Lions and Tigers and Bears, Oh My (Part 2)

While the human intellect has managed to keep pace with the ever-advancing faster paced world with its increasingly sophisticated scientific and technological improvements, our nervous systems have been much slower to change. Unfortunately, we have been conditioned to disregard and disparage our primitive ancestry and have become separate from our natural, more instinctive healing processes, but we still need access to those primitive processing centers to eliminate traumatic energy trapped inside our bodies.

The neocortex, also referred to as the human or rational mind, does not have direct access to the outside world, but interprets information received from other parts of the brain through images, language, and ideas. Because information processed in the neocortex is based on past beliefs, expectations, and attitudes, its conclusions about the meaning of present events tend to be relatively inaccurate. For example, just because you failed in the past doesn’t mean that you will fail this time. But sometimes our rational mind can’t draw that conclusion and proceeds as if failure were certain.

The brain also consists of two other processing centers, the limbic brain (Mammalian Brain), which processes emotional and social behaviors and the reptilian brain, also known as the instinctual brain. It has direct access to the outside world through the five senses. The reptilian brain processes vast amounts of information directly related to survival. Instinctively, the reptilian brain knows what is necessary for survival and is built on rhythms of charge and discharge. All mammals, including humans, snap into the reptilian brain mode of behaviors when they perceive a threat. It doesn’t make any difference whether the threat is to life or limb or related to the need to protect the ego. The reptilian brain discharges traumatic energy from the body.

Trauma resolution in healthy humans relies on instinct, emotions, and intellect working together to create the widest range of choices possible in any given situation. People more aligned with their natural systems tend to resolve trauma more easily. Being in touch with these natural processes allows them to discharge energy and restore health. Those who cannot discharge traumatic energy trapped inside their bodies freeze. They remain traumatized and engage in dysfunctional behaviors that do nothing to solve their problems because the only solution available to them is to protect the ego. People’s level of intelligence doesn’t matter; highly intelligent individuals are just as susceptible to physical and emotional trauma as those less intellectually talented, if the need to protect their ego outweighs all other choices.

Most coaches, counselors, and therapists work only with the conscious mind and make connections with the emotional-processing part of the brain, helping their clients think their way through their problems. Using such techniques as Reality Therapy and Cognitive Reconstruction, individuals experience relief from their problems by learning to look at their problems with new “eyes”. These approaches are also used to help people overcome irrational beliefs, fears, and expectations that impede performance in a variety of intellectual and physical venues.

Many times, uncovering cognitive blocks helps people perform all daily life tasks better. But what happens when we get stuck or “freeze” and these approaches don’t work? Does it mean that the problem is unsolvable or that we don’t possess the physical or intellectual attributes necessary for success, at least in that situation? No, what it means is that energy blocks in your body must be released.

Without the inclusion of bodily sensations and uncensored memories disconnects occur between the brain and the body making problems appear unsolvable, giving the illusion that one doesn’t possess the physical or intellectual talent necessary for success. That is when most people get stuck or “freeze.” In working with clients, I check for physical sensations, emotional feelings, thoughts, and memories triggered in difficult situations.

Many people are able to adequately describe the emotions, thoughts, triggered memories, and physical sensations they’ve experienced in past adverse or stressful situations. Some are not. If you are one of the latter, consider that physical sensations usually show up as tension, pain, stiffness, jitteriness, a racing heart, headaches, or labored breathing. Are there situations in which you feel helpless or hopeless? Do you get angry, frustrated, or sad when you feel like this? Do you remember times when nothing you did worked? If so, it’s a good bet that you have energy from these past situations trapped inside your body. If so, refer to “Lions and Tigers and bear, Oh My (Part 1) for suggestions to help remove these energies so you can begin anew, as if the past trauma never occurred. Here’s a list of therapies that help rid your body of unwanted energies.

1. Massage
2. Chiropractic
3. Reflexology
4. Reiki
5. Ascension Reiki
6. Sound Therapy
7. Osteopathy
8. Acupressure
9. Acupuncture
10. Relaxation Therapy

If you know of others, please let me know. Also, if you experienced PTSD or unresolved stress for an extended period of time one session isn’t sufficient. Weekly or monthly sessions over an extended period of time will have the energy in your body running freely and smoothly and you will not even know that your life is filled with stress.

Lions and Tigers and Bears, Oh My (Part 1)

You are probably familiar with the fight-or-flight reflex, that instinctual response to real or imagined threat. Another response available to both reptiles and mammals (including humans) is referred to by psychologists as the “immobility” or “freezing” response. While less is known about thins instinctual behavior, Dr. Peter Levine, author of Waking the Tiger, believes that, “It is the single most important factor in uncovering the mystery of human trauma.”

