Mental Health

Find your center, master stress, and conquer burnout with the latest science.

Latest in Mental Health

A close-up photograph of a young child with blonde hair smiling broadly, revealing several missing front baby teeth. The child is playfully covering their eyes with both hands, with a plain grey wall in the background.

Why do we even have baby teeth?

By Sarah Lindenfeld Hall

Female young behind book with face covered for a red book while smiling

How to rebuild your reading habits

African striped mouse and pups

Biologists discover gene that may determine ‘good’ and ‘bad’ dads

A stylized digital collage featuring chess pieces, including a red king, set against a target-like background of concentric circles and a red-and-white checkered pattern.

Chess or video games—which actually makes you smarter? The answer may surprise you.

By Clarissa Brincat

Hand holding TV remote in front of out of focus TV screen

A little TV after a long day is good for your brain

Swearing and smiling emojis side by side on blue background

Go ahead and swear—it’s good for your health

Young sad girl sitting alone at home on sofa listening to sad music on wireless headphones crying and wiping her nose with a paper tissue.

Pop music has gotten sadder over the last 50 years

close up of white lab rat inside cage

If offered, rats will use cannabis to deal with stress

A dramatic, low-light photo of a person with dark skin against a blue background, experiencing intense distress or pain. They are clenching their jaw and holding their hands to the sides of their head, with blurred motion around their head suggesting movement, panic, or disorientation.

What happens to your body during a panic attack?

A white woman with brown hair wearing a grey sweater and yellow coat holds of a pine branch to her nose and smells. She seems to be walking down a sidewalk. There's an out of focus wire fence behind her and what looks like a street to her left. She looks happy and content as she smells the pine branch. There are more out of focus pine trees and branches behind her.

Why smelling a pine tree can instantly lift your mood

By Jennifer Byrne

Man with his head down on his desk in front of laptop from stress

The 100 life decisions people dread most, according to psychologists

Playful young woman hiding face under blanket while lying in cozy bed, pretty curious girl feeling shy peeking from duvet, covering with white sheet, head shot close up. Top view

4 research-backed ways to beat the winter blues in the colder months

By Gio Dolcecore / The Conversation

A vintage photo collage featuring an oval cut-out image of seven people—three men and four women, who appear to be young college students—dressed in 1920s-era clothing. They are standing close together and looking at the camera. The background is a texture of yellowed, old newsprint with blurred text about a sleep experiment.

In 1925, seven students went 60 hours without sleep—for science

By Bill Gourgey

Empty dentist office showing tools and chair

Extreme fear of the dentist linked to childhood trauma

A close-up shot of a hand holding a wooden mallet with a red, fuzzy end, positioned over a bronze singing bowl. The bowl is resting on a light-colored surface, and the background is softly blurred with warm, glowing fairy lights, suggesting a relaxing, indoor setting.

I tried a sound bath to see if it actually made me calmer

By Mack DeGeurin

A blue, semi-transparent anatomical illustration of a human torso, neck, and shoulders from the front. The main focus is on the spine and nervous system, which are highlighted with glowing red lines running down the center of the back and branching out into the chest. The background is solid black.

Does vagus nerve stimulation work? A scientific cure-all explained.

By Clarissa Brincat

a backyard version of fenway park complete with a green monster, signs, and scoreboard

A dedicated son brings Fenway Park to his dad’s backyard

By Laura Baisas

a young man using his smartphone in the toilet while sitting with a roll of toilet paper placed in a toilet paper holder in the foreground

Bathroom doomscrolling may increase your risk of hemorrhoids

A woman with her eyes closed and head tilted back, smiling serenely, stands in a dense forest. She is wearing a bright yellow raincoat and a backpack, with tall, dark tree trunks rising all around her. The sunlight filters through the canopy, creating a peaceful and happy mood.

Does St. John’s wort really increase serotonin?

By Clarissa Brincat

Does ashwagandha actually help with anxiety and sleep?

By Clarissa Brincat