Sunday, February 11, 2007

My Three Shrinks Podcast 10: Be Mine


[9] . . . [10] . . . [11] . . . [All]


Valentine's Day is soon upon us. Hearts, flowers, and chocolate abound. This got us three shrinks wondering about why chocolate holds such a high position in this whole love-related endeavor.
We talk about the psychopharmacology of chocolate, while we simultaneously try a taste of own pharmacocoatherapy.
Oh, and this is our TENTH PODCAST! (woo)


February 11, 2007:

Topics include:

  • Chocolate and Mood [PubMed]: a look at chemicals in chocolate which affect mood, such as theobromine, caffeine, phenylethylamine (PEA), and anandamide.
  • First study mentioned by Clink, on chemicals in chocolate.
  • Second study, about mood modulation by food.
  • Third study, about chocolate and atypical depression.
  • Green M&Ms. Also, design your own M&Ms, even what is printed on them.
  • Dogs: Don't eat the chocolate.
  • Children of Psychiatrists (The Last Psychiatrist). Do psychiatrists have crazier children? (See Dinah's post)
  • Suicide risk in physicians. A European study (Hawton 2001) found that female doctors, and not male doctors, had increased suicide risk. Furthermore, specialties at highest risk included anesthesiology, generalists, and psychiatrists. A meta-analysis (Schernhammer 2004) found that physicians in general were 1.4 (men) and 2.3 (women) times more likely to commit suicide than the general population.
  • Questions for us? Email at mythreeshrinksATgmailDOTcom. We'll answer some starting with Podcast #11.
Next week: Black market price of psych meds; side effects of psychotherapy.

Last week's musical snippet was from 1983 release, Genetic Engineering, from the Dazzle Ships album by Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark (OMD).



Find show notes with links at:
http://psychiatrist-blog.blogspot.com/2007/02/my-three-shrinks-podcast-10-be-mine.html
This podcast is available on iTunes (feel free to post a review). You can also listen to or download the .mp3 or the MPEG-4 file from mythreeshrinks.com. Thank you for listening.


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8 comments:

jcat said...

- the suicide rate amonqst doctors in general...my theory is that maybe part of this is attributable to knowing what and/or how much can kill you, and to having access to neat ways of doing it?
Particularly, since the stats show women doctors at a higher % than male doctors. Statistically (in South Africa, at least), women are less likely to commit suicide in any way that creates a mess, or that involves others in trauma.
Far more women than men OD on prescription drugs, and I would guess that as a physician, this becomes more accessable for both sexes.
Great 'cast - as always.
jcat

SEAMONKEY said...

This isn't entirely (or at all, really) to the point, but something in TLP's post resonated with me. It's become a truism that the most effective way to respond to someone who does something you dislike is to challenge the behaviour rather than the person. IMHO, this strategy should be used always with strangers, only sometimes with friends, and never with loved ones (of whatever age.) Of course it's still good to be really specific and concrete about what's bugging you, but why kid yourself that you can be a detached observer? The sum of my loved one's behaviours is what makes me love him/her. If my loved one does something that really bothers me, I love him/her less at that moment.

sophizo said...

In honor of your chocolate theme, I decided to listen to the podcast while eating a slice of Blackout Cake from The Cheesecake Factory. Yummy!!! It didn't have any effect on my mood though. Darnit! Anyways, entertaining podcast as usual. Keep up the good work!

Feel like a laugh? Listen to this song:
Colorectal Surgeon
You can't help but laugh! And it's a great reason to be glad you chose psychiatry as a specialty. ;-)

Midwife with a Knife said...

Congrats on podcast #10!

With respect to the job physical thing: after I took my job here, I had to answer a bunch of questions from the hospital credentialling board specifically on mental illness. And not just, "Have you ever been incapacitated by a mental illness" it was "Have you ever had: depression, bipolar depression, psychosis or been treated by a mental health practitioner for _any_reason_." Now, mostly, unless I have/had a mental illness which has resulted in impaired judgement at work (which I don't.. the only thing that impairs my judgement is my own stupidity), I feel like it's none of their business. I also worry that employers aren't bound by the same confidentiality rules and ethics that health care providers are, and I would worry that it would leak out.

I find these sorts of questions much more annoying than the fact that I had to pee for my employer for residency.

Dinah said...

I can't get into blogger.
Will post when able.

DrivingMissMolly said...

On Effexor: I was on it briefly but it made me want to kill people. On the UPSIDE, though, it completely took away my craving for sweets AND chocolate.

Have any of y'all had a Moose Munch Bar? Yummylicious!

I DID ask TLP if he had children (in a comment to his Geodon post), and this is the response:

"Semi-responding to Lily-- I have an intellectual understanding of some of the main hazards in parenting, and am even better at deducing where things went wrong. But I am neither a hypocrite nor am I arrogant: I have no delusion that I am/will be a good father. Everything is a learning process, and the sooner I learn it, the better."

Can someone translate, posthaste?

On Theobromine: White chocolate isn't a "true" chocolate because it doesn't have this key ingredient. So, dip milkbones halfway into white chocolate to your heart's content. Fido won't die.

On suicide: I have also read that out of all specialties, psychiatrists have the highest suicide rate. This doesn't surprise me.

Nice podcast! Keep up the good work!

Lily

Sarebear said...

Thanks for missing me, Lily.

Anonymous said...

Here's how to make delicious chocolate covered strawberries. First of all ensure that the strawberries you are intending to use are dry, then allow them to be room temperature warm prior to making them. After the strawberries have been covered in chocolate, put them in your refrigerator to cool, but do not store them in the fridge. Consume within 1-2 days.