Tag Archives: mental health

Meditation: Living With Awareness

Posted on November 21, 2017 by | 1 comment

Meditating in Nature (Photo Credit: Maxlkt)

Zen master, poet, and global peace activist Thich Nhat Hanh once said,

“We are very good at preparing to live, but not very good at living. We know how to sacrifice ten years for a diploma, and we are willing to work very hard to get a job, a car, a house, and so on. But, we have difficulty remembering that we are alive in the present moment, the only moment there is for us to be alive.”

In an age where we are constantly chasing after the next destination, we have forgotten how to enjoy and live in reality. My dear friend and therapist introduced me to meditation, the practice of bringing awareness, without judgement, to what the present moment has to offer. In my sessions, we focus on the in-and-out breath, acknowledge any physical sensations, and notice and let all thoughts and worries pass by like clouds.

Many people find comfort and meaning in their everyday lives through meditation. From chemical and biological perspectives, how do we reach this gentle state of mind? What changes in the brain when we meditate?

Meditation alters the levels of neurotransmitters in the brain that are associated with stress and anxiety. Neurotransmitters are “chemical messengers” that control and are controlled by our thoughts and emotions. A meta-analysis found that those who meditate have higher levels of serotonin, gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), and dopamine neurotransmitters. Serotonin regulates mood, GABA communicates messages between nerve cells, and dopamine affects motivation, learning, and pleasure. The study also found that there is a lower level of norepinephrine, the hormone and neurotransmitter that activates the body’s experience of stress.

Another study found that meditation significantly changes the amount of grey matter in different parts of the brain. Grey matter refers to the main, body component of nerve cells that determines the function of the brain. The research shows that meditation increases grey matter in the hippocampus, the memory and emotion region of the brain, and decreases grey matter in the amygdala, the part of the brain associated with fear.

Group Meditation (Photo Credit: Suc)

In the words of my health psychology professor, often times, the simplest things have the greatest impact on our lives. I have found my genuine happiness and peace in this journey of meditation. I hope everyone finds theirs, too.

~Shanna

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How Does Technology Use Correlate with Our Mental Well-Being?

Posted on November 20, 2017 by | 1 comment

Source: https://www.inc.com/issie-lapowsky/inside-massive-tech-land-grab-teenagers.html

 

 

 

 

 

 

The advancement of technology is increasing at a dramatic rate with new technological breakthroughs every year. Nowadays, it’s quite difficult to find someone who doesn’t use technology at all. Every year, the percentage of the population using technology increases. This is shown in a study conducted by Pew Research Center in 2017 where in America, about 95% of the population owns a cellphone of some kind compared to only 35% of the population in 2011. That is about a 10% increase in cellphone ownership every year!

Also, the amount of time adolescents spend online has more than doubled from an average of 8 hr per week in 2005 to 18.9 hr per week today!

This goes to show just how dependent we are on cellphones, computers, television, etc. So, the question here, asked by all parents is: “does modern technology improve or degrade the mental well-being of the younger generation?”. Although some studies have been conducted, none have been rigorously examined.

The answer to this question was found in a study conducted by Andrew Przybylski, a psychologist at the University of Oxford and Netta Weinstein, a psychologist at Cardiff University in Wale. Andrew and Netta wanted to determine the correlation between digital-screen time and mental well-being of adolescents. They used the digital “Goldilocks” hypothesis where it describes that “too little” tech use deprives young people of important social information and peer pursuits, whereas “too much” may displace other meaningful activities.

They surveyed 120,000, 15-year-old participants across England. The survey asked the participants about their engagement in different kinds of digital activities during their free time and about their life satisfaction and happiness over the past 2 weeks.

Surprisingly, the results they found was quite the opposite to many contrary beliefs.

Figure 1. Mental well-being as a function of daily digital-screen time on weekdays and weekends. Results are shown for time spent (a) using smartphones, (b) playing video games, (c) using computers, and (d) watching TV and movies

From the figure above, the results show that moderate use of technology correlates with improved mental well-being. However, the longer the technology is used, the teens’ well-being starts to decline.

This study indicated that moderate use of technology in the modern world actually may not be so harmful and may actually be advantageous in a very online connected world that we live in today.

So, to all parents out there, there is no harm for your children to spend some time on their cellphone or laptop. And to all teens out there, although it’s nice to go on Facebook and Twitter, you should also spend some time with your family and friends out in the real world as well.

