Mental Health Topics

A new study says that women who go on dates just for free food are more likely to exhibit dark personality traits like psychopathy, narcissism, and Machiavellianism. A “foodie call” is where someone goes out with someone despite a lack of romantic interest because they want a free meal. This…

A cardinal feature of depression, like other mental health conditions such as anxiety or trauma, is difficulty with memory: remembering, recalling, and—sometimes in severe cases—recognizing people, things, tasks, memories, events, and to-dos. Often, people with depression will have great difficulty remembering where things in the house or at work may…

Alzheimer’s diminishes one’s memory, ability to think, and everyday functioning; currently, an estimated 5.8 million Americans suffer from the disease. That said, memory loss doesn’t always signify Alzheimer’s or another form of dementia—instead, we might experience a simple lapse in our memory. It’s important to distinguish the difference and understand…

A recent study says emotional or traumatic events can create false memories, despite the widespread belief that traumatic events are more vivid and, therefore, reliable.  The latter belief is called flashbulb memory, which says that emotional events cause us to completely capture the context of the event and our reaction…

Rarely do we second guess the validity of our memory, but the truth is that our minds do sometimes deceive us by creating false or distorted memories. A recent study demonstrated this phenomenon, as participants claimed to remember viewing footage of United 93 crashing in Pennsylvania on September 11—but this…

Implicit memory is easily recalled without much effort, helping us with tasks like walking, talking, and driving a car on a regular basis, all without much effort. An Implicit Association Test was created to test our associations with particular individuals; it urges subjects to make quick judgments and often indicates…

The focus of counseling often varies; however, commonly discussed issues among older adults include the loss of loved ones, health issues, and identity crises. Many of these individuals have lost a spouse, are facing severe physical or mental health issues, or are missing fulfillment and enjoyment in life. Older adults…

We have a huge influence on our dog’s personalities. This, from a Michigan State University study that surveyed over 1,600 dog owners. Researchers asked owners to evaluate their dog’s personalities and answer questions related to the dog’s behavioral history. They also answered questions about their own personalities. The team found…

According to the National Survey of Drug Use and Health, cannabis use is growing the fastest among older adults. However, a new study “Qualitative Analysis of Cannabis Use Among Older Adults in Colorado” says that many of these individuals report challenges to getting medical marijuana, including fear of stigma from…

Many people develop mental and neurological disorders as they enter old age, depression, dementia, and anxiety being among the most common. These challenges often go underrecognized, but it’s important we stay on top of our mental, emotional, and physical health as we age. Take care of yourself throughout life by…

When we’re young, we often view people in their 20s or 30s as “old”; this idea of old, however, changes as we age. A recent study says the older we get, the younger we feel—in other words, our perception of old age changes as we get older. Researchers reached this…

Playing sports might protect boys from depression. A study from the journal Biological Psychiatry examined how exercise might impact the development of depression in children. It analyzed over 4,000 kids ages 9 to 11 and saw that sports participation was linked to fewer depression symptoms specifically in boys. Researchers found…