Heart Fitness Improves Brain Health

A new Canadian study suggests exercising to improve cardiovascular fitness may protect individuals from cognitive impairment associated with aging...

 

http://psychcentral.com/news/2014/08/26/heart-fitness-improves-brain-health/74103.html

Reposted by:

Charles R. Davenport, Psy.D.

Licensed Psychologist

Charles R. Davenport, Psy.D., LLC.

Offices: Sarasota, FL and Venice, FL

 

1525 Tamiami Trail S Ste 603 A
Venice, FL 34285

Phone: 941-321-1971

www.drcharlesdavenport.com

 

Specialized Psychotherapy Shown to Help Those with Rheumatoid Arthritis

New research from Wayne State and Duke universities suggests a non-pharmaceutical approach can help individuals cope with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). RA is a serious autoimmune disease that affects one to two percent of adults, a painful condition that can cause disability and joint disfigurement. The disease causes serious stress and can disrupt work, family life, and marital functioning. While many pharmacological advances help some RA patients, residual pain and disability is common. And some patients avoid newer medications due to their high cost or side effects. Because of this, researchers are looking at psychosocial interventions such as cognitive-behavioral therapy...

http://psychcentral.com/news/2014/08/25/specialized-psychotherapy-shown-to-help-those-with-rheumatoid-arthritis/74069.html

 

Reposted by:

Charles R. Davenport, Psy.D.

Licensed Psychologist

Charles R. Davenport, Psy.D., LLC.

Offices: Sarasota, FL and Venice, FL

 

1525 Tamiami Trail S Ste 603 A
Venice, FL 34285

Phone: 941-321-1971

www.drcharlesdavenport.com

 

Eating Disorders May Hike Risk of Autoimmune Disease

Finnish researchers have found that individuals with eating disorders such as anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge eating disorder are at risk of developing specific medical problems. They discovered autoimmune illnesses including type I diabetes and inflammatory bowel diseases (such as Crohn’s disease), were more common among individuals with eating disorders. In the study, published in PLOS ONE, ...

http://psychcentral.com/news/2014/08/27/eating-disorders-may-hike-risk-of-autoimmune-disease/74152.html

Reposted by:

Charles R. Davenport, Psy.D.

Licensed Psychologist

Charles R. Davenport, Psy.D., LLC.

Offices: Sarasota, FL and Venice, FL

 

1525 Tamiami Trail S Ste 603 A
Venice, FL 34285

Phone: 941-321-1971

www.drcharlesdavenport.com

 

Mindfulness Can Aid Those In Early Dementia and Caregivers

An innovative new approach combines mindfulness training for those with early-stage dementia and their caregivers during the same class session. The new report suggests the two-for-one approach is mutually beneficial as both groups reported less depression and improved sleep and quality of life. “The disease is challenging for the affected person, family members, and caregivers,”...

http://psychcentral.com/news/2014/08/27/mindfulness-can-aid-those-in-early-dementia-and-caregivers/74156.html

Reposted by:

Charles R. Davenport, Psy.D.

Licensed Psychologist

Charles R. Davenport, Psy.D., LLC.

Offices: Sarasota, FL and Venice, FL

 

Phone: 941-321-1971

www.drcharlesdavenport.com

 

Talk Less, Listen More to Be the Friend of a Person With Depression

Many people, without thinking, reflexively offer solutions or advice to friends or families when their feeling down or discussing problems in their lives. A recent article in the Wall Street Journal discusses the importance of listening. Frequently, when providing marital counseling, Dr. Davenport helps couples communicate by learning how to listen better. In the article below, from the Wall Street Journal, the importance of talking less and listening more particularly with loved ones who are depressed is outlined.

