“Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos into order, confusion into clarity…It turns problems into gifts, failures into success, the unexpected into perfect timing, and mistakes into important events. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow.”
Melodie Beattie, Author of ‘Co-dependant No More’
Movement is Medicine: ‘We can use our bodies as a tool to affect the way we think and feel, like a hotline to the mind.” Caroline Williams, researcher and author of ‘Move: How the New Science of Body Movement Can Set Your Mind Free’
“Movement affects your brain; but your brain also affects movement.”
Regular physical activity is an important part of a healthy mind, body and lifestyle. Not only is exercise good for your muscles and bones, but it is also an important part of keeping your brain healthy too. Exercise doesn’t only mean working out or playing sports, it just means moving your body and being active. A few other examples of exercise are: dancing, walking, biking, swimming, or throwing a Frisbee.
What happens in the body and brain during exercise: As your heart rate increases during exercise, blood flow to the brain increases. As blood flow increases, your brain is exposed to more oxygen and nutrients. Exercise also induces the release of beneficial proteins in the brain. These nourishing proteins keep brain cells (also known as neurons) healthy, and promote the growth of new neurons. Neurons are the working building blocks of the brain. As a result, individual neuron health is important to overall brain health.
Studies have shown that the connection between your brain and your body is a “two-way street” and that means physical movement can effectively change your brain for the better, explains Srini Pillay, M.D., Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School.
Your brain plays a major role in your physical and emotional well-being, and it directly affects your ability to exercise. Your brain was designed for survival and avoiding danger (fight, flight or freeze). Regular aerobic exercise can reduce anxiety by making your brain’s “fight, flight or freeze” system less reactive.
One way to trick your brain is doing a Gatorade swish, which misleads your brain into thinking your body is getting a jolt of energy from a sugary beverage, even if it isn’t. The act triggers the brain, which naturally wants to preserve energy for survival, into releasing dopamine to help jump start exercise based on the false promise is sugar, Dr. Jennifer Heisz, explains in Move Your Body; Heal Your Mind.
Movement can improve your cognitive functions and mental health. Regular physical activity and movement benefit more than just the body. They actually augment brain function. Movement supplies brain cells with oxygen, promotes the production of new brain cells, and aids in creating new synapses.
Regular exercise such as aerobic, resistance, flexibility, and balance exercises can reduce depressive symptoms. Exercise can be as effective as medication and psychotherapies.
Regular exercise may boost mood by increasing a brain protein called BDNF that helps nerve fibers grow.
Mindfulness during exercises and workout.
“A 12 minute walk alters metabolites in our blood, molecules that affect the beating of our heart, the breath in our lungs, the neurons in our brain.” explains Annabel Streets, “52,ways to Walk: The Surprising Science of Walking for Wellness and Joy, One Week at a Time.
Physical activity is ignored by experts who are too focused on addressing mental health issues from the neck up. “It’s low hanging fruit,” she says, “brain chemist, thought, behaviors might take years to address on the couch.” Dr. Ellen Vora, a New York psychiatrist.
“The brain is always working against you to not expend energy, but we can override it,” says Dr. Heisz.
Exercise can be turned into a powerful meditation practice states Anita Sweeney, author of “Make Every Move a Meditation: Mindful Movement for Mental Health, Well-Being, and Insight”. Exercise can be turned into a powerful meditative practice by focusing the mind on a single thought, object or sensation during exercise can help bring clarity and peace of mind. For example, focusing on your left foot hitting the pavement can help you focus.
Exercise is essential for those seeking better emotional well-being and better mental health. Both physical exercise and meditative movement are activities that you can do to improve the way you feel.
Studies have found that people who exercise daily are at greatly reduced risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease and dementia. Rudolph Tanzi, Kennedy professor of neurology and cofounder of the McCance Center for Brain Health at MGH, states, “It’s hard to imagine anything better for brain health than daily exercise, and our findings shed new light on the mechanism involved: protecting against neuroinflammation, perhaps the biggest killer of brain neurons as we age.”
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“God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.” Reinhold Niebuhr
The author of “Healthy Brain, Happy Life” and “Good Anxiety” explains how to harness the power of anxiety into unexpected gifts.
We are living in the age of anxiety. There are about 40 million Americans— or 18% of the population—suffering from clinical anxiety disorders today.
Anxiety is a situation that often makes you feel as if you are locked into an endless cycle of stress, uncertainty, and worry. But, there are ways to leverage your anxiety to help you solve problems and fortify your wellbeing, explains Dr. Wendy Suzuki, PhD, a neuroscientist and professor of Neural Science and Psychology in the Center for Neural Science at New York University. Thus, instead of seeing anxiety strictly as a problem or curse to dread, you recognize it as the unique gift that it is.
