People with ASD have a different way of learning, paying attention or reacting to things. The ability to learn, think and problem solve varies greatly in people with ASD, from gifted to severely challenged. They also show differences in the way they relate to people and the way they communicate or deal with emotion. The severity and combination of symptoms can vary vastly from person to person, but the symptoms are likely to include:

• a resistance to change,
• difficulty adapting to changes in routine,
• repetitive actions,
• repetitive play,
• repetition of words or phrases,
• little or no interest in other people or objects,
• may show interest in people but not able to relate to them,
• difficulty understanding other people’s feelings and expressing their own,
• avoids or resists being cuddled or seem to ignore people when spoken to, but responsive to other sounds,
• difficulty expressing what they want,
• unusual reactions to the way things look, sound, smell, taste or feel,
• obsessive interests,
• prefers to ply alone,
• difficult to comfort during distress,
• reverses pronouns (‘you’ instead of ‘I’),
• does not play pretend games.

What Causes Autism?

We don’t know exactly what causes ASD. Up to now, differences in brain development have been thought to be the cause. New research, published in the journal Cell, has found that there seems to be more to it than that. 

A study in mice has found that some symptoms of ASD, such as touch perception, anxiety and social difficulties, are caused by problems with the nerve cells that send sensory information (such as information about touch) to the brain. They are the nerves that are found in the arms and legs, fingers and toes, and other parts of the body. (Researchers often use mice in their studies because of genetic and biological similarities between mice and humans.)

It is as though the volume of these nerve cells is turned up, so the sensation of touch is exaggerated and intense. This seems to lead to anxiety and the behavioural problems that are often associated with ASD.

“An underlying assumption has been that ASD is solely a disease of the brain, but we’ve found that may not always be the case.” David Ginty, Professor of Neurobiology at Harvard Medical School.

The Research. What they did.

Though the exact cause of ASD is unknown, there does seem to be a genetic basis. Exactly how this genetic vulnerability leads to the development of ASD is unclear, and this is where the work lies for researchers. Is there a specific combination of genes? Do the gene mutations interact with something in the environment? So many questions, but researchers are getting closer to uncovering more of the secrets of ASD.

As part of the study, researchers looked at a number of genes mutations that are known to be associated with ASD in humans.  They genetically engineered the mice to have these mutations only in the cells of their peripheral sensory nerve cells. These are the nerve cells in the extremities of the body – arms, legs, fingers toes.

They also looked at two other genes that have been associated with behaviours that are typical of ASD. These genes are crucial for nerve cells to function normally, and previous research has connected the mutations to problems with the way nerve cells communicate with each other. 

(For the scientific ones out there, researchers were looking at mutations in the Mecp2, Gabrb3, Shank3, and Fmr1 genes.)

“Although we know about several genes associated with ASD, a challenge and a major goal has been to find where in the nervous system the problems occur … By engineering mice that have these mutations only in their peripheral sensory neurons, which detect light touch stimuli acting on the skin, we’ve shown that mutations there are both necessary and sufficient for creating mice with an abnormal hypersensitivity to touch.” David Ginty.

Sensitivity to touch.

The researchers looked at how the mice reacted when they were touched gently. In the study, the touch was from a gentle puff of air on their backs. The study also explored whether the mice could tell the difference between objects that had different textures.

The mice that were bred to have the ASD gene mutation in only their sensory nerve cells showed:

• a heightened sensitivity to touch;
• an inability to tell the difference between textures;
• an abnormality in the transmission of impulses between the nerves in the skin and spinal cord – these are the nerves that send touch signals to the brain.

Anxiety and Social Interactions

The researchers then turned their attention to anxiety and the way the mice interacted socially. They looked at how much the mice avoided being out in the open and how they interacted with unfamiliar mice.

The mice that were bred to have the ASD gene mutations showed heightened levels of anxiety. They also interacted less with the mice they hadn’t seen before.

‘A key aspect of this work is that we’ve shown that a tactile, somatosensory dysfunction contributes to behavioral deficits, something that hasn’t been seen before … In this case, that deficit is anxiety and problems with social interactions.’ David Ginty.

The research has revealed the ‘what’, but the ‘how’ is still vague. What we know is that the mutations in the sensory nerve cells cause problems for the way the body interprets touch. This seems to contribute to anxiety and social problems, but exactly how it contributes isn’t yet clear. 

‘Based on our findings, we think mice with these ASD-associated gene mutations have a major defect in the ‘volume switch’ in their peripheral sensory neurons,’ Dr Lauren Orefice, researcher.

Because the volume of these nerve cells seems to be turned all the way up, the sensation of touch is strong and severe. 

‘The sense of touch is important for mediating our interactions with the environment, and for how we navigate the world around us … An abnormal sense of touch is only one aspect of ASD, and while we don’t claim this explains all the pathologies seen in people, defects in touch processing may help to explain some of the behaviors observed in patients with ASD.’ Dr Lauren Orefice.

Where to from here.

With every new piece of research, we move closer to finding a cure. Researchers are now looking into treatments that might turn down the ‘volume’ in the peripheral sensory neurons to levels that are more manageable. They are looking into both genetic and pharmaceutical possibilities.

The post What Causes Autism? New Research Unlocks More Secrets appeared first on Hey Sigmund.

Who gets bipolar disorder?

Bipolar disorder isn’t fussy. It can afflict anybody and like so many mental illnesses, we really don’t know why some people are struck by it and some people aren’t. What we do know is that bipolar has absolutely nothing to do with intelligence, character or personality. It has a physiological basis, but it expresses itself through emotion, behaviour and mood. 

Researchers have identified small variations in a number of genes that are closely connected to an increased risk of developing bipolar disorder. A family history of bipolar seems to be the greatest risk factor, but it’s important to remember that most people who have the family history will never go on to develop the illness.

What does it feel like?

For people with bipolar, the extreme shifts between depression and exhilaration and back to depression are cruel and unpredictable. Bipolar disorder takes people to the greatest highs and plunges them to the most devastating lows. 

In a manic state, the elation and high energy can feel euphoric. Confidence escalates. Limits disappear. Thoughts and ideas race, with a new one beginning before the last one is finished. Speech, behaviours, and actions speed up to keep pace with a mind that is catapulting forward. Energy feels boundless and sleep can feel irrelevant.

Sometimes, people in a manic state can become agitated and irritable, particularly when it feels as though other people can’t keep up, don’t understand them or are trying to dampen their energy. They might love hard and hate just as hard.

People in a less extreme manic episode might function well and be highly productive, working through the night to get things done. The first sign that bipolar disorder might be behind the high productivity are the shifts in mood and activity levels. Often, the person might feel as though nothing is wrong, so it’s not unusual for people close to the person to be the first ones to notice that something isn’t right. 

