Why are so many adults cutting off their parents in the US? Really!

Is this just a catchy news headline or is it real? How much is it different from the past?

What is a harm? How much have so called therapists do with it?

About 10% of adults does not seem to be very high. 

Notice also the use of the controversial term "tipping point" here.

How permanent are these estrangements? Many are probably only temporary (several weeks/months/years)!

"Many experts believe that estrangements between adult children and their parents are becoming an epidemic in the U.S., just like divorce in the 1970s. Though recent statistics are hard to come by, there are signs that a shift is under way. Columnist Elizabeth Bernstein explores the factors that psychologists, sociologists and other experts believe are driving it, from social-media algorithms to changing therapeutic approaches and a broadening definition of trauma."

"Family estrangement is on the rise across the U.S., with roughly 10% of adults estranged from a parent or child and up to 25% to 38% estranged from a close relative.

Driving Factors and Cultural Shifts
Expanded definitions of harm: Young adults are increasingly utilizing mental health terminology to identify emotional neglect, toxic behaviors, and abuse, feeling less bound by the traditional notion that "family is family".

The role of therapy culture: Modern therapy often encourages boundary-setting, self-care, and empowerment. While ethical therapists emphasize that they do not explicitly tell clients to cut off family, 33% of surveyed estranged parents blame therapists and "therapy speak" for influencing their children to sever ties rather than pursue repair.

Diverging perspectives: Parents often point to external catalysts—such as a therapist, a new marriage, or a bitter divorce—while adult children typically cite long-standing patterns of hurtful behavior and a lack of parental accountability.

Social media influence: Platforms amplify open discussions on toxic family dynamics, offering community support for estrangement as well as a counter-movement of estranged parents speaking out." (Google Search)

The Wall Street Journal What's news

Why Are So Many Adults Cutting Off Their Parents? "Family estrangement is on the rise, driven by shifting family norms and changing therapy practices. ‘We’re at a cultural tipping point. [???]’"

Author Elizabeth Bernstein around 2024 (Source)

Barriers to Help-Seeking Among Male Victims of Female-Perpetrated Intimate Partner Violence

One of those  taboo subjects!

Why they so often like to call the victims of intimate partner violence "survivors" is a riddle to me! It is a misnomer that conjures up extreme violence and drama when in fact the violence is often far from being deadly!

This a very old, well known problem dates back several decades! Yes, men who suffered from violent female partner do not necessarily seek help.

On the other hand, how often does it happen? How many men are affected? Unless the number of unreported cases is large, we are dealing here probably with a almost negligible number. I seriously doubt the 44% of men figure reported by the CDC (see below). What is the definition of violence? The definition given in the article below is clearly too broad and therefore rather meaningless!

"Men are less likely than women to seek help after experiencing intimate partner violence, and new research from George Mason University found that the main barriers include viewing it as a private matter, fear of retaliation, shame, and concerns about not being believed. ...

This study is among the first large-scale (nearly 1,200 men) U.S. studies to compare help-seeking barriers among non-Latino Black, Latino, and non-Latino White male victims of intimate partner violence.  ...

According to the Centers for Disease Control, 44% of men report being victims of IPV, but many of these men are not receiving support ..."

From the abstract:

"This study examined barriers to help-seeking among male victims of intimate partner violence perpetrated by female partners, comparing differences across non-Latino Black, Latino, and non-Latino White men in the United States.

Using a sample of 1,194 men recruited through the online panel Centiment, this study assessed the prevalence of specific barriers to help-seeking and examined differences across racial/ethnic groups.

Data were collected through a structured survey with an additional open-ended item to capture barriers not reflected in the checklist. Results indicated that men across all racial/ethnic groups reported similar core barriers to help-seeking, including viewing intimate partner violence as a private matter, fear of retaliation, shame, and concerns about not being believed; however, the pattern of barrier endorsement varied by group.

Latino men were significantly more likely than both Black and White men to report difficulty knowing how to disclose their experiences and were more likely than White men to report language- and immigration-related barriers.

In contrast, Black men were less likely than Latino and White men to report concerns about bias or disbelief, a pattern that warrants cautious interpretation given broader historical and structural contexts.

