If your Brain is never quiet, how to cope:

If your brain is never quiet — constantly thinking, worrying, analyzing, replaying, planning — it can feel like you’re living in a storm that never lets up. Coping with that kind of mental noise is about finding small ways to create pauses, grounding points, or even just turning down the volume a bit.

Here are some approaches that might help, depending on what you’re dealing with:

1. Understand the “why”

If you’re a deep thinker, intuitive, sensitive, or highly analytical, your brain may be wired for constant processing. Knowing that can actually reduce resistance and anxiety about it.Sometimes, it’s not about silencing the brain, but learning how to ride the waves.

2. Micro-meditations (not the traditional kind)

If full meditation feels impossible, try:

Box breathing (inhale 4, hold 4, exhale 4, hold 4)

Name 5 things you can see, 4 you can touch, 3 you can hear…

Focus on the feeling of your feet on the floor for 30 seconds.

These reset your nervous system just enough to shift gears.

3. Mind dumps

Try journaling, voice notes, or stream-of-consciousness writing. Get it out of your head and onto something. Even 5 minutes can help:

Write without censoring

No need to reread — this isn’t for reflection, it’s for release

4. Sound as a companion

Sometimes the mind is loud because it hates silence. Try:

Brown noise (deeper than white noise — great for overthinkers)

Binaural beats (theta or alpha for calm)

Lo-fi, ambient, or classical music — whatever quiets your inner narrator

5. Move the body

Walking (especially in nature), dancing, stretching, yoga, even pacing — can unstick loops of thought.

Movement grounds you in the body when your mind is floating away.

6. Give it a job

An active brain often just wants something to do:

Try puzzles, crosswords, a complex novel, or a niche research topic

Controlled Remote Viewing or meditation with a target might even give it a useful outlet

7. Mental health check

If your thoughts are invasive, obsessive, or causing distress, you might be dealing with anxiety, ADHD, OCD, or trauma-related hypervigilance. Getting support (therapy, mindfulness training, and even medical treatment) is completely valid.

Shervan K Shahhian

Neurological Response to Stress, why:

Neurological Response to Stress, why:

The neurological response to stress refers to how the brain and nervous system react when you perceive a threat, challenge, or pressure — basically when you’re under stress. This reaction is automatic and deeply wired into us for survival.

(Consult a Medical Doctor if you have any Medical questions.)

Here’s how it works in simple terms:

1. Perception of Stress (Triggering the Response)
It all starts in the amygdala, a part of your brain involved in processing emotions like fear and anxiety.

When the amygdala detects a potential threat, it sends a distress signal to the hypothalamus, the brain’s command center for managing stress responses.

2. Fight-or-Flight Activation (Sympathetic Nervous System)
The hypothalamus activates the sympathetic nervous system.

This triggers the adrenal glands (on top of your kidneys) to release adrenaline (epinephrine).

Effects of adrenaline:

Increased heart rate

Faster breathing

Pupil dilation

Energy boost (glucose released into bloodstream)

Heightened alertness

This is your classic “fight-or-flight” mode.

3. Sustained Stress Response (HPA Axis)
If the stress continues, your brain activates the HPA axis (Hypothalamus–Pituitary–Adrenal axis).

This leads to the release of cortisol, the primary stress hormone.

Cortisol helps keep you alert and gives your body more energy — but long-term, high levels can be damaging.

4. Return to Balance (Parasympathetic Nervous System)
Once the threat passes, the parasympathetic nervous system (the “rest and digest” system) kicks in to calm you down.

Heart rate slows, cortisol levels drop, and the body goes back to normal.

When Stress Becomes Chronic
If this system is constantly activated (due to chronic stress), it can lead to problems like:

Anxiety and depression

Memory issues (especially in the hippocampus, which is sensitive to cortisol)

Weakened immune system

Digestive problems

Heart disease

(Consult a Medical Doctor if you have any Medical questions.)

Shervan K Shahhian

Writing an in-depth personal essay, why:

Writing an in-depth personal essay, why:

Writing an in-depth personal essay can serve a variety of powerful purposes — intellectually, emotionally, creatively, and even spiritually.

