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Every Monday on The Verywell Mind Podcast, Editor-in-Chief Amy Morin, LCSW, interviews authors, experts, entrepreneurs, athletes, musicians, and other inspirational people about the strategies that help them think, feel, and do their best in life. Meet Grace Gaustad Grace Gaustad is a singer and songwriter who rose to fame at the age 15 when her performance of “Take Me to Church” went viral. She released her debut album, BlKBX, in 2021....

When I first held my newborn girl in the hospital, it was love at first sight. I truly thought parenting this sweet baby would be a piece of cake. I had taken care of many babies over the years and the basic tasks of diapering, feeding, and putting a baby to bed seemed like they would be a snap with my very own baby. I felt well-prepared and confident. In the hospital, it was easy, as she slept and fed well....

If you’ve been trying to get pregnant for a year without any luck, it may be time to see your doctor for a fertility assessment. According to experts, a fertility evaluation is appropriate for people who are under 35 and have been unsuccessfully trying to conceive through regular sexual intercourse for 12 months. For those older than 35, the threshold moves down to six months of unprotected sex without a pregnancy to show for it....

Cheese is not just thickened, condensed milk but rather it is a fermented milk product. Even those who are lactose intolerant can often eat some cheeses, because typically, the longer a cheese is aged, the less lactose it will have. Children as young as 6 to 8 months who are starting solids can begin eating cheese if it is made with pasteurized milk and is not a choking hazard. All Cheese Is Not Equal Try to buy cheese that contains as few ingredients as possible....

Gifted kids sometimes have problems that require the help of a counselor. Such children can be a mystery to parents and consult parenting handbooks isn’t always productive. For one thing, unless a parenting handbook is written specifically for parents of gifted kids, it won’t cover issues that relate specifically to such children, such as asynchronous development and intense emotional sensitivity. Also, books can only provide so much help. There may be a time when parents need to seek professional help for children and when that time comes, it’s important to find the right professional....

From the time your baby is born until they graduate from college, they are developing and growing not only physically, but also verbally, cognitively, socially, and emotionally. For many kids, these skills develop in predictable ways and are often described by healthcare professionals as reaching developmental milestones. Some kids will reach these milestones early and some will hit them a little later and for the most part, that is all OK....

Despite the enjoyment the holidays can bring, it can also come with stress to meet expectations. While the children were not assessed, a C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital National Poll on Children’s Health at the University of Michigan Health found that 1 in 5 parents believe that their holiday stress levels negatively impact their children. Key Takeaways 1 in 5 parents believe that their child has unrealistic expectations for the holidays, while 1 in 4 admit that they set highly unrealistic expectations of themselves during this season....

On the first day after Christmas, our true love gave to us … sales and deals on pregnancy stuff! Don’t worry—the after-Christmas sales and deals are way better than our rhyming. If you just found out you’re pregnant, you’ll want to take advantage of markdowns on must-have pregnancy items, like prenatal protein powder, nursing bras, and more. Plus, it’s a great time to use that gift card you got for Christmas....

If you or a loved one has been diagnosed with an eating disorder, you may be feeling scared and unsure of what to do next. Unlike most other mental disorders, eating disorders have the potential for serious medical consequences. As a result, they are most often treated by a team of professionals. Partly because eating disorders are so complex, knowing where to go for treatment and how to access it can feel overwhelming....

When your infant’s smooth, baby-soft skin becomes covered with red bumps or splotches, your first instinct may be that there’s cause for alarm. Rashes are extremely common in babies—especially newborns—and they’re often harmless and fleeting. That said, there are some types of infant rashes that may become concerning and could benefit from treatment to help restore your little one’s velvety skin. Two very common types of infant skin lesions such as these are baby acne and baby eczema—and it can be difficult to differentiate between the two....

Behavioral therapy is a term that describes a broad range of techniques used to change maladaptive behaviors. The goal is to reinforce desirable behaviors and eliminate unwanted ones. Behavioral therapy is rooted in the principles of behaviorism, a school of thought focused on the idea that we learn from our environment. This approach emerged during the early part of the 20th-century and became a dominant force in the field for many years....

