Nonfiction – Page 4 – Nonfiction and Nonsense

Toxic Psychiatry by Peter R. Breggin, M.D. – Part 1: Chapter 2 through 5

If you have an interest in schizophrenia, or just want to learn more about it, I would suggest reading this section of Dr. Breggin’s book.

The first chapter in this part details what schizophrenia is, specifically the symptoms of what the author calls a psychospiritual crisis, which is brought on by environmental factors, feelings of anger and overwhelm, feelings of humiliation, depression, and identity crisis, and not genetic factors as the psychiatry community would like us to believe. There is a lack of evidence to prove that schizophrenia has a genetic link, even though psychiatrists as a whole try to push this theory. Psychiatrists usually end up making symptoms worse by prescribing medications that end up making the condition worse.

The next chapter lists all the most popular drugs that are used to treat schizophrenia, both their scientific names and the name brands which they are sold under by various pharmaceutical companies. Psychiatric treatment revolves around these drugs and the prescribing of them to impair the ‘normal’ brain function of the patient, not to cure whatever is askew. Basically, psychiatric drugs are the chemical equivalent of a lobotomy, instead of surgically clippining the pathways between the frontal lobe and the rest of the brain, these drugs chemically disrupt the path.

Following the chapter about drugs, is a chapter about the effects of long term drug use. I learned all about tardive dyskinesia and dementia, two diseases that are linked with persons who have taken psychiatric drugs for years. Taking narcoleptic drugs for even a few months could lead to health problems that could plague a person for the rest of their life. I also learned about the flu-like withdrawal symptoms that occur when a person stops taking narcoleptics.

The final chapter in part 1 points out how obvious it is that schizophrenia is the result of environmental factors, and not genetics. Psychiatrists push the genetic link as the cause of schizophrenia for many reasons, the most important being that they would likely lose their validity and their jobs. The second most important reason is that schizophrenics rarely reproduce and have a lot of difficulty doing so, due to spending a large portion of their lives in institutions, being isolated, trouble being social, and other mental health problems. If schizophrenia was genetic, it would not be as prevalent as it is, as there would not be enough diagnosed individuals producing children to keep the disease alive. This, for me, was the most interesting chapter.

Toxic Psychiatry by Peter R. Breggin, M.D. – Introduction and Chapter 1

Nonfiction

This post is going to be short. I picked up a book, from my shelf, one that I purchased maybe 10 years ago, and which I also probably last read 10 years ago. This was when I was actively studying psychology, hoping to eventually become a psychologist, therapist, or counselor. After a few years of school, I realized that this wasn’t the career for me and that mental health was more of a hobby. I don’t know if hobby is the right word, but the human mind fascinates me, especially the things that go on in the brain that make a person seek out aid from a mental health professional. It was published in 1991, but I think the arguments in this book are still valid today. The book is split into five parts, which is convenient for me since I like to make breaks when they won’t interrupt the flow.

There is an introductory chapter in which Dr. Breggin gives a short explanation of the differences between a psychiatrist, psychotherapist, psychologist, and psychoanalyst. He also makes mention of the other types of professionals that work in the field of mental health. There are a wide variety of professionals that you could end up coming into contact with if you are a person who is seeking help regarding mental health.

Chapter 1 takes us to 1954, when the author was a young student visiting the nearby mental health facility at the request of one of his friends. Although the chapter is short, it sets a solid base for the rest of the book. You start to get an idea as to why the author is so opposed to the use of medication to treat mental health issues, and his preference for conversation and loving care.

Gulp by Mary Roach – Chapters 13 to 17 and final thoughts

Nonfiction

Chapter 13 of Gulp goes into why legumes make you gassy, what you can do to help with this problem, and what Beano does to help with the digestion of beans.

Chapter 14 has a little bit more information about NASA, particularly in how they keep the air supply free of smells in spacesuits. There is also a little bit about the smell that is associated with the Devil that I enjoyed reading about.

Eating Backward, the title alone got me incredibly intrigued, more so than I think it should have, and it did not disappoint. All I could think of while reading this chapter is one specific episode of South Park where they do exactly this. While the episode is both hilarious and disgusting, scientifically it is not something that could actually happen for many reasons, all of which are described in detail.

In Chapter 16 I learned about Hirschsprung’s disease, a disorder of the colon that provides a possible explanation as to why Elvis died on the toilet. I learned a lot about death by toilet, which can happen not only from the above mentioned disease but from performing the Valsalva maneuver in an attempt to go while having a heart condition.

In the final chapter, we learn about bacteria transplants. Some people have bad bacteria in their colons, and they need better bacteria to make their lives less miserable. This chapter goes into where the beneficial bacteria come from and how they get them inside the person that needs them. It’s a little gross.