 

Emotional support offered to someone after a loss or during a depression can be an essential element in the healing process. But it isn't easy to know what to say when a loved one is hurting. Even the most well-intentioned words or gestures can seem to do more harm than good. What is the best way to help someone who is feeling low, struggling emotionally, grieving or perhaps even clinically depressed?...

http://online.wsj.com/articles/talk-less-listen-more-to-be-the-friend-of-a-person-with-depression-1409008450

Reposted by:

 

Charles R. Davenport, Psy.D. 

Licensed Psychologist

Charles R. Davenport, Psy.D. LLC.

Offices Sarasota and Venice

 

Phone: 941-321-1971

www.drcharlesdavenport.com

 

Pediatricians' Rx for schools: Later start times

Sleep is so frequently overlooked. Insufficient sleep can be a significant contributor to depression, anxiety, difficulty with sustained attention or concentration (ADHD), or behavioral problems. Many times these difficulties also interfere with people's ability to get sustained sleep which can exacerbate the problem. For more resources on depression or anxiety please visit my website: www.drcharlesdavenport.com.

 

Pediatricians have a new prescription for schools: later start times for teens.

Delaying the start of the school day until at least 8:30 a.m. would help curb their lack of sleep, which has been linked with poor health, bad grades, car crashes and other problems, the American Academy of Pediatrics says in a new policy.

The influential group says teens are especially at risk; for them, "chronic sleep loss has increasingly become the norm."

Studies have found that most U.S. students in middle school and high school don't get the recommended amount of sleep — 8½ to 9½ hours on school nights; and that most high school seniors get an average of less than seven hours.

More than 40 percent of the nation's public high schools start classes before 8 a.m., according to government data cited in the policy. And even when the buzzer rings at 8 a.m., school bus pickup times typically mean kids have to get up before dawn if they want that ride...

 

http://www.heraldtribune.com/article/20140825/wire/140829813

 

Reposted by:

 

Charles R. Davenport, Psy.D. 

Licensed Psychologist

Charles R. Davenport, Psy.D. LLC.

Offices Sarasota and Venice

 

Phone: 941-321-1971

www.drcharlesdavenport.com

 

New Trend: Police Radical Approach To Mental Illness: Treat It; "Smart Justice"

Thanks to Dr. Thomas Kirchberg, VA psychologist, for updating us on these 

developments of the endorsement 2700 communities across the country.

San Antonio's program is based on the Memphis Model that originated in
Memphis, TN and is now in some 2700 communities across the US. You can
find a wealth of information, an interactive map, and articles on the
Memphis Model Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) at:
http://cit.memphis.edu/

*Kaiser Health News* includes an article: "San Antonio Police Have
Radical Approach To Mental Illness: Treat It" by Jenny Gold.

Here are some excerpts:

[begin excerpts]

It's almost 4 p.m., and Officers Ernest Stevens and Ned Bandoske have
been driving around town in their black unmarked SUV since early this
morning.

The officers are part of San Antonio's mental health squad - a
six-person unit that answers the frequent emergency calls where mental
illness may be an issue.

The officers spot a call for help on their laptop from a group home
across town.

"A male individual put a blanket on fire this morning, he's arguing with
them, and is a danger to himself and others, he's off his medications,"
Stevens reads from the blotter.

A few minutes later, the SUV pulls up in front of the group home in a
run-down part of the city.

A thin 24-year-old sits on a wooden bench in a concrete lot out back,
wearing a black hoodie.

<snip>

"You're Mason?" asks Bandoske. "What happened to your blanket?"

Eight years ago, a person like Mason would have been heading to the
emergency room or jail next.

But the jail in Bexar County, Texas, where San Antonio is located, was
so overcrowded - largely with people with serious mental illnesses -
that the state was getting ready to levy fines.

To deal with the problem, San Antonio and Bexar County have completely
overhauled their mental health system into a program considered a model
for the rest of the nation.

Today, the jails are under capacity, and the city has saved $50 million
over the past five  years.

The effort has focused on an idea called "smart justice" - basically,
diverting people with serious mental illness out of jail and into
treatment instead.