You have probably had someone tell you to “look on the bright side” or to “see the cup as half full.” Chances are good that the people who make these comments are positive thinkers. Researchers are finding more and more evidence pointing to the many benefits of optimism and positive thinking. Such findings suggest that not only are positive thinkers healthier and less stressed, they also have greater overall well-being. According to positive psychology researcher Suzanne Segerstrom, “Setbacks are inherent to almost every worthwhile human activity, and a number of studies show that optimists are in general both psychologically and physiologically healthier....

BuSpar, which is produced as the generic form buspirone hydrochloride (HCL), is a medication sometimes used to treat anxiety and augment antidepressants. If you have anxiety associated with bipolar disorder, your psychiatrist may prescribe anti-anxiety medications as well as mood stabilizers. Buspirone HCL is one of several medication options if you have anxiety. BuSpar Availability The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the brand BuSpar to treat anxiety disorders such as Generalized Anxiety Disorder , which includes physical symptoms of anxiety including shakiness, jitteriness, dizziness, sweating, dry mouth, difficulty concentrating, insomnia, and excessive worry....

Overall, the “average” risk of miscarriage is estimated to be between 12% and 15% of recognized pregnancies by 20 weeks gestation. Yet, since there are multiple key factors, such as maternal age and drinking, that may increase risk, how can you estimate your personal risk of having a miscarriage? Let’s take a look at specific risk factors for miscarriage, and how much risk these confer. Some risk factors are unavoidable. You can’t change the year you were born or whether you have had miscarriages in the past....

Children who use spatial ability—the ability to understand and make sense of dimensional relations among objects—have often been touted as being more mathematically inclined. A new study from Karolinska Institute in Sweden says that may not be the case. Key Takeaways A study found that visual working memory and reasoning skills boost a child’s mathematics skills.Cognitive training can transfer from one area of learning to another.Spatial skills may not be the only predictor for pursuing STEM fields....

Spoiler alert! This article contains major spoilers for the film Everything Everywhere All At Once, currently playing in theaters. Mind in the Media is an ongoing series discussing mental health and psychological topics in popular movies and television The multiverse is the hottest destination in pop culture today. From Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness to Rick and Morty to The Flash, movies and TV have used the conceit to explore how small changes can make big differences in the lives of individuals and the world as a whole....

Fear of attention is common for quite a few people, particularly for those with social anxiety disorder (SAD). Although avoiding the limelight might feel like a good strategy to control your anxiety, in the long run, you are teaching yourself that you can’t handle being in the spotlight. Effective treatments and strategies are available that can help you get over your fear of being the center of attention. If your fear is related to social anxiety disorder, getting treatment for your condition is an important step toward overcoming this fear....

Reductionism is a theory in psychology centered on reducing complex phenomena into their most basic parts. It is often contrasted with holism, which is focused on looking at things as a whole. The purpose of reductionism is to simplify psychological events and processes by looking at their smallest elements, thus “reducing” something rather complex into its most simple. These two approaches are often pitted against one another. Where a reductionist would propose that the best way to understand something is to look at what it is made up of, a holist would argue that the sum-product is more than simply the sum of its parts....

People tend to be social creatures, and research has shown that social connections are vital for both emotional and physical well-being. However, alone time also plays a pivotal role in mental health. Being around other people comes with rewards, but it also creates stress. You worry about what people think. You alter your behavior to avoid rejection and to fit in with the rest of the group. While it may be the cost of being part of a social world, some of these challenges demonstrate why alone time can be so important....

Are you ready to increase the odds that you’ll get sole custody of your children? Start by learning what the terminology means, and then apply these tips. Understand Sole Custody vs. Joint Custody When it comes to child custody, first you have to understand the difference between legal and physical custody. Legal custody refers to having the legal authority to make decisions for the child, whereas physical custody refers to how much time a child spends living with each parent....