Dr. Gary Small, director of behavioral health breakthrough therapies at Hackensack Meridian Health, addressed public concerns about antidepressants and how to manage stress through the holidays during an interview Thursday on Newsmax's "National Report."
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Small explained that as symptoms improve, people may feel and act differently, experiencing more joy, energy, and emotional range, but these shifts reflect recovery, not a fundamental personality change.
He also noted that modern research shows personality traits can evolve over time through intentional behavioral changes, contradicting earlier assumptions that personality is fixed.
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When asked how people with depression can deal with holiday anxiety, Small said the key is to focus on what people have, not what they do not.
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"I think it takes a lot of navigation sometimes because there's so much stress about preparing for these meals," Small added. "There's high expectations that we're going to have a great time."
"And yet you're thrust into the same old conflicts you may have with relatives who sometimes annoy you, others you may want to see.
"So I think it's important to slow yourself down to Thanksgiving. It's a time of gratitude and embrace that gratitude and go for the positive and try to minimize some of that negative."
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James Morley III ✉
James Morley III is a writer with more than two decades of experience in entertainment, travel, technology, and science and nature.
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