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Motivation

You’re Not Being Lazy, You’re Being Smart

Susan Krauss Whitbourne PhD, ABPP on July 18, 2026 in Fulfillment at Any Age

The idea that you need to tackle every challenge you face underlies much of today’s culture. New research shows when giving up is the smartest decision.

The idea that you need to tackle every challenge you face underlies much of today’s culture. New research shows when giving up is the smartest decision.

Jealousy

When Jealousy Protects Love

Aaron Ben-Zeév Ph.D. on July 18, 2026 in In the Name of Love

Jealousy is often seen as love's enemy, but in moderation, it can reinforce the unique value you hold in your partner’s life.

Jealousy is often seen as love's enemy, but in moderation, it can reinforce the unique value you hold in your partner’s life.

Personal Perspectives

Baby Boomers’ Keen Interest in Genealogy

Graham J. McDougall Jr. Ph.D. RN, FAAN on July 18, 2026 in Breaking All Barriers

Personal Perspective: The complexities of ancestry force us to reconsider what it really means to leave a legacy.

Personal Perspective: The complexities of ancestry force us to reconsider what it really means to leave a legacy.

Mating

Why "Almost Unavailable" Can Feel Most Attractive

Elizabeth Li Ph.D. on July 18, 2026 in What Hurts, What Helps

Some of the most intense attractions happen with people who stay just out of reach. Here's why "almost possible" pulls at us harder than certainty.

Some of the most intense attractions happen with people who stay just out of reach. Here's why "almost possible" pulls at us harder than certainty.

Parenting

When Your Teen Resists Therapy, Try Curiosity

Alicia Smart, Psy.D. on July 17, 2026 in Thriving with DBT

Getting a resistant teen into therapy rarely works through better arguments. Two ideas borrowed from Dialectical Behavior Therapy offer a more effective way in.

Getting a resistant teen into therapy rarely works through better arguments. Two ideas borrowed from Dialectical Behavior Therapy offer a more effective way in.

Bias

When We Mistake Systemic Injury for Character

Joyce Vromen Ph.D. on July 17, 2026 in Divergent Minds

What if the primary problem isn't the person but the system? This post highlights how structural disadvantage becomes a reputation and why we so often get the story wrong.

What if the primary problem isn't the person but the system? This post highlights how structural disadvantage becomes a reputation and why we so often get the story wrong.

Behavioral Economics

How an Uncertain Economy Affects Gen Z’s Budgeting

Michele Leno Ph.D. on July 17, 2026 in Mind Matters

Gen Z isn't abandoning budgeting; it's adapting it to an uncertain economy. Here's what that says about financial decision-making today.

Gen Z isn't abandoning budgeting; it's adapting it to an uncertain economy. Here's what that says about financial decision-making today.

Dementia

A Better Version of Residential Dementia Care

Gary R Simonds MD MS FAANS on July 17, 2026 in Rich Encounters

Personal Perspective: The Hogeweyk focuses on what is maintained rather than what is lost in end-stage dementia care, and everyone benefits.

Personal Perspective: The Hogeweyk focuses on what is maintained rather than what is lost in end-stage dementia care, and everyone benefits.

Diet

Curly Fries With Cheese Can Be Healthier Than You Think

Gina Barreca Ph.D. on July 17, 2026 in Snow White Doesn't Live Here Anymore

If “You are what you eat” is true, we can remember that few people identify as rhubarb, kohlrabi, or yam. A nickname such as "Cookie" can be charming, whereas "Yeast" rarely is.

If “You are what you eat” is true, we can remember that few people identify as rhubarb, kohlrabi, or yam. A nickname such as "Cookie" can be charming, whereas "Yeast" rarely is.

Marriage

Non-Monogamy Creates Personal Growth

Martha Kauppi, LMFT, CST-S on July 17, 2026 in Relational Intimacy

Non-monogamy upends a lot of our assumptions about relationships. That can be a good thing.

Non-monogamy upends a lot of our assumptions about relationships. That can be a good thing.

Decision-Making

There Are Only Two Types of Problems

Robert Taibbi L.C.S.W. on July 17, 2026 in Fixing Families

We can think of problems as being one of two types: a question of learning skills or an emotional overreaction. Knowing which is which can give you a head start on solving them.

We can think of problems as being one of two types: a question of learning skills or an emotional overreaction. Knowing which is which can give you a head start on solving them.

Traumatic Brain Injury

Anxiety After Brain Injury

Shireen Jeejeebhoy on July 17, 2026 in Concussion Is Brain Injury

Anxiety after brain injury emerges from impaired brain states, from direct neurophysiological damage to the social consequences of brain injury.

Anxiety after brain injury emerges from impaired brain states, from direct neurophysiological damage to the social consequences of brain injury.

Education

Should Teens Share Their Neurodivergence in College Essays?

Kelly Chen MD on July 17, 2026 in Strategy in Stride

Insight from a former college admissions consultant about the pros and cons of disclosing neurodivergence in a college application essay.

Insight from a former college admissions consultant about the pros and cons of disclosing neurodivergence in a college application essay.

Career

When Your Superpower Stops Being Special

Ashley C. Jordan Ph.D. on July 17, 2026 in Leading With Connection

The skills that made you successful m ay not keep you there. Learn why adaptability is one of the most valuable career assets you can develop.

The skills that made you successful m ay not keep you there. Learn why adaptability is one of the most valuable career assets you can develop.