Human trauma occurs as the result of past experienced events or when the need to protect one’s ego overwhelms the rational mind. For example, your boss verbally abuses you in front of your co-workers. The event is traumatic enough, but every time you recall the event your subconscious mind relives the event all over again as if it was happening all over again. The more severe the incident and the more your recall the event the more you re-traumatize your body. Remember, the subconscious mind doesn't know the difference between a real event and one that is vividly imagined. That is why we can become frightened watching a scary movie. The movie is not real, yet the subconscious mind processes it as though it were and we become scared.

Many times hunted animals become “immobile” or “frozen” in the last instant before contact with their predator. The frozen animal is not pretending to be dead and may not even be hurt; instead, it instinctually enters an altered state that serves one of two purposes. It can be a last-ditch survival strategy: the frozen animal can quickly unfreeze and escape it its attacker looks the other way, or is spared incredible pain when it is torn apart by its attacker because the animal does not feel pain in this state.

Externally an immobilized animal appears to be dead, yet internally the animal remains supercharged with the energy of the chase. If the animal survives the hunt, it instinctively discharges all the compressed energy trapped inside its body, suffering no long-term ill effects. It merely goes back to being what it is – an animal. Have you ever seen a cat shake its hind legs after a fight?

Humans also freeze when faced with overwhelming or inescapable threat. While most modern societies consider this response a sign of weakness, tantamount to cowardice, realize that it is an involuntary reflex governed by the instinctual parts of the human brain and nervous system.
Unfortunately, humans are not adept at discharging pent up energy after becoming immobilized. A wide array of debilitating physical, psychosomatic, and behavioral problems, including anxiety, fear, anger, rage, sorrow, and depression occur if residual energy persists in the body. In effect, without being able to discharge the pent up energy, veterans and victims of war, rape, and abuse remain physically traumatized and become victims of the trauma itself. The same is true for individuals who suffer long-term unresolved stress from everyday issues. The present economic situation is one such scenario with so many people unemployed who have or fear losing their home or way of life.

The result, sadly, is that many of us become riddled with fear and anxiety and are never fully able to feel at home with ourselves in the world. According to Dr. Levine, effects of trauma also are not caused by the “triggering” event itself, but by the un-discharged energy that remains lodged in the body. Un-discharged energy wreaks havoc on our nervous system, body, mind, and spirit,

If you suffer from PTSD or experience long-term unresolved stress your body is contaminated with this pent up energy. You can take any number of steps to dislodge the energy from your body. Massage, Chiropractic, Osteopathy, Reflexology, acupressure, acupuncture, Reiki, Ascension Reiki, Sound Therapy, Relaxation Therapy are all great strategies that remove unwanted pent up energy from your body. However, the longer and more severe your symptoms the longer it will take to return your nervous system back to a state of normalcy. I suggest weekly (or more) sessions with qualified professionals in any of these disciplines for at least several months. Then you can begin to space out your therapies to monthly (or when needed). Next time, more about the “freezing” response and other strategies for eliminating unwanted energy from your body.

Let's Get Physical

Are you old enough to remember the music video, “Let’s Get Physical” by Olivia Newton John? If not, it’s a fantasy about overweight men going into the gym in hopes of getting in shape so they can get lucky with hot athletic women. We guys are so gullible. I knew a lot of guys who saw that video and then, hoping it would work for them, joined aerobic classes at their local gyms. I’m not sure if it ever really worked for them. I think they had other issues. I’m not sure if the potential for romance is a primary reason you’d change your exercise habits, but here are some definite benefits science has found associated with individuals who exercise on a regular basis.

· Reduces risk of Heart Attack
· Reduces susceptibility to stroke, Alzheimer’s, ALS, and other neurological disorders
· Lowers Blood Pressure, bad cholesterol, blood sugar, and inflammation
· Reduces stress
· Improves ability to withstand long-term exposure to stress
· Slows the aging process
· Relaxes tense muscles
· Improves sleep
· Improves blood flow and oxygen to the brain necessary for all intellectual activities
· Reduces fatigue and improves stamina
· Improves memory recall
· Releases endorphins into the blood stream that creates a positive sense of well-being
· Creates new brain cells, repairs damaged ones, and keeps others from deteriorating without stem cell therapy.

