Mental Health

[unable to retrieve full-text content] Schizophrenia and Insomnia: Why Your Patients Can't Sleep    MedCentral

Abstract There are no studies investigating topological properties of resting-state fMRI (rs-fMRI) in patients who have recovered from psychosis and discontinued medication (hereafter, recovered patients [RP]). This study aimed to explore topological organization of the functional brain connectome in the RP using graph theory approach. We recruited 30 RP and 50 age and sex-matched healthy controls (HC). The RP were further divided into the subjects who were relapsed after discontinuation of antipsychotics (RP-R) and who maintained recovered state without relapse (RP-M). Using graph-based network analysis of rs-fMRI signals, global and local metrics and hub information were obtained. The robustness of the network was tested with random failure and targeted attack. As an ancillary analysis, Network-Based Statistic (NBS) was performed. Association of significant findings with psychopathology and cognitive functioning was also explored. The RP showed intact network properties in terms of g...

There are currently no medications approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of borderline personality disorder (BPD). Any pharmaceutical drug treatment for BPD must be individualized and closely monitored by a trained mental healthcare provider. However, medications can be prescribed to relieve BPD symptoms like mood swings, depression, impulsivity, and aggression. Depending on the types and severity of BPD symptoms, treatment may involve antidepressants, antipsychotics, mood stabilizers, or anxiolytics (anti-anxiety drugs). This article looks at the four classes of BDP medications that are commonly prescribed as well as some newer ones that are being explored.  SDI Productions / Getty Images Can Medications Help Treat BPD? While it's not considered the first-line treatment, there are some medications that may help some people with BPD. Antidepressants Studies have shown that antidepressants are...

Researchers think that schizophrenia is genetic, but that's not the only factor involved in determining who gets the condition. Other elements, like a person's environment, also come into play. Research suggests that schizophrenia's heritability could be between 60% and 80%. However, just because a relative has schizophrenia does not mean you will develop it. Read on to learn how genetic and environmental factors can interact to make a person more likely to develop schizophrenia. Ray Kachatorian / Getty Images How Brain Chemistry Affects Schizophrenia Researchers think that there are brain differences in people with schizophrenia that lead to the symptoms of the condition. For example, chemicals in the brain called neurotransmitters play a role in many mental health conditions. In people with schizophrenia, there might be an imbalance in serotonin, dopamine, and glutamate. Since these chemicals are part of how the brain pro...

This article was first published on Big Think in January 2021. It was updated in July 2023. James Thurber's short story The Secret Life of Walter Mitty follows its mild-mannered protagonist through another mundane day of thankless chores. But Mitty is a daydreamer. He spices up his humdrum existence—and, thankfully, the story itself—through fantasies. Real-world events cause Mitty to imagine he's an ace hydroplane pilot, a brilliant surgeon, and an assassin on trial. Thurber's character fits many readers like a glove because, as science has discovered, we all have a little Walter Mitty in us. Research suggests that our minds wander close to 50% of the time, and we use these mental getaways to imagine our lives in all manner of fun and fanciful scenarios. We fantasize about the perfect meet-cute, or starting an exciting new career, or what we'd do with superpowers, or unbridled sexual encounters. Mostly it's sex. And despite admoni...