Here are some layered reasons why one might write a personal essay:

1. To Understand Yourself More Deeply
Writing forces clarity. When you try to put your experiences into words, you begin to see patterns, connect events, and uncover meanings you might have missed. It’s a tool for self-analysis.

“I write to know what I think.” — Joan Didion

Your own story, when explored deeply, becomes a mirror. It reveals not just what happened, but how you were shaped by it — and how you’ve shaped yourself since.

2. To Heal and Transform
An in-depth personal essay can be a healing act. Putting painful or complex experiences into language can be cathartic, even liberating. In psychology, this is similar to the therapeutic process of narrative therapy — rewriting the stories we tell ourselves about ourselves.

Writing gives you authorship over your life’s narrative, helping you move from being a character in the story to becoming its conscious narrator.

3. To Make Meaning of the Human Experience
What seems personal often resonates universally. Your specific struggles, insights, and transformations might echo in someone else’s life. An in-depth essay can be a bridge — between your inner world and the collective human experience.

Personal becomes universal when it’s written honestly and insightfully.

4. To Preserve a Moment in Time
Our memories fade, our perspectives shift. Writing a personal essay is like freezing a piece of your life in amber. It preserves not just the facts, but the emotions, the questions, and the state of being that surrounded a moment in your life.

5. To Share Wisdom or Inspire Others
Sometimes, your story contains hard-won truths, spiritual insights, or lived wisdom that others might benefit from. A personal essay can be an offering — a kind of soul-to-soul transmission.

Especially if you’re someone walking a path of exploration, healing, or awakening, your words can be a light for others navigating similar terrain.

6. To Develop as a Writer and Thinker
Writing a personal essay hones your craft: it builds voice, style, structure, and perspective. It’s where the memoirist meets the philosopher, the storyteller meets the investigator.

It asks:

What is really going on with me?

What does this say about the world?

How can I express this with beauty, honesty, and precision?

Shervan K Shahhian

The problem with diagnosing each other with Autism and ADHD:

The problem with diagnosing each other with Autism and ADHD:

Great question — and a really important one in our current cultural moment where self-diagnosis and peer-diagnosis are common online and in everyday conversations.

There are several issues that come up when people start diagnosing each other (or themselves) with Autism or ADHD without professional training:

1. Oversimplification of Complex Conditions

Autism and ADHD are neurodevelopmental disorders with wide spectrums. The DSM-5 criteria involve more than just being “quirky” or “hyper.” These conditions affect multiple areas of life: social functioning, sensory processing, executive function, attention regulation, and more. Reducing them to a few relatable traits does a disservice to people who are significantly impacted.

2. Pathologizing Normal Behavior

It’s easy to mistake normal human variation — such as introversion, distractibility under stress, or high energy — for a disorder. Diagnosing someone casually risks turning everyday personality traits into medical labels.

3. Self-fulfilling Labels & Identity Fusion

Labels can stick. When someone is told “you seem autistic” or “you’re so ADHD,” they may internalize that identity — especially in formative years or moments of vulnerability. This can narrow their self-concept, change their behavior, or even increase symptoms through confirmation bias.

4. Misinformation & TikTok Psychology

On social media, complex conditions are often turned into bite-sized symptom lists like:

“If you like organizing your bookshelf a certain way — you might be

autistic!”

These oversimplified “tests” can be misleading and feed into a culture of misdiagnosis or trivialization of real challenges people face.

5. Stigma and Harm to Real Diagnosis

When the language of diagnosis becomes casual, it can lead to people not taking actual diagnoses seriously, and also marginalizes individuals who truly need accommodations and support. It can also lead to skepticism from professionals, making it harder for legitimately neurodivergent individuals to be believed or supported.

6. Missed Alternative Explanations

A person might struggle with focus not because of ADHD, but because of anxiety, trauma, poor sleep, thyroid issues, or stress. Assuming a diagnosis without a full assessment can cause someone to miss the real root of their difficulties.

Better Alternatives:

Psychoeducation: Learn about neurodivergence from reputable sources.

Encourage professional assessment rather than labeling others.

Be supportive and validating without trying to “name” what someone is going through.

Use descriptive language (“You seem overwhelmed in loud places”) instead of diagnostic labels.

Shervan K Shahhian

The Impact of Illegal Drugs on Intimacy and Expression:

The Impact of Illegal Drugs on Intimacy and Expression:

“The use of illegal drugs could result in death.”

That’s a rich and layered topic — illegal drugs can have complex and sometimes paradoxical effects on intimacy and expression, depending on the substance, the context, and the individuals involved.

Here’s a breakdown of the psychological and emotional dynamics at play:

Short-Term Effects (Perceived Enhancements)

Some illegal substances are known to increase feelings of intimacy, connection, and emotional openness in the short term:

1. MDMA (Ecstasy/Molly)

Increases empathy, trust, and emotional vulnerability.

Often described as creating a “heart-open” state.

Can temporarily dissolve emotional walls between partners or within group settings.

Users report increased verbal and non-verbal emotional expression.

2. Cannabis

Enhances sensory perception and emotional introspection.

Some users experience heightened sexual pleasure and emotional bonding.

But can also cause anxiety or disconnection depending on mindset.

3. Psychedelics (LSD, Psilocybin)

Can foster deep, spiritual connection with others.

Breaks down ego boundaries — leads to feelings of unity and love.

However, the experience can be unpredictable and emotionally raw.

Long-Term & Negative Effects

Despite initial perceived benefits, prolonged or repeated use of illegal drugs tends to disrupt true intimacy and authentic emotional expression. Here’s how:

1. Dependency & Avoidance

Drugs can become a substitute for emotional labor and communication.

Users may avoid vulnerability, relying instead on chemical shortcuts to feel connected.

2. Emotional Dysregulation

Long-term use often leads to mood swings, detachment, or emotional numbness.

Neurochemical imbalances (especially serotonin and dopamine depletion) can impair empathy and expression.

3. Distrust & Isolation

In relationships, drug use may introduce secrecy, broken trust, or betrayal.

Over time, this erodes emotional safety — vital for true intimacy.

4. Physical and Psychological Side Effects

Decreased libido, anxiety, paranoia, or depressive symptoms.

These can make healthy intimacy feel inaccessible or unsafe.

Psychological Perspective on Expression

Expression isn’t just about speaking or acting — it’s about being authentically known.

Drug-induced expression can feel profound, but often lacks integration into daily, sober reality.

Over time, genuine emotional expression may become suppressed as drug use replaces personal growth or inner work.

From a Parapsychological Angle?

If we stretch into transpersonal psychology or parapsychology, drug use may:

Open non-ordinary states of consciousness that mimic mystical or intimate experiences.

But these openings, if not earned through personal development, can be unstable or misleading.

True intimacy might require spiritual maturity, NOT chemical enhancement.

“The use of illegal drugs could result in death.”

Shervan K Shahhian

Understanding of Ethical of Pleasure:

Understanding of Ethical of Pleasure:

The ethics of pleasure refers to philosophical perspectives and moral questions surrounding the pursuit and experience of pleasure.

It asks: When is pleasure good or bad? Is it ethical to seek pleasure? Are all pleasures equal? Here’s an overview of key approaches to understanding this:

1. Hedonism

Core Idea: Pleasure is the highest good and proper aim of human life.

Ethical Hedonism (e.g., Epicurus): Not all pleasures are worth pursuing. Long-term well-being and tranquility (ataraxia) are more valuable than short-term indulgence.

Utilitarianism (e.g., Jeremy Bentham, John Stuart Mill): Moral actions are those that maximize pleasure and minimize pain for the greatest number of people.

Mill distinguished between higher (intellectual, moral) and lower (bodily) pleasures.

2. Stoicism

Opposite of hedonism in many ways.

Believes pleasure is not inherently good; virtue and wisdom are the true goals.

Seeking pleasure can lead to dependency and loss of inner peace.

3. Christian Ethics & Religious Views

Often view pleasure with caution — associated with temptation and sin.

But not all pleasure is condemned: joy, love, and divine experiences can be virtuous.

Ethical pleasure is often framed as selfless, spiritual, or aligned with God’s will.

