Browse every article on stress, anxiety, depression and real-life emotional difficulties, written by Adewale Ademuyiwa.
You've figured out a workaround. Those numbers that used to make you anxious? You've found a way to flip them. That locker number 13 isn't "bad" anymore-you've reframed it as a "super number" that brings good luck. The a…
Your heart is pounding. The image flashes through your mind again-vivid, terrible, unstoppable. Your daughter choking. A car accident. Something awful happening while you're not watching closely enough. You try to push i…
You're on the floor playing dolls with your eldest daughter when it happens again. A vivid image flashes through your mind: something terrible happening to her. Your chest tightens. You freeze mid-sentence. By evening, w…
You check the lock once at the office and walk away. No second check. No "I locked it, I locked it" under your breath. The urge is there-you feel it building-but somehow you keep walking. Then you get home. The same door…
You've made remarkable progress. Your OCI score dropped from 89 to 40. That 20-minute morning clothing routine? Gone. You no longer feel compelled to go back and pass under signs. But here's what puzzles you: Why did sto…
You step on the "contaminated" carpet tile at work. Your heart races a bit, but you resist the urge to perform your usual ritual. You wait. Nothing bad happens. Success, right? But here's what's confusing: the next day, …
You're counting again. Steps between rooms. Bites of food. How many times you've checked the lock. Your brain has become a relentless accountant, tracking things that don't need tracking, creating certainty where none is…
You wake up exhausted. Again. You look at your to-do list-the same one you've been trying to finish for weeks-and feel that familiar wave of self-criticism. Other people manage this. Why can't I? Am I just weak?…
You wake up feeling good for the first time in weeks. Actually good - like your old self. Energy is there, focus is sharp, that crushing fatigue has finally lifted. So you do what anyone would do: you make the most of it…
You're sitting across from your husband, knowing you need to talk about something important. But before a single word leaves your mouth, you feel it happening—that familiar shutdown. The emotional flatness. The sense of …