-Ziyi Wang

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The Healing Power of Nature

Posted on October 31, 2017 by | 2 comments

Shinrin-Yoku, Japanese for “Forest Bathing” (Photo Credit: Teamsamuraispain)

One of my favourite ways to de-stress is being with nature. Whether it’s having lunch by a creek, meditating with essential oils, or hiking in the woods, nature brings me comfort and clarity.

Many of us have heard of these anecdotes or may have experienced it ourselves. Did you know that there is now scientific evidence for the health benefits of nature?

Retreating to nature is especially well-studied in Japan. In Japanese medicine, meditating in the forest is a form of therapy called shinrin-yoku. Japanese for “forest bathing,” shinrin-yoku is proven to reduce stress, strengthen the immune system, improve mood, increase focus, and even speed up recovering from illness.

Are there chemical mechanisms behind the healing power of nature?

One interesting finding showed that just breathing in nature can be beneficial. Plants emit volatile organic compounds known as phytoncides to protect against harmful insects, bacteria, and fungi. Studies in Japan have shown that more white blood cells that fight against tumours or viruses are produced when people are exposed to phytoncides in the forest. Moreover, the same studies in Japan and also in Taiwan have found decreased levels of stress hormones in those exposed to phytoncides. By being around nature, we breathe in the phytoncides of nature and receive their benefits.

Another study showed that a common bacterium found in soil can improve mood and relieve stress. Known as Mycobacterium vaccae, this microorganism increases the expression of an enzyme that synthesizes the mood-regulating neurotransmitter serotonin. Mycobacterium vaccae can potentially prevent and treat mental disorders by buffering the effects of chronic stress.

Studying with Nature (Photo Credit: Pxhere)

Ultimately, there is no one chemical or one microorganism that cures all. It’s the synergistic effect of chemistry, biology, and psychology that makes being in nature so rejuvenating.

Now that the weather is colder, visiting the forest may not be as appealing. However, we can use the concepts of forest bathing in the comfort of our home.  Whether it’s meditating for ten minutes, using essential oils, having a potted plant on our desk, or having wood in our working space, bringing shinrin-yoku indoors can make all the difference.

~Shanna Wang

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If you feel stressed by school: drink coffee!

Posted on October 29, 2017 by | 4 comments

Source: Flickr

As a student, getting close to the end of the semester can be quite stressful. Assignment deadlines and exams are building up in all the courses so you get overwhelmed and feel extra tired all the time. Then, this stress evolves into anxiety and feeling so down that the motivation to get good grades is lost. You reach a point just want to get over with the semester alive. Does this sound familiar? I bet you’ve felt like this at least once in your life, I know I have! Well, an easy solution to help you feel better is drinking coffee. I know, we usually think of coffee only as a source to keep us awake. Even some of us might have grown up with the idea that drinking coffee is bad for your health, but turns out it is actually beneficial to our mental health.

Coffee has been shown to help decrease depression and stress by boosting your mood and sense of well being. Consuming coffee, inhibits the adenosine hormone in the brain, which is the one responsible for making you feel sleepy and down. This inhibition leads to a state of alertness and it is related to increased dopamine, which is a stimulant in the brain that is responsible for making you feel good. Moreover, that feeling of enhanced alertness is what helps to keep us awake and feel more energized. This also has been proven to increase memory, attention spam and cognitive functions. Drinking coffee can improve our mood and feel help us feel more energized, thus, it reduces stress which helps us be more productive to excel in our courses.

However, everything in excess is bad for your health. Taking excessive amounts of coffee can be detrimental to your well-being. Caffeine is considered a drug, meaning that we can create an addiction to it and if not taken in moderation. If this happens, a day without coffee can actually make us feel worse by producing withdrawal symptoms, which ultimately makes us feel more stressed. Essentially your body gets used to the benefits coffee gives you and stops moderating these hormones naturally since caffeine does it for our organism instead. To avoid this, parameters of the amount of caffeine that can be safely consumed daily have been stablished. For healthy adults the recommended amount is no more than 400g of caffeine per day, which is about 240 ml or three 8oz cups of coffee per day.

As we know, student life can be very stressful and so we need to take care of our mental health if we want to be productive, have good grades, and be happy. Drinking coffee can help make us feel better and also keep us energized and focused in school. But, as everything in life, moderation is key to get all the benefits and avoid the disadvantages.

Andrea Olaizola.

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