Dr. Payton

Recently I listened to a TED talk by Rachel Wurzman entitled: “How isolation fuels opioid addiction.” She discribes her experience of having tics [Tourettes Disorder] that she calls “unvoluntary.” Dr. Wurzman experiences her involuntary tics as unvoluntary meaning that she feels like she is doing the tic movement and not an external force. However, Dr.…

There has been a lot of concern expressed about amphetamines being prescribed for ADHD in children and adults. There is concern about addictions and dependence on these medications. It had been thought that these medications work by influencing neurotransmitters [serotonin, norepinephrine and dopamine]. These neurotransmitters are influenced by amphetamines. However, my patients have never responded…

I have recently had a number of my patients say that they know that a person [family member or friend] had good intentions but that what they said or did was not helpful. So, what is wrong with good intentions? Most people are familiar with the proverb [aphorism?] that the road to hell is paved…

It is so sad that Whites continue to be priviledged at the expense of others, mostly African-Americans. The priviledge is a weight on whites as we suffer from the abuse that is perpetrated in our name whether we agree with it or not. Our country grew up supporting racism and white priviledge and it is…

Zero sum refers to any exchange where whatever is gained by someone is lost by another person. An example would be where two people or two groups of people [like in a company] are both competing for something where if one person or group gets that something the other person or group will get less.…

Questions are sometimes raised about exceeding the maximum recommended doses of medications used to treat ADHD. I have reviewed the research studies for these medications and it is clear that the studies were to determine efficacy and were not dosing studies.  Specific doses were chosen to assess the benefit and minimize risk of side-effects.  Once…

I’ve read that the ancient Greek democracy failed because it did not protect the individual from the majority. If we believe that all life is sacred [precious, etc.] then we must protect the rights of the individual from the majority. So, something being good for most people does not justify it being imposed on the…

Cost externalization or externalized costs usually refers to producers [often corporations] that off-load indirect costs, called negative externalities, to a third party [often all of us] in order to maximize their profits. An example would be a corporation not taking financial responsibility for the polution that they produce or paying their employees low wages and…

In reviewing information on the use of stimulant medication [adderall, dexedrine and methylphenidate] During pregnancy, there are a number of references to studies on mice leading to miscarriages and birth defects. These were associated with a significant overdose of the mice compared to doses taken by humans. In addition, there have also been mention of…

Nicholas Kristof had an opinion piece in the Sunday Review section of the New York Times on Nobember 10, 2019 entitled “Let’s Wage War on Loneliness.” He contends that lonliness is killing us at similar levels to alcohol and cigarettes and more than twice as much as obesity according to research published by Julianne Holt-Lunstad,…