Resilience

Sometimes Self-Care Is a Milkshake

Lindsey Godwin Ph.D. on July 17, 2026 in Possibilitizing

Personal Perspective: What if the choice that looks least like self-care is the one you need most? Moving beyond self-care performance may mean responding honestly to your needs.

Personal Perspective: What if the choice that looks least like self-care is the one you need most? Moving beyond self-care performance may mean responding honestly to your needs.

ADHD

Can ADHD Medication Make Autism Traits More Noticeable?

Marcela Gottschald on July 17, 2026 in Dose and Meaning

ADHD symptoms can sometimes overshadow autism traits, making them harder to recognize. Treatment may change that balance.

ADHD symptoms can sometimes overshadow autism traits, making them harder to recognize. Treatment may change that balance.

Artificial Intelligence

AI Is Not a Calculator. Stop Saying It Is.

Timothy Cook M.Ed. on July 17, 2026 in The Algorithmic Mind

The most common analogy that AI is like a calculator is wrong. It borrows the resolution of prior panics to avoid the question AI technology actually raises.

The most common analogy that AI is like a calculator is wrong. It borrows the resolution of prior panics to avoid the question AI technology actually raises.

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

When the War Comes Home

Ezenwa E. Olumba Ph.D. on July 17, 2026 in Homeless Mind

Some veterans return home physically but remain psychologically anchored to war. Cognitive immobility explains how combat can shape life long after the battlefield is left behind.

Some veterans return home physically but remain psychologically anchored to war. Cognitive immobility explains how combat can shape life long after the battlefield is left behind.

Play

Why Adults Need to Play

Heather Lench Ph.D. on July 17, 2026 in The Emotional Toolkit

We often think of play as an activity for children. But research shows it's important for adults and has cognitive, physical, and social benefits.

We often think of play as an activity for children. But research shows it's important for adults and has cognitive, physical, and social benefits.

Philosophy

The Philosophy of Agathism

Robert E Puff Ph.D. on July 17, 2026 in Meditation for Modern Life

Stop ignoring your emotional pain. Discover the philosophy of Agathism and learn how the universe uses your deepest struggles to build resilience.

Stop ignoring your emotional pain. Discover the philosophy of Agathism and learn how the universe uses your deepest struggles to build resilience.

Artificial Intelligence

What AI Companions Do to Our Deepest Psychological Needs

Sefik Tagay Ph.D. on July 17, 2026 in Restoring the Equilibrium

AI companions may ease loneliness, but a six-needs framework shows when synthetic comfort supports human connection—and when it starts to replace it.

AI companions may ease loneliness, but a six-needs framework shows when synthetic comfort supports human connection—and when it starts to replace it.

Personal Perspectives

How Ketamine Affected My Attention and Processing

Amanda Sacks-Zimmerman Ph.D. on July 17, 2026 in The Science of Cognitive Health

Personal Perspective: The most profound effect of ketamine was not what it added; it was what it took away.

Personal Perspective: The most profound effect of ketamine was not what it added; it was what it took away.

Trauma

Immigration Detention as Racialized Violence

Mindbridge Center on July 17, 2026 in Human Rights Defenders

With the ICE killings of Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero and Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, the toll extends beyond fatal incidents.

With the ICE killings of Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero and Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, the toll extends beyond fatal incidents.

Anxiety

When Waiting Becomes Part of Illness

Liza Morton Ph.D. on July 17, 2026 in Psychologically Informed Medicine

When healthcare answers are delayed, the psychological impact can be profound. Why prolonged waiting can feel threatening, and how compassionate communication can help patients.

When healthcare answers are delayed, the psychological impact can be profound. Why prolonged waiting can feel threatening, and how compassionate communication can help patients.

Grief

When Grief Changes How We See the World

Sigifredo Castell Britton Ph.D. on July 17, 2026 in Emotional Origins of Violence

Listening to a young man describe the loss of his mother changed the way I understood my own grief.

Listening to a young man describe the loss of his mother changed the way I understood my own grief.

Psychology

Is Psychology Ignoring One of the Biggest Human Mysteries?

Jennice Vilhauer Ph.D. on July 17, 2026 in Living Forward

Whether UAP reports reflect an external reality or a psychological perception, the field of psychology has a scientific and ethical responsibility to investigate.

Whether UAP reports reflect an external reality or a psychological perception, the field of psychology has a scientific and ethical responsibility to investigate.

Sport and Competition

Why Fearing Failure Makes It More Likely

Eli Gottlieb Ph.D. on July 17, 2026 in The Evolving Self

England’s World Cup collapse shows how fear of failure can turn caution into retreat, revive old tactics when new ones are required, and hand control to the other side.

England’s World Cup collapse shows how fear of failure can turn caution into retreat, revive old tactics when new ones are required, and hand control to the other side.

OCD

OCD Symptoms Could Be Solutions to a Problem

Ira Israel LMFT on July 17, 2026 in Authenticity 101

The event and trauma no longer exist but the younger mind’s “solutions” are still in place.

The event and trauma no longer exist but the younger mind’s “solutions” are still in place.

Bipolar Disorder

Dangerous Enough to Help

Patrick William Kelly Ph.D. on July 17, 2026 in Minds at War

Personal Perspective: For a decade, a fractured system saw my drinking, my misdiagnoses, my crises in isolation, never the whole. It could not hold my suffering.

Personal Perspective: For a decade, a fractured system saw my drinking, my misdiagnoses, my crises in isolation, never the whole. It could not hold my suffering.