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If you experience significant, persistent psychiatric symptoms such as depressed mood, anxiety, mood swings, obsessions and compulsions, dysregulated eating (i.e., binge eating, purging), or disturbed sleep, medication can be a potentially helpful part of your treatment plan. Medications used to treat these and other symptoms, commonly seen across a number of psychiatric diagnoses, are referred to as psychotropic drugs. Psychotropic medications are those that affect your mind—your emotions and your behavior—typically by altering the balance of the chemicals in your brain called neurotransmitters....

How much a child enjoys television is often correlated to how much screen time is allowed. In August, new research published in the journal Infancy found that some babies may be hard-wired to enjoy screens more than others. Key Takeaways Researchers studied the brain activity of babies to determine how attracted they were to new images inserted into a video clip they had seen many times before.Some babies were more interested in the new images than others....

Whether you want to practice your jump shot, play basketball with the kids, or blow off some steam on the weekends, portable basketball hoops allow for the convenience of doing it all at home. Unlike wall-mounted or in-ground hoops, all you need for a portable basketball hoop is some space to play. Portable hoops are typically less expensive, easy to move around, and adjustable, making the game more accessible—especially for younger players....

Designed to promote a more natural running stride, zero drop running shoes have a 0-millimeter heel-to-toe drop, which means that the forefoot and heel are on the same level. Unlike traditional running shoes, which average about a 10-millimeter drop, they encourage a forefoot or midfoot—not heel—strike, which may reduce impact on the joints and decrease injury risk. With minimal arch support and cushioning, the zero drop shoes’ lack of protection can actually help promote foot strength and ankle support....

There is nothing like a good kitchen gadget to spice up your cooking experience and make at-home meal prepping easier. Investing in high-quality, multi-function equipment can help both novice and advanced home chefs prepare delicious and nutritious meals with ease and efficiency. The best kitchen gadgets are sized to your needs, easy to clean, and fit within your budget. No matter if you’re buying small gadgets like salad mixers to bigger ticket items like pressure cookers and blenders, you’ll want to make sure it’s durable, efficient, and high-quality....

Sparkling water—including flavored and unflavored seltzer, club soda, and mineral water—is a carbonated water beverage that can be a refreshing alternative to regular water. For those that have difficulty meeting their hydration goals from plain water alone, sparkling water can be an appealing option to help boost your intake. Typically containing little or no added sugar, sparkling water is also a great substitute for sugar sweetened drinks like soda when you are craving a bubbly beverage....

There are many recognized benefits of breastfeeding. However, there is still much debate over whether or not breastfeeding gives children a cognitive advantage. Cognitive ability refers to mental processes such as thinking, remembering, and making decisions. It also includes creativity, imagination, and behavior. The healthy development of the brain and cognitive skills allows children to learn and understand. Possible Cognitive Benefits of Breastfeeding Many experts believe that breastfeeding can contribute to the intelligence, memory, judgment, and problem-solving ability of a child as he grows, but does it?...

Trauma can impact people in a variety of ways and can even have a lasting impact on the brain. In some cases, it can lead to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), a trauma- and stressor-related disorder that results in improper processing and storage of traumatic memories. Because of the way these memories are stored, people with PTSD exhibit symptoms such as recurrent memories regarding the event; traumatic nightmares; dissociative flashbacks; hypervigilance; engaging in risk-taking behavior; and an exaggerated startle response....

Psilocybin mushrooms are colloquially known as “magic mushrooms” or “shrooms,” and have been used for thousands of years as a spiritual and medicinal tool among Indigenous populations. Psilocybin Therapy Also known as psilocybin-assisted therapy, psilocybin therapy involves the use of a psychedelic compound that is native to a specific type of mushroom in a psychotherapeutic setting. What a Psilocybin Therapy Session Looks Like Psilocybin therapy involves a patient ingesting the chemical psilocybin while in the care of a therapist....

