Mental Health, page 3
Anxiety, stress, burnout, therapy ideas, emotional wellbeing. 111 links, newest first. Page 3 of 3.
Links 101 to 111
A Myth About Depression (BBC)
Read · bbc.com · 5 min · Issue #58
A BBC article that deals with the myth that low serotonin levels trigger depression.
Summary
A BBC article that deals with the myth that low serotonin levels trigger depression. The newsletter notes it sparked discussion about antidepressants.
Social Media and Teen Mental Health: Haidt's Senate Testimony
Read · judiciary.senate.gov · 11 min · Issue #45
Jonathan Haidt of NYU Stern told a Senate subcommittee in May 2022 that smartphones and social media are a major cause of the rise in teen depression and anxiety.
Summary
Jonathan Haidt of NYU Stern told a Senate subcommittee in May 2022 that smartphones and social media are a major cause of the rise in teen depression and anxiety. He cites mood disorder rates up 50% to 150% from 2009 to 2019, and nearly all studies linking heavy use to poorer mental health. He recommends researcher data access and raising the internet adulthood age from 13 to 16.
Why Breathing Is So Effective at Reducing Stress
Read · hbr.org · 10 min · Issue #43
Emma Seppälä, Christina Bradley, and Michael R.
Summary
Emma Seppälä, Christina Bradley, and Michael R. Goldstein's 2020 Harvard Business Review article reviews several recent studies and finds that SKY Breath Meditation works best for both immediate and long-term stress reduction. The authors explain that breathing and meditation exercises activate the parasympathetic nervous system, which helps people calm down and think clearly under stress.
Stoics do not suffer in imagination
Short · tiktok.com · Issue #39
Seneca says to look at things as they are now, not suffer before we need to
Summary
Stoics do not borrow suffering by imagining worst cases, because we suffer more in imagination than in reality.
Citing Seneca, the speaker says a Stoic does not borrow suffering by imagining troubles before they arrive. Preparing for the worst case is fine, but suffering in advance is not. The speaker cites Seneca's line that we suffer more in imagination than in reality, which breeds anxiety, worry, and doubt, and leaves us unprepared for the present.
Key points- Seneca says to look at things as they are now, not suffer before we need to
- Premeditating the worst is prudent, but dwelling on it brings anxiety and doubt
- Projecting terrible futures makes us miserable and unable to do what we should
You Feel Like Shit? A Self-Care Question Game
Tool · youfeellikeshit.com · Issue #38
You Feel Like Shit is a self-care game that walks you through a sequence of simple questions, starting with whether you have eaten in the last four hours.
Summary
You Feel Like Shit is a self-care game that walks you through a sequence of simple questions, starting with whether you have eaten in the last four hours. Each step is meant to need little judgment, and the page suggests setting aside about an hour and not skipping steps. It is aimed at people who struggle with self-care, executive dysfunction, or reading internal signals.
Comparison and phones can fuel unhappiness
Short · tiktok.com · Issue #34
The speaker says spending seven hours a day on social media fuels comparison
Summary
Unhappiness often comes from comparing yourself online, poor food, violent games and dopamine-driven phone habits, the speaker says.
The speaker lists possible reasons for unhappiness: hours of social media that encourage comparison, processed food, music and games full of stress, and a culture where connection rests on shared stress. Heavy dependence on the phone for quick dopamine, the speaker says, can make stillness feel too boring.
Key points- The speaker says spending seven hours a day on social media fuels comparison
- Processed food, looping music and violent games keep you in survival mode
- Dependence on instant gratification makes sitting still with no phone feel boring
Time moves toward you, not past you
Short · tiktok.com · Issue #30
Seeing yourself moving through time creates stress, anxiety and pressure
Summary
Time moves through you rather than you moving through time, so seeing your goal coming toward you reduces stress.
The speaker argues that seeing yourself as moving through time toward a future creates stress and anxiety. Instead, you stay fixed in the present while time, and the future, moves toward you. This view removes the sense that you must act to reach a future moment, letting you focus on what you can do now to shape what comes.
Key points- Seeing yourself moving through time creates stress, anxiety and pressure
- Picture your goal moving toward you, so you only need to focus on this moment
- The speaker says this view reduces stress and makes goals more achievable
Overworked HSBC Contractor's Heart Attack and What He Learned
Read · entrepreneur.com · Issue #8
Jonny Frostick, a contractor managing over 20 staff on HSBC regulatory data projects, had a heart attack one Sunday while preparing for the week at his desk.
Summary
Jonny Frostick, a contractor managing over 20 staff on HSBC regulatory data projects, had a heart attack one Sunday while preparing for the week at his desk. His LinkedIn post drew over 203,000 likes and listed changes he planned, such as fewer all-day Zoom calls and more time with family. He told Bloomberg he did not blame HSBC and hoped to start a conversation about post-pandemic work culture.
Regret is a poison
Short · tiktok.com · Issue #4
A short TikTok with the message that regret is poison.
Summary
A short TikTok with the message that regret is poison.
All It Takes Is 10 Mindful Minutes
Read · ted.com · Issue #4
Andy Puddicombe, a mindfulness expert, argues in this 2012 TEDSalon London talk that ten minutes a day of simply being present can refresh the mind.
Summary
Andy Puddicombe, a mindfulness expert, argues in this 2012 TEDSalon London talk that ten minutes a day of simply being present can refresh the mind. He says the practice needs no incense or uncomfortable sitting positions. The talk runs about nine minutes.
Things happen for you, not to you
Short · tiktok.com · Issue #3
Repeat each morning that you are the main character of your own movie
Summary
Things are not happening to you, they are happening for you, so treat each day as the next part of your own story.
A short motivational text tells the listener that they are the main character of their own movie. It says setbacks are part of the plot, that tomorrow is a new day, and that things happen for you rather than to you.
Key points- Repeat each morning that you are the main character of your own movie
- Setbacks will come, but tomorrow is a new day to make it a good one
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