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Understanding human trafficking in one way resembles the story of the blind men describing an elephant. According to the story from ancient India, several blind men touched an elephant and then reported on it. The man who touched the elephant’s trunk was sure the elephant was a snake. The man who touched the elephant’s side knew the elephant was a wall. And the man touching the elephant’s tusk was certain the elephant was a large, smooth spear. In the case of human trafficking, there are also many ways of looking at the subject. Each way of looking at the subject can be true and accurate without being the whole story. Human Trafficking and Criminal Activity Diane Halfman’s view of human trafficking will be, for many, a new way of looking at trafficking. Halfman is a retired police undercover agent, and to continue the elephant metaphor, she isn’t just touching the elephant, she’s aware of the whole ecology of elephants, like where they feed and who else is in the herd. … [Read more...] about The Evil Ecology of Human Trafficking

Source: Maridav/Adobe Stock We’re more than one year into the global pandemic that has kept many Americans sequestered in their homes and taking precautions to prevent the spread of COVID-19 when they go out. Not surprisingly, these changes in how and when we interact with others has led to changes in our mental and physical health. Among those changes, emerging data show that many Americans have gained weight, are drinking more alcohol , and are not sleeping well. A nationally-representative survey of 1,500 Americans conducted this year by the American Psychological Association found that more than 40 percent of Americans gained “more weight than they intended” during the pandemic. The average weight gain was 29 pounds, with 10 percent of participants reporting more than 50 pounds of weight gain. In addition, 18 percent of Americans reported losing more weight than they wanted to; the average amount of weight lost among this cohort was 26 pounds. In addition to … [Read more...] about Exactly How the Pandemic Has Affected Our Mental and Physical Health

There are many relationship problems this post is not about, namely problems related to serious psychopathology, abuse, addiction , infidelity , or a basic lack of attraction . This post is about a common, ordinary type of couples' problem: the type that occurs between two good, functional people whose personality styles clash in some way. Different Does Not Mean Better or Worse Differences in styles of functioning play a role in many marital and couples problems ( Shapiro, 2020a; 2020b ). He is a morning person, and she is a night person; she wants more closeness, and he wants more autonomy; he is dramatic and expressive, while she is understated and reserved; one partner wants to discuss problems extensively, while the other wants to move on quickly, and so forth. Differences in styles of functioning, in and of themselves, are not problems. Couples become angry and unhappy when they misunderstand their differences to be disagreements about some objective issue … [Read more...] about When Couples’ Personality Styles Clash

In this article, I discuss recent research on breathing techniques that promote relaxation, calm, and pain relief. Specifically, I review two recent investigations. Source: Pexels/Pixabay Breathing and relaxation Slow and deep breathing appears to have a number of mental health benefits (e. g ., relaxation), perhaps because it counteracts the “ sympathetic dominance ” of the nervous system , which contributes to rapid heart rate, high blood pressure, stress, anxiety, and depression . So let me review a recent investigation by Gholamrezaei et al. (published in the February issue of Psychophysiology ), which explores physiological and psychological responses to four types of deep breathing exercises . Note, deep breathing is sometimes also called diaphragmatic breathing or abdominal breathing. Deep breathing practices are often performed slowly, about six breaths per minute or one breath every 10 seconds (0.1 Hz breathing frequency). The normal … [Read more...] about Best Breathing Techniques for Relaxation and Pain Relief

Guest post by Brian Scott Hamilton Emotions are complex. Even the most basic emotions can be difficult for adults to understand, let alone articulate. Now imagine that you’re four years old and trying to convey how you feel about someone taking your favorite toy. Are you angry or sad? Are you surprised or fearful? Maybe you’re appalled. Maybe you’re disappointed. Maybe you’re feeling all of these things, but you just don’t have the words to convey it. When we look at the brain, it’s easy to understand why these problems exist. The parts of the brain responsible for generating emotions are known collectively as the limbic system (Shelat, 2020). This system represents some of the oldest structures in the human brain (Bruce and Neary, 1995). By contrast, the frontal lobe, the part of the brain that generates speech and controls emotional expression (Healthline, 2020) is one of the latest structures of the brain (Robson, 2011). It doesn’t even fully develop in humans until we’re … [Read more...] about What Emotion Does That Pokémon Represent?