The hottest Mental health Substack posts right now

And their main takeaways
Category
Top Health & Wellness Topics

The New York Fed's New Involuntary Commitment Paper is Methodologically Shaky as Well as Irresponsible

Freddie deBoer • 4610 implied HN points • 30 Jul 25
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Mental health
  1. The study from the New York Fed raises questions about how involuntary hospitalization affects people with mental health issues. It suggests that forcing treatment might lead to worse outcomes, but its methods are flawed.
  2. There are serious concerns about how the study groups were chosen. Many participants were not similarly matched in terms of their mental health, which could affect the results and make the conclusions unreliable.
  3. It's important to be cautious when interpreting the findings. The study only focuses on a specific group of patients and shouldn’t be taken as proof against involuntary treatment for all people with mental illness.

AI Craziness: Additional Suicide Lawsuits and The Fate of GPT-4o

Don't Worry About the Vase • 1568 implied HN points • 14 Nov 25
🕹 Technology Mental health
  1. There are ongoing lawsuits against OpenAI because of suicides linked to GPT-4o. It's crucial that AI doesn't encourage self-harm or suicide in any way.
  2. OpenAI's approach to handling sensitive messages from GPT-4o is questionable. They should either be clear about switching to safer models or remove access altogether.
  3. Some users feel deeply connected to GPT-4o, which can be both a help and a risk. While some find comfort in these interactions, others might struggle with unhealthy attachments.

Cognitive Filters in the Age of Information Overload

The Forgotten Side of Medicine • 4992 implied HN points • 01 Feb 24
🏥 Health & Wellness Mental health
  1. Being able to identify key signals and patterns in a vast amount of data is a vital skill in the modern age.
  2. As humans, our subconscious filters what information is valuable for our conscious mind to notice.
  3. Expanding awareness to perceive a large amount of information without withdrawing can help navigate the overwhelming sea of data.
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Triple Tragedy And Thankful Theory

Astral Codex Ten • 18101 implied HN points • 09 Oct 24
🏥 Health Politics Mental health
  1. Survival-oriented systems focus on making quick decisions to prevent crises, while thriving-oriented systems take more time to explore options. This can cause misunderstandings between them.
  2. Collaboration can improve if both sides appreciate each other's intentions and realize they have different communication styles. Being thankful and confirming good intentions helps.
  3. When urgency rises, space-efficient communication might seem harsh, and time-efficient communication can feel unfocused. Both sides should try to interpret this behavior charitably to work together better.

Letter to Zoomer men

Jeff Giesea • 1177 implied HN points • 07 Jul 24
🎭️ Culture Mental health
  1. Don't give in to feelings of hopelessness or nihilism. There are still opportunities to create a meaningful life.
  2. Although you face unique challenges, your generation has the power to build new systems and institutions for the future.
  3. Stay positive and find joy amidst struggles. Your youth and perspective can lead to big changes down the road.

A Few Big Ideas That Made My Life Better

Vonnik’s Newsletter • 39 implied HN points • 15 Oct 24
🏥 Health & Wellness Mental health
  1. Taking care of your body improves your mood and thoughts. Simple actions like exercising or breathing deeply can boost your energy and change how you see challenges.
  2. Making small changes in your habits is much easier than trying to change everything at once. Starting with tiny steps, like doing one pushup, helps build lasting habits.
  3. Being mindful of distractions and focusing your attention are key to reaching your goals. Managing your environment and your thoughts can help you stay on track.

Your body thinks itself into its shape

The Intrinsic Perspective • 14234 implied HN points • 19 Nov 24
🏥 Health & Wellness Mental health
  1. Nutrition science has been confusing, with mixed messages about what's healthy or unhealthy for years. This shows that even experts struggle to understand basic health questions.
  2. Our bodies might work like complex systems, similar to a neural network, meaning personal health experiences can vary greatly from one person to another. This could explain why people have different reactions to the same foods.
  3. Recent research suggests that our cells can 'remember' past states, such as being overweight, which influences how our bodies respond to changes in diet and lifestyle over time.

Are we looking for the cause of Gen Z anxiety in the wrong place?

