Faiza Amin

Love isn’t planned, it just happens. Now what if you start loving someone who doesn’t feel the same for you? It’s one-sided love when your feelings are not reciprocated. And yes it’s true! When someone experiences unrequited love, he/she believes that one day that someone special will love him/her back. It’s even possible that you make it lifelong, but the question is: is it worth it? You deserve so much better than mourning for the one who doesn’t even care. You deserve happiness. You only live once, therefore, the best decision is to move on and find your perfect match.

A true romantic love needs the efforts of both. The best and healthy form of love is when both sides give each other equally. Both will try their best to provide comfort, happiness, and support to one another. They wish to grow together. They tend to build each other up instead of beating the other one down. They respect each other, their decisions, feelings, time, interests, etc. All these qualities comprise the purest and the strongest kind of love which results from maturity, self-respect, empathy, warmth, understanding, and a sincere desire for one’s well-being. If these things lack from one side, the true feelings always rest in despair.   

What does love feel like?

What does love feel like? To be honest, there is no perfect definition that could define this feeling. Every other person has a different and unique opinion about love. But many of you would somehow agree with what I’m going to describe here. 

True love provides comfort and happiness: things a person wants to have forever. Everyone has seen the dawn, but have you ever felt it? Have you felt the beauty of this time? It’s the time when the world is sleeping and everything feels so peaceful and calm. The trees, the sky, the birds, and the entire environment look extremely beautiful. The air feels tremendously fresh. It’s the time when you want no one else, but you and the view you’re experiencing. I personally love this time and wish this aesthetic moment could last forever. No matter what you’re going through, this beauty engages your mind and makes you forget all your worries. 

Similarly, when you fall for someone, their presence and love feels comfortable, blissful, and soothing. You start enjoying and appreciating things around you, and the world, all of a sudden, seems beautiful. Your entire world revolves around that one special person. When you are with them, you don’t want anyone else to interrupt or disturb the time you both are spending with each other, and wish the time stops just right there. It feels like you’ve discovered the missing part of yourself. You’re so happy in your present that other hardships and stress don’t trouble you anymore. You start replacing your bad memories with the new happy ones. It’s a feeling of immense joy. You start thinking optimistically. And thus, you experience the most beautiful time of your life. 

Signs of one-sided love

If you can relate to these signs, then your relationship or love is unrequited:

• You’re always the one initiating the conversation.
• You easily get depressed or unhappy when they don’t call or text you.  
• You justify their behavior in your friend circle.
• Feeling insecure about your relationship.
• When you’re not with them, you keep checking their social media accounts.
• Even being aware of the signs which indicate your partner isn’t actually interested in you, you keep hoping that one day he/she might love me back.
• They only come to you when it suits them. 
• You’re always the one making plans for meetups.
• They say, “you want too much”, whereas you pull out all the efforts every minute for them. 
• You feel drained and depressed, since you make every possible effort but receive nothing in return. 

6 ways to make your one-sided love successful

The following tips might help you impress your love and make it two-sided:

1. Spend time with them

Try spending as much time as you possibly can with them. In this way they’ll become habitual of your presence. Your absence will make them worried and they’ll try to approach you in every possible way. 

2. Make them feel happy

Make them feel like they spend the best time of their life when with you. Make small efforts to put a smile on his/her face, such as writing short paragraphs, buying chocolates or something they extremely love, etc. Share jokes and funny stories to make them laugh. People tend to enjoy the company of those who make them laugh. 

3. Show how much you care

Ask them to call you when they reach home, or ask about how they spent their entire day. Remember little details about them. It shows your genuine care for them. 

4. Listen carefully to what they say

People feel comfortable when you listen to them.Talking just about yourself and only sharing your experiences will make them bored. Instead, ask them about themselves. 

5. Compliment them

We feel good when someone compliments us. Say something good to them and they’ll automatically start liking you.  Just ensure that the compliment is sincere and you’re not complementing just to compliment them. 

6. Limit your availability

The biggest mistake people make is being available all the time. Let them miss you. Stop waiting for their call or message. You’ll lose your value by responding back immediately. You not always need to miss their calls or ignore their messages, but it’s important to do it sometimes. 

Should you give up on one-sided love?

Being in love is the most beautiful feeling one could experience. It’s the most powerful and a pure emotion. But sometimes, it puts you in the most vulnerable position a person can be. Giving up in the very beginning would be untimely and inappropriate. One must try hard to impress his/her loved one. 

It’s a human nature that we fall for people who genuinely care for us and make us happy. But there should be a limit. You should not serve your entire life trying to impress that one human. If they’d really care, they’ll appreciate your efforts and would respond you back the way you deserve. You don’t need to let yourself down. Never change yourself for others, nor sacrifice your self-respect ever. I repeat, never! If something is meant to be yours, you’ll get it no matter what, and if not, doesn’t matter how hard you try, you’’ll never achieve it. Therefore, sacrificing your mental peace and happiness for someone who doesn’t even care is nothing but an immature behavior. 

Unreciprocated love provides nothing but stress, depression, and lowers your self-esteem. It’s time to move on when you’ve tried your best and still received nothing but rejection in return. Never let others use you just to entertain themselves, approaching you only when they want to. It’s not yours but their loss. They missed the opportunity to be treated in the best possible way. They missed to be loved unconditionally. It’s your responsibility to value yourself. You deserve to be happy, to live your life, to be loved. One day, they surely would realize what they lost while running after some worthless stones. 

How to move on?

It’s not actually easy to move on when you truly love someone. Instead, it’s the hardest step one has to take. But, in order to live happily and lead a successful life, it’s important. Engaging yourself in other activities is the best way to cope with this pain. However, the following tips can help you let go and move on:

1. Make yourself busy

Spend most of your time learning new skills, accomplishing your goals and targets, hanging out with friends, reading books, etc. Keeping yourself busy will help you avoid missing them. It might not be easy because when you are angry or feeling negative, it’s hard to think about something else but your current situation. Sitting alone at home and cerebrating what happened with you and wondering if you could change it, trust me will not help you. Rather, engage yourself in other activities and focus on your goals. Reading motivational quotes can also help. 

2. Accept the reality

It’s important that you accept the reality and move on. Expecting they, one day, will realize and come to you is useless. Remember, you too are someone’s one-sided love. So instead of mourning for the one who doesn’t respect your feelings, you should admire their feelings and spend the rest of your life with them. Since loving someone no doubt is a great feeling, but being loved is a blessing. 

3. Maintain a distance

Communicating to the person who turned you down is too difficult. Therefore, when missing them, you often start checking their social media accounts, asking your common friends about them, or visiting the places they usually go. Doing so will never let you move on. Instead, avoid everything that might make you miss them.

4. Focus on your future

Have an aim in life. Set your goals and start working hard in order to achieve them. Let go of your past and focus on your future. Since past is something that has gone, and your future is yet to come, therefore, try hard to make it beautiful. Focusing on your goals and working to achieve them can be a great distraction. 

5. Open up to someone you trust

Sharing your pain and feeling with your close friends or family members can help you cope with your condition. They are the one who truly care for you and would suggest you the best ways to deal with the situation at hand. 

Can you stop loving someone?

It’s easy for some people to forget and move on, although they once loved someone truly, but nearly impossible for others to stop loving. It depends on our coping mechanism and how we deal with the pain of losing someone when we talk about how long our love lasts. 

Whether you can or cannot stop loving someone depends on the person you love or the type of relationship or bond you both shared. If the person was too good of a kind, cared for your feelings, and returned the love you deserve, but due to some circumstances you both separated, then it’s hard, almost impossible, to stop loving that human. You might accept the reality, you might start doing good in your life again, but deep down in your heart you still miss that one special human. You can’t get over their kindness and love for you. You might marry or build a relationship with someone else again, but the feelings and respect for that person never die. Although you don’t show, but you still do care.

