How the pandemic affected our personalities

Plus: An LSD-derived drug, sans hallucinations

View this email online October 9, 2022 by Andrea Muraskin Personality doesn’t normally change that much over a human lifespan, but we’re not living in normal times. Plus, a new compound derived from LSD that’s improving the moods of mice, without sending them on a trip, could change the antidepressant landscape. And rev up your calculator app: we’ve got tips for navigating health insurance open enrollment.  A study finds Americans are grumpier and less mature than we used to be. Gee, thanks, COVID molotovcoketail/Getty Images When colleges and universities switched to remote learning back in 2020, I really felt bad for those students. In American mythology, of course, college is the time when young people leave the nest, and evolve into the individuals they'll be as adults. And sure, if you were like me, you might have become kind of feral for a while (former white kid with dorm-room dreadlocks right here🤦‍♀️). But you also might have developed responsible habits, like budgeting, or reciprocity.  But for semesters on end during the COVID-19 pandemic, college students were stuck taking classes at their computers, still living under their parents' roofs. Young adults who would have gone to in-person jobs, enjoyed the bar scene, moved to a new city, hustled to make rent, fallen in love, etc., were similarly cloistered.  They could be forgiven for not maturing emotionally or intellectually during those years at the same pace as those who came before them. In a new study, psychologists analyzed surveys from three time periods: pre-pandemic, lockdown in 2020, and later pandemic– either 2021 or 2022. Researchers looked at personality traits and found that extroversion, openness, agreeableness, and consciousness decreased across the population, but especially for young adults. The under-30 demo also showed an increase in neuroticism.    "Younger individuals have less resources, they're less established in their social context, in their jobs and friends," says Joshua Jackson, an associate professor of psychology at Washington University in St. Louis. "So any sort of disruption, they're the ones that are going to have this fewer number of resources to ride out the storm." And it’s not just the pandemic. Other shifts in things like the climate, culture and politics could influence change in our personalities, and whether those changes will stick around.  Also, what can a personality test tell us about who we are?      Newsletter continues after sponsor message Antidepressant benefits of psychedelics without the other stuff? These mice aren't tripping PAUL J. RICHARDS/AFP via Getty Images Talk about the mental health benefits of psychedelic drugs has been bubbling up into the mainstream in recent years. Food guru and author Michael Pollan wrote about long-time smokers using psilocybin - the psychoactive compound in magic mushrooms– to quit nicotine, and his own ego-freeing experience with LSD in the book: How to Change Your Mind. The documentary film Fantastic Fungi, featuring noted mycologist Paul Stamets, posited that eating psilocybin mushrooms may have sparked early humans' capacity for abstract thinking, enabling them to develop language (🤯). For me, the most memorable story has been hearing from patients with terminal cancer that using psychedelics helped them accept and prepare for their own mortality. Research has also shown that psilocybin can relieve depression in people, effects lasting a year or more from a single dose. So, an overall sense of peace and long-lasting relief from depression– sounds great. But spending hours in an altered reality, in an open, vulnerable state is too steep a price for many. Now, scientists report in the journal Nature that they have created drugs based on LSD that seem to relieve anxiety and depression – in mice – without inducing the usual hallucinations. The discovery could lead to medications for depression and anxiety that work better and faster, have fewer side effects, and last longer.  How do you tell whether or not a mouse is tripping? Click this link, and all will become clear.  Plus: MDMA shows promise as a treatment for PTSD Choosing a health insurance plan can be confusing. Here’s what to keep in mind Subin Yang for NPR Reader, open enrollment season is upon us. That means whether you get health insurance through your employer, on the marketplace, or from the government, you’ll soon need to choose a plan for 2023. And it's important to compare the options, especially if you’re expecting to have a major procedure, change medications, or to lose or gain access to insurance through a family member. And even if you’re not expecting any changes in your health needs, insurance companies make changes to their coverage from year to year.  Although we often think of our insurance company and our doctors as separate parts of the system, a trusted physician can help you anticipate your health care needs in the next year – and that can inform your insurance decisions. Want more tips? NPR’s Life Kit spoke with a doctor and two health care advocates, and put together guidelines to get you started on the right foot.  Also: Here’s 6 tips to help you get the most out of your health insurance plan Before you go: Megan Tan COVID booster FAQ Listen: Out of a civil war, a better technology for prosthetic limbs Perspective: I always avoided family duties. Then my dad had a fall and everything changed #Nevertoolate: a mechanic from Cleveland becomes a doctor at age 51 We hope you enjoyed these stories. Find more of NPR's health journalism on Shots and follow us on Twitter at @NPRHealth. All our best, Andrea Muraskin and your Shots editors Listen to your local NPR station. Visit NPR.org to hear live radio from WUFT 89.1 (edit station). What do you think of today's email? We'd love to hear your thoughts, questions and feedback: shots@npr.org Enjoying this newsletter? Forward to a friend! They can sign up here. Looking for more great content? Check out all of our newsletter offerings — including Goats & Soda, Daily News, Best of NPR and more! You received this message because you're subscribed to Health emails. This email was sent by National Public Radio, Inc., 1111 North Capitol Street NE, Washington, DC 20002 Unsubscribe  |  Privacy Policy