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Articles by Greg Smith
Greg Smith: The day a government agent tapped me on the shoulder
A tap on the shoulder by a clean-cut middle-aged man wearing a golf shirt had surprised me. “Excuse me sir, have you had a medical procedure recently?” In mid-October some years ago, I casually told my friend Dick that if the Steelers went to the Super Bowl I wanted to go. I had never gone and wanted to go once in my life. It was one of those plans that only happens in dreams (think, “I’m going to retire when I win the lottery”). But the season moved on, and the Steelers kept winning.
Food and Care Coalition Volunteer Spotlight: Stacy Hone
Since 2008, Stacy Hone has been a familiar, compassionate presence at the Food and Care Coalition in Provo. Her journey into volunteering began with a simple invitation: to help a young man in her neighborhood complete his Eagle Scout project. The project, aimed at supporting the coalition’s mission, opened Stacy’s eyes to the profound impact the organization has on the lives of those experiencing homelessness and poverty.
A journey of potential transformation?
Near-death experiences (NDEs) have fascinated both the medical community and the general public due to their profound and often transformative effects on individuals. These experiences typically occur in situations where a person is close to death or facing a life-threatening condition. Common elements reported during NDEs include feelings of peace, out-of-body experiences, traveling through a tunnel, encountering a bright light, and meeting deceased loved ones or spiritual beings.
Finding peace after years of abuse: a journey through grief
I had been looking forward to and, at the same time, dreading this appointment. Her husband had been ill for many months, but that had not stopped the verbal abuse that superseded the physical blows he could no longer inflict. She had, over many previous visits, told me stories, chronicled the behaviors, and responded with an icy coldness that left me chilled of heart and spirit every time she walked out my door. She had long since stopped crying.
Debunking the top myths about schizophrenia
Schizophrenia is a serious mental illness that is commonly misunderstood. A lack of understanding about the disease can cause people to draw inaccurate conclusions based on stereotypical portrayals in movies or television. Unfortunately, movie characters are often based on common myths and misunderstandings, perpetuating a false narrative. Here are five common myths about schizophrenia and why they are false. Myth: People living in poverty are more likely to get schizophrenia.
Lessons learned in psychiatry: How experience shapes your career
I am now in the twilight of my psychiatric career. Yes, I can write that without wincing now, almost, well, maybe just a little. I have made decisions in the last twelve months that have changed my daily schedule, my work life, and my relationships profoundly. Everyone around me, including friends, family members, and even some of my coworkers, thought that I was retiring. It’s not working any longer. Quitting. Hanging up the spikes. Of course, that has not been true at all.
Thin places: Where memories come alive
I was listening to Marty Smith of ESPN do the Fore Please, Now Driving podcast for the 87th Masters Golf Tournament this year. The discussion turned to how some places like the Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, Georgia, are just full of memories, ghosts, wisps of recollection, and echoes of voices and cheers long gone that sometimes seem to be brought forward and magnified in our own day and time.
Treating inflammation provides hope in the fight against Parkinson's
The acceleration of new Parkinson’s disease cases outpaces other age-related conditions, and as a result, the patient population is growing quickly. In 2022 there were about 90,000 new diagnoses in the U.S., versus the previous prevailing estimate of 60,000. While some of the increase can doubtless be attributed to improved diagnostics and improved access to health care, those factors affect the statistics of other diseases and cannot explain why so many more people seem to be getting the disease.
The disturbing reality of homelessness
My flights had been delayed, and I did not arrive at the hotel in downtown San Francisco until almost 1 a.m. As I exited the Uber, struggling to shoulder my briefcase and wrangle my suitcase, I was a bit startled to hear a very loud voice coming from my left. “Hey, mister, do you have a dollar or two?” I had been in the city for less than one minute, and had already come face to face with one of the most pressing problems this California metropolis was facing: homelessness.