It is possible because all the players in the system that deal with
mental illness -- the police, the county jail, mental health department,
criminal courts, hospitals and homeless programs - pooled their
resources to take better care of people with mental illness.

<snip>

Across the country, jails hold 10 times as many people with serious
mental illnesses as state hospitals, according to a recent report from
The Treatment Advocacy Center, a national nonprofit that lobbies for
treatment options for people with mental illness.

<snip>

"We had absolutely no training 20 years ago in the police academy on how
to deal with mental health disturbances," recalls Stevens.

Back then, Bandoske adds, police responded to mental health emergencies
the way they would to any other call: They used the tough guy command
voice they're taught to handle criminals.

"Police are notorious for the A personality type. They walk into a
situation. They gain control of it. It's their call now. They're in
charge,"
he says.

And more often than not, the officers ended up taking people like Mason
with serious mental to jail.

"They would be arresting them for just minor misdemeanor offenses such
as trespassing or criminal mischief or just disturtype
calls,"
says Stevens.

The other option was to take the person to a hospital emergency room.

But in San Antonio, the police were waiting an average of 12 to 14 hours
in the hospital until the person could to be triaged; that often made
jail seem like a much more appealing option.

"You can book somebody in the jail in 20, 30, 45 minutes tops,
especially if you have a partner to help share the paperwork load, and
then you're back out on the streets," says Bandoske.

The police were arresting the same people over and over again; many not
only had a serious mental illness but were also addicted to drugs or
alcohol and were often homeless.

And whether they went to the jail or the ER, it was expensive for
everyone -- the jails, the hospitals and the police department that had
to pay for overtime while cops waited at the hospital.

And it meant that fewer police were available to work the streets.

San Antonio's response was to require all officers to take a 40-hour
course called Crisis Intervention Training,- to learn how to handle
mental health crises, like the one with Mason.

The course includes visits from families of people with mental illness,
who come in to tell their stories.

And while some officers, like Bandoske and Stevens, specialize in mental
health, all learn de-escalation techniques and how best to interact with
someone in a state of psychosis.

The effort to train police to handle mental health emergencies is
gaining steam across the country.

Fifteen percent of police departments nationwide offer the program.

But even with strong programs, there's only so much that training alone
can do; there's still the problem of where to take patients like Mason,
other than jail or an emergency department.

San Antonio tackled that problem, too.

"I'll be honest with you.  When it first came out, I was very skeptical.
I thought, well this is ridiculous. If somebody's breaking the law, if
they're public intoxication, they should go to jail," says Bandoske.

People who commit a felony still go to jail, regair mental
status.

And those who need extensive medical care are still taken to the
hospital.

But for patients like Mason, San Antonio built another option: the
Restoration Center - a totally separate facility with a 16-bed psych
unit, a medical clinic and a "sobering room" where police can drop off
people who are intoxicated.

The Restoration Center was built with cops in mind to allow them to drop
off their charges as quickly as possible.

There's a work station for paperwork, free coffee and a nurse available
to provide medical clearance for people who are arrested, even those
without a mental illness, to save the police a trip to the ER whenever
possible.

The center is saving the police department at least $600,000 a year in
overtime pay.

[end excerpts]

Reposted by:

Charles R. Davenport, Psy.D. 

Licensed Psychologist

Charles R. Davenport, Psy.D. LLC.

Offices Sarasota and Venice

Phone: 941-321-1971

www.drcharlesdavenport.com

A New Key to Understanding Depression

New research looks at the possible link between inflammation and depression. Previous research has shown a connection between irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), migraine headaches, and other autoimmune disorders and peoples emotional regulation system being overwhelmed. Frequently, patients all ages seek therapy or counseling to address symptoms of anxiety, depression, or both anxiety and depression. Slowly pushing down uncomfortable emotions, over time, can contribute to relationship difficulties as well as intensification of other health problems.

http://time.com/3108739/depression-cause-inflammation/

Reposted by:

Dr. Charles R. Davenport

Licensed Psychologist

Charles R. Davenport, Psy.D., LLC.

