#nothing is helping the cognitive symptoms though

[an--artistic--autistic]

I think these two recent hospital trips really helped with the "imposter syndrome" I was experiencing regarding my health. Like, part of me really wanted to brush it all off and wait for it to go away on its own like I've done before, but seeing how seriously and quickly both the ER and the Urgent Care took my conditions put a lot of things into perspective.

I'm very glad that we've been able to rule out a number of other concerns (heart and lung problems, kidney stones, etc) with these trips, and it'll make this round of testing much faster. I think I should have gone a lot sooner.

The day after urgent care, I was in the least amount of pain and the most well rested than I've been in in months. I got so many things done and still had energy at the end of the day. If I felt like that every day, or even just a couple days a week, I'd be unstoppable. I could do so much, I'd be on top of all my classes, I could work extra hours, I could do advocacy works, I could cook and keep our house clean. I want to do so much but being disabled is actively preventing me from doing that despite my best efforts.

This week has really proved to me that I'm not being dramatic or using it as an excuse, and if I could be doing more, I would be.

[max1461]

I'm really scared. Somebody please help me. I don't know what's going on, I don't know if it's in my brain, my head/neck, or somwhere else in my body.

Recap so people can help me:

Go to dentist nov 12 for fillings (upper teeth), after one particular anesthetic shot (front teeth) start to feel extremely weird

start to have crazy cognitive and physical symptoms which are too many to list. Some include:

facial pain, mostly from the cheeks up, throbbing pain in eyes, nose, and roof of mouth

inability to recognize other people's faces from cheeks up (only chin looks familiar)

eyes no longer in sync, left eye seems to move more slowly and not track things right

extremely vivid almost-hallucinations. I can tell they aren't real and that they're in my head, but they're right on the verge

almost-hallucinations are visual, auditory, smell and emotion. it's sort of like a mix with flashes of a bunch of different memories and thoughts at once, it's not coherent. many different smells, images, etc. flashing through my perception too fast to keep track of. kind of like a soup of different stuff. very scary and distracting

feels like every time I have a thought or memory, it comes up correctly in my mind at first, then it mixes into the soup and I can't get it back. it just becomes part of the soup

the imagery and so on often feels like it is "coming in from the sides", like coming in from both sides of my body/FOV/etc. it's happening all the time but when it gets really intense and starts to get "closer to the middle" I start burping continuously and uncontrollably. almost feels like I'm swallowing air and burping it back up again, but it's totally outside my control. sometimes I'm burping back to back for hours

when it gets REALLY bad it makes me throw up. sometimes just into my mouth and sometimes full on projectile vomit. would say this happens about every two or three days and the frequency has been increasing.

inability to do the following correctly: sneeze, swallow, vomit, orgasm. all feel like the same weird issue. like they start but don't really finish. so e.g. when I vomit it's like the top part of my throat is not involved? it feels very weird but like the muscles are only actuating part of the way up, and it's a very odd sensation. same when I swallow, like only part of the swallowing motion happens and the food is hard to get down because of this.

my factual recall and grasp of factual information seems to be 100% fine, no delusional beliefs etc. Even though I can't visually recall my memories (because the soup of imagery gets in the way) I can easily factually recall what happened. But I can't visualize anything correctly, I just get these crazy visuals instead

feel like I am not sleeping properly. feel like when I "go to sleep" it's just more of the visuals ALL NIGHT and I don't get any rest. basically feel like I am in a half-asleep half-awake state all the time.

I've gotten an MRI, nothing abnormal. Got an EEG, it was slightly abnormal with temporal lobe "sharp waves" but no seizures. Went on seizure meds for 4 months and it had no effect on symptoms. Got another EEG when my symptoms were really acting up and EEG was normal, at that point doctor decided to take me off seizure meds since the didn't seem to be doing anything and symptoms didn't seem correlated with EEG. Seeing another neuro next week. Intuitively it feels like something is wrong in my face, throbbing pain is CONSTANT and has been resistant to all pain meds, and that maybe if it went away I could think straight. not sure though.

Feels like there is a "hole", it's hard to explain but it feels like there's this gaping hole in my mind's eye, that's blocking my from thinking correctly and causing all this shit. And I feel it on my body to, idk where but I can feel this "hole" too. Maybe some kind of fucked up nerve in my face or something? If anyone has any thoughts or could help me with any of this please let me know.

[narrators-journal]

hi!! I'm not so used to requesting so I hope I'm doing this right lol, but can I request for a modern au!senku x reader fic where the reader is very open about her crush towards senku but he acts indifferent to it (hes not), until he needs her to do a risky experiment and promises to give her a prize he knows she wants, and rewards her with a kiss that gets a little bit more intense than intended

If you do end up doing this js wanna say thank you sm in advance 😸

This took me so long to write lmao. I flip-flopped on how to go about this. Mostly the experiment Reader would help with and how far the kiss would go. I ended up not going too far, but I hope it’s still a fun read! I like how it came out at least hehe. I’ve been liking my writing recently, very happy about that. “You’re sure this is safe, right?” You asked, though you didn’t sound at all uncomfortable as you watched him stir together mystery liquids in a 500 ml beaker. After all, you didn’t hide how eager you were to just be by the leek-haired scientist, so you weren’t scared to chug whatever that concoction was for some attention. “About 40% sure, yeah.” Senku said with a casualty that almost made you giggle when contrasted against the fluffy pink headband with bear ears that he’d more than likely gotten from Yuzuriha’s makeup vanity to hold back the chunks of his hair that didn’t defy gravity. But, he held the beaker out to you at that point, and the time for giggles had passed. “And...I’ll be repaid for this, right?” You asked as you took the glass from him, those gorgeous ruby eyes as cold and uninterested as ever. Only locked onto you for the sake of watching you sip the windex colored drink with nothing but curiosity in them.

It was a very simple exchange, or, that was what Senku had assured you, at least. You drink a creation of his, report back to him every hour about any symptoms or ill feelings, and if you lasted the day, he’d reward you. Simple. A smarter person would have asked a few questions at least. A voice in your head pointed out once you’d sat down in one of the creaky woven chairs that Kaseki had taught the leek how to make. “What did it taste like?” Senku asked, his eyes still on you as you got comfortable. “Like orange-flavored cream soda.” You hummed with a smile that dripped with charm. Even as that voice continued in your head, Actually, scratch that. A smarter person probably wouldn’t have kept this crush for so long in the first place. Let alone agree to this just for some attention.

Yet, there you were. Sat off to the side of the formaldehyde-and-alcohol-scented lab. Dutiful in the way that you reported every twitch in your eyes or ache in your back every hour. And, outside of the occasional question to check your cognitive abilities, you might as well have been a catch-all side table. Though, that wasn’t a bad thing to be, because you were a side table who got to watch the way Senku seemed to glare at his work when he was focused, or the small twitches of his mouth when he made progress on one of his many varied projects. It was adorable.

Eventually, though, the scientist returned his attention to you. “You still feeling okay?” He asked, and when you nodded he got a soft smile as he stood up to come over to your wicker chair with a pen light in hand and a stethoscope. “Any heart issues? Burning? Heat in general?” He asked while he shone the light into your eyes to watch how your eyes reacted, then moved onto your heart when you shook your head with a simple ‘no.’ And, after a moment, he seemed satisfied with what he found.

With that, he straightened and let his hands rest on his hips as those gorgeous eyes studied you a moment further before he spoke again. “I suppose you’d like your payment, then?” That smile that had haunted him now clearly on his face as you raised an eyebrow and swallowed the anxiety that bubbled into your throat. “I mean...yeah? But why do I feel like I’m going to be scammed?” Yet, the scientist only rolled his eyes at that question and leaned down to rest his weight on the arms of the chair you sat in. His face close enough for you to wish the chair’s back had given out. That way, you could’ve put more distance between you and him before your cheeks began to burn. “Just close your eyes. Or else I’ll change my mind.” Well that’s ominous as fuck. You thought, but you bit the comment back and simply did as you were told before he kept true to his word.

On the bright side, at least, you weren’t left to wait more than a few heartbeats before Senku’s lips were on yours. Jarringly harsh, it was clear he hadn’t kissed people before. It was sloppy, and it took a moment for him to ease up, but once you registered what he had done, you eagerly kissed back. And, before you knew it, your arms were around his shoulders and the kiss had been deepened to a full on make-out.