Mind Matters - A Grief Carol
As is our holiday custom, my wife and I were watching the highly entertaining Muppets version of the timeless tale A Christmas Carol last week. Viewing this version of the story began when my children were very young but has persisted to this day because it is so deliciously joyful and funny. The satisfying viewing of this movie, juxtaposed with the multiple layers of grief our families are dealing with this holiday season, prompted me to write this column to be read on Christmas Day.
The surprising science of gratitude: How it boosts your well-being
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The surprising science of gratitude: How it boosts your well-being
I have never been a very touchy-feely person. I was trained as a biologist and chemist, then went to medical school where more science on top of science was aimed at me like a gushing firehose. I learned to put science and evidence first and to try in my practice of medicine to use only the therapeutic techniques that had some evidence base. That assured me that my patients would get well. This has always included solid therapies, medications, and procedures.
Mind Matters - Gratitude can benefit one’s mental health
I have never been a very touchy-feely person. I was trained as a biologist and chemist, then went to medical school where more science on top of science was aimed at me like a gushing firehose. I learned to put science and evidence first, and to try in my practice of medicine to use only the therapeutic techniques that had some evidence base. That assured me that my patients would get well. This has always included solid therapies, medications, and procedures.
Mind Matters: Personal responsibility and accountability
Okay, this is one that I need to get off my chest, and some of you will not like it. Columns are fickle things, and Mind Matters is no different. Sometimes my biweekly pieces write themselves, full of light and happiness and positivity. Sometimes they are dark and sad, full of grief and loss. Sometimes they are instructive, exploring new subjects. And sometimes, well, sometimes they just tell me that I need to write it like I see it.
MIND MATTERS: It's important to take personal responsibility for ourselves
OK, this is one that I need to get off my chest, and some of you will not like it. Columns are fickle things, and Mind Matters is no different. Sometimes my biweekly pieces write themselves, full of light and happiness and positivity. Sometimes they are dark and sad, full of grief and loss. Sometimes they are instructive, exploring new subjects. And sometimes, well, sometimes they just tell me that I need to write it like I see it.
Obit Denny Laine
FILE - Paul McCartney and Wings perform before a sold-out audience of 14,000 at Tarrant County Convention Center in Fort Worth, Texas, May 4, 1976. Denny Laine, center, a British singer, songwriter and guitarist who performed in an early, pop-oriented version of the Moody Blues and was later McCartney’s longtime sideman in the ex-Beatle’s solo band Wings, died Tuesday, Dec. 5, 2023, his wife said in a social media post.
Narcan: Widening access to overcome opioid overdoses
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Narcan: Widening access to overcome opioid overdoses
I often recommend books or podcasts for you when they address timely topics in mental health. The May 4, 2023, episode of The Daily podcast was one such episode that I think you should listen to. On that episode, Jan Hoffman, a health law and affairs reporter for The New York Times, was interviewed about Narcan, its history, current and future use, and how we might all take advantage of this life-saving intervention for those who battle opioid addiction.
MIND MATTERS: Gratitude can have positive effects on emotional health
I have never been a very touchy-feely person. I was trained as a biologist and chemist, then went to medical school where more science on top of science was aimed at me like a gushing firehose. I learned to put science and evidence first, and to try in my practice of medicine to use only the therapeutic techniques that had some evidence base. That assured me that my patients would get well. This has always included solid therapies, medications and procedures.
MIND MATTERS: Poor health and homelessness often go hand in hand
“Ooh, a storm is threatening My very life today If I don’t get some shelter Ooh yeah I’m gonna fade away.” — “Gimme Shelter” by The Rolling Stones My flights had been delayed and I did not arrive at the hotel in downtown San Francisco until almost 1 a.m. As I exited the Uber struggling to shoulder my briefcase and wrangle my suitcase, I was a bit startled to hear a very loud voice coming from my left.