Offices: Sarasota, FL and Venice, FL

Phone: 941-321-1971

www.drcharlesdavenport.com

Prenatal exposure to selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors and social responsiveness symptoms of autism: population-based study of young children

The new issue of *British Journal of Psychiatry* includes an article:

"Prenatal exposure to selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors and social responsiveness symptoms of autism: population-based study of young children."

 

The authors are Hanan El Marroun, Tonya J. H. White, Noortje J. F. van der Knaap, Judith R. Homberg, Guillen Fernandez, Nikita K. Schoemaker, Vincent W. V. Jaddoe, Albert Hofman, Frank C. Verhulst, James J. Hudziak, Bruno H.

C. Stricker and Henning Tiemeier.

 

Here's the abstract:

 

[begin abstract]

 

Background

 

Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are considered safe and are frequently used during pregnancy. However, two case-control studies suggested an association between prenatal SSRI exposure with childhood autism.

 

Aims

 

To prospectively determine whether intra-uterine SSSRI exposure is associated with childhood autistic symptoms in a population-based study.

 

Method

 

A total of 376 children prenatally exposed to maternal depressive symptoms (no SSRI exposure), 69 children prenatally exposed to SSRIs and 5531 unexposed children were included. Child pervasive developmental and affective problems were assessed by parental report with the Child Behavior Checklist at ages 1.5, 3 and 6. At age 6, we assessed autistic traits using the Social Responsiveness Scale (n = 4264).

 

Results

 

Prenatal exposure to maternal depressive symptoms without SSRIs was related to both pervasive developmental (odds ratio (OR) = 1.44, 95% CI 1.07-1.93) and affective problems (OR = 1.44, 95% CI 1.15-1.81). Compared with unexposed children, those prenatally exposed to SSRIs also were at higher risk for developing pervasive developmental problems (OR = 1.91, 95% CI 1.13-3.47), but not for affective problems. Children prenatally exposed to SSRIs also had more autistic traits (B = 0.15, 95% CI 0.08-0.22) compared with those exposed to depressive symptoms only.

 

Conclusions

 

Our results suggest an association between prenatal SSRI exposure and autistic traits in children. Prenatal depressive symptoms without SSRI use were also associated with autistic traits, albeit this was weaker and less specific. Long-term drug safety trials are needed before evidence-based recommendations are possible.

 

[end abstract]

 

Reprints:  Henning Tiemeier, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Erasmus Medical Centre, Sophia Children's Hospital, Rotterdam, 3000 CB, The Netherlands. Email: h.tiemeier@erasmusmc.nl

 

Reposted by:

Charles R. Davenport, Psy.D.

Licensed Psychologist

Charles R. Davenport, Psy.D., LLC.

Offices: Sarasota, FL and Venice, FL

 

Phone: 941-321-1971

www.drcharlesdavenport.com

 

Awkward! The tough transition to middle school

Many parents and teens are anxious about the start of middle school...

 

http://www.cnn.com/2014/08/18/living/middle-school-tough-transition-teens-parents/

 

Reposted by:

Charles R. Davenport, Psy.D.

Licensed Psychologist

Charles R. Davenport, Psy.D., LLC.

Offices: Sarasota, FL and Venice, FL

 

Phone: 941-321-1971

www.drcharlesdavenport.com

 

Healthy Lifestyle Reduces Cell Aging Related to Stress; Healthy Diet, Sleep, & Exercise Can Mitigate Negative Impacts of Stress

The University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) issued the following news 

release:

Healthy Lifestyle May Buffer Against Stress-Related Cell Aging

UC San Francisco Study Suggests Healthy Diet, Sleep and Exercise Can
Mitigate Negative Impacts of Stress

A new study from UC San Francisco is the first to show that while the impact
of life's stressors accumulate overtime and accelerate cellular aging, these
negative effects may be reduced by maintaining a healthy diet, exercising
and sleeping well.

