"Your Health" continues

The NPR series "Your Health" continues today with a story about support for college students with depression, bipolar disorder, and other mental illnesses. http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=94997857

A related story discusses, briefly, the benefits of combining medication with cognitive-behavioral therapy: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=95008297

Thank you

Thank you to everyone who contributed to my fundraising effort for the Tourette Syndrome Association. I am pleased to say that I reached my fundraising goal, and I finished the race. I would have liked to post a better time, but at least I kept going when I wanted to quit. In a momentary lapse of reason, I registered for another half-marathon in November; I hope to post a better time in that race.

Interesting stories from NPR

From today's Morning Edition, "Learning to Thrive with Attention Deficit Disorder," a story about a young woman with ADHD who is learning to adapt to life as a college student. Another piece, "Ten Tips for College Students With Disabilities," accompanies the main story.

Another story from the same Morning Edition series, "Your Health," aired last week: "An Autistic Student's Journey to College."

Not even sure how to respond to this one

"Top Five Mad Geniuses" -- http://people.howstuffworks.com/mad-genius.htm

I could be offended by the article's premise, or annoyed by its aggressive superficiality, but then I might be guilty of having unrealistic expectations.

I look forward to an article on the "Top Five Most Remarkably Boring Geniuses" -- soon.

Ah, seriously, I think "intensity" is a character trait we might associate with genius, or with outstanding achievement in any field (sports, rock music, business). At the same time, I think these people are all over the spectrum, from "intense but essentially sane" (I will offer Nabokov as an example here) to "intense and eccentric" (Eddie Vedder, Paul Erdos, any number of other examples) to "seriously unhinged" (Keith Moon).

Tics

My son is having a bad tic week; yesterday, while we were buying groceries, the tics were so bad that he was in pain. This also was the first time I have seen him have big, jerky tics -- the kind that draw the attention of the most inattentive passers-by. Most of the time, O looks like a very, very fidgety kid, but this was an entirely different level of intensity.

The tics were distressing for O, but at the same time it was interesting to observe how aware he is of the cycles of his tics. He told me that every two to three months, he experiences a week when his tics are much worse than usual. During this week, the tics will be disruptive and often painful, but he knows that their intensity will subside again after a few days. I think recognizing what is happening, even if O does not know why it is happening, makes it easier to accept the bad days.

Nearing the finish line!

There are just over two weeks remaining until the Philadelphia Distance Classic. I have twelve-mile runs scheduled for the next two Sundays (after that, what is another 1.1 miles?), and then race day will be upon me.

My goals remain to finish without having a heart attack, and to raise $1000 for the TSA. I have almost reached the latter goal; right now, friends, family and even strangers have contributed $925. I am just thrilled by the response -- but I would like to reach the $1000 goal; it's such a nice, round number.

If you or anyone you know would like to contribute, you may do so here. I thank you, and so does my son.

Of use and interest for some of us

Here is a short but interesting piece from the latest issue of Harvard Magazine:

http://harvardmagazine.com/2008/09/the-teen-brain.html