Out-of-body experiences (OBEs) are hallucinatory visual experiences that involve seeing the physical body placed in an external visual space. Many psychiatric disorders, brain dysfunctions, pharmacological agents, and altered psychological states are reportedly associated with these phenomena. OBEs have been linked to various brain lesions, particularly in the parietal and temporal regions,...
CureusJune 18, 2021Katelyn Grechuk, Heela Azizi, Vatsala Sharma et al.
The question of whether cannabis can trigger schizophrenia continues to be a subject of interest. There has been an increasing focus on identifying potential genetic factors that may predispose cannabis users to develop schizophrenia. One such gene identified in many studies codes for a catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) enzyme polymorphism. These studies, however, are limited by the inclusion...
Background: 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA), known recreationally as "Molly" or "Ecstasy", is a triple monoamine reuptake inhibitor. MDMA specifically acts as a weak 5-HT1 and 5-HT2 receptor agonist, targeting 5-HT2A, 5-HT2B, and 5-HT2C receptors. Its potential use for therapeutic purposes with these pharmacological profiles remains a controversial subject. Studies have shown the...
The Cartesian model of mind-body dualism concurs with religious traditions. However, science has supplanted this idea with an energy-matter theory of consciousness, where matter is equivalent to the body and energy replaces the mind or soul. This equivalency is analogous to the concept of the interchange of mass and energy as expressed by Einstein's famous equation [Formula: see text]. Immanuel...
Opioid addiction in the United States currently presents a national crisis despite availability of different treatments. Prior findings suggest that both repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) and subanesthetic dose of ketamine are efficacious in patients with opioid use disorders (OUD) when administered in isolation. However, their therapeutic value may be undermined by varying...
A patient presented to the emergency department with his brother due to recent onset of paranoid behavior that escalated over the past month. The patient endorsed paranoid delusions of people watching him and following him in a black truck. The patient admitted to being unable to sleep for the past two weeks and to having hypervigilant behavior whenever he leaves the house. Due to the patient's...
Marijuana is one of the most abused substances in the world. Marijuana is getting legalized around the world. So, it is crucial to understand its effect on our mental health. Its impact on the schizophrenia spectrum needs our special attention. Even though marijuana has been around for a long time, its exact effects are still unknown. Schizophrenia is a chronic illness affecting approximately...
CureusMay 9, 2019Ria Mehta, Kirti Sharma, Louis Potters et al.
Mindfulness is being used increasingly in various aspects of cancer management. Benefits of mindfulness practices are being observed to manage the adverse effects of treatment, symptoms from cancer progression, and the cost-effectiveness compared to conventional contemporary management strategies. In this review article, we present clinical trial data showing the benefits of mindfulness in...
CureusFebruary 14, 2019Muhannad Kurtom, Ashley Henning, Eduardo D. Espiridion
This is a case report of hallucinogen-persisting perception disorder in a 21-year-old man. Hallucinogen-persisting perception disorder, or acute hallucinogen-induced psychosis, is a rare disorder characterized by the presence of flashbacks of visual hallucinations as a result of previous hallucinogenic drug use. There is no standard of treatment, and management involves a combination of...
CureusDecember 31, 2018Shantanu Singh, Harleen Kaur, Shivank Singh et al.
Parasomnias are a group of sleep disorders characterized by abnormal, unpleasant motor verbal or behavioral events that occur during sleep or wake to sleep transitions. Parasomnias can occur during non-rapid eye movement (NREM) and rapid eye movement (REM) stages of sleep and are more commonly seen in children than the adult population. Parasomnias can be distressful for the patient and their...
Ecstasy, a popular drug among the younger generation, the primary psychoactive component of which is 3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA), is rarely known to have acute psychiatric effects and when it does, it is usually short term. We describe a patient who presented to the emergency room in a psychotic state after using ecstasy recreationally. Given his aggressive behavior in the...
The biochemical processes involved in depression go beyond serotonin, norepinephrine, and dopamine. The N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor has a major role in the neurophysiology of depression. Ketamine, one of the prototypical NMDA antagonists, works rapidly in controlling depressive symptoms, including acutely suicidal behavior, by just a single injection. Ketamine may rapidly increase the...
CureusMay 1, 2017Muhammad Aadil, R. Cosme, Jonathan Chernaik
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a childhood-onset neurological disorder that often continues into adult age. Stimulants medication are the mainstay of treatment, however, in the recent years, there has been a lot of studies conducted to understand the effectiveness and feasibility of mindfulness-based cognitive behavioral therapy for treatment of attention deficit...
CureusMay 20, 2013Jan Alexander Golembiewski2 citations
Introduction: Different types of hallucinations are symptomatic of different conditions. Schizotypal hallucinations are unique in that they follow existing delusional narrative patterns: they are often bizarre, they are generally multimodal, and they are particularly vivid (the experience of a newsreader abusing you personally over the TV is both visual and aural. Patients who feel and hear...