Author: Emma Yasinski

Emma Yasinski

I am a freelance science and medical journalist, fascinated by how the scientific process leads to incredible discoveries, but also can lead to publication bias leaning toward positive findings and minimizing negatives. With a bachelor’s degree in neuroscience from Lafayette College and a Master’s in Science and Medical Journalism from Boston University, I’ve written about clinical trial transparency, organ donation, and basic molecular biology for publications like The Scientist, The Atlantic, Undark.org, Kaiser Health News, and more. At MedShadow, I research and write about the sometimes unexpected ways that medicines can affect us, and what we can do if and when it does.

When pregnant, chances are you will have a lot of questions. One of them shouldn’t be “can I take this drug while pregnant,” but sadly research is often lacking in this topic. Tylenol While Pregnant In the last week of September 2021, a group of more than 90 doctors and researchers published a call to action, cautioning against the liberal use of Tylenol (acetaminophen) during pregnancy. The studies suggested that exposure to the drug could increase the risk of a baby having neurodevelopmental, reproductive, and urogenital disorders. The authors added, however, that Tylenol has long been considered one of the…

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If you have heard about the latest craze of taking the supplement known as Ashwagandha for anxiety, you are not alone. There is certainly a buzz around this popular supplement. But what exactly is it, and what can ashwagandha do for you? Todd Miller had been taking Wellbutrin, an antidepressant, when he decided to add ashwagandha to his regimen about two years ago. He doesn’t remember where he heard about ashwagandha, but he says, “I always felt like [wellbutrin] made me sort of sluggish and slow.”  With ashwagandha, he says, he not only feels that his depression is managed, but…

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Heat Exhaustion & Heatstroke Yet another heat wave is “baking” the U.S. and is expected to last all week. And this is just the first full week of summer. In 2022, thousands of people died from heat-related causes in Spain, Portugal United Kingdom, the United States, and India. Extra-high temperatures are perilous for everyone, but they are even more so for the elderly, people who need electric medical equipment and for those on medications with side effects that can increase their sensitivity to heat. You may need to take extra caution to remain safe when the heat rises. Heat exhaustion is…

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Mental health is a description of your psychological and emotional wellbeing. Your mental health can impact everything from your productivity at work or school, to your relationships to your risk for long term conditions like heart disease. Making sure you get regular exercise, eat a healthy diet, socialize and take time to relax are all crucial to maintaining your mental health. But sometimes, mental health conditions, also known as mental illnesses, strike anyway. A mental illness is any condition, such as depression or schizophrenia, that impacts your thinking, behavior, or mood. While they often emerge on their own, they can…

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Read through MedShadow’s coverage of the side effects of drugs and you’ll see many of the same side effects mentioned over and over. For example, patients report nausea after taking a whole host of drugs, such as those for Lupus, HIV prevention, cancer and more. It’s crucial to differentiate side effects from symptoms, explains Suzanne Soliman, PharmD, founder of the Pharmacist Moms Group, so that you and your healthcare provider can work together to improve your care. She says, when she works with patients who are experiencing new symptoms or side effects, the first step is for her to take…

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Download the full Burnout or Depression Infograph. Puja Aggarwal, MD, a neurologist, remembers the time six years ago she experienced burnout. “I was working long hours, socially withdrawn, not sleeping, feeling empty and giving all my time to work. I was not able to show up well as a mother or take care of myself,” Aggarwal explained about the challenging time. After she sought the help of a life coach, she was so inspired by how the guidance helped her achieve a healthier work-life balance that she pursued a life coach certification for herself. Many of us can probably say…

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In 2018, two young men were found dead in their respective bathrooms in Texas after using a concentrated powder form of tianeptine.  Tianeptine is an antidepressant prescribed in Europe, Asia and South America. It’s banned in the US, but it’s found its way here. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a warning about the drug’s risks in 2018. Then in February 2022, the agency put out a new warning after scientists found a large increase in calls to poison control centers related to tianeptine poisoning. What is Tianeptine? Tianeptine, sold under the brand names of Coaxil and Stablon, is…

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✅ This article was reviewed and approved by George Grossberg, MD, member of our MedShadow Medical Advisory Board. As a teenager tackling depression, Breanna Hushaw was prescribed more than 15 different antidepressant medications, which “caused a ton of side effects.” Her doctor knew she was struggling and suggested Hushaw might be a good candidate for transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS). Once she started the treatment, Hushaw had one 20-minute session a day for 36 days. By Day 16, she says, “I realized I [was] starting to feel better.” The treatment allowed her to focus better and make progress in therapy.  Today,…

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Anxiety is a normal reaction to stress, but for some people, it can become overwhelming and debilitating. People with types of anxiety disorder feel apprehensive and uneasy, and it’s common for them to experience negative thoughts that make them more fearful. According to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH): More than 40 million American adults ages 18 and older have an anxiety disorder, and nearly one-third of adults will experience an anxiety disorder at some point in their life. Anxiety disorders frequently co-occur with depressive disorders or substance abuse. Most people with an anxiety disorder also have depression.  Most…

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