Cancer Caregivers

Informal caregivers – family members, friends, and other loved ones – are an essential, uncompensated and significantly burdened extension of the healthcare team. Rapid advances in cancer care, including new drugs and immunotherapies and more sophisticated diagnostic tools, have markedly improved the ability to medically extend lives and enhance survival. As patients are living longer, with today’s shorter hospital stays and shift towards increased outpatient care, however, the demands placed on all caregivers and their needs have substantially increased. Cancer Caregivers reveals the field of Psycho-Oncology’s exploration of the depth of complexities of caregiving experiences and identifies the vast expanses left to be understood. This text describes the characteristics and experiences of cancer caregivers based on their life stage, relationship to the patient, and ethnic group membership, as well as patients’ disease and treatment type. It highlights the significant progress in research focused on the development and dissemination of psychosocial interventions for cancer caregivers, and includes in-depth case studies to illustrate their delivery and application. The text also explores the provision of support to caregivers in the community and the legal and ethical concerns faced by caregivers throughout the caregiving process. Cancer Caregivers offers both fundamental and practical information and is the essential resource for all healthcare professionals who work with patients and families facing cancer.

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Brain fog, Depression, Anxiety

Neuropsychobiology: Dopamine, GABA, Serotonin and Acetylcholine

CEUs for this course can be found here: https://www.allceus.com/member/cart/index/product/id/488/c/Unlimited Counseling CEUs for $59 https://www.allceus.com/ Specialty Certificate tracks starting at $89 https://www.allceus.com/certificate-tracks/ Live Webinars $5/hour https://www.allceus.com/live-interactive-webinars/ Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/CounselorToolbox Help us keep the videos free for everyone to learn by becoming a patron. Pinterest: drsnipes Podcast: https://www.allceus.com/counselortoolbox/Nurses, addiction and mental health counselors, social workers and marriage and family therapists can earn continuing education credits (CEs) for this and other course at: https://www.allceus.com/member/cart/index/product/id/499/c/View the New Harbinger Catalog and get your 25% discount on their products by entering coupon code: 1168SNIPES at check outAllCEUs is also approved as an education provider for NAADAC, the States of Florida and Texas Boards of Social Work and Mental Health/Professional Counseling, the California Consortium for Addiction Professionals and Professions. Our courses are accepted in most states through those approvals.Mechanism of action/purpose… Where is it found Precursor, L-DOPA is synthesized in brain and kidneys Dopamine functions in several parts of the peripheral nervous system In blood vessels, it inhibits norepinephrine release and acts as a vasodilator (relaxation) In the pancreas, it reduces insulin production In the digestive system, it reduces gastrointestinal motility and protects intestinal mucosa In the immune system, it reduces lymphocyte activity. Symptoms of excess & insufficiency… Most antipsychotic drugs are dopamine antagonists Dopamine antagonist drugs are also some of the most effective anti-nausea agents Changes in dopamine levels may also cause age-related changes in cognitive flexibility. Symptoms of excess & insufficiency Insufficient dopamine… Nutritional building blocks Eating a diet high in magnesium and tyrosine rich foods will ensure you’ve got the basic building blocks needed for dopamine production. Medications Most common dopamine antagonists (positive symptoms) Risperdone, Haldol, Zyprexa Metoclopramide (Reglan) is an antiemetic and antipsychotic Dopamine Hypothesis Patients with schizophrenia do not typically show measurably increased levels of brain dopamine activity Other dissociative drugs, notably ketamine and phencyclidine that act on glutamate NMDA receptors (and not on dopamine receptors) can produce psychotic symptoms. Those drugs that do reduce dopamine activity are a very imperfect treatment for schizophrenia: they only reduce a subset of symptoms, while producing severe short-term and long-term side effects GABA Mechanism of action/purpose Anti-anxiety, Anti-convulsant GABA is made from glutamate GABA functions as an inhibitory neurotransmitter – Glutamate acts as an excitatory neurotransmitter GABA does the opposite and tells the adjoining cells not to “fire” Where they are found Close to 40% of the synapses in the human brain work with GABA and therefore have GABA receptors. Medications Drugs that act as allosteric modulators of GABA receptors (known as GABA analogues or GABAergic drugs) or increase the available amount of GABA typically have relaxing, anti-anxiety, and anti-convulsive effect Gabapentin (neurontin) is a GABA analogue used to treat epilepsy and neurotic pain. Benzodiazepines and Barbiturates including GHB, Valium, Xanax Serotonin Mechanism of action/purpose Helps regulate Mood Sleep patterns Appetite Pain SerotoninSerotonin Serotonin Insufficiency Depression Anxiety Pain sensitivity Acetylcholine Their mechanism of action/purpose In lower amounts, ACh can act like a stimulant by releasing norepinephrine (NE) and dopamine (DA). Memory Motivation Higher-order thought processes Sexual desire and activity Sleep Acetylcholine Symptoms of excess Depression (all symptoms) Nightmares Mental Fatigue Anxiety Inverse relationship between serotonin and acetylcholine Insufficiency Alzheimers/dementia Parkinsons Impaired cognition, attention, and arousal Cholinergic and GABAergic pathways are intimately connected in the hippocampus and basal forebrain complex. It is not always about increasing a neurotransmitter. Sometimes you need to decrease it. Human brains try to maintain homeostasis and too much or too little can be bad A balanced diet will provide the brain the necessary nutrients in synergystic combinations