Though, it only lasted a moment before Senku pulled away and straightened back up. His pale face almost as red as the eyes that refused to meet yours as he wiped his mouth and shoved out, “There. Now be gone. You’ve taken up enough of my time.” “You’re the one who asked me to be here, that’s not my fault.” You countered, but he just tugged you out of the chair and herded you out of the lab and into the early darkness of night. Your only company the flutter that lingered in your chest and the heat on your cheeks. Which, brought a smile to your face as you just about skipped home.

[covid-safer-hotties]

Also preserved on our archive (Check in for daily updates!)

By Blake Murdoch

Since the COVID pandemic began, claims that the disease poses only minimal risk to children have spread widely, on the presumption that the lower rate of severe acute illness in kids tells the whole story. Notions that children are nearly immune to COVID and don’t need to be vaccinated have pervaded.

These ideas are wrong. People making such claims ignore the accumulating risk of long COVID, the constellation of long-term health effects caused by infection, in children who may get infected once or twice a year. The condition may already have affected nearly six million kids in the U.S. Children need us to wake up to this serious threat. If we do, we can help our kids with a few straightforward and effective measures.

The spread of the mistaken idea that children have nothing to worry about has had some help from scientists. In 2023 the American Medical Association’s pediatrics journal published a study–which has since been retracted—reporting the rate of long COVID symptoms in kids was “strikingly low” at only 0.4 percent. The results were widely publicized as feel-good news, and helped rationalize the status quo, where kids are repeatedly exposed to SARS-COV-2 in underventilated schools and parents believe they will suffer no serious harm.

In January 2024, however, two scientists published a letter with me explaining why that study was invalid. Some of the errors made it hard to understand how the study survived peer review. For example, the authors claimed to report on long COVID using the 2021 World Health Organization definition, but didn’t properly account for the possibility of new onset and fluctuating or relapsing symptoms, even though that definition and the subsequently released 2023 pediatric one emphasize those attributes. Any child with four symptom-free weeks—even nonconsecutive ones—following confirmed infection was categorized by the study authors as not having long COVID.

In August, the authors of the study retracted it. They did not admit to the errors we raised. But they did admit to new errors, and said these mistakes meant they understated the rate of affected children.

And that rate, according to other research, is quite high. The American Medical Association’s top journal, JAMA, in August published a key new study and editorial about pediatric long COVID. The editorial cites several robust analyses and concludes that, while uncertainty remains, long COVID symptoms appear to occur after about 10 percent to 20 percent of pediatric infections.

If you’re keeping score, that’s as many as 5.8 million affected children in the U.S.—so far. And we know studies and surveys of adults have found that repeat infections heighten the risk of long-term consequences.

The JAMA study comparing infected and uninfected children found that trouble with memory or focusing is the most common long COVID symptom in kids aged six to 11. Back, neck, stomach and head pain were the next most common symptoms. Other behavioral impacts included “fear about specific things” and refusal to go to school.

Adolescents aged 12 to 17 reported different leading symptoms. Change or loss in smell or taste was most common, followed by body pains, daytime tiredness, low energy, tiredness after walking and cognitive deficits. The study noted that symptoms “affected almost every organ system.” In other words, these symptoms reflect real physiological trauma. For example, SARS-COV-2 can cause or mediate cardiovascular, neurological and immunological harm, even increasing the relative risk of new onset pediatric diabetes when compared with other lesser infections.

Children in schools today are often described as struggling with emotional regulation, attention deficits and developmental problems. Adolescents have some of the worst standardized test scores in decades. Pandemic measures such as school closures—most of which were short-lived and occurred several years ago—have been blamed almost entirely for children’s present-day behavioral and learning problems.

While it is clear these early pandemic disruptions negatively impacted many children, the unproven notion that “the cure was worse than the disease” has become dogma and sometimes involves reimagining history. For example, the Canadian Pediatric Society’s most recent COVID vaccination guidance fails to even acknowledge the existence of pediatric long COVID, while stating without evidence in its preamble that children were more affected by pandemic disruptions in activities than direct viral effects. It’s hard to imagine how this wording could encourage pediatricians and parents to vaccinate children against a disabling virus.

Consider also a small but widely publicized Bezos Family Foundation–funded study which unscientifically claimed accelerated cortical thinning, a type of brain restructuring that occurs over time, is caused by “lockdowns.” The study design could not demonstrate cause and effect, however, but only correlation. Pediatric brain experts have critiqued the research, pointing out that “no supporting evidence” was provided for the claim cortical thinning is from social isolation, and that it isn’t necessarily pathological. “Lockdowns” were neither defined nor controlled for in the study, which relied on 54 pandemic-era brains scans from different children than the prepandemic scans they were compared to—meaning there was no measurement of brain changes in specific individuals. The pandemic-era scans came from months when relevant CDC seroprevalence data estimate that the number of children with one or more infections rose from about one in five to around three in five. We might reasonably predict that many of the studied brain scans were therefore from children who recently had COVID.

It is understandably disturbing to entertain the idea that we might currently be recklessly allowing millions of children to be harmed by preventable disease. That may be part of why problematic studies such as these have gotten headlines. It is more disturbing, however, that almost no public attention has been given to infection itself as a potential cause of children’s behavioural and learning problems.

This makes no sense. We know that COVID harms the brain. Neuroinflammation, brain shrinkage, disruption of the blood-brain barrier and more have been documented in adults, as have cognitive deficits. These deficits have been measured as equivalent to persistent decreased IQ scores, even for mild and resolved infections. Millions of people have, or have experienced, “brain fog.” What, then, do we guess a child’s COVID-induced “trouble with focusing or memory” might be?

When you put together the estimate that 10 to 20 percent of infected kids may experience long-term symptoms, that many of the most common symptoms affect cognition, energy levels and behavior, and that children are being periodically reinfected, you have a scientific rationale to partly explain children’s widely reported behavioural and learning challenges.

We can do something to protect our kids. We can vaccinate them every season, which somewhat reduces the risk of long COVID. We can keep sick children home by passing laws that create paid sick leave and end attendance-based school funding. We can normalize rather than vilify the use of respirator masks that help prevent the spread of airborne diseases.

Finally, we can implement fantastic new engineered indoor air quality standards designed to greatly reduce the spread of germs. Clean indoor air should be expected as a right, like clean water. The cost of providing cleaner indoor air is low relative to the economic benefits, which even when conservatively modeled are in the tens of billions annually in the U.S. and more than ten times the costs. These costs are also small compared to the price children and their families would pay in suffering as a result of preventable long-term impairment.

By regulating, publicly reporting and periodically inspecting building air quality, similarly to how we oversee food safety in commercial kitchens, we can greatly reduce the spread of disease and reap huge benefits for everyone—especially children.

[afusionoffandoms]

The symbol most associated with fibromyalgia is the butterfly, as well as the purple ribbon, since a butterfly despite being almost weightless can cause pain if it landed on a person with fibromyalgia.

Fibromyalgia (fibro) is a chronic and highly stigmatised condition that presents as pain throughout the body - often inconsistent both in strength and location as well as resistant to pain medication - along with a slew of other symptoms - mainly intense fatigue and cognitive dysfunction, in addition to headaches, abdominal pains and cramps, depression, insomnia and general hypersensitivity both to touch as well as the other senses.

These pains can be a draining inconvenience, or so crippling it robs the person of the ability to walk or function.

Due to lack of research, it's believed that anywhere between 2-6% of the population suffers from it.

Many people suffering from fibro will say they often wake up more tired and in more pain than they were in when they went to bed. Experts often describe it as the brain losing its ability filter out pains the human body constantly experiences throughout the day.

One thing known for certain is that it's triggered by stress. It can be something as simple as a bad divorce, or a surgery, or a bout of illness, to trauma (either microtrauma over time or one definitive event). Fibro patients will say it's as if their brain finally had enough and started striking. Unfortunately there's no going back once that happens, as there is no cure, and fibro is likely to progress and worsen over time.

It's an illness that can't be proven through samples or x-rays, but rather it's diagnosed when no other cause can be found, and all other treatments have proven unhelpful.

We have records dating all the way to ancient Greece about people whose symptoms today are assumed by experts to be caused by fibro, though it wasn't until the 1900s that the illness got its own name and field of study. That's about all it's gotten, however.

Unfortunately most people with the diagnosis are AFAB, which means the illness is subject to sexism and is often ignored in the medical field, resulting in little research and funding, little knowledge, and a lot of challenges for people suffering from it. Recent numbers suggest that the gender disproportion is far smaller than presumed, however, likely due to other factors such as social stigma keeping men from seeking help.