"The study participants who exercised, slept well and ate well had less
telomere shortening than the ones who didn't maintain healthy lifestyles,
even when they had similar levels of stress," said lead author Eli Puterman,
PhD, assistant professor in the department of psychiatry at UCSF.

"It's very important that we promote healthy living, especially under
circumstances of typical experiences of life stressors like death,
caregiving and job loss."

The paper will be published in Molecular Psychiatry, a peer-reviewed science
journal by Nature Publishing Group.

Telomeres are the protective caps at the ends of chromosomes that affect how
quickly cells age.

They are combinations of DNA and proteins that protect the ends of
chromosomes and help them remain stable. As they become shorter, and as
their structural integrity weakens, the cells age and die quicker. Telomeres
also get shorter with age.

In the study, researchers examined three healthy behaviors -physical
activity, dietary intake and sleep quality - over the course of one year in
239 post-menopausal, non-smoking women.

The women provided blood samples at the beginning and end of the year for
telomere measurement and reported on stressful events that occurred during
those 12 months.

In women who engaged in lower levels of healthy behaviors, there was a
significantly greater decline in telomere length in their immune cells for
every major life stressor that occurred during the year.

Yet women who maintained active lifestyles, healthy diets, and good quality
sleep appeared protected when exposed to stress - accumulated life stressors
did not appear to lead to greater shortening.

"This is the first study that supports the idea, at least observationally,
that stressful events can accelerate immune cell aging in adults, even in
the short period of one year.

Exciting, though, is that these results further suggest that keeping active,
and eating and sleeping well during periods of high stress are particularly
important to attenuate the accelerated aging of our immune cells," said
Puterman.

In recent years, shorter telomeres have become associated with a broad range
of aging-related diseases, including stroke, vascular dementia,
cardiovascular disease, obesity, osteoporosis diabetes, and many forms of
cancer.

Research on telomeres, and the enzyme that makes them, telomerase, was
pioneered by three Americans, including UCSF molecular biologist and
co-author Elizabeth Blackburn, PhD. Blackburn co-discovered the telomerase
enzyme in 1985. The scientists received the Nobel Prize in Physiology or
Medicine in 2009 for their work.

"These new results are exciting yet observational at this point. They do
provide the impetus to move forward with interventions to modify lifestyle
in those experiencing a lot of stress, to test whether telomere attrition
can truly be slowed," said Blackburn.

Co-authors include senior author Elissa Epel, PhD, department of psychiatry,
Jue Lin, PhD, department of biochemistry and biophysics, both of UCSF and
Jeffrey Krauss, MD, division of physical medicine and rehabilitation at
Stanford University.

 Reposted by:

Charles R. Davenport, Psy.D. 

Licensed Psychologist

Charles R. Davenport, Psy.D. LLC.

Offices Sarasota and Venice

941-321-1971

www.drcharlesdavenport.com

V.A. Psychologists At Forefront of Moral Injury Studies

The Minneapolis *Star-Tribune* includes an article:"Minneapolis VA studies 

invisible scars from combat;cResearchers at the Minneapolis VA probe whether
killing in combat leaves lasting spiritual wounds" by Jeremy Olson.

Here are some excerpts:

[begin excerpt]

Those kinds of deadly wartime encounters -- and their imprints on soldiers'
consciences -- are the focus of a new movement among military medical
researchers to study "moral injuries," the invisible scars on soldiers who
believe they have committed condemnable acts.

Psychologists at the VA Medical Center in Minneapolis are at the forefront
of the work, helping to define moral injury, examining how it aggravates
mental disorders, and testing whether an experimental form of group therapy
can heal such wounds of the spirit.