On the other hand, you possibly can stop loving someone when the person you love wasn’t good enough with you and the world around, couldn’t manage things or behave well, doesn’t respect or care for your feelings and emotions. When you find someone better or engage with the world, you understand things, you understand how better you deserve to be treated, and that person isn’t worth your love, you stop loving, forget things, and move on.        

Dealing with the loss isn’t the same for everyone. Some keep mourning that one incident for the rest of their lives, sitting alone and cursing things, while others engage in different activities to help themselves cope with the situation and move on. 

Before you leave!

Loving someone is a great feeling, but it can be the worst experience when your feelings are not reciprocated. We must learn that bad things happen to everyone, however, your character is defined by how you respond to them. You can decide if you want to sit in perpetual sadness, or you want to rise from the pain, be thankful for what you still have at hand, and move on.

Faiza Amin

A Psychology student from Jinnah University. She brings her knowledge of Human Psychology and Mental Health issues to help people cope-up with their psychological problems. She addresses important topics on mental health, child upbringing, and a healthy lifestyle with her articles.

Do you know? Your body needs fewer hours of sleep as you age. 

Sleep deprivation is common these days. We all are aware of the importance of 7-9 hours of sleep every night, still, we sacrifice our night sleep for mobile phones, late-night parties, studies, etc. But, what happens when you don’t sleep at night? Never miss your night sleep since it is crucial for your overall well-being. Our bodies are designed in ways that require a proper night sleep, however, a poor night sleep can make you prone to many issues such as: 

• Several diseases (like diabetes, heart problems, obesity, cancer, etc)
• Mental problems (such as depression, anxiety, decreased focus, etc)
• Poor mood, motivation, and energy level
• Poor immune system

Keep reading this article to know what happens when you don’t sleep at night and how to make a proper bedtime schedule. 

How much sleep does your body need according to your age?

Okay, you’re taking all your fruits and vegetables and exercising daily, but are you taking a proper sleep? Your sleep hours change according to your age. One must take a proper sleep according to his/her age. The table below shows sleeping hours according to your age: 

Thus, some people will feel fresh after 5-6 hours of sleep and others need 9-10 hours of sleep every night. It not only depends on your age but varies from person to person. How would you know if you are taking the amount of sleep your body requires? Here’s a simple test; do you feel sleepy right now? If ‘yes’, then you are not taking a proper night sleep, and if ‘no’ then kudos, you’re doing it the right way! 

Are you taking a proper night sleep according to your age? If not, look at what happens when you don’t sleep at night. 

Consequences of sleep deprivation

Do you know? 1 out of every 3 individuals is not taking enough sleep in America. 

The importance of a good night sleep is similar to eating healthy and exercising regularly. People nowadays are sleeping less than they used to in the past, and their sleep quality has decreased as well.

Certain studies claim that when you experience sleep deprivation, your mind actually go-to-sleep on its own, despite you being fully aware. Sleep deprivation can harm you physically as well as mentally. What happens when you don’t sleep at night? Here are the long-term effects of lack of sleep at night:

1. You’re at a higher risk for developing chronic health diseases

Sleep deprivation can have a more significant impact on your overall health than you can imagine. It weakens your immune system and prevents your body from producing cytokines to fight infections. In this way, a person will take longer to recover from illness. You can develop various health issues due to sleep deprivation, such as: 

• Heart diseases 
• Cancer, like breast cancer, colorectal cancer, and prostate cancer 
• Stroke
• Diabetes
• High blood pressure
• Obesity
• Depression
• Anxiety

2. Your brain can’t function properly

Do you know? Sleep deprivation increases the rate of car accidents by 7%.

Sleep deprivation for even one night can cause major thinking issues. Your memory, decision-making, and problem-solving power, alertness, and reaction time worsens. 

We once conducted a reaction time experiment in our university. Participants who slept late or missed their night sleep took more time to react than participants who maintained a good bedtime routine. 

It also makes you forget things easily. You need to make a proper bedtime schedule if you want your memory to stay and have the ability to learn new things easily. 

3. Lack of sleep ruins your skin

When we sleep our skin and body recharge. A quality night sleep has a profound effect on your skin. When we are sleeping we eliminate toxins and impurities from our skin. Sleep deprivation can affect:

• Wound healing
• Collagen growth 
• Skin hydration
• Skin texture

It also causes: 

• Under-eye bags
• Dark circles
• Wrinkles
• Fine lines
• Uneven pigmentation
• Saggy and dull skin 
• Inflammation
• Acne
• Eczema
• Psoriasis
• Skin allergies

4. You become obese

Do you know? People who skip their night sleep or for sleep less than 7 hours tend to be more obese than people who fulfill their sleeping requirements. 

Your internal mechanism gets disturbed when you don’t set a normal sleep-wake schedule. Everything dysfunctions, from your hormones to digestion.

Your body overproduces a stress hormone-cortisol when it needs rest. This high level of cortisol can lead to abdominal fat, sometimes referred to as “stress belly”. Surplus amount of abdominal fat makes you prone to diabetes and heart diseases. 

Sleep deprivation also makes you hungrier. When you don’t sleep at night your body releases ghrelin, a hunger hormone, more, and decreases the appetite-suppressing hormone, leptin. It also increases your sugar cravings, which leads to dietary problems and obesity.    

5. Decreased Sex Drive

Do you know? About one-third of women in America avoid sexual intercourse when they are sleep deprived.

When you don’t maintain a proper sleep-wake routine your sex drive diminishes. You feel tired and lazy and thus, it affects your mood. This, however, doesn’t happen after skipping a single night’s sleep, but your condition worsens if you make a habit of sleeping less than your body requires every night. It lowers testosterone levels in males.  

6. You’re less productive

Sleep deprivation leads to drowsiness and laziness. You’re unable to complete your tasks or do something new. Your focus and concentration decrease. You feel very sleepy and lazy during the day. To be productive and work efficiently, sleeping is essential.

Many of us don’t sleep because we need to work, and we are unable to work because we don’t sleep. Isn’t it a bad pattern? You skip a night’s sleep for better progress, but the results would be much more amazing if you got a night’s sleep instead. Thus, our bodies are designed in ways that require a night’s sleep to be productive and feel fresh during the day, no matter what.

Signs and Symptoms of Sleep Deprivation

You can notice the following changes in your body when you are sleep deprived:

• Yawning
• Getting irritated soon
• Moodiness
• Drowsiness
• Fatigue
• Forgetfulness
• Difficulty in concentrating or learning
• Lower sex drive
• Depressed mood
• Clumsiness
• Increased cravings for appetite and carbohydrates 

Causes of sleep deprivation

Do you know? Sleep deprivation increases as you grow older.

We are aware of what happens when we don’t sleep at night. Let’s now learn what factors cause sleep deprivation. Sleep deprivation isn’t a disease itself but can be a result of other underlying health problems. It is becoming more common nowadays. People try to cover more tasks and hence, sacrifice their sleep. Here are the top reasons why we skip our night sleep:

Age

Aging is a common factor that affects your sleeping pattern. People above the age of 65 face sleep deprivation because of the aging process. Other than aging, medications, stress, health problems, and sleeping schedule can make them sleep-deprived.  

Lifestyle

The following habits can disturb your sleeping schedule:

• Alcohol: Drinking alcohol within 4 hours of going to bed can disturb your sleep. You may fall asleep with the help of a nightcap but it will disturb your sleep later at night. You may also need to make several trips to the washroom.
• Late night eating: Eating a few hours before going to sleep can interrupt your night sleep. It can cause heartburn due to lying with a full stomach and makes it difficult to fall asleep or stay asleep.
• Afternoon naps: Too much afternoon or later naps makes it difficult to sleep at night.
• Too much caffeine consumption:  Your brain chemical that helps you sleep, called adenosine, gets blocked when you consume too much caffeine.

