All posts tagged: difference

Is it hay fever or a cold? Here’s how to tell the difference

Is it hay fever or a cold? Here’s how to tell the difference

Published by Daniella Wilson

Get the Well Enough newsletter with Harry Bullmore for tips on living a healthier, happier and longer life Get the Well Enough email with Harry Bullmore Get the Well Enough email with Harry Bullmore You’ve been through winter lurgies and escaped the start of spring free of hay fever. Now you wake up with a sniffle you can’t seem to shake. How do you know if it’s hay fever, a cold, or something else? And how do these two different culprits cause such similar symptoms? Hay fever is actually an allergy Hay fever is an allergic reaction to tiny particles you inhale from “allergens”. These might be pollen, house dust mites, or animal dander (dead skin cells). Normally, the body won’t respond to these harmless particles. But for some people, the immune system mistakes them for something dangerous. If you have allergies, your immune system prepares a particular type of antibody, called IgE, to target the culprit allergen. Histamine and other inflammatory substances inflame the lining of your nose, eyes and throat (Getty/iStock) When you’re …

Anxiety or OCD? Psychology experts explain the difference

Anxiety or OCD? Psychology experts explain the difference

Published by Daniella Wilson

Get the Well Enough newsletter with Harry Bullmore for tips on living a healthier, happier and longer life Get the Well Enough email with Harry Bullmore Get the Well Enough email with Harry Bullmore Anxiety itself is not a mental illness. It’s a normal, adaptive emotion that helps us respond to perceived threats. Anxiety is the automatic reaction that makes you jump back when you think you’ve seen a snake while bushwalking – before realising it’s a stick. It’s also (inconveniently) the sweaty palms and shaky voice you notice before a presentation or a first date, or the circling thoughts that keep you awake at 3am. Most of us have ways to cope with anxious thoughts and feelings that can give us more of a sense of control. This could be checking and double-checking we’ve got the room right for our presentation, or seeking reassurance from someone we love. But when might these behaviours fit a diagnosis of an anxiety disorder? And when could they actually be a sign of obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD)? As …

Riot Women star Joanna Scanlan reveals the big difference with her new role in thriller Missed Call

Riot Women star Joanna Scanlan reveals the big difference with her new role in thriller Missed Call

Published by Daniella Wilson

Having just been seen on our screens in BBC’s Riot Women, Joanna Scanlan is now heading up brand new thriller, Missed Call. In the new five-parter, Scanlan stars as single mother Sarah who is delivered every parent’s worst nightmare when she receives a missed call from her daughter Katie, who is abroad on a school exchange. With the local forces appearing not to take her concerns seriously, Sarah takes matters into her own hands to find out just what’s happened to her daughter. The role itself certainly feels like a world away from Scanlan’s role as Beth Thornton in the Sally Wainwright drama, but did it feel as such when embodying the character? “It did actually [feel worlds apart], because Beth is depressed,” Scanlan told Radio Times. “She’s a depressed person. And yes, she goes on a journey and kind of finds herself to a certain extent. But I think she’s sensitive, highly intelligent and worried about everything going wrong. “And you know, she’s in a gloom state. She’s, let’s face it, suicidal and Sarah …

Is it hay fever or a cold? Here’s how to tell the difference

Is it hay fever or a cold? Experts detail the one main difference

Published by Daniella Wilson

Get the Well Enough newsletter with Harry Bullmore for tips on living a healthier, happier and longer life Get the Well Enough email with Harry Bullmore Get the Well Enough email with Harry Bullmore You’ve been through winter lurgies and escaped the start of spring free of hay fever. Now you wake up with a sniffle you can’t seem to shake. How do you know if it’s hay fever, a cold, or something else? And how do these two different culprits cause such similar symptoms? Hay fever is actually an allergy Hay fever is an allergic reaction to tiny particles you inhale from “allergens”. These might be pollen, house dust mites, or animal dander (dead skin cells). Normally, the body won’t respond to these harmless particles. But for some people, the immune system mistakes them for something dangerous. If you have allergies, your immune system prepares a particular type of antibody, called IgE, to target the culprit allergen. Histamine and other inflammatory substances inflame the lining of your nose, eyes and throat (Getty/iStock) When you’re …

Can a Single Therapy Session Make a Difference? Experts Say Yes, With the Right Mindset

Can a Single Therapy Session Make a Difference? Experts Say Yes, With the Right Mindset

