South Central Minnesota Mental Health Resource List

Posted by Andy Alt on June 4, 2009

TinaMarie Lugo, , Regional Services Coordinator for the South Central Children’s Mental Health Initiative, sent out a revised copy (May 31, 2009) of a South Central Minnesota Mental Health Resource list. The file is in .xls format, viewable in Microsoft Excel. If you don’t have Microsoft Excel installed on your computer, you can download and install OpenOffice.org — which can open .xls and other Microsoft formats — for free, or download an Excel viewer from Microsoft, also free of charge.

Looking for Contributors and Co-admins

FDA Seeks Public Input on Transparency

Posted by Andy Alt on June 25, 2009

Though I’m late in posting this and the meeting has passed, the video is still available for viewing.

FDA NOTE TO CORRESPONDENTS

For Immediate Release: June 23, 2009

Media Inquiries: Raymond Formanek Jr., 301-796-4677, raymond.formanek@fda.hhs.gov

FDA Seeks Public Input on Transparency

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration will host a daylong meeting on June 24, 2009. During this meeting, the FDA will seek recommendations on how to make information on FDA activities and decision-making useful, understandable, and more accessible to the public. The meeting is scheduled for 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. EDT at the National Transportation Safety Board Conference Center, 429 L’Enfant Plaza, S.W., Washington, D.C., 20594.

Cedar House now has a web site

Posted by Andy Alt on June 17, 2009

A few days ago I found that Cedar House, Inc (http://cedarhouseinc.com/) now has a web site.

Cedar House offers Mental Health Services in Faribault, Albert Lea, Northfield, and Austin, Minnesota

For location and contact information, visit http://cedarhouseinc.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=53&Itemid=61

ADHD Drugs Linked to Sudden Death in Kids

Posted by Andy Alt on June 17, 2009

A couple of items regarding ADHD Drugs and links to more resources:

US News and World Report: ADHD Drugs Linked to Sudden Death in Kids

MONDAY, June 15 (HealthDay News) — Stimulant medications commonly prescribed to treat attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are associated with an increased risk of sudden death, but those deaths are still rare, new research finds.

Children and teens taking ADHD stimulant medications were seven times more likely to die suddenly than their peers, the study found.

“What we found — to our surprise — is that even if you take out confounding factors, the association between stimulant use and sudden death was still significant,” said study author, Madelyn Gould, a professor of clinical epidemiology in psychiatry at Columbia University/New York State Psychiatric Institute in New York City. “I’m confident the association is real and significant, but it’s very rare. I don’t want our findings to change prescribing patterns or for a parent to change their willingness to use stimulant medications if they’re called for, but physicians should monitor patients with any new medication you give a young person.”
[...] The complete story is at http://health.usnews.com/articles/health/healthday/2009/06/15/adhd–drugs-linked-to-sudden-death-in-kids.html

Food and Drug Administration (FDA): Stimulant Medications used in Children with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder – Communication about an Ongoing Safety Review
– June 15, 2009

VFW Stands Up Against Military Suicides

Posted by Andy Alt on June 17, 2009

Something I recently came across on the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) web site.

(For Northfielder’s: to watch a video of the 2005 Northfield Veteran’s Memorial dedication, visit http://northfieldmn.wordpress.com/resources-s-z/veterans/)

VFW Stands Up Against Military Suicides (May 29, 2009 ?)

In an open letter, VFW Commander-in-Chief Glen Gardner is urging his 1.6 million members to help OEF/OIF veterans cope with the stresses of war.

Dear Comrades:

There is an enemy in our midst that is having a devastating effect on our servicemen and women in the field and at home. That enemy is stress.

Since 9/11, more military personnel and veterans have committed suicide than the total dead from both wars in Iraq and Afghanistan combined, and this tragedy is occurring despite the best of intentions and programs offered by the Departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs. That is because the need has overwhelmed the capacity of government and civilian mental health centers. It’s also because some people simply refuse to admit they need help.

UPDATE ON the Mental Health Humor: Cartoon-a-thon

——– Original Message ——–
Subject: UPDATE ON the Mental Health Humor: Cartoon-a-thon
Date: Wed, 27 May 2009 12:50:36 -0400
From: Chato B. Stewart
Organization: Mental Health humor

Dear Peer, Provider or Caregiver,

Wow, what a great Mental Health Awareness month! This year so many
people are really putting in a lot of effort from the DBSA, NAMI and
many other organizations like Mental Health America and also not to for
get many of our peers and their individual efforts.

The Mental Health Humor Cartoon-A-Thon is a free and fun project to use
humor as a coping skill. Each day during the month I’ve volunteered to
draw one cartoon. Now we have 26 new cartoons for this month to use
humor to bring awareness to many different mental health issues. It’s
meant to use positive humor as a way to cope with our serious disorders.

TIME: Starting a diaper bank

Posted by Andy Alt

Recently an article appeared in TIME magazine about a volunteer-operated diaper bank, and how to start one:
Starting a Diaper Bank

[...]
“I saw a mother take a diaper off, empty the solids and put it back on,” says Goldblum. Not having enough diapers, she realized, has far-reaching effects. “Most day-care centers require parents to provide their own,” she says. And without day care, parents can’t look for work or go to school. Cloth diapers don’t help, because low-income families tend not to have washing machines or cars to get to the Laundromat. Moreover, she knew that babies who sit longer in their own waste get more diaper rashes and cry more. And she’d read the studies showing that more crying leads to more physical abuse.
[...]
FOR MORE DETAILS Download a free how-to manual at thediaperbank.org

Matthieu Ricard, the happiest man alive according to an MRI scan, thanks to meditation

Posted by Andy Alt on May 13, 2009

After running MRI scans on thousands of people who use meditation to try to recalibrate their emotional states, they found that Matthieu Ricard had the most impressive emotional balance they’ve ever recorded on a brain scan.

PRI’s The World – Listen to Audio: Mr Happy – Geo Answer (2 minutes)

Anchor Lisa Mullins speaks with Matthieu Ricard, a French molecular-biologist-turned-Buddhist monk…and possibly “the happiest man in the world.” Neuroscientists at the University of Wisconsin say Mr. Ricard had the most impressive emotional balance ever recorded on a brain scan.