Medication

Certain medications make you awake at night. Some examples are:

• Antidepressants (e.g., Prozac and Zoloft)
• Beta-blockers for high blood pressure
• Cold medicines and decongestants
• Corticosteroids that treat inflammation of asthma
• Steroids

Underling health condition

Some chronic health conditions don’t let you sleep mostly in older age. These are:

• Anxiety or depression
• Sleep apnea
• Chronic pain
• Neuropathy
• Enlarged prostate gland
• Insomnia
• Cardiovascular diseases
• Respiratory problems
• Thyroid disease

Other factors

People face sleep deprivation once in their lives. These factors might make them sleep-deprived, such as:

• Change in schedule
• Newborn baby
• Workload
• Pain
• Stress

How can you diagnose sleep deprivation?

If you are experiencing the following warning signs, you must see your doctor:

• Drowsiness during the day. You must stay alert and active, even if you’re on some boring task.
• Sleeping within 5 minutes as soon as you lay down is an indication that you may have severe sleep deprivation.
• Sleep-deprived people have ‘microsleeps’. Microsleeps are brief sleeping periods during the day time. Sometimes, such people aren’t even aware that they are having microsleeps.

If your doctor thinks you possibly have a life-threatening sleep disorder like sleep apnea, then he might do a test known as a sleep study (polysomnography). Polysomnography monitors your breathing, heart rate, and other necessary signs during your night sleep. It helps your sleep specialist diagnose and treat your underlying disorder.

How to prevent sleep deprivation?

If your sleep deprivation is not severe, the following strategies will help you catch a good night’s sleep:

• 20-30 minutes daily exercise, 5-6 hours before going to bed. This will make you feel more tired and sleepy.
• Avoid caffeine, nicotine, or alcohol.
• Avoid long naps during the day.

Can sleep deprivation be treated?

Sleep deprivation can be cured but its treatment depends on the severity of the disorder. It can be treated in the following ways based on the type of disorder you are suffering from:

• Self-care methods
• Sleeping pills
• Light therapy for insomnia
• CPAP (continuous positive airway pressure), a special breathing machine to give you a continuous flow of air with the help of a mask while sleeping, for sleep apnea

How to catch up on your lost sleep?

The following tips and tricks will help you sleep better at night:

• Make a sleep-wake routine and stick to it
• Sleep in a quiet, dark, and cool place
• Avoid using mobile phones, laptops, or other gadgets 2-3 hours before going to sleep
• Don’t eat 2-3 hours before sleeping at night
• Try reading a book for a few minutes if you’re facing difficulty sleeping
• Consider taking enough sleep as a medicine

Before you leave!

Sleeping is crucial for a healthy living. But some people think that it’s just a waste of time and that they can complete a lot more important tasks rather than sleeping. Little do they know, without sleeping, they’ll invest more than the required time to cover up things, as your concentration decreases when you are sleep deprived. Thus, in order to stay active, healthy, and productive you need to sleep for a minimum of 5 hours.  

Faiza Amin

A Psychology student from Jinnah University. She brings her knowledge of Human Psychology and Mental Health issues to help people cope-up with their psychological problems. She addresses important topics on mental health, child upbringing, and a healthy lifestyle with her articles.

Do you know? People who tend to have an optimistic and positive view in life live longer and healthier than people who tend to be pessimists. 

How to be optimistic about the future when everything around you isn’t going the way you wanted it to be? To be honest, there will always be ups and downs in your life, but how you decide to deal with them today, determines what your tomorrow will turn out. 

You have to believe in your abilities and that you are capable of anything. Believing in oneself helps us accomplish whatever we set our minds to. Remember, everyone goes through hard times. Have a spiritual perspective. Things not only happen to us but for us! 

How to be optimistic about the future? Continue reading this article if you want to build an optimistic personality. Here are the top 10 ways that’ll help you achieve an optimistic attitude. 

Who is an Optimist?

According to a study, women who tend to be optimistic had a 30% less chance of developing heart diseases. 

Optimistic people are positive thinkers. They have high expectations from life. They don’t just sit in a corner and curse their fate, instead, they find solutions to problems. Optimists make every possible effort to achieve their goals. They believe that the future is full of hope and opportunities. They are confident, positive, and successful people. They are hard workers and pave their way to success. They view their life positively and believe that numerous great things are waiting for them. 

Who is a Pessimist?

Pessimistic people are negative thinkers. They don’t expect good from life and believe that things will always be worst. They think that undesirable things will happen to them more than desirable ones. For instance, if they see a beautiful waterfall, they will think they’ll die. 

How to be optimistic about the future?

It sometimes becomes difficult to be happy when you put a closer view to the world. But instead of brooding, you can adopt certain ways to stay motivated, even if your future seems futile. Let’s look for the ways on how to be optimistic about the future:

1. Set and achieve your goals

Setting up goals will help you know what you actually want from life. For sure time is money, therefore, you spend more time in achieving your desires than wasting it. Goals act as a guide and keep you on course when times get tough, and stops you from being distracted by unimportant matters. Accomplishing your goals even if they are small encourage you to do more. It is important to challenge yourself weekly to stay optimistic about the future. When you persistently follow what you say you will do, you increase your trust in yourself and uncover your abilities.

2. Dream big but take small steps 

Optimistic people dream as big as possible. There are no limitations. They have high expectations from life and it’s impossible for them to think small. On the same hand, they break and achieve their dream into small chunks. Doing so will boost their motivation and energy when they achieve a small portion of their goal and will make every possible effort to get to the next step. It makes you feel proud, confident, and purpose: the most important ingredients of optimism and success.  

3. Have a positive attitude

Do you know? Positive thinking improves your mental and physical wellbeing. 

We are attracted by what we feel, therefore, even if you are blank about what your future will look like, you can attract great things only by having a positive attitude about them. Adopting a positive attitude will make your life happier, brighter, and more successful. Enjoy the unexpected things in life, even if they aren’t what you wanted originally. Avoid the thoughts that lead to negativity and failures and expect the best to happen. 

Moreover, positivity keeps you away from many mental and physical diseases. It boosts your self-esteem, confidence, and decision making power. Stop rehearsing your limitations. Stop saying things like you can’t do that, or you don’t want that, or you don’t have that. 

4. Visualize what your future will look like

There are more chances of achieving something great if you can already imagine yourself in that situation. Visualize where you want your life to be, at least once a week. You can do so by writing it in your diary or talking to someone you trust. Doing so will help you maintain your focus on that one particular goal you want to achieve in life and avoid distractions. It makes you believe in yourself and feel empowered. 

5. Surround yourself with positive people

Do you know? Sharing your goals with friends and family helps you stick to them. 

Optimists never listen or respond to small minds. People will judge you and try to convince you that you are thinking too big or it’s impossible to achieve a certain goal. However, never believe such people who discourage you or try to pull you down. Instead, surround yourself with winners. Spend time who loves seeing you grow and lifts you up.

Are you connected to optimistic people? Have a look and notice if the people around you are optimists or pessimists. When you are spending more time with optimistic people you will start being affected by their positive energy. Similarly, if you are grounded by negative people, you are bound to feel negative. 

6. Face your fear and let go of the past

Every one of us fears the unknown and it’s natural. Our future lies in this category since we can’t predict what’ll happen next. But you can control your mindset. Don’t hold yourself back because you’re scared or because you’ve been hurt by anyone or anything. Rather, you should acknowledge your fear, accept it, and face it with confidence. Letting go of your past is like your emotional and spiritual delete button. It can’t change what happened and nothing else could, but it can surely remove that event’s power to continue hurting you. Until you make peace with your harsh memories, that pain will continue interrupting your current and future experiences.

