All posts tagged: Mental Health

Mom With A Fear Of Vomiting Makes Sick Child Sleep In Driveway

Mom With A Fear Of Vomiting Makes Sick Child Sleep In Driveway

Published by Jenni Sidey

Parenting is not glamorous, especially when a sick kid is involved. From barf to diaper blowouts, sick children and their fluids tend to get everywhere, and if that sort of stuff grosses you out as a parent, well … good luck.  One mom who claims to have emetophobia, an actual intense, anxiety-inducing fear of seeing or thinking about or experiencing vomit in any way, shared a video on social media of her sick child and husband snuggling in the driveway while she was safely ensconced in the house. Needless to say, it sparked a bit of outrage, with many people wondering if the fear was that bad, and how she was able to take the video in the first place. A mom with a fear of vomiting shared a video of her sick child sleeping in the driveway while she stayed in the house. In a recent TikTok post, mom influencer The Accidental Adult shared a video of her sick toddler lying down on what appears to be a makeshift bed with the caption, “POV: …

Fear Of Rejection: A Common Sign Of Avoidant Personality Disorder

Fear Of Rejection: A Common Sign Of Avoidant Personality Disorder

Published by Sam Flores

If you’ve ever had to walk into a room full of strangers or speak in front of a crowd, you’re familiar with social anxiety. It’s a fear of being judged or negatively evaluated. In the future, you might avoid situations like these or manage to get through them, sweating and trying to swallow the lump in your throat. For people with avoidant personality disorder (AVPD), the fear of being judged is so intense that they retreat from people and activities they might otherwise enjoy. “Avoidant personality disorder is a mental health condition where someone avoids social situations because they feel extremely insecure and afraid of rejection,” said Nona Kocher, a board-certified psychiatrist in Florida. “Even though they may want close relationships, their fear holds them back.” Relying on avoidance as a coping strategy can provide temporary relief, but it can also reinforce negative views of yourself as being inadequate or unworthy of satisfying relationships. Below, we asked experts about the signs of avoidant personality disorder and what to do if it’s affecting your work and …

The Most Important Thing For Your Dog’s Mental Health Is Unhurried Sniffy Walks

The Most Important Thing For Your Dog’s Mental Health Is Unhurried Sniffy Walks

Published by Jenni Sidey

Dogs are angels on earth. Is it any wonder that owners go out of their way for them? An important part of treating a dog right is prioritizing their mental health, and any good puppy parent knows that means unhurried sniffy walks regularly. And science agrees. There are many well-documented health benefits to owning a dog. Having a canine companion has been linked to better mental health and a lower perception of social isolation. Dog owners also have access to more physical activity, just by virtue of taking their furry friends out for walks. Research shows that taking our time during daily walks isn’t just good for our own health; it’s good for our dogs’ overall health, too. So, make sure you give them ample time to stop and smell, well, everything. Here are 6 ways unhurried ‘sniffy walks’ are good for your dog’s mental health: 1. They lower your dog’s heart rate Monkey Business Images | Shutterstock According to a TikTok post from Nikkie Vasconez, a self-proclaimed Animal Psychic and Teacher, a great reason …

A Mop, a Broom and a Calmer Mind. Why Some Find Mental Health Benefits in Everyday Tasks

A Mop, a Broom and a Calmer Mind. Why Some Find Mental Health Benefits in Everyday Tasks

Published by Sam Flores

NEW YORK (AP) — Amid spring cleaning season, it can be tempting to dismiss housework as drudgery, so dreaded or anxiety-inducing that it’s best delegated to others if at all possible. But experts from Zen monks to psychologists say there are mental health benefits to be found in such manual chores as sweeping, mopping and clearing away clutter. These tasks can encourage mindfulness or permit the mind to wander, all while producing a concrete sense of achievement in accomplishing the basic tasks of daily life. As one famous Zen saying goes: “Before enlightenment, chop wood, carry water. After enlightenment, chop wood, carry water.” Zen apprentices, or “unsui” monks, spend much of their time cleaning and tidying. “We sweep dust to remove worldly desires. We scrub dirt to free ourselves of attachments,” Shoukei Matsumoto, a Buddhist monk living in Kyoto, Japan, wrote in his book “A Monk’s Guide to a Clean House and Mind.” “The time we spend carefully cleaning out every nook and cranny of the temple grounds is extremely fulfilling.” Holly Schiff, a clinical …

11 Signs Someone Has Traumatic Intelligence, The Rarest Form Of Being Smart

11 Signs Someone Has Traumatic Intelligence, The Rarest Form Of Being Smart

Published by Jenni Sidey

While some research suggests that trauma is stored in the body, wound up deep inside of us waiting to be unraveled and discovered, a new study from Frontiers in Systems Neuroscience pushes back against that assumption, naming prediction systems and cognitive processes as the most common victims of PTSD and unresolved trauma. If someone has traumatic intelligence, the rarest form of being smart, their minds have been changed by their trauma. In many ways, they’ve become more pessimistic or negative, but they’ve also become particular and hypervigilant in ways that may give them a protective edge. Here are 11 signs someone has traumatic intelligence, the rarest form of being smart 1. They absorb other people’s energy Dragon Images | Shutterstock Many people with trauma develop a sense of social awareness by default or out of survival. Especially with toxic parents at home, figuring out someone’s mood and how to deal with them to keep the peace was a necessity for their well-being. As adults, they have a similar skill in sensing people’s energy in a room or …