The manic phase of bipolar can feel unbelievably exhilarating. Inhibitions are stripped right back, and it can feel as though anything is possible. Because of this, people in a manic state might do risky things. They might have reckless sex, overspend, or make impulsive, catastrophic decisions. They might make wild plans that involve huge amounts of money, grand intentions or famous people who will surely understand and applaud their vision. Again, this has nothing to do with intelligence or character. It happens because they are being driven by a mind that is hurtling them forward, convincing them they can do anything, be anything and achieve anything. Their body backs this up by giving them more energy than someone without bipolar might ever get to experience at a single point in a lifetime. 

Then comes the crashing depression. The crash would feel thunderous for anyone, but when the fall is from such an extravagant, lofty height, it’s devastating. The exhilaration and extreme feelings of freedom and possibility are replaced with intense sadness, emptiness, and hopelessness. The high energy crashes. The mind is burnt out and the body is exhausted, and the reality of decisions made during manic phase hit home. The things that usually bring immense joy now bring a dead nothingness. In a depressive state, people can have difficulty concentrating, and they might be forgetful. Extreme hopelessness and sadness can drive suicidal thoughts, and the shame and guilt from the things done during a manic episode might feed the darkness even more. In the darkest times, suicide might feel like the only way out of the pain. 

The presence of bipolar disorder might not always be obvious. Sometimes, the depression and mania can exist together. When this happens, people might have a lot of energy, but at the same time feel intense sadness and hopelessness.

More recently, bipolar disorder has started to be classified as early-stage bipolar or late-stage. The classification isn’t so much about the length of time the person has had the symptoms, but more about the number of episodes and the severity of the symptoms. People with early-stage bipolar disorder have had fewer manic or depressive episodes, whereas those with late-stage bipolar have had more episodes with more severe symptoms.

Some new insights …

One day, those who attach a stigma to mental illness will be seen to have the same level of naivety as those who believed the earth was flat. As we uncover more about the causes and characteristics of certain mental illness, it becomes increasingly clear that mental illnesses have a physiological cause. They are physical illnesses that come with physical symptoms, as well as behavioural, emotional or cognitive ones. Here are some of the things we are learning about bipolar disorder:

1. The architecture of the brain of people with bipolar disorder is different.

   The brains of people with bipolar disorder show typical features that are different to the brains of people without bipolar. First, the brains of people with bipolar have a reduced volume and show evidence of a process in which the brain re-writes the connections between its neurons (brain cells). This is something that normally happens with learning and memory and recovery from brain damage, but in people with bipolar, the process is associated with a loss of neurons and a deterioration in cognitive function.

2. The blood of people with bipolar disorder is different.

   Research has shown that the blood of people with bipolar disorder has some interesting features that are associated with the severity and frequency of mood episodes. Their blood has several markers related to inflammation and oxidative, and lower levels of the protein (BDNF) that supports the growth and survival of neurons, and helps to establish connections between neurons.

3. The bipolar brain has less of a protein that helps it to adapt to stress.

   The brains of people with bipolar disorder have lower levels of a protein (EGR3) that helps the brain to cope with stress and changes in the environment.

4. Lower levels of omega 3 in the blood of people with bipolar disorder.

   Faty acids have a vital role in brain health, the immune system, and the inflammatory system. Research has found that people with bipolar disorder have lower levels an omega-3 fatty acid called EPA in the blood, which is the type that crosses the blood-brain barrier to enter the brain. (Previous research exploring the connection between fatty acids and bipolar has focussed on the levels of fatty acids in cell membranes.) 

5. Cells in a brain with bipolar disorder are more sensitive to stimuli.

   Research recently published in the journal Nature, found that the neurons from people with bipolar are much more sensitive than neurons from people without bipolar disorder. Normally, neurons are stimulated and then they respond. In people with bipolar, the neurons are very quick to respond – they don’t need a lot of stimulation. The energy-producing powerhouses in the cells – the mitochondria – are also more active.

   ‘After a few months, it’s possible that this hyperexcitability becomes too much for the cell to handle and it crashes into a less excitable state … That could signal the shift between the depression and mania that patients experience.’ Rusty Gage, senior researcher and professor, Salk Institute Laboratory of Genetics.

6. The blood of people with bipolar disorder is toxic to the brain.

   Recent research published in the International Journal of Neuropsychopharmacology has found that the differences in the blood of people with bipolar are also associated with changes in the brain of people with bipolar disorder. As part of the research, neurons were exposed to blood from individuals with bipolar or without bipolar. The neurons that were exposed to the bipolar blood showed evidence of a loss of neuron connections when compared to the non-bipolar blood. The difference was only noticed in those with late stage bipolar. The blood from early stage bipolar was similar to the people without bipolar.

   ‘Our results indicate that the blood of BD [bipolar disorder] patients is toxic to brain cells and affects the connectivity ability of neurons. Considering our previous knowledge on the association between mood episodes and blood toxicity, we believe that the more episodes a patient has, the more cellular components are produced that impair the brain’s ability to deal with environmental changes, inflammation and stress.’ Fabio Klamt, lead researcher, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul.

And finally …

Incredible advances in technology are opening up our capacity to observe and learn about the brain. With this increased knowledge comes great opportunities for new treatments that are more effective and have fewer side effects. Researchers are continually edging closer to finding a way to manage bipolar disorder so that its effects are less intrusive for those who have the disorder, and the ones who love them.

The post Bipolar Disorder – Important New Insights appeared first on Hey Sigmund.

We might not be able to stop the stress, but we can stop it causing ruin. New research explains why giving ourselves priority needs to become less of an option and more of a must do.

Relationships, money, children, work, and day to day life stress mean that it’s not always possible to adjust the volume and intensity of stress in our lives. What we can do is manage it, but tending to our own needs often doesn’t make it anywhere near the ‘must do’ list, hovering instead on the ‘maybe one day when I get a cheque six million dollars and don’t have to work or buy my own groceries’ list. If you have ever needed a reason to get serious about taking time out to de-stress, remarkable new research has something for you.

Stress and the brain. What they found.

The research by Rockefeller University was conducted on mice, but don’t let that take anything away from the findings and what they mean for us humans. Mice are often used in studies because they are so genetically, biologically and physiologically close to humans. 

In the study, published in the journal, Molecular Psychiatry, researchers exposed the mice to chronic stress by keeping them in a small space for 21 days. They then looked at the mice to see which of their behaviours had changed. They were also interested to see whether there were any changes in the brain cells within the three different areas of the amygdala, the part of the brain that regulates emotions such as fear and anxiety. 

The exposure to chronic stress caused changes in the amygdala. These changes have been associated with anxiety and depression. 

In the first area of the amygdala the researchers looked at, the stress did not appear to cause any noticeable changes.

In the second area, they noticed the branches of the cells had become longer and more complex. This is a healthy change and points to the ability of the mice to adapt to certain environments.

