The Grass is Always Greener is Someone Else's Profile Picture

The use of social networking sites such as Facebook have gained popularity in the last decade with teenagers, young adults, and adults alike. While there are benefits to the ability to connect electronically with friends, recent research studies have illustrated a potentially damaging effect on well-being. In particular, envy plays a mediating role in the relationship between Facebook use and decreased affect and increased depressive symptoms.

Jenna Meyerberg Presenting at the American Mental Health Counseling Association's Annual Conference

Click to view my AMHCA Presentation: 

The Grass is Always Greener in Someone Else's Profile Pictures

(Use the arrows at the bottom of the screen in order to move through the slides)

For more information on the impact of Facebook on well-being,  please feel free to email me!

Real Patriots Support Bruce Jenner

Bruce Jenner's recent announcement to transition has re-kindled a (not so) new national discussion on transgendered individuals and human sexuality. Some, maybe most people don't "get it." Is it a choice? Is it a psychiatric illness? Did he just wake up one morning and decide to be a woman? Let me show you the light.

It's not a choice. Think about it this way, have you ever known of an individual who was welcomed warmly, unconditionally, and without hesitation for coming out as transgendered? More often than not, when a person comes out they are shunned, they are mocked, they are cast away by family and friends, and that is if they're lucky. All too often these individuals are harmed physically, sometimes fatally. Why would anyone choose a lifestyle that would put their family, friends, career, and life in jeopardy?

I saw a pair of Manolo Blahnik pumps that are totally worth it.

When it comes to being accepted by others, it would be so much easier if transgendered individuals just kept it to themselves and went along to go along. The fact that millions of people have come out as transgendered despite the emotional, psychological, and physical repercussions is a testament to the genuineness and sincerity of the need to come out.



The issue of classification as a psychiatric illness is more complex. "But it's in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (fifth edition) as a mental illness!" Yes, that is true, but it's place in there it not without controversy among the psychological community. Originally known as "Gender Identity Disorder," the new diagnosis of "Gender Dysphoria" seeks to eliminate the stigma assigned to this population. One of the biggest reasons that it has remained in the DSM5 is to help transgendered people to receive the care needed through insurance reimbursement; that is to say, should an individual have Gender Dysphoria, any treatments such as hormones, surgeries, even mental health care may not be covered by insurance were it not for this classification. Now, for those of you who do not think insurances should cover this cost anyway, just think about the slippery slope of allowing insurance companies to pick and choose which illnesses and diseases to cover. What if insurance companies decided not to cover any psychiatric illnesses that could theoretically be treated without medication?

Listen to the full Weird Al Discography, that should do the trick.

Mental illnesses have a level of stigma attached to them, perhaps because the 75% of the country who have never experienced a mental illness cannot appreciate what it is like to be betrayed by your own brain; depression isn't sadness, you can't just think yourself happy. Anxiety is not just worry, there is no amount of logical reassurance that will make it go away. Addiction is more than willpower, it is biological. And so is Gender Dysphoria. Gender identity is formed as young as 4 years of age. We all have a memory of when we first realized we were boys or girls. Overwhelming research supports that transgendered people have these same thoughts at that same age, without any coaching, prompting, or training. It is innate.

But let's suspend that fact. What if Bruce Jenner and Chaz Bono both just woke up one morning and decided they wanted to switch genders?

Now that's a Freaky Friday we can all enjoy.

Look, I get it, Archie Bunker sang about when girls were girls and men were men, and I can appreciate the gut feeling some people have about just not understanding why a man becomes a woman, it seems unnatural. I'm here to say, so what? We live in a country where people are free to express their genders in any way they want, and transition biological sexes so that their lives are whole and complete, and it's a beautiful and amazing place. I am a fierce defender of individual rights and freedoms, and I know I have readers that are, too. So fight for these peoples' rights to live a happy life, fight for them to live without fear of being fired, excommunicated, ostracized from family and friends, fight for them to live their lives in the freedom that this country is known for. Real patriots support Bruce Jenner, because even if you don't like what he is doing, you still believe in a country of freedom of expression.

Juno Aftermath: Why Did We Watch 24 Hours of Snow Coverage for a Disappointing Snow?

The great blizzard of 2015 came in like a lion and went out like a lamb shorn of her woolly fleece; embarrassed and disappointing to look at. However, in the day leading up to what was hyped up to be the storm of the century, our daily routines came to a screeching halt; halfway through “The Price is Right” television viewers were subjected to panicked news reporters urging people to stay off the roads, make sure they had enough supplies to last them days indoors, call their loved ones and let them know how much they mean to them. At 4pm, CBS decided that the 5 o’clock and 6 o’clock news hours were simply not enough to discuss this snow storm, and instead of airing Judge Judy (as I had been looking forward to all day), spent an extra hour repeating what has already been said. Al Roker created “Rokerthon” in which he spent HOURS ON END narrating what was happening outside our windows. The Onion, always on point with pop culture satire, accurately captured the ridiculousness of our dooms day predictions by publishing the article, “NYC Mayor: ‘Reconcile Yourselves with Your God, ForAll Will Perish in the Tempest.’” I’ll admit it, I bought into the hype a little bit. I stocked up on junk food, I built a tent out of sheets in my room, I took a quiz on Buzzfeed titled “What you should watch on Netflix during the Blizzard.” But it was all tongue in cheek for me, recognizing that there was no real need to panic. However, that was not the case for many who spent the day holed up inside watching their televisions for minute by minute updates. Now, the morning after, many people are filled with disappointed sentiments, wondering what the heck happened and whether or not it was important for DeBlasio to put on his Chris Christie fleece and address his constituents, particularly during Judge Judy.

"Worst. Blizzard. Ever."

Psychologists have gained insight into the phenomenon of information seeking behavior and peoples' reactions in the face of threat. Interestingly enough, psychologists (See Carey, 2014, Lane, 2009, and Rock, 2009) have found that public hysteria catches like wildfire, even in the absence of a genuine threat. Explained through the Ebola scare of 2014, Carey noted that risks are often judged by both reasoning as well as emotional responses. Emotion can often overtake reasoning, especially if the emotions are stoked by repeated images of previous natural disasters and news anchors repeating warnings nonstop. If people feel threatened, they will act accordingly, despite evidence that there is no real threat. In order to quell this mounting fear, people need to feel that they can trust those supplying information. 

Let’s return to my disappointment in not being able to watch the sassy rulings of Judge Judy.  Lane and Rock  addresses this repetition of information as a form of quenching the basic human need for information. Both psychologists assert through their research that there is a biological desire for knowledge and information on a neural level, driven by a need for certainty. When people receive this information, there is a reward. When people feel rewarded for watching Countdown to Snowpacolypse on the news, they are more likely they are to stay tuned, and the higher that news stations’ ratings, and thus the constant barrage of snow updates and risk management plans throughout the day.We manage threats by making predictions, because making predictions makes us feel better about an uncertain future.