Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
- Keyword
-
- Neuroscience (2)
- Addiction (1)
- Adopted children of alcoholics (1)
- Alcoholism (1)
- Antidepressants (1)
-
- Antidepressants efficacy (1)
- Antipsychotic medications (1)
- Atypical Antipsychotics (1)
- Bipolar I (1)
- Bipolar II (1)
- Cardiovascular disease (1)
- Children in foster care (1)
- Emotional factors in heart disease (1)
- Endocrinology (1)
- Evidence-based practice; bipolar disorder; social workers in mental health (1)
- Gender (1)
- Health Disparities (1)
- Health disparities (1)
- Inflammation (1)
- Major depression (1)
- Medications (1)
- Mental illness (1)
- Mind-Body Connection (1)
- Motivational interviewing (1)
- Neurogenesis and inflammation (1)
- Pediatric Bipolar (1)
- Psychoneuroimmunology (1)
- Sexual orientation (1)
- Somatization (1)
Articles 1 - 10 of 10
Full-Text Articles in Medicine and Health Sciences
The Swedish Studies Of The Adopted Children Of Alcoholics, Jill Littrell
The Swedish Studies Of The Adopted Children Of Alcoholics, Jill Littrell
jill l littrell Dr.
The authors of the widely cited studies analyzing the Swedish adoption records of the children of alcoholics have advanced the notion that there are three distinct paths for the inheritance of alcoholism. One path results in moderate alcoholism in men and a form of somatization but no alcoholism in women. A second path results in severe and mild alcoholism in men and alcoholism in women. The third path results in a particular variety of alcohol abuse in men and a particular variety of somatization in women. This article analyzes the authors' claims. It is argued that the data were improperly …
Incorporating Information From Neuroscience And Endocrinology Regarding Sexual Orientation Into Social Work Education, Jill Littrell
Incorporating Information From Neuroscience And Endocrinology Regarding Sexual Orientation Into Social Work Education, Jill Littrell
jill l littrell Dr.
The brains of heterosexual males and heterosexual females are different. Moreover, the brains of gay men are similar to heterosexual females whereas the brains of lesbians are similar to heterosexual males. Neuroscience research supporting these postulates is reviewed. The gestational processes that might explain the differences in brain structure and function corresponding with gender are reviewed. Following a discussion of the physiological bases for sexual orientation, a discussion of the physiological bases for the expression of gender related traits and a discussion of factors contributing to sexual identity are provided. Throughout the article, alternative ways to think about gender are …
Is There Evidence For The Bipolar Spectrum And The Safety Of Pharmaceutical Interventions?, Jill Littrell
Is There Evidence For The Bipolar Spectrum And The Safety Of Pharmaceutical Interventions?, Jill Littrell
jill l littrell Dr.
Social workers constitute a high proportion of mental health professionals and a high percentage of social workers provide mental health care. Thus, psychiatric diagnoses and pharmaceutical interventions are relevant for many social workers. This paper reviews the rise in the diagnoses of Bipolar spectrum disorders for both children and adults. It considers the safety of antipsychotic medications, a mainstay of treatment for children and adults, which, in addition to other well-documented negative side effects, have recently been shown to decrease brain volume by a significant percent. These issues are particularly relevant for children in the foster care system.
Taking The Perspective That A Depressive State Reflects Inflammation: Implications For The Use Of Antidepressants, Jill Littrell
Taking The Perspective That A Depressive State Reflects Inflammation: Implications For The Use Of Antidepressants, Jill Littrell
jill l littrell Dr.
This paper reviews both the evidence that supports the characterization of depression as an inflammatory disorder and the different biochemical mechanisms that have been postulated for the connection between inflammation and depression. This association offers credible explanation for the short term efficacy of antidepressants, which have short term anti-inflammatory effects. Evidence for those anti-inflammatory effects is discussed. Evidence of the contrary long-term effects of antidepressants, which increase rather than decrease inflammation, is also reviewed. It is argued that this increase in inflammation would predict an increase in chronicity among depressed patients that have been treated with antidepressants drugs, which has …
Can A Diagnosis Be Epidemic, With Therapeutic Efforts The Catastrophe?, Jill Littrell
Can A Diagnosis Be Epidemic, With Therapeutic Efforts The Catastrophe?, Jill Littrell
jill l littrell Dr.
