You may have heard this term used before, it refers to the different stages that make up our sleep. Understanding these stages of sleep help scientists and clinicians target treatments for insomnia. Sleep is divided into two stages: Non-rapid eye movement (NREM) and Rapid eye movement (REM). NREM is further divided into four stages, numbered […]
Sleep is Essential
This may seem like an obvious statement, but it’s not. Our culture rewards hard work and often that comes at the expense of sleep. Millions of people do not get enough sleep each night and it can have serious consequences to our physcial and mental health. I’ll be doing a series of posts on sleep […]
Is it me or my illness?
Individuals with an disorder such as bipolar disorder can behave in ways that make them question whether their actions are part of their personality or part of their illness. For example, two common symptoms with bipolar disorder are hypersexuality and hyperreligiousity. However, defining what is “hyper” is not always an easy task. It can be very […]
How Long Until Antidepressants Work?
We in psychiatry have always said it took 3-4 weeks for an antidepressant to show a clinical effect. Those who showed improvement in the first 2 weeks were thought to be having a placebo effect. In the past 2 years, there have studies that have shown that patients can have a “real” response to antidpressants […]
Am I Depressed or Just Not Manic?
Sometimes it’s difficult for bipolar patients to tell when they are in a depressed mode or if they have simply lost their manic high. For many, mania can be a very destructive phase, but for some, mania or hypomania (milder form of mania) can feel very good and be a very productive time. Sometimes this […]
Steroid Rage – Is it Real?
The short answer is yes. Anabolic Androgenic Steroids are the steroids used by those wanting to increase muscle mass usually in the context of sporting competitions. We hear about athletes being penalized after they are caught testing positive for these substances. This topic has gained much attention recently with former professional wrestler, Chris Benoit who […]