White men, meanwhile, were more likely than Latino men to report difficulty recognizing or labeling their experiences as abuse.

Together, these findings highlight the need for culturally responsive, gender-inclusive interventions that address stigma, structural barriers, and institutional biases shaping men’s help-seeking and service engagement following intimate partner violence victimization."

"... Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a critical public health issue that transcends geographic, cultural, and socioeconomic boundaries, affecting individuals worldwide ... Defined as any form of physical, sexual, emotional, or psychological harm inflicted by a current or former intimate partner, IPV encompasses a spectrum of abusive behaviors within intimate relationships ...

Over the past few decades, research has confirmed that men experience IPV at substantial rates, with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) reporting that approximately 44.2% of men and 47.3% of women experience contact sexual violence, physical violence, and/or stalking by an intimate partner in their lifetime ..."

Shame, stigma, and culture prevent male intimate partner violence survivors from seeking help, study finds | George Mason University "George Mason University researchers found that barriers to help-seeking vary across racial and ethnic groups, highlighting gaps in support for male survivors."

Barriers to Help-Seeking Among Male Victims of Female-Perpetrated Intimate Partner Violence: Insights From Black, Latino, and White Men (open access)

More young people are looking frequently to AI chatbots for mental health help and many do not disclose it

Good news! What about older adults?

"... a new study finds one in five young people, about 8 million, lean on chatbots for mental health advice. ...

Nearly 1 in 5 adolescents and young adults reported using ChatGPT, Meta AI, Character.AI or other chatbots for mental health help when they were feeling stressed, angry or sad. That’s an estimated 8 million individuals, researchers report June 1 in JAMA Pediatrics.

Using a similar survey, the same research team had found in 2024 that 1 in 8 young people sought this advice from chatbots, which are not regulated or licensed for mental health treatment. ...

Suicide is a leading cause of death among children, adolescents and young adults. ..."

From the keypoints and abstract:

"Key Points

Questions  As of 2025, what percentage of US adolescents and young adults aged 12 to 21 years used artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots for mental health advice, and among those who use AI chatbots for this purpose, to what extent did they tell others?

Findings

This national survey including more than 42 million US youth (population-weighted) found that almost a fifth of adolescents and young adults reported using AI chatbots for mental health advice, representing an increase by almost half from 1 year prior. Most users told no one that they used AI chatbots for this purpose.

Meaning

AI chatbots are widely used by adolescents and young adults for emotional and psychological support, underscoring the urgent need for parents, clinicians, and policymakers to understand their evolving role in youth mental health care.

Abstract

Importance

The rapid expansion of artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots has coincided with a persistent youth mental health crisis in the US, raising a question about the extent to which young people are turning to this technology for mental health advice.

Objective

To assess the prevalence, frequency, perceived helpfulness, and disclosure of AI chatbot use for mental health advice among US adolescents and young adults in 2025.

Design, Setting, and Participants

This cross-sectional, nationally representative survey was conducted with adolescents and young adults aged 12 to 21 years in November 2025.

Exposures

Exposures included self-reported age, sex, race and ethnicity, census region, metropolitan status, and prior discussion with a clinician about mental health in the past 6 months.

Main Outcomes and Measures

Self-reported use of AI chatbots for mental health advice, including any prior use, frequency of use, perceived helpfulness of responses, and disclosure of use to others. Respondents were also asked whether they had spoken with a physician about their mental health in the prior 6 months. Using multivariable logistic regression analysis, variation in responses was assessed according to respondents’ demographic and geographic characteristics.

Results

Among a US population-weighted 42 825 655 youth (unweighted, 1009 youth; median [IQR] age, 17 [15-18] years; population-weighted 21 410 663 male [50.0%]), 19.2% of adolescents and young adults (population-weighted n = 8 207 180) in 2025 reported having used AI chatbots for mental health advice. Among those who sought advice from AI chatbots, 42.8% did so at least monthly, and 91.7% rated the advice as somewhat or very helpful.

Most adolescents reported they had not disclosed AI chatbot use for mental health advice to anyone (63.3%).

