Mental Health3708 articles archived since 1845

Brain Imaging Identifies Different Types of Depression

Biological markers could enable tailored therapies that target individual differences in symptoms

Autism Starts Months before Symptoms Appear, Study Shows

Flagging children early offers the possibility of more effective treatment

Psychiatrists Debate Weighing in on Trump's Mental Health

A long-standing code of ethics prohibits diagnosing public figures from afar

How to Prevent Suicide with an Opioid

Fascinating study suggests treating “psychache”

Little Learners, Trump’s Appeal and Brain Soup

A look inside the March/April issue of Scientific American Mind 

Surging Demand for Mental Health Care Jams College Services

Students may wait weeks for a basic consultation; sometimes even longer to see a psychiatrist 

Treating Addiction with Psychedelics

Researchers see some promise in ibogaine, a well-known hallucinogen, and related compounds

How Community Mental Health Care Can Make a Major Difference

The deinstitutionalization of people with mental illness restored their rights, but caused plenty of problems as well

Power of a Meaningful Life

Journalist Emily Esfahani Smith offers a guide for building a better approach to living

Coping with the Winter Blues

Exit Interview: Presidential Science Advisor John Holdren

Scientific American executive editor Fred Guterl talks with Pres. Obama’s science advisor, John Holdren, about climate science, space travel, the issue of reproducibility in science, the brain initiative and more...

We're Taking You to Bellevue

Pulitzer Prize–winning N.Y.U. historian David Oshinsky, director of the Division of Medical Humanities at the N.Y.U. Langone Medical Center, talks about his latest book, Bellevue: Three Centuries of Medicine and Mayhem at America’s Most Storied Hospital ...

5 Signs of PTSD

How healing occurs and what you can do to offer support to someone with PTSD

Nightmares May Signal Increased Risk of Suicide

Researchers are exploring therapy that reduces nighttime terrors

Electroconvulsive Therapy: A History of Controversy, but Also of Help

Critics have portrayed ECT as a form of medical abuse. Yet many psychiatrists, and more importantly, patients, consider it to be safe and effective. Few medical treatments have such disparate images...

Fact or Fiction?: Vaccines Are Dangerous

Overwhelming medical evidence shows that negative side effects are rare and minor

The Puzzle of Pancreatic Cancer: How Steve Jobs Did Not Beat the Odds—but Nobel Winner Ralph Steinman Did

Despite having the same name, the diseases that killed Apple co-founder Steve Jobs and 2011 Nobel laureate Ralph Steinman are different kinds of cancer. Researchers are looking for new ways to diagnose and treat both...

Am I Addicted to Climbing Rocks?

The science on that question is mixed, but for me it feels more like a form of meditation

Is ADHD Different for Women and Girls?

This week, Savvy Psychologist Dr. Ellen Hendriksen examines how ADHD often manifests in girls and women

Is Your Relationship Codependent? And What Exactly Does That Mean?

Like “self love” or “inner child,” the term “codependent” smacks of pop psychology psychobabble. To make matters worse, it’s become shorthand for a whole host of unhealthy behaviors...