In the third area, they noticed shrinkage of the branches that connected with other parts of the brain. This change is a worrying one. When these crucial connections are lost, the brain is less able to adapt to new experiences. Effectively, it becomes trapped in an anxious or depressed state.

Protecting the Brain.

The research also highlighted a new experimental drug that might protect the brain against these changes. 

‘While this rewiring from chronic stress can contribute to disorders such as anxiety and can contribute to disorders such as anxiety and depression, our experiments with mice showed that the neurological and behavioral effects of stress can be prevented with treatment by a promising potential antidepressant that acts rapidly.’ Carla Nasca, researcher.

The treatment that was used to protect against the effects of chronic stress was acetyl carnitine, a molecule that is being explored for its potential as a rapid-acting antidepressant. The mice who were treated with this drug were more sociable and showed less adverse brain changes, than the stressed mice who weren’t treated. Humans and mice both naturally produce acetyl carnitine. Animals that are more vulnerable to depression show a deficiency in acetyl carnitine. Researchers are looking into whether people with depression show the same abnormally low levels.  

Here’s the rub. As with any physiological symptom, the symptoms of stress are a sign that something needs changing. Chronic stress is a sign that the environment is drawing on more emotional, physical and/or physiological resources than you have. 

The promise of the experimental medication is that is will protect the brain from the neurological effects of stress that we know about, but it doesn’t get rid of the stress. Stress has other effects on the body and mind, outside the brain.

Of course, it’s not always possible to change your life, which is why protecting your whole self from the effects of stress is so important. Medication may be one part of the answer, but it’s certainly not all of it, nor is it the only one. 

If I can’t reduce stress in my life, what then?

Ok. So you can’t leave you job, your relatives, your bills, the traffic and the nailbiting ups and downs of The Great British Bake Off (for the love of lemons why does anyone have to leave?) – what can you do instead?

A powerful way to protect against stress is to reframe it. Research from Harvard has found that reframing stress as helpful rather than harmful can reverse the physiological changes brought about by stress. 

In a massive study that involved almost 30,000 people, researchers found that people who experienced high stress and who believed that it was harmful for them, had a 43% increase in the risk of premature death. However – people who were highly stressed but didn’t believe that it would harm them had a risk of premature death that was even lower than people who claimed they had a pretty low-stress existence.

And finally …

Stress and modern living often tend to come as a bundle. If we can’t change the stressors that cozy up beside us day after day, we need to change the way we deal with them. There are many life-giving ways to put back what stress takes out, including exercise, reframing the way we think about stress, sleeping, playing, connecting with our crew, listening to music, or meditating. The challenge then, becomes finding ways or opportunities to become our own priority from time to time. Life opens up when we love ourselves as much as we love the ones close to us.

[irp posts=”1810″ name=”How to Be Mindfully Self-ish – And Why It’s SO Important.”]

The post Remarkable New Research About Stress and the Brain appeared first on Hey Sigmund.

What happens in our head has a lot to do with what’s happening further south, in what scientists affectionately call ‘the brain in our gut’. It has a strong connection to the brain in our head and together, they are key players in mood, and mental health.

The brain in our gut, or the second brain as it is also called, is made up of more 200-600 million neurons, arranged in the intricately folded tissue that lines the gastrointestinal tract. With firepower like that, it’s not surprising that the gut does so much more than deal with food and the messier parts of being human.

It plays a critical role in mental and emotional functioning by sending information to the brain and directly influencing things like feelings of stress, anxiety and sadness, as well as memory, decision-making and learning. The brain in our gut is not capable of thought as we know it, but it communicates back and forth with our main brain, playing a critical role in our mental and emotional well-being.

Unhappy mind. Unhappy belly. Which comes first?

It’s no secret that anxiety, stress and depression often bring unhappy bellies with them, by way of irritable bowel syndrome, constipation, diarrhea, bloating and pain. For decades, doctors thought that stress, anxiety and depression were the cause, but now it seems that it’s actually the other way around. Irritation in the gastrointestinal system seems to send signals to the brain that trigger mood changes. We know that probiotics seem to alleviate the symptoms of anxiety and depression and this might be why.

[irp posts=”590″ name=”Anxiety, Depression and the Surprising Role of Gut Bacteria”]

The gut is not only important for physical health, it’s also critical for mental health. What’s fascinating is the direction of influence. The longest nerve exiting the brain is called the vagus (actually they are one pair of 12 pairs of nerves that run from the brain). It runs from the brainstem to the belly and touches the heart and most major organs along the way. Here’s the fascinating part. About 90% of the fibres in the vagus, carry information from the internal organs in the chest (such as the heart) and the abdomen to the brain, not the other way around. 

Our language holds evidence of this – we were talking about it well before we knew it. If you’ve ever been directed by ‘gut instinct’, ‘gone with your gut’ to make a decision, or ‘listened to your heart’, you’re likely getting signals from this second brain in your belly. 

Messages also travel the other way, from the brain to the heart and the gut, also via the vagus nerve but without a doubt, the main direction of information flow is from the gut to the brain. 

The Role of Gut Bacteria.

As well as neurons, there is another major player in the gut-brain connection – the 100 trillion bacteria that set up home inside your gut. According to professor of physiology, psychiatry and behavioral sciences at UCLA, Emeran Mayer, gut bacteria contains phenomenal wisdom that gets sent to the brain. They affect our behaviour every minute of every day from the day we are born, and possibly before.

A Fascinating Study: From Extroversion to Introversion via the Gut

Mayer’s research has shown how the specific combinations of bacteria in the gut might influence the wiring of the brain, and in turn affect such things as temperament, mood and learning. Other researchers have also explored a possible connection between gut bacteria and behaviour, and they’ve made some remarkable discoveries.

In one study, when the gut bacteria of timid mice was transferred into the gut of extroverted mice those extroverted mice became more anxious. It also worked the other way. When the timid mice received the gut bacteria of the bold mice, the timid mice because more bold and extroverted. Aggressive mice calmed down when scientists adjusted the their gut bacteria by giving them probiotics or antibiotics.

Another Study: The Connection Between Gut Bacteria and Temperament

Research has found correlations between temperament and the presence of specific intestinal bacteria in toddlers, particularly boys. The connection was independent of history of breastfeeding, diet and the method of childbirth. Here’s what they found:

• The children with the most genetically diverse types of gut bacteria were more positive, curious, sociable and impulsive.
• In boys, extroversion was associated with an abundance of particular types of bacteria (Rikenellaceae and Ruminococcaceae families and Dialister and Parabacteroides genera).
• In girls, self-restraint, cuddliness and focussed attention were associated with a lower diversity of gut bacteria.
• Girls with an abundance of a particular family of bacteria (Rikenellaceae) seemed to be more fearful than girls who had a more balanced diversity of microbes.

