Description: Perhaps you have heard about Toxoplasmosis? It is a condition caused by a parasite that is carried by cats who catch wild birds and that can be picked up by humans when they clean the cats’ litter boxes and inhale some of the T. gondii parasite while doing so. Exposure among pregnant women can… Read more »
Posts Categorized: Chronic Illness
Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD): We The North!
Description: Have you heard the phrase “We The North?” It was associated with the enjoyable run of the Toronto Raptors to the successfully through the NBA championships in 2019. Despite having a great basketball team, however, there are some challenges associated with living in the north. Throughout much of Canada in the winter it is… Read more »
The Opioid Crisis: Is a Broader Perspective Needed?
Description: There is an opioid overdose epidemic in North America. In 2017, 4,000 people in Canada and 72,000 people in the United States died of opioid overdoses. I don’t know what you have been hearing or reading about what is behind these astonishing and terrifying numbers, but there is a lot to consider and a… Read more »
Executive Functions in Alzheimer’s: Brain Pacemakers Might Help
Description: Alzheimer’s main impact is on peoples’ memories, right? Well, we can debate the depth of impact of the various features of the disease but it is the case that more than memory is affected. Specifically, the array of frontal lobe functions involving various aspects of what is called Executive Function (thinking, reflecting, planning and… Read more »
Care for Caregivers: Helping those Helping the Terminally Ill
Description: Make a prediction. How are feelings of anxiety and depression related to caring for a terminally ill person or loved one? What proportion of people engaged in such care do you think show such symptoms? Once you have your hypotheses in mind have a read through the article linked below and see how your… Read more »
Seasonal Affective Disorder: Talk versus Light Therapy?
Description: As we head into winter and the amount of natural light available to us diminishes some of us will start to experience the effects of seasonal affective disorder (SAD). You may have heard about light therapy as a treatment for this disorder but how do you think the effects of light therapy compare to… Read more »
Are CBT effects on Physical Issues Really a Surprise?
Description: We may assume that physical symptoms need to be treated with medication but we also know that disorders like depression are very treatable with forms of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy. The conditions discussed in this article all show signs of positive change when treated with one or another form of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy. Of course… Read more »
Oliver Sacks on Feelings of Disorder (or Dis-ease)
Description: What subjective/psychologically experiences do we associate with disease? Oliver Sacks, the deeply respected physician and professor of neurology discusses about how patients with migraines talk about the psychological experiences associated with their migraine headaches. The 81 year old Sacks goes on to talk about his own experiences with a particular palliative treatment for the… Read more »
Books for Success!
