And over the long-term, only about 15% of all first-admission patients would become chronically ill, and 70% to 85% of the patients would have good outcomes, which meant they worked and had active social lives.

Today, it is said that bipolar illness affects one in every 40 adults in the United States. This rare disorder has become a very common diagnosis. There are many reasons for this. First, many drugs, both illicit and legal, can set off manic episodes, and therefore usage of those drugs leads many to a bipolar diagnosis. Second, the diagnostic boundaries of bipolar illness have been excessively broadened. It has been found In a large NIMH study, “the major predictor of worse outcome was antidepressant use.” The patients put on antidepressants were nearly four times more likely than the non-exposed patients to develop rapid-cycling, and twice as likely to have multiple manic or depressive episodes.

Researchers have noted that “in the era prior to pharmacotherapy, poor outcome in mania was considered a relatively rare occurrence . . . however, modern outcome studies have found that a majority of bipolar patients evidence high rates of functional impairment.” In their discussion of this deterioration in outcomes, they concluded that “medication-induced changes” may be at least partly responsible. And Harvard researchers have observed that “prognosis for bipolar disorder was once considered relatively favorable, but contemporary findings suggest that disability and poor outcomes are prevalent.” They have noted that “neuropharmacological-neurotoxic factors” might be causing “cognitive deficits in bipolar disorder patients.” Clearly a purist Natural Mental Health Care approach to the prevention and treatment of what is labeled as mental illness should be given consideration as the best approach.

The Harold Mandel, MD Natural Mental Health Care Reform Association

via Prognosis with bipolar label is worsened with drug treatment – National health | Examiner.com.

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Can We gain Authentic Happiness through Positive Psychology?

Posted on January 24, 2012 by
by schoendell

Happy as a Child

A lot of attention is paid to the psychology of pathological mental illness, but not much attention is paid to the psychology of improving our human condition.  I read multiple blogs and many just make me want to shoot myself (figuratively).  Cutters, depressives, borderlines with horrid relationships, bipolars cycling rapidly through mood swings, neurotics, psychotics (well, not so many psychotics);  I  sometimes do get frustrated that serious self-mutilators cannot seem to make the commitment to not kill themselves, and thus engage in less harmful alternative behaviors.  Living a life that responds to negative thoughts and feelings by playing cat and mouse with suicide seems the penultimate of living a good life. But here we all are,  orbiting out here in the blogosphere, orbiting something.

Whatever we’re orbiting, it doesn’t seem to be a pleasant life, nor a particularly gratifying  or meaningful life. We, along with a multitude of mental health workers, seem to be orbiting the star of symptom management.  It’s like managing diabetes, or blood pressure…no cures, just minimizing symptoms.  Seriously, is this all there is?  Is this as good as it gets?

So I found it refreshing to stumble upon a perspective focused on finding authentic happiness rather than on minimizing necessary pain.  Ever a fan of free apps, and always on the lookout for ways to use my Motorola Xoom tablet and HTC Android phone for writing, I downloaded from the Android Market a product called “I Journal,” which prompts journaling in several positive categories. I Journal works in conjunction with Catch Notes, one of the leading free notepad apps on Android. You will be prompted to download from the Market it if you do not already have it installed.

Parenthetically, my experience with Catch Notes has been positive: It’s free unless you upgrade to pro, it doesn’t track marketing information about you like Springpad does, and it’s faster than Evernote.  Being somewhat of an app junkie I use Springpad and Evernote as well as Catch Notes, but each for a different “compartment” of activity.  More on that in a later blog.

I Journal is based on Shawn Achor’s book, The Happiness Advantage, which I found somewhat derivative yet useful, but then I learned that Achor’s book was actually rooted in the work of Martin Seligman, Ph.D., formerly the president of the American Psychological Association.  Seligman is regarded as the “father of positive psychology.”

Seligman’s signature book, Authentic Happiness, is well worth reading.  And there’s a good chance many of you reading this blog are surprised that I didn’t know this before now.   Anyway,  Seligman does a nice job of reviewing literature and research (including his own research concerning “learned helplessness”) to reach a number of conclusions about key factors that contribute to a person’s happiness and general performance in life.  I found most of his conclusions to be humble and credible.

