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Especially as transphobia continues to dictate government policies that harm youth athletes, such research findings should come as no surprise to individuals who understand the impact of oppression on health outcomes. While President Biden’s Executive Order on Preventing and Combating Discrimination on the Basis of Gender Identity or Sexual Orientation is encouraging, there is still a great deal of work to be done to ensure that gender-diverse youth have equitable access to opportunities and experiences in American society....

Published in JAMA Psychiatry, the research covered 21 countries and just over 145,000 participants, tracked over a period of 14 years, in both urban and rural communities. The more symptoms of depression participants had, the higher their risk was for multiple types of cardiovascular issues, regardless of geography. This adds to previous research connecting cardiovascular function and mental health concerns. A study in JAMA Network Open published in February, involving over 500,000 people in China, also found that depression is a risk factor for all-cause and cardiovascular disease mortality in adults, particularly men....

The following goal setting journaling techniques can help you to get more in touch with your goals, and actually help you achieve them, and acquire the lifestyle you dream of. How to Journal Your Way to Better Goals Tips Try to do this when you’re not exhausted, or so stressed you want to scream, but in a serious mood; you’ll get more relevant results this way.

Often called broken families, there are many potential causes of estrangement between family members, and many of them come down to specific details surrounding the individuals and the situations involved. To find out more about what causes these relational rifts, as well as how to solve them, Verywell Mind tapped Frank Anderson, MD, a psychiatrist and psychotherapist, who specializes in the treatment of trauma. “A broken family is one that includes unhealthy or severed relationships within the family unit,” explains Anderson....

The question is how to do this in a healthy and helpful way so that our feelings and concerns are heard, and the lines of communication and trust in the relationship remain intact. Let’s take a look at what feelings of jealousy mean in romantic relationships, and how to open up a conversation with your partner about these feelings. Is It Normal to Be Jealous in Relationships? It is very common to experience feelings of jealousy in relationships, whether or not your partner is doing anything that might justify these feelings, like flirting with someone else, or cheating in the relationship....

Experts believe that number has risen during the pandemic, in part because 22.2 million people were laid off or furloughed in March and April 2020, though there isn’t yet any official data on the pandemic’s impact on homelessness or the people experiencing it. “The pandemic really just shows the importance of housing for health and that you really can’t have a healthy society when you have half a million people or more who are homeless,” says Kelly Doran, MD, an emergency physician and assistant professor at the NYU School of Medicine....

Even people who use substances, who are constantly living with the stigma of drug use, can sometimes be more embarrassed about their bowel problems than their drug use. They might even be more reluctant to discuss these issues with the person who is most likely to be able to help them—their doctor or healthcare provider. If you have an addiction, there are specific ways that bowel issues may be affecting your chances of recovery....

To be clear, caffeine has been associated with many positive side effects. Research has connected this plant-derived stimulant to improved mood, relief from headaches, and perhaps a reduced risk of other major medical issues such as strokes, Parkinson’s, and Alzheimer’s. Large studies that tracked people over time have even found that coffee drinkers were less likely to die during follow-up. Yet, some people experience negative issues as a result of their caffeine use or have difficulty coping without caffeine....

If you’ve taken a personality test and scored high in conscientiousness, you may be wondering what this means for you. Learn more about the conscientious personality trait and how conscientiousness can affect your behaviors. Conscientiousness As a Big Five Personality Trait Many psychologists believe that even though there are thousands of different dimensions to personality, they all fall into one of five basic categories. These are known as the Big Five personality traits:...

Whether you prefer solo dancing or being involved in a more formalized and choreographed program, dancing offers obvious plusses to your physical health. You’re not only moving your body in a rhythmic way and expressing feelings. You’re burning calories and getting a workout for sure. But this creative, fun physical activity is also a boon to your brain functioning. You’re taking a break from work, family, and everyday stressors. You’re turning off the incessant worry and negative self-talk....

Slowly Build Confidence Instead of throwing yourself into situations that cause you to dread and fear, the idea behind exposures is to slowly build up your confidence and ability to cope by gradually facing more difficult situations. For example, you might start out making small talk with a cashier and work your way up to eventually hosting a party at your home. Problems With Avoidance It is possible to go through the motions of doing exposures but never really engage in the situations....

While these approaches to treatment are helpful to many people with addictions, some feel they need an approach that helps with the physical, as opposed to the mental or emotional aspects of addiction. Others find that exercise helps with managing cravings, as a backup therapy to talk therapy. Over the years, exercise has been recognized as a self-help tool among people recovering from addictions as support for recovery, but only recently has exercise been recognized as a treatment for addiction in its own right....

Morphine is a Schedule II controlled substance, which means that it has accepted medical uses and a high risk for people developing unhealthy use patterns. Brand names for morphine include Avinza, Kadian, Morphabond, MS Contin, Oramorph SR, and Roxanol-T. Most workplaces rely on SAMHSA’s 5-panel urine test which can detect the presence of morphine used within the last four days. Knowing how long the effects of morphine last, can help prevent accidental overdose or dangerous interactions with other medications or alcohol....

What Is Perfectionism? In basic terms, perfectionism is the desire to be a perfect or flawless person in various aspects of one’s internal or external life. Perfectionism involves exceedingly high standards that one sets out to achieve and a belief that being “perfect” should be strived for. It is thought to be an aspect of one’s personality. There are both positive and negative consequences of perfectionism. On the encouraging side, perfectionism can be a motivating factor in achieving your goals, practicing self-improvement, giving tasks your best, and trying harder in future endeavors....

Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, or simply SSRIs, refer to a specific class of antidepressant medications. When first introduced in the 1980s, SSRIs were used to treat depression. Now established to be effective in treating panic disorder, SSRIs include medications such as Prozac (Fluoxetine), Paxil (Paroxetine), Celexa (Citalopram), Lexapro (Escitalopram), Luvox (Fluvoxamine), and Zoloft (Sertraline). As the name implies, SSRIs affect serotonin, which is a naturally occurring chemical or neurotransmitter in the brain....

What Is Post Traumatic Stress Disorder? PTSD is a psychiatric disorder that can occur following one’s exposure to a life-threatening stressor or trauma. Common examples of such stressors include war, rape, and severe accidents. Not everyone who is exposed to trauma develops PTSD. People who are affected by PTSD often experience nightmares, flashbacks of the traumatic event, difficulty sleeping, and a general sense of numbness and hypervigilance, among other symptoms. One study on talk therapy and PTSD A December 2013 paper published in Biological Psychiatry discusses research which examined the effects of Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) on patients with PTSD....

How Chunking Works Separating disparate individual elements into larger blocks makes them easier to recall. This is mainly because of how limited our short-term memory can be. While some research suggests people are capable of storing between five and nine units of information, more recent research posits that short-term memory has a capacity for about four chunks of information. According to neuroscientist Daniel Bor, author of The Ravenous Brain, chunking represents our ability to “hack” the limits of our memory....

Low self-esteem has been linked to the onset of drug use, and research has also shown a connection between low self-esteem and behavioral addictions including internet addiction, eating problems, and compulsive buying. While alcohol, drugs, or compulsive behaviors can initially mask insecurities and even make people feel more confident, these feelings are short-lived. Over time, grappling with the effect of addiction can harm a person’s self-esteem and make recovery more difficult....