The diagnosis of Bipolar Spectrum Disorders (BSD) given for office visits has risen 40 fold for children and has risen dramatically for adults as well. Some of the growth may have been fueled by re-categorization of individuals who would previously have received diagnoses of major depression along with the widening of diagnostic criteria for BSD. Concomitant with the rise in BSD diagnoses, the number of adults and children receiving atypical antipsychotics has increased dramatically. Recent evidence finds that atypical antipsychotics cause considerable reduction in brain volume. It is thus imperative to ensure that those with diagnoses comprising BSD—Bipolar I, Bipolar …
How Addiction Happens, How Change Happens, And What Social Workers Need To Know To Be Effective Facilitators Of Change, Jill Littrell
How Addiction Happens, How Change Happens, And What Social Workers Need To Know To Be Effective Facilitators Of Change, Jill Littrell
jill l littrell Dr.
During the last two decades, neuroscience research has proliferated examining brain mechanisms that explain why some people are compelled to pursue drugs and alcohol. The findings suggest that addiction is independent of pleasure, and that drug seeking can be triggered outside of conscious awareness (Berridge, Robinson, & Aldridge, 2009; Goldstein et al., 2009; Kalivas, Volkow, & Seamans, 2005). The observations and conclusions from this research can be used to advantage in treating addiction. The use of social psychological principles, in the context of motivational interviewing, offers a platform for taking advantage of these new insights. After a brief sketch of …
Children In Foster Care And Excessive Medications, Jill Littrell
Children In Foster Care And Excessive Medications, Jill Littrell
jill l littrell Dr.
Children in foster care system are more likely to receive diagnoses of major mental illness and to be medicated with powerful medications such as antipsychotic drugs. Reasons for the increased risk of the actual mental illnesses and for the diagnoses of illness among children in foster care are reviewed. The reliabilities of various diagnoses are considered. The legitimacy of the rationale for early medications to prevent later disability is discussed. The very real hazards of medicating with antipsychotics, anticonvulsants, stimulants, mood stabilizers and antidepressants are reviewed. A discussion of advocacy efforts occurring around the United States on behalf of medicated …
Book Review: “Mental Illness In The Family: Issues And Trends”, Jill Littrell
Book Review: “Mental Illness In The Family: Issues And Trends”, Jill Littrell
jill l littrell Dr.
No abstract provided.
The Mind-Body Connection: Not Just A Theory Anymore, Jill Littrell
The Mind-Body Connection: Not Just A Theory Anymore, Jill Littrell
jill l littrell Dr.
The field of psychoneuroimmunology has witnessed an explosion of empirical findings during the last two decades. Research has documented the mechanisms through which stressful emotions alter white blood cell function. Stress diminishes white blood cell response to viral infected cells and to cancer cells. Moreover, vaccination is less effective in those who are stressed and wounds heal less readily in those who are stressed. While stress decreases the activity of some white blood cells, stress does not compromise the function of all types of white blood cells. Indeed, some types of autoimmune disease, which involve particular subsets of white blood …
New Developments In Understanding Cardiovascular Disease And The Implications For Social Work, Jill Littrell
New Developments In Understanding Cardiovascular Disease And The Implications For Social Work, Jill Littrell
jill l littrell Dr.
Cardiovascular disease is now viewed as an inflammatory disease. An index of chronic inflammation (viz., C-Reactive Protein) is as good a predictor of heart attacks as are fats in blood. The data suggest that stressful events are so closely associated with chronic inflammatory states, that the body’s stress response can be viewed as an inflammatory state. This paper summarizes and explains the link between stress and cardiovascular disease. Negative health outcomes, particularly for cardiovascular diseases, are higher among those of lower socio-economic status. Differential stress among socio-economic tiers is considered as an explanation for the disparities. The literature linking cardiovascular …