Dr. Suzuki has discovered a paradigm-shifting truth about anxiety: yes, it is uncomfortable, but it is also essential for your survival. In fact, anxiety is a key component of your ability to live optimally. Every emotion you experience has an evolutionary purpose, and anxiety is designed to draw your attention to vulnerability. If you simply approach it as something to avoid, get rid of, or dampen, you actually miss an opportunity to improve your life. Listening to your anxieties from a place of curiosity, and without fear or worry, can actually guide you onto a path that leads to inner peace and joy.
Drawing on her own struggles and based on cutting-edge research, Dr. Suzuki has developed strategies for managing unwarranted anxiety and exercises you can do to build your resiliency and mental strength. The exercises include:
Visualize positive outcomes
At the beginning or at the end of each day, think through all those uncertain situations currently in your life — both big and small. Now take each of those and visualize the most optimistic and amazing outcome to the situation. Not just the “okay” outcome, but the best possible one you could imagine.
This process of visualizing “the most optimistic and amazing outcome” should build the muscle of expecting the positive outcome and might even open up ideas for what more you might do to create that outcome of your dreams.
Turn anxiety into progress
Our brain’s plasticity is what enables us to be resilient during challenging times — to learn how to calm down, reassess situations, reframe our thoughts and make smarter decisions.
Reach out
Asking for help, staying connected to friends and family, and actively nurturing supportive, encouraging relationships not only enables you to keep anxiety at bay, but also shores up the sense that you’re not alone.
The belief and feeling that you are surrounded by people who care about you is crucial during times of enormous stress — when you need to fall back on your own resilience in order to persevere and maintain your well-being.
When we are suffering from loss or other forms of distress, it’s natural to withdraw. Yet you also have the power to push yourself into the loving embrace of those who can help take care of you.
Practice positive self-tweeting
Lin-Manual Miranda sends out tweets at the beginning and end of each day. The tweets are essentially upbeat little messages that are funny, singsongy and generally delightful.
If you watch him, you’ll see an inherently resilient, mentally strong and optimistic person.
For you to be that resilient, productive and creative, it’s essential to come up with positive reminders. You don’t necessarily need to share them. The idea is to boost yourself up at the beginning and at the end of the day.
This can be difficult for those who automatically beat themselves up. Instead, think about what your biggest supporter in life — a spouse, partner, sibling, friend, mentor or parent — would tell you, and then tweet, remind or say it to yourself.
Although popular science continues to suggests that persistent, low-level anxiety is detrimental to your health, performance, and wellbeing, but if you could learn how to harness the brain activation underlying your anxiety and make it work for you, you could turn anxiety into superpower, says Dr. Suzuki.
Her research and her own experience demonstrate that this paradigm shift from bad to good anxiety can accelerate focus and productivity, boosts performance, lead to happiness, create compassion, and foster more creativity.
Twenty-five positive quotes and reminders to build resilience:
“Far better is it to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs–even though checkered by failure–than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much, because they live in a gray twilight that knows not victory nor defeat.” Theodore Roosevelt
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Calvin Coolidge
Austin Miller, VP of Talent Management at Sorenson Capital Partners
The goal of mindfulness is to wake up to the inner workings of our mental, emotional, and physical processes.
Mindfulness is the basic human ability to be fully present, aware of where we are and what we’re doing, and not overly reactive or overwhelmed by what’s going on around us, according to the website Mindfulness.com.
Mindfulness encompasses two key ingredients: awareness and acceptance, according to Psychology Today. Awareness is the knowledge and ability to focus attention on one’s inner processes and experiences, such as the experience of the present moment. Acceptance is the ability to observe and accept—rather than judge or avoid—those streams of thought.
Whenever you bring awareness to what you’re directly experiencing via your senses, or to your state of mind via your thoughts and emotions, you’re being mindful. And there’s growing research showing that when you train your brain to be mindful, you’re actually remodeling the physical structure of your brain.
Mindfulness is a technique of deliberately focusing your attention and not let yourself be distracted by other thoughts constantly running through your head; you clear “noise” from your mind.
Mindfulness is the idea to become more self-aware. You pay attention to your thoughts, feelings, and sensations in that moment — without purposefully deciding whether they’re good or bad, and without becoming overwhelmed or overly reactive.
In short, you tune in to what you’re feeling and what’s real right now. “Mindfulness is awareness that arises through paying attention, on purpose, in the present moment, non-judgementally,” says Kabat-Zinn, creator of the research-backed stress-reduction program Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) . “And then I sometimes add, in the service of self-understanding and wisdom.”
Mindfulness – Live in the day; Live in the now.
