popPSYCHOLOGY: Week of Oct 20th-26th, 2025
In this week’s rundown of popPSYCHOLOGY we discuss NFL’s Doug Martin’s death, Kim Kardashian’s alleged brain aneurysm & so much more.
popPSYCHOLOGY is a weekly series from Dr. Jessica Rabon and myself to bring you a rundown of mental health news that has made the headlines over the past week. Without further ado, let’s get into some highlights:
Former NFL star Doug Martin, 36, died on October 18th after being detained by officers who had responded to a break-in at a home in Oakland, California. Martin had been struggling with mental health challenges and, while disoriented, fled his home to a nearby residence, where he was taken into police custody. The investigation into Martin’s death is ongoing.
New research out of Brown University found that chatbots are prone to violate many ethical standards of mental health practice. Some violations include inappropriately navigating crisis situations, providing misleading responses that reinforce users’ negative beliefs about themselves and others, bias and cultural insensitivity toward marginalized populations, and creating a false sense of empathy.
Although many people associate youth mental health with the word “crisis” there is positive news receiving less media attention. This includes a two-year uptick in college students who are flourishing, for the first time since 2012; suicide rates falling 0.66% from 2022 to 2023 among people aged 15–24; drug and alcohol use dropped during the pandemic and has continued to drop; and a July 2024 survey found that 94% of 10-18 year olds surveyed reported feeling happiness “a lot” the prior day.
In the trailer for the upcoming season of The Kardashians, Kim Kardashian shares that doctors found an aneurysm in her brain. She states that the cause was “just stress” and alludes to her difficult divorce f rom Kanye. While there is no research to show that aneurysms can be caused by stress, they can be be caused by high blood pressure, which can be caused by stress.
Clinical psychologist Jacqueline Sperling, a psychology professor at Harvard, reports that eating sour candy can be a way to practice mindfulness and alleviate anxiety. It does this by distracting our brain by way of our senses, therefore putting the focus on the taste of the candy instead of worrying about the future.
Gucci Mane opened up about the importance of Black mental health in an interview with The Breakfast Club, while also sharing about life with bipolar and schizophrenia. He shares more about his mental health struggles in his new book, Episodes: The Diary of a Recovering Mad Man, including as his time in a psychiatric hospital, the meaning behind his ice cream cone tattoo, and life before treatment.
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You can find more from Jessica and Tina right here: @jessicaleighphd & @tinaclarklpc