MIND MATTERS: Being there means listening to each other's pain
I listened to a podcast this past week from NPR called Consider This. The episode, Emotional Impact of the Israel-Gaza Conflict on Jewish and Palestinian Americans, aired on Oc. 15. The host, Scott Detrow, interviewed two women about the current situation in the Middle East and the associated loss and grief that are being experienced by everyone in that region after two weeks of conflict.
MIND MATTERS: Get out there and experience life
When I notice a message or admonition in at least three places, I pay attention. If there is a fourth place that comes to the fore, then I must share it with you, because it must be important, right? This particular nugget of wisdom was touted by two of my favorite writers, a character in one of my favorite new television series, and was reinforced by a billboard that has been up by highway I-20 heading into South Carolina since before the pandemic started.
MIND MATTERS: Leaving behind a living legacy
After my mother-in-law died last month, the family was faced with the task of going through her things, her apartment, her papers, her life. That process, for those of you who have lost someone close to you, is bittersweet. There is so much joy in reliving memories, but so much pain and heartache in having to let go and say goodbye.
MIND MATTERS: Thinking outside the box
“Doctor, am I bipolar?” This was the first question a patient asked me today, even before I could properly say hello. “My family all think that I am. You know, when I get upset about something, I have changes in my mood. Sometimes I get sad. Sometimes I get angry. Doesn’t that mean that I am bipolar?” “Doctor, am I ADHD?” This is another question that seems to be very popular in the public’s collective mind over the last decade. “I have trouble concentrating. I can’t focus on reading a book anymore.
MIND MATTERS: Who are we, and how do people know us?
As often happens in my day-to-day life, two events occurred this month that gave me pause for very similar reasons. First, my mother-in-law died on Aug. 16 after a rapidly progressive illness. It was painful for my wife and family to watch her steady decline as well as to anticipate her passing. However that is not the focus of this column.
MIND MATTERS: Hypnogogic hallucinations can be scary experiences
“What did you see?” I asked her, as she sat across from me, wide-eyed and obviously unnerved even thinking back about the episode. “It was horrible,” she said, “just horrible. I was lying on my back, and I saw it in the doorway, a big, dark, shadowy figure, blocking the door to my bedroom. I tried to scream, and nothing came out. I tried to raise my hands, to shield my eyes, to shoo it away, but I was paralyzed. I couldn’t move!” “That must have been very frightening for you,” I said.
MIND MATTERS: Some meds may react differently in the heat
It’s hot. Yeah, you know that. We are not basking but baking our way through the mid-summer in the South, and there is no end in sight. I decided that this was the perfect time to hand out a few warnings and tips about mental health medications and summertime heat, and how to protect yourself and your loved ones if you are taking any of these medications. Almost a fifth of Americans can be taking mental health medications at any given time, so this is an issue that affects a lot of us.
MIND MATTERS: If you choose to drink, do so responsibly
Last week, we all got at least one day off to celebrate a very American holiday, Independence Day. If I were a betting man, I would say that many, if not most of you, participated in at least one of those grand old American pastimes; eating hotdogs or apple pie, barbecuing, going to a baseball game, floating in the pool, watching a movie, or... drinking alcohol.
ADA in its 33rd year yet challenges remain
Jul. 9—Bill DeMaio was working for the parks and recreation department in New Britain on July 26, 1990 when President George H.W. Bush signed into law the Americans with Disabilities Act. The landmark civil rights act was expected to address discriminatory practices and usher in a new era of independence for people with disabilities but DeMaio recalls there was some grumbling from those in his field.
MIND MATTERS: Questions and answers about medications
A large part of what I do at the mental health center every day is evaluate symptoms and treat with medications. As we’ve discussed before, that is certainly not the only treatment available for mental health disorders, but it is surely a lifesaver for some folks with severe and persistent mental illness. I get many questions from my patients about medications, and I thought that I would share some of the most common ones and associated issues with you this week.
