Relationships

What Is... Series (Insights into Psychology)

What Is… Stockholm syndrome

In this series, I dig a little deeper into the meaning of psychological terms. This week’s term is Stockholm syndrome. Stockholm syndrome is a type of psychological bond that forms between a captor and a hostage. The hostage develops positive feelings toward the captor and their cause, and negative feelings toward law enforcement. While it […]

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What Is... Series (Insights into Psychology)

What Is… Codependency

In this series, I dig a little deeper into the meaning of psychological terms. This week’s term is codependency. We hear about codependency often, particularly in relation to addiction, and it’s sometimes confused with dependency. What does it actually mean, though? Dependency vs. codependency While dependency involves relying on another person to help meet one’s own

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Depression has made me a ghoster – cartoon of a ghost

I Admit It – Depression Has Made Me a Ghoster

Yes, that’s right, I’m guilty—I’m a ghoster. Ghosting is socially frowned upon, although it happens quite a bit. A LiveScience article cites research in which about 25% of participants had been ghosted, and 20% had ghosted someone else. It’s often talked about with regards to romantic relationships, but it may be even more common in

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What Is... Series (Insights into Psychology)

What Is… Assertiveness

In this series, I dig a little deeper into the meaning of psychological terms. This week’s term is assertiveness. Wikipedia explains that assertiveness can be seen as falling in between passive communication styles and aggressive styles. Assertiveness training is a type of behavioural therapy developed in the 1960s that includes increasing awareness of one’s own

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What Is... Series (Insights into Psychology)

What Is… Vulnerability

In this series, I dig a little deeper into the meaning of psychological terms. This week’s term is vulnerability. The word vulnerable is derived from the Latin word vulnerare, which means to be wounded. There are different ways in which we may be vulnerable, including socially and cognitively. In a diathesis-stress model, vulnerability refers to biological and

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What Is... Series (Insights into Psychology)

What Is… Invalidation

In this series, I dig a little deeper into the meaning of psychological terms. This week’s term is invalidation. Validation conveys acceptance, along with a recognition that someone’s thoughts, feelings, or reactions are understandable. It also serves to communicate that the relationship is important. It doesn’t necessarily mean agreeing or approving, something I think is a

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What Is... Series (Insights into Psychology)

What Is… Attachment Theory

In this series, I dig a little deeper into the meaning of psychological terms. This week’s term is attachment theory. Psychologists John Bowlby and Mary Ainsworth originally developed attachment theory, which links emotional bonds in social relationships, human development, and evolutionary influences. Attachment in early life Infants automatically seek attachment to familiar caregivers, and display attachment

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Mental Health @ Home book review: The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck

Book Review: The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck

The Subtle Art of Not Giving A F*ck by Mark Manson claims to provide “a counterintuitive approach to living a good life.” He wrote this book in reaction to the problems he saw in the self-help industry. His own background is as a blogger; there’s no indication that he has a background in psychology or

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Feeling Like a Stranger in My Own Family

I never would have thought that I would feel like a stranger in my own family. Depression changed everything, though. The present story I spent Christmas with my family this year. It was a small gathering – just my parents, my brother, his fiancee, and me. Except it didn’t feel small; it seemed like there

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