This research is still in its early days, so we still don’t know what a healthy tummy would look like in terms of the combination of gut bacteria, or what factors would influence this. It is possible that the perfect balance of microbiome will vary for all of us. For this reason, the researchers caution against trying to change a child’s gut microbiome just yet.

The Gut and Depression.

Depression is widely attributed to a drop in serotonin, a neurotransmitter that is responsible for mood. What’s extraordinary is that only 5% of the body’s serotonin is stored in the brain. The other 95% of the body’s serotonin is stored in the gut. 

It’s not surprising then, that the most commonly used antidepressants that work on changing serotonin levels often come with a side of gastrointestinal issues. It’s also not surprising that the gut might play more of a role in depression than we yet realise. Research continues to look down this track for answers.

The Gut and Anxiety.

Researchers have found that young adults who eat more fermented foods (which contain probiotics) have fewer symptoms of social anxiety. As explained by Psychology Professor Matthew Milimire, ‘It is likely that the probiotics in the fermented foods are favourably changing the environment in the gut, and changes in the gut in turn influence social anxiety … the microorganisms in your gut can influence your mind.’

Food and the Comfort Factor.

The need for comfort rarely sees us diving for the celery. Pity. Instead, ‘comfort food’ tends to be high fat, high energy food. 

The relationship between food and mood isn’t all in our heads. Yes comfort food tastes delicious, smells delicious and might remind us of times we felt happy and secure, but there’s so much more to it than that, as a team of  Belgian researchers have shown.

The researchers delivered nutrients to the stomachs of participants via a nasogastric tube, with the intention of taking away the smells, tastes and memories that are typically associated with comfort food. The participants were given either ordinary saline solution or an infusion of fatty acids.  Without knowing what they were receiving through the tube, those who received the fatty acids reported half the levels of sadness and hunger compared to those who received the saline. This also showed up in brain scans. Very quickly after fatty acids hit the stomach, scans showed greater activity in the part of the brain that moderates emotions.

Stress and Food

Early research found that stressed-out mice would opt for a higher-fat food (peanut butter) over regular chow. Not surprisingly, they put on more weight than their less stressed friends. In times of stress, the gut amps up the production of ghrelin, a hormone that signals hunger to the brain. Research in humans has found similar results. In a recent study, couples were found to have significantly higher amounts of the appetite-triggering hormone following an argument. The researchers stop short of suggesting that unhealthy relationships cause poor food choices, but they acknowledge that the correlation is a strong one.

There seems to be little doubt that one of the ways stress influences behaviour is via the gut, specifically on the production of ghrelin, which sends messages to the brain around appetite and food choices.

Could gut bacteria be behind this?

Mayer points out that the last 50 years has seen a dramatic rise in autism, multiple sclerosis, Parkinsons and obesity. All of these have altered gut bacteria and brain-gut interactions. At the same time, throughout the last fifty years, we have dramatically changed the way our food is produced and processed, and the way we use antibiotics. Has the way we’re doing things lead to the dramatic increases? At this stage, it’s only speculation, but it’s an area of research that is gaining traction.

Where to now?

Mental health is not all in our head. Neither is mental illness. Finally, science is giving us real proof of this. There is little doubt that mental and emotional health is influenced by the state of our gut. The research is exciting and is promising to revolutionise treatments for a range of conditions and the way we take care of our mental health.  

The research is constantly evolving, but what we know for sure is the importance of  being attentive to the state of the gut and doing what we can to keep it healthy. It holds our second brain, and quite possibly, one of the vital keys to our mental and emotional well-being.

The post Our ‘Second Brain’ – And Stress, Anxiety, Depression, Mood appeared first on Hey Sigmund.

We are wired to remember the things that bring us pain. This is our ancient, highly effective, sometimes annoying, warning system, designed and finely tuned by evolution to keep us safe. By remembering the things that have caused us trouble, we’re more likely to avoid them and keep ourselves alive. This is a great thing for our survival, but not such a great thing for our feel-goods. (Evolution can be a pity sometimes.)

Our capacity for remembering the positive isn’t as easily triggered as the negative, but research has found that with deliberate effort, we can change this and use positive memories to work hard for us. Our positive memories can give us access to a remarkable repertoire of resources that can shape our experiences in positive ways, and strengthen our mental health. 

Research has found that by savoring our positive memories we can increase positive emotions. It also has the capacity to reduce anxiety by reducing the way we attend to and experience threat, and it can ease the symptoms of depression by letting the world be seen less through a more optimistic, happier filter.

The Research

The study was published in the journal Psychology and Psychotherapy: Theory, Research and Practice. As part of the study, participants were asked to remember a recent positive memory of being with another person. The memory was then expanded through a technique called the Social Broad Minded Affective Coping (BMAC) technique.

The research found that by savouring a positive memory, there was a kind of ‘re-experiencing’ of the event contained in the memory. Senses were re-engaged and the emotions associated with the memory were re-experienced. As well as this, the meaning contained in the positive memory helped to push against any negative beliefs that tried to push their way through and cause trouble. Feelings of warmth, social safeness (how connected you feel to others) and calm were increased, while negative feelings were decreased.

How do I use my positive memories to feel happier?

To nurture positive feelings through positive memories, think of a recent positive memory and expand it by remembering it through each of your senses. Here’s how:

1. Think of a recent positive memory of being with another person.
2. Move around the memory, engaging all senses as you do. Let it broaden in your mind.
3. Where are you?
4. What do you see?
5. Turn your focus on the other person. 
   • Focus on his or her face. What do you see?
   • Try to get a sense of the positive feelings the other person was experiencing.
   • What are they wearing?
   • What are they doing?
   • How does the other person in the memory feel?
   • What is that like for you – that other people think or feel this way about you?
6. What do you hear?
   • From the other person?
   • In the environment?
7. What can you smell?
8. Does your memory involve any tastes?
9. Can you touch anything in your memory? How does it feel to do that?
10. What is the strongest and most positive part of the memory? Let the feeling expand in you. Sit with the feeling and enjoy it for a few moments.

(The full social broad minded Affective Coping Script that was used in the study can be found the Appendix at the end of the study here.)

Building a beautiful brain through experience.

Research over the last decade has shown us that we have an enormous and ongoing capacity to change our brains. Positive memories activate positive emotion. The more you do this, the more your brain will change to accommodate this. It’s called experience-dependent neuroplasticity. Over time, it will become easier to access positive emotion by expanding positive memories, and to nurture the positive experience that comes from that.

And finally …

Healthy living is about more than avoiding trouble. It is about the way we perceive and respond to the world around us, and how we interpret the things that happen. Our emotions provide a filter for everything we experience. We are hardwired for that filter to be a negative one, but by deliberately accessing our positive memories and letting them we can also make sure that our positive filter has a heavy hand in the way we live our lives.

The post How to Feel Happier – According to Science. Using Positive Memories to Increase Positive Emotions appeared first on Hey Sigmund.