Treatment-resistant Mood Disorders

Treatment-resistant major depression and bipolar disorder are highly prevalent and disabling conditions associated with substantial morbidity and mortality. The assessment and management of refractory patients with mood disorders is a major clinical challenge for mental health providers. Part of the Oxford Psychiatry Library (OPL) series, this pocketbook provides a concise view of the current definitions, assessment and evidence-based management of treatment-resistant mood disorders and reviews novel therapeutic targets for mood disorders, which may enhance the therapeutic armamentarium of clinicians in the near future. The pocketbook serves as a useful guide for mental health practitioners, including psychiatrists, clinical psychologists, trainees, and interested primary care physicians.

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Eating Disorders from the Inside Out: Laura Hill at TEDxColumbus.

Calm, pleasure and satisfaction is what most people experience after eating. But for people with eating disorders, food brings anxiety, disturbance and noise. Dr. Hill takes a look from the inside out from the “sound” to the biology of these diseases and how the future holds a different approach to manage the illness while bringing these patients hope.

High-Octane Women

High-Octane Women

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Mental Health: In Our Own Words

13 people, aged 18-25 talk about what it’s like to live with a mental health problem, and what helps them cope.Watch part 2 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ETN7RXV_d3g Find out more about the young people in this video http://www.mind.org.uk/inourownwordsMusic – “Memorized” by Josh Woodward http://joshwoodward.com/song/Memorized

Depression and Anxiety Secrets – Episode 2

https://youtube.com/watch?v=3y7AirF3qTs

Episode 1 https://youtu.be/FUDG4h1RqC4 The #Gut-#Brain #Connection: #HowTo #Heal #Your Gut, To Heal Your #Brain Episode 3 https://youtu.be/23LyPSvsMtg

A Historical Dictionary of Psychiatry

This is the first historical dictionary of psychiatry. It covers the subject from autism to Vienna, and includes the key concepts, individuals, places, and institutions that have shaped the evolution of psychiatry and the neurosciences from their origin until the present. Among those who will appreciate this invaluable and unprecedented work of reference are clinicians curious about the origins of concepts they use in their daily practices, students of medical history keen to situate the psychiatric narrative within larger events, and the general public curious about illnesses that might affect them, their families and their communities-or readers who merely want to know about the grand chain of events from the asylum to Freud to Prozac. The Dictionary rest on an enormous base of primary sources that cover the growth of psychiatry through all of Western society.

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Anxious for Nothing

When it comes to anxiety, depression, and stress-related illnesses, America is the frontrunner. Thankfully, there’s a practical prescription for dealing with them. Anxious for Nothing, from New York Times bestselling author, Max Lucado, provides a roadmap for battling with and healing from anxiety. Does the uncertainty and chaos of life keep you up at night? Is irrational worry your constant companion? Could you use some calm? If the answer is yes, you are not alone. According to one research program, anxiety-related issues are the number one mental health problem among women and are second only to alcohol and drug abuse among men. Stress-related ailments cost the nation $300 billion every year in medical bills and lost productivity. And use of sedative drugs like Xanax and Valium have skyrocketed in the last 15 years. Even students are feeling it. One psychologist reports that the average high school kid today has the same level of anxiety as the average psychiatric patient in the early 1950s. Chances are, you or someone you know seriously struggles with anxiety. Max writes, “The news about our anxiety is enough to make us anxious.” He knows what it feels like to be overcome by the worries and fear of life, which is why he is dedicated to helping millions of readers take back control of their minds and, as a result, their lives. Anxious for Nothing invites readers to delve into Philippians 4:6-7. After all, it is the most highlighted passage of any book on the planet, according to Amazon: Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. In the characteristic tone of his previous books like You’ll Get Through This and Fearless, Max guides readers through this Scripture passage and explains the key concepts of celebration, asking for help, leaving our concerns, and meditating. Stop letting anxiety rule the day. Join Max on the journey to true freedom and experience more joy, clarity, physical renewal, and contentment by the power of the Holy Spirit. Anxiety comes with life. But it doesn’t have to dominate your life.

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