This…this absolutely sounds like something out of a science fiction story. But I saw this story in Axios, and now I am absolutely fascinated by its potential. So, here’s the basic gist, per the article: Virtual Reality can be used to simulate social settings and help the fifteen million Americans who suffer from social anxiety. It … Continue reading Virtual Reality for Mental Health
Brace yourselves: I’m going meta I’ve been thinking of ways to expand the mental health advocacy work that I try to do on the internet of late and looking at other ways of communicating with people, including things like YouTube videos. On one hand, I truly believe in the power of the internet and its … Continue reading How can you find the most accurate information on mental health?
I think it was at the height of the George Floyd riots (not protests, riots, and I do mean those two differently) that it really hit me. Dozens of cities were burning across the nation, the fire started by the murder of George Floyd. The kids were in bed, and I could not stop looking … Continue reading Doom Scrolling: What It Is and Why It’s So Dangerous
It’s Sunday morning as I type this, the day after a bloody day in America. Unless you live under a rock, you know why. 20 dead in El Paso, Texas. 9 dead in Dayton, Ohio. The elected official in me – indeed, the human – is outraged. 29 dead YESTERDAY ALONE in mass shootings because … Continue reading How mass shootings affect (everyone else’s) mental health
This Bloomberg story came out about two weeks ago and reviewed America’s rising suicide numbers. It’s findings, as you can imagine, are damning. Some of the salient points: In 2017, 47,000 people died by suicide – and 1.4 million made attempts. From 2000-2006, the suicide rate increased by 1% annually. From 2006-2016, that increased to … Continue reading An in-depth look at America’s suicide numbers
I wrote last week about how the particularly sharp rise in suicide and mental illness among our youngest is particularly alarming, arguing it doesn’t bode well for our society if our youngest are becoming so sick so young. USA Today ran a related story last week about a similar topic, making an argument which has … Continue reading “Deaths of despair”
When it comes to mental illness, video games often get a bad rap. There is a ton of talk in the media about how video games cause violent behavior (it’s not that simple) and how video game addiction is a real thing (it is, but not as big of a problem as some may lead … Continue reading Video games can help fight depression
This Pew study. Wow. According to a new study by the Pew Research Center, a whopping 96% of teens view depression and anxiety as a major or minor problem among their peers, far outpacing literally every other societal problem, including bullying, alcohol, poverty, teen pregnancy and more. And the numbers aren’t even close. Per the … Continue reading American Teenagers: Depression is our biggest problem
Does the internet help with depression in the long term? Social media definitely doesn’t. But, that’s not to say that all social media is evil. Some of it is downright wonderful. One of the most popular social media/internet forums is Reddit. Reddit, for those of you who don’t know, is one of the longest running … Continue reading I’m just gonna try to make you smile for a second: Here are seven subreddits you should look at
You know how I’ve written about how social media and phones can cause depression? Well, it turns out, your phone can also tell if you are depressed. The study, from the University of Stanford, shows that face and speech software on your phone can detect depression based on your facial expressions and speech patterns: The … Continue reading Your smartphone can tell if you’re depressed
Mike Schlossberg - Author 