Last Sunday, I did something highly unusual for me. I treated myself to some spa time, took a boat out on the lake with my family, swam a little, and went out to dinner. The unusual part was that I did all of this while wearing no makeup. Though I haven’t really kept track, it’s possible that last Sunday was my first makeup-free day in nearly 20 years. (Ok, there may have been one or two days after I gave birth, but they were days on which I didn’t leave my house.)
As I was working in my yard yesterday, I was struck by a metaphor. Weeds had taken over a neglected area in the back of the yard. With all the recent rainfall and the long summer days, they had spread rapidly, filling in every inch of open space around flowers and bushes. I knew if I didn’t remove them, they would rob the good plants of all the nutrients and sunlight, eventually choking them out.
The latest episode of The Psychology Podcast is an interview of psychologist Ellen Hendriksen, author of the new book How to Be Yourself. Hendriksen is an expert on social anxiety, and I found the conversation fascinating. The topic goes hand-in-hand with the spotlight effect, which I briefly touched upon in this post and have been meaning to discuss in greater depth.
In the graduation season, advice to follow your passion and pursue your dreams abounds. But what about those of us who don’t have one passion or a clear dream?
A few days ago, I came across a word I hadn’t heard before: healthism. I was curious, so I looked it up. The word describes a kind of philosophy I’ve noticed in recent years. It’s ubiquitous on social media, and it most often rears its head in the form of fat shaming. Healthism refers to several related ideas: