Why being busy is a modern sickness

We have to practice doing nothing more often.

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  • Constantly being busy is neurologically taxing and emotionally draining.
  • In his new book, Jon Kabat-Zinn writes that you're doing a disservice to others by always being busy.
  • Busyness is often an excuse for the discomfort of being alone with your own thoughts.
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Cutting social media use to 30 mins per day significantly reduces depression and loneliness

Who would have thought that endlessly comparing your life to others would make you feel bad?

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  • Prior research has shown that social media usage can negatively impact our mental health, but until now, very few studies have shown this experimentally.
  • A study from the University of Pennsylvania asked study participants to limit their social media usage so their resulting mental health could be measured.
  • The results tell us how to regulate our social media usage to improve our well-being.
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Can a party drug stop the increasing rate of suicide?

Ketamine is showing promise in alleviating suicidal thoughts.

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  • The popular party drug has shown promise in stopping suicidal thoughts in a number of small clinical studies.
  • First synthesized in 1962, the anesthetic was used to treat Vietnam War soldiers in the early seventies.
  • Though the accompanying hallucinations are a roadblock to widespread therapy, innovations in psychiatry are necessary.
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How I overcame disability to become a NASA astronaut

An astronaut had to overcome hearing loss to get to fly to space.

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  • Leland Melvin was told he'd never be an astronaut after he lost all his hearing.
  • He got a chance to fly to space and honor the legacy of his friends after the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster.
  • Leland worked on building the space station in an "amazing transformation" from the lowest point in his life.
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Trauma in childhood leads to empathy in adulthood

It's not just a case of "what doesn't kill you makes you stronger".

  • A new study suggests children who endure trauma grow up to be adults with more empathy than others.
  • The effect is not universal, however. Only one kind of empathy was greatly effected.
  • The study may lead to further investigations into how people cope with trauma and lead to new ways to help victims bounce back.
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