Obesity: What Causes it and How to Combat it We’re nearly six weeks into the new year, and this is right about the time that most people toss their new year’s resolutions out the window. Many of them had resolved to lose weight: surveys have shown that, of the people who make new year’s resolutions, an average of 45% of them resolve to lose weight and get in better shape. So that means that...
Psychogenic amnesia, also known as functional amnesia or dissociative amnesia, is a memory disorder characterized by extreme memory loss that is caused by extensive psychological stress and that cannot be attributed to a known neurobiological cause. Psychogenic amnesia is defined by (a) the presence of retrograde amnesia (the inability to retrieve stored memories leading up to the onset of...
Hello people… hope everyone had a great weekend! This week, I’m going to finish up our discussion on the big D… vitamin D! Last week, we talked about how it’s not actually a vitamin, it’s really a hormone. And unlike most vitamins, it can be synthesized in the body, provided there’s sufficient skin exposure to the sun- it doesn’t take much- maybe 10 minutes two or three times a week. If you...
Hello, people… welcome back to the blog! Last week, we finished our two part series on phobias, and it seems everyone enjoyed it. I got a lot of great feedback on it, and people have been sharing their weird phobias with me even more than ever… I’ve really added to my list of doozies! This week, I wanted to talk about a topic I ran into recently, seasonal affective disorder, or SAD. What is...
Xanax Withdrawal Welcome back, people! Last week we continued our foray into all things Xanax and talked about dependence and use disorder. The next step in the chain- withdrawal- can be a special kind of beastie, definitely deserving of its own blog, so this week will be all about Xanax withdrawal. As I mentioned last week, some folks can take their bit of Xanax a couple of times a day as...
A Coronavirus PSA Before we get to this next blog on suicide, I must say something related to Coronavirus transmission, because I’m tired of yelling it at my television when I see people doing it or talking about it, how “safe” it is. What is it? It’s “elbow love,” bumping elbows with someone to say hello, goodbye, good job, whassup, whatever. Think about this, people: during this viral...
In psychiatry, adjustment disorder (AD) is a psychological response to an... Agoraphobia Without a History of Panic Disorder is an anxiety disorder... Not to be confused with agraphobia, agoraphobia is a condition where the sufferer... Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a severe anxiety disorder that can...
Alprazolam Use Disorder Helll-ooo people! I hope everyone had a great holiday weekend, maybe bit the head off a big bunny- a chocolate one of course. We’ve been talking about alprazolam, trade name Xanax. Last week I warned you about the dangers of buying it off of the street. If you’ve forgotten why it’s dangerous, it’s because it’s nearly always counterfeit crap made in some moron’s basement...
Brief psychotic disorder is a period of psychosis whose duration is generally shorter, non re-occurring, and not better accounted for by another condition. The disorder is characterized by a sudden onset of psychotic symptoms, which may include delusions, hallucinations, disorganized speech or behavior, or catatonic behavior. The symptoms must not be better accounted for...
by Mark G. Agresti, M.D. Impulse Control Disorder is a condition that can affect anyone including residents of West Palm Beach. Impulse control disorder is a set of psychiatric disorders including intermittent explosive disorder, kleptomania, pathological gambling, pyromania (fire-starting), and three body-focused repetitive or compulsive behaviors of trichotillomania (a compulsion to pull one’s...