Published by Sam Flores

Just before the holidays in 2025, Julie Hart felt stuck. A nagging problem she had struggled with for years left her ruminating all day and questioning nearly everything she had ever said, done or could do. She was considering traditional therapy but decided instead to try single-session counseling. Rather than committing to weekly therapy sessions, she would get only 60 minutes to tackle the problem. It worked. “It helped me get unstuck, is how I would describe it, in a very positive, meaningful and effective way,” said Hart, of Springfield, Virginia. Hart joined what experts say is an increasing number of people who, at least for now, have decided to forgo the weeks, months or even years that traditional therapy implies in favor of a more targeted approach. The therapy is what it sounds like: one session, typically an hour, where a counselor helps the client identify concrete steps toward relieving a specific problem. The intention is not to completely solve a problem, but rather to help clients walk away with a toolbox of strategies …

AirPods Pro 3 vs. Bose QuietComfort Ultra 2: I listened to both, and there’s a sonic difference

AirPods Pro 3 vs. Bose QuietComfort Ultra 2: I listened to both, and there’s a sonic difference

Published by skeptic

Christian de Looper/ZDNET Follow ZDNET: Add us as a preferred source on Google. The latest AirPods Pro 3 have been a big hit, introducing a range of new features, enhanced audio, and improved noise cancellation. However, Apple’s best wireless earbuds came shortly after the launch of another pair of highly anticipated wireless earbuds, the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds (2nd Gen).  Also: Apple AirPods Pro 3 vs. Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 Pro: I listened to both models, here’s who wins With both released relatively close together late last year, you might assume that they compete fairly closely. Do they? Should you buy the AirPods Pro 3 or the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds (2nd Gen)? I’ve used both extensively. Here are my thoughts. Specifications AirPods Pro 3 Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds (2nd Gen) Battery life 8 hours (up to 24 hours with charging case) 6 hours (up to 24 hours with charging case) Charging USB-C, Qi, MagSafe, Apple Watch USB-C, Qi Audio modes ANC, Transparency Mode, Adaptive Audio, Conversation Mode ANC, Transparency Mode IP rating IP57 (earbuds only) IPX4 Bluetooth …

The psychological difference between playing video games to relax and playing to win

The psychological difference between playing video games to relax and playing to win

Published by José Betancourt

Video games offer adults a popular way to connect and unwind, but the specific reasons people pick up a controller can alter how they experience stress and life satisfaction. A new study reveals that playing primarily to win is linked to higher anxiety, while men and women often report different motivations for starting a game. These results were published in the Journal of Affective Disorders. People engage with digital worlds for many different reasons. Some look for a temporary escape from daily responsibilities. Others want to challenge their reflexes, socialize with distant friends, or experience an interactive story. Psychologists categorize these motivations into a few broad buckets based on the rewards they provide. The most common reasons include playing to relax, playing to improve one’s skills, playing to simply have fun, and playing to win. The video game uses and gratifications theory proposes that players actively seek out different digital experiences to satisfy specific psychological needs. These diverse starting goals can strongly alter the emotional impact of a gaming session. Many adults who play video …

I turned on spatial audio in my Echo Studio and the difference was shocking

I turned on spatial audio in my Echo Studio and the difference was shocking

Published by skeptic

I’m a heavy user of Amazon’s Echo ecosystem (and there’s power in owning more than one), and lately, Alexa has gotten a huge upgrade with Alexa Plus, which has literally changed my life. But something people don’t give Amazon enough credit for, especially with the Echo Studio line, is the incredible sound quality, especially when you enable and properly set up spatial audio on compatible Amazon Echo devices. This spatial audio feature is usually off by default, and you should really start using it because, with compatible audio sources, the audio experience can be truly breathtaking with vast sound stages and incredible dynamic range (the Echo Studio has seven beam-forming microphones it uses to “listen” to how sound behaves in your room, and can adjust its output to create a feeling of depth and space in your music). Let’s dive into how to get the most out of your Amazon Echos by properly setting up spatial audio. What is spatial audio? You must have a compatible Amazon Echo Credit: Brandon Miniman / MakeUseOf Spatial audio is …

I cleaned my earbuds properly for the first time and the difference was immediate

I cleaned my earbuds properly for the first time and the difference was immediate

Published by skeptic

Earbuds are incredibly convenient for anyone who wants to listen to something while they’re on the go. Whether you’re commuting and want to listen to your favorite podcast or you are doing yard work and need the latest albums to get through the monotony, earbuds are often easier to use than larger headphones. Popping in earbuds gives you the audio that you need with more functionality in terms of movement. The more advanced the earbuds are, the more features they’ll have. This is why upper-echelon options like Apple or Bose deliver effective noise cancellation and impressive audio quality. However, no matter what brand of earbuds you have, they aren’t safe from buildup in the ear holes or other classic maintenance issues. If you take the time to clean them properly, you’ll notice a difference in how they wear. Related I Love Earbuds, but They Have These 5 Undeniable Problems As convenient as earbuds are, they’re certainly not perfect. Earbuds can come in many different shapes Each of them has a central core design Hannah Stryker …