Mental Health Topics

Anxiety is a common mental health condition, with up to 19% of Americans suffering from a type of anxiety disorder. Even for those who aren’t diagnosed with a form of anxiety, it’s a common emotional state that indicates something is bothering us. So for the curious and the concerned alike,…

Camille and Amma couldn’t be more different. Camille is a 30-something journalist who prefers to stay under the radar. Amma, on the other hand, is her more outgoing and rebellious kid sister. That said, there is one common thread between them: their mother Adora. Or more specifically, her abuse. If…

My brother shakes his head and sighs, “You’re too nice. It’s going to get you into trouble one day.” I’ve heard this one too many times. I know that I’m a people pleaser, but I’ve always struggled to see the flaw in that… until recently. After exhausting myself, taking on task…

Q:  This is probably more common than I realize, but some of my family members have different political views from me. The fact that we disagree isn’t so much of an issue for me, but if at any point I share my beliefs and viewpoints, it feels like I’m instantly…

Growing up, my brother and I were both very active (and yes, our parents were very busy). I played soccer, basketball, and tennis, and even danced for a while. Meanwhile, my brother also played soccer, basketball, and tennis, as well as baseball and track. Needless to say, we were practicing,…

To be occasionally anxious is to be human. But wrestling with anxious thoughts every now and again is a far cry from the symptoms of clinical anxiety.  Below, we explore and define the symptoms, triggers, and warning signs of common anxiety disorders, and more. Being able to recognize anxiety symptoms…

Question:  I’m in my mid-20s and have a decent job. I’m able to pay all of my bills on time, and I try to save what I can for the future. But there are some bigger financial stressors that hang over my head, mostly my student loans and my car…

The discovery of antidepressants was literally a happy accident. In 1952, scientists were trying to treat tuberculosis with a drug called isoniazid, and their patients became inexplicably euphoric. By the end of the 1950s, almost half a million psychiatric patients were being treated with isoniazid, the world’s first prescription antidepressant. …

“It’s coming down to nothing more than apathy…” A famous verse in The Fray’s hit song “Over My Head (Cable Car).” When this song came out I was just 10 years old — but still, I was hypnotized by the heartbreak-struggle of a song… even if I couldn’t yet understand…

Often an associated symptom of major depressive disorder, diurnal mood variation occurs when a depressed individual notes a marked difference in mood over the course of a day. In a majority of cases, low mood is experienced in the early hours but it gradually improves throughout the day, hence its…

What if you were depressed for so long that you forgot what happiness felt like? What if your low mood started to feel permanent, like part of your personality? This is the reality for many people with dysthymia, or persistent depressive disorder (PDD), a chronic depressive state that lasts two…

Q: My fiancé and I are going to have a couples counseling session on the 9th of august but he has abandonment issues with me, due to our past of me leaving when things got to be difficult and I’d shut down. How can I reassure him with action that…