My own research showed that fit individuals who exercise regularly were better able to perform intellectual and fine-motor physical activities under stressful conditions. It is why children with test anxiety, individuals with stage fright, performance artists, competitive athletes, business professionals and every day people who experience mild to major stresses in their lives perform better in their chosen field or endeavor just by altering their response to stress through regular exercise.

I know, I know! You don’t have time for exercise. You don’t like exercise. You’re too tired. Even if you do want to exercise, you are so busy you forget until you’re in bed. Well, you don’t have to belong to a gym. You don’t need special clothes. You don’t have to spend hours a day to experience benefits of exercise. Here are just a few guidelines and suggestions to get you started.
1. If you haven’t exercised in a while or are unsure about your health see a physician to get approval.
2. Take Baby steps. The goal is to get up to at least 30-40 minutes a day, 3-5 times per week. You may only be able to do 5 – 10 minutes at a time. Start slow and build up over time. If you don’t have time, just get up from your desk or whatever several times a day while at work and walk in place for a minute, stretch, or do some happy penguins. Take the stairs instead of the elevator. Park your car farther from your office, mall, or store. These last suggestions help you release stress hormones immediately when in adverse or pressured situations if completed as soon as the stress starts or immediately thereafter.

3. Do something you enjoy. Walking is a great exercise. You don’t have to kill yourself doing it. Walk just fast enough to get your heart pumping slightly. Increase your rate as your body is able to handle more. Yoga, Pilates, Tai Chi, Qi Gong, and water aerobics are other great activities, so is golf, tennis, bowling, bad mitten, and gardening – anything that gets your heart pumping and deepens your breathing. Surely you enjoy something other sitting and watching television.

Remember, the goal is to have fun doing something you enjoy that also reduces your susceptibility to the ravages of stress and improves your health. Exercise removes or inhibits the build-up of toxic stress hormones because it causes you to breathe deeply and fully, sweat, and because it speeds up all of your processes, urinate, whizz, pee, wee (as the British would say) or take a leak (how’s that Debbie). Ninety percent of all stress hormones are removed from the body through extended deep, slow rhythmical breaths. The other ten per cent are removed through sweating and urination.

So, let’s get physical.

The Best Brain: In a daze...on purpose

The Best Brain: In a daze...on purpose

Water, water every where, but not a drop to drink.

The steps necessary to reduce the effects of stress on your health, happiness, productivity, success, and quality of life are simple. However, getting yourself to take those simple actions could be quite difficult as it’s never easy to change a life-time of habits. But it can be done. The techniques described in previous blogs will help eliminate stress’s debilitating effects each time you remember to use them. The more often you use them the easier it becomes to remember to use them. Eventually using them will become such a habit that you will use them automatically, almost without realizing you’re using them.

There are other actions you can take that can assist your efforts to rid your body of stress. They are as simple as drinking a glass of water. In fact, one of the actions you can take is to drink more water.

The human body is composed of approximately seventy-five percent water and only twenty-five percent solid matter. Our bodies need sufficient water to provide nourishment, eliminate waste products, and regulate all bodily functions. The brain alone uses twenty-five percent of the body’s available water and the eyes use another twenty percent. That’s a whopping forty-percent of our body’s available water used by the brain and eyes.

At one time, drinking eight 8-ounce glasses of water was recommended to remain healthy. For some time, modern society stopped stressing the importance of water consumption. That trend appears to be changing once again. Unfortunately, many people think that drinking any fluid satisfies the body’s need for water. As a result, many people choose to drink other beverages. Not true!

While it is true tea, coffee, beer, wine, alcohol, soft drinks, and juices contain water, they also contain caffeine, sugar, artificial sweeteners, and other chemicals that act as strong dehydrators. The more you drink of these beverages, the more dehydrated you become. This also adds more stress to an already stressed system.

In addition, these beverages contaminate the body in other ways. For instance, caffeine triggers stress responses that have powerful diuretic effects. Beverages with added sugar raise blood sugar levels which use up large quantities of cellular water. The most common artificial sweetener additive is Aspartame. You must avoid it like the plague. I’ll get into why later. It’s extremely dangerous and doesn’t even do what people drink it for in the first place, which is to help them lose weight.

Most patients today suffer from what, Andrea Moritz, a practitioner with extensive training in Ayurveda, Iridology, Shiatsu, and Vibrational Medicine, refers to as “thirst disease”, a progressive state of dehydration in certain areas of the body. Unable to remove toxins from these parts due to insufficient water, the body is faced with the consequences of their destructive effects.

