Psyched

Trick-or-treat is just the start. 🎃🍂

Whether your street goes out Thursday or Saturday, the do-it-all season is here. If you’re the one making the magic, pick one thing that’s only yours, say no to one thing, and ask for one specific kind of help. Swipe for more. 💛

Educational only, not medical advice. In crisis, call or text 988.

The do-it-all season starts this weekend. 🎃🍂
If you're the one making the magic for your family and the kids on your street, pick one small thing that stays yours this season. A walk, a protected night of sleep, a coffee alone. What's yours? 💛

New research on ADHD and early death. Please read this one with context. 💛

A big 2026 study pooled about 16 million people and found higher risk, but it shows a link, not a cause. A lot of the risk runs through things we can address: untreated anxiety and depression, injuries, substance use and gaps in care. If ADHD is part of your life, evaluation and follow-up matter. Swipe for the details.

Educational only, not medical advice. In crisis, call or text 988.

It's Halloween week, so here's the scary thing: what are you still avoiding? 🎃

Avoidance feels like relief, but it keeps the fear in charge. Pick one small step toward it this week. What's yours? 💛

For my mom. 💗
A lumpectomy, chemo and radiation. She went through all of it, and it is why this month is personal for me.
For my mother-in-law who underwent excisional biopsy; my friends who are survivors, who have taken surgical preventative measures, and those who are still fighting; my patients, females and the men; for the men who are too often forgotten in this conversation.
Know your screening schedule, get changes checked (men too), and if you or someone you love is carrying the stress of it, support is available. Swipe for details.



Educational only, not medical advice. In crisis, call or text 988.

October is Dysautonomia Awareness Month. 💛
Your heart races when you stand. Is it panic, or your body? Both can be true. Swipe for what the research says and what to bring to a first visit.
Educational only, not medical advice. In crisis, call or text 988.

If you live with hypermobile EDS, mast cell activation or POTS, your symptoms are real. So is what they can cost your mind.

Psychiatric care should hold both. If you have a clinician who sees this pattern, share this with them: we've added a page for referring clinicians. Link in the first comment. 💛

Educational only, not medical advice. In crisis, call or text 988.

Some anxiety starts in the immune system.

Today is International Mast Cell Disease Awareness Day. It’s a good moment for clinicians across specialties to remember that mast cell mediators like histamine don’t stay in their lane. Published case series and clinic data link mast cell activation with depression, generalized anxiety, panic, ADHD-like symptoms, and cognitive dysfunction. Several reports also describe neuropsychiatric improvement once mast-cell-directed treatment begins.

There’s an equally important counterweight. A prospective study of 100 patients referred for suspected MCAS confirmed it in only 2%. Many of those patients still carried real anxiety and depression burdens.

Both findings point to the same answer: coordinated care. The patient whose panic comes with flushing, GI flares, or a racing heart on standing deserves a psychiatric prescriber and an allergist or immunologist who are talking to each other. That’s what precision psychiatry is built for.

For colleagues: a reminder that psychiatric medications and antihistamines can overlap in effect, sedation, and interactions. A full medication list, including over-the-counter antihistamines and supplements, matters on both sides.

Whole person. Whole life.
Optimal Mind. Optimal Life.

First comment:

World Menopause Day is Sunday. 🌿

Hot flashes have options, and cognitive behavioral therapy is one the Menopause Society recommends. Perimenopause also isn't only hot flashes. Sleep, mood and anxiety changes are real and worth bringing to your clinician. 💛

Educational only, not medical advice. In crisis, call or text 988.

Your prescriber is a beginner too. ⛳

I'm learning golf as an adult, in public, and I'm not good yet. I co-own an indoor golf venue and I still avoided playing for years. I'm writing about it at Summer After the Pause. Link below. 💛