Welcome to a new edition of SharpBrains’ e‑newsletter, sharing important brain/ mental health news plus a few fun optical illusions to tease and appreciate our unique human minds.

#1. Why MDMA-assisted psychotherapy may become an FDA-approved treatment for Ptsd within 2 years

“We are a pharmacist and physician team who investigate the benefits and harms associated with substances of abuse like bath salts, phenibut, cannabis and synthetic marijuana. Through this work we have become intrigued about the therapeutic potential for some psychedelic drugs in the treatment of myriad psychiatric disorders, from PTSD to major depression … It is important to state that using ecstasy or molly products from the street would not help PTSD symptoms because the MDMA needs be used along with carefully crafted psychotherapy in a safe, controlled environment. Ecstasy or molly products purchased illicitly never specify the exact amount of MDMA they contain, so it is impossible to dose it properly for PTSD. Taking too much MDMA or exercising while taking MDMA can cause heart attacks, strokes, seizures and arrhythmias and can damage muscles and kidneys.”

#2. Ten insights on human well-being and potential from two giants we sadly lost in 2021: Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi and Ed Diener

“Your well-being can change: One common notion within psychology before the positive psychology movement was that individuals had a set happiness point, and that this point did not change drastically. So why bother trying to improve it, right? Diener helped to change that narrative by finding that certain significant events did in fact change well-being permanently. This suggests that interventions can have a lasting impact, and has paved the way for positive psychologists to focus on applying their research to improve the human condition.”

#3. Complex occupations help protect our brains from aging-related cognitive decline

“ … differences in cognitive decline have been often observed in association with education or other related to quality of life. From our analysis it emerges that the type of work activity also contributes to the differences in normal and pathological cognitive aging”

#4. On brain folding and fitting 86 billion neurons inside our 1400 cc crania

“Understanding the mechanisms behind brain folding and connectivity will provide researchers with the knowledge foundation to uncover their role in developmental brain disorders. In the long term, clarifying the connection between brain structure and function may lead to early diagnostic tools for brain diseases … researchers like us have our work cut out for us as we continue trying to decipher the mystery of the most complex known structure in the universe.”

#5. Pear Therapeutics raises $175M and goes public via SPAC deal raising the profile of prescription digital therapeutics

The Times They Are a‑Changin’ …

#6. Solera Health includes Ginger and eMindful to expand digital mental healthcare platform

“eMindful and Ginger join Solera’s curated Mental and Behavioral Health Network, which already included leading meditation, mindfulness, and mental training app, Headspace. Solera continues to expand its suite of whole-person health solutions to support health journeys across acuity levels and clinical personas.”

And here are two older posts which have remained among our Most Read in 2021:

#7. Eight Tips To Remember What You Read

“Despite television, cell phones, and Twitter, traditional reading is still an important skill. Whether it is school textbooks, magazines, or regular books, people still read, though not as much as they used to. One reason that many people don’t read much is that they don’t read well. For them, it is slow, hard work and they don’t remember as much as they should … I summarize below what I think it takes to read with good speed and comprehension.”

#8. Test your Brain with these 10 Optical Illusions

One way to learn more about our visual system is to look at how we can trick it … give these ten illusions a try!

Wishing you and yours a Healthy & Prosperous 2022,

The SharpBrains Team

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