Those individuals who have lived for many years without proper water consumption are the most likely victims of built-up toxins in the body. Chronic disease is always accompanied by dehydration and, in many cases, caused by the dehydration. Heart disease, obesity, diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, stomach ulcers, hypertension, MS, Alzheimer’s, and many other chronic forms of disease are precipitated by years of “thirst disease.” Infectious agents, such as bacteria and viruses cannot thrive in a well-hydrated body.

People who do not drink enough water and/or are exposed to long-term, unresolved stress deplete their body’s water reserves. In dehydrated conditions, the cells lose in excess of 25% of their water volume. This undermines cellular activities. Whenever there is cellular dehydration, waste products are retained, causing symptoms that resemble disease.

People with “thirst disease” may not recognize that they’re thirsty as more and more water begins to accumulate outside the cells, which in fact, causes water retention in the legs, arms, feet, and face. Your kidneys may begin to hold onto water, markedly reducing urination. This causes an accumulation of harmful waste products to store up in the kidneys.

Drinking sufficient water not only helps hydrate the body but helps us fight off the harmful effects of stressful encounters. Much more could be said about what water does for the body, however, I think you get the picture. I’ll just leave you with a few interesting facts concerning water consumption.

· One glass of water shuts down midnight hunger pangs for almost 100% of dieters.
· Lack of water is the #1 trigger of day time fatigue.
· Preliminary research indicates that 8 – 10 glasses of water a day could significantly ease
back and joint pain for up to 80% of sufferers.
· A mere 2% drop in water triggers fuzzy short-term memory, trouble with basic math, and
difficulty focusing on the computer screen.
· Drinking 5 glasses of water a day decreases the risk of colon cancer by 45%, slashes the risk
of breast cancer by 79% and reduces the likelihood of bladder cancer by 50%.

The old adage drink eight 8-ounce glasses of water daily may be adequate for some people. However, depending on the level of stress you live under, how much exercise you get, or your climate, this may not be sufficient for your circumstances. Today, the prescription is to drink one-half of your body weight in ounces daily. So if you weigh 200 pounds you need to, at a minimum, drink 100 ounces of water a day. If you live under very stressful conditions, exercise a lot, or live in a tropical conditions you need to drink more water. Thirst is a sign that the body is already dehydrated. So if you get thirsty often, continue drinking more water until you rarely, if ever, feel thirsty.

Another old adage, “too much of a good thing is just as bad as not enough” also applies here. So, don’t overdo it. Don’t drink all or most of your daily supply of water at one time. Don’t drink it too quickly and don’t drink too much water in a single day. While rare, people have become ill drinking too much water. If you feel feint or woozy after drinking water, you either drank too much water or too much water too fast. In fact, it is best to take a sip of water every ten minutes or so. That way, you won’t find yourself having to go to the bathroom all the time. Your body will absorb all the water it needs and there won’t be any left to have to eliminate.

It is also suggested to drink water that is near one’s body temperature. Very cold water shocks the nervous system and interferes with digestion. It is also suggested that you drink water from glass containers as plastic disintegrates and can pollute your body. Let’s hear it for good old water. Yea!!!

And the winner is...

This past weekend millions of viewers watched the pageantry of the Academy Awards to see who would win the coveted Oscar for best performance. These film artists have crafted their skills over many years to pretend to be somebody else. They then spend hours and hours preparing and rehearsing for a specific role. They do this so that we the audience do not see them as an actor or actress but the person they’re pretending to be.

Right now the demands and stresses you’re experiencing on a daily basis may make it seem like you’re playing the role of victim in some horror film or suffering through a melodrama. Your mind races and you can’t seem to focus on the task at hand. You worry, fret, and rebel against the situation that’s causing you distress. Your nerves have been shattered. You can’t sleep. You find yourself sad, frustrated, or angry much of the time and may feel helpless and hopeless. It doesn’t have to be that way.

In recent blogs I have presented information and simple tools, including the Attitude Adjustment Routine and The Breath of Life to help end stress’s stranglehold on your life. But like the actors that win awards, you must ruthlessly use these tools until you take on a new role, “Hero” in the movie, “My Life.” I don’t know how long it will take to become this new character, but I do know that these tools work. You may not be able to change your present situation, but you can do something to change how you respond to it. Your health, productivity, success, happiness, and quality of life depend on it. You can become the quintessential hero in action films instead of a victim of a horror movie.

