The tendency to continue to surf or scroll through bad news, even though that news is saddening, disheartening, or depressing.
While dissociating, one may feel disconnected from themselves and the world around them. Often dissociation is one way the mind copes with excessive stress, such as during a traumatic event.
Couplings are associations between a stimulus and the response that follows. There can be "over-coupling" (over associations) or "under-coupling" (fragmented or dis-associate. An awareness of this coupling dynamics is what guides us to more of a sense of presence.
At its core, body neutrality is the idea that we can exist without having to think too deeply or often about our bodies - either positively or negatively. You can simply exist and be worthy of self and social respect without thinking about your body at all. It encourages us to accept the ebb and flow of our relationships with our bodies- whether it be feeling good about it one day and not as good about it the next
“Rupture and repair” refers to the breaking and restoring of connection with one another. Since human beings are wired for social connection, and connection is what researchers say brings most human beings happiness, rupture and repair is a crucial concept to have awareness around for wellbeing. Stemming from attachment theory, rupture is the disruption of a perceived “positive” relationship and repair is the healing that is facilitated to mend that rupture or fracture, resulting in a deeper and more strengthened relationship.
A psychological and physiological response that a “body feeding” parent has as a result of the need to provide continuous physical comfort to their child. It means that they have spent so much time in physical contact with another human that the thought of any more touching makes them feel ill or repulsed. It’s something that new parents are especially prone to, as small children are all-consuming and need both their mental and physical attention.
A process by which the child is made to take on the role of “parent” to their own parent or sibling due to a reluctant or not able parent. In this process, children are pushed into taking on the role of caretaker, and giving up their role as the child.
It is posited that emotional events begin with non-conscious changes in our bodily states, called “somatic markers”: when you see a big cockroach, for instance, and your body tenses and your heart begins to race, this experience is noted as a somatic marker. This physiological reaction occurs before we are even aware of the emotion, and it is only when the brain detects the alteration to the body’s internal state, through interoception, that we actually experience the feeling and allow it to impact our behavior.
Perinatal Mood and Anxiety Disorders (PMADS): a broad term intended to encompass the range of mental health issues that a woman may experience throughout pregnancy and up to two years postpartum that are unique to physical, emotional, and mental shifts occurring during the transition to motherhood.
Postpartum Depression: a commonly used term to describe mental health issues a woman may experience after giving birth. It is a misnomer because symptoms are not limited to that of depression and has been renamed perinatal mood and anxiety disorders (PMADS). Maternal Wellness specialists believe that this term better encompasses the entirety of mental health issues that a woman may experience throughout pregnancy and up to two years postpartum that are unique to the transition to motherhood.
There is often a link between one’s identity and the risk of traumatic exposure. Any verbal or nonverbal prejudiced communication whether on an individual or systemic level, may contribute to one feeling overwhelmed. This may then turn into an inability for one to adequately cope. Some traumatic events occur solely as a result of how someone may describe or express their identity (gender, racial and sexual minorities for example). Such chronic traumatic experiences may negatively impact an individual's identity and identity expression, and result in an alteration in identity and self-esteem.
Intergenerational trauma is a psychological term that asserts that trauma can be transferred between generations. It states that after the first generation of survivors experiences trauma, they transfer this trauma to their children via altered genes and behavioral conditioning often perpetuated by continued race-based traumatic stress.
Anxiety disorder is a mental health condition that encompasses repeated, and excessive spells of fear, worry, and anxious feelings. Apprehension and anxiety on the other hand are a normal facet of life. They are, after all, what guide and motivate us to achieve goals, and take risks. However, when anxiety begins to stick, becomes your baseline, or feels unshakeable, it may get in the way of optimizing your quality of life.
Depression is classified as a mood disorder that causes pervasive feelings of sadness, and loss of interest (anhedonia). Also called Major Depressive Disorder or clinical depression. It affects how we think, feel, and behave, and also leads to a variety of physical, emotional, and interpersonal problems. Folks with MDD may struggle to perform basic activities of daily living, and some may even experience thoughts of suicide. More than just “feeling low” or something to “snap out of”, depression may require long-term treatment. However, efficacious treatment options for MDD do exist.
OCD is a common, and chronic disorder in which a person has uncontrollable, intrusive, reoccurring thoughts (obsessions) and/or behaviors (compulsions) that they may enact in order to alleviate anxiety provoked by these obsessions.
Although an anxiety disorder, OCD differs from generalized anxiety. There are three distinct features between both disorders. These are - the content of your anxiety, the fixedness of your thoughts, and whether or not compulsions are involved. Folks with generalized anxiety jump from one anxiety to the next through the day (or have a global sense of feeling overwhelmed) whereas someone with OCD is more likely to obsess over one intrusive thought and direct excessive attention to it.
Within OCD, one may also experience Pure O, which is marked by obsessions alone. An individual experiencing Pure O may not engage in visible behaviors to mitigate their intrusive thoughts, but may instead partake in hidden mental rituals.
Panic disorder is an anxiety disorder diagnosed in people who experience seemingly out-of-the-blue and spontaneous panic attacks. Such individuals are very preoccupied with the fear of another attack coming on. Panic attacks may occur very unexpectedly, and oftentimes, even when awakening from a deep sleep.
A chronic mental health disorder in which social interactions elicit irrational fear and anxiety. This fear and anxiety may lead to avoidance behaviors that disrupt day-to-day functionality.
Specific phobia is an anxiety-type disorder, wherein one may experience an intense irrational fear of something that poses little to no real danger. Although adults with a specific phobia may be able to identify that their fears are irrational, even the idea of thinking about facing the feared object or situation brings upon intense fear and anxiety.
Complicated grief is when an individual may feel trapped in their pain, and sense of loss after the death of a loved one. Grief itself is a normal human emotion and should be transitory. However, when this grief becomes chronically debilitating is when it is termed complicated grief.
In the Greek language, anhedonia is directly translated to “without pleasure”, a key symptom of Major Depressive Disorder. It is characterized by the inability to experience pleasure in normally enjoyable experiences.
PMDD is a more severe form of Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS). It induces behavioral and physical symptoms that usually dissipate after the onset of one's menstruation. PMDD may result in extreme mood swings that hinder our personal and work life. Symptoms may include hopelessness, anger, irritation, sadness, and physical symptoms such as bloating and breast tenderness. Therapeutic guidance surrounding changes in diet and lifestyle may help in reducing these symptoms.
Bulimia Nervosa is a common eating disorder that may be potentially life-threatening. People with bulimia may binge (eat large amounts of food with a loss of control over the eating behavior) and then purge, (trying to get rid of the extra calories in an unhealthy way). To rid themselves of the calories ingested and prevent weight gain, people with bulimia may use different methods. For example: regularly self-inducing vomiting or misusing laxatives, taking weight-loss supplements, diuretics or enemas after bingeing.
Anorexia is another common eating disorder characterized by abnormally or unhealthily low body weight; an intense fear of gaining weight and a distorted perception of their body and weight expectations. People with anorexia place a high value on controlling their weight and shape, using extreme methods that tend to significantly interrupt their day-to-day functionality. In order to prevent weight gain or encourage weight loss, people with anorexia usually severely restrict the amount of food they eat.