I would read this book again. In truth, I cannot wait to read this book again. It’s funny, well written, entertaining, and all the science stuff is explained really well (speaking as an individual who did not pursue the scientific arts). The chapters in this book all flow really nicely into each other. In fact, I cannot think of another book where the transitions are so harmonious. And, I only found one spelling error in the entire book, the word “herp” where I believe the word “help” was meant to be printed. This will not discourage me from picking up another one of Mary Roach’s books, which I hope to purchase in the near future.

Gulp by Mary Roach – Chapters 7 to 12

Nonfiction

Chapter 7 will tell you which foods are the most dangerous to eat, not due to poison, because there is a higher chance that you could choke on them. We also learn about our most powerful muscles, the ones in our jaw, and why we like crunchy foods so much.

Chapter 8 involves a lot of discussion about whales, different breeds, what they eat, what they can and can’t swallow based on throat size, and if there is a possibility that a living creature that has been swallowed by a whale has any chance of surviving in its stomach or chewing it’s way out.

Chapter 9 goes into discussing the probability of a bug being able to chew its way out of the predator that has swallowed it whole. We also learn about why some cows have those plugged up holes on their sides, why cows eat so much, and just how deep your arm can reach if you have a chance to put your arm in a cow’s fistula.

Chapter 10 gets back to human stomachs, particularly the science behind how we know when to stop eating and what happens if we eat too much. We send signals to let ourselves know we have eaten enough, have relief functions, and if we don’t listen to ourselves the body gets rid of the excess through emergency methods. If you are fascinated by competitive eaters and their bottomless stomachs, there is also some information on that subject that may interest you.

Chapter 11 is a very in depth look at how contraband is smuggled into prisons when the human body is the delivery method.

If you want to know about flammability of human gases, why NASA has a flatus expert on retainer (yes, this is a real job title and area of expertise), and the possible origin of fire breathing dragon stories, you need to read Chapter 12.

Gulp by Mary Roach – Chapters 1 to 6

Nonfiction

I don’t remember why I had this book in my ever growing pile, but I am so glad that I finally picked it up. I was on a teen novel binge, my guilty pleasure when it comes to books, and I decided that I needed to supplement my reading with some educational texts. Everything I have read so far has left me extremely intrigued, and wondering what interesting piece of information am I going to read next?

Chapter 1 discusses how taste has more to do with smell than actually tasting the food we eat. I learned what a sensory panelist is, how much training it takes to be one, and I think I found a backup career path if I ever decide I need a change.

Chapter 2 helped me realize that it’s not my fault that my cat isn’t eating her food. It’s not that I keep choosing brands or flavors that she doesn’t like, it’s that I’m treating her diet like my own, and that’s not how cats work. Also, animals are better at eating foods that are good for them, they seem to understand what nutrients they need and where to get them from. The most nutrient parts of an animal are found in the liver, stomach and intestines, and this segues neatly into the next chapter.

Chapter 3 talks about why we humans eat certain parts of the animal and throw out other parts. In the US especially, there are not a lot of people who are willing to eat the parts of the animal that are best for you in terms of gaining nutrients. The nutrient rich liver, stomach and intestines are often thrown away or shipped to other countries, where there are people willing to consume them. It seems that you need to grow up eating the heart and lungs of an animal to consider eating them normal rather than gross. Trying these foods as an adult is pretty unlikely, as you have learned that they are the garbage parts. But the challenge is how do we introduce these foods to young children, when the adults responsible for feeding them either don’t know how to prepare these parts or are unwilling to cook them and eat them?

Chapter 4 made me have to hold off on eating my lunch for a few minutes, I would not recommend reading this chapter right before you are about to sit down for a meal. The entire chapter is about chewing food and food leaving the body and I don’t really want to go into it.

Chapter 5 is not as off putting as chapter 4, but close. I learned about the toxic relationship between the scientist William Beaumont and the working class man Alexis St Martin, which was just as disturbing as the experiments Beaumont performed on St Martin. I also do not recommend reading this chapter right before you are planning on eating something.

Chapter 6, so far, has been the most captivating chapter. I learned more about saliva than I think I will ever need to know in my professional life, and personal life, as I am sure no one will be interested in discussing saliva with me. I feel like I am one of the few people who has read this chapter who was considering learning more about what goes on with the fluid we produce in our mouths. This speaks for the authors ability to write, I must say, because I believe there was a mention in this chapter about the scientists studying saliva not being able to find anyone to discuss their area of study with (due to most people being repulsed by the subject), and also not being taken seriously when discussing saliva.