Beneath conscious awareness, the inner monologue narrating your every move, is the unconscious. The unconscious is the shadowy mental storage unit where your brain hoards all the stuff you’re not actively aware of but that still manages to hijack your decisions1. Freud, who chain-smoked cigars and saw your mom in every dream you’ve ever had,...

Imagine your brain is like a chill, well-balanced party. Everyone’s doing their thing—dopamine’s out there passing around snacks of motivation and pleasure—basically the brain’s hype man, making sure you care about stuff, want stuff, and get up off the couch to go after stuff. In addiction, dopamine gets completely hijacked. Substances and behaviors that trigger...

It started with a shrug. Not a bang, not a riot. Just millions of people gaslit into submission while institutions cracked beneath the weight of denial. One moment you’re watching the news; the next, you’re questioning your sanity. Welcome to the world’s longest toxic relationship—America, circa right now—where the government’s got its hand on your...

This Didn’t Start With You—But You’re the One in Therapy Now What happens when the ghosts you inherit show up in your nervous system—and how to break the cycle without breaking down. The kind of pain that doesn’t start with you but somehow lives in you, waking you up at 3 a.m., tightening your chest...

A heritable disease is passed down through genes, increasing the likelihood that a person will develop it if it runs in their family. Mental illnesses like schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and depression have strong genetic links, but genetics alone do not determine fate. While these conditions have biological roots, environmental factors such as stress, trauma, and...

Alienation in mental health is when someone feels disconnected from themselves, other people, or society. This feeling can make mental health struggles worse and often leads to loneliness, emotional numbness, or a sense that life has no real meaning. Some people feel cut off from their own emotions, thoughts, or identity, which is called self-alienation....

The term “psychosis” is frequently used in everyday language, yet those working within mental health disciplines can readily identify its frequent misuse.[1] The same applies to “schizophrenic,” a term often incorrectly employed or exaggerated, contributing to stigma and misunderstanding. This misrepresentation creates barriers for individuals with these conditions, making it more difficult for them to...

Narcissism is a personality trait that includes an inflated sense of self-importance, a deep need for admiration, and a lack of empathy. While these traits can be useful in some leadership roles, they often lead to manipulation, refusal to take responsibility, and prioritizing personal image over ethical decision-making. In politics, narcissism can result in corruption,...

When I was in medical school, I remember learning about how some people who lived in the South of the United States were considered by the medical establishment as both morbidly obese and malnourished[^1]. This seemed paradoxical, and I stored it into my brain along with a whole lot of other facts about being alive...

The first thing to know is that ketamine therapy is a totally different, some would call it “novel” approach to treating mental illness. This is one reason why there is not a lot of literature covering the use of ketamine in this respect.  Most of the drugs in psychiatry (stimulants, antidepressants, antipsychotics, anxiolytics….) do not...