If you suffer from the ravages of a stressful life you have perfected the role of victim. You may not want to hear that. I know I didn’t when I was told my health problems were related to stress, given the fact that I was in the business of helping people improve their responses to stress. After a little rebelling and resistance I started doing the things that I gave my clients to do, the same things I’ve presented in previous blogs and will offer in future blogs. They aren’t hard to learn to do. It may be difficult to get yourself to do them at first because you don’t want to do them. You may want your situation to improve. The hard truth may be that your situation may not change until you do. I was once asked, “Would you rather be happy or right?” You may be right that you should not find yourself in the situation that causes your suffering and continue to complain about it. That changes nothing. If you want to be happy and stress free you need to change your attitude, exercise, relax, smile, and most of all breathe.

And the winner for best hero in an action film goes to…

The Beath of Life

Breathing is life. We can exist for weeks without food, days without water, but only minutes without breathing. Your body contains seventy-five trillion cells that provide energy needed to carry out every brain and organ function and body movement. Our cells need two things to produce energy – nutrients and OXYGEN. Cell oxygen starvation results in numerous problems, including anxiety and stress, confusion, fatigue, depression, loss of focus, and physical performance disturbances.

Each brain cell is a highly complex communication center, responsible for carrying critical messages to other cells through the body. You cannot think or function without them. Tiny thread-like membranes, called dendrites, stretch from each neuron (cell) like telephone lines, delivering messages among the communication centers.

Researchers have concluded that brain (neuron) loss occurs – as we age- mainly because on an insufficient oxygen supply. So if you are aging prematurely, you need to get more oxygen to your brain. Although it represents only about 3% of our total body mass, the brain uses twenty percent of our available oxygen.

An oxygen-efficient body is the secret to health and longevity; the most oxygen-efficient exercise is proper breathing, which I will describe shortly. Improved oxygen supplies have been found to cure diseases. It also helps to avoid various diseases and conditions while aiding physical and emotional balance and accelerates mental and physical performance.

The way we breathe is inseparable from our state of consciousness; that is, the way we breathe affects our state of mind and our state of mind affects the way we breathe. Under normal circumstances, the average person takes about fifteen breaths per minute. Stress, anxiety, mental agitation or overload, and a hectic lifestyle cause us to breath rapid, shallow, and erratic. Rapid shallow breathing provides less oxygen to the brain, making it more difficult to process information. Individuals who lead fast-paced, hectic lives tend to breathe rapidly all the time. They become so acclimated to this lifestyle that they aren’t aware of their dysfunctional breathing patterns.

Because our state of mind is connected to the way we breathe, if we change our breathing pattern we change our state of mind. When we breathe slowly, deeply, and rhythmically we think more clearly and are more likely to be in an “Awakened” or “High-performance” mind state. Breath control is such a powerful techniques that it is a cornerstone of many eastern philosophies and disciplines like Yoga, Tai Chi, Karate’ and Qi Gong.

Watch a baby breathe, especially when it sleeps: that little belly continues to rise and fall in perfect rhythm. The child is completely relaxed so it gets much needed rest. This breathing pattern creates greater relaxation. Being relaxed causes more oxygen to travel through your body and brain, boosting confidence in the midst of pressure, providing you more clarity of mind, and facilitating your performance.

Belly breathing is the way we were designed to breathe, filling our lungs completely and allowing oxygen to travel throughout our body. Somewhere in early adolescence our breathing pattern changes. We hold in our stomachs and breathe completely from our chests, allowing very little oxygen to travel to the rest of our body. We need as much oxygen as possible flowing through our respiratory system to move stress-induced impurities and toxins from our body.
Changing your breathing pattern is easy, but it takes time and practice. Spending 15 minutes per day for about a month makes belly breathing your dominant pattern. If you’re ready here’s how it’s done.

· Sit in a comfortable chair
· Keep your head up, spine straight and chin pulled in slightly. (Don’t rest your chin on
your chest however)
· Place both feet flat on the floor and one hand on each leg.
· Close your eyes.
· Inhale slowly and deeply through your nose to the count of four. When done properly,
your abdomen expands first, followed by your chest and upper back, in that order. At no
time should your chest, back, and shoulders rise up towards your ears. They should
expand outward only.
· Hold your breath for two seconds.
· Exhale through your mouth for eight seconds, allowing the air to leave your upper back
first, followed by your chest and finally your abdomen.
· Hold your breath for one second and repeat the process five more times.
· Allow your breathing to return to normal for 60 seconds and then repeat the belly
breathing as described above five more times.
· Repeat the entire process for 15 minutes.

If you do this just before bed you will find that you sleep deeper and longer, clearing your body of all unnecessary stress hormones. If you belly breathe when you’re stressed you will eliminate many of the toxins that circulate through your body from the stress.