Use of an AI chatbot for mental health advice was more common among females compared with males (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 2.10; 95% CI, 1.36-3.23), respondents aged 18 to 21 years compared with respondents aged 12 to 14 years (aOR, 3.65; 95% CI, 1.98-6.74), and those who had spoken with a physician about their mental health in the prior 6 months compared with those who had not (aOR, 1.89; 95% CI, 1.18-3.03).

Conclusions and Relevance 

In this nationally representative survey study of US adolescents and young adults, a fifth reported using AI chatbots for mental health advice. AI chatbots are already embedded in many youths’ mental health information ecosystem, underscoring the need for parents and clinicians to proactively discuss chatbot use to promote safety, appropriate expectations, and linkages to evidence-based care."

More young people are looking to AI chatbots for mental health help

AI Chatbot Use and Disclosure for Mental Health Among US Adolescents and Young Adults (open access)

Credits: The Flyover

Dating apps are wearing users down with classic burnout symptoms

Dating made too easy? 😊 Getting worse from date to date!

"Dating apps are wearing users down with classic burnout symptoms, according to a study tracking hundreds over three months. The effect hits hardest on those already struggling with mental health."

"...  Studies link dating apps to higher rates of depression, anxiety and loneliness, with heavier costs on people who were already struggling beforehand. ...

A 2024 study followed hundreds of dating apps users over the course of three months. "We ended up finding over time, people using dating apps were experiencing burnout across the board," ... Which makes sense. If you're stuck on the app, you haven't found what you're looking for (unless you just want hookups). But the experience was far more severe than frustration. ..."

From the highlights and abstract:

"Highlights

• Research on the mental health and well-being outcomes of dating app use has increased steadily over the past 17 years.

• Meta-analytic findings suggested a modest link, although cross-sectional design limitations prevent causal interpretation.

• Moderator analyses did not show consistent subgroup differences, showing inconclusive evidence for demographic variation.

Abstract

This pre-registered study reports the results of a systematic review and quantitative meta-analysis of the clinical (e.g., psychological health and well-being) outcomes of dating app use.

We conducted a keyword search of the literature for studies published between 2007 and 2024 using seven databases in communication, psychology, and the biomedical and life sciences.

Our sample included 23 studies (N = 26,068) and captured the period of time since dating apps were first brought to market to the present.

We found that dating app users reported significantly worse psychological health and well-being (i.e., depression, anxiety, affective dysregulation, loneliness, and psychological distress) than dating app non-users.

We also performed a subgroup analysis to explore the significant heterogeneity across studies. The effect of dating app use versus non-use on psychological health and well-being differed by platform type, relationship status, sexual orientation, and cultural context, but these differences were not significant. Overall, our synthesis of 17 years of research coheres with prior trends and underscores the need for targeted interventions to improve the outcomes of dating app users." 

Thursday, May 28, 2026 - Join The Flyover

Are you stuck in the dating app burnout cycle? "Download, burnout, delete, repeat. Science says dating app users follow a predictable and dangerous pattern. These are the signs you're falling for it – and how to escape."

Dating app use, psychological health, and psychological well-being: A systematic review and quantitative meta-analysis (no public access)

Son Arrested in stabbing Murder of Rob Reiner and his Wife

Why was their son (age 32) ever homeless? For how long was the son homeless, for years? What parents would allow this to happen to their child?

Of course, there is no excuse for the murder of one's parents!

According to Google search: "The estimated net worth for the late Rob Reiner was approximately $200 million at the time of his death in December 2025."

"Their son Nick Reiner, 32, who struggled with drug addiction and homelessness for years, was arrested and charged with murder and is being held without bail after allegedly attacking his parents during a heated argument. ..."

Tuesday, December 16, 2025 - Join The Flyover

Father and son at arms length (Source)

Putin the Terrible divorced since 2014

He was married for 31 years to Lyudmila Aleksandrovna Ocheretnaya. Is this maybe the reason why he started a war against the Ukraine three years ago?

Did this divorce mess the the now 73 years old man up?

In 2016 "Putin’s ex-wife marries man 21 years her junior, report says"

How tall is Putin the Terrible? Just 1.70 meter.

Move Over FOMO, FOFO Is the New Internet Epidemic: What does it mean? with Palki Sharma

Fear not! 😊 What about fear of fear itself (phobophobia)? Or better "nothing to fear but fear itself" (famous quote from Franklin D. Roosevelt 1933).

