By Richard Zwolinski, LMHC, CASAC & C.R. Zwolinski
Dr. William Bernet is a professor of psychiatry at and his research is in forensic psychiatry, in particular effects of divorce, child custody disputes, child maltreatment, and methodology of distinguishing true vs. false allegations of child sexual abuse. Dr. Bernet is the author of is the author of Parental Alienation, DSM-5, and ICD-11 and other books.
Welcome, Dr. Bernet. We’ve been receiving conflicting information over the past few weeks. Is parental alienation (PA) listed as a disorder in the DSM-5?
The actual words, “parental alienation,” are not in DSM-5. We were told about three years ago that the leadership of the DSM-5 Task Force did not consider PA to be a mental disorder because the condition “is not located in the child.”
By Richard Zwolinski, LMHC, CASAC & C.R. Zwolinski
Young, brilliant musician Patrick Henry Hughes was born without eyes and with a structural disability. But his beautiful life-loving spirit combined with his father’s dedication show us that life is truly what you make of it.
By Richard Zwolinski, LMHC, CASAC & C.R. Zwolinski
Photo by Ron Jeffreys
If you’ve read about the recent study on overconfidence (we wrote about it) you may have noticed that some of the traits of over-confident people seem to be a bit (or more than a bit), narcissistic.
This Sciencedaily article about the study states that:
Overprecision — excessive confidence in the accuracy of our beliefs — can have profound consequences, inflating investors’ valuation of their investments, leading physicians to gravitate too quickly to a diagnosis, even making people intolerant of dissenting views.
Is overconfidence, the kind that causes real problems in a person’s life like the too-quick diagnoses above, all that different from at least some attributes of narcissistic personality disorder?
By Richard Zwolinski, LMHC, CASAC & C.R. Zwolinski
C.R. writes: Apparently, many people today are too confident. No, really.
A study suggests that people underestimate what they don’t know—and overestimate what they do know.
Could it be all that constant self-esteem building we’ve been focused on instilling in each of us the past twenty years? Or, have people always been too sure of themselves?
By Richard Zwolinski, LMHC, CASAC & C.R. Zwolinski
In the past few years, there’s been a not-so-quiet backlash against ADHD. Both the diagnostic frequency and the medications used to treat ADHD have come under fire in the past few years. Mental health professionals continue to debate the issue hotly.
By Richard Zwolinski, LMHC, CASAC & C.R. Zwolinski
He that takes medicine and neglects diet, wastes the skill of the physician.
- Chinese Proverb
Psychiatric Times recently reported that at the American Psychiatric Association Annual Meeting the “Prescription Brain Food: From Bench to Table” workshop was standing room only!
Drew Ramsey, assistant clinical professor of Psychiatry at Columbia University College of Physicians & Surgeons, told the packed room that the brain consumes 420 calories a day.
By Richard Zwolinski, LMHC, CASAC & C.R. Zwolinski
Exploring anger is often an important stage of the therapy process.
People who’ve suffered often have to get in touch with and name their anger. Otherwise, anger can be turned inwards—and express itself as fear, toxic shame, addiction, and self-harm.
Inwards is where anger goes to harm ourselves.
Or, it can go outwards—as blame, verbal and physical abuse, road rage, and so on. Outwards is where anger goes to hold others at a distance, even people who one wants to be in relationship with.
If anger’s lurking, it’s vital to understand and work through it.
By Richard Zwolinski, LMHC, CASAC & C.R. Zwolinski
French psychiatrist Patrick Landman, Allen Frances, (psychiatrist and chairman of the DMS IV), and others who work in mental health, are restating and renewing their public criticism of the the DSM-5.
The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders is published by the American Psychiatric Association, and the APA recently went on the offense in response to the critics, calling them “anti-psychiatry.”
By Richard Zwolinski, LMHC, CASAC & C.R. Zwolinski
Bernard, our former, much-missed neighbor, learned how to use a computer and the Internet when he was 94 years old.
A couple of years ago I phoned one of my mentors, Dr. John Hoffman, to ask him a question. His wife calmly explained to me that he was away—on a skiing trip. (Yes, downhill skiing.)
By Richard Zwolinski, LMHC, CASAC & C.R. Zwolinski
Howard Samuels, PsyD is the author of Alive Again, an impassioned and informative book on addiction treatment. The author, the son of a famous politician and industrialist who was a Chairman of the Democratic National Committee, had his own struggle with addiction.
Welcome, Howard. Why and for whom did you write Alive Again?
Primarily, the book was written for the alcoholic and/or addict who is still struggling and the families who have loved ones who are destroying their lives with alcohol and drugs. My experience suggests that their numbers are legion.
It is astonishing how many people don’t know where to turn for real help with these matters. I felt there needed to be a book that not only outlined the problem but also offered practical advice and solutions.
As a therapist who owns a treatment facility, I wanted to provide people who needed a starting place for answers.
Check out the book!
Therapy Revolution: Find Help, Get Better, and
Move On without Wasting Time or Money
by Richard Zwolinski, LMHC, CASAC & C.R. Zwolinski
Dr. William Bernet is a professor of psychiatry at and his research is in forensic psychiatry, in particular effects of divorce, child custody disputes, child maltreatment, and methodology of distinguishing true vs. false allegations of child sexual abuse. Dr. Bernet is the author of is the author of Parental Alienation, DSM-5, and ICD-11 and other books.
