The Better Mental Health Show

The spread of the coronavirus across the world has everyone on high alert for good reason. Never have we watched something like this spread so rapidly and kill thousands of people. In addition to causing the obvious physical health problems, the constant news coverage is causing all of us to suffer sever anxiety, stressing when we will see this virus in our own communities and if we in fact will c...

Screen time is the number one topic I get asked about, in particular, is too much bad for my kid . While the answer is impossible for me to say definitively, it is my opinion that it is. There is a lot of information out there and some will say one thing and some say the other. So who should we believe, and is the hysteria real? On today's episode I make the case from a biological perspective as t...

Is your child anxious or just shy? If you have ever thought about this, you are not alone. A lot people have asked me what the difference is, and also if they are easy to confuse. On today's episode we talk about some of these key differences and and how long certain symptoms need to persist before anxiety can be officially diagnosed. Yes there is a clear difference, but like everything else, the...

It all Starts With You. No one else. In this new year 2020, let us all take some time to focus on ourselves and figure out a way to live a more joyous, thankful life, and in turn, our mental health and well-being will follow. On the first episode of 2020 we focus on just this, and discuss some strategies to live a more joyous life. Remember, the people around us feed off our being, so when are hap...

It has finally happened for me...I am about to enter the world of being a parent of a kid with a video game set. Along these lines, I have spent the past few months researching different strategies on how to introduce them with balance into kids lives, and on today's episode I share some of those strategies.

Thankful and Thanksgiving go hand in hand, so on Episode 53 we discuss ways to be more thankful. We live in a fast paced world, and often we don't stop to take stock in all we have and how lucky we actually are. While it is understandable to lose sight of these things, learning to be more thankful will ultimately lead to a more compassionate, empathetic human race. When we are willing to say thank...

Episode 52 marks the one year anniversary of this show, and I want to thank everyone that has joined me on this journey. When I started one year ago, my goal was to share my passion for mental health with the world in the hopes that a few of you would listen and learn along with me. Well it turns out a lot more than a few have listened and I have learned maybe more than any of my listeners. On Epi...

A new study was has caused quite a stir in the national news and on social media reporting an association between taking Tyelnol while pregnant and having a child with Autsim and/or ADHD. While there have been numerous studies linking exposure to chemicals and common medication to children with Autism, not many can conclude a direct cause and effect. This new study appears to be another one where...

The world is becoming an increasingly judgmental place. That, coupled with rising depression and anxiety rates , can lead to a mentally unstable future generation. One way to fight this is with the power of self-confidence which allows us to brush off the negative and the unnecessary distractions. While easier said then done, like most things relating to the brain, the early you start, the more yo...

Eye contact is one of the most important things for humans to learn and practice. Why? Well to start, eyes are designed to be looked at and much can be inferred by simply looking someone in the eyes. While the importance of this is widely known with numerous studies highlighting the benefits, eye contact amongst younger generations is on the decline. On today's show we discuss the importance of ey...

Is Vaping safe? Vaping has been in the news for its association to mysterious string of lung diseases across the country. Over 800 people have now been hospitalized and 8 people have died. Numerous sates have issued bans on related products, and the FDA and CDC are now investigating. With all of this scary information out there and the fact that over 25% of high school students reporting to have v...

Reading and writing was once considered not just a necessity of life, but also a way for humans to communicate effectively, engage their minds, and expand their knowledge. With the advent of technology and the rise of tv and tablets, some wonder if the creative arts including reading and writing are gone forever. While I definitely agree that reading a book is not as popular with the youth and eve...

Mental Health issues will arise with all humans, the question is, how do we handle the down turn when it hits us or those we love. It is easy for a mental health illness to take us over quickly, forcing us to a dark place where the light is more and more scarce and harder and harder to re-kindle. So how does one prevent this and even more, how does one pull themself out of such a dark place, once...

Kids and young adults that feel disconnected from their peers are more likely to feel anxious and depressed, and since suicide is the second leading cause of death in kids now, we need to take this seriously. Extracurricular activities are a common way for kids to be more involved and integrated into the social fabric, and on today's show we discuss a new study that highlights the positive effects...

The end of summer is upon us and that can lead to changes in routine and increases in stress, especially if you are a parent or teacher. So how will we will deal with this? I argue this is the perfect time for us to do an assessment of our mental health, and I challenge all of you our there to "Identify Your Struggle" to be ready for the stresses to come. The more we can identify the things that m...

Our kids are not OK...if you don't believe me, believe the numbers that are coming out regarding kids mental health, depression, loneliness, and suicide. In the beginning of this episode I lay out some of these alarming statistics, and then use a recent article from the NY Times to guide the discussion on how children are growing up very differently nowadays, and how a paradigm shift is needed. So...

Despair and depression can strike anyone, at anytime, no matter how much money you have, or how famous you may be. Our guest on Episode 41, celebrity trainer and motivational speaker Tony Horton, can attest to this and discusses this at length in a lively, candid interview. Tony Horton has trained celebrities like Billy Idol, Tom Petty, and Bruce Springsteen and is best know as the creator and lea...

One of the hardest things for me as parent is being able to stay calm in the face of my son's bad behavior. Especially when that behavior seems to be on purpose, knowing it's wrong. I am inherently one who struggles with patience, and this combination can leave me quick to raise my voice and offering discipline by means of yelling. While this yelling gets his attention, it really doesn't teach him...

There has been a lot of news around a bill recently passed in the state of Oregon that would allow students to take days off from school for mental health problems.  The bill was prompted by a staggering increase in the suicide rate of young people and hoped to break the stigma that still surrounds talking out loud about mental health issues.   I have been arguing for years that kids health should...

A kid's health and mental health can be negatively affected by too much screen time during development. Research shows that kids who grow up with too much screen time develop mental health problems such as depression, general anxiety disorder, and focus and attention issues. It is becoming harder and harder to keep kids away from screens and devices, but it our responsibility as parents and educat...

Research shows that Family Vacations are excellent for a child's development and mental health. Thinking back on my childhood, I have countless memories of my family vacations, and I am confident that it had a significant affect on my social skills and overall mental health. It makes sense. When families get together, away from their daily routine and the stresses of life they tend to be more rela...

Death can be a confusing subject for kids to understand. Depending on their age, many kids have a difficult time understanding the concept of permanence. That is, the idea that someone or something is gone and never coming back. On Monday of this week I lost my grandfather and my wife and I were discussing how we handle talking to our son about this and what we would do about the wake and funeral....

Resilience is defined as the capacity to recover quickly from difficulties; toughness. As a parent I struggle with this with my kid. When I see him hurt, or about to get hurt, I want to make it better. We all want to make it better. But are we making it worse by always running to our kids and trying to protect them from everything? By doing this we are not teaching them to be resilient. We aren't...

Virtual reality (VR) is an experience taking place within simulated and immersive environments that can be similar to or completely different from the real world. While VR has been typically thought about as a form of entrainment, a means to escape the real world and enter into a different reality, scientists and researchers are now using VR as a tool to help diagnose and treat disease. In particu...

Laughter is indeed the best medicine, but what is it about the comedic mind then lends itself to darkness? Many comedians suffer from mental disease including depression and substance abuse, but when they walk on stage, their only job is to make people laugh. So interesting. To talk about this fascinating topic on Episode 34, it is my great pleasure to introduce comedian, television personality an...