Mindfulness is available to you in every moment, whether through meditations or mindful moment practices like taking time to pause and breathe when the phone rings instead of rushing to answer it.
Breathe in and out a few times. If your mind wanders, just notice that, accept that your mind has wandered, and refocus on your breathing. That’s a bare bones example of mindfulness. “Mindfulness is really important in times like this,” says Auguste H. Fortin VI, MD, MPH, a Yale Medicine internal medicine specialist who has recommended mindfulness practices to help cope with their illnesses.
Mindfulness is a practice that involves three components:
As you spend time practicing mindfulness, you’ll probably find yourself feeling kinder, calmer, and more patient. These shifts in your experience are likely to generate changes in other parts of your life as well.
Mindfulness can help you maximize your enjoyment of life and help you wind down. Its benefits include lowering stress levels, reducing harmful ruminating, and protecting against depression and anxiety. Research even suggests that mindfulness can help people better cope with rejection and social isolation.
“If you are depressed you are living in the past. If you are anxious you are living in the future. If you are at peace you are living in the present.” Lao Tzu
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“Retirement is like an iceberg, where 90% of what’s really taking place lies below the surface, absent from traditional financial plans and conversations” Robert Laura
For a long and fulfilling life in retirement, you need much more than financial resources and financial security. Consequently, there are more valuable retirement assets than financial.
Retirement planning is typically related solely to financial planning, all about numbers. It centers around one question: Do your financial assets — pension, 401(k)s/IRAs, Social Security, property, sale of a business, etc. — provide enough income to fund your desired retirement lifestyle?
You’ll need enough money to get by, of course, but you don’t have to be super wealthy to be happy. In fact, life satisfaction tops out at an annual salary of $95,000, on average, according to a study by psychologists from Purdue University. Enough money to never have to worry about going broke or paying for medical care is important. But financial freedom is not the only or even the most important piece of a fulfilling retirement.
Once you have a retirement plan in place, it is essential to focus on all those things money cannot buy. There are non-financial assets that studies show can improve life satisfaction in retirement. According to Kiplinger Magazine, they include:
Retirement is major transition made up of many financial as well as life decisions. This is why it is important to create and to adhere a retirement plan as early as possible. That way you can spend more time focusing on everything else that equally matters.
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“As you get older, the days go by quicker and you need to make the time count.” Mary Peachin, Octogenarian
As you age, it becomes more important to “live each day right to the limit”, states octogenarian Mary Peachin, in Costco Connection magazine, September 2021, Members Connection. Peachin has “walk the talk” and lived her life as a self proclaim world-traveling, deep sea diving adrenaline junkie. “If your body aches, you ignore it and keep on trucking”, she preaches.
When it comes to going after what you love in life, do not take no for an answer. You should expect and intend to live a life well lived and always believe the best is yet to come
“Life is too short not to enjoy it.”
Make your life happen and take action today. Be amongst the few who dared to live their dreams. Live your life in such a way that there is no regret.
Time is short; live every day for a higher purpose. Let’s invest the limited time we have on your life’s purpose and mission. Do not focus on your problems and challenges; instead focus on purpose and destination.
Life is brief and it passes quickly. The average American male lives to be 70 years 4 months. The average American female lives 70 years 4 months. To live life to its fullest, it is not the quantity of your life, but the quality.
Time is running out for all of us.
“Your job will not take care of you when your elderly and sick, your friends and family will.”
The most effective way to live life on the edge is to “find an edge and Live there”, states Peachin. And, you can start to “find an edge” by writing down your dreams and priorities in life, and then focusing on fulfilling those written dreams and priorities. It starts with knowing what you want, and it ends with getting what you wanted. It’s often that simple.
Save for and invest in the things that matter most!
In every positive or negative situation, there are always options. Remember you are the one pulling the strings, and when things look hopeless, it’s because you’re choosing not look at the things that truly matter. You’re choosing to see the the bad stuff, and they have little to do with your ability to change your circumstances. The trick is that you have to see the ocean of opportunity, not that little bucket of water (problems) that you tripped over.
We must decide to see the good and not dwell on the failure, but instead focus on the positives from the experience. Limits do not exist. You have weaknesses of course and we all do, but focus on your strengths. Remember if you’re feeling scared and fearful, it means you’re trying something new.
People don’t run marathons because it feels good.
When you feel bad about your situation, you’re thinking about the mistakes of yesterday, and not the opportunity of right now and the hope for tomorrow. You’re thinking about what has and what can go wrong, and not what can go right.
When you’re feeling defeated and discouraged, ascertain what you’re really focusing on. It important to focus on how far you’ve come, the opportunities that lie ahead, and the resources available you have to go forward.
