Increase in cerebral blood flow of right prefrontal cortex in man during orgasm Abstract The functional anatomy of human emotional responses has remained poorly understood, mainly because invasive experiments in humans are unacceptable due to ethical reasons. The new functional imaging techniques such as positron emission tomography and single photon emission computed tomography have made it possible to study the neurophysiology of living humans non-invasively. We studied the regional cerebral blood flow with semi-quantitative 99mTC-HMPAO single photon emission computed tomography in eight healthy right-handed heterosexual males during orgasm. The results showed decrease of cerebral blood flow during orgasm in all other cortical areas except in right prefrontal cortex, where the cerebral blood flow increased significantly (P < 0.005). Keywords Single photon emission computed tomography; Man; Orgasm; Prefrontal cortex
Mindfulness meditation improves cognition: Evidence of brief mental training Abstract Although research has found that long-term mindfulness meditation practice promotes executive functioning and the ability to sustain attention, the effects of brief mindfulness meditation training have not been fully explored. We examined whether brief meditation training affects cognition and mood when compared to an active control group. After four sessions of either meditation training or listening to a recorded book, participants with no prior meditation experience were assessed with measures of mood, verbal fluency, visual coding, and working memory. Both interventions were effective at improving mood but only brief meditation training reduced fatigue, anxiety, and increased mindfulness. Keywords Mindfulness; Meditation; Cognition; Working memory; Mood; Attention; Meta-awareness Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Inc.
Why You Should Take Stress More Seriously | Healthy Living Stressed out? That could be dangerous. Photo: Troels Graugaard/Getty ImagesIf you’re someone who frequently declares, “I’m so stressed!” then you might want to pay attention to this: Your risk of heart attack could be double that of folks who don't think they're stressed, according to a new study. More on Shine: The Best Steps to Keep Your Stress in Check The findings, by French researchers and published Wednesday in the European Heart Journal, showed that people who believe that they are stressed—and that the stress is affecting their health—have more than twice the risk of heart attack as those who don’t feel that way. More on Yahoo! “This indicates that individuals' perception and reality seem to be connected pretty well,” lead author Herman Nabi, of the French National Institute of Health and Medical Research, told Yahoo! While the findings may have merit, they offer “nothing new,” according to Dr. Bottom line: Find what’s calming for you and stick with it.
Writing - for health and happiness? 17 August 2013Last updated at 01:11 GMT By Cathy Edwards Health Check, BBC World Service There are risks and benefits to sharing your emotions online Decades of research have shown that writing down your emotions has concrete health benefits - even helping wounds heal. High-profile coverage of cyberbullying might make sharing your deepest emotions online sound like a bad idea, but when it comes to the risks and benefits of writing online, advice is mixed. The American Academy of Pediatrics, for example, suggests questions about social media are included in visits to the doctor, a move prompted by worries about cyberbullying, internet addiction and sleep deprivation. On the other hand, blogging about health problems has been shown to improve feelings of social support, especially when that support is lacking from family and friends. Traumatic experience Exploring the connection between well-being and writing down your emotions goes back decades. 'Emotions bottled up' Professor Laura A.
5 Profound Insights On Success From A Wharton Prof Devoted To Understanding It If one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet with success unexpected in common hours. --Henry David Thoreau Last summer, Parade magazine and Yahoo! Finance jointly surveyed 26,000 Americans and discovered that nearly 60% of them fully regretted their career choices. That’s an incredibly sad statistic, of course--especially when you consider that job satisfaction has become the most critical factor to a person’s sense of well-being and overall happiness with life. So how is it that so many people have found themselves in careers that leave them feeling empty and unfulfilled? “I think that for a lot of these people,” says Shell, “they hadn’t thoughtfully defined what success would look like in their own terms before pursuing work that aligned more closely with family, social or cultural expectations. Shell speaks from experience. Here’s what I found to be five of the author’s most profound and helpful insights:
Personality Disorders Foundation Summary: What Are the Personality Disorders? This summary of the personality disorders was produced by the former Personality Disorders Foundation and is based upon the American Psychiatric Association’s DSM IV. Additional separate sections on the ICD description of each individual personality disorder are also available from the submenu at the side of the page. What are Personality Disorders? Personality Disorders are generalized, inflexible patterns of inner experience and behavior. Personality Disorders are among the least understood and recognized disorders in both psychiatry and general medical care. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM IV, American Psychiatric Association, 1994), organizes personality disorders into three groups, with three or four disorders per group: Eccentric Personality Disorders: Paranoid, Schizoid, Schizotypal Individuals with these disorders often appear odd or peculiar, and show these patterns by early adulthood and in various contexts (e.g., work, home, social situations).