7. Live well today

Do you know? You cherish your world more and worry less when you live in the present moment. 

Feel everything – the sights, the sounds, the smells, the emotions, the triumph, and the sorrow. These are a part of our daily lives but we sometimes forget to take them in and truly appreciate them.

Living in the present refers not to worry about what happened yesterday and not fearing what will happen tomorrow. It means enjoying everything happening now and living for today. Spend your time resting, working, learning, nourishing, preparing, and loving. Take care of yourself and your happiness. When we engage in things that keep us feeling alive and hopeful, we learn to anticipate a brighter and better future.

8. Acknowledge what is and what isn’t under your control

Pessimistic people are unable to deal with uncertainty, whereas optimistic people are able to adapt and thrive. Learn to accept when a situation is or isn’t under your control. 

For instance, you’ve lost your job. Here, you either were fired or laid off, you can’t control this fact. What you can control is whether you try to find a new job, and take care of yourself with proper nutrition and sleep, or just sit in a corner depressed, cursing your fate. 

9. Take the responsibility of your actions

Successful people never blame others or their own selves. They know how to handle the current situation and try to solve things. We start pointing fingers to others in a difficult situation. It’s easy to blame others and escape at the moment but later, you won’t feel good about yourself and that the others will perceive you as a coward or won’t believe that you’re a team player anymore. You must have guts to take responsibility for the current situation. When something goes wrong, you should look at the situation objectively and see where you could have done something different.

10. Celebrate your accomplishments and create a list

Okay, so you have set your goals, but what after you’ve completed those goals and tasks? Looking at our past achievements is so satisfying and encourages us to do more. When you’re stuck at a point and are willing to give up, these lists help you stay on tract. They boost your motivation and energy levels. Try doing this once a week or every day before going to bed. Recall what you have achieved this week/day. This will motivate you to work harder and produce an ongoing cycle of success and achievements. 

You now know how to be optimistic about the future. The above-mentioned tips and tricks will help you achieve an optimistic attitude toward the future. 

A quick test to determine whether you are an optimist or a pessimist

Answer the following questions and check if you are an optimist or a pessimist:

• Do you think most problems are a result of your fault?
• Do problems become calamitous?
• Are you more concerned about the negative minutiae? 
• Do you seek for suggestions and approval of others before making a decision?
• Do you find difficulty accepting compliments?
• Do you think that you are a perfectionist?

If you answer ‘yes’ to any four or more of the above-mentioned questions, then you are more likely to be a pessimist. 

How to make your child optimistic?

Are you raising your child the right way? How sure are you that he’ll be successful? Is he optimistic? It is optimism that leads to success!

You now know how to be optimistic about the future but do you know how to make your child one? You can follow these tips to raise an optimistic child: 

• Be a positive role model: Children mimic your actions and statements. Therefore, start by eliminating your own negativity. Do you say statements like ‘I’m so dumb’, or ‘this is so difficult’? If yes, then stop right away. Negative statements about oneself is the major element of pessimism. 
• Allow your child to experience achievements: Let your child experience small achievements. For example, give him/her age-appropriate tasks and appreciate them for their efforts. 
• Let them play alone: No doubt it’s important to give time and play with your children, but give them some time to play self-directed games. This will boost their decision making power and increase their confidence. 
• Point out the positive things in problems: Listen to their problems and talk about overcoming difficulties. Tell them that everyone faces hardships but the strong ones know how to deal with the situation. Tell them the realities of life. Ask them to search for positivity in every situation. For example, when your child is sick and took off from school, tell him how he’s able to watch television in the afternoon.
• Protect them from unnecessary stress: Avoid exposing your kids to the harsh realities of life, such as financial crisis, till they reach a certain age where they are able to cope with such problems. Limit their media exposure. News these days are full of negativity and harsh realities. Instead, spend a quality family time without such devices.
• Don’t always spoon-feed: Teach them practical skills, and let them do their work by themselves as much as possible. For example, let them tie their shoelaces, eat their food, manage toilet, dressing up, etc.

Following these tips will help you in modern parenting and raise an optimistic generation. 

Before you Leave!

With the help of this article you might have got an idea about how to be optimistic about the future. Just because things aren’t going the way you expected them to be doesn’t mean your entire future is ruined. Remember that roadblocks don’t mean failure. Optimism doesn’t mean that you ignore the hardships of life, it just refers to dealing with these stressors in a more productive way. The only thing that helps you live a happy, healthy, and successful life is optimism. Therefore, try to be optimistic and have a positive attitude toward everything. 

Faiza Amin

A Psychology student from Jinnah University. She brings her knowledge of Human Psychology and Mental Health issues to help people cope-up with their psychological problems. She addresses important topics on mental health, child upbringing, and a healthy lifestyle with her articles.

Do you know? When you have a crush on someone, your brain just ignores all the faults in that person and makes them look perfect in your eyes.

Do you like someone but aren’t aware of the things to talk about with your crush? Do you want a long conversation with him/her? Don’t know how to impress your crush? This article will provide you some engaging things to talk about with your crush and tips on how to impress your crush.

How to have an effective conversation?

Before getting started with the things to talk about with your crush, here are some tips to have an effective conversation:

• Ask follow up questions related to the other person’s answers. But don’t forget that its a conversation, not an interrogation. 
• When the other person asks you a question give a well-detailed answer. Also, answer the follow-up questions they ask you. 
• Listen carefully to the other person and make eye contact. 
• Don’t talk on the topics that lead to arguments, such as politics or religion. 
• Choose one topic at a time.
• Don’t talk endlessly, show some interest in the other person as well. 

However, if the person seems least interested and gives a lot of one-word answers, or doesn’t make eye contact, it’s better to leave them to their own thoughts. 

Below some things to talk about with your crush are discussed which will help you impress him/her. 

10 Things to talk about with your crush

It’s a psychological fact that talking to your crush boosts your mental health. So just start the conversation!

People often go blank when they see their crush. They’re unable to utter a word since they don’t know how to start a conversation, and thus, miss the opportunity. However, these 10 things to talk about with your crush can help you attract him/her towards you. 

Ask them about themselves

The first out of the 10 things to talk about with your crush is to ask about themselves. People love to tell about themselves. Allow your crush to talk about themselves. Asking about the other person is the best way to start a conversation. You may ask about their:

• Dreams or Passion: People like talking about themselves, and dreams are a good topic to discuss with your crush. This conversation will show what your crush is passionate about and what they want to achieve in life. Some people can talk forever about their passion and dreams in life. This fun topic will make your crush do all the talking for you. 
• Hobbies: Knowing about your crush’s hobbies and interests tells a lot about who they are as a person. You may have shared hobbies that will keep the conversation going. If they don’t have hobbies, ask them what they would like to do. Or you can suggest some of your hobbies. If they seem interested, you can ask if they want to do your hobbies with you. 
• Family: Ask about your crush’s family background, siblings, etc, and his/her relation with them. This will reveal who they really are and their past. If they have good relationships with their family, you will need their family to like you in order to date them. Moreover, you can also share stories about your family members and your childhood.  
• Future plans: Ask about their future plans and listen carefully to what they say. Listening shows that you really care for them and want to hear them. If they haven’t planned anything for the future yet, suggest some ideas to them. 
• Free Time: Ask about what they do in their free time or how much free time do they get in a day. Ask what do they like the most and wish they had more time for that.  
• Food: Ask about their favorite food, restaurant, the thing to cook, or ethnic food. Ask about their good or bad experiences at restaurants. 

People start opening up to you when you allow them to talk. When you listen to them and show interest, they start feeling comfortable and probably respond the way you want them to.  

Compliment them

The second out of the 10 things to talk about your crush I recommend is to compliment them. People love being complimented! Say something good to them and they will automatically start liking you. Just ensure that the compliment is sincere and you’re not complementing just to compliment them. 

