If you weren't celebrated for expressing emotion as a kid, you might struggle with these behaviors. An "intellectualizer" is generally characterized by their tendency to over-explain and analyze their ...

There's a difference between being intellectual and being an intellectualizer. Intellectualizing is a defense mechanism designed to help people avoid feeling painful emotions. You'll know you're ...

This post is by David Preece, Ph.D., edited by James Gross, Ph.D. How are you feeling right now? You might find this question easy to answer, almost impossible to answer, or somewhere in between. We ...

Alexithymia is a term you may not have heard before. But it describes something many people experience: difficulties in identifying, distinguishing and expressing emotions. It affects how people ...

You might think you're just being "chill," but are you unknowingly downplaying your own feelings and avoiding true intimacy? Here's how to tell. In relationships, the line between being “low ...

This piece is part of Scientific American's column The Science of Parenting. For more, go here. A couple of years ago I was at the ophthalmologist with my six-year-old daughter. The optician asked me ...