The pandemic. Social unrest, natural disasters, war. You don’t have to look very far to see traumatic events that affect large numbers of people. More personal crises include divorce, death, abuse, violence, sexual assault and accidents. A traumatic event is any experience frightening, shocking or dangerous enough to affect someone physically and emotionally, whether they are part of the event …
You’re scheduled to speak in front of a group, and you get increasingly tense before the big day. Are you just nervous, or do you have anxiety disorder? You’ve been feeling down for a solid week—do you have true depression, or are you simply feeling blue? We all encounter challenges that affect our moods. Sometimes it’s difficult to tell when …
Participating in sports offers many benefits: exercise, feel-good endorphins, camaraderie and a chance to build skills and self-esteem. This is true across all age groups, including teens in their “difficult” years. The American College of Sports Medicine points out, “Adolescent participation… is positively correlated with multiple indicators of physical health, decreased anger, positive developmental outcomes, increased sleep, and a more …
In ads for depression medication, you can usually tell which people are depressed—they’re the ones who look sad. But in real life, you may not be able to pick someone suffering from depression out of a crowd. Depression isn’t always obvious; it looks different in different people. And some of us experience certain symptoms of depression but not others. What …
“Mental health is the overall wellness of how you think, regulate your feelings and behave. A mental illness, or mental health disorder, is defined as patterns or changes in thinking, feeling or behaving that cause distress or disrupt a person’s ability to function.” (The Mayo Clinic) While the focus is often on teens and adults, preteens also experience mental health …
Our early intimate relationships are marked by hopes and dreams and strong feelings. Due to lack of experience, teens may be blindsided when feelings turn dangerously negative. Teasing, name-calling and little “love taps” might seem like a normal part of dating, but they could be signs of abuse to come. When behaviors escalate into teen dating violence (TDV), young people …
In busy or trying times, it can be difficult to take care of ourselves. Between the demands of work and school, family responsibilities and packed daily schedules, there’s little room to take a breath, much less a daily walk. And if you’re in a role that requires you to give to others—parent, caregiver, healthcare worker—giving back to yourself can be …
The holidays are a special—and unusual—time of year. For up to two weeks, we take time away from work and daily routines to visit friends, get together with family, observe religious holidays, celebrate the start of a new calendar year and relax (in our spare time). “According to a recent survey, the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) reports that …
Mental illness affects over 50 million adults in the US every year. That’s one in five people of all races, ethnicities and ages. Serious mental illness affects one in 25 adults. While it occurs in both women and men, fewer men are diagnosed with mental illness. But men are also less likely to seek or receive treatment, which means they …
When someone has a broken leg, the evidence is visible. They have a cast, possibly crutches; people can witness their struggle with opening doors or navigating furniture. But when someone has a mental illness or disorder, the evidence may not be obvious—if others can see it at all. And no can see “inside” the struggle of trying to navigate a …
