For much of the history of ADHD, the condition has had a recognisable face: the restless, impulsive and disruptive boy who cannot stay in his seat. That child certainly exists. The problem comes when one particularly visible presentation of ADHD becomes confused with ADHD itself. Girls and women are diagnosed with ADHD less frequently than males during childhood and tend to receive their diagnosis later. UK healthcare data show that the male-to-female difference in diagnosis

Lean—also known as purple drank, dirty Sprite, sizzurp or simply syrup—is a drink usually associated with American hip-hop culture. Images of brightly coloured liquid in polystyrene cups have helped turn it into a recognisable cultural symbol, particularly on social media. Behind the branding, however, lean is essentially a form of opioid use. What is lean? The traditional American version is made by mixing cough syrup containing codeine and promethazine with a fizzy drink. S

I recently came across a personality concept that stopped me in my tracks: the otrovert. The term was coined by psychiatrist Dr Rami Kaminski and developed in his book, The Gift of Not Belonging. It comes from the Spanish word otro, meaning “other.” An otrovert is someone who may be warm, sociable and capable of forming close relationships, but who does not naturally derive their identity from belonging to groups. This is not simply another word for an introvert. Introversion

I have argued for some time that young people’s substance use is often better understood as a trajectory than as a fixed category. The key question is not simply, “what drug is the young person using?” or “how often are they using it?” Those questions matter, but they are not enough. The more useful question is: what kind of developmental pathway is this substance use sitting inside? In broad terms, I have suggested that young people’s substance use often falls into three ove

I wanted to share a piece of work that has been developing over the past year. KASPR (Ketamine Assessment, Screening & Progression Risk) has been designed in response to a growing gap between how ketamine-related harm presents, and how current treatment models are structured to respond. It is not simply an assessment tool, but a structured, integrated framework , including: – identification of emerging harm through sentinel symptoms– a model to organise clinical understanding

Ketamine use continues to present a growing challenge across services. One of the consistent issues raised by practitioners is that ketamine does not sit comfortably within existing substance misuse frameworks. Presentations often involve a mix of psychological drivers, complex patterns of use, and increasingly significant physical harm — particularly urological symptoms — that are not well captured by standard assessment tools. This creates a particular problem across differ

A research team led by the University of Cambridge has recently published one of the most compelling trials to date examining whether a simple, targeted cognitive task can reduce traumatic flashbacks. The findings, published in The Lancet Psychiatry, are part of a longer research programme led by Professor Emily Holmes and colleagues exploring how intrusive memories form — and how they might be disrupted. The headline has travelled widely: Playing Tetris reduces PTSD symptoms

Empathy has long been regarded as central to therapeutic effectiveness. Carl Rogers described “accurate empathic understanding” as one of the core conditions for change. Contemporary outcome research supports that claim. Large meta-analyses consistently show that therapist empathy is a significant predictor of treatment outcome across modalities and client groups (Elliott et al., 2011; 2018). Importantly, it is the client’s experience of being understood — not the therapist’s

Over the last year, drug checking services and emergency clinicians in parts of the UK and Europe have begun identifying medetomidine appearing in the illicit drug supply. While unfamiliar to most people outside veterinary medicine, medetomidine is raising serious concern because of its potent sedative effects, unpredictable dosing, and high risk when combined with opioids . What is medetomidine? Medetomidine is a veterinary sedative and analgesic , primarily used to sedate

"This is the 3rd time I have done this training but this is the longest course I have done. I learn something new every time. It's incredibly useful & the online resource is fantastic. Phil is very knowledgeable and welcoming making the course brilliant. Thank you!" – Course Participant Practical, Evidence-Based Training That Strengthens Real-World Practice As organisations look ahead to the coming financial year, many are balancing increased complexity with ti

In today’s fast‑paced world, emotions can feel complicated and overwhelming. The How We Feel app offers a science‑based way to notice, understand, and respond to those inner experiences. Designed as a free emotional wellbeing tool, it helps people track how they’re feeling over time and build practical emotional awareness — not by diagnosing or treating clinical disorders, but by helping users learn about their own emotional patterns and what affects them. The app was built

When we think of trauma, images of lifelong suffering, PTSD, and permanent disruption often come to mind. But George Bonanno, Professor of Clinical Psychology at Teachers College, Columbia University, challenges that assumption. His decades of research on trauma and resilience have fundamentally changed how we understand the human response to adversity. Resilience Is More Common Than You Think Contrary to popular belief, Bonanno’s research shows that most people exposed to po

Nowhere is the issue of "What works" so tested than in Criminal Justice interventions. One of the most effective approaches is the The...

In training sessions people are often fascinated by, and want to understand, psychopathic behaviours. I often utilise different moral...

You may not realize it, but each time you recall a memory -- like your first time riding a bike or walking into your high school prom --...

The research on personality is probably the most reliable and statistically robust area of all studies of human nature. Essentially, the...

The latest UK survey of 10,000 children aged between 11-15 shows significant declines in alcohol, smoking and drug use in young people. ...

The long terms impact of lockdown is beginning to be felt. One of the most dramatic impacts has been an almost 20 per cent increase in...

The Government has published the new 10 Year Strategy. I have not had time to fully digest it at present but will be reviewing sections...

Could a company train an employee to become more conscientious, even if the worker isn't invested in improving that trait? A new study...