For example, if the girl’s hair is long and silky, just compliment her. If the boy’s muscles are breathtaking, simply compliment him.

Tell the truth

The most important out of the 10 things to talk about with your crush is, to tell the truth, and be real. Don’t make outrageous lies about yourself to impress them. Be honest about yourself, your feelings and your beliefs. Be yourself and tell the truth. People are more likely to be comfortable and admire the ones who are real. 

For instance, if you failed in your high school because of some reason, share it with them, instead of saying that you were the topper of the class. 

Do you know? It’s hard to lie to your crush.

Share your secrets

Many people love hearing secrets. Sharing secrets is a way of increasing intimacy as the other person feels unique and special that you trusted him and shared a certain secret. But, be careful with this tip. Don’t blurt out a secret that you are insecure about. It’ll make you feel weird and embarrassed your whole life. This topic should occur naturally in your conversation. 

Top travel destinations

Travel destination topics have always been fun discussing. If your crush likes traveling, they will share plenty of stories with you. Ask him/her about his/her favorite vacation. Include follow up questions such as what they liked the most about that destination or ask them about their favorite experiences. Ask them when did they travel there and when are they planning to visit that place again. 

In case your crush hasn’t got a chance to travel yet, ask about where he/she would like to go, with whom, and why. If your travel destinations resemble, tell them that it’ll be a good idea to travel together. 

Events

Sometimes you aren’t much familiar with your crush to talk about a hobby or travel destination, so use the information you already are aware of to strike up a conversation. 

For example, if you study together talk about an upcoming event or a party that you both attended. If you work together talk you can talk about upcoming projects. But, be careful as some people hate their jobs, your crush might be one of them. If they are less interested in this topic, simply change the topic. If they are passionate about their work, prospect this work a little more to get the conversation keep going. 

Favorite books, movies, music, and actors

Some people are addicted to watching movies and listening to music. Instead of discussing religious or political topics you can ask about your crush’s favorite movie, music taste, or favorite actors/actresses. This is a safe and interesting topic. Ask them about the last movie they saw which they really loved. If you recently saw a new movie, you could see if your crush has also watched it and what’s their opinion on it. 

These questions help you know more about your crush. You get a clear vision of their taste in movies and could ask him/her to join you and enjoy similar movies together. 

If you know your crush’s music taste, you could plan a date for a concert or live performance. By dating at places that grab the interest of your crush, they’ll more likely enjoy the date and want to go out with you. 

Books are another good topic to keep the conversation going if you love reading. By talking about your favorite books and authors, you can rapidly find out if your crush is as interested in reading and learning as you are. The types of books an individual likes, reveal so much about that person.  

Ask for advice

If you barely talked to your crush before, try starting the conversation by asking fr advice. People feel admired when they are asked for advice. It also helps you know about how your crush views the world and certain issues. 

I hope these things to talk about with your crush will help you start a conversation with your crush and make it effective. It will also help you know your crush better. 

Share jokes

Show your sense of humor by laughing at their jokes (laugh with them not at them). Make them laugh by sharing jokes or funny stories and experiences. People more likely to enjoy with people who make them laugh. If you can make them laugh, they will surely want to spend more time with you and even date you. 

Mimic his/her actions, this will attract them.

Be flirty

Lastly, try to flirt with them without being disrespectful or crossing the boundaries. Be clear when trying to flirt. Mostly when you are not looking for someone, the signals they send you are hard to notice, therefore make them notice that you are into them.

I hope these 10 things to talk about with your crush will help you impress him/her.  

Discuss in the comments below if you have tried any of these things to talk about with your crush and share your experience. 

Let’s discuss some additional tips on how to impress your crush. 

Some additional tips on how to impress your crush

These tips on how to impress your crush will help you look confident, caring, and attractive in front of your crush. Let’s see how to impress your crush:  

Don’t overshare

Some things should remain a mystery. If you’re having your first conversation with your crush (maybe second, third or fourth), don’t share the intimate details of you and your family. This might make them scared. However, this doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t open up to them. It’s just that some things are better to be kept secretive this early. 

Offer something to eat

We don’t share food with just anybody! Offering them a cookie, a chip or a fry will make them feel special and unique. They will now associate you with the good feeling of being shared something delicious.

Be confident

Be confident not only in front of your crush but in general. This intends that shoulders back, chin up, walk around with a purpose, speak and listen appropriately, try not to act nervous no matter how nervous you are in front of your crush, etc.  

Make eye contact

How to impress your crush by making eye contact? Make eye contact during the conversation. This ensures the other person that you are interested in and are listening to them carefully. But don’t just stare at them, it might make them uncomfortable. This will also make you look less nervous than you are. 

Look your best

Looking good will eventually make you feel good and confident. No doubt it’s a cliche but it’s true. This doesn’t mean wearing fancy clothes or applying a lot of makeup. But you must make a little bit of effort in your appearance and look irresistible.

Don’t think too much about the future

Don’t think too much about the future or the next step. This might make you look tensed and worried. Instead, live in the moment and enjoy it. For now, your goals are to score a date with them. After that, you can look for another date. 

Don’t talk about your exes

Another important tip for “how to impress your crush” is not to discuss anything about your ex. The worst thing you can do is to talk about your ex. Don’t do that! Your crush surely wouldn’t be interested in hearing about your past relationships. Here is only one relationship that matters-your relationship with your crush!

Ensure them that you are single

Your crush might also be interested in you but the only reason he/she hasn’t asked you out yet is because they don’t know if you’re single or not. Make it clear that you are available by hanging out with the friends of similar gender or giving hints that you have no one to take to an event. 

Before you Leave!

It feels great when the person you like is also interested in you. The above-mentioned things to talk about with your crush and how to impress your crush will surely make you attractive and irresistible to date. But the key factor is to be yourself. Never change yourself for others. If the person doesn’t respond the way you want them to, don’t worry. There are millions of other people who would accept you the way you are. 

Faiza Amin

A Psychology student from Jinnah University. She brings her knowledge of Human Psychology and Mental Health issues to help people cope-up with their psychological problems. She addresses important topics on mental health, child upbringing, and a healthy lifestyle with her articles.

Are you a student? Remember those nights when you had to cram a lot of stuff for finals, but you kept dozing off? We all have been there and we know the hardest part is to stay awake. After a long tiring day and long hours of study, sleep becomes inevitable. Studying during those last hours of the night is no less than running a marathon. 

We know the late-night study is no fun. So here are 15 healthy and lucrative tips for you to ditch sleep and stay awake during late study hours.

1. Study in a well-lit room

It is hard to sleep in bright lights. Bright lights trick your brain into thinking that it is still the day time. Most of the students make this mistake that they study under a single table lamp while half of the room remains dark. In dim lights, you’re supposedly more tempted to sleep. Avoid such a cosy and comfy environment. 

2. Keep yourself moving

You are more likely to fall asleep when you stay in the same stagnant position for long hours. Get up when you feel like you are about to sleep. Do short exercises. Move around in your room and stretch your muscles. This will boost your blood circulation and help in keeping your body alert and awake. 

If you’re extremely sleepy, keep standing for a few minutes as it is impossible to sleep while standing. 

3. Sit up straight

Your study position matters a lot. In a study conducted recently, it was found that a sitting or lying position affects your performance on an exam and your working memory. 

While you might think an ideal studying position is lying on a comfy couch or a bean bag, but this activates your parasympathetic system. And this will inversely affect your productivity, i.e. the greater the comfort, the lesser the productivity.

Try to seat yourself in an upright position on a chair as this will keep your body alert. Don’t sit on your bed as this will activate your lazy mode. 

