Why ultrasound imaging may be the future of neurological treatments
December 11, 2018Credit: University of New Mexico
After decades of medical dramas filling our TV screens, the figure of a technician wielding an ultrasound wand is so prolific, it’s easily called to mind. Even if you’ve never needed an internal abdominal exam, the steps are familiar: The clear, cool gel on the belly; the pressing of a sturdy, plastic device against the patient’s torso; the grainy images that appear on a nearby screen…
Expanding on this traditional use for ultrasound technology, Professor Read More
Seattle stories that humanize mental health struggles
Credit: NAMI Washington
The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) has a mission, “to improve the quality of life for all those affected by mental illness.”
For the second year now, NAMI Washington has presented a storytelling event in Seattle called The Brainpower Chronicles.
Bill Bernat, who serves as its host and storyteller coach, is a storyteller, mental health advocate and someone who lives with bipolar condition.
Bernat speaks frankly in his introduction about how mental health conditions build Read More
How To Be Supportive Of Your Partner With Mental Illness
Being in a relationship with someone you love can be beautiful. It can also be difficult, as you face the hurdles of everyday life. But if your partner struggles with mental illness, those issues can become much more intense for both of you. Understanding the needs of someone with mental illness is challenging. And you may not know how to support your partner living with mental illness while caring for your own needs, too. Here are a few ways you Read More
NAMI Excited With New Opportunities To Improve Medicaid Mental Health Care
Secretary Alex Azar, U.S. Health & Human Services, announced that the Administration will allow states to apply for Medicaid waivers to pay for mental health treatment in inpatient settings known as IMDs, or institutions of mental disease. Historically, Medicaid has not paid for treatment in these settings for most adults. While this policy was intended to reduce inhumane institutionalization, it also resulted in unequal coverage of mental health and, tragically, a lack of appropriate options for people with severe mental health Read More
Virtual reality therapy has real-life benefits for some mental disorders
Edwin adjusted his headset and gripped the game controller in both hands. He swallowed hard. The man had good reason to be nervous. He was about to enter a virtual environment tailor-made to get his heart pumping way more than any action-packed video game: a coffee shop full of people.
Determined to overcome his persistent fear that other people want to hurt him, Edwin had enrolled in a study of a new virtual reality therapy. The research aimed to help people Read More
Clubhouse helping overcome mental illness in Puget Sound
One of the many causes of homelessness is mental illness. A growing Washington non-profit is working to keep people off the streets by surrounding them with friends and goals.
Membership in this club hinges on an important provision: You have to pitch in.
“I don’t care if I have to wipe windows, clean the bathroom, give me a task to do, so I feel like I participate in the group,” said Kim Rettig, one of the members of HERO Read More