Atlas Psychiatry, PLLC

Despite the fact that the chemical imbalance theory of depression is widely believed by the public, it is NOT accurate, and has in fact been largely disproved.

Blog post follow up to come, but in the meantime, here is a link to a recent umbrella study that is making waves.

"This review suggests that the huge research effort based on the serotonin hypothesis has not produced convincing evidence of a biochemical basis to depression. This is consistent with research on many other biological markers. We suggest it is time to acknowledge that the serotonin theory of depression is not empirically substantiated."

The serotonin theory of depression: a systematic umbrella review of the evidence - Molecular Psychiatry The serotonin hypothesis of depression is still influential. We aimed to synthesise and evaluate evidence on whether depression is associated with lowered serotonin concentration or activity in a systematic umbrella review of the principal relevant areas of research. PubMed, EMBASE and PsycINFO were...

"One of the new things people began to find out in the last century was that thoughts - just mere thoughts - are as powerful as electric batteries - as good for one as sunlight is, or as bad for one as poison. To let a sad thought or a bad one get into your mind is as dangerous as letting a scarlet fever germ get into your body. If you let it stay there after it has got in you may never get over it as long as you live."
- The Secret Garden, Frances Hodgson Burnett

I often tell my clients to take a diagnosis with a grain of salt. Here are six reasons why.

6 Ways a Diagnosis Can Be Dangerous ‣ Atlas Psychiatry “Generalized Anxiety Disorder.” “Major Depressive Disorder.” “Attention Deficit Disorder.” Psychiatrists are trained to assess the “symptoms” of their patients and then assign labels using the most recent version of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (currently...

The pandemic has been especially hard on school-aged children and teens. Are you watching for warning signs of mental distress in the youth around you?

"After noticing something might be wrong, the course teaches the next step is to ask the student without pressuring or casting judgment and letting them know you care and want to help."

With students in turmoil, US teachers train in mental health Experts say while childhood depression and anxiety had been on the rise for years, the pandemic's unrelenting stress and grief amplified the problems, particularly for those already experiencing mental health issues who were cut off from counselors and other school resources during distance learning...