Former Congressman Patrick Kennedy joins our hosts to talk about mental health and addiction parity, both at the federal and state levels. He shares information about new initiatives, dontdenyme.org and parityregistry.org, designed to help consumers...

It’s inevitable that we will suffer emotional pain as we go through life. Whether it’s from a death of a loved one, the ending of a relationship, or any number of other issues, sometimes the pain we experience becomes embedded to such a degree...

The transition from youth to adult is a difficult one for most people, filled with unexpected events and changes that we are ill-prepared for. Many find themselves seriously lacking not only the life skills needed, but also the psychological and...

Every year, millions of people make New Year’s Resolutions. And one of the most common resolutions is to lose weight and get in shape. It’s also one of the most commonly failed resolutions. In this episode, you’ll meet a man who lost over 130...

At some point or another, virtually everyone has fallen victim to cognitive distortions – lines of thinking that are based on things that are simply not true. This doesn’t mean to the level of conspiracy theories, but even the tiniest things. In...

There are all kinds of suggestions out in the world about how to survive a bad holiday… holidays with people you don’t like, holidays with too many people, all kinds of bad holidays. But what about those holidays that are… well… not bad? Maybe...

Living in our fast-paced world, many of us find ourselves stressed out, and many others don’t even realize how stressed they’ve become. Many people choose to ignore their stress, others use meditation, exercise, or other endeavors to reduce...

Growing up with a mentally ill parent can be a traumatic experience for any child. For Ally Golden, her mother’s mental illness was major depression, later diagnosed as borderline personality disorder. Ally’s book, A Good Soldier, chronicles her...

Charita Cole Brown was diagnosed with bipolar disorder at the age of 21. After reaching recovery, she became very active in her local NAMI affiliate for many years. Recently, her book – Defying Bipolar: My Bipolar Life – was published. Her goal...

Amy Gamble’s most surreal moment was when she walked into Olympic Stadium in Seoul, Korea, in 1988. In the years that followed, her bipolar disorder led her on a strange journey that included being paranoid that her family was trying to poison her,...

It’s often claimed (and not without good reason) that we are addicted to technology, from the tiny screens of our phones and the temptations of social media to the progressively bigger screens of that multi-generational babysitter: our televisions....

Emotional overeating is an extremely common problem for many people, particularly among those who live with depression. Many of us have a tendency to “eat our feelings,” resorting to food to make us feel better and as an escape from the...

Despite all the efforts being made in suicide awareness and prevention, death by suicide is still rampant in society. The obvious observation, then, is that bringing awareness is not enough, and that our current methods of suicide prevention are not...

Bullying is a huge problem in society. Many people believe that it’s something that takes place just in school and online, but it’s also unfortunately present in the work environment, as many listeners will likely agree. This episode looks at the...

When future NFL player Erik Coleman was eleven years old, he discovered that both of his parents were addicts (one to alcohol, one to harder drugs). This was a traumatic discovery, but made worse when, one day, he returned home from school to find his...

Blue is for boys and pink is for girls, right? That depends on what generation you live in. Today, many people disregard such silly color assignments, or at least go for “gender neutral” colors. But a hundred years ago, all the top fashionistas...

Bipolar disorder is an often misunderstood (and misdiagnosed) disorder. Our guest this week is a psychotherapist who has worked with many individuals with this diagnosis. He discusses the nature of the disease, therapy plans for treatment, and the...

Okay, “extravaganza” might be a bit of an exaggeration. But it really is the 100th episode of The Psych Central Show. As such, we thought it would be fun (and maybe a bit educational) to take a look back on the Psych Central Show, from its...

Most of us spend a large portion of our days at work, where we’re exposed to all sorts of different stressors that take a cumulative toll. And many of us are already dealing with some sort of mental health issue unrelated to our jobs. Put together,...

Most people are familiar with postpartum depression (a topic we’ve discussed more than once on this show) or even bipolar mania. Less well known is postpartum bipolar disorder, despite the fact that childbirth is a significant trigger of bipolar...

For the millions of individuals with drug addictions, there are plenty of facilities out there for help. Some are public, some are private, but all have the goal of helping addicts to move on from drugs and live healthy lives again. Nothing in life is...

It’s no surprise that gay men have been one of the many groups subject to mental health issues. What is surprising, though, is how well they bounce back from such issues. Our guest this week has studied resilience in gay men and literally wrote the...

Child sexual abuse is a deeply disturbing topic, made all the worse because of just how widespread it is. The vast majority of the victims of child sexual abuse know their abusers, all too commonly a family member. This week’s guest addresses some...

We often hear about the healing qualities of nature. We’re told that connecting with nature is important, especially in this age where many people are tech connected during all waking hours. Sebastian Slovin believes this. In fact, he believes it so...

When we think about post-traumatic stress disorder, our minds typically imagine war veterans or perhaps police officers and firefighters. Sometimes we’ll think of people who endured something horrible, such as a terrible accident, a home invasion,...