Understanding DMDD and the silent struggles of explosive children Key points Don’t push kids to talk—meet them where they are. Focus on control, not conflict. Future planning works better than past digging. Over the years, more and more parents have walked into my office describing a similar, challenging pattern in their children—kids who don’t just get upset but explode. They have quick tempers, intense emotional reactions, and rigid thinking. They can’t bounce back quickly

How to manage self-doubt and learn to embrace your achievements. Key points Imposter syndrome is a distortion of reality that, if not checked, can be debilitating. Taking a realistic inventory of your life, your sacrifices, and accomplishments can help. Perfectionists often are the first to distort their own perceptions. Shakespeare once wrote, “All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players.” He wasn’t just being poetic; he was capturing a truth about huma

Personal Perspective: Is retirement a social death or a rebirth? Key points Retirement carries a risk of what sociologists call social death. Social death is not inevitable. Remaining socially engaged is the key to flourishing in retirement. Social death can be turned into social rebirth, setting the occasion for a meaningful retirement. At the end of August of this year, following a long (45 years) and rewarding career as a college professor, I retired from my position of Pr

Why PMDD deserves more attention in the conversation about women's mental health. Key points PMDD affects roughly 1 in 20 women of reproductive age and is often misdiagnosed or dismissed. Symptoms can include severe mood swings, depression, anxiety, and even suicidal thoughts. Effective treatment can include a combination of lifestyle changes, therapy, and medication. Increasing awareness and research funding for PMDD is essential to improve diagnosis and care. Graph with str

When focusing on feelings can go overboard and add more stress. Key points Respecting and validating feelings is critical when it come to helping kids with separation anxiety. But more is not always better, especially for deeply feeling kids who can stuck and ruminate. Talking about feelings all the time can increase distress and anxiety What they need is validation and also help moving on, not looping alongside them. A crying young girl holding an adult’s hand In this day an

What research says about gender differences in compulsive sexual behavior disorder (CSBD). Key points CSBD affects all genders, with a similar core pattern of symptoms. Women face more stigma and have a harder time accessing help or treatment for CSBD. Inclusive, gender-sensitive approaches are key to better support and treatment for CSBD. Man looking out the window This post was written by Ewelina Kowalewska, Ph.D., researcher at the Centre of Postgraduate Medical Education

Self-care, boundaries, and a clear mission will help you care for your parent. Key points You may need to accept that your care receiver will not likely change. Self-care is crucial when caregiving a difficult parent. Periodically revisit your boundaries to see how you are managing. A stressed caregiver sits beside her elderly parent Joanna could have screamed in frustration, but she had promised herself she wouldn’t. Her mother, Barbara, who had progressing vascular dementia

A challenge to the assumption that hoarding is purely behavioral or rooted in indecision. Key points A recent study on hoarding points toward an interplay among emotion, perception, and social cognition. The mind’s need for connection, when unmet, may be rerouted toward the tangible, an adaptive strategy. The clutter that fills a hoarder’s home might be read as a neuropsychological footprint of loneliness. In Amanda Uhle’s recent book, Destroy This House (Summit Books, 2025),

There are some surprising reasons for hallucinating, and some are even normal. Key points Hallucinations can be caused by mental and general medical conditions. They can also be normal. Anyone with a new onset of hallucinations should be evaluated in a timely manner by a physician. Children and teenagers can have normal hallucinations, but sometimes they are due to a disorder. Hallucinations are unreal sensory experiences, such as hearing or seeing something that is not there

Three easy micro-resets for your nervous system. Key points Seasonal transitions can knock us out of balance. Micro-resets, or balancing exercises, can help to reset your nervous system throughout the day. Daily rituals, getting earthy, and balancing your breath can help. Recently, my yoga teacher commented that "Fall is a windy time of year." Depending on where you live, the cool wind may pick up or briskness cut the air. This seasonal shift can feel energizing, or rev up yo

It’s almost magical when you look back on how you and your grief have changed. Welcome! Welcome! Welcome! You've gone through the worst kind of hell and made it to the other side of the grief road! I’m so glad to see you here! I wish I could give you a great big hug! Pour yourself a drink, put your feet up, and enjoy the moment. No one deserves it more than you! You’ve been through a lot and have come a long way. As time goes by, the early days of your grief have become fuzzy

How to avoid falling into common workplace misery traps. Key points Although no one wants to be miserable at work, our behavior sometimes contributes to it. Four common experiences often result in negative feelings at work. Taking control of your emotional state at work starts with awareness of self-defeating behaviors. No one wants to be miserable at work—and yet many of us do things that almost guarantee that we’ll feel that way. By identifying the 4 behaviors described her

A Personal Perspective: Finding clarity through diagnosis can turn fear into relief. Key points Accurate diagnosis transforms confusion into clarity, reducing emotional distress and self-blame. Validation through testing aligns internal experience with objective data. Research shows that diagnostic certainty improves well-being by easing uncertainty and restoring control. During feedback sessions, when clients and I review their psychological test results together, I often he

GLP-1 drugs affect reward circuits to reduce alcohol, opioid, and nicotine use. Key points GLP-1 drugs show potential to treat substance use disorders. These effects appear to be mediated at least in part through the modulation of reward pathways in the CNS. Early results show reductions in cravings, substance use, and other related outcomes. Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) is a hormone responsible for most of the insulin release after consuming a meal. Its effects are mediat

Primitive fear responses can be overwhelming and can worsen anxiety. Key points Learning to assess perceived threat versus tangible threat can help us to control physical anxiety responses. Psychological threats are not necessarily soothed by animalistic physical anxiety responses. The brain can be retrained to more accurately respond to perceived danger. A woman with eyes closed, calmly enjoying sunlight When I was a social work graduate student, one of my professors had the

Helping college-age kids with their mental health is a balancing act. Key points Family continues to be a trusted source of support, encouragement, and guidance for college students. Normalizing common struggles—such as poor grades or homesickness—can help students transition to college. At the same time, college students need space to make their own mistakes without parental involvement. A college student Before they head off to college, families have likely played a central

How keeping the focus on yourself can transform conflict into connection. Key points When conflict arises, the impulse to focus on your partner can block self-awareness. Keeping the focus on yourself shifts attention from blame to accountability. Real repair begins when each partner takes responsibility for their own part. When couples come to us for therapy, they usually want the same thing: fewer fights, less hurt, more harmony. They imagine that the healthiest relationship

How alcohol fuels the social anxiety cycle—and what to do instead. As the cold beer ran down my throat, the sharpness of my self-conscious thoughts started to lose its edge. The conversation started to flow, and the laughter became easier. The first time I discovered the social lubricant magic of alcohol was at a high school party. The music was loud, and I was anxious. A friend handed me a beer; told me it would help me loosen up. And it did. From then on, I learned to turn

How memory gaps may affect relationships for people with BPD. Key points Gaslighting increases the instability of relationships where one or both parties has BPD. The symptom of paranoia may cause those who dissociate to see others as gaslighting them. To avoid gaslighting, it is suggested that loved ones not challenge accusations based on BPD-related dissociative memory gaps. Gaslighting is a form of emotional abuse in which efforts are made to make someone feel crazy for be

Eye-level view of a couple sitting together in a cozy living room, discussing their future plans Marriage is a big step. It brings two lives together in a way that changes everything. But before saying “I do,” many couples overlook one important step: couples counseling before marriage. This kind of counseling helps couples build a strong foundation for their life together. It’s not just for couples who have problems. It’s for anyone who wants to start their marriage with cl