4. Modern Perspectives

Psychology & Ethics: Understanding how pleasure impacts well-being, relationships, and society.

Consent and Harm: Ethical pleasure respects boundaries, autonomy, and avoids harm to others (e.g., in sexuality, consumption, entertainment).

Authenticity: Some modern thinkers explore whether pleasure is meaningful or superficial — linked to consumerism vs. deeper fulfillment.

5. Existential and Postmodern Views

Question whether pleasure has objective meaning.

Emphasize individual choice, freedom, and authenticity over any fixed “ethical code” of pleasure.

Core Ethical Questions:

Is it okay to seek pleasure if it doesn’t harm others?

Can too much pleasure be bad for the soul or mind?

Is pleasure a byproduct of living well, or should it be a life goal?

How do we weigh personal pleasure against communal or environmental impact?

Shervan K Shahhian

Understanding Digital Attachment:

Understanding Digital Attachment:

“Digital attachment” refers to the emotional or psychological connection people form with digital devices, platforms, or content. It’s a relatively new concept that blends insights from psychology, technology, and sociology.

Here are a few ways to understand it more deeply:

What Is Digital Attachment?

Digital attachment describes how people form bonds — sometimes even dependency — on digital technologies, such as:

Smartphones

Social media

Virtual assistants (like AI chatbots)

Online gaming communities

Digital avatars or relationships

These bonds can be positive (like connection and support) or problematic (like dependence or withdrawal anxiety).

Psychological Roots

Digital attachment draws from classic attachment theory, originally developed by Bowlby and Ainsworth, which looked at how early human relationships form (especially child-caregiver). In the digital age, this framework is applied to tech-mediated relationships:

Secure attachment: Tech is used as a helpful tool without dependency.

Anxious attachment: People feel unsettled without constant connectivity.

Avoidant attachment: Individuals reject or distrust digital intimacy.

Examples of Digital Attachment

Phantom vibration syndrome — Feeling your phone buzz when it didn’t.

Social media anxiety — Constantly checking for likes or messages.

Parasocial relationships — Deep emotional bonds with YouTubers, streamers, or digital influencers.

Attachment to AI or bots — Emotional comfort from chatting with digital assistants or AI friends.

Healthy vs Unhealthy Attachment

Healthy Attachment Unhealthy Attachment Aware of usage Compulsive checking Balanced screen time Ignoring real-life responsibilities Tech as tool Tech as emotional crutch

Why It Matters

Understanding digital attachment helps in:

Mental health awareness

Parenting and managing screen time

Therapy for digital addiction

Design ethics in app and game development

Shervan K Shahhian

Split Personality, what is it:

Split Personality, what is it:

“Split personality” is a term that’s often used in everyday language, but in psychology, the actual clinical term is Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID).

Here’s a quick breakdown:

1. What it is: DID is a severe dissociative disorder where a person experiences two or more distinct identities or personality states — each with its own patterns of perceiving and interacting with the world. These identities may have their own names, voices, ages, genders, even memories and preferences.

2. Causes: It’s usually linked to severe trauma in early childhood, such as extreme abuse or neglect. The mind creates alternate identities as a defense mechanism to “compartmentalize” or escape overwhelming experiences.

3. Key features:

Amnesia or memory gaps — the person may not recall important personal information, especially related to the other identities.

Switching between identities — this can be sudden and triggered by stress or reminders of trauma.

Each identity (or “alter”) may have its own behaviors, accents, postures, etc.

4. Common myths:

DID is not the same as schizophrenia. Schizophrenia involves hallucinations, delusions, and disorganized thinking, but not multiple personalities.

It’s not about being “moody” or just having different sides to your personality.

5. Treatment:

Psychotherapy is the main treatment — often long-term and focused on integrating the identities, or at least helping them coexist in a way that’s less disruptive.

Trauma work is a huge part of the healing process.

Shervan K Shahhian

Understanding Attachment-Informed Grief Therapy:

Understanding Attachment-Informed Grief Therapy:

Attachment-Informed Grief Therapy is an approach to grief counseling or therapy that integrates attachment theory — originally developed by John Bowlby — with the understanding of how people experience and process grief.