“What you focus on expands, and when you focus on the goodness in your life, you create more of it.” Oprah Winfrey
Always think bigger and focus on your purpose. Build the world as you want it to be.
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“Those who are the happiest are not necessarily those for whom life has been easiest. Emotional stability results from an attitude. It is refusing to yield to depression and fear, even when black clouds float overhead. It is improving that which can be improved and accepting that which is inevitable.” ― James C. Dobson, Life on the Edge: The Next Generation’s Guide to a Meaningful Future
“Love and meaningful relationships are vital to physical and emotional well-being.” Deepak Chopra
Many people fail to understand that emotional well-being has potential to affect your overall health and well-being. In fact, mental and emotional stress can translate into adverse physical reactions, a weakened immune system, and overall poor health outcomes.
It is natural to feel stress, anxiety, grief, and worry during and after a disaster or pandemic. Everyone reacts differently, and your own feelings will change over time. It’s important to take notice and to accept how you feel.
Taking care of your emotional well-being during an emergency will help you think clearly and react to the urgent needs to protect yourself and your family.
Self-care and being proactive during an emergency will help your long-term healing.
Look out for these common signs of distress:
It’s vital for you to learn how to manage your stress and take the action to improve your mental well-being. You can take the following steps to cope:
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Improving the lives and futures of young adults by strengthening connections and building resilience.
Mental health continues to be a major concern on college campuses around the world, according to new research published by the American Psychological Association.
The research reveals that the prevalence of depression and anxiety in young people continues to increase, now reaching its highest levels, a sign of the mounting stress factors due to the convergence of the coronavirus pandemic, political unrest, and systemic racism and inequality.
Additionally, researchers from the World Health Organization found that a staggering 35 percent of first year college freshmen struggled with a mental illness. The most common mental illness observed was major depressive disorder, with 21.2 percent of respondents experiencing lifelong symptoms, followed by general anxiety disorder, which affects 18.6 percent of students.
When it comes to suicide in particular, the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry points to data showing that by 2018, suicide was the second-leading cause of death for people between the ages of 10 and 24.
And, since 2014, anxiety and depression have been college students’ leading mental health issues, according to research conducted by Boston University.
According to the most recent Healthy Minds Study, which surveys tens of thousands of college and university students across the U.S., 41% of all students screened positive for depression over the spring semester, and 34% screened positive for anxiety. They are the highest levels observed by the study. However, this year’s results are part of a steadily increasing trend, and students surveyed said that while the pandemic impacted their mental health, it wasn’t the root cause.
Help is on its way
RADical Hope is a nonprofit committed to improving the lives and futures of young adults by strengthening connections and building resilience. The RADical Hope movement is two-fold: educate all constituents of the college community the warning signs and implore them to take action. And, help to identify students who need help but are not able to ask for it.
"It's tragic. And they come to school often overwhelmed. And whatever we can do to provide them with some peace and tranquility and happiness, that's one of our great missions," says Larry Bossidy on his goal to promote mental health awareness with @RADICALHOPE_Fdn. pic.twitter.com/C5o9kndCw9
— Squawk Box (@SquawkCNBC) November 10, 2021
RADical Hope wellness program, RADical Health, attempts to empower and equip college students with tools to stay well and stay resilient dealing with the day-to-day challenges of life on college campuses. Their strategy is to utilize proven effective techniques and procedures to counter the accelerating rise in college student anxiety and depression.
RADical Hope is currently partnering with ten colleges and universities to develop, identify and partner with frontline engagement programs that deliver three priorities: Connectivity, Engagement, Empowerment.
And, reaching college-age kids is vital. “64% of kids who drop out of college do so because of mental illness,” says Ken Langone, Co-Founder of Home Depot, who adds, “Our purpose [for RADical Hope] is to identify the kids who aren’t reaching out for help and assure them there is a better future.”
Tips that’s may help you maintain your mental health! Always remember to do what feels right for you. #MentalHealthMatters pic.twitter.com/dYCaxy1Yff
— RADical Hope (@RADICALHOPE_Fdn) November 3, 2021
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The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline contact is 1-800-273-8255 (en español: 1-888-628-9454; deaf and hard of hearing: 1-800-799-4889) or the Crisis Text Line by texting HOME to 741741.
General Colin Luther Powell (April 5, 1937 – October 18, 2021), the first African American Secretary of State, died at the age of 84. General Powell was a retired four-star Army general who served as National Security Advisor, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, before becoming Secretary of State.
General Powell’s 13 Rules are listed below. They are full of emotional intelligence and wisdom for any leader.
General Colin Powell’s rules are short but powerful. Use them as a reminder to manage your emotions, model the behavior you want from others, and lead your team through adversity.
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