The science of defiance

Ever heard of this science? It is not about compliance. It is not for sycophants.

Caveat: I did not read the article.

The science of defiance: A psychology researcher explains why people comply – and how to resist

Spouses tend to share same psychiatric disorders across three countries and generations

Birds of a feather flock together. Do these spouses help each other? Is it beneficial?

"Spouses tend to share psychiatric disorders, per a massive study in Nature Human Behaviour of ~15 million people in Taiwan, Denmark, and Sweden that shows the trend increases with each decade, across cultures, and generation."

"People with a psychiatric disorder are more likely to marry someone who has the same condition than to partner with someone who doesn’t, according to a massive study suggesting that the pattern persists across cultures and generations.

Researchers had previously noted this trend in Nordic countries, but the phenomenon has seldom been investigated outside Europe. ..."

From the abstract:

"Trait similarities between spouses are a key factor that shapes the landscape of complex human traits. The driving force behind the spousal correlations can increase the overall prevalence of disorders, influence occurrences of comorbidities and bias estimations of genetic architectures. However, there is a lack of large-scale studies examining cultural differences and generational trends in spousal correlations for psychiatric disorders.

Focusing on three national registries, we performed a large-scale analysis on spousal correlations across nine psychiatric disorders. We obtained the trait correlations from five million spousal pairs in Taiwan and then compared them with estimates from the Danish national registry (571,534 pairs) and with published results from the Swedish national registry (707,263 pairs). Generational changes in Taiwan for people born after the 1930s were investigated as well. We found that a majority of psychiatric disorders have consistent spousal correlations across nations and over generations, indicating their importance in the population dynamics of psychiatric disorders."

Global Health NOW: Foundering CDC Awash in Troubles; How Displacement Erodes Global Health Security; and When Fear Goes Viral

Spouses tend to share psychiatric disorders, massive study finds "Analysis of almost 15 million people shows the trend increases with each decade, across cultures and generations."

Spousal correlations for nine psychiatric disorders are consistent across cultures and persistent over generations (no public access)

Assortative mating across nine psychiatric disorders is consistent and persistent over cultures and generations (preprint, public access)

Fig. 1 Spousal correlations across nine psychiatric disorders, estimates from Taiwan versus those from Nordic countries (Denmark and Sweden).

Singing to (fussy) Babies Improves Their Moods. What about parents moods?

Sing more, feel better! When science confirms the obvious!

Strangely, this study finds "but not to caregiver mood"??? This seems to be highly odd and could be a sign of a flawed study approach.

"Around the world and across cultures, singing to babies seems to come instinctively to caregivers. Now, new findings support that singing is an easy, safe, and free way to help improve the mental well-being of infants. Because improved mood in infancy is associated with a greater quality of life for both parents and babies, this in turn has benefits for the health of the entire family, the researchers say. The study also helps explain why musical behaviors may have evolved in parents. ...

Not only did the parents sing more frequently, but they also chose to use music especially in one context in particular: calming their infants when they were fussy. ..."

From the abstract:

"Music appears universally in human infancy with self-evident effects: as many parents know intuitively, infants love to be sung to. The long-term effects of parental singing remain unclear, however.

In an offset-design exploratory 10-week randomized trial conducted in 2023 (110 families of young infants, Mage = 3.67 months, 53% female, 73% White), the study manipulated the frequency of infant-directed singing via a music enrichment intervention. Results, measured by smartphone-based ecological momentary assessment (EMA), show that infant-directed singing causes general post-intervention improvements to infant mood, but not to caregiver mood. The findings show the feasibility of longitudinal EMA (retention: 92%; EMA response rate: 74%) of infants and the potential of longer-term and higher-intensity music enrichment interventions to improve health in infancy."

Singing to Babies Improves Their Moods < Yale School of Medicine "A new study highlights how singing is a simple yet effective way to support infant well-being."

Ecological Momentary Assessment Reveals Causal Effects of Music Enrichment on Infant Mood (open access)

Will the little kid become the next Whitney Houston or Michael Jackson?

