Psychiatry and Psychology

A paper titled “Mast Cells in the Developing Brain Determine Adult Sexual Behavior” by Kathrin Lenz et al., was published recently in http://www.biorxiv.org. The paper, through experiments with rats, reveals that mast cell activation in the brain pre-optical area (POA) during the prenatal period masculinizes sexual behavior of females and de-masculinizes the sexual behavior of males. As I read the study, it is saying that prenatal inflammation in the brain center responsible for the thrusting heterosexual movements may cause homosexuality. According to the study the male POA during the sexual differentiation stage has more mast cells than the female POA. A gestatio…

It has come to my attention that Abraham Maslow's hierarchy of needs places self-actualization and self-transcendence as the two most exalted reaches of one's psychological evolution, in a manner of speaking. I am wondering specifically what steps would be required in working toward reaching these concepts. I gather that self-actualization in particular refers to one becoming their "best self" and that self-transcendence refers to improving and/or being of service to the world/universe as a whole and making a difference in the grand scheme of things. I can be fairly confident that setting (and ultimately reaching) long term goals may very well be a prerequisite to achievi…

I strongly suspect my food is being laced with a drug! I have had a blood test with my dr, who tested for 7 illegal drugs, this test came back negative. I suspect it is strong prescription medication, a sedative. Who can i get to do a detailed analysis of my food/drink to identify the chemical being added? I live in the south of england.

Hello, I am looking for a good intelligence test online. Something like this one http://www.testq.com/education/quizzes/121-the-classic-iq-test (which is good but it doesn't show me the options to choose at some question). Thank you !

When a dangerous situation takss place, people (generally) react in a very predictable way - they panic and completely lose ability to think clearly. Is there a subgroup of people who naturally (without training) react the opposite way (slowed down heart and breathing rate, lower blood pressure, general relaxation)? OT more simply, a subgroup of population that finds situations most people find dangerous to not be dangerous at all or even pleasant?

Although the Twitter poll is possibly self-selecting, it seems a lot of people can hear sounds that aren't there. Maybe related to synaesthesia? http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-42237092 "the dilemma being discussed online is whether you can hear anything in this silent animation of skipping pylons:"

Starting three days ago, on the 12/10/2017, I have been experiencing many and varied (primarily) visual and (sometimes) auditory phenomena. I hope that this post is stumbled upon by somebody who maybe be able to offer an insight into the situation, and possibly suggest a means through which I could find appropriate help. I am keeping it short and simple, and will answer further questions upon request. I am tired as it is and currently experiencing the strangest and most offputting events to date. I suppose, I am asking for the most part if I am seeing the development of some sort of psychological/psychiatric/sensory problem, and if it is something that can …

Whenever there's a long period of time between the act a person commits that gets them punished, and the actual punishment itself, it seems that the punishment will have only a minimal deterrent effect on the acts. For example, if a person commits a crime on the streets, he is usually arrested immediately thereafter. But if he's already incarcerated to begin with, he can't be arrested again. So just adding a new charge doesn't have any immediate consequences. You have to convict him - a process which takes several months at the very least - before you can do anything tangible to him, such as extend his sentence. This definitely appears to heavily water down the deterrent …

Joan of Arc is considered crazy by Psychiatry. Because she listened voices and saw figures. For whom do'nt know Joan of Arc was born in France in the year 1412 and died in 1431. She was an important figure in French history during the Hundred Years' War (1337-1453). Joan of Arc was not schizophrenic, she was sensitive, that is, she saw and listened souls. Sensitive woman or medium she received orientations of "superior" souls to liberate France of the English domain. For France, later, fulfill its role: Democracy, Enlightenment, etc.

Hello, I need an intelligence test database that was performed on subjects for a hypothesis I have. What should I do ?

Anxious thoughts can overwhelm, making it difficult to make decisions and take action to deal with whatever issue arises. Anxiety can also lead to overthinking, which makes you more anxious, which leads to more overthinking, and so on. How can you get out of this vicious cycle? Repressing anxious thoughts won’t work; they will just pop up again, sometimes with more intensity. I really liked this read about Mindfulness. http://insaneclopedia.com/1485/calm-the-brain-get-through-conflicts/

I just made an account here. What background I do have in medicine is pharmaceutical though I have a bit more general medical knowledge than most average folks as well as extensive study in psychology focused on criminal behavior. DID is a subject that usually brings up some heavy debate on whether or not it exists. That isn't what I care to have this turn into because no amount of facts on either side is going to really sway anyone. My questions pertain to anyone with DID that is part of a system. I am part of a system myself. The body is male (though a chimera due to VTS) and 25, Caucasian. The original of the body has Asthma, Chronic Bronchitis, Hypermobility, Osteogen…

There exist a speculations to explain a physiological need of sleep by claiming that brain is cleaned of toxins during the sleep time. However it is not explained exactly why this toxins cleansing can't happen gradually during waking time and why there is a need to disconnect the full consciousness for this reason. But beside physiology in my perception there is a purely psychological need of sleep. Because sleep gives a person a mind-refreshing effect. If a person doesn't sleep too much and doesn't even need a lot of sleep for a physiological reasons he/she starts experience an unbearable "boredom" of surrounding reality which starts to surround him with and squeeze…

anyone here feeling the same way? not to mention the boredom you feel about them

is it true that the maslow's hierachy of needs has been debunked and doesn't make much sense?