4. Hydration is necessary 

Always keep a water bottle near you. Drinking an adequate amount of water increases your retention power and memory. Hydration increases your brain function while dehydration shrinks your brain. 

Keep drinking water. Here is a trick: the more water you drink, the more bathroom trips you will take. So this will also keep you moving and help you stay awake.

5. Keep chomping on

Keep your mouth busy. Chewing gums are useful in this regard. So the moment you feel sleepy, grab a piece of your favourite gum and chew.

6. Rotate your study topics

When you start feeling sleepy switch your topics, don’t try to power through boring topics as this will diminish your interest. If a subject or topic gets boring, move on to something new and come back to it later.

You are more tired and sluggish at night so avoid studying difficult topics. Try to cover easy, short, and interesting topics at night. 

7. Study actively 

Keep yourself awake by using active study techniques. Reading and re-reading alone are not enough. Here are a few techniques:

• Learn by writing
• Create your examples
• Do practice questions
• Talk/sing to yourself

8. Readout loud

Reading aloud will minimize your chances of falling asleep. Like a teacher, explain to yourself the topic you just read. This will not only help you stay awake but will also help you memorize it better.

A research conducted in Canada reports that this “dual action” of learning and speaking helps the brain to store information as long-term memory.

9. Use caffeine, but wisely

It’s a very common practice. Students all around the globe use caffeinated drinks such as tea, coffee, etc. to keep themselves awake. 

Some studies suggest that the intake of caffeine is good, while others say it is bad. It was found that the safe upper limit of caffeine intake is 400 mg, i.e. four cups of coffee. So try to abstain from it first. But if you need it, use it wisely. 

Balance your coffee intake or substitute it with other drinks such as tea. Don’t chug it all at once as it has a dark side. Symptoms such as headache, nausea, or stomach ache may appear later. So try to caffeinate yourself in small doses throughout the night.

10. Avoid large meals

Try avoiding heavy meals. When your stomach is full, you become lethargic as your blood is directed towards your digestive tract. This makes you lazy and decreases your retention power. 

But this doesn’t mean that you have to starve. Take early meals and go for small healthier ones as eating too less also makes you sluggish.

11. Listen to Music

During those quiet hours of the night, music can be a good option to keep you alert. Intense instrumental music is recommended. Find a chill jam or a fast beat or any song that isn’t one of your favorites. Listen to one same genre so that the change of songs does not distract you much.

Remember we have to avoid being too ambient, so don’t listen to catchier songs that will have you wanting to sing along. Also, avoid those slow songs which can lull you to sleep. 

12. Study in a cold environment 

The cold environment keeps one alert, and working while being warm makes one sleepy. So study in a colder room or always have a fan near you, if possible.

You can also study outdoors but not in a freezing environment as it can have the opposite effect.

13. Do not study in your bedroom

Keep your studying and sleeping places separate. Study in some other area of your home which you do not associate with sleeping. 

According to The Division of Sleep Medicine at Harvard, if you study or work from your bedroom, it will become more difficult to sleep as your brain will think that you are in a place of work.

14. Keep your blood sugar levels high

Low blood sugars make you lethargic and sleepy. To combat this issue, aim for small but frequent meals. 

For effective all-nighter, eat proteins, and not carbs. Carbohydrates store energy for later and can even make you more sleepy, i.e. sugars are sleep-inducers.  

15. Know your limits

We all are different. Everyone has their limits. If your friend gets an A+ after a one-night study, this doesn’t mean you can too. Some people study effectively after 1 a.m. while others can’t even function after midnight. 

What’s important here is that you should know your limits. Realise what group you fall into. If you are not a night owl, try to get things done before nightfall. Don’t punish yourself by keeping up with people who pull all-nighters easily. 

Snag some Z’s when you think you can’t study anymore and get a head start on things the next day.  

Before you leave!

By studying the right way, even late nights can be one of the best uses of your time. The above-stated tips will surely help you to achieve your academic goals and desired grades. You can do it!

Faiza Amin

A Psychology student from Jinnah University. She brings her knowledge of Human Psychology and Mental Health issues to help people cope-up with their psychological problems. She addresses important topics on mental health, child upbringing, and a healthy lifestyle with her articles.

It often becomes difficult to choose between sociology vs psychology majors, since both fields include the study of human behavior. However, this article will help you choose between Sociology vs psychology easily.

This article will help you in learning:

• Origin of sociology
• Important sociological perspectives
• Basic sociological terms
• Medical sociology
• Dramaturgy Sociology
• Sociology vs psychology
• Sociology vs anthropology

History of sociology

People have had been thinking like sociologists long before sociology emerged as a separate discipline. Well-known names Plato and Aristotle, Confucius, Khaldun, and Voltaire set the stage for modern sociology.

People of ancient times were interested in the relationship between individuals and the societies they live in. Many topics we study today were also studied by ancient philosophers.

First social dynamics were recognized by a Chinese historian, Ma Tuan-Lin, in the thirteenth century. In his seminal encyclopedia, “General Study of Literary Remains”, he marked social dynamics as an underlying component of historical development. In the next century Ibn Khaldun (1332-1406) of Tunisia, worked for this field. He is considered to be the first sociologist of the world. Many topics of today’s interest were written by him, setting a foundation for both modern sociology and economics, together with the theory of social conflict, differentiating between nomadic and sedentary life, elucidating political economy, and a study joining a tribe’s social cohesion to its capacity for power.

General principles were developed by the Age of Enlightenment philosophers that could be used to describe social life, in the eighteenth century. Thinkers such as John Locke, Voltaire, Immanuel Kant, and Thomas Hobbes responded to the ills of the society by writing on the topics which they believed would lead to social reform. Women’s conditions in society were portrayed by Mary Wollstonecraft (1759-1797). The male academic structure usually ignored her work, but by the 1970s, she was widely considered as the first feminist thinker.

Great changes were seen in the early nineteenth century with the Industrial Revolution, enlarged mobility, and new kinds of employment. The great social and political upheaval could also be noticed with the rise of empires that exposed many people—for the first time—to societies and cultures other than their own. Millions of people moved to cities and many people turned away from their traditional religious beliefs.

The term sociology was first invented in 1780 by the French essayist Emmanuel-Joseph Sieyès (1748–1836) in an unpublished manuscript (Fauré et al. 1999).

Father of Sociology

The word “sociology” was reinvented in 1838 by the father of sociology. A French philosopher, Auguste Comte (1798–1857), is often referred to as the father of sociology. He used this word to define the scientific study of society.

Comte originally studied to be an engineer, but later became the student of Claude Henri de Rouvroy Comte de Saint-Simon (1760–1825), a social philosopher. They believed that society must also be studied using scientific methods like other natural sciences. The father of sociology also believed that sociologists could work for the betterment of the society. He suggested that once sociologists identified the laws that governed society, they could direct the ills of the society such as poor education and poverty. 

Comte named his theory of the scientific study of social patterns positivism. He wrote a series of books called The Course in Positive Philosophy (1830–1842) and A General View of Positivism (1848). He held that using scientific methods to disclose the laws by which societies and individuals interact would lead to a new “positivist” age of history. Comte was so impressed with his theory of positivism that he referred to it as “the great discovery of the year 1822”.

Important sociological perspectives

Here are the 4 important sociological perspectives that will help you learn how sociologists use paradigms to analyze the social world. A paradigm can be defined as a broad viewpoint, perspective, or lens that allows sociologists to have a wide range of tools to describe society, and then to construct hypotheses and theories.

The four important sociological perspectives are: 

• Functionalism
• The symbolic interactionist perspective
• The conflict perspective
• Feminism

Functionalism

The first out of the four important sociological perspectives is the functionalist perspective, also called functionalism. It suggests that every aspect of society is interdependent and must be balanced in order to make the society keep running. The social factors pointed in this perspective are: government, schools, families, and healthcare. All these factors are interdependent and keep our society working.