There has been a growing understanding and exploration by psychologists, psychiatrists, physicians and researchers about the role our gut bacteria plays on our mood—most notably the experience of anxiety.

The stats.

The statistics on anxiety are staggering and trending north each passing year. Consider these stats: According to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America (and NIMH) anxiety is the most common mental illness in America today.

An estimated 40 million adults (18 and older) or 18 percent of the population endorse symptoms of anxiety (not to mention one out of eight children). Treatment of anxiety accounts for one-third of the $148 billion dollars spent annually on mental illnesses in America.

In other words, we spend $42 billion a year on treatment of anxiety disorders in America. Women are 60 percent more likely to develop an anxiety disorder than our male counterparts. These numbers are terrifying to me as a clinician, a woman and a mother.

The gut-brain connection. How does it work?

The symbiotic relationship between our gut health and how we feel is a hot topic of discussion and research. Scientists, physicians, and mental health practitioners are increasingly aware of the important relationship between the balance of “critters” in our gut and how we experience our brain, mood and emotions. So, before we begin to discuss what we can do to optimize this important relationship, let’s explore the underlying processes.

From a holistic vantage point our gut is known as the “second brain” and there are structural/anatomical reasons for this reference. The “second brain,” known scientifically as the enteric nervous system, consists of sheaths of neurons located in the walls of our gut. We refer to these sheaths as the vagus nerve and it runs from our esophagus to our anus, roughly nine meters long.

Did you know that:

• The bacteria, fungi and viruses that make up your body’s microflora outnumber your body’s cells by 10 to 1.
• 95 percent of the body’s serotonin supply is found in our bowels.
• The vagus nerve contains 100 million neurons, which is more neurons than the spinal cord or peripheral nervous system hold.
• There are over 100 trillion bacterial cells contained within the gut.
• Our gut sends far more information to our brain than the other way around.

When the precarious balance of bacteria in our gut becomes disturbed we often experience symptoms associated with Irritable Bowel Syndrome and other gastrointestinal related disorders. These symptoms are likely to start out as complaints of bloating, gas, constipation or diarrhea. When this occurs the domino effect of issues becomes inevitable and thus begins the cascading symptom patterns that plague tens of millions of Americans struggling with GI related disorders.

Due to the interconnectedness of our brain and enteric nervous system, via the vagus nerve, once our gut bacteria is out of whack, we are vulnerable to a pattern of emotional discomfort, usually marked by increasing episodes of anxiety and depression.

How does our gut bacteria become so unbalanced? 

Here are a few of the many ways in which we accidentally (and sometimes unavoidably) contribute to this pattern of disturbance:

• Excessive and unmanaged stress;
• Too much use of antibiotics;
• Prolonged use of steroids
• Intestinal infections
• High sugar; low fiber diet (in other words, Standard American Diet (SAD))
• Regular consumption of alcohol

If you are reading this and you find yourself relating to this content, I encourage you to seek out professional help to better understand what these symptoms mean for your unique constitution.

The research.

There is a bourgeoning area of interest and research exploring the use of probiotics to treat a wide variety of mental illnesses. Pharmaceutical companies are attempting to create a new line of psychiatric medications referred to as Psychobiotics, but this field of research is still in its infancy.

There is a growing body of research that is exploring strain specific probiotics to help mitigate acute symptoms of anxiety. For example, in clinical trials involving the study of mice, Bifidobacterium longum and Lactobacillus Rhamnosus have shown to help normalize anxiety-like behavior. 

There are also a growing number of small human studies exploring the efficacy of using probiotics to combat anxiety symptoms. The preliminary data from these small studies echo the success from the rat-based research. In one study, 22 men reported feeling “less stress” after taking the strain specific probiotic for a month. Additionally, their lab results revealed lower levels of the stress hormone, cortisol while under duress. Both of these strains appear to work on the GABA receptors, an inhibitory neurotransmitter involved in the regulation of acute anxiety. GABA is the receptor influenced when you take a benzodiazepine such as Xanax or Ativan.

My emphasis within my clinical practice is to encourage my patients to explore the ways in which they can participate in healing their own bodies through the careful understanding of what their symptoms are telling them about their own unique emotional and physical constitution. Through seeking to find solutions that are rooted in personal empowerment, we start to shift our relationship to accountability, responsibility and personal growth. So, that being said, there is a lot we can do right from the comfort of our own home to start the process of realigning the balance of our gut flora. As you can imagine, most of it involves cleaning up our diet, being mindful of the relationship between food and mood, exploring our habits and patterns, and better metabolizing our emotions.

So, that being said, there is a lot we can do right from the comfort of our own home to start the process of realigning the balance of our gut flora. As you can imagine, most of it involves cleaning up our diet, being mindful of the relationship between food and mood, exploring our habits and patterns, and better metabolizing our emotions.

Listening To Your Gut. What can I do to heal my gut, mind and brain?

Below are action steps you can take in an effort to begin the process of healing your gut, mind and brain:It generally takes a minimum of 90 days for these suggestions to be effective:

It generally takes a minimum of 90 days for these suggestions to be effective:

• Eliminate sugars: The “fake” sugars. We are not talking about eliminating whole fruits. Rather, cutting out the baked goods, cookies, ice cream, and store bought sugary products that wreak havoc on the bacteria in our gut and lead to cyclical patterns of emotional and physical cravings.
• Eliminate all simple starches and reduce intake of even complex starches. The goal is to reduce the amount of yeast producing foods we consume.
• Reduce or stop drinking alcohol for the 90-day period. If this is difficult for you to do, observe the nature that “relationship.”
• Add in fermented and living foods. Please try to avoid store bought yogurts even though they are considered fermented. These products are loaded with sugars and often end up exacerbating imbalance.
• Consume copious amounts of veggies. Attempt to eat 6-9 cups of vegetables per day. Avoid use of store bought dressings etc., which are loaded with sugar and preservatives.
• Consume foods high in Omega-3 fatty acids (walnuts, salmon, flax, some types of squash, etc.).
• Aim to consume local and organic sources of animal protein. Doing so will reduce your ingestion of unwanted antibiotics and feed based chemicals.
• Discuss with your practitioner if the use of a probiotic or prebiotic will benefit your unique situation. A probiotic introduces specific strains of good bacteria, while a prebiotic introduces carbohydrates that serve as food the bacteria already present in your gut.
• Exercise. More days than not. Enough to sweat. The goal is to find joy in it. But if you hate it, that’s okay. Do it anyway.
• Drink mostly water.
• Work with a skilled psychologist or mental health professional to metabolize past trauma, identify faulty thought patterns, and implement mindfulness- based skills to better manage your central nervous system.
• Implement a daily mindfulness/meditation practice. The goal is observe your mind, not to clear it or control your thoughts. Simple observation and balanced breathing. This is a restful and restorative way to calm the central nervous system and recalibrate the vagus nerve. Mindfulness based relaxation has a myriad of benefits and has been shown to participate in changing neural pathways of emotional and physical pain. I suggest starting with a ten minute morning practice and increase it to twenty minutes once you feel the “mindfulness muscle” is more robust.