Kids are pretty good at avoiding things they don’t want to do. If your child doesn’t like school or he hates riding the bus, missing the bus on purpose can be a good ploy. Unfortunately, many parents are quick to drive their kids to school after they’ve missed the bus. But, giving him a free ride will only teach your child that missing the bus is a good idea. Whether he wants to arrive at school late, or he doesn’t want to get ready on time, becoming his chauffeur rewards him for missing the bus....

Research suggests that sexual satisfaction plays a pivotal role in healthy relationships according to research, but there are a number of factors that can influence the quality of a couple’s sex life as well as individual sexual desire over the course of a relationship. Every relationship can go through dry spells when your partner is suddenly less interested in sex than you. It may a short-term problem related to stress at work or other issues that have driven your partner to distraction....

Fourth grade is the approximate year in which teachers say children experience a shift from “learning to read” to “reading to learn.” Fourth graders will use reference books and the Internet to find the information they need for schoolwork. Fourth grade math, reading and other subjects will be more challenging, as will homework, which may take as much as an hour or more to do each night. Fourth graders will also need to begin getting themselves ready for the transition to middle school....

Apologies can be an important way to mend interpersonal relationships, but it is also normal to have complicated feelings about them. Some of us were forced to apologize as children when we hurt someone, and some of us apologized freely and felt immediately better after doing so. Some people feel shamed by apologizing, while others feel ashamed until we have done so. While a popular movie from decades ago declared that “Love means never having to say you’re sorry,” never apologizing in a relationship is a sure way to risk losing it....

The phrase “constructive anger” may sound like an oxymoron, but in fact, learning to use negative feelings in positive ways can go a long way toward helping with healing, forward movement, and recovery. For instance, for someone who’s dealing with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), a cluster of often-debilitating symptoms that result from a terrifying situation or experience, destructive anger is a common emotion, one that can cause them to act aggressively toward other people or engage in substance abuse or self-harm....

A recent study, published in Pediatrics on January 8, 2021, makes a case for schools reopening safely if they comply with specific steps to prevent COVID-19. Researchers from Duke University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill found only 32 cases of in-school COVID-19 transmission out of almost 100,000 students in North Carolina schools. Key Takeaways A new study says schools can reopen safely during the COVID-19 pandemic, provided they adhere to specific science-based preventive measures....

If you’re pregnant with twins or multiples, congratulations! You may feel excited and happy, especially if you’ve gone through a long journey to get to this point. It’s also normal to feel nervous, scared, or even sad. You may be worrying about losing the babies or wondering if you’ll be able to handle caring for them when they arrive. You may also feel angry, especially if getting pregnant was difficult for you, and now you face a potentially difficult pregnancy and birth....

The United States of America is anything but a united, equal place these days and Americans are really starting to feel it. Key Takeaways A majority of Americans believe that other countries respect the United States less than in the past. Younger Americans are also more likely to view other countries as superior to the United States.Mental health professionals explain how a lack of respect from your country can hurt a person’s well-being....

Acupuncture is one of the more popular alternative treatments used for infertility. More and more fertility clinics are offering mind-body programs, and some of them offer acupuncture. If the idea of having tiny needles placed in your body sounds less than appealing, you’re not alone. The very idea of acupuncture can make needle phobic patients shiver. Here’s the good news: the needles you may encounter during fertility treatment are nothing like the thin acupuncture needles....

In our increasingly mobile and connected world, we have opportunities to meet and learn from people from all over the world. And with these opportunities come more chances of finding love, sometimes thousands of miles away from home. Long-distance relationships (LDRs) used to be an anomaly, often happening later in an established couple. One member would have to move for studies, work, or military service, and the relationship had to adapt to this change....

Capgras syndrome is a delusional disorder that causes a person to falsely believe that an imposter has replaced a person they know. It’s also known as Capgras delusion. It falls under a class of mental conditions called delusional misidentification syndromes (DMSs). Delusional misidentification syndromes are disorders characterized by delusions that cause people to misidentify themselves or those close to them. There are several sub-types, with Capgras syndrome being the most commonly identified....