http://empiricalinsanity.net mental health news, science, and commentary Sun, 03 Aug 2008 12:09:57 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en Since I last posted I've spent weeks recovering from graduate school (still not done yet), moved 500 miles and started a job, and spent the last week being upset about the recent church shooting in Tennessee.  I was not there and don't want to borrow someone's tragedy in the "my ... http://empiricalinsanity.net/?p=129 I'll be done with grad school in about two weeks and able to start posting more frequently - hooray!  Today's entry is a response I wrote for a friend who asked why the thimerosol-in-vaccine-causes-autism movement doesn't go after thimerosol in household products to anywhere the same degree as in vaccines ... http://empiricalinsanity.net/?p=127 From Salon: Doctors need to be aware of widespread health misinformation on the Web, because patients are going to find it.  Although the article is pitched as "Internet information is good for patients and doctors", the misinformation aspect it its major point. And a good point.  This is a basic tenet ... http://empiricalinsanity.net/?p=126 I didn't realize this until I'd spent a summer around dogs, but they're like people in some very relevant ways.  They get enthusiastic, they get angry, they feel down and icky, they misbehave and know it, they understand a small English vocabulary, and they look up at you adoringly whenever ... http://empiricalinsanity.net/?p=125 Some therapists do not "get" the difference between having life problems, and having mental illness (plus, often, life problems).  My suggestions for dealing with this, if you are mentally ill and seeking therapy, are: 1) Look for therapists affiliated with hospitals, they tend to have more experience with psych patients. 2) Be ... http://empiricalinsanity.net/?p=124 I have taught mentally ill college students, given advice to mentally ill college students, and been one myself. Based on those experiences, here is a guide to not tanking your exam / your class / your degree while you're having a meltdown. This is probably most applicable to ... http://empiricalinsanity.net/?p=123 I looked up celiac disease and autism on pubmed the other day.  My mother's secretary has a daughter recently diagnosed with autism, and diagnosed several years with celiac disease.  So we were sitting in the dining room and I'm snacking and looking up stuff on pubmed. "There's not much research, but ... http://empiricalinsanity.net/?p=122 A lot of kids diagnosed with autism would previously have been diagnosed with general mental retardation.  Now genetic testing is finding that some kids with autism diagnoses have specific genetic deletions/duplications.  Does that mean that they're not really autistic and "autism" was a misdiagnosis? Or that "autistic" will turn out ... http://empiricalinsanity.net/?p=121 Ok, probably only partly. ADHD kids have higher levels of lead in their blood than normal kids - even though their levels are higher than "safe" levels. It would be great if  ADHD turned out to have an avoidable (or at least reducible) cause.  Seriously great. Some stuff we still need to know ... http://empiricalinsanity.net/?p=120 I'm glad that bullying is getting national attention.  It seems weird that it has to piggyback on our fears of new technology to do so, though - like the lesson is "new technology is dangerous and we need to protect our children from it" rather than "kids can be mean ... http://empiricalinsanity.net/?p=119