How to take yourself less seriously

Common, seriously! Don't kid yourself! This joke was on me! 😊

Unfortunately, the article does not explain the difference between self-deprecating humor and self-flagellation. I suppose, an elite university like Harvard assumes you already know.

"There are many categories of humor. Self-deprecating humor is its own category. ...

[the author of the article] use laughter and humor when treating people struggling with depression and anxiety. Self-deprecating humor can be useful in a clinical setting. ...

it is taking yourself, or the situation that you’re in, less seriously. People who tend to use self-deprecating humor effectively are quite humble and self-aware. These are people who see themselves for who they are, for better or worse, and they have come to accept that. ...

It’s interesting to note that self-deprecating humor tends to be more common in individualistic cultures, while collective cultures often make fun of others. Western cultures put more emphasis on relatability and approachability; being able to have people relate to you by signaling flaws and vulnerabilities sends the message that everybody has struggles and we are all in this together. Cultures that are more collective tend to poke fun at one another because there’s a different sense of community. ..."

How to take yourself less seriously — Harvard Gazette "Clinical psychologist draws line between self-deprecating humor (with its health, social benefits) and self-flagellatio."

Are You Talking to AI More Than Real People? Are AI companions making us lonelier? with Palki Sharma

Were not similar, exaggerated claims made or concerns raised when TV sets first became cheaper and more widely available to the general public? Oh, yes!

For many, childhood adversity can promote resilience to anxiety disorders

I believe this has been known for decades!

"... According to the study, published March 5 in the journal Communications Psychology, experiencing low-to-moderate levels of adversity during middle childhood (between the ages of 6 and 12) and adolescence may foster resilience to anxiety later in life. 

The researchers found that those individuals who developed resilience to mental health challenges exhibited distinct patterns of brain activation when asked to differentiate between danger and safety, a process that is known to be disrupted in people with anxiety disorders. ..."

From the abstract:

"Parsing heterogeneity in the nature of adversity exposure and neurobiological functioning may facilitate better understanding of how adversity shapes individual variation in risk for and resilience against anxiety. One putative mechanism linking adversity exposure with anxiety is disrupted threat and safety learning. Here, we applied a person-centered approach (latent profile analysis) to characterize patterns of adversity exposure at specific developmental stages and threat/safety discrimination in corticolimbic circuitry in 120 young adults.

We then compared how the resultant profiles differed in anxiety symptoms. Three latent profiles emerged:

(1) a group with lower lifetime adversity, higher neural activation to threat, and lower neural activation to safety;

(2) a group with moderate adversity during middle childhood and adolescence, lower neural activation to threat, and higher neural activation to safety; and

(3) a group with higher lifetime adversity exposure and minimal neural activation to both threat and safety.

Individuals in the second profile had lower anxiety than the other profiles. These findings demonstrate how variability in within-person combinations of adversity exposure and neural threat/safety discrimination can differentially relate to anxiety, and suggest that for some individuals, moderate adversity exposure during middle childhood and adolescence could be associated with processes that foster resilience to future anxiety."

For some [many], childhood adversity can promote resilience to anxiety disorders | Yale News "In a new study, Yale psychologists discover a link between childhood adversity, neurodevelopment, and resilience to anxiety as an adult — but timing matters."

Person-centered analyses reveal that developmental adversity at moderate levels and neural threat/safety discrimination are associated with lower anxiety in early adulthood (open access)

Fig. 3: Differences between latent profiles (n = 14 in profile 1; n = 66 in profile 2; n = 40 in profile 3) in neural activation are presented.

Why do we remember dreams? It's complicated!

I rarely remember dreams and only for a very short period of time!

This study is about Italian dreamers (study participants)! Dolce vita dreams? 😊

Sleep tight, dream less! 😊 The mystery of dreaming continues ...

"... Our ability to remember dreams upon waking is called dream recall. But the factors that influence this ability are little understood. Now, new research led by the IMT School for Advanced Studies Lucca, in Italy, reveals that both individual characteristics and external factors are important. ...

From 2020 to 2024, the team engaged more than 200 participants across a wide age range (18 to 70). Each participant was given a voice recorder and instructed to verbally record their dreams immediately upon waking. They did this every day for 15 days, reporting whether or not they remembered dreaming, if they remembered anything about the experience, and if so, what occurred during the dream. ..."

