This is Your Brain Under Constant Trauma
We're drowning in a cascade of collective traumas—gun violence, racial injustice, climate catastrophe, an ongoing pandemic—and the stress is altering the human brain.
psychology
Are We Only Capable of ‘Selective’ Empathy?
We, as humans, can't take on the pain of everyone else. But we can find ways to connect through compassion.
How Our Brains Rationalize ‘Normal’
How do we settle into a routine when all routine is lost? The answer lies in how our brains process disruption.
Is Donald Trump Literally Making Us Sick?
The looming threat of a fascist demagogue is consuming many of us with toxic levels of anxiety. Are we crazy for feeling physically ill over the mere thought of him as president?
Why Does ‘Hannibal’ Give This Shrink a Gnawing Feeling?
As one of the most terrifying network TV shows wraps up, a psychotherapist reflects on the worst kind of sociopath: the one with the ability to out-analyze the analyst.
Why Was This Serial Rapist Running Free?
A horrifying true crime tale of the men who commit sexual assaults and the psychologist who defends them.
Are Women’s Magazines Ruining Our Sex Lives?
For years, the media has reported that women have trouble climaxing—often omitting some crucial details. Which is a serious buzzkill.
I Am a Recovered Love Addict
Love and sex addiction are very real, and not only for men, as this writer discovered the hard way. Her relationships were like a drug—and just as toxic.
You’d Be Such a Good Mother. If Only You Weren’t You
From Meghan Daum's anthology, SELFISH, SHALLOW, AND SELF-ABSORBED, memoirist M.G. Lord's brutally honest essay about her blindingly agonizing decision not to have kids.
Am I Raising a Narcissist?
A new era of parenting is creating a generation of "extra-special" kids. How do we ensure we’re not unleashing monsters on the world?