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      • ***Physical Health Issues, the Immune System & Mental Health Index
    • University of Chicago: Institute of Translational Medicine
  • Hot Topics
    • What We Want --- SAMHSA Grant Opportunities Due Jan. 22, 2019
    • Anti-Social Personality Disorder >
      • DECONSTRUCTING ANTISOCIAL PERSONALITY DISORDER AND PSYCHOPATHY: A GUIDELINES-BASED APPROACH TO PREJUDICIAL PSYCHIATRIC LABELS [Hofstra Law Review 2013]
      • Personality Disorders -- Unscientific & Vague -- Must Be Reformed
    • Executive Functioning & "Prison Brain" >
      • Job Accommodation Network on Executive Functioning Deficits
    • Medicaid & Medicare Network Adequacy >
      • OIG: STATE STANDARDS FOR ACCESS TO CARE IN MEDICAID MANAGED CARE (Sept. 2014)
      • OIG: ACCESS TO CARE: PROVIDER AVAILABILITY IN MEDICAID MANAGED CARE (Dec. 2014)
      • GAO 15-710: MEDICARE ADVANTAGE: Actions Needed to Enhance CMS Oversight of Provider Network Adequacy (Aug. 2015)
      • CMS: Promoting Access in Medicaid and CHIP Managed Care: A Toolkit for Ensuring Provider Network Adequacy and Service Availability (April 2017)
    • Medicaid Mental Health & Substance Use Disorder Parity >
      • CMS Parity Compliance Toolkit Applying Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Parity Requirements to Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Programs [Jan. 17, 2017]
      • Frequently Asked Questions: Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Parity Final Rule for Medicaid and CHIP [CMS October 11, 2017]
    • Olmstead Disability Rights >
      • Statement of the Department of Justice on Enforcement of the Integration Mandate of Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act and Olmstead v. L.C. (2011)
      • Comprehensive Olmstead Planning
      • the Logical Long Term Consequences of our failure to provide Intensive Community MH Treatment
      • Olmstead Nation ---State Pages: How Far to Comply with Olmstead?
  • Take A Walk Around Orchid's Resource Block
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  • Mental Health By The Numbers
  • New Science Is Amazing AND It Has HUGE Moral Implications for Our Society: NOW
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  • Double V
  • " 'Defund the Police" Means 'Invest in the Resources Our Communities Need' " or Don't Cost Shift to the Police
  • VAGUE OLMSTEAD PLANS, EXPENSIVE LITIGATION
  • Updating & Reforming our Understanding & Treatment of "Anti-Social Personality Disorder" Blog
  • Reform of " Anti-Social Personality Disorder" in Criminal Justice
  • CO HB22-1278
  • New Understandings Matter
  • Mental Health, Ethics & Law
  • CO Olmstead Disability Homeless Law & Policy Project
  • Inflammation, the Immune System, Neuro-Developmental Disorders, Psychiatric Disorders, Substance Use Issues & Chronic Disease
  • Microglia and the Brain's Immune System
  • Substance Issues & the Immune System



















                 








​                  NEURODiversity          Wednesday

Cancer & Neuro-Diversity --- The Crying Need for Accelerating Integrated Physical & Mental Health Care

4/27/2022

 
Picture

Frontiers in Cell & Developmental Biology (2021)

The Role of Neurodevelopmental Pathways in Brain Tumors
So one of the BIG PROBLEMS with the DSM 5 SYMPTOM CLUSTERS is it MISSES COMMON SYSTEMIC INFLAMMATION and GENES across DISORDERS.

So people are NOT NEATLY PATTERN MAPPING to these SYMPTOM CLUSTERS and there is a lot of LATE DIAGNOSIS and EMERGENCIES and CRISES.

Further --- people are "MASKING" generally for as long as they can --- so by the time some of these issues come to light --- the person may be pretty far down the road of psychiatric illness.

Beyond that people with PSYCHIATRIC ISSUES often have ONE or MORE PSYCHIATRIC CO-MORBIDITIES --- BUT they also may have PHYSICAL HEALTH CO-MORBIDITIES that in one way or another are related to this NEURO-DEVELOPMENTAL INFLAMMATION.

