Your Stress Affects Your Children

Many years ago, I listened to my Professor explain that the constitution of a child, at the very moment of conception, was determined by the health and well-being of the parents. Like a recipe that starts with quality ingredients, that precious embryo was best served by parents that were mentally, emotionally, and physically well. 

The subject was initially broached concerning drugs, alcohol, and/or poor diet - but as the Professor continued, it became clear the moment of conception went far beyond the obvious... 

Today, there is plenty of evidence, research and studies to back up what might have been controversial 27+ years ago. (yeesh ... I am outing my age... )

How Dad’s Stresses Get Passed Along to Offspring explains intercellular communication passing paternal experiences to their children. 

“A stressed-out and traumatized father can leave scars in his children. New research suggests this happens because sperm “learn” paternal experiences via a mysterious mode of intercellular communication in which small blebs break off one cell and fuse with another.”

It’s not just the Dad’s... 

The Effects of Prenatal Stress on Child Behavioural and Cognitive Outcomes Start at the Beginning

"It is now clear that environmental effects on fetal development are important with respect to emotional, behavioural and cognitive outcomes too." 

Bottom line - >  Your stress affects your children - from day one. 

Make sure to take care of all aspects of YOU. 

The Mind-Body Connection is Real

Another mind/body/immune system article! 💕 

Dr. Anoop Kumar, an Emergency Department physician, feels so strongly that “the mind-body connection is real,” he not only organized, he leads a meditation session for fellow doctors, nurses and staff. 

“As a child, Anoop Kumar was surrounded by the teachings of Eastern philosophy. He says he came to recognize a common message woven through philosophy, science and spirituality - a message of well-being. It’s that message that helped inspire him to write his first book, “Michelangelo’s Medicine.” (now I have to get the book...) 

Favorite take-away - “...the human being is not only a human body.... we must include other elements, like emotion, thought, intuition, desire and consciousness.”

A close tie - “...poorly managed anxiety and stress contributes to disease.”

For the full article - click here - Sentara Northern Virginia Medical Center doctor examines mind-body connection

Stick to your New Year's Resolutions

Happy New Year!

In light of good intentions, resolutions and hope for positive growth, I thought I'd share How to Rewire Your Brain to Love Healthy Habits.

I need to work on many of the suggestions. They all resonate - pick my cues, make it automatic, work the three R's (reminder, routine, and reward), define my motivators, and s focus on baby steps.

Our Body Stores Memories

“The marriage of body and mind happens through emotion. Emotional illness results when emotions don’t move and remain frozen within the body”  

~ Alexander Lowen, an American psychotherapist and father of Bioenergetics

Psychoneuroimmunology (PNI) is the science that investigates the mind/body/immune system connection. Our bodies remember - good, bad, or indifferent - experiences, and tag the significant with deep feeling. The body is the mind. (specifically the deeper mind)

Explained a bit more medically, neuropeptides are the electrochemical component physically encoded into molecules which exist on cell walls throughout our tissues. These messenger molecules, are biological carriers of emotionally charged memories and information, a.k.a. the “molecule of emotion.” Hence, memories live throughout our body, soft tissue, and immune system. 

The body follows what is in the heart and mind

Bodywork can trigger neuropeptide sites, bringing imprinted experiences into consciousness, thereby eliciting an emotional response.

A benefit of bodywork: it can quell trigger sensations while working with qualified professionals (social workers, therapists, mental health practitioners, etc.) on issues. This way it is possible to get closer to the root causes – instead of having physical sensations causing us to guard, avoid, or protect.

“People base actions on avoidance of pain rather than pursuit of pleasure.” - Anthony Robins

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Louise L. Hay has done extensive study on the Mind/Body Connection.
A few examples, as gathered from Heal Your Body A-Z by Louise L. Hay:

Pain Areas and Probable Causes: 

Neck  - Refusing to see other sides of the question. Stubbornness, inflexibility. 

Spine - Upper/Lack of emotional support. Feeling unloved. Holding back love.

             Lower/Fear of money. Lack of financial support. 

Other Connections:

Arthritis - Feeling unloved. Criticism. Resentment. 

