Health Archives

The Body Keeps the Score: Discussion Questions for a Book Club

Did you read The Body Keeps the Score? Are you looking for some questions that will generate thoughtful discussion? We tend to think of trauma in its most extreme forms, such as PTSD. But nearly everyone is likely to either suffer from trauma or know someone who does. In The Body Keeps the Score, Bessel van der Kolk explains that the physiological toll can be tremendous. Read on for The Body Keeps the Score discussion questions that will help you understand and internalize the book’s ideas and apply them where appropriate.

What Does Overthinking Mean & What Causes It?

What does overthinking mean? Where does overthinking come from? Nick Trenton’s book Stop Overthinking discusses the harm overthinking does to our bodies and minds. A little bit of stress can be healthy, but when you’re constantly thinking about an event and worrying over it, you need to take a step back and reevaluate. Keep reading to learn more about overthinking and its origins.

The Importance of a Healthy Social Life & How to Have One

What role does your social life play in your health and well-being? Why is it important to surround yourself with the right people? Having a social life is an important factor in one’s mental and physical well-being. But it’s not just being around people that matters. To reap the psychological benefits of socializing, you must surround yourself with the right people. Here’s a look at the importance of social life and some tips for cultivating enriching and emotionally fulfilling relationships.

How Chronic Stress Affects Your Mental Health

7 Major Causes of Depression and Anxiety

Why are we so stressed as a society? How does chronic stress affect mental health? As a result of the fast pace of modern life, we endure a lot of ongoing, chronic stress. According to physician Lissa Rankin, the author of Mind Over Medicine, chronic stress stands behind the modern mental health epidemic of anxiety and depression. Here’s how chronic stress drives the mental health epidemic plaguing societies today.

How Bad Is the East Palestine Water & Air Contamination?

How worried should we be about East Palestine water contamination? Could the air quality also be affected by the Ohio train derailment? Following the Norfolk Southern freight train derailment on February 3, a controlled burn released many of these chemicals into the environment in East Palestine, Ohio. Upon taking daily samples of the water and air, the EPA insists that neither poses any danger to local residents, but not everyone is convinced. Keep reading to learn about the conflicting claims over air and water contamination in East Palestine.

The 2 Uses of Fungi in Daily Life That May Surprise You

What are the common uses of fungi in daily life? How do fungi help anxiety and the environment? The role of fungi expands far wider than supporting plants, soil, and the cycle of life. In Entangled Life, Merlin Sheldrake says that fungi could solve pressing problems in everyday life if we spent more time and resources studying fungi. Here we’ll focus on fungi’s potential to address two of these problems: mental illness and environmental destruction.

Pushing Yourself Too Hard? Steven Kotler on Flow & Burnout

Are you pushing yourself too hard? How can pursuing a flow state lead to burnout? While Steven Kotler encourages setting ambitious goals, he also warns against pushing yourself too hard. Mastering a flow state allows people to achieve superhuman feats—climbers scaling harder routes or runners running faster races—but this can also lead to burnout and unmet expectations. Read on to learn about the risks of pushing yourself too hard when pursuing flow, according to Kotler.

Are Typical Western Diets & Lifestyles Making People Sick?

How are typical Western diets and lifestyles influencing people’s health? What is microbial diversity and what happens when it’s compromised? Science journalist Ed Yong writes about the health implications of living a Western lifestyle in his book I Contain Multitudes, which debunks common myths about microbes and how they impact our lives. Yong argues that a typical Western diet is just one factor that leads to decreased microbial diversity. Read on to learn about the health risks of following a typical Western diet and lifestyle, according to Yong.

The Importance of Fungus: 3 Ways It Benefits All Life Forms

What’s the importance of fungus? How do humans depend on fungi? Merlin Sheldrake’s book Entangled Life argues that it’s important to further invest in mycology. With fungi, plants stay hydrated, we challenge our ideas of intelligence, and we have advanced solutions to mental illnesses. Continue reading to learn why fungi are important for all life forms.

I Contain Multitudes by Ed Yong: Book Overview

What is I Contain Multitudes by Ed Yong about? Aside from common microorganisms, how do the trillions of other microbes affect us and the environment? I Contain Multitudes by Ed Yong is about the mysterious and fascinating world of microbes. In the book, Yong claims that although we often think of ourselves as individuals, we’re essentially walking ecosystems containing countless species of microbes living in symbiotic partnership with us. Read on for a brief overview of I Contain Multitudes: The Microbes Within Us by Ed Yong.