To really appreciate the DYNAMICS in most parts of the world --- you need to understand that most MODERN POPULATIONS have LOW GRADE INFLAMMATION and 1/4 to 1/5 of those populations have some type of psychiatric issue.

Further, autoimmune disease is rampant as are Cancer and other Inflammatory Diseases.

This is where we need PRECISION MEDICINE because this INFLAMMATION does affect us quite INDIVIDUALLY.  

The Impact of Systemic Inflammation on Neurodevelopment  https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov › articles › PMC6110951

by NM Jiang · 2018 · Cited by 114 -- Several neurodevelopmental disorders have been linked to early life immune activation and inflammation, including autism spectrum disorders (ASD) ...
Ascending infection: infection during pregnancy ...
Hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis: set .

Cancer and systemic inflammation: treat the tumour ... - NCBIhttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov › articles › PMC3960633

by CSD Roxburgh · 2014 · Cited by 293 -- Relationship between systemic inflammatory response, symptom clusters and survival ... Symptoms associated with cancer are commonly regarded as natural sequelae ...
‎Measurement of the systemic... · ‎Relationship between... · ‎Treatment of cancer...

The curious connection between autism and cancer | Spectrum  https://www.spectrumnews.org › features › deep-dive

Jan 11, 2017 -- The growing number of cancer genes linked to autism piqued the curiosity of Janine LaSalle, an autism researcher at the University of California ...
Autism and Cancer - EKU Onlinehttps://ekuonline.eku.edu › blog › psychology › autism...

Apr 7, 2021 — While autism spectrum disorder and cancer may appear entirely unrelated, there is actually a significant amount of overlap within the ...

Is there a Genetic Link between Autism and Cancer? https://www.cancersupportcommunity.org › 2017/04

Apr 12, 2017 — Dozens of genes have been linked to both autism and cancer. ... neck, thyroid, prostate, skin, breast, and lung cancer, and much more.

Subsequently Added:
Picture
Karlinska Institutet in Sweden
New study shows antioxidants stimulate blood flow in tumors

August 23, 2023

"Vitamin C and other antioxidants stimulate the formation of new blood vessels in lung cancer tumors, a new study from Karolinska Institutet published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation shows.

"The discovery corroborates the idea that dietary supplements containing antioxidants can accelerate tumor growth and metastasis."
Someone like myself who is very short ---- might have a lot of SYSTEMIC INFLAMMATION but there does seem to be something that is PROTECTIVE about SHORT STATURE when it comes to CANCER and even DIABETES.
Summary: A long-term study finds extremely low incidence of cancer and diabetes among individuals with a growth-stunting genetic defect. The authors ask whether controlling growth hormone in healthy adults might provide similar protection.  Feb 16, 2011

Dwarfism gene linked to protection from cancer and diabetes

On the other hand, I haven't been protected from Neuro-Developmental Disorders, Psychiatric Disorders, Thyroid Disease and Osteoporosis.
Petite and thin women have a greater chance of developing osteoporosis. One reason is that they have less bone to lose than women with more body weight and larger frames. Similarly, small-boned, thin men are at greater risk than men with larger frames and more body weight. Broken bones. Jul 30, 2021

Osteoporosis: Are You at Risk? - WebMD
(I'm NOT thin, BUT I am SHORT)
Someone like my husband who recently passed away from LUNG CANCER ---
  • NEVER Smoked
  • Was 5'11"
  • had a mother with Bipolar Disorder
  • Given my mother-in-law's history of psychiatric illness, I think it likely that Rick was born with significant NEURO-DEVELOPMENTAL INFLAMMATION
  • I would say he was quite BRILLIANT --- he would not trust that as EXAGGERATION
  • Had a lot of ANXIETY
  • Surprisingly had issues with CHRONIC DISORGANIZATION.
  • Was probably exposed to RADON in the family home in Colorado as a child in the 1950s and 1960s.
  • RADON EXPOSURE is the leading cause of non-smoking lung cancer.
  • I think the possibility that Rick already had significant NEURO-DEVELOPMENTAL INFLAMMATION "may" have made him MORE VULNERABLE to a DEADLY DISEASE ---- he and his family didn't think he had to worry about because he didn't smoke.
Although calcium signal remodeling involves changes of different Ca2+-permeable channels, Ca2+ entry through ORAI channels is particularly important, as its dysregulation contribute to cancer features such as sustained proliferation, apoptosis resistance and invasion.Jul 7, 2020