The government provides schools for families to make their children educated, which in turn pays the taxes and the state keeps running. That is, the family depends on the school to educate their children and get a good job to support their families and pay the taxes. In this way, the children become law-abiding, taxpaying citizens, who support the state. If the process goes well, the society produces order, stability, and productivity. If the process does not go well, the society then must alter to recapture a new order, stability, and productivity. 

Important figures that worked on this perspective are: Spencer, Émile Durkheim, and Robert Merton. 

The symbolic interactionist perspective

The second out of the four important sociological perspectives are the symbolic interactionist perspective. It is also known as symbolic interactionism. It suggests that social scientists consider the symbols and details of everyday life, what these symbols mean, and how people interact with each other. According to symbolic interactionism, people link meanings to symbols, and then they respond according to their subjective interpretation of these symbols. 

Charles Horton Cooley commenced the looking-glass self, in 1902, to explain how a person’s self of self grows out of interactions with others. He presented a trinal process for this development:

1. We see how others respond to us.
2. We interpret that response (typically as positive or negative).
3. On those interpretations we make a sense of self-based.

“Looking-glass” is an anachronistic term for a mirror, so Cooley theorized that we “see” ourselves when we communicate with others.

Another important figure coined with this perspective is George Herbert Mead (1863–1931), considered the founder of the symbolic interactionist perspective. 

The conflict perspective

The third out of the four important sociological perspectives is the conflict perspective. This perspective defines society as a system of unequal groups, and therefore persistently generate conflict and change. This theory explains unfortunate social trends such as racism, sexism, homophobia, ageism, class struggles, and so on.

For instance, you might have noticed that in schools, the popular group of students is mostly mean and rude to the less popular kids. 

The functionalists focused on the positive aspect of society and how the society moves and runs together, whereas the conflict theorists concentrated on the conflicted, negative, and ever-changing nature of society.  

Feminism

Finally, the fourth perspective of important sociological perspectives is feminism. Feminism is mostly assumed as a group of angry women who are trying to dominate men. That is not what feminism is! Feminism in the real sense is a perspective that views society as traditionally unequal between men and women and aims for equality between the sexes.

For instance, you might be aware of the fact that men and women, on average, are not paid equally in the United States. According to certain researches, even with the same education and job demands, women are only paid $0.77 for the same job for which a man would be paid $1.00. Women are barely represented in the government, women are less likely to own a business, and women are less likely to be college professors.

Basic sociological terms

There are numerous basic sociological terms. However, the 5 very basic sociological terms that every individual must know are:

Social conflict

The term social conflict refers to the struggle for agency, authority, or power in society. Social conflict or cluster conflict happens when two or more individuals oppose one another in social interaction, reciprocally exerting social power to gain scarce or incompatible goals and forestall the opponent from attaining them. It’s a social relationship whereby the action is adjusted deliberately for finishing up the individual’s own will against the resistance of opposing party or parties

Internalization

Internalisation (or internalization) in sociology and different social sciences is the method of acceptance of a collection of norms and values established by individuals or teams that are influential to the individual through the method of socialization.

The process starts with learning what the norms are, then the individual goes through a method of understanding why they have value or why they create sense, till finally, they settle for the norm as their viewpoint.

Permissive Society

​The changes towards freedom in attitudes and behavior that happened in several countries within the 1960s and 1970s, particularly the larger freedom in sexual matters. 

Mainstream

Mainstream explains what is viewed by the general public in a society as “normal,” just like the thought that everybody ought to wed, move to the suburbs, and have youngsters as early as possible. It is something that is typical, or the standard means of doing things.

Social consciousness

Social consciousness refers to the state of being aware of the problems and issues that affect most people in society, such as the less fortunate or the ones with no home, and having an urge to help and do something for these people.

What is Medical Sociology?

Medical sociology is the study of the out-turns of social and cultural factors on health and medicine. Medical sociology experts help individuals view the healthcare system as a function of the society and serve it by examining and improving all its facets. It provides greater career opportunities in the medical field. Medical sociology helps in evaluating the medical organizations and institutions, selecting appropriate methods, the social or cultural impacts of medical applications, and the actions and interconnections of healthcare professionals.

Medical sociologists are also fascinated by the qualitative experiences of patients, typically functioning at the boundaries of public health, social work, demography, and gerontology to explore phenomena at the intersection of the social and clinical sciences. Health disparities commonly relate to typical classes such as class and race.

What is Dramaturgy Sociology?

Sociologist Erving Goffman developed the idea of Dramaturgy sociology, the thought that life is sort of an endless play within which individuals are actors. Goffman believed that when we are born, we are thrust onto a stage referred to as every-day life, in which our socialization consists of learning a way to play our assigned roles from people. Dramaturgy sociology tend to enact our roles within the company of others, who are successively enacting their roles in interaction with us. He believed that no matter what we do, we are playing some role in the stage of life.

Goffman distinguished between front stages and back stages in dramaturgy sociology. Throughout our lifestyle, we tend to pay most of our lives on the front stage, where we deliver our lines and perform. A marriage may be a front stage. A schoolroom reading desk maybe a front stage. Virtually anyplace wherever we tend to act in front of others may be a front stage in dramaturgy sociology. Generally we revisit the rear stages of life. In dramaturgy sociology, we don’t need to act in these non-public areas. We are able to be our real selves. We can additionally practice and make ourselves ready to come back to the front stage. 

Sociology vs Psychology

People often get confused with the terms Sociology and Psychology because they seem so similar. This article will help you get a clear vision on the topic “Sociology vs Psychology”.

If you are interested in either Psychology or Sociology, you might be wondering “which is more interesting?”, “which is easier?”, or “what jobs can I get?”. In order to select either of the respective fields, one must be aware of the similarities and differences between the two fields. 

Sociology vs Psychology: definitions

Both psychologists and sociologists study people. But the major key that defines “Sociology vs Psychology” is that sociologists are concerned with the groups or the entire society, and the psychologist’s center of focus is a single individual. For instance, a psychologist would study why people wait in lines for hours or days to get a new smartphone. On the contrary, a sociologist would study the way the smartphone has changed the family dynamic. Let’s elaborate on “Sociology vs Psychology” a bit more. 

What is Psychology?

Psychology helps us study the mind and behavior of an individual and help him do better in his life. It deals with improving the decision making power, stress management, and behavior of a person based on understanding his past to better predict his future behavior. It deals with evaluating each person’s brain functions without necessarily considering the impact on other people.

Psychologists are curious about how one’s brain works, why it reacts certain ways, why do people do things they do, and what makes you “you”. They seek to discover the causes behind emotional reactions for boosting individual well-being. Thus, psychology largely focuses on cognitive processes such as love, depression, intelligence, grief, stress, etc in an individual’s mind. 

The most interesting thing about psychology is learning about abnormalities in the brain. To put it another way, disorders or mental illnesses, mostly assumed as “taboo” in some countries, when they are actually tremendously prevalent. 

What is Sociology?

Sociology on the other hand, is the scientific study of shaping society and solving its problems. It deals with the interactions of human society and the processes that preserve and change them. People are interdependent, and require collective arrangements and joint activity for their coexistence. Sociology helps in making the society peaceful and interactive and improves our social behavior. 

Sociologists are concerned about why and how particular factors (race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, religion, etc) play a role in the way different groups of people interact with one another. They work to bring real social issues like economic injustice, marriage inequality, social stratification, hate crimes, alcohol addiction, obesity, environmental racism, and healthcare disparity to the front line. 

Sociologists examine certain populations, research contemporary issues, and evaluate how the problems will influence the wellness of society.

Certain tracks are offered by some colleges within their sociology major. These tracks are likely to be family relationships, criminology, organizations in society, religion in sociology, etc. 

