Life Changes
Healing Through Storytelling: Lessons from The Odyssey
The journey of Odysseus in Homer's 'The Odyssey' offers profound insights into healing...
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- Written by: Marie T. Russell
You may have jokingly said, as you weren't able to put down that bag of chips or cookies, that those darned things were addictive. Well, it turns out you were right all along.
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- Written by: National Institute Of Health
The benefits to cardiovascular health that are associated with quitting smoking aren’t blunted by the modest weight gain, a new study found. The research underscores the benefits of putting a stop to smoking....
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- Written by: National Institute Of Health
Osteoarthritis is the most common type of arthritis. People usually have joint pain and stiffness. Unlike rheumatoid arthritis, it does not affect skin tissue, the lungs, eyes, or blood vessels.
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- Written by: NCCAM
Anyone can develop high blood cholesterol. In fact, about 13 percent of American adults has the condition, putting them at an increased risk for heart disease. You can have high blood cholesterol and not even know it, because it can occur without any symptoms. The National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI) here
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- Written by: InnerSelf Staff
Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in both men and women. Lung cancer is the second most common cancer in the United States, after skin cancer. The number of new cases and deaths from lung cancer is highest in black men.
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- Written by: NCCAM
Relaxation techniques, such as autogenic training, biofeedback, deep breathing and breathing exercises, guided imagery, progressive relaxation, and self-hypnosis, including their uses for health purposes, scientific evidence regarding their effectiveness, and side effects and risks. From the U.S. government’s National Institutes of Health.
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- Written by: InnerSelf Staff
If your parents divorced before you turned 18, and today you are a smoker, it may be their fault! What??? A study done at the University of Toronto showed that "men who experienced parental divorce before they turned 18 had 48-per-cent higher odds of ever smoking..."
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- Written by: Marie T. Russell
We all know that stress is bad, that working 18-hour-days is not healthy, and that working at a job you hate can lead to depression. But did you know that job burnout may be increasing your risk for a heart attack and Type 2 diabetes?
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- Written by: Susan Pease Banitt, L.C.S.W.
The truth of what we experienced is stored in the body. The body does not lie. Only the mind is capable of denial. A trigger can be any stimulus that was previously paired with a trauma, whether we remember it or not...
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- Written by: Carol Torgan, Ph. D.
Bacterial communities called biofilms can quickly clog medical devices such as stents and catheters by forming 3-dimensional streamers that block flow. The finding will inform future approaches to prevent these deadly clogs....
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- Written by: National Institute Of Health
A recent study reveals that major mental disorders, previously considered distinct, share common genetic variations. This groundbreaking research highlights potential advancements in diagnosing and treating conditions such as autism, ADHD, bipolar disorder, major depression, and schizophrenia, as it uncovers shared biological underpinnings that could reshape mental health approaches.
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- Written by: NCCAM
Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) affects many Americans, leading individuals to seek complementary health practices for relief. Hypnotherapy, herbal remedies, peppermint oil, probiotics, and acupuncture are explored, with varying degrees of evidence for their effectiveness in managing symptoms. Understanding these options can help in making informed health decisions.
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- Written by: Winifred A. Bird and Jane Braxton Little
The idle fields are illuminated by lights from his house, where several men bend intently over a low wooden table as they pore over satellite photographs and contour maps.
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- Written by: Christopher Vasey, N.D.
Invading germs as well as ingested poisons that have accumulated over time from unhealthy lifestyle choices can all be eliminated in a relatively short time by one simple, but intense process: fever. But is it possible to create an artificial fever?
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- Written by: Marie T. Russell
"...findings illustrate a larger point: Independent of choices we make as consumers — whether we buy milk in glass bottles or microwave food in plastic containers — processing is taking place beyond our view that can contaminate our food with endocrine-disrupting chemicals."
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- Written by: Matt Mumber, MD and Heather Reed
Stress affects us whether it’s considered good or bad. In physics, stress is a force that acts on a specific object and causes deformation or strain. In health and wellness, stress is seen as a force that causes mental, emotional, physical, or spiritual strain.
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- Written by: polyconundrum
According to a study conducted by Oceana, a non-profit organization working to protect the oceans, the seafood sold in stores and restaurants in the USA is often mislabeled. You think you're buying wild salmon, but are actually eating farm-raised salmon. OK, maybe we suspected that at times... But what about...
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- Written by: Fiona Harvey, The Guardian (UK)
Halve meat consumption, scientists urge rich world. People in the rich world should become "demitarians" – eating half as much meat as usual, while stopping short of giving it up – in order to avoid severe environmental damage, scientists have urged, in the clearest picture yet of how farming practices are destroying the natural world...
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- Written by: Susan Pease Banitt, L.C.S.W.
I once had a patient who came in and announced calmly, "I had a brownie yesterday, and then I felt really suicidal." For a moment, my conventional reaction was to think she was losing touch with reality. She was one of my least dramatic, most levelheaded clients and usually she understated rather than overstated everything.
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- Written by: Jack Angelo
Life is about change, even when it appears to be static. Our breathing undergoes changes according to the rhythms of our state of imbalance (another reason to remain mindful of our breath). Specific breathing exercises can work on the causes of our stress, illness, unhappiness, or discontent
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- Written by: Matt Mumber, MD and Heather Reed
The optimal approach to physical activity varies by age and health status. We’ll focus on a foundational and sustainable process here, which includes exercising on all three levels of capacity: aerobic capacity, muscle strength, and flexibility...
