"Murphy was an optimist!"
Mental Me January 12, 2012 2:12 pm
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Daily Life, Health, MentalThe stress is far too great today.
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Protected: That hollow feeling in the chest September 27, 2011 1:59 pm
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Daily Life, Mental, Philosophy, PoetryToo tired? Too busy? Muster the energy and time. Read a book to your child. July 8, 2011 10:26 am
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Amy, Daily Life, Education, Evan, Family, Health, Mental, Of Being DadTake a moment and read this story in The New York Times. In short, a doctor tells of a 74 year old patient who couldn’t get his medicines correct.
Mr. M was a typical new patient: 74, with diabetes, hypertension and elevated cholesterol. He had some prostate enlargement and back pain. His bag of pill bottles was depressingly bulky. I spilled the bottles out at our first visit, sorting them by disease. … Mr. M didn’t remember the names of all the medicines … Mr. M was clearly still confused about his medicines…
[Source, NYT, A Problem in Following Doctor’s Orders by DANIELLE OFRI, M.D.]
In the end, we learn that Mr. M is illiterate, unable to read either Spanish or English. The story would be similar to many other stories of illiteracy leaving us emphatic, but emotionally disconnected, had it not been for the last paragraph.
My kindergarten-age daughter is just beginning to read, and she is taken aback with delirious joy each time a few random letters suddenly form a word that matches real life. It’s a painstaking process for her, but as I watch her I think about how this skill has powerful ramifications for her health and longevity. It’s a gift, really, one that I’d long to transfer to Mr. M if I could.
[Source, NYT, A Problem in Following Doctor’s Orders by DANIELLE OFRI, M.D.]
I know that joy! My son has become quite the avid reader. He no longer wants to be the listener; he wants to be the one who reads aloud. And I too wish I could give that gift to Mr. M.
Remember, they are never too old to participate in reading with you; whether you are the listener or the reader, make time to sit with your child and a book.
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And all this time I thought I was an American May 23, 2011 4:00 pm
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Health, Holiday, MentalApparently, I’m European!
"Americans maximize their… [happiness] by working, and Europeans maximize their [happiness] through leisure," he found.
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How do you spell stress in four letters? May 16, 2011 12:36 pm
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Daily Life, Health, MentalD-O-U-G
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Our Brains Are Shrinking January 3, 2011 9:52 am
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Health, Mental, Of Interest, Politics, Science, Technology, Touchy SubjectsA scientific explanation for the tea party.
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Just Breathe November 19, 2010 2:10 pm
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Health, MentalEver since taking my breathing class at The Glowing Body, I have become acutely aware that much of my day is spent forgetting to breathe. That is, I tend to inhale far more than I exhale so when I finally have to relax and let the air out of my lungs I sound like a balloon with a slow leak. This also causes me to hold a great amount of tension and stress. I need Dory: "Just keep breathing. Just keep breathing."
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Movibf Targets October 28, 2010 12:25 pm
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Daily Life, Health, Mental, Of Being DadOne of those things that pushes me toward the brink of insanity is “shit that magically moves.” For instance, the two youngest have forms due on November 1. I prefer to do my accounting on Thursdays and was too busy the day I received the forms so I set them in an out of the way place where I’d be able to finish them this morning while the kids readied themselves for school. Of course, the forms are gone so I’m now faced with squeezing a trip into the elementary school today to go to the office with two checks ($9 and $18) and saying, “I have no idea who to endorse these to nor what they are for but they are due Monday.”
This is not an OCD thing. This is a “constantly off balance” thing. It’s one of the benefits that cone with marriage and children. Never again will you be able to find anything, particularly your tools. Supposedly this teaches you to take things in stride. The way my heart feels right now, I think it’s going to teach me how to self-administer an AED.
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CRS disease related to 20-30 years of stress October 22, 2010 1:02 pm
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Health, Mental, Of Interest, Science, TechnologyStress hurts memory. And my memory is undeniably in a less than adequate state. The memories are there. The recollection is poor. After feeding me a few clues, the memories surface. Clues can be reminding me of your name or where we last bumped into each other etc.
An experimental drug developed by researchers at the University of Edinburgh reverses age-related memory decline in mice, returning their brains to a more youthful state of cognitive function. The compound is designed to dampen the production of glucocorticoids, stress hormones that are thought to damage the brain’s learning and memory centers over time. [Source, Technology Review, Experimental Drug Preserves Memory in Rodents]
"What’s most surprising is that even short-term inhibition was able to reverse memory loss in old mice. I don’t think people had realized this was so reversible. It takes [the animals] back to being relatively young." Sign me up! I hereby declare my readiness to be a human subject in this testing of this drug!
h/t Kurzweilai.net
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State of Me October 20, 2010 9:25 am
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Daily Life, Health, MentalSo stressed my vision is blurry.
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The Glowing Body – Breath and Meditation Class (sign up today) October 11, 2010 2:57 pm
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Health, Mental, PhilosophyThis month’s class is short on participants. If you have ever wanted an intro to breathing and meditation practices, today, Monday, now, is the time to sign up!
Breath & Meditation Series with Kim – Tuesdays, 10/12-11/02/2010, 7:45-9:00pm
If you have ever wondered what it means to have a breathing or meditation practice, this course will provide your first insights into what these practices entail. The series will be structured in a progressive manner, and will be a safe atmosphere for asking questions, discussing experiences and exploring your own patterns. The weeks will be structured as follows:
1 – Body Preparation, Ways to Sit & Breath Awareness
2 – Guiding the Breath
3 – Meditation: Roots & Branches
4 – Development of Your PracticeThroughout the course, you will receive references to outside materials and descriptive handouts, and experiential assignments will be available relating to each week.
$50 for 4 weeks
(No drop-ins accepted!)
[Source, The Glowing Body, Workshops & Series]
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And the doctor said, go forth, and rest upon the beach September 21, 2010 3:08 pm
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Daily Life, Health, MentalFor 2 weeks I fretted over an incident. During this time, my blood pressure spiked 20 to 50 points higher than normal and remained there. My doctor and I discussed a medicine change but he suggested that I wait a couple of weeks first. Today my blood pressure registered the lowest since I started tracking it. I think clearly my blood pressure has far less to do with physiology and far more with a need to sun myself on the beach of some tropical island for 3 or 4 weeks.
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Protected: Deep End September 13, 2010 6:28 pm
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Daily Life, Health, MentalState of Me September 7, 2010 6:10 am
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Daily Life, Health, MentalI’m so stressed that I’ve maintained a headache for about two weeks. There needs to be some serious downtime in the near future.
I cannot get my inner voice to be silent. I wish I could turn off my brain.
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Hello hello July 26, 2010 9:29 pm
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Daily Life, Deep Thoughts, Mental, PhilosophyIs there anybody out there?
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