Interestingly there looks to be a large overlap between fibro symptoms and long covid, which has in recent years caught the interest of researchers, so it's likely that the world will understand the illness more in the future, which will hopefully help people with fibro sometime down the line.

If nothing else, it might finally be recognised as the life changing illness it is, for currently there are still doctors who claim it's not real, and refuse to diagnose and treat it, instead claiming people with fibro are just lazy and overly sensitive.

It's because of these things that global awareness days are so important.

Increasing awareness about this barely understood and largely unknown disease, makes life easier for those who suffer from fibromyalgia both directly through general knowledge and understanding from people around them, to a larger scale where funding and research is vital to perhaps one day find a medication or cure. Or at least find an indisputable way to diagnose it.

Please consider sharing this in order to help with just that. 💜 May your day be as painless as possible.

[glitter-stained]

Hey Glitter, what does neuropsychology mean?

(Because I realise the name doesn't clarify stuff at all)

So, in my JT psychology meta, I don't exclusively write neuropsychology meta. For example, the TBI meta is a neuropsychology meta, but the catatonia meta is a purely atheoric psychopathology meta (we'll get back to what that means).

Academically, I study clinical psychology and psychopathology with a speciality in developmental psychopathology and child neuropsychology. That means I get classes on stuff like general clinical stuff (ie how to conduct a clinical interview, suicide prevention etc), some stuff about adult psychology, general psychopatholgy classes) and on top of that more classes about child psychology.

> clinical psychology: The psychology of care, what we do in therapy. Now the whole JT meta is organised under a clinical logic: first figure out what the issues/cause of suffering/diagnosis/etc. is, also identify the resources, and then based on that knowledge and where the patient is at, establish routes for therapeutical intervention: all of this is clinical psychology. As a field, I would oppose it to fields like social or IO psychology, which are focused on understanding how society or organizations work. Social psychologists are not therapists, however, it's not a disconnected field either; we owe them concepts that help in our understanding of psychopatholgy and clinical psychology at large, like learned helplessness (a concept we'll talk about in the UTH VS Rebirth Red Hood meta). The concepts I refer to in the victim-blaming meta come from social psychology.

> psychopathology: Pathology = study of illnesses; psycho= mind: the study of mental illness. With pathology, you can do two things: simply describe it without trying to explain/understand it according to a theory (what I called atheoric psychopathology) or use the framework from your theoretical field (or invent one, if you're a revolutionary) to understand it. Atheoric psychopathology is what the DSM-5 does (though sometimes imperfectly). That's what the S in DSM comes from: Diagnostic Statistic Manual of Mental Disorders, because we're basically doing statistics to see which group of symptoms are usually grouped together, and we use that to describe those disorders and make up diagnostic categories. It's an essential tool that allows clinicians to understand what everyone is talking about and communicate about patients without attempting murder on their colleagues, but it's also limiting because you take the risk of grouping two things that manifest the same way but don't work the same way, so that's why it's essential to understand how the disorders work.

> developmental psychopathology: So this is kind of the popular model in psychopathology rn, especially child psychopatholgy. Basically instead of studying disorders as classifications we study the development of psychopathology in terms of trajectories, and study the factors that may impact those trajectories. It's maybe a little complicated to explain simply here, but it's, for example, why children with very severe, super early criminal neglect might end up displaying symptoms akin to autism. I'll try to include it across my meta where I can, because I believe it's the most adequate perspective.

> neuropsychology: And this one is a lie. Well, not technically a lie so much as an abuse of the word? The thing is, neuropsychology is a real thing, but also when we talk about neuropsychology we conflagrate actual neuropsychology with cognitive psychology (at least in the country I'm studying in. Maybe in English speaking countries it might be different.) Let me explain.

-cognitive psychology is the psychology of cognitive functions. The study of intelligence, memory, attention, inhibition, flexibility, working memory, etc, etc. It has nothing to do with the study of the brain, and what we're doing is basically, through scientific experiments and the study of people with specific disorders, make models according to our theories of how those things work and develop, and of course study how the develop over time and what impacts them. And then, we use this knowledge to analyse how disorders work in terms of cognitive functions, conduct evaluations that help not only with the diagnosis but with designing strategies that help with the disorder and its manifestations in the person specifically. That therapist conducting your IQ test, autism evaluation, adhd tests, etc.? Cognitive psychology. That therapist helping you design a planner and come up with time management that actually work for you, designing flexibility exercises that cater to your special interest to keep you invested? Cognitive psychology. Nothing neuro about it. But for some godforsaken reason, we call the people who do it neuropsychologists (at least in my country) so, in practice, neuropsychology.

-actual neuropsychology, however, is also a thing! Now technically, neuropsychology is just the study of the association between psychological concepts and neurology. However, in practice, I've only ever seen and heard of cognitive neuropsychology, which is focused on the association between neurology and cognitive psychology (and that makes a lot of sense, I struggle to even envision what kind of scientifically valid neuropsychology would be based on any other kind of psychology).

In practice, the guy who makes your cognitive evaluation before and after a brain surgery to make sure you don't lose any major cognitive function during the surgery is a neuropsychologist (and that's important as fuck, ask the HM patient). The TBI meta, and evaluating the damage caused by a TBI in general, or by an epilepsy/encephalopathy or hypoxia (lack of oxygen in the brain) or an aneurysm or a stroke or a brain bleed etc, etc is neuropsychology. In terms of research, neuropsychology is super useful, but also be careful! A lot of research in neuropsychology (neurosciences in general) is badly interpreted and relayed in media, politics etc. and give way to a whole new branch of pseudoscientific bs, because neurosciences are 1) a very young branch of science and 2) a real bitch to explain simply. (I said it before, but what I explain of neuropsychology is a grossly simplified version that's good enough to explain how TBIs work, but would be insufficient to explain how recovery works.)

In any case, I hope that clarified what all those branches of psychology refer to, be mindful of pseudo-science, and don't hesitate to ask if you have questions!

Masterpost

[sky-squido]

HI I'M DOING INCREDIBLY JANKY PSYCH RESEARCH ON TUMBLR WHAT COULD POSSIBLY GO WRONG

basically i'm doing a paper and trying to really dissect and understand the experience of having and coping with depression. while i've thought about this, i've sort of been extrapolating off my own experiences, but i just realized i have no idea if anyone other than me has had this experience:

do you ever feel depressed emotionally and physically, but not cognitively and like, morale-wise? like you have no energy, and are really sad, and nothing seems interesting or can hold your attention, and you're just kind of a lump who wants to curl up in a ball under a desk somewhere and melt into the floor.

but at the same time, you're not like,,, deeply existential or mentally spiraling or having self-hating thoughts about it. like your internal monologue isn't depressed, too. somewhere in the back of your mind, you're sitting there like "hey, man, i know it's rough right now. just hang in there, okay?" maybe your brain produces the thought "what's the point?" and you go "dude. no. there are so many points. don't talk like that."

i'm sort of imagining an army that's been losing a war but still has high morale, if that helps at all. like you're not winning. you're not okay. but in a sense, some part of you is okay, because you still have hope. in short:

i couldn't have as much specificity/put as many options as i would have liked so please feel free to elaborate in the notes/tags if you want, but i know it's personal so no pressure. also don't worry about if you're Officially Diagnosed or not—if you have a reasonably strong suspicion, go with it for this.

THANK YOU EVERYONE ILY!!

[cdd-swag-bracket]

Explanation of the various CDDs

(NOTE: This is not meant to be complete definitions of all presentations of these disorders. Do not use this as a diagnostic tool. This is only for the purposes of helping decide what disorder you headcanon characters as having)

A paraphrase version of DSM 5 Criteria for DID (Dissociative Identity Disorder)

Criteria A: Disruption of identity characterized by two or more distinct alters, which, may in some cultures as an experience of possession. The alters fronting involves marked discontinuity in sense of self and sense of agency, accompanied by related alterations in mood, behavior, consciousness, memory, perception, cognition, and/or sensory-motor functioning.

Criteria B. Recurrent gaps in the recall of everyday events, important personal information, and/or traumatic events inconsistent with ordinary forgetting.

Criteria C. The symptoms cause clinically significant distress or impairment in social, occupational, or other important areas of functioning.

