Kellevision

"To Hell and Back"

From the University Daily Kansan:

"Thor Nystrom was diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder his sophomore year of high school in Minnesota and prescribed the drug Adderall. When he developed anxiety, a side effect of Adderall, he was prescribed Paxil. The two drugs, mixed with the beer he consumed as a KU freshman, led to behavior that culminated in a fight in a Lawrence parking lot, his arrest and his entry into the mental health system. Using his own medical records, police records, his own diaries, interviews with family and his own recollections, he wrote this account of what he calls his descent into the 'depths of hell,' a journey with an ending that neither he nor his parents saw coming. This is his graduation story."

"If you don't care, at least fake it"

A sociologist friend of mine has posted an article regarded the ins and outs of customer service representatives. 

Lifestyle Modification and Mental "Illness"

Indian Cowboy makes an eloquent argument for the recommendation of lifestyle changes when treating mental health issues.  I've said this numerous times, but it always bears repeating and Indian Cowboy does so eloquently:

APA Complicit in CIA Torture

An article on the Project Censored site, "APA Complicit in CIA Torture" discusses the claim by "Democracy Now!" that American psychologists worked with the military to develop torture methods for prisoners at Guantanamo. 

Top Ten Psychology Videos

I'm not sure I would rate these as my personal top ten, but they are certainly relevant and timely.

Interview with Thomas Szasz, author of "The Myth of Mental Illness"

I found an interesting interview on Reason Online's website:  "Curing the Therapeutic State: Thomas Szasz interviewed by Jacob Sullum. Thomas Szasz on the medicalization of American life."  Szasz had the following to say about the definition of "mental illness" and the medicalization of human behavior:

Is Social Anxiety Disorder just a fancy name for shyness?

Christopher Lane, in his new book, "Shyness:  How Normal Behavior Became a Sickness" discusses how a normal human behavior became a mental illness requiring medical treatment and the process by which this happened. 

Terry Pratchett diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer's

This brilliant author describes the illness and its effects on his life in an audio interview with the BBC. 

"The only normal people are the one's you don't know very well."

From the Austrian psychologist, Alfred Adler.  This is so true.  It reminds me of another quote from Tolstoy in Anna Karenina, "Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way."

Racism in the Mental Health System?

A recent article on Mind Hacks discusses the existence of racism in the mental health systems throughout the world.  From my own experiences I have to wonder if it simple racism or whether it is a lack of cultural competency.