A study of survey results for 814 Minnesota National Guard members who
served in Iraq over the past decade showed that those who experienced moral
injury had higher levels of depression and post-traumatic stress disorder
(PTSD).

Moral injury generally refers to any type of guilt, shame, or depression
that arises from actions that may have violated deeply held beliefs. But for
this study, which was presented at the Minneapolis VA Medical Center last
month, soldiers met the criteria if they killed in combat, felt their
actions were unforgivable, and believed that God had abandoned them.

The lack of resiliency among soldiers who met this definition was alarming,
said Dr. Irene Harris, the VA psychologist leading the research.

"Basically, [they feel] at my spiritual functioning level, I don't think I
belong here in the world. I'm not worth it. I have a sense that I should not
be here.''

The moral consequences of war on the individual psyche have been examined
for centuries; the ancient Indian poem Mahabharata and the 4th-century
writings of St. Augustine asked when warriors were justified in killing and
warfare.

The term moral injury wasn't outlined until 2009, though, when researchers
at the VA's National Center for PTSD in Boston found evidence of
long-lasting impairment in soldiers who had used lethal force or
participated in wartime atrocities.

Moral injury doesn't always result from acts committed, Harris said.

In some cases, inaction can leave equally deep scars.

<snip>

Part of confronting moral injury, Harris said, is persuading returning
soldiers to let go of the guilt they have literally mounted on themselves
during deployments as a defense mechanism against the terrors they face.

"They will convince themselves that a horrible situation was their fault. 'I
didn't use my combat skills well enough and my buddy died,' " Harris said.

"It gets them through that situation without feeling helpless. But the price
when they get home -- using a false sense of guilt to try and stay in
control -- that eats them alive."

Clinical trial

Healing that spiritual distress is the goal of an ongoing clinical trial at
the Minneapolis VA involving 150 veterans with PTSD.

Half are being placed in standard group therapy at area churches and
community -centers, and half are attending -sessions with specific spiritual
components.

An earlier pilot study by Harris found the spiritually based group therapy
to be safe.

Now the goal is to find out if the sessions that focus on spirituality cause
greater reductions in guilt, shame and spiritual distress.

A religious conflict isn't necessarily at the root of moral injury, but it
is a common one when considering that 90 percent of veterans believe in a
higher power.

Harris said her survey research from the National Guard showed moral injury
among soldiers from different faiths, though she declined to identify
whether it appeared more problematic among any particular religious or
demographic group.

"I would not want that to be misinterpreted," she said.

Timm, the National Guard chaplain, said he will never forget the looks in
the eyes of the two soldiers who had shot the unarmed driver in Iraq in
2006.

<snip>

In counseling these soldiers, Timm said, it was sometimes necessary to
simply move past the question of whether the killing in combat was just.

In the Christian tradition, he noted, God forgives those who ask for
forgiveness.

"You guys have heard that before," he recalled telling the soldiers in Iraq.
"but it's going to have to sink in at a whole new level, isn't it?"

Now, supervising the seven chaplains serving Minnesota Guard units, Timm
said he has become more deliberate as he counsels soldiers preparing for
deployments.

Military training by nature has a way of desensitizing troops to the use of
lethal force almost of necessity.

Trainers might use the term "kinetic military action" rather than terms such
as killing or lethal force.

This helps soldiers prepare for war, and the reflexive need to use lethal
force to carry out missions and protect themselves.

But sometimes -soldiers overlook hard questions about whether their beliefs
are consistent with those duties.

Advising a group of Minnesota Guard members before their 2012 deployment to
a detention camp in Afghanistan, Timm asked the soldiers to contemplate what
they would do if a prisoner tried to harm them, and how they would feel
afterward.

"Whatever your faith tradition is," he remembered telling them, "you had
better be able to handle the life and death stuff."

Clergy trained to gain trust

The Minnesota National Guard was a leader, nationally, with its Yellow
Ribbon program to help soldiers return from deployments to their jobs,
families and communities.