Criteria D and E. The disturbance is not a normal part of a broadly accepted cultural or religious practice. The symptoms are not attributable to the physiological effects of a substance (e.g., blackouts or chaotic behavior during alcohol intoxication) or another medical condition (e.g., complex partial seizures)

C-DID or Polyfrag DID (Complex Dissociative Identity Disorder or Polyfragmented Dissociative Identity Disorder)

Note sometimes C-DID and Polyfrag DID are used to refer to similar but slightly different presentation, sometime they are used to refer to the exact same prescriptions. For the sake of this bracket they will be used interchangeably.

Refers to a subtype of DID, there are several different definitions used both clinically and by the system community.

A DID system that has a high number of alters and fragments. Usually 100 or over, however some clinicians put the number as low as 26+.

A DID system that splits fragments very easily, often times making some the system has more fragments than full alters

A DID system that have a complex internal structure. For example many subsystems, or an innerworld with layers. These internal structures often have strong memory and/or communication barriers between them.

Often times definitions include multiple of the above mentioned.

OSDD-1, refers to disorders very similar to DID that do not meet either Criteria A or B.

It's worth mentioning the the "A" and "B" are not actually used clinically, but will be used here.

OSDD-1A (Other Specified Dissociative Disorder)

Refers to DID like symptoms without fully meeting Criteria A. OSDD-1A system do still have identity alterations, however they are less intense than that of DID or 1B. Usually version of the same person or similar people. Alters in OSDD-1A systems are sometimes called aspects

We've seen it described as, in OSDD-1A systems alters are more likely to be described as "me but not me", "other/also me", "sorta me", or "me but different". Whereas in DID or 1B alters are more likely to be described as "nothing like me" or "someone else"

It is a spectrum though of course.

The memory gaps in OSDD-1A are like those in DID

OSDD-1B (Other Specified Dissociative Disorder)

Refers to DID like symptoms without fully meeting Criteria B. Meaning there are not substantial memory gaps of everyday events, important personal information, and/or traumatic events. Some OSDD-1B do report less complete memory problems, such as emotional amnesia.

The alters in OSDD-1B systems are like those in DID

P-DID (Partial Dissociative Identity Disorder) paraphrased from the ICD-11

Partial dissociative identity disorder is characterised by disruption of identity in which there are two or more alters associated with marked discontinuities in the sense of self and agency. Each alter has its own pattern of experiencing, perceiving, conceiving, and relating to self, the body, and the environment.

One alter is dominant and normally functions in daily life, but is intruded upon by non-dominant alters (dissociative intrusions). These intrusions may be cognitive, mood, perceptual, motor, or behavioral. They are experienced as interfering with the functioning of the dominant alter and are typically aversive. The non-dominant alters do not recurrently take executive control of the body's consciousness and functioning, but there may be occasional, limited and transient episodes in which a distinct alters assumes executive control to engage in circumscribed behaviors, such as in response to extreme emotional states or the reenactment of traumatic memories.

The symptoms are not better explained by another mental, behavioral, or neurodevelopmental disorder. Are not due to the direct effects of a substance or medication on the central nervous system, including withdrawal effects. Are not due to a disease of the nervous system or a sleep-wake disorder. The symptoms result in significant impairment in personal, family, social, educational, occupational or other important areas of functioning.

U(S)DD (Unspecified Dissociative Disorder) in the DSM 5 is described as

"This category applies to presentations in which symptoms characteristic of a dissociative disorder that cause clinically significant distress or impairment in social, occupational, or other important areas of functioning predominate but do not meet the full criteria for any of the disorders in the dissociative disorders diagnostic class.

The unspecified dissociative disorder category is used in situations in which the clinician chooses not to specify the reason that the criteria are not met for a specific dissociative disorder, and includes presentations for which there is insufficient information to make a more specific diagnosis (e.g., in emergency room settings)"

U(S)DD does not inherently make someone part of a system, however sometimes it does

In this bracket it will also be used for characters where you are not sure what they have.

[maybeophe]

There's nothing funnier than the supplementals from season two. The tonal shift from,

"I had my assistants follow up on this statement to predictably little result. Of course, with my suspicions against Tim and Martin, I suppose their inadequacy is to be expected; likely a symptom of their inevitable betrayal. Fortunately Sasha had some luck with her research, though she gained no notable information that wasn't already given in the statement itself. At least she's as dependable as ever. Of course, this statement's validity hinges on the statement giver's clearly impaired cognitive abilities, as well as their state of inebriation during the events... though I can't help but shake the lingering feeling of... foreboding, I suppose. End recording."

To,

"Supplemental. I've broken into the local B&Q and raided the hardware isle for supplies. They'll be useful for my coming traversal of the tunnels, though I was unfortunately spotted by one of the overnight workers. I'm hiding out in one of the fake decorative bushes in the gardening isle - with any luck I'll be able to sneak out undetected."

Is literally unmatched. Season two Jarchivist's unhinged energy is peak.

[reasoningdaily]

There is growing evidence that simple, everyday changes to our lives can alter our brains and change how they work. Melissa Hogenboom put herself into a scanner to find out.

"It's surprisingly hard to think of nothing at all", is one of my first thoughts as I'm lying in the maw of a machine that is scanning my brain. I was told to focus on a black cross while the functional Magnetic Resonance Imagine (fMRI) machine does its noisy work. It also feels impossible to keep my eyes open. The hum of the scanner is somewhat hypnotic, and I worry a little bit that drifting off will affect how my brain appears on the resulting images.

As a science journalist I've always been fascinated by the workings of the mind, which is how I found myself inside a scanner at Royal Holloway, University of London, to have my brain examined before embarking on a six-week brain-altering course.

Simple mindfulness exercises can help keep our minds healthy, research shows (Credit: BBC)

Our brain has an incredible ability to adapt, learn and grow because by its nature, it is plastic – that is, it changes. This is called neuroplasticity, which simply means the brain's ability to adapt and evolve over time in structure and function. It was once thought to be limited to youth but we now know it's a constant force in shaping who we are. Every time we learn a new skill, our brain adapts.

Neuroscientists and psychologists are now finding that we have the power to control that to some extent.  And there's good reason to want to boost our brain – an increasing number of studies suggest it can play a role in delaying or preventing degenerative brain diseases.

So, with the help of Thorsten Barnhofer, a professor of clinical psychology at the University of Surrey in the UK, that's what I set out to do. He's currently running a study on the effects of mindfulness in managing stress and difficult emotions, with a special focus on individuals with severe depression.

I was surprised that something as simple as mindfulness can play such a crucial role in keeping our minds healthy. Research has shown that mindfulness is a simple but powerful way to enhance several cognitive functions. It can improve attention, relieve pain and reduce stress. Research has found that after only a few months of mindfulness training, certain depression and anxiety symptoms can ease – though as with any complex mental health problem, this may of course vary depending on individual circumstances.

There's more to it. Mindfulness can change the brain. That's because when the stress hormone cortisol increases and remains high, "it can become toxic for your brain", says Barnhofer. Stress can also directly inhibit neuroplasticity, so managing it allows the brain to remain more plastic.

The question is, would this work in my brain? Over six weeks, Barnhofer modified a mindfulness research course for me to try out. For 30 minutes a day, either as one single session or two 15-minute sessions, I practiced a guided mindfulness meditation by listening to a recording. In addition, I had one weekly meditation session with Barnhofer, who guided me over Zoom. The full mindfulness course can be accessed online for free.

My instructions were to be as aware as possible to the present moment – and pay attention to things I might usually ignore, such as where my thoughts go, and what occupies my mind from moment to moment. He also encouraged me to be more mindful in daily life – say when cooking or running, to really focus on the moment, bringing my mind back to what I was doing, as well as noticing how often it wanders.

One simple mindfulness technique involves focusing on one's breath

What's fascinating about this area of research is that mindfulness, which appears to be such a simple process, can have a measurable effect. "What mindfulness does is it can buffer stress, you become aware of challenges and those more ruminative responses, a tendency to worry," explains Barnhofer.

While I'm perhaps not an ideal candidate – my stress levels, which were measured before and after the process, are generally low – I still felt a benefit. As soon as I started a session, it felt like the first minute or two were easy. I would focus on my breath, or parts of my body as instructed. But at any moment of silence I would find my mind going on time-travelling journeys. I'd think about a conversation with a friend from weeks ago, then flit within seconds to thinking about scheduling a dentist appointment, then next about an upcoming work deadline… and so on. In quick succession, I could see just how rapidly my mind shifted from thought to thought. Speed this up and it can become extremely exhausting.

