Wellness

Three therapy dogs in a room at Chester County Hospital with medical personnel.

Fostering a therapy dog means welcoming strangers and petting

Foster families and therapy dogs in training learn their roles together. Studies show pet therapy in hospitals significantly decreases pain, calms breathing, and boosts mood and perceived energy levels in patients.

A woman sits by a fireplace with twinkle lights and drinks tea

Six tips for a happy holiday season

Positive Psychology experts share their advice for boosting well-being this holiday season.

John MacDonald and Gina South in West Philly

Abandoned house repairs reduced nearby gun violence

Installing working windows and doors, cleaning trash, and weeding at abandoned houses led to safety improvements and should be considered in efforts to create healthy communities, according to researchers from University of Pennsylvania and Columbia.

Person with stethoscope using a smartphone.

Penn Medicine study finds automated texts decrease odds of rehospitalization

Text messages sent automatically from patients’ primary care office after hospitalization were tied to decreased odds of needing further emergency care.

Person with a goatee and moustache wearing a tee-shirt and vest, the hand wrapped up in gauze as if it was injured. The person has a pained expression.

Thinking ‘beyond the hospital’ for Black men recovering from traumatic injury

Research from Penn Nursing and Penn Medicine found that where these patients live and return post-hospitalization affects whether they’ll experience symptoms of depression or PTSD as they heal.

Lucia Stavig poses in front of the Center for Latin American and Latinx Studies (CLALS)

Who, What, Why

Who, What, Why: Lucía Stavig

Lucía Stavig, a Peruvian postdoctoral fellow in anthropology, works on healing through connection in the Andes.

People gathered around artifacts pointing

Multidisciplinary panel highlights role of the arts in human flourishing

At a panel event held Saturday, Oct. 22, Penn leaders from the arts and humanities, nursing, psychology, and neuroscience gathered to discuss the role of the arts in healing and flourishing.

Colorful image of an illustrated brain with neural networks in the back shown by lines and bursts of color.

During sleep, one brain region teaches another, converting novel data into enduring memories

Using a neural network model, Penn neuroscientist Anna Schapiro and colleagues found that as the body moves between REM and slow-wave sleep cycles, the hippocampus and neocortex interact in ways that are key to memory formation.

A person seated at a dining table with their elbows on the table, with one single carrot on the plate before them.

The allure of fad diets, and why they fail

In a new book, Penn nutritional anthropologist Janet Chrzan and Kima Cargill of the University of Washington, Tacoma, explain the cultural, social, and psychological fixation on fad diets and why they don’t typically succeed.

Two hands holding a cotton swab in an X formation.

Quit removing wax from your ears

For the vast majority, ear wax does not cause any problems and there’s no need to remove it—not only do cotton swabs not remove ear wax, but they can pose a risk of hearing loss.

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