Mental confusion

Chalder et al. showed that physical activity as a treatment for depression has the same effectiveness as antidepressants and therapy (Chalder et al., 2012). By improving the overall state of a patient's physical health, the likeliness of improving their mental health will increase as well (Herrman, Saxena, & Moodie, 2006). General exercise has been found to not only be a safe way to combat these issues,…

How Howe and Macfarlane Describe the Undescribable In her heart wrenching poem, “How Some of It Happened”, Marie Howe tackles the effect that illness had on her arguably hypochondriac brother. He struggled with his health even before he had health issues to struggle with, and faced an ever present fear of harm. However, upon realizing he was sick and undergoing less-than-pleasant procedures to treat it, he learned to “lean into it”. As a counterpoint, Elaine Macfarlane also addresses the…

When a person is struggling with their mental instability, society is often quick to just deem them as “mad” but then refuse to look beneath the surface of their problems. For people who struggle with mental instability, pinpointing the root cause and finding the proper “cure” is integral, so that the instability will not worsen and branch out into other problems. In the book Ceremony by Leslie Marmon Silko, the character Emo suffers from the prolonged effects of war-induced trauma, which causes…

Outline: Learning to be Depressed Martin Seligman is a behavioral psychologist who hypothesized that the way people view power and control is learned from previous experiences. He proposed that those who fail at controlling their own life stop attempting to exercise any control of their own altogether. After repeated attempts of control and repeated failures, people start to attribute these failures to a lack of control and generalize lack of control to all situations, even if those situations…

What are the effects of loneliness? Some people become depressed, some people find ways to not be lonely anymore, but some people are so used to being lonely that they choose to live that way. Loneliness can change people by causing them to become depressed, angry, and mistreat others. Of Mice and Men takes places during the Dust Bowl in America. During this time, things like racism, sexism, and discrimination against mentally handicapped people was very common. The characters in this book work…

People with disabilities are attached with stigmas, such as being less intelligent or incapable in certain facets of life. Stereotypes are present in society, but it may be difficult to discuss and to further change or overcome them. However, humor can be used as a device to allow a serious topic to be more approachable by relying on preposterous situations. Through the use of dark humor in Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far on Foot, John Callahan breaks these stigmas and illustrates an outrageous…

The Glass Castle is a memoir centered around the childhood of Jeannette Walls, a successful journalist and author. Jeannette's childhood memoir begins around 1963 when she is three years old. She manages to set herself on fire and must be rushed to the hospital. To avoid paying the hospital her dad comes in the middle of the night to take her and the family does “the skedaddle” (Walls, 2005, p. Location 51). Over the next few years, the Walls family continues to skedaddle, moving around the…

“Tradition is our security. And when our mind is secure, it is in decay,” laments Jiddu Krishnamurti wisely. While tradition is a solace to many, as Krishnamurti puts it, once outdated, it can result in the deterioration of society. And worse, perhaps, are the consequences faced by those who protest antiquated values. Set in a stereotypical American town and initially written with a joyful tone, “The Lottery” explores such paradoxical views on tradition shifting to a dark and sinister tone…

Oftentimes, new experiences can be the source of discomfort and anxiety. People try to find their comfort zones in times of duress in order to be familiar with their situation, and to be able to control things the way they want to. In the poem, Upon Hearing Tagalog, Fatima Lim-Wilson tackles a scenario of feeling lost, and momentarily being found. Yet, with these emotions comes an inner turmoil, one that may be born from expected disappointments. Her use of the figurative language and ability to…

Esther digs herself into a hole of deep-rooted depression and mental…