"Mind wandering is something that of course might be helpful in many ways," says Barnhofer. "It might help us with creativity, but it's also something that can go awry. And this is where repetitive thinking comes in, where ruminative thinking comes in, where worry comes in. And those are the factors which increase stress once it's there."

When I started to notice this, it made more sense that this brilliant ability we all have to think ahead, to plan, to worry, can be debilitating if it goes into overdrive. In other words, revealing the workings of our own mind is a crucial first step of letting go of some of that busyness.

Thorsten Barnhofer, a professor of clinical psychology, explains how mindfulness can shape the brain (Credit: BBC)

For instance, evidence shows that both meditation and exercise boost plasticity. I didn't increase my normal levels of exercise, but I did to push myself to run faster – regularly running a 5k in my hilly local park in about 21 minutes. Knowing that this might help boost my brain too, kept me motivated. "Physical activity facilitates the procedure of plasticity," says Ori Ossmy, a lecturer in brain and cognitive development at Birkbeck, University of London in the UK. "If you combine it with cognitive tasks to improve skills you are interested in, you probably will be able to do this in an enhanced way."

This makes sense given how closely the health of our bodies and our brains are tied together, agrees Gillian Forrester, professor of comparative cognition at the University of Sussex in the UK. "Our physical health and mental health are absolutely tangled up together to create a quality of life," she says.

Physical health is tied to cognitive health, too. It's by studying infants that scientists like Forrester are learning to see the brain/body link in action.

In Birkbeck University's brand-new Baby Lab, Forrester showed me her latest project called Baby Grow. The study will monitor babies' development in their first 18 months, with the aim of spotting signs of cognitive disorders before they become apparent. And the reason it's crucial to do it so early? It's tied to neuroplasticity too. A child's brain is especially plastic in its early years of development – new neurological connections and networks are being created at a frenetic pace as they grow and learn about their environment. This means it's potentially much easier to apply interventions for those who need it during this highly plastic state. This is one of the reasons why Forrester believes it is so important to learn more about everyday processes that help mould the brain.

The same idea also comes into play when patients are recovering from serious brain injuries. I met with Angelo Quartarone, the scientific director of the Centro Neurolesi Bonino Pulejo, a centre for brain injuries in Sicily. He witnesses plasticity in action every day. "Even in the worst conditions the brain helps to repair itself in some way… With neurorehabilitation we can accelerate recovery," he says. His team uses varied methods of assisting rehabilitation, including robotics, virtual reality, and placing electrical currents on the brain. "A tiny amount of currents can interact with the same mechanisms which are engaged by neurorehabilitation techniques," he says. "So you have a double hit."

I was amazed to learn that one of his patients, who had lost power in their right limbs, was able to forge new neural connections by playing simulated computer games. This helped them to regain lost motor skills.

Learning a new skill – in this case, how to play a tambourine – is fun and helps the brain to continue to grow (Credit: BBC)

At the end of the six weeks, I was extremely curious to see if all this work had any effect on my brain. After another brain scan, and some trepidation about what might have happened inside my head in the intervening weeks, I visited Barnhofer at the University of Surrey to find out. He had been analysing and comparing my two brain scans long into the night.

There was a result: the structure of my brain had in fact changed. And there were a few measurable changes to be seen.

One half of my amygdala – an almond-shaped structure important for emotional processing – had reduced in volume on the right side. The change was minute but measurable. However, what's exciting is that this aligns with the scientific literature that shows mindfulness can reduce its size because it buffers stress seen in the amygdala. When we experience increased stress, the amygdala grows. I didn't feel particularly stressed to begin with, but even so, it was exciting to still see a change.

The other change was to my cingulate cortex, part of the limbic system that is involved in our behavioural and emotional resonses. It is also important for the default mode network, a region that becomes active when the mind wanders and ruminates. In my brain, it had slightly increased in size over the six weeks, indicating increased control of that area. Again, this chimes with published studies in the scientific literature.

It also resonates with what I had noticed during my sessions. Over time I found I was able to keep my mind more restful – I was better able to zone out busy thoughts.

It was quite, if you will excuse the pun, mind-bending to see these results to my brain on a big screen in front of me. Just by being mindful, I had managed to increase a part of my brain that prevents my mind wandering too much.

A final note of caution – it is important to acknowledge that any brain changes we had seen could also be random. The brain is constantly changing anyway. But nevertheless, the studies suggest that the whole experience was a worthwhile challenge – and a process many people could easily benefit from.

Of course, for the changes to be long lasting, it's clear I should keep pushing myself to do some of these "hacks".

Am I going to continue meditate every day? I'd really love to say: "Yes of course." That is, if life doesn't get in the way

[ariessential]

Okay as much as i love someone hating stuff like the mbti... i wanna add to the above.

First of all, and this is nitpicky but is important to me: 'made up' is an unfortunate and misleading label, even though i know what its supposed to describe. but ALL measurements, especially in psychology are made up. every psychological model? made up. we just try to find the best concepts to describe the human psyche and convert those into handy scores for various purposes. those will never ever be accurate, some are better, some worse. just like some purposes are better, some worse. and even if you have a solid instrument, you can still use it for a lot of crap. that being said.

although isabel briggs myers did both develop the mbti and write novels, i dont know if these two things are super connected. she and her partner in crime (haha, get it?) were self-proclaimed CG Jung fangirls, which is already a big yikes, and randomly tried to apply his psychoanalytic theories to a type-sorting personality test. As far as i know they did this to create a tool for a good person-job fit around/after WW2 (which means it could be potentially racist but i know nothing in that direction). this test, the mbti, was obviously not developed in accordance with any scientific standards or any real system behind it. The theories of CGJ are pretty abstract (aka not suited to base any for of systematic research or instrument on) and the concept of a type based personality test is bullshit. in the field of researching personality it is the norm to use dimensional questionaires instead of categorization by now (NEO-FFI my beloved). plus, there have been some, few, attempts to hold the mbti to todays scientific standards, and its shit. validity wasnt even measured, retest reliability was bad, there are no norming tables to see adjustments regarding gender, age, cultural differences.. the fact that the mbti is still used in many big companies and, as far as i know, the us army, is just disgusting and a product of marketing. Pseudoscience.

IQ: tough to discuss any intelligence test, since the official definition of intelligence is "intelligence is what the intelligence test is measuring" (no, im not kidding.). there are different approaches to what it is and what model describes it best and the IQ is just one of the attempts that stuck. I do agree that it has since been used in many stupid ways and its meaning in the general public is ridiculous (used to justify racist agendas, true, and obviously also used to support classicism. basically any form of "this group is more stupid and therefor less than"). HOWEVER if used correctly its pretty reliable when it comes to diagnosing people with cognitive disabilities. as in: can be used in psychiatric settings or psych evals in court to help decide whether someone is capable of making their own decisions, has special needs, what kind of help is best suited for them. As with any instrument used for those purposes, it shouldnt be used by itself as the sole argument for a decision. And in these situations, we are talking IQ levels that are severely below what is considered the "norm". So, it has its flaws, but it can be helpful.

BMI: i hate the bmi. again: of course its made up, like every other quotient and score in any psych test. the Beck depression inventory score is made up but still reliably connects to depressive symptoms. Thats not the problem with the bmi. the problem, as suggested above, is that its not complex enough. most obvious thing is that it is just based on your height and weight and assumes that more weight = more fat = less health. but just to name an example, famously, muscles weight more than fat so any muscly dude automatically has a bmi thats too high and would be considered obese. the fatphobia point is more complicated because more fat does correlate with health problems. obesity is a problem and is medically relevant. do non-white people struggle more with obesity? yes. does our western white society treat overweight people like shit? absolutely. it is theoretically still good to have a handy score to determine whether someone's weight impacts their health. its just that this score is shit and is used to treat people like shit instead of just helping them. why do we still rely on the bmi for diagnosing eating disorders?? baffles me.

So yeah.. if i missed anything or got something wrong im all ears.

I can't keep having the same conversations about love languages, mbti, iq, bmi, "brain fully formed at 25" and shit over and over again...

[resetindia]

The Benefits of Walking: Underrated Yet Powerful

In a world obsessed with high-intensity workouts, expensive gym memberships, and flashy fitness equipment, one form of exercise remains humble yet incredibly effective: walking. Often underestimated, walking is a low-impact, accessible activity that offers a wealth of health benefits for the body and mind. It requires no special gear, can be done almost anywhere, and costs nothing—yet its impact is far-reaching.

