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If you have an eating disorder such as anorexia nervosa or avoidant restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID), you may experience the symptoms of gastroparesis. You may not feel hungry and may constantly feel that your stomach is full even when you’ve eaten very little. You may feel uncomfortably full after eating only a small amount of food. This can feel confusing and make eating for recovery even harder. People around you may be frustrated and tell you to “just eat” and either dismiss your complaints of fullness or attribute your lack of appetite to disordered thinking....

Context-dependent memory refers to improved recall when the context during encoding is the same as the context during retrieval. For example, when an event is stored in one’s memory, contextual information surrounding the event is stored too. Therefore, returning to or recreating that context can help trigger the memory of the event. For example, consider people’s tendency to retrace their steps when they’ve misplaced an item like their wallet or mobile phone....

Parents of twins will eventually be faced with a quandary that every parent of multiples has: whether a school will allow their twins to attend class together. Keeping twins together at school is an emotionally charged issue that can often divide parents and teachers. Some parents have advocated for change at the state, and even federal, levels to ensure that twins can be in the same classroom. Here are a few cases to be aware of, as well as some of the pros and cons of having your twins attend class together....

Most parents would never ignore their teen’s broken bone or other obvious signs of physical injury. Yet, when it comes to a teenager’s mental health, symptoms of an existing mental illness can go untreated for months or even years. Sometimes this lack of treatment is because parents don’t recognize the warning signs of teenage mental illness. Other times, parents might worry that their teen will get labeled as “crazy” if they seek help....

When you first arrive in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), it can be a scary, overwhelming place. Around 10% or more of newborns spend some time in the NICU. So, you’re not alone and know that your healthcare providers are doing everything they can to address your baby’s needs and help them go home with you as soon as possible. In the first hours or days that your baby is in the NICU, you’ll likely be so busy meeting the staff, talking to the nurses and doctors, learning about the equipment and your child’s condition, and worrying about your baby that the time may go by pretty quickly....

If you are living with ADHD, you are probably familiar with the concept of ‘overthinking’. It’s when your thoughts get caught in a loop, and you go over and over the same thoughts without feeling better or finding a resolution. Your thinking might get stuck on day to day worries or on future events. However, a large portion of your overthinking is probably to do with events that happened in the past....

For people who move to the US, no two experiences will be the same. However, many migrants and refugees face or have faced trauma, whether in their home country, while traveling, or after arriving in their host country. One study suggested that almost half (47%) of migrants experience post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), while another found that around one-third of adolescents (29%) and parents (34%) experienced trauma during the migration process....

Kyle is a name with Scottish and Irish origins. It comes from the Gaelic word “caol” which means a narrow, a sound, or a strait. This geographic term refers to the narrow channel of water between two islands or between an island and the mainland. Kyle is also a well-known Scottish last name whose origins can be traced back to an area in southwestern Scotland. Although it originated as a surname, Kyle has since been used most often as a first name for boys....

More than half of LGBTQ+ students in middle and high school were bullied in 2020. That alarming statistic comes from a report from the Trevor Project, released October 14th, 2021. These teens and preteens were also at higher risk of attempted suicide because of being bullied both on and offline. Key Takeaways 52% of LGBTQ+ students surveyed in a new report from the Trevor Project said they were bullied in 2020....

The holiday season is meant to be a joyous occasion that brings family and friends together. But even in the midst of all the excitement, there are often moments of stress and anxiety. If you are recovering from alcohol addiction, this broad spectrum of holiday emotions can challenge even your best intentions for recovery. Though the risk of relapse runs high during the holidays, it is not inevitable. If you are in recovery from alcohol addiction, there are steps you can take to stay healthy and safe....

Spoiler alert! This article contains spoilers for the first season of the Netflix series “The Sandman.” Mind in the Media is an ongoing series discussing mental health and psychological topics in popular movies and television. The first season of “The Sandman,” Netflix’s adaptation of the comic book written by Neil Gaiman, introduces Morpheus (Tom Sturridge), the mythical Sandman and the king of dreams and nightmares. Morpheus is responsible for creating and controlling the dreams that people experience when they sleep, an essential function of humanity....