Calcium Permeable Channels in Cancer Hallmarks - Frontiers

NIMH:  ADHD, Autism,  Bipolar Disorder , Depression & Schizophrenia Share Problems with Calcium Channels (2013)

Clinical features and diagnosis of psychiatric disorders in ...
https://www.uptodate.com › contents › clinical-features-an...

by J Rivest · Cited by 1 -- Patients with cancer have a high rate of comorbid psychiatric disorders as well as nonspecific psychological distress .

"PAIN," SENSORY OVERLOAD and LEGAL & ILLEGAL SUBSTANCE ISSUES --- and HEALTH NUTS who are Not Always Living Longer

4/25/2022

 
Conjecture
  • I've always been able to manage my substance issues within a perimeter of LEGALITY.
    • BUT there are certainly people who are not struggling with DIET COKE like I am.
    • Further, I always felt like if I can't handle sugar -- I don't think the next step is some more recognized mind-altering substance.
 
  •  I have had people in my family who have died from legal substance issues.
    • Alcohol and
    • Smoking
 
  • Further, I have had people I have loved very much in my extended family with ILLEGAL SUBSTANCE ISSUES.
 
  • To me these are "MEDICAL ISSUES" and if they could be easily solved with a LECTURE we wouldn't have these issues.


Neurodivergent people are more likely to experience pain ...
https://www.mqmentalhealth.org › neurodivergence-an...

Feb 2, 2022 — Neurodivergent people are more than twice as likely to have hypermobile joints and are more likely to experience pain on a regular basis, ...

Picture
Image Credit: NeuroClastic

RSD = Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria

A Couple of Things:
  • I like this image because it gets beyond RSD as associated with ADHD -- and gets to the more FUNDAMENTAL CATEGORY of NEURO-DIVERGENCE
    • which appears to be often related to greater Neuro-Developmental Inflammation.
  • I think Neuro-Divergent people are quite desperate at this point to get Executive Functioning Issues OUT ON THE TABLE ---
    • as well as have more opportunities to exercise some of their BIG STRENGTHS which come from having HYPER-CONNECTED BRAINS.
Why that HEALTH NUT may not Live Longer?

  • We're really talking about the LONG TERM EFFECTS of DEVELOPMENTAL INFLAMMATION.
  • In Modern Times, that HEALTH NUT may be the equivalent of the RELIGIOUS ZEALOT.
  • Further, a lot of this activity whether on the Health front, or the Religious front or OTHER FRONT --
    • may be an effort to keep Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria at bay and
    • try to MANAGE a SYSTEM in which BALANCE is ELUSIVE, and
    • SENSORY OVERWHELM is fairly constant.
 
  • AWARENESS is important.
 
  • We wouldn't expect someone with DOWN SYNDROME to "CURE" DOWN SYNDROME with LIFESTYLE CHANGES even though LIFESTYLE CHANGES could be beneficial.
 
  • The NEEDS of people with greater NEURO-DEVELOPMENTAL INFLAMMATION are just BEGINNING to be appreciated.

Neuro-Diversity, Gender and Sexuality

4/20/2022

 
There are a lot of people in the LGBTQ+ Community who are Neuro-Diverse.

There are also a lot of people in the Heterosexual Community who are Neuro-Diverse ---- and often have trait combinations people are NOT EXPECTING:
  • You're a Girlie Girl who is pretty aggressive and/or hyper-intellectual
  • Maybe you're a Technical Guy whose pretty passive aggressive.

Or maybe:
  • You are pretty far from the Girlie Girl ---- you're some kind of Nature Woman and Talk to Animals or
  • ​You are that Sensitive Guy --- BUT that Aggressiveness comes out quite a bit.

