Navigating Stress Illnesses

The impacts of narcissistic parenting can be unique to the individual who lives through it. An adult child of a narcissist may believe their worthiness depends on how they act and what they do, not on who they are. Learning what healthy boundaries are and how to set them with...

To manage stress and difficult emotions, children use a mix of active and avoidant coping strategies. New research examined the amount of active and avoidant coping skills that children of divorced parents used and their mental health concerns.. A higher ratio of active to avoidant coping was associated with fewer...

Jean-Guy Beauvoir is a thirty-something Inspector in the Sûreté du Québec, once married, loyal to his boss Armand Gamache, shot in the line of duty, and addicted to OxyContin. Most importantly, Beauvoir is a fictional character in Louise Penny’s Chief Inspector Gamache mystery series. His character sounds initially like a cliché: the wounded police officer, heroically refusing therapy, becoming an addict. Except that Penny explores the cliché in a multi-novel story arc, through all her characters' thoughts, emotions, behaviors, and interactions. She creates a seemingly stable character in Beauvoir and then, through novel after novel, unravels him. Through Beauvoir, I enter the mind of an arrogant, paranoid, traumatized addict with a severe case of literal self-centeredness, beloved by Gamache.

Gardening has a positive effect on well-being, and the results seem to be enhanced when the gardening is communal. Gardening may also be a therapeutic intervention for disorders such as cognitive impairment. Repetitive tasks like watering and weeding may help prevent people from focusing on their problems or sources of...

Obsessive-compulsive disorder is considered the fourth most common mental illness in many Western countries. Patients or medics regularly fail to recognise the disorder's symptoms, especially in its very early stages. Individuals with OCD may often realise that their thinking and behaviour are not logical, but they still may find it...

Though helpful for cleaning and disinfecting, Lysol contains a number of harmful chemicals that can irritate your eyes, skin, and respiratory system.

It’s a story many have heard before. COVID-19 enters a household whether through a spouse, parent, sibling or caretaker – but despite extensive exposure, not everyone gets sick. [. SEE:. Latest Coronavirus and Vaccine News ]. And it could be a more common occurrence than some think. The...

Walking at a brisk pace for just 75 minutes every week could cut your risk of depression, a new study finds. The World Health Organization recommends everyone should exercise for at least two-and-a-half hours every seven days. But researchers at Cambridge University, England, found adults who got half as much...

Taking care of our dead in the home is a longstanding tradition in many parts of the world. When a baby dies, parents can benefit enormously from taking their baby home until burial or cremation. It is legally permitted to care for our dead loved ones at home until disposition;...

Antone Martinho-Truswell's analysis of birds' behaviors shows that, in many ways, a human is "the bird without feathers." Four key traits that are essential to what it is to be human are shared with parrots and other birds. When a species, even one totally different from us, falls into one...

When our caring is overstretched, we can’t be part of the solution. We need an effective way to nurture our own vitality. Being present can help you change your approach to over-caring and stay energized. There is a common misconception in our society that martyrdom is heroic and to...

A study used machine learning to compare social, health, functional, and cognitive variables as risk or protective factors for depression. The strongest risk factors were self-reported social isolation and poor health. It may be valuable to screen for depression among older adults with those two risk factors. Depression is a...

Don’t assume that stiffer discipline always results in better behavior. When you have conflict with your child, empathy can help you better understand the situation and provide better discipline. Approaching kids with an empathic mindset can yield better outcomes. Today, I’ve asked Jason A. Okonofua to share his Tip...

Suicide has always been part of the human experience. Although suicide is believed to be a matter of pure choice, social and psychological factors suggest this might not always be the case. Motivations to suicide are typically lost to the ether. Of the eight billion people on our tiny blue...

From an evolutionary perspective, the cosmetics industry can be understood as helping to signal attractiveness, youth, and fertility. Ironically, many cosmetic products—as well as plastic surgery procedures—have harmful side effects. Sometimes, evolutionary adaptations to survive are at odds with adaptations that primarily benefit reproduction. So picture this: The...

Someone embattled in court proceedings must understand that his or her present and prior mental state will be considered. This information also may be introduced in court, in motion papers, and even submitted as evidence during a custody trial. To fully understand a family situation, the court may order a...

Source: Cover of book reviewed here, authors (photo by Rob Ewing), and authors' children (photo by Doug Kenrick), all used with permission. If a family from a traditional hunter-gatherer society were transported into the modern urban world, they would think they’d landed in paradise: Self-driving cars, hand-held electronic devices that can prevent you from getting lost and even direct you to a nearby supermarket stocked with colorful, fresh blueberries, strawberries, and bananas, homes with air conditioning and plush mattresses, and refrigerators to store all that produce from the supermarket. Wow. Not to mention the ability to call in an order of fresh-baked pizza and some double-chocolate-fudge ice cream for dessert.

Hugging reduces inflammation and blood pressure. Hugging can also help fight against the common cold. Hugging promotes the release of oxytocin and increases feelings of bonding with others. For those lucky enough to have loved ones close by, hugging can have substantial health benefits. Unfortunately, people who have been deprived...

The single most significant problem facing homed dogs is lack of adequate agency. Having a sense of control over one’s environment is fundamental to psychological integrity. There are countless creative ways to enhance a dog's agency. If I could identify the single most significant problem facing homed dogs right...

Almost 60 percent of children and adolescents, and nearly 40 percent of young adults ages 18 to 24, play sports. Suicide is the second-leading cause of death for people ages 10 to 35. Talking about mental health reduces stigma and increases help-seeking behavior. There is no better time than Mental...