Stiffness - Rigid, stiff thinking

Weakness - A need for mental rest

Click here to view the full Emotional Pain Chart 

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Check this out:

A Heart transplant recipient started to experience the memories and food cravings of her deceased heart donor.

A murderer is caught based on a heart transplant recipients precise recollections and dreams.

Read more here...

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Studies by researchers have found that rats pass memories down through genes. 

"Prof Marcus Pembrey, from University College London, said the findings were "highly relevant to phobias, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorders" and provided "compelling evidence" that a form of memory could be passed between generations. He commented: "It is high time public health researchers took human transgenerational responses seriously."

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Interesting snippet from 'Why do we remember pain?'

"Medical professionals are finding that analgesics -- drugs that prevent pain in the nervous system -- given to patients before surgery prevent chronic formation of pain memory, which diminshes the development of chronic pain later on."

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People who are emotionally impacted often have rounded shoulders, forward bending neck, and a concave chest. Our posture gears towards protecting the emotional center – the heart. We feel vulnerable. Not as strong and confident. 

Yet if we sit and/or stand straight hold our head high – our brain follows. 

We can fake it, till we make it.

Try it:  Assume the Supergirl stance 

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It takes 17 muscles to smile, and 42 to frown. The mere act of smiling lifts our mood, we feel more energetic.

Try it:  Smile

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Words render a direct response in the body. 

(What are you exposing your Self to? What is your internal dialogue? Are you kind to YOU?) 

The body follows what is in the heart and mind.

Emotions trigger an on-going cascade of endorphins and/or stress hormones. Our emotional tone directly influences the sum of biochemical processes.  

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More to come....

Left-Handed Perks

Lefties can have an advantage when it comes to boxing, tennis and baseball, but only after they can find the appropriate sports equipment.

They are better at solving math problems, tend to think outside the box, and amongst other things, are more satisfied with their sex lives... 😉

Head over to 17 Things You Didn't Know About Left-Handed People to find out more. 

It Took Till 1875 to Figure Out Where Babies Came From

The early study of anatomy must have been frightening. “Buying corpses from grave-robbers, or bribing hangmen to turn over bodies fresh from the gallows,” sounds horrid. 

Why It Took Scientists So Long to Figure Out Where Babies Come From outlines quite a few curious early notations. Among them, a Da Vinci drawing which details two channels within the penis - one channel for urine, the other connecting with the spine and brain. Sperm was referred to as ‘a drop of brain.’

Another of his drawings shows a woman, lacking ovaries, but having a tube from the uterus to the nipple. Milk was thought to come from menstrual blood - ‘explaining’ why a woman seizes to menstruate once pregnant....

We certainly have come a long way. (Maybe I should reword that... 😉)

A Positive to Insomnia

It turns out insomnia has a positive. (sort of...) 

Living Another Day, Thanks to Grandparents Who Couldn’t Sleep claims that age related sleep variations were key to survival. Hence, our ancestral grandparents were critical in human evolution.

“an older member of a community who woke before dawn might have been crucial to spotting the threat of a hungry predator while younger people were still asleep. It may explain why people slept in mixed-age groups through much of human history.”

I know many people who could be deemed official nighttime ‘spotters!’ Heck... between my lack of sleep, and hearing, my tribe/community would have been safe from any hungry predator.

Our Hands Speak Volumes

“The longer our ring finger is compared to our index - the more testosterone we absorb in the womb.” 

High levels of testosterone slows the growth of the index finger. 

Wow... According to 4 Things Finger Length Can Reveal About You, researchers are now looking into the connection of finger length and academic success, education level, income predictors, monogamy, anxiety, depression, ADHD, Tourette’s and autism. 

Mind Control Miracles

Confidence is the best placebo, one we have access to at all times. 

No surprise - our thoughts, our own beliefs are powerful and can, literally, empower us. They can enhance overall abilities, athletic performance, aid with pain relief, ease anxiety, depression, and various diseases. (Particularly those susceptible to the influence of placebo.) 

Read more about it here -> The Science Behind Miracles. 

It sounds almost too good to be true, and gives me pause when thinking about faith healers, prayer, suggestibility and the power of positivity, miracles, hypnosis, sugar pills... all of which have huge placebo effects.