That campaign also now trains local clergy on counseling returning soldiers
and gaining their trust. Timm and Major Buddy Winn -- a full-time support
chaplain for the Minnesota Guard -- trained a group of central Minnesota
pastors at Camp Ripley in Little Falls last week.

Soldiers returning to Army bases have chaplains who have probably shared the
combat experience, but Guard members returning to civilian settings might
not seek help from pastors who haven't "been there," Winn said.

But with the Guard chaplains spread thin -- Timm serves as pastor in a
Lutheran church in Barron, Wis. -- community religious leaders need to
become more of a resource.

"Pain is pain," Winn said.

If moral injury can be measured and treated, Harris said, there are reasons
for optimism.

Soldiers with moral injuries who confront their religious beliefs and come
to understand them often resolve their guilt and end up with stronger
spirituality and faith.

"They're actually better and stronger at the end of it," she said.

Doble, the VA peer support volunteer, spent 30 years pushing aside the
painful memories of Vietnam and ignoring the contradictions that emerged
from his own religious beliefs.

Having found stability in his life -- and resolving the spiritual questions
that had been punishing him -- Doble said he wants to share the experience
with other veterans.

"I was ashamed where there is no shame," he said, "and I want people to know
that."

Can Reading Fiction Improve Empathy?

An emerging theory suggests exposure to narrative fiction can improve an individual’s ability to understand what other people are thinking or feeling.

Dr. Raymond Mar, a psychologist at York University in Canada, said, “we understand stories using basic cognitive functions, and there is not a special module in the brain that allows us to do this. Understanding stories is similar to the way we understand the real world.”...

http://psychcentral.com/news/2014/08/12/can-reading-fiction-improve-empathy/73521.html

Reposted by:

Charles R. Davenport, Psy.D.

Licensed Psychologist

Charles R. Davenport, Psy.D., LLC.

Offices: Sarasota, FL and Venice, FL

Phone: 941-321-1971

drcharlesdavenport.com

Less Materialism May Be Good for Consumers And Environment

Research in positive psychology, or the study of happiness, well-being, and quality of life, suggests that the pursuit of true happiness can lead people to lifestyles that will not only be more satisfying but better for the environment as well.

“For decades, consumerism has been on a collision course...

http://psychcentral.com/news/2014/08/11/less-materialism-may-be-good-for-consumers-and-environment/73485.html

Reposted by:

Charles R. Davenport, Psy.D.

Licensed Psychologist

Charles R. Davenport, Psy.D., LLC.

Offices: Sarasota, FL and Venice, FL

Phone: 941-321-1971

drcharlesdavenport.com

Student Mindset Can Enhance Learning

New research suggests a student’s mindset influences their memory. Researchers  found that information was remembered better if a student was informed ahead of time that they would teach the material. “When compared to learners expecting a test, learners expecting to teach recalled more material correctly, they organized their recall more effectively and they had better memory for especially important information,” said lead author John Nestojko, Ph.D...

http://psychcentral.com/news/2014/08/11/student-mindset-can-enhance-learning/73487.html

Reposted by:

Dr. Charles R. Davenport
Licensed Psychologist
Charles R. Davenport, Psy.D. LLC.

Phone: 941-321-1971

drcharlesdavenport.com

Venice Office

1525 Tamiami Trail S.

Ste. 603 A

Venice, FL 34285
Venice Officeon 

Sarasota Office
950 South Tamiami Trail
Ste 202
Sarasota, FL 34236

Sarasota Officeon 

Computer games better than medication in treating elderly depression

Computer games could help in treating older people with depression who haven't been helped by antidepressant drugs or other treatments for the disorder, researchers say.