A recent study, published in the Journal of Women’s Health, has found positive associations between breastfeeding and improved maternal mental health. In this analysis, researchers dug deep into the existing body of research on the topic to integrate the information in the form of updated breastfeeding recommendations. Key Takeaways A recent study found that breastfeeding may help improve maternal mental health and reduce the risk of postpartum depression.However, this might not be the case when new mothers are struggling with breastfeeding....

People who are passive-aggressive are indirectly aggressive rather than being directly aggressive. For instance, passive-aggressive behavior can appear in the form of resistance to another person’s requests by procrastinating, expressing sullenness, or acting stubbornly. Passive-aggressive behavior is defined as behavior that is seemingly innocuous, accidental, or neutral but that indirectly displays an unconscious aggressive motive. Someone who is passive-aggressive often lets others take control while someone who is aggressive is more confrontational or directly forceful....

Parents face a tough challenge when attempting to meet the emotional needs of their teenagers. Many teens may fear that their parents don’t understand their plight. Or, if they feel they’ve done something wrong, they might worry that on the other side of a heart-to-heart could be punishment. That is why many parents have a growing interest in peer support programs. Key Takeaways Teens are more likely to communicate with their peers than with their parents or teachers....

In the treatment of eating disorders, logs or diaries are also known as self-monitoring records. Self-monitoring involves keeping track of behaviors, symptoms, or experiences over time. Self-monitoring is an important part of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for many mental health disorders. For depression or anxiety, for example, therapy often involves keeping track of thoughts and associated emotions and behaviors. For insomnia, patients are usually asked to keep sleep logs. Why Self-Monitoring is Helpful One of the reasons self-monitoring is so helpful is that it can be very difficult to recall thoughts, feelings, or behaviors after some time has passed....

If you experienced trauma as a child, it’s likely that you are or have experienced some amount of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) later in life. This article explains what trauma is, what childhood abuse may look like, and how childhood trauma impacts adulthood. What Is Childhood Trauma? Trauma in childhood not only constitutes physical, emotional, or sexual abuse but exposure to traumatic events as well. These traumatic events could be when children witness natural disasters, or even when they witness violence within their communities....

What Is Skin Picking Disorder? Pathologic skin picking is a mental illness in which you compulsively pick your skin to remove small irregularities such as moles or freckles, causing skin lesions. Also known as excoriation disorder or dermatillomania, this disorder is classified as an “obsessive-compulsive and related disorder" in the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5). Symptoms of Skin Picking Disorder The main characteristic of pathologic skin picking also referred to as excoriation or dermatillomania, is repetitive or compulsive picking, or even digging, in the skin to the point of causing skin damage, scarring, and/or infection....

Staying connected to support and services during the COVID-19 pandemic is critical for the millions of people who are struggling with mental health issues and substance abuse addiction and recovery. We are social creatures who crave connection with others, which becomes even more apparent for people struggling with mental health and addiction since social isolation can cause these issues to become especially difficult to manage. Key Takeaways It’s essential for those with existing mental health and addiction issues to stay connected and seek support during the coronavirus pandemic....

Balance boards are a type of exercise equipment designed to improve balance and stability. A balance board is typically a flat, rectangular surface with a curved bottom that’s engineered with the right amount of balance or weight to work in tandem with your body’s natural movements. According to Leada Malek, PT, a board-certified sports specialist and physical therapist, balance boards can have a positive impact on “balance, coordination, motor skills, and lower extremity muscle strength....

Counting steps, tracking distance, blasting your favorite playlist—is there anything your cellphone can’t do while you run? Whether you enjoy taking calls on jogs or just keeping your phone close by in case you need it, many runners are opting to take their devices with them during runs. And the best way to run safely with a phone is to invest in a functional (and handy) cellphone holder. When looking for a cellphone holder, Jack Hackett, head coach and founder of Infinity Running Company, says it’s important that it feels comfortable and secure....