Whether you are looking to maintain a healthy weight, reduce stress, or simply reset your day, walking might just be the most underrated tool in your wellness toolkit.

1. Cardiovascular Health

Regular walking improves heart health by increasing heart rate, lowering blood pressure, and strengthening the heart muscle. Studies have shown that walking briskly for just 30 minutes a day can reduce the risk of heart disease by up to 19%. For individuals recovering from heart-related issues, walking is often the first exercise prescribed due to its gentle nature.

2. Mental Clarity and Mood Enhancement

Walking is a powerful mood booster. Physical movement releases endorphins, also known as the "feel-good hormones," which can alleviate symptoms of depression and anxiety. A walk in nature, often referred to as "green exercise," amplifies these effects by lowering cortisol levels and improving cognitive function.

In fact, many people find walking to be an effective way to reset mentally, allowing space for creative thinking and problem-solving. Some of the world’s most successful leaders and creatives have used walking as a daily ritual to clear their minds and spark innovation.

3. Joint and Muscle Support

Contrary to the belief that walking is too mild to be impactful, regular walking helps improve joint mobility, especially in the knees and hips. It can also alleviate stiffness and build strength in the legs and core. For those dealing with discomfort, using a lower back pain gel before or after walking can offer targeted relief, making the activity more enjoyable and sustainable.

Walking also strengthens bones, improves posture, and enhances flexibility. It is especially beneficial for individuals with arthritis, as it promotes circulation to the joints and helps in maintaining a healthy range of motion.

4. Weight Management and Metabolism

Though walking may seem less intense than running or weight training, it plays a crucial role in weight management. Consistent walking burns calories and improves metabolism. When combined with balanced nutrition and supplements, like vitamin B12 gummies, walking can support energy production and aid in fat metabolism.

Vitamin B12, essential for red blood cell formation and neurological function, becomes increasingly important with age. Pairing a daily walk with a B12 supplement can enhance stamina and overall well-being, particularly for vegetarians and older adults who may be at risk of deficiency.

5. Supports Digestive Health

Post-meal walks are an ancient practice backed by modern science. Walking after eating stimulates digestion, helping food move more efficiently through the digestive tract. This can reduce bloating, improve blood sugar regulation, and aid nutrient absorption.

Even a 10-15 minute walk after dinner can make a noticeable difference in digestion and glucose levels, providing a gentle yet effective reset for the body.

6. Enhances Sleep Quality

Regular walking helps regulate the circadian rhythm, making it easier to fall asleep and stay asleep. Exposure to natural light during daytime walks enhances melatonin production at night. People who walk regularly often report deeper, more restful sleep.

Stress reduction, improved mood, and physical tiredness all contribute to better sleep quality. If you’re struggling with restlessness or insomnia, consider incorporating a walk into your evening routine.

7. Convenient and Sustainable

One of walking’s greatest strengths is its simplicity. It requires no special equipment or environment. From urban sidewalks to forest trails, walking adapts to nearly every lifestyle. It is also sustainable over time, making it an excellent long-term habit.

In an age where many fitness trends come and go, walking remains a timeless activity. You can walk alone, with a friend, or even with your pet. You can walk while listening to music, podcasts, or simply enjoying the sounds around you. This flexibility makes it easier to commit to and maintain.

8. A Moment of Digital Detox

Walking is not just a physical activity—it can also serve as a digital detox. Stepping away from screens and devices, even for a short time, helps reset your focus and gives your eyes and mind a break. Taking a walk without your phone or on airplane mode can restore mindfulness and presence, especially in today’s hyperconnected world.

How to Make the Most of Your Walk

To maximize the benefits of walking, consider the following tips:

Set a schedule: Try to walk at the same time each day to build a consistent habit.

Vary your route: Keep things interesting by exploring new paths or trails.

Focus on posture: Stand tall with your shoulders back and engage your core.

Stay hydrated: Especially important if you're walking for long periods or in warm weather.

Warm-up and cool down: Start slowly and stretch after your walk to prevent stiffness.

Use supportive products: If discomfort arises, incorporate solutions like lower back pain gel to alleviate soreness, and consider vitamin B12 gummies to support your energy levels.

Final Thoughts: Reset Your Life, One Step at a Time

Walking is a profound reminder that sometimes, the most effective solutions are also the simplest. In just a few steps, you can reset your mental clarity, improve physical health, and foster emotional well-being. It is a habit that is accessible, sustainable, and rewarding—a true wellness powerhouse hiding in plain sight.

Incorporating supportive elements like vitamin B12 gummies for sustained energy, or a lower back pain gel for muscle relief, can elevate your walking experience further, ensuring that each step you take brings you closer to a healthier, more balanced life.

[aiwealthhub]

Overwhelm and burnout are closely linked but distinct experiences, both of which can have profound effects on your mental, emotional, and physical well-being. Overwhelm is often the precursor to burnout, and it occurs when you feel like there’s too much on your plate, too many demands on your time and energy, and not enough resources to manage them. It can come from any area of life, whether it’s work, personal responsibilities, or even emotional challenges, and it creates a sense of drowning in tasks or stress. When overwhelm is sustained for too long without relief or coping strategies, it can lead to burnout, a state of complete exhaustion and disconnection. Together, they create a debilitating cycle that can erode your quality of life, productivity, and sense of purpose.

Overwhelm typically starts when the demands of life exceed your perceived ability to cope. It can come from external factors, like an increasing workload, mounting family responsibilities, or unforeseen crises. Internally, overwhelm can also be fueled by perfectionism, self-imposed pressure, or unrealistic expectations. In either case, you feel stretched too thin, with more tasks or problems to manage than you have time or energy for. The mind starts racing, trying to juggle all these competing demands, and you may experience an inability to focus or prioritize effectively. This mental chaos leads to feelings of paralysis or frustration, where you don’t know where to start, and every task feels equally urgent or impossible.

Overwhelm is often accompanied by a heightened sense of anxiety or stress. The body’s stress response kicks in when you feel overwhelmed, and the flood of adrenaline and cortisol heightens your alertness, making you hyper-aware of everything you need to do. However, this heightened state is exhausting, especially if it continues for an extended period. The constant pressure to manage your overwhelming situation keeps your nervous system on high alert, leading to chronic stress. You may experience physical symptoms like headaches, muscle tension, digestive issues, or difficulty sleeping. Emotionally, you might feel irritable, anxious, or on edge, with even small setbacks triggering disproportionately strong reactions.

As the overwhelm continues, your ability to think clearly diminishes. Cognitive overload makes it difficult to process information, make decisions, or problem-solve. You may find yourself making more mistakes, forgetting important details, or struggling to complete tasks that were once easy. This decline in cognitive function exacerbates the problem, creating a vicious cycle where the more overwhelmed you feel, the less effective you become, and the less you accomplish. This can lead to a growing sense of frustration or failure, as you feel unable to keep up with the demands of your life, which only adds to the stress.

When overwhelm persists without relief, it can lead to burnout. Burnout is the result of prolonged, unrelenting stress, where the constant pressure to perform or manage overwhelming tasks leads to complete emotional, mental, and physical exhaustion. Unlike overwhelm, which is often characterized by a feeling of too much to do, burnout is marked by a sense of detachment, cynicism, and numbness. You may lose interest in activities or goals that once motivated you, and even tasks that used to bring you satisfaction now feel meaningless or burdensome. It’s as though you’ve run out of energy, and nothing seems to help you recharge.

Burnout often leads to emotional disengagement. When you’re burnt out, you may feel emotionally flat, as if you’ve lost the capacity to care about your work or personal life. This detachment is a coping mechanism, a way of protecting yourself from the constant stress and overwhelm. However, it also means that you may feel disconnected from your passions, your goals, and even the people around you. Relationships can suffer as you withdraw emotionally, finding it hard to engage or be present with others. You may also experience feelings of apathy or hopelessness, believing that no matter what you do, things won’t get better, which can deepen your sense of exhaustion and frustration.

Physical symptoms of burnout often mirror those of chronic stress but tend to be more intense. You may experience extreme fatigue, even after a full night’s sleep, or struggle with insomnia because your mind can’t shut off. Chronic stress from overwhelm and burnout can also weaken your immune system, making you more susceptible to illnesses or prolonging recovery from sickness. Additionally, burnout can manifest in tension headaches, stomach problems, or other physical ailments that are often the body’s way of signaling that it’s under too much strain.