Mindfulness meditation for the treatment of chronic low back pain in older adults: A randomized controlled pilot study Received 8 August 2006; received in revised form 12 April 2007; accepted 30 April 2007. published online 02 June 2007. The objectives of this pilot study were to assess the feasibility of recruitment and adherence to an eight-session mindfulness meditation program for community-dwelling older adults with chronic low back pain (CLBP) and to develop initial estimates of treatment effects. It was designed as a randomized, controlled clinical trial. Participants were 37 community-dwelling older adults aged 65 years and older with CLBP of moderate intensity occurring daily or almost every day. Participants were randomized to an 8-week mindfulness-based meditation program or to a wait-list control group. Baseline, 8-week and 3-month follow-up measures of pain, physical function, and quality of life were assessed. .004) and SF-36 Physical Function (P .03). Keywords: Aged, Low back pain, Mindfulness, Meditation, Randomized, Controlled trial
14 Daily Habits That Are Secretly Stressing You Out 'Tis the season for completely losing it. The holidays are a worry-filled time for a lot of people, but it turns out that you might be partially to blame for your own pre-eggnog anxiety. But we know (or we hope) you're not purposely trying to sabotage yourself, so here's a quick rundown of things you might be doing without realizing they're actually making you feel worse. Take a deep breath and try to relax. 1. If you can't remember the last time you laughed so hard you were blinded by tears, you should reconsider your life choices. 2. Photo by Mike Rosenthal In a study on mice, those that had exercised responded to a stressful cold-water bath with a short spurt of anxiety followed by calm, suggesting brains are more equipped to deal with stress when the body has been physically active. 3. Multiple studies have shown the relaxing benefits of listening to music. 4. Consider your cleaning habits. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. Stop that. 13. …but for some reason you're still freaking out!
For Ailing Vets In Rural Areas, Tele-Medicine Can Be The Cure Howard Lincoln, 82, lives in the village of White Mountain in Alaska. Lincoln served with the U.S. Army in Korea, where he was seriously wounded in combat and received a Purple Heart. He recently suffered two minor strokes and now "visits" a doctor over a video link, part of a growing trend in the VA. David Gilkey/NPR hide caption toggle caption David Gilkey/NPR Howard Lincoln, 82, lives in the village of White Mountain in Alaska. David Gilkey/NPR Howard Lincoln of White Mountain, Alaska, doesn't always hear it when people knock on his door. "We heard it whistling, but I was the third one in line running toward the bunker," he recalls. Wounds to his face, arm and hip laid him up in a Tokyo hospital for quite a while. The nearest VA hospital was hundreds of miles — and at least two plane rides — away. Octavia Wilson looks through supplies in a telemedicine cart in Wales, Alaska. Octavia Wilson looks through supplies in a telemedicine cart in Wales, Alaska. Saving Time, Money And Travel
Mindfulness-based stress reduction and health benefits: A meta-analysis Received 5 March 2003; accepted 8 July 2003. Objective Mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) is a structured group program that employs mindfulness meditation to alleviate suffering associated with physical, psychosomatic and psychiatric disorders. The program, nonreligious and nonesoteric, is based upon a systematic procedure to develop enhanced awareness of moment-to-moment experience of perceptible mental processes. Methods Sixty-four empirical studies were found, but only 20 reports met criteria of acceptable quality or relevance to be included in the meta-analysis. Results Overall, both controlled and uncontrolled studies showed similar effect sizes of approximately 0.5 (P<.0001) with homogeneity of distribution. Conclusion Although derived from a relatively small number of studies, these results suggest that MBSR may help a broad range of individuals to cope with their clinical and nonclinical problems.
16 Scientifically-Backed Ways To Boost Your Happiness Almost Instantly (INFOGRAPHIC) Whether you have five minutes to relax or a year to focus on building lasting habits, here are 16 scientifically-backed ways to boost your happiness levels. Go for a run. Physical activity boosts the brain’s release of endorphins, feel-good neurotransmitters that can improve mood and well-being. Pray. Spirituality and religious involvement is linked with greater well-being and happiness, according to a review of more than 300 studies on the connection between spirituality and health, while prayer is thought to relieve stress. Laugh. Go for a stroll in the park. Perform an act of kindness. Listen to happy music. Walk tall. Meditate. Keep a gratitude journal. Go on vacation. Play with a puppy. Take a nap. Enjoy a nice cup of tea. Volunteer. Have sex. Think of happy times.
The Best Reporting on Mental Trauma and the U.S. Military (#MuckReads) We’ve compiled some of the best journalism on the mental traumas faced by a generation of servicemen and women, and the military’s struggle to treat them. U.S. Army Brigadier Gen. Last Saturday, ex-sniper Chris Kyle and fellow veteran Chad Littlefield were shot and killed at a Texas gun range. The murder has reignited conversation on the mental trauma suffered by hundreds of thousands of U.S. service men and women in Iraq and Afghanistan. The wars may be winding down, but the battle against PTSD is far from over. Is PTSD Contagious? Suicides Highlight Failures of Veterans’ Support System [5], The Bay Citizen/New York Times, March 2012In the Bay Area, poor communication at the Department of Veterans Affairs has led to many desperate veterans falling through the cracks. Welcome Home: The Story of Scott Ostrom [7] (photo essay), Denver Post, December 2011Photographer Craig Walker followed former Marine Scott Ostrom’s struggle to return to civilian life after two tours in Iraq.