Particularly helpful in Seligman’s work is his description of specific behaviors and activities that are documented to contribute to a person’s positive mental state and lead to a pleasant, a gratifying, and, ultimately, a meaningful life.  A person would do well to read this material, think about it, and, where appropriate, apply it.

Web-based information related to Seligman’s principles can be found at his website  Authentic Happiness.

Posted in Achor, Art, borderline personality disorder, Happiness, I Journal, journaling, Seligman | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Narcissism Isn’t a Yellow Daffodil

Posted on July 12, 2011 by

We know the tale of Narcissus, the lovely young man walking the wooded trails who spurned the attractions of one and all, including the delicately beautiful nymph Echo, crushing her sensitive spirit, but thereby incurring the wrath of the powerful Nemesis.  Nemesis caused Narcissus to fall in love with himself, and thus Narcissus pined away to his death, unable to stop gazing at his own reflection in a pool water.

The spurned nymphs treated the young man kindly in his death, but when they sought his body to give it burial they found where it lay instead a lovely flower with yellow-golden blossoms, and gave it the boy’s name, Narcissus.  Now we call them Daffodils.

Most people probably recognize that narcissistic individuals seem to have a preoccupation with themselves, but that’s not the half of it.

The rest of the story is told in the lives of people within their sphere of narcissistic influence.  Imagine a three-year-old child (at the age when they are still at the center of their  universe but are aware of others)  in the body of a full-grown adult and with authority over other people.  Everyone exists to serve the adult child, and the child serves no one.  No such thing as sharing here.

The profound inability of a narcissist to show empathy for others, or to relate another individuals needs or feelings can be so extreme that it can appear to be organic, as if from some sort of brain injury or dysfunction.

Somewhere I read that narcissistic people tend to look younger than their years, presumably because the tribulations of others never touch them.  It’s not that they’re tough like army boots, it’s because they actually just don’t care.  One derivation of the term “Narcissus” is related to “narcotic,” which in Greek means, in essence, “to numb.” So in a way a Narcissist is immune to the pain of others.  Your problems may as well be occurring in the galaxy Andromeda.  They don’t affect the narcissist personally, so they don’t matter unless they affect something the narcissist needs from you.

On the other hand, a narcissist’s reaction to personal criticism, rejections, or perceived slights may be catastrophic.  Rage would not be out of the question, nor deep shame or humiliation.  But first the narcissist would probably focus intensely on why it’s not his or but fault, but yours.

I knew a politician once with many narcissistic traits.  I’ll call her Phoebe.  A friend invited Phoebe to a local judge’s dinner, an invitation to which she did not rsvp.  The evening of the dinner, Phoebe arrived late, and demanded to be set at the head table.  There was not room, and when the friend tried to set a place at the next table, Phoebe stormed off with angry profanities about everyone’s incompetence under her breath and a great stomping and clacking of high heels on the tile floors as she made her way out.  Obviously, the sense of entitlement is a little over-the-top.

People in relationships with narcissists will have a difficult time of it, unless they are ready to be subjugated and ready to have their own needs disregarded.

I have read warnings that it may be dangerous to simply walk away from a narcissist.  That rage of rejection could result in bad things including stalking or assault.  But at some point such a decision may be required.

Narcissists, too, provoke a little rage.  The accusatory, blaming style of interactions and the shutting people off “with valves or stone” can elicit from the recipient a few angry, even homicidal, thoughts.

Can narcissism be changed?  Perhaps with plenty of talk therapy and training in empathy, inroads can be made, but it is doubtful.  Here is a link to suggestions on dealing with a narcissistic person.

I am haunted by the last image of the tale of Narcissus.  It is told that as his spirit crossed the the river that encircles the world of the dead, it leaned over the boat to catch one final glimpse of itself in the water.

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Government Mental Health Agencies in the U.S.: Worthless?

Posted on June 16, 2011 by

Today, hundreds of thousands of mentally ill persons are in poverty, homeless, living in the streets, in jails, and in prisons. All this, despite the fact that one federal agency, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMSHA) receives $3.6 billion annually to do “something” about mental illness in this country.

