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Archive for the ‘Mind’ Category
Sat, August 9, 2008 2:43 pm By James Coolridge  Printer friendly version
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 Manage your time better- Poor time management can cause a lot of stress. When you’re stretched too thin and running behind, it’s hard to stay calm and focused. But if you plan ahead, you can avoid these stress-inducing pitfalls.
Don’t try to control the uncontrollable- Many things in life are beyond our control— particularly the behavior of other people. Rather than stressing out over them, focus on the things you can control.
Look for the Brightside- When facing major challenges; try to look at them as opportunities for personal growth.
Include relaxation time-Include rest and relaxation in your daily schedule. Don’t allow other obligations to encroach. This is your time to take a break from all responsibilities and recharge your batteries. Make time for leisure activities that bring you joy, whether it be stargazing, playing the piano, or working on your bike.
Exercise regularly. Physical activity plays a key role in reducing and preventing the effects of stress. Make time for at least 30 minutes of exercise, three times per week. Nothing beats aerobic exercise for releasing pent-up stress and tension.
Eat a healthy diet- Start your day right with breakfast, and keep your energy up and your mind clear with balanced, nutritious meals throughout the day.
Reduce caffeine and sugar- The temporary “highs” caffeine and sugar provide often end in with a crash in mood and energy. By reducing the amount of coffee, soft drinks, chocolate, and sugar snacks in your diet, you’ll feel more relaxed and you’ll sleep better.
Avoid alcohol, cigarettes, and drugs- alcohol or drugs may provide an easy escape from stress, but the relief is only temporary. Later the stress simply piles on plus your health starts to suffer.
Get enough sleep-Feeling tired will increase your stress because it may cause you to think irrationally.
Managing stress is all about taking charge: taking charge of your thoughts, your emotions, your schedule, your environment, and the way you deal with problems. The ultimate goal is a balanced life, with time for work, relationships, relaxation, and fun—and the flexibility to hold up under pressure and meet challenges head on.
Tags: Stress, mental health, Manage Stress, emotional stability, physical health
Fri, August 8, 2008 2:43 pm By James Coolridge
 The simple realization that you’re in control of your life is the foundation of stress management
Living with high levels of stress, can putt your entire health at risk. Stress wreaks havoc on your emotional stability, as well as your physical health. It tapers with your ability to think clearly, function effectively, and enjoy life.
How to Manage Stress
Stress is a daily part of our life; it would be absolutely foolish to think that we can eliminate it from our lives completely. What we can do is to manage it and not let it cripple us.
Learn to say “no” – This is the most important step, know your limits and stick to them. Whether in your personal or professional life, refuse to accept extra responsibilities that you know will cause you distress.
Avoid people who stress you out – If someone constantly causes stress in your life and you can’t turn the relationship around, limit the amount of time you spend with that person or end the relationship entirely.
Take control of your environment – Avoid environments that stress you, if traffic’s got you tense, take a longer but less-traveled route. If shopping is an unpleasant chore, do your grocery shopping online or ask someone to help out.
Avoid heated topics – If you get upset over religion or politics, avoid talking about them. If you repeatedly argue about the same subject with the same people you are bound to be stressed.
Know your limits– evaluate your schedule, responsibilities, and daily tasks. If you’ve got too much on your plate, drop tasks that aren’t truly necessary to the bottom or eliminate them entirely.
Express instead of bottling up- If something or someone is bothering you, communicate your concerns in an open and polite way. If you don’t voice your feelings, resentment will build creating unnecessary stress.
Compromise- When you ask someone to change their actions, be willing to do the same. If you both are willing to bend a little, you’ll find a middle ground.
Be more assertive- If you need something ask for it. Deal with problems head on, doing your best to anticipate and prevent them.
Tags: Stress, mental health, Manage Stress, emotional stability, physical health
Fri, June 27, 2008 1:27 pm By Eric Ott
 Alzheimer’s disease has affected over 24 million people across the world till date. There is no known cure for this degenerative and terminal disease. Alzheimer’s disease largely affects people above the age of 65 years, although early onset of this disease also exists. The mind of the sufferer is literally hacked by this disease.
Symptoms:
In the early stages of Alzheimer’s syndrome, the patient bumps into short-term memory loss, followed by confusion, anger, mood swings, language breakdown, and ultimately, long term memory loss. As the disease progresses, the sufferer loses minor and then major bodily functions, until death occurs.
Causes:
Plaques and tangles in the brain are considered to be the major causes of Alzheimer’s disease.
