Overview An understanding of assertive communication can also help you handle difficult family, friends, and co-workers more easily, reducing drama and stress. Ultimately, assertive communication empowers you to draw necessary boundaries that allow you to get your needs met in relationships without alienating others and without letting resentment and anger creep in. This helps you to have what you need in relationships while allowing your loved ones to have their needs met too....

Two decades later, International Overdose Awareness Day is now commemorated around the world, in such cities as Kisumu in Kenya, Glasgow in Scotland, Pune in India, and San Juan in Puerto Rico. By sharing personal stories of the impact of overdose without stigma, individuals and organizations gather to address this pressing issue. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), over 932,000 people have died since 1999 from an overdose, unfortunately....

Marijuana is the most common illegal drug used in the United States. According to a national survey on drug use and health from 2018, about 43.5 million Americans over the age of 12 used marijuana in the last year. As of the 2018 midterm elections, 10 states and Washington, DC had legalized marijuana for recreational use for adults over the age of 21. Over 30 states have laws on the books legalizing marijuana for medical use only, while several others have only legalized oils with low-THC content....

Here is what it means if your healthcare provider uses the terms mechanism of action or mode of action when discussing your treatment, as well as examples of how the terms can be applied to medical and mental health conditions. Definition Healthcare providers, such as doctors, pharmacists, and psychiatrists, often use the term mechanism of action when they are talking about medication. If you are talking to a healthcare provider about a drug you have been prescribed, they will likely start by explaining what the medication is supposed to do....

Stimulants Stimulant medications are the most commonly prescribed medications for ADHD and have been found to be very effective in alleviating ADHD symptoms. Stimulants increase the level of the neurotransmitters dopamine and norepinephrine in the brain. This improves inattention, impulsivity, and hyperactivity in people with ADHD. While stimulants are the classic medication of choice for ADHD and are approved by Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for treatment in children, many people either cannot tolerate stimulant therapy or don’t respond to it....

For eating disorders, food (and the normalization of eating patterns) is the primary medicine, along with therapy to help distorted thoughts (or unhelpful thoughts) surrounding food, weight, eating, and body image. In some cases, psychiatric medication (such as antidepressants, antipsychotics, or mood stabilizers) can make therapy more successful. Many people with eating disorders also struggle with anxiety and depression and medication may help with those symptoms. A thorough diagnostic evaluation with a psychiatrist is always recommended before beginning any regimen of psychiatric medication....

Who are these people posting nasty comments and why are we reading them? Why do we allow ourselves to be pulled into negative comment sections, or even worse be pulled into arguments in the comments sections, and what are the ultimate effects on our mental health? While it’s true that negative comments online can affect our mental health in a negative way, there are steps that you can take to mitigate this problem in your own life....

New research from the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine found that a diverse group of children from low-income households slept more than an hour longer each night after learning mindfulness training at their elementary schools for two years. The experiment also boosted the duration of kids’ rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, which is important for emotional well-being and resilience. The Study For the report, a team of researchers from the Stanford University School of Medicine set out to learn how mindfulness training could impact sleep in children....

Misophonia is a poorly understood, and under-researched, condition. The term misophonia did not arise to describe the condition until the year 2000, although the condition was described much earlier as selective sound sensitivity syndrome. Awareness of the disorder has increased since several news stories aired nationally on the disorder in 2011. Symptoms of Misophonia The primary symptom of misophonia is an extreme reaction in response to other people making certain sounds....

Positive symptoms, which include delusions, hallucinations, disorganized thoughts, and disorganized speech, can cause you or someone you love to lose touch with reality. Negative schizophrenia refers to behaviors or emotions that are deficient or lacking in people with schizophrenia. As negative symptoms indicate deficits in functioning they are also called deficit symptoms. Negative symptoms, including lack of emotion, decreased joy or motivation, delayed speech, and difficulty beginning and sustaining activities, can be scary and extremely debilitating....

For Lindsay, it was a bright puncture through the dark she had become so accustomed to seeing. “Getting that shot, I said it’s like a shot of hope, where I finally see some light at the end of the tunnel,” she says. “The healing is finally here.” There are few who understand the toll of the pandemic as acutely as Lindsay. She works as the director of nursing for critical care at Northwell Health in Queens—the first COVID-19 epicenter in the United States....

Uses Naltrexone can be prescribed for a few different uses. These include: Alcohol dependence: One of only three medications approved for the treatment of alcohol dependence, naltrexone has been used for years to help people who have already stopped drinking to avoid relapse. Opioid dependence: Naltrexone has also been effective in treating people who have become addicted to prescription opioids and heroin. It is being researched for treating cocaine use disorders....