Social Interaction

Ring theory diagram: comfort in, dump outRing theory diagram: comfort in, dump out

Ring Theory: Comfort In, Dump Out

I recently came across ring theory, an approach to supporting people in times of crisis, loss, and grief that involves the notion of comfort in, dump out. It was first described in an LA Times article by Susan Silk and Barry Goldman. The development of ring theory Ring theory was developed by clinical psychologist Susan …

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Why depression makes it hard to be around people - graphic of person standing out in a group

Why Depression Makes it Hard to Be Around People

Mental illness can make it hard to be around people for a few different reasons. One of the common ones is social phobia, but it’s not the only reason. Social phobia, also known as social anxiety disorder, can be a crippling condition that makes it extremely difficult to be around people. It affects around 13% …

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Mental Health @ Home book review: F*ck No by Sarah Knight

Book Review: F*ck No: How to Stop Saying Yes

F*ck No is written by Sarah Knight, who is also the author of The Life-Changing Magic of Not Giving a F*ck. This book covers a variety of situations, including social, work, partner, and family, and helps you to get more comfortable saying no to others’ demands. The book includes a variety of fun diagrams in …

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The Power of Validation

A fellow blogger recently shared this Youtube video. The video is about supporting someone who is grieving, but it’s a powerful message about validation in general, which is what inspired this post. Many of us have chosen to blog because there are difficult experiences that we’re dealing with. We look for various things out of …

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Mental Health @ Home book review: The Jackass Whisperer

Book Review: The Jackass Whisperer

The Jackass Whisperer by Scott and Alison Stratten is a lighthearted look at how to deal with the many forms of jackass you’ll encounter – including yourself.  And these encounters are inevitable; “When you put a lot of humans into one space, Jackasses happen.  It’s just science.” The book caught my eye because Brené Brown …

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What Is... Series (Insights into Psychology)

What Is… Jealousy & Envy

In this series, I dig a little deeper into the meaning of psychology-related terms. This week’s terms are jealousy and envy. The terms jealousy and envy are often used synonymously, but they actually refer to two separate, although related, emotions. They’re both social emotions, in that we experience them in relation to other people. Envy …

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What Is... Series (Insights into Psychology)

What Is… Antisocial vs. Asocial

In this series, I dig a little deeper into the meaning of psychological terms. This week’s terms are antisocial and asocial. For some reason, I have a very clear memory of a moment shortly after my nursing career began. I was at work and was saying something about being antisocial. One of the psychiatrists looked at …

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Introversion, Shyness & Social Anxiety: What’s the Difference?

Introversion, shyness, and social anxiety can sometimes get mixed up and confused for one another, but they’re actually three distinct concepts. In this post, we’ll look at some of the similarities and differences. The relevant constructs Psychological constructs are representations of intangible thing that gives us a way to talk about those things and distinguish …

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How Helpful Is It to Give Unsolicited Advice?

I think we’ve probably all felt the urge at one point or another to give advice. We see the situation someone is in, and can’t help but think if they only did X, then things would be so much better for them. Chances are that most of us have also been on the receiving end …

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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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