Our Latest Blogs

I Love Natural Remedies and Modern Remedies

remedies

  In honor of Mental Health Awareness Month, we are inviting different guest bloggers each week in the month of May to write about their perspectives on mental health. Today’s guest blog post comes from The Mental Runner whose post details how a combination of living a healthy lifestyle and taking medication has helped him manage his mental health conditions and live a […]

Spotting the Early Warning Signs of Heroin Addiction

Spotting the Early Warning Signs of Heroin Addiction

  In honor of Alcoholism and Drug Dependence Awareness Month, today’s guest blog post comes to us from Matt Abbasfard from Northbound in Newport Beach, CA. He discusses the warning signs of heroin and opioid addiction and the importance of seeking help for a loved one who might be struggling with a substance use disorder. Heroin […]

8 Eating Disorder Myths

eating disorder

To honor Eating Disorder Awareness Month this February, I am busting common eating disorder myths so everyone can get a clear picture of how serious these types of disorders are.   1. Eating disorders are rare It’s estimated that 11-24 million people in the United States and over 70 million people worldwide (North Dakota State University) […]

Co-occurring Disorders: Beyond Dual Diagnosis

co-occuring disorders

  Last fall for the third talk in Laurel House/RtoR’s Family Seminar Series, our featured speaker Dr. Jeremy Barowsky pointed out that we had used the outdated term “dual diagnosis” in our promotion of the event. Dr. Barowsky is the Director of Addiction Medicine at Greenwich Hospital Addiction Recovery Center. He also has a private […]

Mental Health Diagnosis: Getting It Right the First Time

therapy session

  Treatment of a mental health disorder begins with an assessment and a diagnosis.  Unfortunately, there are no foolproof tests for mental illness. A CAT scan might alert doctors to a neurological problem that allows them to rule out schizophrenia.  But schizophrenia itself will not turn up in a CAT scan, blood test, x-ray, or […]

Bipolar Disorder vs. Borderline Personality Disorder: Knowing the Difference

bipolar vs bpd

  Maybe you have noticed that the free and open style of the Internet has encouraged many bloggers and social media users to open up about their experience with bipolar disorder or borderline personality disorder. While many of these people may have a confirmed mental health disorder, some give the impression of being self-diagnosed or […]

Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner to Speak on Mental Health Symptoms and Medication: Next Up in the Laurel House Family Seminar Series

On October 16, 2014 in Stamford, Laurel House will present the third installment in its Family Seminar Series on the topic of Medication and Symptomology.  Carol Monroe, a Psychiatric and Mental Health Nurse Practitioner, will talk about the symptoms of some common mental health disorders and the medications that are typically prescribed for them, including […]

Mental Health Recovery and the Unplanned Experiment of Untreated Mental Illness: Is Medication Necessary?

medication in bottle

Following up on Tuesday’s post on the meaning of recovery, here is an article by the noted psychiatrist and advocate E. Fuller Torrey that appeared in Psychiatric Times which questions whether people living with a severe mental illness are Better Off Without Antipsychotic Drugs?   Dr. Torrey acknowledges the many studies showing that 21-29% of patients […]