The feature article in the April 13, 2014 New York Times Sunday Review section entitled “Raising A Moral Child” by Adam Grant covers the fundamentals of good parenting that every person, not just parent, should know. Essentially, we need to be mindful of the difference between shame and guilt and make sure we are never shaming our children or others for that matter. Shame is the feeling that one is a bad person while guilt refers to one’s behavior being wrong. If we learn to praise good character and punish bad actions essentially we are on the right track. Children who are praised for good character show far more generosity and caring in research studies. read more

Nicholas Kristof’s column in the Sunday Review section of The New York Times chronicles the travails of Mike Yurchison, an Iraq war veteran battling head injury and PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder). His girlfriend of three and a half years is struggling too, not sure if she can continue to hang in there with him considering all the challenges of dealing with a man shattered by war and mental illness. According to Mr. Yurchison, psychiatry has helped him become addicted to opiates and otherwise he has found these doctors “unhelpful.” This is too often the case. Veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan are killing themselves at alarming rates. Mike’s brother and close friend, both veterans, recently killed themselves. We also see periodic rampages at military bases such as Fort Hood where medication is often part of the picture. read more

I just read a rather large article on the cover the Sunday New York Times Review section about pornography and adolescents that basically summarized multiple studies as inconclusive at best. I have a first hand perspective having seen the effects of premature exposure to porn first hand in clinical practice with sex addiction. Pornography is addictive and harmful, especially to adolescents and young adults. I say this because I have listened to countless stories of desensitization and trouble with intimacy. Desensitization basically means that normal, healthy sex is boring and sometimes nearly impossible for people whose neurology has changed as a result of overexposure to porn. Watching more and more porn leads some people to view harder, stranger, and rougher material as their dopamine system seeks greater stimulation. read more

An article in the Business section of the Sunday New York Times suggests that testosterone replacement therapy has become a marketing bonanza with sales of popular drugs like Androgel to treat “low-T” becoming blockbusters. The problem of course is that a lot of the trend is driven by profits and not necessarily effective research. Simple tests for low-T are so general that anyone stressed or depressed could fail them. For instance, do you have low energy or decreased libido? Many middle aged men might say yes when the underlying cause could be stress. Instead of using drugs with potentially harmful side effects like increased incidence of heart disease or cancer, psychotherapy or behavioral change is far safer and perhaps just as effective longer term. There simply isn’t enough research to keep up with all the marketing hype. Sound familiar? Money from drug sales often outcompetes the hard work of behavioral change. As always, sometimes drugs are necessary but many times they are simply profit centers for big business. read more