A common phenomenon in some countries, especially in the United States, is the search for heroes and the deification of celebrities. The psychological need to have heroes and celebrities. It is a culture that acts on the mentality of the people from childhood. It is necessary beware not to create pariahs, those called losers. Celebrities are not gods, they are people like us.

First of all, pardon me if the question sounds stupid but i do not know a lot about conformity. That is the exact reason why i am asking here. Since conformity is someone's need to "blend with the group", what if i start associating myself with people that have really good habits. For example a group of people that are very athletic and exercise often. Will i feel the need to exercise? In this particular situation won't that improve my health? Or does it not work when i am aware of it? Thank you in advance!

In several cultures, during medieval and modern times, fasting has been used for homosexuality. Fasting is defined as “a willing abstinence or reduction from some or all food, drink, or both, for a period of time”, so it is similar to keeping a diet. Fasting has also been used since antiquity as a healing tool for many diseases. According to historian Caroline Bynum, “Many patristic [early Christian, from c. AD 100 to either AD 451 or to the 8-th century] writers associated food with lust and urged abstinence as a method of curbing sexual desire. John Cassian, writing for monks in the early fifth century, said: ‘It is impossible to extinguish the fires of concupiscen…

First of all, I'd like to state that this isn't any kind of request for medical advice, I'd just like to share a personal experience that I find interesting, I've suffered from chronic depression and anxiety issues for several years, however I have had the same dream several times that I can remember: I'm starting University and I'm really happy and excited to be there, moving into University accommodation and starting a new life, etc. While I can remember the excitement and anticipation that I feel in my dreams, I can't summon those same emotions in my waking state. My question is: Is this a recognized phenomena?

Hello, everyone what do you think about the Emotional Freedom Technique which is developed by Gary Craig. He said that you can reduce a lot of psychological symptoms (trauma, depression, anxiety, anger and so on) by tipping on special meridian points (Acupuncture) of the body. There are some studies (Clond, 2016; Kalla et al. 2017; Gaesser & Karan, 2017; Gueguen et al., 2015; Rancour, 2016) which say that there is an effect but is the concept plausible? Kind regards, Christoph

Hey people, I'm new here and after recent events I wanted to ask a question, I've been using crystal meth since march and seem to have developed the ability to see veins where other people can't. It started with me asking ''Why don't you use that one?''. It progressed from there and I remember this one day I got out of the shower and I could see all the veins on my legs mapped out. Now I can see veins everywhere on the body, through clothing, occasionally objects and on pictures. I did a couple of tests that have shown me that I do indeed have this, but these were not done by professionals. I'm aware of the fact that meth can cause hallucinations, but since the…

What do they mean when they say psychology cannot explain the cause of it and no diagnosed test like blood work, CT scan , MRI scan so on. What mental illness are they making reference to? And cannot explain the cause of it?

Is simple awareness of the fact of confirmation bias enough to reduce its impact on having an open mind and being able to consider all information critically and on it's own merit? I find myself overwhelmed by information these days, and I need to filter that which I should consider and that which I shouldn't. Often I select by what the source is, however I have sometimes seen the same article posted by two sepearte sources, one which I typically disregard and one which I would typically consider reading. I have a feeling some sources will be selective in their information for a particular agenda, or because of a particular ethos, some credible information maybe fit with…

Hi I recently bumped in to the fenomena nootropics, uncontrolled substances that state they can make you more effective, more focussed, give you a better memory so improve your learning skills and even makes your Brian act faster and so makes you even smarter. To me this sounds "to good to be true" BUT many people do use it mayority are very high educated people and they say it DOES work on them. Efficiency of the substance seems to differ from 1 to another but this is easily declared by difference in metabolism in each person. There are many "versions" or substances of which they clame have these effects. Most recent and most effective in ammount to effectivenes seem…

Some think in words, some in pictures, some in concepts and I'm sure there are other ways I've missed. I also believe that most have some combination of these, with a dominant mode. The point I wondered was has any work been done to establish if for example the group who think predominately in pictures have a higher incidence of visual halucinators.