Apparently, SAMSHA, along with  state government mental health departments, actually do next to nothing to help serious mental illness, such as bipolar disorder and schizophrenia.  The real answer to improving mental health care in this country is…well…get rid of these agencies.

A Huffington Post article argues that eliminating mental health agencies in order to improve care for people with mental illness is counterintuitive, but exactly what is needed.

For example, New York City subsumed its Department of Mental Health under the Health Department in 1999. The old Department of Mental Health was suffering unmitigated mission creep, spending vast sums on social programs and programs to help the worried-well, and little on serious mental illness. Voters said “enough” and decided to end the endless mission creep by putting mental illness under health. The medical orientation of the health department was the right prescription for the city’s mentally ill.

Now, the Treatment Advocacy Center Founder Calls for Abolition of SAMHSA.

Research psychiatrist and Treatment Advocacy Center founder E. Fuller Torrey has called for federal budget cutters to abolish the agency that supposedly sees that mental health and addiction services are delivered to those who need them the most. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), Dr. Torrey writes in the June 20 issue of National Review, “is a federal health agency distinguished by the fact that the health of its clients would improve if it went out of business.”

What “one might think … ” or “you might expect … ” emanates from an agency that claims its mission is reducing the impact of mental illness and addiction on America’s communities is not what is happening, Dr. Torrey says. “One might think,” for example, that SAMHSA would have a major interest in the two most serious mental illnesses – schizophrenia and bipolar disorder – that together affect 7.7 million Americans. Instead, he writes, neither disease is mentioned even once in the 41,804-word text of SAMSHA’s just-released long-range action plan or is the subject of any of the agency’s hundreds of publications.

“One might also expect” SAMHSA to “exhibit concern about the fact that 3.5 million out of the 7.7 million most severely mentally ill individuals in the US are not being treated,” including a small number like Jared Lee Loughner who become dangerous without treatment. Yet SAMHSA funds organizations in several states – including Maine, Vermont, Pennsylvania and California – that have actively opposed proposed changes in state laws designed to make treatment more available for the most seriously mentally ill individuals.

Given SAMHSA’s failure to focus its resources on individuals with serious mental illnesses, Dr. Torrey recommends that the agency be abolished. He suggests that its “few valuable functions,” such as data collection, would be transferred to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) and the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA).

via Treatment Advocacy Center.

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Embedding Newer, More Severe Form of Self-Injury

Posted on June 12, 2011 by

Embedding from Time.com

Embedding, a method of self-injury found mainly among teens, apparently has become a more common occurrence.

Embedding was first recognized around 2007.  Reports say that a student made the original discovery when he was compiling information for a radiology database he was managing concerning “Image Guided Foreign Body Removal”.  This is a technique developed from the battlefield to remove foreign objects such as shrapnel from under the skin with minimal scarring.

The student recognized that some of the injuries were not accidental.  On further study, it was found that a significant number  of the records showed this type of self-injury from 2005 forward.

Reporters assert that self-injurers have low stress tolerance, and use self-harm to, simply put, distract themselves from other emotional pain, to counter feelings of numbness, or to let others know they are suffering.  Some data show 10 to 20 percent of those who have self-injured have embedded something under their skin.  Less than 20 percent of those individuals embedding need medical attention, but the medical attention can be for dangerous infection, damage to arteries, and other life-threatening results of having a foreign objects inserted into the body.

Embedding seems more directly related to the desire for self-harm than to the need to distract from emotional pain or counter feelings of numbness, according to a late report.

Teens tend to learn of this practice through friends, and some hear about it first through the media, raising some question of the efficacy in reporting it.

Embedding can take creative turns, like electrical wires and strange objects, but commonly involves staples in the palms, sometimes paperclips, sometimes lead from pencils inserted into the arm and broken off.

A recent study in “Pediatrics” suggested that of eleven patients studied, between the ages of 14 and 18 – mostly girls- all had bipolar disorder and there was other combinations of post traumatic stress disorder, borderline personality disorder, and attention deficit-hyperactive disorder present.

Reuters provides an interesting summary of this report HERE.

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