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Category: neuroscience

Demographics, Services, and Practices in ADHD Coaching in the US

Survey: Online ADHD coaching has increased substantially since the pandemic, mostly by lay adults reporting lived experience with ADHD, as a rising alternative to formal ADHD care.

This survey study found that most ADHD coaches primarily operated outside the US health care system and reported workforce entry after the COVID-19 pandemic’s onset. Our findings suggest ADHD coaching is usually delivered through a 1:1 virtual format using a traditional outpatient psychotherapy model (weekly 1-hour sessions) and reached prospective clients through a combination of online marketing and health care referrals. ADHD coaches tended to be individuals without formal mental health training who self-identified as having ADHD (or a loved one with ADHD), may have received ADHD coaching themselves, and based practices on lived experiences. Unlike most licensed mental health clinicians, ADHD coaches practiced across state and international borders.

As expected, we detected a spike in ADHD coaching workforce entry at the COVID-19 pandemic’s outset that mirrored similar ADHD medication prescribing patterns.6 Herein, we reveal that intervention content self-reported by ADHD coaches is similar to those manualized in evidence-based CBTs for ADHD.37 The potential redundancy in content between ADHD coaching and CBT for ADHD could make it difficult for prospective clients and some medical clinicians to differentiate between these approaches. However, the aforementioned aspects of ADHD coaching are different than traditional CBTs in that ADHD coaching appears longer term, involves sharing lived experiences with ADHD, and offers support between sessions (Table 2).38-40 These features may make ADHD coaching especially palatable to adults with ADHD, who reportedly criticize routine care CBT as being too rigid, generic, and short term, with therapists who are stigmatizing, negativistic about ADHD, and unempathetic.

High-dose birth control pills linked to elevated fear in safe contexts

A new study published in Neuropsychopharmacology suggests that the use of oral contraceptives may influence how the brain regulates fear responses in safe environments. The research indicates that women who use birth control pills, particularly those with higher doses of synthetic estrogen, may experience elevated fear in safe contexts compared to women who have never used hormonal contraception. The findings also imply that these alterations in fear processing could persist for a significant period after an individual stops taking the medication.

Anxiety disorders and post-traumatic stress disorder are nearly twice as prevalent in women as they are in men. Biological factors likely contribute to this disparity, with sex hormones acting as potential mediators. Specifically, the hormone estradiol plays a significant role in how the brain manages fear and memory.

Effective fear regulation requires the ability to distinguish between a threat and a safety signal based on the surrounding environment. For example, seeing a snake in a forest might require a fear response, while seeing a snake in a zoo enclosure should not. This process is known as contextual fear regulation.

Neuroscientists link a common inflammatory molecule to the dopaminergic mechanisms of addiction

Treatments for autoimmune disorders might offer hope for methamphetamine addiction. Research published in Science Signaling indicates that blocking a specific immune protein dampens the drug’s effect on the brain’s reward centers.

Study links men’s higher intelligence to fewer abusive relationship behaviors

A new study published in the journal Personality and Individual Differences shows that men with higher general intelligence are less likely to engage in abusive or coercive behaviors toward their romantic partners. The findings suggest that cognitive ability may play a role in how men manage conflict and commitment in heterosexual relationships.

General intelligence is a broad mental capacity that influences reasoning, planning, and problem-solving. Psychology research has long established that people with higher general intelligence tend to experience better life outcomes. They generally achieve higher levels of education and earn more money. They also tend to live longer and suffer from fewer health issues.

But the relationship between intelligence and romantic success is less clear. Some data suggests that intelligent people are less likely to divorce. Other studies indicate they may have sex less frequently or choose to have fewer children. Evolutionary psychologists have debated why this might be the case.

Scientists Discover Natural Longevity Molecule That Restores Memory in Alzheimer’s Models

A longevity-linked metabolite restored key memory processes in Alzheimer’s models, highlighting aging biology as a promising therapeutic target. Singapore ranks among the countries with the longest life expectancy, yet many people spend nearly ten of their later years living with poor health. Res

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