Treatment and care:
It is a bitter truth that there exists no treatment on Earth to stop or reverse the disease. It is not clear whether the current treatments for Alzheimer’s disease manage the symptoms or slow down the progression of this disease.
The caretaker plays a very crucial role in the process of treatment of Alzheimer’s disease. Generally, the spouse or a close relative is assigned the task of caretaker. Since the person affected from Alzheimer’s disease is affected by stress, depression, physical illness and whole lot of confusion, it is the responsibility of the caretaker to give intensive care, love and affection for the patient. The affected person often displays mood swings. The patient may get angry at one moment and may break down in tears in the very next moment. Hence, the caretaker should be extremely patient.
Apart from showing love and affection, the caretaker is responsible to ensure a balanced diet and regular dose of exercises for the sufferer.
Tags: Alzheimer’s disease, dementia, terminal, degenerative, continuing, care
Thu, June 26, 2008 1:27 pm By Raymond Martin
 According to Alzheimer’s Association, it is vital for people diagnosed with dementia and their families to know the common symptoms of Alzheimer’s syndrome and the difference between normal age-related memory changes and the possible warning signs of Alzheimer’s disease. The Association has developed a checklist of top ten signs of Alzheimer’s.
Memory loss: Memory loss is the most common early signs of dementia. A person suffering from dementia begins to forget more often. The person then loses his capacity to recall any information as the syndrome progresses.
Difficulty performing familiar tasks: Completing everyday task in itself is a daunting task for people suffering from dementia. For instance, they may forget the steps involved in preparing a meal, making a telephone call or playing a game.
Problems with language: People with Alzheimer’s syndrome tend to forget simple words. They find speaking or writing very difficult to understand
Disorientation to time and place: People suffering from Alzheimer’s forget where they are and how they got there. As the disease progresses, they forget how to get back home.
Poor or decreased judgment: People with Alzheimer’s loose their judgment power. They may start dressing inappropriately, wearing sweaters on a warm day or very little clothing in the cold.
Problems with abstract thinking: Complex mental tasks become impossible for people with Alzheimer’s syndrome.
Misplacing things: Misplacing things is one of the main signs of an individual suffering from Alzheimer’s syndrome. The person may put things in the wrong places. For instance, the person may put iron in the freezer.
Changes in mood or behavior: People suffering from Alzheimer’s syndrome display mood swings- from calm to tears to anger- for no reason.
Changes in personality: The person may become extremely confused, fearful or dependent on a particular family member.
Loss of initiative: As the disease progresses, the person with Alzheimer’s becomes passive. The person may sit in front of the TV for several hours and not wanting to do his/her daily activities.
Tags: Alzheimer’s, disease, symptom, changes
Sat, June 21, 2008 12:22 pm By James Coolridge
 Rule no 1#
Use the best of your sense of humor. Find the good aspects of life rather than focusing on the negatives.
Rule no 2#
Know your talent. Work at something that you enjoy.
Rule no 3#
Don’t worry about things you can’t control, like the weather.
Rule no 4#
Work to resolve conflicts with the people you love.
Rule no 5#
Eat right, sleep tight!
Rule no 6#
Break the monotony. Work with breaks.
Rule no 7#
If any situation (like a job interview) is stressful, prepare to the best of your ability.
Rule no 8#
Set realistic goals at home as well as work.
Rule no 9#
Stop blaming others or the luck if you don’t achieve something.
Rule no 10#
Last but not the least- think positive, be optimistic! Cheers!!!
Tags: Stress free life, think positive, realistic goals.
Fri, June 20, 2008 10:28 am By James Coolridge
 US researchers in their study figured out that people who are often stressed out or depressed are prone to memory loss. This can even lead to Alzheimer’s disease at an early age.
The researchers analyzed data from two major studies involving nearly 1250 elderly people who had no memory problems when the study was started. Nearly 480 people started developing mild cognitive impairment after up to 12 years of follow up. The participants were rated on the basis of how often they are prone to tensions and depression.
“What we’re measuring is a personality trait that we all have to greater or lesser degree. We all experience anxiety and periodic depression. This trait helps identify people for whom that are more characteristic than others,” said Wilson, whose study has appeared in journal Neurology.
Tags: Depression, Stress, research., anxiety, Alzheimer’s
Wed, June 11, 2008 12:25 pm By James Coolridge
The treatment of clinical depression is highly subjective to the patient, based on the patient’s unique combination of biological, psychological and social health factors and the severity of their condition. The three most conventional treatments for depression include medication, psychotherapy, and Electroconvulsive therapy, however new treatments and less conventional options are also available, including self help and life style changes.