In a study of 11 older patients, researchers found playing certain computer games was just as effective at reducing symptoms of depression as the "gold standard" antidepressant drug escitalopram. Moreover, those patients playing the computer games achieved results in just four weeks, compared to the 12 weeks it often takes with escitalopram (also known by its brand name, Lexapro)....

http://www.foxnews.com/health/2014/08/06/computer-games-better-than-medication-in-treating-elderly-depression/

Reposted by:

Charles R. Davenport, Psy.D.

Licensed Psychologist

Charles R. Davenport, Psy.D., LLC.

Offices: Sarasota, FL and Venice, FL

Phone: 941-321-1971

www.drcharlesdavenport.com

One question reveals: Are you a narcissist?

What is Narcissism? Are you? Well most narcissists are certain they are not one... after all they tend to see themselves as without flaw or a flaw as significant as narcissism which is portrayed in popular culture as something no one likes. Many times narcissism includes a desire to be liked by others so these folks would not want to be seen as unlikable.  Most people have "symptoms" of narcissism, borderline personality, obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), bipolar disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) but they do not interfere with their lives or meet diagnostic criteria. This suggests that these "disorders" are part of a healthy continuum of human characteristics. If we can understand why they are present we can work to find change. Dr. Davenport works with patients to find change. Please call 941-321-1971 for a telephone consultation.

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If you are a narcissist, you probably think this story is about you, and you are correct (as you so often are – right?). That kind of thinking makes it quite easy for researchers to identify the most self-involved among us: They just ask people if they are narcissists. The real narcissists speak right up, a new study shows...

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/08/05/narcissists-study-question/13621883/

Posted By:
Dr. Charles R. Davenport
Licensed Psychologist
Charles R. Davenport, Psy.D. LLC.

Phone: 941-321-1971

www.drcharlesdavenport.com

Venice Office

1525 Tamiami Trail S.

Ste. 603 A

Venice, FL 34285
Venice Officeon 

Sarasota Office
950 South Tamiami Trail
Ste 202
Sarasota, FL 34236

Sarasota Officeon 

Comic virtuoso Robin Williams dead at 63 from apparent suicide

Mental Health awareness is so important!

Robin Williams, the actor whose madcap comic style made him one of television and film's biggest stars was remembered as a creative genius on Tuesday as family, friends and fans mourned his death in an apparent suicide at the age of 63.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/08/12/us-people-robinwilliams-idUSKBN0GB28520140812

Reposted by:

Dr. Charles R. Davenport
Licensed Psychologist
Charles R. Davenport, Psy.D. LLC.

Phone: 941-321-1971

www.drcharlesdavenport.com

Venice Office

1525 Tamiami Trail S.

Ste. 603 A

Venice, FL 34285
Venice Officeon 

Sarasota Office
950 South Tamiami Trail
Ste 202
Sarasota, FL 34236

Sarasota Officeon 

You Asked: Why Are People Addicted to CrossFit and Other Brutal Workouts?

CrossFit. Bikram. Ultra-marathons. When it comes to the latest exercise trends, nearly all have one thing in common: They take relatively anodyne workouts—lifting weights, yoga, running—and crank the intensity up to 11. If previous generations stuck to the health motto “everything in moderation,” modern America has shifted emphatically toward “go big or go home”—even if some doctors and scientists believe those behaviors approach (and sometimes cross) the line into dangerous territory. So what gives?

The obvious answer is that these programs tend to produce big results in a hurry, says Dr. Juliana Breines, who researches health psychology at Brandeis University...

http://time.com/3083506/you-asked-why-are-people-addicted-to-crossfit-and-other-brutal-workouts/

Reposted by:

Dr. Charles R. Davenport
Licensed Psychologist
Charles R. Davenport, Psy.D. LLC.

Phone: 941-321-1971

www.drcharlesdavenport.com

Venice Office

1525 Tamiami Trail S.

Ste. 603 A

Venice, FL 34285
Venice Officeon 

Sarasota Office
950 South Tamiami Trail
Ste 202
Sarasota, FL 34236

Sarasota Officeon