As Henry Ford said, “If you think you can, or you think you can’t - you’re right.”

"The brain influences the rest of the body"

Are you harnessing your Jedi mind power?

What suggestions are you feeding your brain?

Do they help create and support the reality you want?

“I don’t think the power of the mind is limitless. But I do think we don’t yet know where those limits are.” ~ Alia Crum (As stated in ‘Suggestible You’)

What do you believe? 

We Are All Being Replaced

My, my, my.... give each of us enough time and we will all be replaced! 

Well, at least our cells will. 

Thankfully, what I'm referring to, is the fact that our body continually replaces worn out cells with fresh cells. Head over to "Here's how often your body parts get replaced in your lifetime" to learn more.

Nanorockets to the rescue

The Magic School Bus has competition!

Check out what The Irish Times posted -> Nanorockets get ready for fantastic voyage inside our bodies. 

“Scientists are close to perfecting the use of tiny machines to deliver medicines”

My mind just split. How cool is this?!!

Like heat sensing missiles, these tiny rockets target disease - where temperatures tend to be higher - and deliver medications for precise treatment of specific/localized sites. 

So far, developers have addressed:

Speed-regulation. ✔

Temperature-responsive brakes. ✔

Temperature-responsive valves to regulate fuel. ✔

Ability to change shape. ✔

Ability to stop at a diseased site. ✔

Steered via low magnetic fields. ✔

Biodegradable. ❌  Opps, not yet .... but it is being worked on.

Until then... stay tuned. It looks like it could be an interesting ride. 🚀😃

Grossology... Yes, I used my kids!

I am guilty of using my children.  Yes.... I did.  We went to the Long Island Children's Museum to see the Grossology Exhibit.  (Saw a recent article in the local Herald - 'Gross' doings at Long Island Children's Museum)

My son, who is going to be 15 on July 11th, was not thrilled to be the lone man towering over so many 'little kids.'  He fell solitary, somewhere in the middle of the toddlers and adults.  My daughter had a better chance of looking like she belonged.  As for me... I camouflaged quite well with the doting parents.  No one would know I was really there for ME.  Shhhhhh.....

The exhibit offered a great time for younger children.

I, myself, was duly grossed out by the concept of moles, warts and pimples as the handles for scaling the Skin Climbing Wall... and the 'fart' making machines at the Toot Toot! station - thankfully without the inclusion of smells.  Especially given the fact that many father's joined in heartily at this particular exhibit, giggling louder than their offspring... what is it about making the loudest sound that entices them so?!

There were lots of interactive stations to engage curious minds.  However, this being said, I think I was the most attentive student.  I fear, many lessons got lost amidst the noise and commotion.  (Did you know that you can shout 600 feet?! - followed by a pleading "Please don't.")

Yes, children climbed the Skin Wall... but none read the information to learn what it was really about.  I very much wanted to hear what each exhibit had to say... and there were several to interact with, but there was no way given the variety and level of noise.  This was a frustration for my son as well. (ex: The speakers on the Nigel Nose-It-All was so loud it was crackling.)  Hence, all that was left for many of the exhibits to offer, was the hands on portion...

That being said, it was very cute.  The visual arena began as you walked thru the Gallery Entrance, a giant mouth - With rosy red lips, and teeth I should only hope for.  :)   You can create a giant burp at the Burp Man station, or find out more about vomiting at the Vomit Center.  (Admit it, you want to know.....)  There's even a giant 'Operation' game to perform surgery on.  Though, given the way some of the 'student doctors' were going at it.... this guy doesn't have a chance.

All in all I had fun ...and my children didn't disown me.

Grossology - The Long Island Children's Museum

Trivia Questions About the Human Body

Which finger has the fastest growing nail?
A:  Middle Finger.

The most insect bitten part of the human body is what part?
A:  Foot.

Which bone is the hardest bone in the human body?
A:  Jaw Bone.

How many senses do human beings have?
A: 5  (Unless you check out what this article has to say...  Humans have a Magnetic Sixth Sense?)

Check out this link for more Trivia Questions About the Human Body.