Exploring the relationship between our mood and our gut bacteria reveals an interconnected relationship between the mind, brain, and body, via the enteric nervous system and vagus nerve. This relationship is the foundation of why it is critical to address your emotional discomfort from a holistic and integrated approach to your wellness.

The good news is that because we now know and understand that there is a connection between the mind and body, we have the knowledge and tools to make immediate changes that will yield profound, albeit subtle results in how we feel. The better we understand and participate in our own sense of wellness and empowerment the more likely we are to embark on change that starts from within.

About the Author: Dr Sarah Sarkis

Please visit her website at DrSarahSarkis.com and check out her blog, The Padded Room. 

[irp posts=”1675″ name=”Our ‘Second Brain’ – And Stress, Anxiety, Depression, Mood”]

The post What Butterflies Can Teach Us About the Mind/Body Connection: A Shrink’s Guide to Listening to Your Gut appeared first on Hey Sigmund.

Empathy is the ability to understand what another person might be feeling or thinking. It involves being able to see things from another person’s point of view, even when it pushes against our own. This means being able to stay curious and open to another person’s experience, while at the same time being able to tap into our own emotional bank to understand and interpret the other person’s experience.

Our own individual stories may differ vastly, but behind every story are feelings that are familiar to all of us. At some point, we have all found ourselves knee-deep in the messiest of human emotions – anguish, loss, shame, grief, fear, jealousy, disappointment. Empathy lets us tap into our own pain to understand the pain of others. New research published in the journal Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience has found that our ability to do this may be interrupted by a common painkiller. 

The research found that when participants took acetaminophen, the main ingredient in Tylenol, they were less responsive to the pain and suffering of others, compared to those who did not take a painkiller. (Acetaminophen is also known as paracetamol, the main ingredient in Panadol.)

Acetaminophen is found in more than 600 medicines. It is the most common drug ingredient in the United States and is used by about 23% of American adults each week.

The Popular Painkiller That Reduces Empathy – The Research

The research consisted of a number of separate studies. In the first study, 40 college students were given 1000mg of acetaminophen while the other half were given a placebo. The students had no idea whether they had taken the drug or the placebo.

After the participants had waited for an hour for the drug to take effect, they read about eight individual people who were each experiencing some sort of physical or emotional pain. The stories included one about somebody who had received a cut with a knife that went down to the bone, and another about a person whose father had died. The participants had to rate the pain they believed each person would be experiencing from 1 (no pain) to 5 (worst possible pain).

Those who had taken the acetaminophen rated the severity of pain as lower, compared to those who had taken the placebo.

In the second study, 72 college students took acetaminophen and 72 took the placebo. They were then exposed to four 2-second blasts of white noise from 75 decibels (about the noise of an average vacuum cleaner) to 105 decibels (the noise of a power lawn mower or a live rock concert). They then had to rate their experience of the noise on a scale of 1 (not at all unpleasant) or 10 (extremely unpleasant). They were then asked to imagine the level of pain the same noise blasts might cause someone else.

Compared to those who took the placebo, the people who took the acetaminophen rated the noise blasts as more tolerable for themselves, and more tolerable for others.

Similar results were found when participants were asked to watch an online game which involved two players actively excluding a third person from playing. Each participant had met and socialised with the three people involved (the two playing and the one excluded) briefly before the study. Those who took the acetaminophen rated the pain of the excluded person as less severe, compared to the ratings by those who took the placebo.

‘We don’t know why acetaminophen is having these effects, but it is concerning … (T)hose who took acetaminophen showed a reduction in empathy. They weren’t as concerned about the rejected person’s hurt feelings.’ Baldwin Way, co-author of the study and assistant professor of psychology at Ohio State University.

The results support previous research that found the same part of the brain is activated when people experience pain, and when they imagine other people feeling the same pain. It makes sense then, that when medication is taken to reduce a person’s own experience of pain, it will also reduce the ability to feel the pain of other people.

In short bursts, reduced empathy might not seem such a big deal, but it only takes a moment for arguments to fever up.

‘Empathy is important. If you are having an argument with your spouse and you just took acetaminophen, this research suggests you might be less understanding of what you did to hurt your spouse’s feelings.’ –Baldwin Way.

Earlier research found that acetaminophen reduces the pain of social rejection (as in the pain of a breakup), but research since has found that that acetaminophen also flattens positive emotions, like joy. 

The researchers are now turning their attention to ibuprofen, another common pain medication, to see if there are similar results.

The post The Popular Painkiller That Reduces Empathy (And Joy) appeared first on Hey Sigmund.

What if I told you that what appears to be a behavior issue; something worthy of a time-out, lecture, loss of privilege or other such punishment, might actually be a cognitive issue, requiring quite a different response?

Perhaps you would feel more hopeful, rather than frustrated. That is my intention in sharing with you the importance of Executive Functioning, and how to boost Executive Function in children.

In my work as a psychologist, I love empowering parents to help their children thrive. The starting point is to gain a true picture of what is really going on for your child. To understand your child requires compassion, yes, but also correct information.

Executive Functioning is of vital importance to children’s success and happiness, yet most parents aren’t familiar with what Executive Functioning is, let alone how to help a child who has Executive Functioning issues.

Parents often come to me because their child is:

• Easily distracted;
• Doesn’t listen;
• Acts out and is getting into trouble;
• Won’t do what they’re told;
• Appears vague, disruptive or defiant.

When children present such “behavioural problems” often what actually needs to be assessed and addressed relates to Executive Functioning.

Why is Executive Functioning so important?

Executive Functioning is the greatest indicator of your child’s success and happiness in the classroom, at home and beyond.

Studies have even proven that your child’s executive functions between age 3 and 11 are predictive of physical health and mental health (whether they are more likely to be overweight or have substance abuse problems), future earnings, and even marital harmony.

Bottom line: If you want your child to eventually find and keep a job, be a dependable and happy adult, then you need to care about their Executive Functions.

So what are Executive Functions?

Executive Functions are cognitive processes. They are a set of mental skills that help us accomplish tasks, stay calm and think creatively.

Therefore, Executive Functioning relates to our ability to reason and problem solve; to plan, get things done, display self-control; all the mental skills we need to thrive as adults, but that are still developing until age 25.

Fact #1:

It’s your child’s executive functions that are the greatest indicators of mental, emotional and physical health.

Fact #2:

Executive Function issues are overwhelmingly encountered as poor or disruptive behavior and responded to as such.

What are Core Executive Functions and what do they look like in children?