Make Work Better • 152 implied HN points • 05 Feb 26
🚌 Education Mental health
  1. Children now get much less independence and free, unsupervised play than past generations, which reduces their chance to learn risk‑taking, decision‑making and a sense that their actions matter.
  2. This loss of autonomy helps explain rising mental‑health problems and economic inactivity among young people, and it predates smartphones so screens aren’t the whole story.
  3. Employers and policymakers should rebuild chances to practice independence — accepting some friction and deliberately training initiative, ambiguity tolerance and responsibility in schools and workplaces.

BREAKING NEWS: Calling all Alberta healthcare workers & practitioners - it's time to take down corrupt & rotten Alberta Health Services, Colleges of Physicians, Surgeons, Nurses, Pharmacists...

COVID Intel - by Dr.William Makis • 4854 implied HN points • 18 Jan 24
🏥 Health Politics Mental health
  1. Dr. William Makis MD is rallying Alberta healthcare workers to take action against corruption within healthcare institutions.
  2. Specifically calling out Alberta Health Services, Colleges of Physicians, Surgeons, Nurses, and Pharmacists.
  3. Dr. Makis MD has a history of battling corruption within Alberta's healthcare system.

Matthew Walker: Promoting Our Sleep Health

Ground Truths • 5074 implied HN points • 14 Jun 25
🏥 Health & Wellness Mental health
  1. Sleep is essential for our well-being, just like food, air, and water. It helps us stay healthy and even affects our social interactions; being tired can make us feel lonely or less likable.
  2. Quality of sleep matters just as much as quantity. Good sleep means not just clocking hours but also having uninterrupted and restful nights.
  3. New sleep medications are being developed that may enhance sleep quality without the downsides of older drugs. These could potentially lead to better brain health and help clear waste from the brain.

Arthur Brooks: Do GLP-1s Make Us Happy?

Common Sense with Bari Weiss • 370 implied HN points • 16 Jan 26
🏥 Health & Wellness Mental health
  1. Drugs like GLP-1s and other quick fixes can improve health or mood for some people, but the evidence is mixed and some users experience worse mental-health symptoms.
  2. Cosmetic procedures often raise self-esteem in the short term, yet those benefits can fade and may harm people with body‑dysmorphic tendencies.
  3. Changing your appearance won’t automatically create self‑love — real and lasting well‑being usually requires inner work and ongoing effort.

Why are young liberals so depressed?

Slow Boring • 8117 implied HN points • 01 Mar 23
🏥 Health & Wellness Mental health
  1. The mental health of young liberals is influenced by a mix of factors including social media, politics, and societal issues.
  2. Political ideology plays a role in the mental health of adolescents, with liberal girls showing higher levels of depression.
  3. Encouraging positive emotional responses and avoiding catastrophizing can be beneficial for mental health.

An Invitation to Think Differently About Addiction Treatment

Culture Study • 3347 implied HN points • 10 Aug 25
🏥 Health & Wellness Mental health
  1. Harm reduction is essential for helping people with addiction. It means meeting people where they are and supporting their decisions rather than judging them.
  2. Many healthcare professionals don't learn enough about addiction treatment in medical school. This lack of education can lead to stigma and inadequate care for those struggling with addiction.
  3. Dr. Marie Nyswander made significant contributions to addiction medicine but is often overlooked. Her work on methadone showed that there are effective ways to treat addiction beyond just abstinence.

The Psychopolitics Of Trauma

Astral Codex Ten • 32348 implied HN points • 25 Jan 24
🏥 Health & Wellness Mental health
  1. Politics can affect people's brains and behaviors in ways that resemble mental disorders.
  2. Experiences related to politics can potentially be viewed through the lens of trauma.
  3. Political hyperpartisanship may be a form of trauma addiction, affecting how individuals perceive and react to political stimuli.

When I find myself in times of trouble, mother math comes to me

The Intrinsic Perspective • 9701 implied HN points • 30 Jan 25
📖 Philosophy Mental health
  1. Life has ups and downs, and problems often come in clusters. It's normal to feel overwhelmed when things go wrong.
  2. When you're at a low point, remember that life is like a rollercoaster with many twists and turns. Things often improve after tough times.
  3. Statistically, when you feel at your worst, it might actually be the moment before things start to get better. Hang in there!

Hope for a Durable Remission

Parents with Inconvenient Truths about Trans (PITT) • 3832 implied HN points • 09 Feb 24
🏥 Health & Wellness Mental health
  1. The importance of finding hope and strength in situations of enduring challenges, such as coping with a cancer diagnosis or supporting a child through difficult times.
  2. The ongoing journey of healing involves balancing the knowledge gained from experiences with actively working towards personal healing and self-care.
  3. The significance of continuing to support others going through similar challenges while also focusing on one's own well-being by engaging in activities that bring comfort and peace.

