While often incorrectly considered a disease, dementia actually refers to a group of symptoms which negatively affect memory and social abilities, resulting in an interference with daily functioning. Primarily, problems with memory and impaired judgment or language are the two major areas affected by dementia. However, numerous other causes and symptoms of dementia exist, which...Continue reading
Category: Mental Health
Quit Smoking and You Can Be as Healthy As a Non-Smoker
If you smoke, quit. Right now. Some of the results, in terms of health, will be almost immediate. But it could take years for you to get back to being as healthy as someone your age who never smoked. Still, it’s definitely worth it.
PTSD: Affects Vets’ Spouses Too
According to the US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), about 25 percent of vets returning from the recent conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq are suffering from PTSD. That’s about 500,000 veterans. If we include family members, that number more than doubles. Not surprisingly, returning veterans—particularly those with PTSD—have a higher divorce rate than non-veterans. And...Continue reading
The Psychology of Addictions
Years ago, in a bold attempt to release some of my own inner turmoil, I set out to gain a better grasp on the issue of addictions. John Bradshaw’s now legendary work with addiction, family systems and the shamed “inner child” had moved me deeply and sent me scurrying to the first series of codependency...Continue reading
The Tolerator: Is This Your Style Of Relating To Your Partner?
“I love you just the way you are…” croons this lover to the live-in partner who has just tracked in mud again on the new Berber carpet, and rear-ended a parked car trying a new paralleling maneuver. “Love me, love my shortcomings,” swoons the “Tolerator” partner. Their theme song echoes the ideal of unconditional love...Continue reading
How Much Are Your Balls Worth?
At one point or other, most of us have said something like, “I’d give my left nut if I could….” That always seems like a pretty safe comment. After all, chances are pretty slim that we’d actually have to sacrifice a testicle for whatever it is we want. And even if we did, we’d still...Continue reading
The Pleasure of Touch
Are any of these scenarios familiar? It’s bedtime. You’re tired. You crawl into bed, and your honey moves over to you and puts a hand on your thigh. Is this a suggestion for sex? Scene number two: You’re at the office at your desk. Your boss, who is of the opposite sex, comes over to...Continue reading
Why Does U.S. Expectancy Lag Behind Other Countries?
If you look at the raw data on life expectancy at birth in industrialized countries, you’ll notice right away that Americans are pretty close to the bottom of the pile. And while life expectancy in the US has increased over time, we haven’t kept pace with other high-income countries. The fact that Americans live shorter...Continue reading
Say “I Do” to Reducing Heart Attack Risk
Over the years, there have been a number of studies that show that marriage is good for men—that married men are generally healthier and less prone to a variety of illnesses than unmarried me. But according to a new study from Finland, it turns out that marriage is good for women too. In fact, wives...Continue reading
Keeping Your Distance: American Men Deal With Intimacy
Intimacy is a scarcity for American men –if by “intimacy” we mean revealing and sharing what is innermost about us. Few men live by this creed. Intimate connection becomes an abstraction, a nice idea, a frustrated lack. The typical American male can’t grasp intimacy, having precious little real experience of it. Just mentioning the word...Continue reading