If we think of Executive Function as an umbrella term for important mental control processes; we can understand three components of it; Working Memory, Inhibitory Control and Mental Flexibility.

1. Working Memory

   Working Memory allows us to hold bits and pieces of information in our mind and mentally figure things out. Working Memory helps us reason, solve problems and plan.

   What does this look like?

   You can imagine your child’s Working Memory visually as a post-it note. Depending on their stage of development, they will have a relatively small post-it-note (able to hold just a few bits of information) to quite large (able to mentally work with lots of pieces of information).

   If you ask your child to “get off the couch, go and get your reader, but first wash your hands, don’t forget the soap, and bring me a pen for your diary”, would their post-it-note be big enough to handle those instructions?

   What happens if you find them in the bathroom washing their hands, completely forgetting that they needed to go and get their reader and a pen (which were in two separate locations in your house)?

   While a natural response may be one of frustration, or a suspicion that your child hasn’t listened – or shouldn’t have gotten distracted, your best response comes from an awareness of your child’s Working Memory.

2. Inhibitory Control

   While Working Memory allows us to hold information mentally; make and follow through on plans, this requires attention. And focused attention requires some Inhibitory Control.

   Inhibitory Control involves self-control, discipline; being able to manage interference and distractions while staying focused on a task.

   As core Executive Functions, our Inhibitory Control and Working Memory work together to help us stay focused on a goal or carry out a plan, as we block out internal and external distractions.

   IMPORTANT: Our kids live, as we do, in a digital smorgasbord, dominated by screens competing for attention. Understanding and enhancing Executive Functioning is crucial for your kids survival in our world today.

What does this look like?

Your child’s inhibitory control relates to whether they can stay seated in class; when their urge is to jump out and run around. In children (and adults) it relates to holding your tongue or saying something inappropriate, showing up to training sessions (when you’d rather stay on the couch), resisting temptations for the pursuit of a higher goal.

There are ways to improve inhibitory control, and it’s important that your child’s age and developmental stage is taken into account.

3. Mental Flexibility

   Mental Flexibility, or Cognitive Flexibility, is linked to creativity and involves being able to think in different ways, see new possibilities and perspectives.

   Often children can feel frustrated because their original plan has failed and they are unable to conceive of an alternative way of solving the problem.

What does this look like?

Displaying a high level of mental flexibility looks like ‘out of the box’ thinking; new and novel ideas; noticing and taking advantage of opportunities.

A beautiful quote that reflects the reality of poor mental flexibility comes from Alexander Graham Bell:

“When one door closes, another door opens, but we often look so long and so regretfully upon the closed door, that we do not see the ones which open for us.”

Wouldn’t you love to help your child see the doors that open; to be able to conceptualise problems and ideas in lots of ways? Life is so much happier when children develop mental flexibility. Kids with mental flexibility usually roll with the punches, get along better with others, and recover from setbacks.

How to boost Executive Function in children.

 Studies show that music, martial arts, singing, dancing and sports improve our Executive Functions.

Specifically, the strongest evidence for improving Executive Function includes:

1. Cogmed

   A computerised brain-training program is proven to boost children’s Executive Functions.

2. Mindfulness + Meditation

   The results of a school-based program based on mindful awareness practices (MAPS) found that children with poor executive functions benefited the most from mindfulness and meditation practices.

3. Martial Arts 

   Traditional martial arts, such as Tae-Kwon-Do, are proven to increase executive function in children.

What other activities can boost Executive Function?

 Harvard University has compiled a downloadable resource for enhancing Executive Function based on age. (Access here.)

What can you do to boost your child’s executive functioning?

 The short answer: plenty.

The biggest block to supporting your child’s executive functions is simply: not knowing what executive functions are.

Now that you’ve read this article, you know exactly what executive functions are and the important role they play. Which means you’re in an empowered position to truly help your child thrive.

About the Author: 

Dr Nicole Carvill (BA(Hons) PhD MAPS) 

Nicole is a psychologist, presenter, author and mother, passionate about helping children/adults to understand how they learn best and to assist them to gain the skills they need to thrive. 

Here is a snapshot of her professional highlights:

+   Presenter for the Pearson Academy on understanding the impact of working memory and attention on learning and life.

+   Awarded PhD scholarship to research how to support people caring for a child, parent or partner with additional needs as a result of an intellectual disability, mental illness or age. I’ve met many amazing and inspiring people so far.

+   Researched the impact of pregnancy on memory skills (and after two pregnancies I know all about the brain drain during pregnancy!).

+   Worked within a Multi-disciplinary Autism Assessment Team under guidance of Dr Richard Eisenmajer at Gateway Support Services.

+   Worked with Preschool children with developmental delays while supporting their families, Specialist Children’s Services.

+   Worked as a Clinician within the Behaviour Intervention Support Team, Disability Services [DHS].

+   Regional Co-Ordinator (Barwon South Western region of Victoria) for Program for Students with Disabilities, Lewis & Lewis Psychological Consultancy.

You can find Nicole and more of her work on her website, http://thinknicolecarvill.com or Facebook.

The post How to Boost Executive Function in Children & Why It’s Important to Helping Them Thrive appeared first on Hey Sigmund.

There is no doubt that exercise is as important to mental health as it is to physical health. People with anxiety and depression have lower levels of vital neurochemicals. The exact cause of these lower levels is unclear and researchers are working hard to understand the full picture. What we do know is that regardless of the cause, when the levels of these neurochemicals are restored to healthy levels, the symptoms of anxiety and depression tend to fade. 

Neurochemicals are chemicals in the brain that allow brain cells to communicate with each other. Everything we do depends on the strength of this chatter between brain cells. The better the communication between cells (as in faster and stronger) the stronger that part of the brain will be, and the more effectively the different parts of the brain will work together. 

Two of the neurochemicals that have an important role in mental health, particularly anxiety and depression, are glutamate and gamma-aminobutyric acid – let’s call it ‘GABA’ for short.

New research published in the Journal of Neuroscience has found that exercise restores the levels of these two neurochemicals to healthy levels. 

How exercise strengthens the brain against anxiety.

Some brain cells are born with the personality of puppies. They are easily excited and quick to fire up. We need these. They are healthy and normal and help us to function when we need to be ‘on’. It is because of these excitable neurons (brain cells) that we can think quickly, act quickly and remember. In the right amount and at the right times, these neurons are little gems. 

To stop the excitable neurons getting too carried away and causing trouble, the brain has a neurochemical, GABA, which is the brain’s ‘calm down’ chemical. GABA plays a key role in the way the body responds to stress. Its main job is to settle the brain cells that get a little too playful and over-excited. If the levels of GABA in the brain are low, there’s nothing to calm these over-excited neurons. 

Sometimes too much of a good thing is wonderful. Sometimes it causes anxiety. When there are too many excited neurons firing up for some fight or flight action in the absence of any real need, anxiety happens. Anxiety is the brain doing what healthy brains are meant to do, but a little too much. 