Who Else Is Feeling This In Their Body

Culture Study • 9438 implied HN points • 12 Feb 25
🎭️ Culture Mental health
  1. It's important to take your own feelings seriously, as well as the feelings of others. We often avoid acknowledging our true emotions.
  2. Resilience can mean carrying a lot of emotional and physical weight without realizing it. We need to recognize how it affects our bodies.
  3. Sometimes we create excuses for our struggles instead of facing them. Understanding what we feel can help us cope better.

People with Serious Mental Illness Say Racist and Bigoted Shit All the Time

Freddie deBoer • 13211 implied HN points • 12 Nov 24
🏥 Health Politics Mental health
  1. People with serious mental illnesses can sometimes express racist or bigoted thoughts, which challenges the common belief that mental illness doesn't influence behavior. It's important to recognize that mental health conditions can distort thinking and actions.
  2. Acknowledging the complex relationship between mental illness and behavior is essential. People should not dismiss bad behavior outright but consider the person's mental health struggles and how those may impact their actions.
  3. There’s a cultural tendency to oversimplify mental illness, leading to misunderstandings. It's vital to accept that being mentally ill doesn't exempt someone from responsibility for their actions, but it can complicate how we view those actions.

Northwestern University urged to apologize for “unjust treatment” of Jane Ying Wu

Pekingnology • 105 implied HN points • 22 Feb 26
📰 News Mental health
  1. Northwestern is accused of punishing Jane Ying Wu by limiting her work, shutting her lab, reassigning her grants, cutting her pay, and having police remove and involuntarily commit her; her estate says these actions helped lead to her taking her life and is suing the university.
  2. More than 1,000 academics from over 300 institutions, including prominent scholars, signed a letter urging Northwestern to publicly acknowledge the harm and apologize for its treatment of Wu.
  3. The allegations stem from an NIH investigation tied to the broader "China Initiative" that produced no charges, and Northwestern vehemently denies wrongdoing and has moved to dismiss the lawsuit.

Coping Strategies

The Audacity. • 7567 implied HN points • 07 Sep 23
🏥 Health & Wellness Mental health
  1. Organizing can be a satisfying way to cope with writer's block.
  2. Taking up a hobby like baking during work breaks can help with productivity.
  3. Managing emails can be both efficient and anxiety-inducing for a writer.

Wet Legs At 5AM

Everything Is Amazing • 1221 implied HN points • 09 Nov 25
🏥 Health & Wellness Mental health
  1. Going back to school as an adult can be tough, especially sitting in class with much younger students. It feels awkward but can also lead to funny experiences and stories.
  2. Waking up really early and facing unexpected challenges, like wet jeans, can lead to wild and uncomfortable moments. Sometimes, these tough situations turn into memorable adventures.
  3. Sleep can be influenced by many factors, including comfort and safety. It’s interesting to think about how different environments affect our ability to rest well.

Indulge Your Internet Addiction By Reading About Internet Addiction

Astral Codex Ten • 11769 implied HN points • 06 Dec 24
🎭️ Culture Mental health
  1. Many people consider themselves addicted to the internet, and the more time they spend online, the more likely they are to perceive their usage as an addiction. On average, self-reported addicts spend more time online each day.
  2. There is a negative link between internet addiction and life satisfaction. Those who consider themselves more addicted tend to report lower happiness levels.
  3. Parents who restrict their children's internet use when they are young may help reduce the chance of their kids becoming internet addicts as adults. This suggests that early internet habits can influence future behaviors.

'That's just a conspiracy theory'

Disaffected Newsletter • 2338 implied HN points • 28 Mar 24
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Mental health
  1. It's common to dismiss conspiracy theories out of fear and emotional investment in our beliefs. This can make people react angrily when others challenge those ideas.
  2. Many people find that as they grow older, they start to question everything they thought they knew, including their political beliefs and the nature of truth.
  3. In today's world, it’s easy to feel uncertain and fearful due to the unpredictable nature of government actions, making it reasonable to consider alternative explanations for events instead of just accepting official narratives.