MIND MATTERS: Wait for it
I had two things happen recently that steered me towards the topic for this week’s Mind Matters column. First, I finished listening to an audiobook entitled "The Warren Buffett Way," by Robert Hagstrom, in my search to learn more about bear markets and investing in troubled times. The second involved a trip to a local specialty grocery store to buy some items to make dinner for my wife, who was returning from a long trip to Japan. What in the world do these two things have in common, you might ask?
MIND MATTERS: What do you do when you find yourself stuck?
I hear it a lot. Patients come in and for various reasons they are at a loss as to how to fix a problem, move past a challenge or get out of a situation that is painful to them. They feel powerless and unable to make good decisions, much less perform actions that will move them down the road and on with their lives. In other words, they are stuck. My latest podcast listen was "The Prof G Podcast," with guest Adam Alter, a professor of marketing and psychology at NYU.
MIND MATTERS: For whom the thermos tolls
I had a few hours to kill a couple of weeks ago as I waited for my wife to return from Japan. The next day, we would meet our newest granddaughter Millie, but for that I decided to get outside and take a six mile stroll through Cloudland Canyon State Park, one of my favorite places to hike in Georgia.
MIND MATTERS: Narcan can potentially reverse an opioid overdose
As you know, I often recommend books or podcasts for you when they address timely topics in mental health. The May 4, 2023 episode of The Daily podcast was one such that I think you should listen to. On that episode Jan Hoffman, a health law and affairs reporter for the New York Times, was interviewed about Narcan, its history, current and future use, and how we might all take advantage of this lifesaving intervention for those who battle opioid addiction.
MIND MATTERS: Everyone processes grief in different ways
I had been looking forward to and at the same time dreading this appointment. Her husband had been ill for many months, but that had not stopped the verbal abuse that superseded the physical blows that he could no longer hurt her with. She had over many previous visits told me stories, chronicled the behaviors and responded with an icy cold that left me chilled of heart and spirit every time she walked out my door. She had long since stopped crying.
MIND MATTERS: What is your purpose?
Many of my patients have been concerned about money over the last year or two, and for good reason. Jobs have been hard to find, and the price of gasoline, groceries and rent have skyrocketed. Many find themselves worrying about how they will pay for every day necessities, or come up with the money for gas to run errands or get to appointments. Money, or the lack of it, can become something that fills our waking moments with dread and becomes an obsession.
MIND MATTERS: Seasonal affective disorder affects many
Okay, it’s officially springtime. The time has changed, we have grudgingly sprung forward an hour and changed the batteries in our smoke detectors as we are coached to do twice a year, right? Flowers are blooming, it’s warmer, we are getting some much needed rain that washes away the pollen that covered everything only a few weeks ago. You should be feeling light, airy, energetic, excited and happy! No, you say? You are not feeling that way at all?
MIND MATTERS: Technology and media are modern day stresses
As you remember, in the last column we talked about technology, devices, social media and the effects that they have on our children and teens. We discussed Dr. Sanjay Gupta’s podcast "Chasing Life" and some of the research and writing that had been done by Dr. Jean Twenge on these subjects. Today, I wanted to extend that conversation and address how much screen time is too much, and what goes into how we teach our kids how to deal with the modern day stresses that are technology and social media.
MIND MATTERS: Technology has radically changed our lives
It has been very interesting to me that in the last several months, the mental health issues that I read about the most concern children and adolescents. Remember the last column that addressed childhood and adolescent overweight and obesity? Well, there are still several articles, studies and books coming out that are taking a hard look at how our kids are being affected by technology and more specifically by social media in the last decade or more, exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Ex-Police Officer Turned Entrepreneur, Tomo Marjanovic, Talks About How Masculinity Is Viewed Differently
We live in a fast-changing world vastly different from those our fathers and grandfathers lived in. Today, society appears to be creating weaker men and encouraging men to shed their masculinity, water down their male testosterone, and become weaker versions of what men really should be like. How do the ideas prevailing in contemporary American society affect the psyche of men?
