Mind & Mood Archive

Toxic productivity is an obsessive preoccupation with being productive at all costs. It's not a diagnosable health condition, but can take a toll on people's mental well-being, leading to insomnia, anxiety, and depression. Toxic productivity is marked by a false sense of urgency, an inability to relax, and guilt or shame over not accomplishing "enough." People coping with toxic productivity can combat the impulse by doing deep breathing, journaling, and examining their relationship to downtime.

A study of more than 121,000 people without dementia (ages 40 to 70) found that those who ate the most flavonoid-rich foods-six servings per day-had a 28% lower risk of developing dementia over the following nine years, compared to those who ate the least.

Men can encounter episodes of depression and anxiety as they age. Such feelings often stem from life experiences like grief, financial anxiety, health issues, and the loss of independence. While confiding in friends and family can sometimes help, men may benefit more from therapy. A professional therapist can help identify the causes of their emotional problems and create a strategy to resolve them.

Prolonged grief disorder (PGD) involves 12 months or longer of debilitating grief. An estimated 7% to 10% of bereaved people experience PGD. Signs include feeling as though part of you has died, marked sense of disbelief about the death, denial or immense difficulty accepting the loss, extreme loneliness, and feeling that life is meaningless. People who are more vulnerable to PGD include women in general as well as people who lost a loved one in a traumatic or unexpected way, lost a child, or have coped with anxiety or depression. Treating PGD may involve a blend of therapies.

In a 2024 study of 900 dementia-free older adults, those who developed mild cognitive impairment had lower levels of life purpose and personal growth years before a diagnosis, compared with those whose thinking skills remained sharp.

Some people find it difficult to meditate, perhaps due to inexperience, stress, or chronic pain. To overcome meditation resistance, it helps to take a meditation class or work with a meditation coach; use a meditation app; meditate in a setting free of interruption; meditate at the same time each day, so it becomes part of a daily routine; and try various meditation styles, such as Transcendental Meditation, mindfulness meditation, or guided meditation, to see which one is most comfortable.

A study published in JAMA in July 2024 found that a blood test was accurate in diagnosing Alzheimer's disease, which causes steep declines in cognition and other aspects of health. The blood test is able to detect elevated blood levels of brain proteins that characterize the condition. While that's progress, doctors say it's not the test needed most. It would be more beneficial, they say, to have a test that accurately spots the developing disease long before it affects thinking. No such tests are here yet, but scientists are working to develop them.