Marisa H

I read this article today that gave a great overview of the prevalence and effect of patients stalking their healthcare professionals. For those of you who are a healthcare professionals, does your workplaces have anything to help support you if this were to ever happen? Are there any strategies in place? http://openaccess.ihu.edu.tr/xmlui/bitstream/handle/20.500.12154/1448/S.%20Bulut.pdf?sequence=2&isAllowed=y

While I was doing some research into attachment styles, I found this interesting study that uses machine learning to recognize patterns in parenting and the development of psychosis. This was the first I'd heard of researchers using machine learning in psychometrics, but I'm not surprised it's happening. It could be a useful tool for removing subjectivity .. but I also wonder if it could pose issues because of the nuance of behavior. Since the machine can only recognize what information is input into it, I wonder if things can be missed and incomplete conclusions can be made.

https://ajp.psychiatryonline.org/doi/epdf/10.1176/appi.ajp.2021.21090910 Above is a recent editorial (less than 2 pages) that gives an overview into how abuse and neglect differ in how they affect brain maturation in girls. The study is based on the stress acceleration hypothesis, which states that stress can advance or accelerate brain development. These differences in brain development due to abuse/neglect may be a contributing biological mechanism for the development of PTSD or other pyschopathologies. It's a quick and informative read if anyone is interested!

I came across this article (2 min read) describing one researcher's findings into sex differences and serial killer behavior. The researcher is an evolutionary psychologist, and suggests that men's role as the "hunter" and women's role as the "gatherer" influence the way the respective sexes choose their victims. Thoughts? I think this is a pretty cool idea and can help with future criminal profiling, but I can also see how some people might think of it as a bit of a reach.

I've only recently found out about complicated grief (sometimes called persistent complex bereavement disorder) and I've been wondering a few things about it. - Is it more prevalent than what is known? Like most mental disorders, it is most likely under reported, but I wonder by how much. - Is the diagnosis necessary? Sometimes I wonder if pathologizing/labeling extreme emotions can be more harmful than helpful. - Grief, in general, is observed in many animal species. This suggests its beneficial for survival, but I wonder in what way? Or maybe not at all? I'm open to discussions of these questions! Plus, if anyone has any personal experience and would like to share I'd love to hear about it.

There is no evidence that conversion therapy, the attempt to change a person's sexual orientation and or identity, is successful. Below is a short, 2 minute article that summarizes conversion therapy and its legality in the United States. Rather, "sexual minorities exposed to SOCE had nearly twice the odds of lifetime suicidal ideation, 75% increased odds of planning to attempt suicide, and 88% increased odds of a suicide attempt with minor injury compared with sexual minorities who did not experience SOCE." (Blosnich et. al, 2020). https://ajph.aphapublications.org/doi/10.2105/AJPH.2020.305637 It's hard for me to understand why a practice which has been shown to have an overwhelmingly negative effect on patients is still allowed to be used. Any insights/opinions?

I know this is a bit dated, but I'm wondering what everyone's thoughts are on this movement, or conservatorship in general? Conservatorship is getting a bad rap in the news and media lately (did anyone else see 'I Care a Lot'?), but I'm sure there are cases in which it is appropriate.