Educational Archives
The Aftershock of the Pandemic — a Brief Essay
When Scott Morrison and Chief Medical Officer Prof Brendan Murphy hesitated for too long from implementing further containment measures after they presciently, admirably, closed our borders to China earlier than the World Health Organisation were advising, the medical community nervously swelled into calls for more decisive action
Read MoreMetaphorical models - Bipolar Disorders
The Loose Switch Metaphor
Having bipolar disorder is like having a loose emotional switch. Flick the switch up and mood becomes elevated, flick down and mood becomes depressed. The switch tends to flick from north pole to south, or between black and white, without any shades of grey. It is as if there is an absence or a diminution of any inhibitory process to prevent the emotional momentum from building in a particular direction.
(Mood stabiliser) medication is like using glue to stiffen the switch, discouraging the switch from flicking to one pole, and discouraging mood instability.
The F...
Read MoreWhen a Bex and a lie down isn't enough
Life is never just plain sailing, but in times of emotional crisis you don't have to cope alone, writes Angie Kelly.
Read MorePsychiatric Emergencies - Lecture
The following is derived from lectures that I have given in Jan 2006 intended for the teaching of trainee psychiatrists. It is a combination of the author's views and published guidelines based on best practice principles derived from studies and expert opinions.
Read MoreMetaphorical models - Anxiety Disorders
Introduction
Anxiety is adaptive. It drives the athlete, motivating them to compete, to train, to perform and to win. It drives the student to attend lectures, to read boring textbooks, to study and to pass. They may be anxious about failure, about humiliation, about losing self-esteem, losing confidence, losing momentum, about letting others down, or merely anxious to chase success. There are numerous fears that might trigger anxiety that is adaptive as it helps to drive some behaviour that is deemed adaptive for the individual.
Panic attacks
Anxiety may also be triggered by danger, by t...
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