Humans are social species, and forming social connections is our basic need. In ancestral times, humans survived by hunting and gathering in bands. During those times, loneliness could’ve easily meant death. This is why when people lose a meaningful social connection, it can feel like death. The pain of loneliness experienced by losing a loved …
Being social species, humans come with built-in empathy. Some of us are less empathetic, some are more on the spectrum of empathy. A lack of empathy sounds bad, and it is. It’s a major symptom of psychopathy, sociopathy, and narcissism. Excess of everything, including empathy, can be harmful. Yes, there’s such a thing as having …
Nyctophobia is an intense and irrational fear of the dark. It’s normal to have some fear of the dark because you can’t see what you’re dealing with. You don’t know what lies in the unknown regions of darkness. You don’t have control over the dark. However, people who have nyctophobia have an extreme fear of …
A compatible relationship is one where the partners live together harmoniously and peacefully. This doesn’t mean there are no conflicts in a compatible relationship. It means that partners in such relationships handle their conflicts and differences in healthy ways. People tend to put on their best behavior during the initial courtship phase of a relationship. …
A healthy relationship is one where partners can be together without losing themselves. They can spend quality time with each other and also find time for themselves. A healthy relationship is one where both partners add to each other’s happiness. The key feature of healthy relationships is interdependence. Interdependence is depending on each other. The …
A crucial milestone in psychological development is developing a stable sense of self. People struggle with creating an identity in their teenage and typically achieve identity formation in young adulthood. Successful identity achievement helps a person clearly define who they are. When you’re clear about who you are- your beliefs, values, interests, and opinions, you …
Projecting onto someone means projecting your own traits onto someone. People tend to project their negative traits onto others so they don’t have to accept responsibility for them. It’s an ego defense and blame-shifting mechanism that can be conscious or unconscious. Projection and trauma Conscious projection is a form of manipulation. You know you’re hiding …
Paradoxical as it may seem, humans are wired to be both selfish and selfless. As is evident in the world around us, selfishness usually wins when it comes head-to-head with selflessness. This shows that humans have a stronger drive to be selfish than cooperative. Humans will often only help others if, by doing that, they …
Commitment means sticking to something for a long time. When we talk about commitment, we usually talk about it in the context of romantic relationships. But the term also applies to other life areas such as work, interests, and hobbies. A person who has commitment issues has trouble dedicating themselves to one thing for a …
Children are expected to go through some normal developmental milestones as they grow up. One such milestone is being able to speak. While language is developed in stages, most children have already said their first word by age one. By age three, most children can engage in simple conversations. Some children miss these milestones, causing …