POSTS WITH TAG: emotional health

Healthy Living

Bad-Boy Club Drug Could Be the Answer to Depression

Posted by Adriana Velez
on Jan 30, 2012 at 5:52 PM

drugs istockWow, I never thought I'd see the day: Special K is about to get a makeover! Remember the drug's sleazy clubbing days in the '90s? The highly-addictive drug, called ketamine, started off as a humble animal tranquilizer but worked its ways into the hottest night spots, sending users into an ecstasy that made time stand still -- or, more accurately, into a "dissociative anesthesia" that could lead to a psychotic breakdown.

But here's the latest twist in ketamine's history: It could revolutionize the way depression is treated. I'm not talking your garden-variety blues. This is for real, serious, deep, clinical depression. How could something so toxic for club kids be so helpful for people who are ill?

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Healthy Living

Too Much Time at the Office Is Bad for Your Health

Posted by Amy Reiter
on Jan 27, 2012 at 6:23 PM

overtimeDoesn't it sometimes feel like all you EVER do is work? You get up in the morning, get in a quick dose of work (responding to important emails and checking the news in your industry while you're still drinking your first cup of coffee), get the kids off to school, head in to work, work, eat lunch at your desk while you work, work some more, come home from work (maybe catching up on some work-related reading as you commute), eat dinner, put the kids to bed, then hop on your computer and work some more before finally, bleary-eyed and confused as to who you really are and what you really care about anymore, you hit the sack for a few (too few) hours of shuteye. Then your alarm goes off, letting you know it's time for you to get up and do it all over again.

Ugh. I'm getting depressed just thinking about it. And it turns out I'm not the only one.

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Healthy Living

Tough Times Really Do Make Us Stronger

Posted by Amy Reiter
on Jan 18, 2012 at 12:32 PM

barbellNewsflash: Your mom was right! You know that expression "What doesn't kill us makes us stronger"? (I guess the maxim was actually borrowed from Nietzsche.) Turns out it wasn't just a pretty phrase. Difficult life events -- the death of a loved one, divorce, job loss, illness, assault, or a natural disaster -- actually do help people become more resilient and better able to cope with future difficulties, a new study has found.

In fact, according to researchers, overcoming adversity affects us not only psychologically -- helping us to feel more confident and boosting our coping skills -- but also physiologically, promoting cell growth in the areas of our brains we use to deal with stress and making us better able to confront future difficulties and even to more easily withstand physical pain.

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Healthy Living

Heather Locklear Could Be Suffering From a Broken Heart

Posted by Maressa Brown
on Jan 13, 2012 at 10:33 AM

heather locklearIt seems like only yesterday, Heather Locklear was being called onto the set of the (now canceled) CW Melrose Place reboot to work the same magic she did when the original series' ratings weren't up to par. But today, the actress seems to have a lot more to worry about than being the Superwoman who can save a flailing prime time soap. Yesterday, she was rushed to a hospital in L.A. after her sister dialed 9-1-1.

Thankfully, Heather's whole family seems to be on the scene and her parents have reported that she's "fine," but early reports from TMZ note that the 50-year-old may have overdosed on a "dangerous mix" of prescription drugs (likely Xanax) and alcohol. However, even if that's true, there's more to the story.

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Healthy Living

Broken Heart Syndrome Is a Very Real Danger of Losing Love

Posted by Amy Reiter
on Jan 10, 2012 at 7:00 PM

broken heartYou know all those stories you hear about one member of a long-time couple dying, and then the other one dying very shortly thereafter? Well, a new study may explain a thing or two about why. Turns out you can literally die of a broken heart. Yes, really. Broken-heart syndrome is no myth.

A study published this week in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association, found that people are at a significantly higher risk of having a heart attack after someone they love dies.

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Healthy Living

Eva Longoria Shares Her Secret to Looking So Good

Posted by Emily Abbate
on Jan 5, 2012 at 2:35 PM

Eva Longoria Health MagazineLately, every time I look at Eva Longoria, she looks so freakishly happy. Maybe it's because she's shacked up with her hunka hunky boyfriend Eduardo Cruz. Ay caramba! Nevertheless, the 36-year-old Desperate Housewife looks chipper as ever on the cover of the January/February issue of Health magazine.

Inside, she offers some of the best health insight I've ever read. No, she's advising that we should all start running 1,200 miles a week or stick to a diet completely made up of cucumbers and soybean paste. Rather, her secret to looking so good focuses on what's on the inside.

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Healthy Living

The New Year's Resolution That Will Change Your Outlook on Life

Posted by Jeanne Sager
on Jan 3, 2012 at 5:21 PM

new yearI don't know about you, but I've been thinking it would be easy enough to say that 2012 already sucks and go lie in bed for a week. It would be a bit dramatic, but hey, it's been a rough start to a new year. I woke Sunday morning to a flood beneath my kitchen sink, and this morning my dear cat died. But then something else happened.

The universe sent me a message. OK, technically it was my editor, who was sharing an inspiring post written by sometime The Stir blogger Jenny Lawson, better known as The Bloggess. But the point is, when I felt like throwing in the towel, I got just the right message to make 2012 seem survivable for all us pessimists.

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Healthy Living

25 Best Mom Confessions of 2011

Posted by Jill Smokler
on Dec 26, 2011 at 12:04 PM

It's been almost a year since I started the Confessional on Scary Mommy. I've laughed, I've gagged, I've teared up, and I've dropped my jaw. With the year drawing to a close, I thought I would share the most popular confessions -- those with the most "likes" and "OMG me too's." Can you relate to any? Got anything to get off your chest before stepping into 2012?

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Healthy Living

5 Ways the Winter Solstice Can Make You Happier & Healthier

Posted by Adriana Velez
on Dec 21, 2011 at 2:56 PM

winter solsticeHappy winter solstice, fellow Earthlings! Today is the shortest day of the year. The days have been getting so short lately, 5 p.m. was starting to feel like the middle of the night. But that all changes after today. The light is coming back: Starting tomorrow, the days will start growing longer.

Did you know that winter solstice can also be good for your health? For most of us, New Year's is a chance to take stock of our lives and set new goals. But for me, winter solstice seems more fitting. It's a chance to slow down in the middle of the holiday madness. And I like getting in sync with the seasons. Find out how celebrating winter solstice can help you get 2012 off to a fresh, hopeful start.

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Healthy Living

6 Simple Ways to Keep Holiday Stress at Bay

Posted by Amy Reiter
on Dec 16, 2011 at 7:00 PM

santa stressThe holidays can be a ridiculously stressful time: managing family, party-going, party-hosting, shopping, gift-giving, tipping, cleaning, cooking, decorating, baking … the list of to-dos, to-deal-withs and to decide-abouts goes on and on. Plus, you've got to keep your family's regular day-to-day life on track as well. It's not like the whole world just stops to give you time to prepare!

Relax. Take a deep breath. Here are a few easy ways to de-stress your life this holiday season:

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