Neuro-Diversity is really where HUMANITY comes to know itself ---- because things tend to be on the EXTREMES --- and easier to see.

​Or --- In UNUSUAL COMBINATIONS.

Now --- it can be hard to talk like this in a HIERARCHICAL, TOP DOWN SOCIETY with a lot of IN GROUPS and OUT GROUPS.

The ostensible reason is:   we don't want to be disrespectful, we don't want to hurt anyone's feelings --- and that is true to a point.

BUT the larger problem is that we're skeptical about this EQUALITY business --- 

Of course, buying into INEQUALITY and constant ups and downs of IN GROUPS and OUT GROUPS means ---- things feel UNSTABLE and MEANINGFUL CONVERSATION is often not safe to have on the AGENDA.


I'm posting the excerpt below right for some COUNTER-INTUITIVE reasons --- and it really goes to the "INVISIBILITY" that many Neuro-Diverse people feel.

Ironically, I think the LGBTQ+ Movement has given a segment of the Neuro-Diverse Community some much needed "VISIBILITY."

On the other hand, other segments of the Neuro-Diverse Community are quite "INVISIBLE" to most of Neuro-Typical Society.

On the other, other hand --- you really can't say that the needs of the LGBTQ+ Community are being met and in some quarters there is some DANGEROUS DENIAL.   I think in the circles I run in --- there is AWARENESS but I don't see that AWARENESS for others.


The IRONY or NOT IRONY is ---  the MORE you seem to look like everyone else --- the harder it is not only for other people but for you yourself to realize that you may have some DIFFERENCES that need to be taken into account to maintain your own well being. 
Mom On The Spectrum: 
16 Overlooked Autistic Traits in Women

#1 is Problems in Romantic Relationships, including some kind of Sexual Abuse or Assault.

Stuart Anderson: 
ADHD Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria

Retired Colorado Psychiatrist William Dodson should be credited with recognizing "Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria"  in ADHD.

The Needs of Neuro-Diverse people with a Darker Skin Color or Different Ethnicity are also routinely overlooked.

How To ADHD: 
​What It's Like to be ADHD and BLACK

GENDER FLUIDITY
​
Important: We mention gender fluidity here not as an illness
or disease, but rather as a state of being that plays a part in
RCCX theory and appears more prevalent in the gifted
population than in the general population.

​The RCCX complex of genes is associated with gender fluidity,
perhaps because of the way our bodies respond to hormones.

Dr. Meglathery’s thoughts on gender fluidity match the fact that those in the gifted community have long observed a
higher than expected level of gender fluidity in gifted
populations.


​Those involved with highly and profoundly gifted
populations, in particular, have noticed a higher than
expected number of young adults transitioning in recent years
from male to female or from female to male.

    Neuro-Diversity
    Wednesday

    (with variable spellings of Neurodiversity)


    NEURODIVERSITY  is BLURRED. 

    What people are keying off of is:  EXECUTIVE FUNCTIONING DIFFERENCES or DEFICITS --- and saying "Hey, that's me."

    BUT they are also saying:  "Hey, I've got some BIG TIME STRENGTHS and I need those recognized too." 