Sociology vs Psychology: Coursework

As a student of Psychology, you will study human behavior and mental processes. Your coursework might include the following courses depending on the institute you select:

• Foundations of Psychology
• The psychology of learning
• Psychological Research Methods
• Creativity
• Personality
• Interviewing and Counseling Skills
• Language Mind and Brain
• Social Psychology
• Physiological psychology
• Individual differences and social processes

However, as a sociology student, you will study groups and societies and the behaviors and interactions between people. Although, your coursework will depend on the institute you select, nevertheless sociology major mostly includes:

• Introduction to sociology
• Social Structures
• Social Research Methods
• Sociology of Culture
• Law and Society
• Sociology of Gender
• Classes on race and ethnicity
• Medical institutions
• Globalization
• Social problems
• Concepts of diversity
• Social responsibility
• Human rights
• Dignity and respect for others in society

Sociology vs Psychology: Career

Since both, Sociology and Psychology are different fields therefore, they have different careers. Graduated students have different career options for sociology vs psychology majors, whether they pursue advanced degrees or not. Let’s compare sociology vs psychology’s career: 

Sociology graduates have many options. They can continue their studies, pursuing a master’s or Ph.D. in sociology or another humanities field, or perhaps move into a related field like social work. At this point, they could pursue work in academia, government, or leadership positions in nonprofit organizations. With a bachelor’s degree in sociology, graduates can work in entry-level positions in government or nonprofit organizations, help conduct research, assume social work positions, or practice in the justice system. 

Sociologists work in areas such as:

• Public, Human, or Social Services
• Social Research and Analysis
• Social Justice-Related Services
• Human Resources

However, Psychology graduates can continue with their degrees to obtain a Ph.D., allowing them to work as a clinical psychologist with their practice and patients. They may also earn a master’s degree and continue their profession into psychological research, or can also use their knowledge of human thought and behavior to work in sales or market research. 

Psychologists work in areas such as:

• Sales or Market Research
• Criminal Justice
• Social Services
• Counseling/Therapy
• Public Administration

There could be a lot more careers than mentioned above.

Similarities Between Sociology and Psychology

We have compared sociology vs psychology enough to get an overview of the fields. Let’s look for some similarities between the fields of sociology vs psychology. 

• They both examine the underlying influences on the human mind and behavior, with the eventual motive of knowing what makes humans tick.
• They both are concerned with improving the lives of people and making society a better place to live.
• Both academic programs need a well-rounded undergraduate education in addition to specific courses, moreover an introduction to research and statistical gathering and analysis.
• Both fields require a master’s or Ph.D. to work in research or teach in a post-secondary setting.
• Bachelor’s degree holders in either of the field can get several entry-level job opportunities. 
• Professionals in both fields require the same skills such as critical thinking, research, interpersonal and communication skills.

Sociology vs Psychology: which suits you?

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the employment of psychologists is anticipated to increase at a rate of 12% from 2012 to 2022, which is as fast as the average of all occupations.

Both sociology and psychology are interesting subjects since they relate to our real-life experiences. How to choose the major that is the best for you? You can choose between sociology vs psychology by:

• Sociology could be the best choice if you’re interested in researching the ways societies develop and organize at the macro level.
• Psychology could be the better choice if you want to specialize in helping individuals on a micro-level by studying mental issues and behavioral reactions.

It will be easier for you to choose one of the two fields if you keep some important factors in mind.

• The most important factor is your interest. Read about both fields and see which grabs your interest more.
• Moreover, you can look at factors such as career opportunities, requirements for further study, and institutes offering the majors.

Remember, quality education is the key. Once you have decided on the field you are interested in, enroll in an accredited and reputed institute to get your degree.

Evaluate your interest-level

These questions will help you evaluate your interest-level in sociology vs psychology majors: 

• Am I more interested in the human mind or how society influences people attracts me more?
• Is “how individuals impact society” more important or “how society influences people” grabs my interest more?
• Do I want to solve a single individual’s problem at a time or am I fascinated by solving the social problems in my community?
• Would I like to understand mental illness or would I like to study race, class, and gender?
• Am I interested in studying the development of children and adolescents or “Cross-Cultural Perspective” class would be more interesting for me?

If you agree with the first part of the question, it means you’re more interested in Psychology. If you agree with the second half of the question, it means you’re more interested in sociology. 

Sociology vs. Anthropology

Most people are unaware of the term anthropology and often assume it as sociology. No doubt these two disciplines are confusing since both involve the study of human behavior. However, the key difference between sociology vs. anthropology majors is that sociology defines how people interact with each other, and anthropology deals with the way people live i.e. it defines their culture.

Sociology vs Anthropology: definitions

What is sociology?

As we have discussed above that sociology is the scientific study of shaping society and solving its problems. It deals with the interactions of human society and the processes that preserve and change them. People are interdependent, and require collective arrangements and joint activity for their coexistence. Sociology helps in making the society peaceful and interactive and improves our social behavior.

What is anthropology?

On the contrary, anthropology is the study of individuals and their progenitors through time in terms of physical character, environmental and social relations, and culture. In other words, it is the scientific and humanistic study of human species and their various diversities. 

It consists of four primary sub-fields:

• Archaeology
• Biological anthropology 
• Cultural anthropology 
• Linguistic anthropology

Archaeology deals with the study of objects made by humans (often thousands of years ago). The ways humans adapt to different environments come under Biological anthropology. Cultural anthropology examines how humans live and make sense of their surroundings, studying their folklore, cuisine, arts, and social norms. Lastly, linguistic anthropology deals with the ways different cultures communicate.

The research method used by anthropologists is called ethnography or participant observation, which involves rigorous, repeated interactions with people. 

Sociology vs Anthropology: careers

According to The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics the job outlook for anthropologists should grow by 21% from 2010 to 2020.

Both sociology vs anthropology consists of a wide variety of careers. 

Sociologists work in areas such as:

• Public, Human, or Social Services
• Social Research and Analysis
• Social Justice-Related Services
• Human Resources

However, anthropologists occupy jobs in a variety of academic and non-academic environments. Anthropologists can work in areas like: 

• College faculty
• Government and international agencies
• Museum curators
• Healthcare centers and nonprofit associations
• Environmental projects
• Police departments

Sociology vs. Anthropology: Coursework

As a sociology student, you will study groups and societies and the behaviors and interactions between people. Although, your coursework will depend on the institute you select, nevertheless sociology major mostly includes:

• Introduction to sociology
• Social Structures
• Social Research Methods
• Sociology of Culture
• Law and Society
• Sociology of Gender
• Classes on race and ethnicity
• Medical institutions
• Globalization
• Social problems
• Concepts of diversity
• Social responsibility
• Human rights
• Dignity and respect for others in society

On the contrary, anthropology major includes the following courses. This might differ depending on the institute you choose to study in. Your institute might offer the following courses:

• Anthropological Demography
• Anthropology of Knowledge
• Biocultural Perspectives on Food and Nutrition
• Biological Perspectives on Childhood and Adolescence
• Brazil: Race and Ethnicity
• Critical Theory and Ethnography
• Culture and Cognition (Culture Club): Selfishness, Altruism, Reciprocity: The Origins of Sociality
• Culture and Mind
• Ethnographic Film Making
• Ethnographic Methods and Writing
• Feminist Anthropology and Ethnography
• Food and Taboo: History of Dieting
• Food, Culture and Political Economy
• Gender and Globalization
• Gender and Sexual Diversity
• Linguistic Anthropology of Education

Faiza Amin

A Psychology student from Jinnah University. She brings her knowledge of Human Psychology and Mental Health issues to help people cope-up with their psychological problems. She addresses important topics on mental health, child upbringing, and a healthy lifestyle with her articles.