Nobody Has a Personality Anymore

Common Sense with Bari Weiss • 3621 implied HN points • 15 Jul 25
🎭️ Culture Mental health
  1. We now label many personality traits as disorders, which changes how we view ourselves and others. Instead of seeing traits as part of being human, we see them as problems.
  2. People are losing the way we describe and understand ourselves. Instead of saying someone is charmingly forgetful, we call it ADHD, stripping away unique identities.
  3. There's a growing trend to explain everything about ourselves scientifically or psychologically, which is making us lose the mystery and romance of being human.

do i secretly love all the things i hate?

Both Are True • 183 implied HN points • 30 Jan 26
🏥 Health & Wellness Mental health
  1. If a painful pattern keeps happening, that having can be evidence that some part of you secretly wants it; admitting that possibility opens a new way to understand your behavior.
  2. Deliberately trying on the idea that you might like the things you hate (existential kink) can turn shame into curiosity and play, making those feelings less powerful.
  3. Noticing that fear can feel like excitement and that you may enjoy roles like being a failure loosens self-judgment and lets you respond from choice instead of shame.

A Surprising Fix for Weight Gain, Digestive Woes & Skeletal Pain

Are You Okay? • 3095 implied HN points • 19 Feb 24
🏥 Health & Wellness Mental health
  1. Self-compassion is a crucial element for overall health, often more important than medication for certain symptoms.
  2. Non-pharmacologic interventions are commonly prescribed alongside medications to address complex health problems like weight gain, insomnia, and chronic pain.
  3. Self-compassion, forgiveness, and love for oneself can be the most effective remedies for inner struggles and health issues, often more powerful than medication.

ScienceVs: Trans Kids Health Care: Are We Getting It Wrong? (II)

Carolina Curmudgeon • 39 implied HN points • 12 Oct 24
🏥 Health Politics Mental health
  1. The podcast only featured experts who support gender-affirming care, not those who might question its effectiveness. This creates a one-sided view of a complicated issue.
  2. The discussion did not challenge any ideas about gender identity or question the idea that being trans is just as normal as being cisgender. This could limit understanding of the topic.
  3. A study noted that using a preferred name can significantly reduce suicidal thoughts in gender dysphoric kids. However, instead of pushing for medical treatments, maybe simple name changes and support could be a better first step.

Why I Despair

Disaffected Newsletter • 3397 implied HN points • 02 Feb 24
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Mental health
  1. Many people have strong beliefs about issues like immigration and health that seem crazy or bigoted to others. This creates a deep divide with real consequences for individuals and communities.
  2. There's a feeling of despair because even reasonable objections to these beliefs are not recognized. People feel isolated and powerless when their concerns are dismissed.
  3. The writer reflects on their own past beliefs and recognizes that those on the other side are not inherently evil or stupid. Understanding this helps to cope with the despair about the current state of society.

Three years in: a clinician’s perspective

Parents with Inconvenient Truths about Trans (PITT) • 3282 implied HN points • 05 Feb 24
🏥 Health & Wellness Mental health
  1. Working with young people going through gender transition can be challenging due to their strong beliefs and reactions.
  2. Therapists also need to navigate the emotions and expectations of parents who seek help for their children's gender dysphoria.
  3. Clinicians working with transgender youth face unique pressures in a professional and political climate that may not always support their ethical principles.

Strong Public Support To Restrict Social Media for Children in Germany

After Babel • 625 implied HN points • 16 Dec 25
🚌 Education Mental health
  1. A large majority of adults favor a minimum social media age of 16, and many adolescents—especially 16–17 year olds—also support restricting younger teens despite near-universal daily use.
  2. Both adults and teenagers report strong concerns that social media harms young people’s mental and physical health, attention, and school performance, while only information gathering is seen as a clear benefit.
  3. Adults are much more negative about social media overall than adolescents and many would prefer a world without it, implying that policies like a 16+ age minimum would have broad public support.

My Art of Accomplishment Retreat

Erik Torenberg's Thoughts • 468 implied HN points • 23 Dec 25
🏥 Health & Wellness Mental health
  1. Change happens by feeling and moving emotions, not by blocking them; noticing and questioning the inner critic as separate from you weakens its power.
  2. Avoiding painful feelings makes you recreate the same problems and becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy; inviting fear or shame in and feeling it through lets the pattern stop.
  3. Long-term change comes from self-compassion, speaking your truth, and clear boundaries rather than shame or pure willpower, and regular practice plus community support makes progress durable.