"... We found that morning dream reports were predicted by attitude towards dreaming, proneness to mind wandering, and long light sleep ...

Contrary to previous research we did not find significant effects of age and sex on dream recall (i.e., higher recall in younger individuals and female individuals). However, we noted a significant relationship between sex and attitude towards dreaming, with the latter being higher in female volunteers  ..."

From the abstract:

"Evidence suggests that (almost) everyone dreams during their sleep and may actually do so for a large part of the night. Yet, dream recall shows large interindividual variability.

Understanding the factors that influence dream recall is crucial for advancing our knowledge regarding dreams’ origin, significance, and functions. Here, we tackled this issue by prospectively collecting dream reports along with demographic information and psychometric, cognitive, actigraphic, and electroencephalographic measures in 217 healthy adults (18–70 y, 116 female participants, 101 male participants).

We found that attitude towards dreaming, proneness to mind wandering, and sleep patterns are associated with the probability of reporting a dream upon morning awakening. The likelihood of recalling dream content was predicted by age and vulnerability to interference.

Moreover, dream recall appeared to be influenced by night-by-night changes in sleep patterns and showed seasonal fluctuations. Our results provide an account for previous observations regarding inter- and intra-individual variability in morning dream recall."

Why do we remember dreams?

The individual determinants of morning dream recall (open access)

Fig. 1: Description of the experimental protocol and collected data.

Breaking negative thought patterns could ward off anxiety, depression

This has probably been said many times over during the last 50 years or more! It can not be stated enough!

Break the cycle by changing your life to something meaningful and fulfilling!

Bobby McFerrin - Don't Worry Be Happy (Official Music Video) Dance your troubles away! Or try being natural high! 😊

Caveat: I did not read the article!

Breaking negative thought patterns could ward off anxiety, depression "Newer mental health therapies focus more on how people think than what they’re thinking about"

Carl Jung and the Journey of Self-Discovery

Recommendable!

Toddlers understand concept of possibility

Quite possibly, toddlers are much smarter than we think! 😊

"... The findings, the first to demonstrate that young children distinguish between improbable and impossible events, and learn significantly better after impossible occurrences, are newly published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. ...

Improbable events might be surprising, but they don't necessarily need any explanation. Impossible events require kids to reevaluate what they thought they knew. ..."

From the abstract:

"From infancy, children show heightened interest in events that are impossible or improbable, relative to likely events. Do young children represent impossible and improbable events as points on a continuum of possibility, or do they instead treat them as categorically distinct? Here, we compared 2- and 3-y-old children’s learning (N = 335) following nearly identical events that were equi-probable, improbable, or impossible. We found that children learned significantly better following impossible than possible events, no matter how unlikely. We conclude that young children distinguish between the impossible and the merely improbable."

Toddlers understand concept of possibility | Hub "Children too young to know words like "impossible" and "improbable" nonetheless understand how possibility works, finds new work with 2- and 3-year-olds"

Young children distinguish the impossible from the merely improbable (open access)

Percent of children correctly identifying the Type B object when asked for the blick in the Equi-Probable, Improbable, and Impossible conditions. X-axis indicates probability of drawing a Type B object across conditions.

Mindfulness training may lead to altered states of consciousness, study finds

The mind is a terrible thing to waste! 😊

How much is e.g. the placebo effect due to mindfulness?

Unfortunately, this study was conducted with university students instead of a cross-section of regular adults.

"... Mindfulness-based programmes have become very popular in recent years. According to recent surveys, 15% of adults in the UK have learnt some form of mindfulness. They are often practised as a way of reducing stress or coping with depression and anxiety. There is anecdotal evidence that practising mindfulness can lead to alterations of the senses, self, and body boundaries, some even similar to those induced by psychotropic drugs.
From September 2015 to January 2016, the University of Cambridge conducted a randomised controlled trial to assess the effectiveness of mindfulness training as a way of coping with the stress of examinations and found that it can help support students at risk of mental health problems. ...

The team behind the trial followed up with participants a year later to investigate whether they had experienced any of the altered states of consciousness being reported anecdotally. The results are published today [7/17/2024] in PLOS ONE.