Depression is actually both a symptom and a cause for further medical complications. Those who are suffering from it are sometimes even oblivious of the fact. The video puts some light on this medical condition.
Tags: Health, Depression, treatment, cure, Mind, mental, illness
Mon, June 9, 2008 10:32 am By James Coolridge
 Are you sleeping with stress? Do you have the habit of waking up in the middle of night? If yes, then no doubt, you are suffering from Parasomnia.
What is Parasomnia?
“Parasomnia is any sleep disorder such as sleep walking, teeth grinding, night terrors, rhythmic movement disorder, restless leg syndrome which are characterized by partial arousals during sleep or during transitions between wakefulness and sleep. Parasomnias are often associated with stress and depression. Biological factors may also be involved.”
A 2005 National Sleep Foundation poll found that 75 percent of adults frequently have symptoms of a sleep problem, including waking during the night.
“People think that because they’re able to fall asleep they’ll stay asleep, even if they’ve had too much caffeine,” says Rubin Naiman, Ph.D., a sleep and dream specialist at Andrew Weil’s Program in Integrative Medicine at the University of Arizona.
If you find yourself awake in pre-dawn hours, Dr. Naiman advises first assessing your physical state. Check whether you have an ache, a cramp or you need to go to bathroom.
“The root of most sleep problems is stress,” says Jeffrey Thompson, director of the Center for Neuroacoustic Research and creator of an audio sleeping aid called the Delta Sleep System.
Everything is over here- you get overloaded with work, over-stimulated and overwhelm your body’s ability to relax. However, you can keep this under control. Few positive alterations in your lifestyle can help render healthy sleeping patterns.
Tags: Lifestyle, research., Parasomnia, scientists, sleeping patterns
Fri, June 6, 2008 7:37 am By James Coolridge
T he debate is heated up. The recent question in the minds of many is – do antidepressants actually work?
According to recent estimates, approximately seven million Americans take antidepressant drugs for depression and various other anxiety disorders.
For the past couple of decades, antidepressant drugs have been credited with fixing the problems of depression of millions of people. The market is flooded with newer antidepressants being prescribed for eating disorders, anxiety disorders and other disorders related to depression.
However, recent research put into light the fact that these antidepressants may not be more effective for relieving depression than a dummy pill.
Psychologists Irving Kirsch, PhD, of the University of Connecticut and Thomas Moore, PhD, of George Washington University analyzed the results of 47 studies on antidepressant drugs.
Tags: research., Antidepressants
Tue, May 27, 2008 12:24 pm By James Coolridge
 Alzheimer’s patients like any other patients need plenty of care, support, patience, and love. Caring for a person with Alzheimer’s disease at home is a challenging task. This can be sometimes overwhelming too. The caretaker requires a lot of patients to take care of the patient. Here are few tips on how to take care of your Alzheimer’s patient at home.
Comfort and safety at home:
First of all, you should provide a sense of well being and safety to the patient at home. Hence, you home safety requires to be re-planned as to provide enough security for your patient. In addition to this, you need to change the environment of your home so that it becomes a safe haven for the patient. The following are the changes you should make at your home environment.
Communication:
An Alzheimer’s patient should not be left alone at any cost. As the disease progresses, your communication style needs to be changed.
Adjusting your communication style to the patient’s changing needs as the disease progresses. The patient needs plenty of time to organize his thoughts and put them together in order to communicate with you. So, you must be very patient. Don’t interrupt and wait until your patient responds to you. Speak clearly. Use eye contact and gentle touching methods in order to help the patient understand that they are being heard. Don’t argue or try to change the person’s mind, even if you believe the request is irrational. Be affectionate with the patient, if this feels natural. Try not to set up a cycle of paying attention only when the person displays problem behaviors. Break this negative cycle by being supportive of positive behavior.
Manage the behavior problems:
It is a fact that the person suffering from Alzheimer’s disease may at times become aggressive, disappointing or maddening. All these are symptoms of this disease and you should not take it personally. Manage the behavior problems. Be best at your patience, kindliness and your supportive nature. Stay calm when they are aggressive.
Alzheimer’s patients, like any other patients, require your love, support and kind nature. Show them your love in the best possible ways! Take care of your Alzheimer’s patient!
Tags: Alzheimer’s, love, support, safety
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