Burnout also affects your sense of self-worth and competence. As you become less able to keep up with your responsibilities, you may start to feel inadequate or question your abilities. You might experience self-doubt or imposter syndrome, believing that you’re not good enough or that you’re failing, despite your efforts. This can create a cycle of guilt and shame, where you feel bad about not being able to perform at your usual level, which in turn makes it harder to recover from burnout. Over time, this erosion of self-confidence can make it difficult to see a way out, leaving you feeling stuck in a state of exhaustion and helplessness.

Burnout can be particularly damaging in the workplace, where performance and productivity are often directly tied to your sense of identity and achievement. If you’re experiencing burnout at work, you may notice a decline in the quality of your output, struggle to meet deadlines, or lose interest in projects that once excited you. This not only affects your career prospects but also your relationship with your work. What was once a source of purpose or pride can become a source of dread, leading to disengagement or a desire to quit.

Recovering from overwhelm and burnout requires more than just a break or a vacation. It involves making fundamental changes to how you manage stress, set boundaries, and prioritize your well-being. Recognizing the early signs of overwhelm can help you take proactive steps to prevent burnout, such as learning to say no, delegating tasks, or practicing self-care. Addressing burnout, on the other hand, often requires a deeper reassessment of your values, goals, and lifestyle. You may need to realign your priorities, adjust your workload, or seek professional help to rebuild your emotional and physical resilience. Ultimately, both overwhelm and burnout are signals that something needs to change, and addressing them is essential for maintaining long-term well-being and balance.

[saharawesturgnet123]

Safe Alcohol Detox Programs For Lasting Recovery

Alcohol is a poisonous substance which is not good for the health and also affects the relationship in an individual’s life. Detoxing without help is risky. Private detox centers give quality services to their patients. Regardless of whether you are entering the keywords “alcohol detox Las Vegas” or “drug detox Las Vegas” or “alcohol treatment Las Vegas,” you can look for reliable treatments nearby.

Why Choose a Professional Alcohol Detox Program?

There are various benefits in a professional detox program:

Medical Supervision: In case of any medical complications, a doctor is standby all through to oversee your health condition.

Patient-Centered: It entails that treatment is individualized according to the individual’s situation.

Support: Therapists are there for the purpose of treating psychological disorders.

Slept Environment: Safe environments exclude places that act as stimuli for drinking.

So always try to choose profession alcohol detox program. Because your health is important and you should not take risk on your health.

Common Alcohol Withdrawal Symptoms

It is nothing more than a fact that when you quit drinking alcohol, your body does react. Symptoms may vary for a mild and severe condition:

lower-intensity discomforts such as sweating, nausea, headache, shaking etc.

Moderate Symptoms: Fast heartbeat, anxiety, and confusion

Moderate Symptoms: Hearing voices, see visions, confusion, confusion, anxiety, tremors (severe)

Since symptoms can be dangerous, one needs to seek medical attention.

So, if you feel these symptoms in you or your loved one. Then you don’t waste your time and go to hospital for treatment. Because it is necessary to control this in early stage.

What to Expect in a Detox Program

Detoxification therefore follows certain procedure:

The problem or the disease is diagnosed Before it is diagnosed, health care givers review your medical background and status.

Medical Stabilization: Patients are administered with medicines in order to minimize the withdrawal(pathological) symptoms.

Proper Counseling: This involves managing of emotions through counseling periods.

Recovery management: There is a planning that is done long term for individuals to be able to maintain their sobriety.

Benefits of Detoxing in Las Vegas

Most of the centers that we enlisted to provide detox in Las Vegas offer:

Experienced Staff – professional doctors and specialist qualified nurses for substance use disorders.

Wholism: Treatment is both the physical and the psychological aspect of a person.

Flexible Programs: Options for inpatient or outpatient care

Aftercare services: Ensuring long lasting support for the clients

So, these are the benefits of detoxing in Las Vegas. Though no need to waste time and go to Sahara west urgent care or any other detox center.

Drug and Alcohol Detox: A Combined Approach

A large number of patients are dependent on alcohol and narcotics at the same time. Facts About Las Vegas Detox Center shows that most of it give care to both kinds of cases. If you require this kind of care, searching “drug detox Las Vegas” will give you the combined treatment that you need.

Mental Health Support in Detox Programs

Looking at the returned form it is evident that mental health remains part of the patient. Detox programs often include:

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT): This is aimed at changing a person’s ways of thinking to counterbalance negative feelings.

Psychiatric Support: Medication for mental health conditions

Generally, group therapy entails the participation of people who share similar experiences in a way that all of them offer help to one another.

How to Maintain Sobriety After Detox

Detox is the first step. Staying sober requires continued effort.

Helpful Tips:

Stay on Task: Adhere to the aftercare strategies.

Attend meetings: There are support groups such as the AA out there that one can attend.

One should attend counseling sessions when the need arises: This is a focus on mental health.

Lead a Healthy Lifestyle: Exercise and take a balanced diet for healthy living.

Do Not Get into Harm’s Way: Try to be aware of the situations that are dangerous for you.

Referrals for the Best Alcohol Rehabilitation Facility in Las Vegas

When in despair, type “alcohol treatment Las Vegas” to get help. Trusted programs offer compassionate care. Look for counseling for a safe and long-term end to the situation. I would like to mention Sahara West Urgent Care. Because they have the best alcohol rehabilitation facility in Las Vegas. So, if you are a resident of Las vegas and looking for a detox center. Then Sahra West is best for you. 

Final Thoughts

Detoxification from alcohol is possible in case the individual in question receives the necessary help. Education at the professional level in Las Vegas services offer you what it takes to achieve all-round success. One can obtain a bright future through embracing and practicing good health. Take the first step today!

[drkarenhawk]

Managing Social Anxiety with Practical Guidance from Dr. Karen Hawk

Social anxiety is a common but often debilitating condition that can severely impact an individual’s ability to interact with others in various social situations. The overwhelming fear of being judged, rejected, or humiliated can prevent people from engaging in everyday activities, such as attending social gatherings, making presentations at work, or even participating in casual conversations. However, with the right support and strategies, social anxiety can be effectively managed and reduced.

Dr. Karen Hawk, a licensed therapist with years of experience in treating anxiety disorders, specializes in helping individuals overcome social anxiety. Through a compassionate and evidence-based approach, Dr. Hawk provides practical guidance to help clients build confidence, manage anxiety symptoms, and create positive social experiences. In this article, we’ll explore how Dr. Hawk helps clients navigate social anxiety and regain control over their social interactions.

1. Understanding Social Anxiety

Social anxiety, also known as social phobia, is characterized by an intense fear of being scrutinized or judged by others in social or performance situations. Individuals with social anxiety often worry excessively about being embarrassed, criticized, or rejected, which can lead to avoidance of social events, interactions, or opportunities for personal or professional growth.

While it is normal to feel nervous or shy in unfamiliar or high-stakes situations, social anxiety goes beyond these temporary feelings of discomfort. It often manifests as persistent, overwhelming fear and anxiety that can interfere with daily life.

Dr Karen Hawk psychologist works with clients to help them understand the nature of social anxiety, normalize their feelings, and explore the underlying causes of their fears. This initial phase of therapy allows clients to gain insight into how their thoughts, beliefs, and past experiences contribute to their anxiety.

2. Identifying Triggers of Social Anxiety

A key part of managing social anxiety is identifying the specific situations or triggers that provoke anxious thoughts and feelings. Common triggers for social anxiety include:

Public Speaking: Fear of speaking in front of an audience, whether in a professional or social context.

Meeting New People: Anxiety about interacting with unfamiliar individuals, leading to avoidance of networking or social events.

Negative Self-Evaluation: Constantly worrying about how others perceive you, leading to self-doubt and insecurity.

Social Performance Situations: Situations where one feels they must perform or impress others, such as job interviews, dates, or group discussions.

Dr. Hawk works with clients to identify their personal triggers and break them down into manageable parts. This process often involves discussing past experiences that may have led to the development of these fears, allowing clients to challenge and reframe unhelpful beliefs about themselves and their social interactions.

3. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) for Social Anxiety

One of the most effective therapeutic approaches for managing social anxiety is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). CBT focuses on identifying and changing negative thought patterns and behaviors that contribute to anxiety. Through CBT, Dr Karen Hawk psychologist helps clients recognize the irrational thoughts that fuel their anxiety, such as:

Catastrophizing: The tendency to imagine the worst-case scenario, such as assuming you will embarrass yourself or be rejected in a social situation.

Mind Reading: The belief that you can predict how others perceive you, often assuming that they are judging you negatively.

All-or-Nothing Thinking: Viewing social situations as either a complete success or utter failure, without acknowledging the gray areas.

Dr. Hawk guides clients in challenging these cognitive distortions and replacing them with more balanced and realistic thoughts. For example, instead of assuming that everyone at a party will judge you negatively, clients are encouraged to consider the possibility that others are focused on their own experiences, rather than scrutinizing you.

Through this process, clients gain greater control over their thoughts, reducing the power that anxiety has over them in social situations.

4. Exposure Therapy: Gradual Desensitization to Social Situations

Exposure therapy is another effective technique used by Dr Karen Hawk psychologist to help clients manage social anxiety. The goal of exposure therapy is to gradually expose clients to feared social situations in a controlled and systematic manner. By doing so, clients can reduce their anxiety and learn that their fears are often exaggerated or unfounded.

Dr. Hawk works with clients to create a personalized exposure hierarchy, which involves ranking social situations from least to most anxiety-provoking. For example, a client who fears speaking in public might start by practicing conversation with a close friend, then progress to attending a small social gathering, and eventually work up to giving a public presentation.

The key to exposure therapy is gradual desensitization. As clients experience these situations and realize that their worst fears do not come true, they begin to feel more confident and capable in social interactions.

5. Developing Relaxation and Grounding Techniques

In addition to cognitive and behavioral interventions, Dr. Hawk teaches clients relaxation and grounding techniques to manage the physical symptoms of anxiety, such as racing heartbeats, shallow breathing, and dizziness. These techniques can help clients calm their nervous system and regain focus during stressful social situations.

Common techniques taught by Dr. Hawk include:

Deep Breathing: Practicing slow, deep breaths to activate the body’s relaxation response and reduce feelings of panic.

Progressive Muscle Relaxation (PMR): A technique that involves systematically tensing and relaxing muscle groups to release physical tension.

Mindfulness and Grounding: Focusing on the present moment by using the five senses (sight, touch, sound, smell, and taste) to ground oneself in the here and now. This helps individuals stay connected to reality and prevent their thoughts from spiraling out of control.

Dr Karen Hawk psychologist also encourages clients to practice these techniques regularly, so they are prepared to use them when anxiety arises in social situations.

6. Building Confidence through Social Skills Training

One of the challenges of social anxiety is the fear of social inadequacy or not knowing how to navigate social interactions. Dr. Hawk provides social skills training to help clients feel more confident and competent in social situations. This training includes:

Effective Communication: Learning how to start and maintain conversations, ask open-ended questions, and listen actively to others.

Non-Verbal Cues: Understanding the importance of body language, eye contact, and tone of voice in making positive social connections.

Conflict Resolution: Learning how to handle disagreements or awkward situations in a calm and constructive manner.

By developing these essential social skills, clients gain greater self-assurance and are more likely to engage in social situations with less anxiety and more confidence.

7. Challenging Perfectionism and Embracing Imperfection

Perfectionism often plays a significant role in social anxiety. The desire to be flawless in social situations can create intense pressure and fear of making mistakes. Dr. Hawk helps clients challenge the unrealistic expectations they place on themselves and embrace the idea that imperfection is a natural part of life.

Through self-compassion exercises and reframing techniques, Dr Karen Hawk psychologist encourages clients to accept that they do not need to be perfect in every social interaction. Mistakes are an inevitable part of being human, and they do not define one’s worth or ability to form meaningful connections.

8. Long-Term Strategies for Maintaining Progress

Overcoming social anxiety is a gradual process, and maintaining progress requires ongoing effort. Dr. Hawk helps clients create a long-term plan to continue building their social confidence, which may include:

Regularly attending social events: Even if it feels uncomfortable, continuing to practice socializing is key to maintaining progress.

Engaging in new experiences: Trying new activities, such as joining a club or taking a class, can help clients expand their comfort zones and build new social connections.

Seeking support when needed: Dr Karen Hawk psychologist encourages clients to continue therapy if necessary or seek additional support groups or resources to keep progressing.

Conclusion

Managing social anxiety is a process that takes time, self-compassion, and the right tools. With Dr. Karen Hawk’s practical guidance, individuals can learn to manage their anxiety, build social confidence, and create more meaningful connections. Through a combination of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), exposure therapy, relaxation techniques, and social skills training, Dr. Hawk helps clients regain control of their social lives, reduce fear, and embrace new opportunities for personal growth. Social anxiety no longer needs to hold you back; with Dr. Hawk’s support, you can confidently navigate the world and enjoy fulfilling social interactions.

[anthem-for-orion]

I don't know what I have, and at this point I know better than to go wandering into a psych office again to find out.

Official diagnoses are major depressive disorder and general anxiety. Diagnosed with psychotic depression during a trip to the psych ward in college: auditory hallucinations for a few days prior to getting committed, advanced to commands - which, for the record, I was not following.

Symptoms consistent with MDD, being episodes lasting between days to months of depressed mood, lowered energy, physical and mental fatigue, episodes going back to age 11 as far as I can remember. I distinctly remember having a period of about a month in 5th grade where I couldn't stop thinking about how I could feasibly kill myself. General anxiety symptoms have been improving in the past few years: historically, it has been panic attacks during stressful situations and dread to the point of impacting executive functions. Exogenous testosterone and cognitive behavioral therapy have helped with anxiety but not depression.

Symptoms inconsistent with my existing diagnoses and which I should probably find a therapist for but which I will absolutely not, at least not while I am in a position to be easily coerced into treatment that would negatively impact me:

Olfactory and tactile hallucinations on a regular basis (at least once a week, more if generally stressed or tired). Auditory and visual hallucinations when stressed (observation voices, not command).

Loss of affect, can generally fake it for brief periods, but I've been called out for "looking like a psychopath, got those, like, dead shark eyes."

Bouts of... low level aphasia? True aphasia is more intense than what I experience, but if sometimes feels as though I can't get words lined up in the correct order. For example, I was speaking with a coworker the other day about where I could find the stock of a particular size of autoclavable biohazard bags, as we had run out. It came out as something akin to "Bags-ss the orange ones? Do you know any more somewhere?" It's embarrassing. I can speak quite fine most of the time, but sometimes my speech processing just gets clogged, I suppose.

Variable levels of derealization. I spend more of my time in a haze than I do in reality these days. This one I have discussed with a therapist regularly in college, so I feel decently sure this is the correct term. I've followed her advice about 54321 grounding and such, and while it helps during intense bouts, I can't do it constantly for months straight.

Sometimes I can't feel my legs. At its worst, I can't move them either, which becomes rather inconvenient. They get dead frigid too, which makes me concerned that this is a physical problem with my blood flow. 18% body fat 5'8" 140 pounds, normal blood pressure, cholesterol managed via lipitor. I'm not sure what's up with that, but it does happen more often during depressive episodes.

Maybe I am somewhere on the schizophrenic spectrum. The therapist in college wanted me tested, but I fell off with regular appointments during summer break. They put me on an SSRI (escitalopram, trintellix) and started trying different antipsychotics (invega, risperidone, paliperidone once). Trintellix *kind of* worked; it got rid of the fatigue but did nothing for my actual mood or any other symptoms. The antipsychotics cooled down the rate of hallucinations but shredded my mood and affect entirely, and I gained about 30 pounds. This is most of why I don't want to go back. My creativity and those few flashes of good mood are the only things I'm living for and proud of right now. I cannot lose them.

My brother thinks I'm just autistic and that I need to "stop trying to mask." His idea of "not masking" is continuing to exist as an anxious mess in his childhood room while using his neurodivergency as an excuse to never attempt to improve himself. He is diagnosed: he also has other, curable issues that he has been convinced are unfixable. Maybe I am autistic: that doesn't mean I don't have other things I need to pay attention to. Still, I feel annoyed with him for trying to brush me off in the way he's brushed himself off, and I fear it wells up sometimes with autistic people who aren't my brother excuse their own behavior as "whoopsies, my autism is showing." If that is who I'll be grouped with if I do get a positive autism diagnosis from a professional, I don't want one.