MIND MATTERS: Childhood obesity can lead to mental health issues
On Jan. 9, the American Academy of Pediatrics released a new Clinical Practice Guideline for the Evaluation and Treatment of Children and Adolescents with Obesity. In both my mental health clinic and emergency room telepsychiatry practices, I commonly see only adult and geriatric patients.
MIND MATTERS: Pay attention to warning signs
I picked out a capsule for the coffee flavor I wanted that morning before work, inserted it in the machine my wife had bought as a gift for me, and waited for the light to turn solid white so that I could push the button to begin the brewing process. I had done this dozens of times, it was always reliable, and I had every expectation that soon I would have a nice hot cup of coffee as I always did.
MIND MATTERS: Enjoy a new year of positive evolutions, not unmet resolutions
I listened to the Hidden Brain podcast this past week and heard some interesting things from University of Missouri psychologist Ken Sheldon. The episode was titled “Who Do You Want to Be?” He made the point that as children, we are indoctrinated for up to two decades by parents, schools, churches and other institutions who try to instruct us on how to make decisions that will put us on the right trajectory to be successful, by whatever yardstick they happen to use.
Mind Matters Column - Anxiety, Still Anxiety?
I was listening to one of my favorite podcasts this past week, Ten Percent Happier, with Dan Harris. His guest was Dr. Judson Brewer, and the episode was called Your Anxiety Questions, Answered. Dr. Brewer is the Chief Medical Officer at Sharecare and the Director of Research and innovation at Brown University’s Mindfulness Center.
MIND MATTERS: Dealing with anxiety, stress
I was listening to one of my favorite podcasts this past week, "Ten Percent Happier," with Dan Harris. His guest was Dr. Judson Brewer, and the episode was called "Your Anxiety Questions, Answered." Dr. Brewer is the Chief Medical Officer at Sharecare and the Director of Research and innovation at Brown University’s Mindfulness Center.
MIND MATTERS: Less is more
As so often happens when I am searching for a writing topic, three things converged in my mind the other day and presented themselves as a subject for this column. The first was the fact that my wife woke up in the middle of the night and was panicked that she had not started to work on our holiday gift list yet with perceived time to do so running short. The second was the observations I have made about our post-COVID rebound wants and desires as the pandemic wanes and normality returns.
MIND MATTERS: Teens and social media
Another stellar podcast was in my feed this week that I thought I would share with you. Ted Health welcomed Pearly Liv, a Gen Z YouTuber whose educational and inspirational video commentaries have garnered over 55 million views. Also providing insights in this episode was Dr. Caitlin Costello, a child and adolescent psychiatrist at UC San Francisco. The topic? Teens and social media, the good, the bad and the parts in need of a change.
MIND MATTERS: Nonsuicidal self-injury
It has happened to me many times over my career. I am asked to see someone in the emergency room and I begin to review the records. I see that the patient has come to evaluation because they cut themselves, burned themselves or did something else to injure themselves that fell short of an actual intentional suicide attempt with the expectation of death. Invariably, the consult request says that the person is suicidal and must be committed for involuntary treatment. But wait, not so fast.
MIND MATTERS: Altruism
My wife and I left Vaison-la-Romaine that morning and cycled about 20 miles, climbing 1,400 feet through the verdant, grapevine-studded hills of Provence, the smells of the early harvest season assailing our nostrils as our legs and lungs burned in the warming French air.
MIND MATTERS: Tackling the adolescent mental health crisis
As frequent readers of this column know, I love sharing information from podcasts with you. The latest is The Daily from the New York Times on Aug. 30 with Michael Barbaro and Matt Richtel, a San Francisco based NYT reporter. In this installment, they tackled the adolescent mental health crisis. Right out of the blocks, they said that in 2019, 13% of adolescents had major depression by report, a 60% increase since 2007. Suicide rates had also increased by 60% from 2007 to 2018. Why, you might ask?
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