TRUMP KEEPING YOU UP AT NIGHT?

Don Hazen and Kali Holloway of AlterNet have published a thoughtful essay entitled "We Can't Elect a Psychopath President." In it they summarize the range of psychopathological traits that Trump displays, and the barrage of crazy-making maneuvers that he's inflicting on all of us. The piece is well worth reading--being able to recognize and label his crazy-making manipulations may help to minimize their impact.

Donald Trump, Phoenix, Arizona/Credit: Gage Skidmore

In the last few paragraphs of the essay, headed "Trump Anxiety," the authors highlight something that many of us may have been feeling without clearly identifying it. Psychotherapists, teachers and representatives of many minority communities report an upsurge in anxiety, fear, sleeplessness, depression and other signs of stress flowing from the threat of Trump ascending to the presidency. I, for one, have no problem relating to that.

I'll second the authors' heartfelt hope or plea: We can't elect a psychopath president.

Please vote!

OF MICE, MEN AND DEPRESSION

Why do antidepressants not always work?

As many people suffering from depression know all too well, even the best available antidepressant medications often don't work. A new study sheds some light on this problem.

Vincent Van Gogh/1890/Wikipedia

Silvia Poggini and her colleagues studied the effects of selective seretoninin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) in mice.  Writing in the 27 July edition of Brain, Behavior and Immunity, they report that the SSRIs don't directly reduce depression, but instead seem to make the brain more responsive to the environment and more open to change.

“This work indicates that simply taking an SSRI is probably not enough. To use an analogy, the SSRIs put you in the boat, but a rough sea can determine whether you will enjoy the trip. For an SSRI to work well, you may need to be in a favorable environment, "says Poggini.

It's always a stretch to generalize from animal research to people, but this certainly suggests that people suffering from depression can't rely only on antidepressant medication, but need to work on their life circumstances as well.