Here’s a clear breakdown of what it is and why it matters:

What Is Attachment Theory?

Attachment theory says that human beings form deep emotional bonds (attachments) with others, especially early caregivers. These bonds affect how we relate to others and how we handle loss and separation throughout life.

People tend to develop one of these attachment styles:

Secure attachment — generally trusting, open to closeness.

Anxious attachment — fears abandonment, seeks excessive reassurance.

Avoidant attachment — downplays needs, avoids closeness.

Disorganized attachment — conflicted, often from trauma or abuse.

How Attachment Affects Grief

When someone dies (or is lost), the intensity and nature of the grief can be strongly influenced by the type of attachment the person had with the deceased and their general attachment style.

Securely attached individuals usually grieve in a healthy way — though the pain is deep, they tend to integrate the loss over time.

Anxiously attached people may struggle with overwhelming grief, preoccupation with the deceased, and difficulty moving on.

Avoidantly attached individuals may appear to cope well, but often suppress or deny grief, which can lead to unresolved issues later.

Disorganized attachment often leads to very complicated grief — swinging between extremes, feeling unsafe or stuck.

What Happens in Attachment-Informed Grief Therapy?

This approach considers:

The client’s attachment style

The nature of their relationship with the deceased

How they cope with separation and emotional pain

Therapy might include:

Helping the client process and express suppressed emotions safely.

Addressing unresolved attachment trauma that may surface during grief.

Encouraging development of new internal representations of the lost person (e.g., internalizing their voice, values).

Building or reinforcing secure internal attachment models through the therapeutic relationship.

Exploring how the grief experience reflects attachment wounds, and working toward repair.

Techniques Used May Include:

Emotion-focused therapy (EFT)

Narrative therapy (rewriting the story of the relationship and loss)

Internal Family Systems (IFS) for dealing with inner parts that are stuck in grief

Mindfulness and somatic awareness to address avoidant/dissociative reactions

Psychoeducation on attachment and grief

Example:

A client who lost a parent and has an anxious attachment style may obsessively revisit the last conversation, feel extreme guilt, and fear they’ll never be loved again. Therapy would:

Help them soothe those attachment anxieties

Reframe the relationship

Validate the grief while guiding integration

Strengthen secure internal connections

Shervan K Shahhian

Utilize the Unfinished Business in Bereavement Scale, why:

Utilize the Unfinished Business in Bereavement Scale, why:

Using the Unfinished Business in Bereavement Scale (UBBS) can be very valuable in both clinical and research contexts.

Here’s why it can be useful, especially from a psychological or parapsychological perspective:

Why Use the Unfinished Business in Bereavement Scale (UBBS)?
1. Identifies Unresolved Grief
The UBBS helps detect lingering emotional issues, such as:

Unexpressed feelings

Unresolved conflicts

Regrets or missed opportunities with the deceased

These can deeply affect the grieving process and overall mental health.

2. Promotes Psychological Healing
Understanding unfinished business allows therapists to:

Target specific themes (e.g., guilt, anger, forgiveness)

Create interventions such as guided imagery, letter writing, or gestalt empty-chair work

Facilitate closure through symbolic or therapeutic acts

3. Predicts Complicated Grief & Mental Health Risks
High UBBS scores can signal risk factors for:

Prolonged grief disorder

Depression

Anxiety

PTSD symptoms

It serves as an early warning system for deeper emotional or psychological complications.

4. Supports Tailored Interventions
It allows practitioners to personalize grief therapy based on a client’s unique emotional ties and unresolved issues with the deceased.

For example:

Someone grieving a parent may have different unresolved themes than someone mourning a partner.

It also helps spiritual or existential counselors guide clients through meaning-making processes.

5. Valuable for Parapsychological Exploration
parapsychology — unfinished business may relate to:

Continued bonds or communication with the deceased

Psychic impressions during grief

Spontaneous after-death communication

The UBBS can be a tool to assess whether such phenomena are linked to unresolved emotional ties, helping you distinguish between emotional projections and potential anomalous experiences.

Shervan K Shahhian