Participants were asked to complete a questionnaire that explored 11 ‘dimensions’ such as: spiritual experience; blissful state; disembodiment; and unity. In experiences of unity there is a sense that borders dissolve and everything, sometimes including the sense of time, is perceived in an integrated way. Disembodiment experiences often consist of a floating sensation or a dissolution of body boundaries, which may facilitate strong unity experiences.

In total, 670 participants took part in the randomised trial. Around a third each from the mindfulness trial and the control arm went on to complete the questionnaire about experiences of altered states of consciousness.

The researchers found that people who had received the mindfulness training were twice as likely as those in the control group to experience unity and disembodiment. ..."

From the abstract:
"Abstract

Background

Mindfulness-based programmes (MBPs) have shown beneficial effects on mental health. There is emerging evidence that MBPs may also be associated with marked deviations in the subjective experience of waking consciousness. We aimed to explore whether MBPs can have a causal role in different types of such states.

Methods

We conducted a pragmatic randomised controlled trial (ACTRN12615001160527). University of Cambridge students without severe mental illness were randomised to an 8-week MBP plus mental health support as usual (SAU), or to SAU alone. We adapted the Altered States of Consciousness Rating Scale (OAV, 0–100-point range) to assess spontaneous experiences in daily life, and included it as a post-hoc secondary outcome at the end of the one-year follow-up questionnaire. Two-part model analyses compared trial arms, and estimated dose-response effects of formal (meditation) and informal (daily activities) mindfulness practice during the year. Sensitivity analyses correcting for multiple comparisons were conducted.

Results

We randomised 670 participants; 205 (33%) completed the OAV. In comparison with SAU, MBP participants experienced unity more frequently and intensively (two-part marginal effect (ME) = 6.26 OAV scale points, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 2.24, 10.27, p = 0.006, Cohen’s d = 0.33) and disembodiment more frequently (ME = 4.84, 95% CI = 0.86, 8.83, p = 0.019, Cohen’s d = 0.26). Formal practice predicted spiritual, blissful and unity experiences, insightfulness, disembodiment, and changed meanings. Informal practice predicted unity and blissful experiences. Trial arm comparisons and informal practice effects lost significance after corrections for multiple comparisons, but formal practice dose-response effects remained significant.

Conclusions

Results provide a novel suggestion of causal links between mindfulness practice and specific altered states of consciousness. To optimise their impact, practitioners and teachers need to anticipate and handle them appropriately. Future studies need to confirm findings and assess mechanisms and clinical implications."

Mindfulness training may lead to altered states of consciousness, study finds | University of Cambridge Mindfulness training may lead participants to experience disembodiment and unity – so-called altered states of consciousness – according to a new study from researchers at the University of Cambridge.

Altered states of consciousness caused by a mindfulness-based programme up to a year later: Results from a randomised controlled trial (open access)

Chilling out rather than blowing off steam is a better way to manage anger − new review of 154 studies reveals what works. Really!

Just don't get angry is even better! Stay cool as much as is possible! Relax!

Most of the times it is not even worth getting angry and jeopardizing one's health! Or you were even mistaken to get angry like it was your fault and not the other one's fault!

Chilling out rather than blowing off steam is a better way to manage anger − new review of 154 studies reveals what works

Alabama mayor and pastor commits suicide after news article exposes his online 'fantasy' life as 'Transgender Curvy Girl'

A little bit of a bizarre story! A man with quite a bit of a double life. Supposedly, his wife knew about it.

Why did he not come clean in public before his citizens and parish. Why could he in the end not admit to it?

That he reportedly committed suicide with a hand gun in front of police officers was certainly a very bad choice! "By Friday, some had asked police to conduct a welfare check. Officers went in the direction of his home that evening but discovered Copeland driving en route. They pulled Copeland over on Lee Road 275, just north of Yarbrough's Crossroads, with no other reason than to assess his wellbeing. 

Sadly, Copeland's subsequent actions confirmed everyone's worst fears regarding his mental state. He exited his vehicle, grabbed a handgun, and fatally shot himself in front of the officers."

Alabama mayor and pastor commits suicide after news article exposes his online 'fantasy' life as 'Transgender Curvy Girl' | Blaze Media