    ​
     

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  • Home
    • About Orchid >
      • Why Orchid?
      • ORCHID'S SYSTEMIC FOCUS & "ROOT CAUSE" ANALYSIS APPROACH TO PROBLEM SOLVING WITH A COMMITMENT TO CREATIVITY & INNOVATION
      • Disclaimers, Limitations and An Invitation
      • Orchid Board
      • Orchid Book Club
      • Conjecture, Science & Translational Research & Medicine
      • Orchid Themes & Symbols
      • The Tipping Point
      • Orchid's Website Advertising Policy
      • Statement for Potential Website Contributors
      • Contact
  • Blogs
    • Val's Blog
    • Val's Blog 2
    • ​TRANSLATIONAL/ ​TRANSITIONAL JUSTICE MONDAY
    • NEURO-DIVERSITY Wednesday
    • Olmstead Law & Order Thursday
    • Translational Medicine Friday
    • Translational Love, Relationships & Neuro-Diversity Saturday
  • Orchid's A-Z Index
    • Crisis Services in CO, the US & Around the World
    • Assertive Community Treatment & Flexible ACT Index
    • Housing & Homelessness Index
    • Criminal Justice
    • Innovation Index
    • For More: See the Main Orchid Index Page
  • US Federal
    • THE IMD RULE & ADMIN. ENFORCEMENT OF DISABILITY CIVIL RIGHTS LAWS
    • Medicaid & Supportive Housing & Housing-Related Services
    • CMS' FAILURE TO COVER HOUSING FOR LTC & THE IMD RULE: WHAT THEY HAVE IN COMMON IS DISCRIMINATION
    • National Take
  • Research & Translational Medicine
    • Immunology & Mental Health >
      • Alcoholism & the Immune System & Mental Health
      • Brain Injury, the Immune System & Mental Health
      • Celiac Disease & Sensitivities, the Immune System & Mental Illness
      • Mental Illness & The Immune System
      • Racial Discrimination & the Immune System & Mental Health
      • Trauma & the Immune System & Mental Health
      • ***Physical Health Issues, the Immune System & Mental Health Index
    • University of Chicago: Institute of Translational Medicine
  • Hot Topics
    • What We Want --- SAMHSA Grant Opportunities Due Jan. 22, 2019
    • Anti-Social Personality Disorder >
      • DECONSTRUCTING ANTISOCIAL PERSONALITY DISORDER AND PSYCHOPATHY: A GUIDELINES-BASED APPROACH TO PREJUDICIAL PSYCHIATRIC LABELS [Hofstra Law Review 2013]
      • Personality Disorders -- Unscientific & Vague -- Must Be Reformed
    • Executive Functioning & "Prison Brain" >
      • Job Accommodation Network on Executive Functioning Deficits
    • Medicaid & Medicare Network Adequacy >
      • OIG: STATE STANDARDS FOR ACCESS TO CARE IN MEDICAID MANAGED CARE (Sept. 2014)
      • OIG: ACCESS TO CARE: PROVIDER AVAILABILITY IN MEDICAID MANAGED CARE (Dec. 2014)
      • GAO 15-710: MEDICARE ADVANTAGE: Actions Needed to Enhance CMS Oversight of Provider Network Adequacy (Aug. 2015)
      • CMS: Promoting Access in Medicaid and CHIP Managed Care: A Toolkit for Ensuring Provider Network Adequacy and Service Availability (April 2017)
    • Medicaid Mental Health & Substance Use Disorder Parity >
      • CMS Parity Compliance Toolkit Applying Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Parity Requirements to Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Programs [Jan. 17, 2017]
      • Frequently Asked Questions: Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Parity Final Rule for Medicaid and CHIP [CMS October 11, 2017]
    • Olmstead Disability Rights >
      • Statement of the Department of Justice on Enforcement of the Integration Mandate of Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act and Olmstead v. L.C. (2011)
      • Comprehensive Olmstead Planning
      • the Logical Long Term Consequences of our failure to provide Intensive Community MH Treatment
      • Olmstead Nation ---State Pages: How Far to Comply with Olmstead?
  • Take A Walk Around Orchid's Resource Block
  • Colorado Abuse & Neglect Scandals Involving People with Disabilities
  • Mental Health By The Numbers
  • New Science Is Amazing AND It Has HUGE Moral Implications for Our Society: NOW
  • Olmstead & Homelessness
  • Double V
  • " 'Defund the Police" Means 'Invest in the Resources Our Communities Need' " or Don't Cost Shift to the Police
  • VAGUE OLMSTEAD PLANS, EXPENSIVE LITIGATION
  • Updating & Reforming our Understanding & Treatment of "Anti-Social Personality Disorder" Blog
  • Reform of " Anti-Social Personality Disorder" in Criminal Justice
  • CO HB22-1278
  • New Understandings Matter
  • Mental Health, Ethics & Law
  • CO Olmstead Disability Homeless Law & Policy Project
  • Inflammation, the Immune System, Neuro-Developmental Disorders, Psychiatric Disorders, Substance Use Issues & Chronic Disease
  • Microglia and the Brain's Immune System
  • Substance Issues & the Immune System