Flotation tanks deployed to combat PTSD after devastating wildfires

Flotation tanks deployed to combat PTSD after devastating wildfires

Published by skeptic

Often found in high-end spas, flotation tanks have shown promise for relieving PTSD dave stamboulis / Alamy A shipping container holding three mobile flotation tanks is en route to Maui, Hawaii, to tackle a mental health crisis caused by one of the deadliest wildfires in US history. While mostly found in high-end spas, flotation tanks have shown promise as a treatment for anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). If the roll-out is successful, fleets of the tanks could be sent to disaster zones all over the world. In August 2023, a series of wildfires erupted on Maui, the worst of which killed 102 people and destroyed thousands of homes and businesses. In the years since, risks of depression and anxiety have been higher within wildfire burn zones, and there are fears of an unfolding epidemic of PTSD. “Maui does not have an infrastructure to deal with a mental health crisis of this magnitude,” says Justin Feinstein, a clinical neuropsychologist who set up the non-profit Float Research Collective. “People are self-medicating. There’s a lot of alcohol use; …

Flotation tanks deployed to combat PTSD after devastating wildfires

Floatation tanks deployed to combat PTSD after devastating wildfires

Published by skeptic

Often found in high-end spas, floatation tanks have shown promise for relieving PTSD dave stamboulis / Alamy A shipping container holding three mobile floatation tanks is en route to Maui, Hawaii, to tackle a mental health crisis caused by one of the deadliest wildfires in US history. While mostly found in high-end spas, floatation tanks have shown promise as a treatment for anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). If the roll-out is successful, fleets of the tanks could be sent to disaster zones all over the world. In August 2023, a series of wildfires erupted on Maui, the worst of which killed 102 people and destroyed thousands of homes and businesses. In the years since, risk of depression and anxiety have increased by more than half, and there are fears of an unfolding epidemic of PTSD. “Maui does not have an infrastructure to deal with a mental health crisis of this magnitude,” says Justin Feinstein, a clinical neuropsychologist who set up the non-profit Float Research Collective. “People are self-medicating. There’s a lot of alcohol use; there’s …

Forget the 5 senses: A neuroscientist says you actually have 7

Forget the 5 senses: A neuroscientist says you actually have 7

Published by Daniella Wilson

What if we actually possesss seven senses rather than the traditional five? More importantly, what if tapping into these “hidden” faculties could help us to navigate our lives, making everything from self-regulation to understanding others infinitely more simple? We spoke with Andrea Bariselli, a neuroscientist, clinical psychologist, author and podcaster, to discuss two “extra” senses currently gaining traction in scientific circles – proprioception and interoception.  The expert details how these bonus senses underpin our intuition – but can these really be catalogued alongside the long-established roster of sight, hearing, taste, smell and touch? More than meets the eye: Uncovering the ‘hidden’ 6th and 7th senses © Getty ImagesUnderstanding our ‘extra’ senses – proprioception and interoception – can help reduce chronic stress and improve emotional stability, even in a fast-paced world Bariselli breaks down the definition of the two additional “senses”.  “Proprioception is what allows us to sense our body’s position and movement in a given space,” he says. This concept goes a long way in explaining why proprioception drills have become a staple in modern …

I Started Making Tiny Crafts To Cope With Stress. After A Few Weeks, I Felt More Focused And Pain-Free Than I Had In Years.

I Started Making Tiny Crafts To Cope With Stress. After A Few Weeks, I Felt More Focused And Pain-Free Than I Had In Years.

Published by Jenni Sidey

Two summers ago, my living room was invaded by tiny furniture. Sofas and chairs crowded the mantel; desks and cabinets paraded across the bookshelves and windowsills. By the end of August, I had made enough furniture to fill a village’s worth of small houses. I didn’t realize it at the time, but I had just started to heal myself after a life-altering traumatic brain injury (TBI) and accompanying PTSD. It turns out that in the midst of both Covid and the opioid crisis, with anxiety at an all-time high and medicine hard to come by, not to mention social isolation, getting creative with crafts is the best thing you can do for body and brain: In 2025, Better Homes and Gardens even announced that mini crafts were the hobby of the season.  I started making tiny crafts to cope with stress Photo from Author A surprising discovery about tiny crafts For me, it all began when my neighbor’s dog attacked and knocked me to the ground. My head hit a concrete step, and that was …

Should SATs Be Scrapped? These Parents Are Calling For Change

Should SATs Be Scrapped? These Parents Are Calling For Change

Published by Sam Flores

EastEnders actress Kellie Bright is leading the charge for SATs to be scrapped in schools. In England, SATs – or standard assessment tests – may be taken twice during primary school: once when kids are six or seven (at the discretion of the school), and again when they’re 10 or 11 (these are compulsory). It’s a way for the government to measure a school’s performance and give secondary schools an indication of how well a child’s doing in maths and English before they move up. With Year 6 SATs currently underway (starting 11 May), a collective of parents, particularly those with children with SEND (special educational needs and disabilities), are calling for the exams to be scrapped for good due to the overwhelm, anxiety and stress they cause. It comes after Childline revealed May is the peak season for children to call the service about exam stress – between 1 April 2025 and 31 March 2026; the free, confidential service for kids delivered 1,679 counselling sessions where exam or revision stress was mentioned. The majority …