Most of the substances that ease the symptoms of anxiety (alcohol, medication) work by boosting GABA in the brain. A group of drugs that are commonly used for anxiety are benzodiazepines. They work by mimicking the role of GABA in the brain. These drugs have been prescribed widely for anxiety but research is now discovering that extended term use has enormous potential to harm the brain. Exercise is a healthy, non-synthetic way to elevate the same neurochemicals that are targeted by anti-anxiety medication.

How exercise eases depression.

Sometimes we need neurons to fire, but sometimes they can fire unnecessarily (as in anxiety) and we need them to calm down. The balance of excitement and inhibition of neurons needs to be kept in check. When the balance is knocked out, it can lead to anxiety or depression.

Glutamate is the main chemical in the brain that is responsible for stimulating the neurons that need to fire. It is involved in memory, emotions and cognition. When the levels of glutamate are too low or too high, depression happens.  

When the levels of glutamate are too high. 

The role of glutamate in the depression is complicated and depends on the levels in particular areas of the brain. Elevated levels of glutamate have been found in the brains of people with depression, specifically in the basal ganglia, an area that has a key role in motor control, motivation and decision-making. High levels of glutamate in this part of the brain have been associated with anhedonia (an inability to experience pleasure), and slow motor function.

When glutamate is too high, it can become toxic to neurons and glia (the cells that make sure the brain stays healthy). There is extensive research evidence that supports the relationship between systemic inflammation and depression. People with depression have all the primary markers of systemic inflammation (caused by stress, diet, toxins, allergies, illness). Researchers now think that one of the ways that inflammation may do this is by increasing glutamate levels in critical areas of the brain. 

‘We think that one of the ways that inflammation may harm the brain and cause depression is by increasing levels of glutamate in sensitive regions of the brain, possibly through effects on glia.‘ – Ebrahim Haroon, MD, assistant professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences, Emory University School of Medicine and Winship Cancer Institute. 

And when the levels of glutamate are too low.

A large body of research has found that people with depression have low levels of glutamate in certain areas of the brain. These are the areas that are changed through exercise.

According to the STAR*D trial (Sequenced Treatment Alternatives to Relieve Depression), the largest clinical trial study of treatments for major depressive disorder and funded by the National Institute of Mental Health, only about one third of people who use anti-depressants find long-term relief from their symptoms. For the remaining two thirds, treatment with an anti-depressant alone is not enough to relieve their depression.

Clearly something is missing. An abundance of research has shown that exercise may be the key. The research is early but it gives hope that exercise might be an effective alternative or adjunct to antidepressants. The researchers note that exercise as an alternative might be particularly important for people under the age of 25, who can sometimes experience more side effects from SSRIs, the widely used class of antidepressants that synthetically adjust the levels of neurotransmitters in the brain. 

How exercise builds a happy brain.

Exercise elevates the levels of glutamate in the areas where it needs elevating.

Research published in the Journal of Neuroscience showed that after exercise, significant increases in glutamate were found in the visual cortex (which processes visual information) and the anterior cingulate cortex (which in involved in keeping heart rate steady, some cognitive functions and emotion). People who did not exercise did not show these increases.

‘Major depressive disorder is often characterized by depleted glutamate and GABA, which return to normal when mental health is restored. Our study shows that exercise activates the metabolic pathway that replenishes these neurotransmitters.’ – Richard Maddock, study lead author and professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of California.

The effects of exercise on glutamate were still evident in the week following the exercise session.

During exercise, the brain uses up a lot of fuel in the form of glucose and other carbs, but up until recently, we haven’t understood what the brain does with all of that energy. Now we have an idea. It seems that the brain is slurping up energy to make more of the neurochemicals that the brain needs to stay healthy and strong.

And if vigorous exercise isn’t your thing …

If you firmly believe that under no circumstances should ‘vigorous’ ever be paired with ‘exercise’, then not to worry – science has your back too. New research has found that exercise and relaxation like yoga can ease anxiety. Relaxation and exercise aren’t two words that you would typically expect to find together (or maybe that’s just me) – but there they are. They’ve finally found each other and we’re all the better for it. 

How to start exercising when your favourite thing is ‘not exercising’.

Exercise can be a hard thing to get into if avoiding it is one of the things you do spectacularly well. The key is to start. The more you do it, the easier it will get. Pretty soon, you’ll feel the difference it makes to your mood, even if you’re still waiting for your muscles to arrive. 

1. Find what you love.

   Anything that gets your heart pumping will be good for you, but the more you enjoy it, the more you’ll stick with it. Think team sports, walking up a hill outdoors, dancing, martial arts, kicking a ball, riding a bike or a brisk walk. You’re looking for long-term changes in brain health and mood, which will mean a long-term plan. 

2. ‘Vigorous’ means whatever is vigorous for you.

   You just need to get your heart going. This will look different for everyone, depending on where you’re starting from. It doesn’t have to mean punching out 45 minutes on the ‘you’ve got to be kidding’ level of on an exercise bike. It could be a brisk 20 minute walk or 8-10 minutes of going up and down the stairs a couple of times a day. Whatever works for you. Try for something you can do at least five times a week.

3. Ahhh the feel-good. You know it’s coming.

   Exercise triggers the release of endorphins and other feel-good chemicals. Know that they’re coming – but you’ll have to work for them. Some people will thrive on getting hot and sweaty, but for those of us who are more worried about not collapsing than thriving, knowing that the feel-good is coming can keep you on track. Be mindful of how you feel in the hours after you exercise and use this to tap into some needed motivation when you need to. Think of it as therapy. Or just remind yourself that this (session) too shall pass.

4. Just get your shoes on … and then decide.

   Doing something hard involves a series of simple things put end to end. If you hate the thought of exercise, don’t tell yourself that’s what you’re doing. Your body will go wherever your mind puts it. Start with the first simple step. Let’s say, clothes. Tell yourself that you’ll get dressed into something that would be okay to exercise in and then you’ll decide what to do next – it might be exercise, it might be changing back into your comfy pants and eating spaghetti in front of tv. Once you’re dressed, you may as well put your shoes on. That’s all you have to do. After that, then you can decide. When your shoes are on, walk outside the front door and then see how you feel. Once you’ve done this you’ll have some momentum up and it will be easier to keep going than it will be to stop. Just tell yourself you’re going to only take one small step. It’s ridiculous how convincing you can be.

5. Be nice to you. OK?

   If you miss a day, don’t let that slow you down. You haven’t wrecked it and it isn’t all for nothing. Just keep going tomorrow. If you whip yourself too hard when things don’t go right, the temptation to pull out all together will be immense. 

And finally …

Brains were meant to be in bodies that move. Fortunately, they don’t need to move that well. Modern living has meant that we have everything at our fingertips. This is a beautiful thing – having to hunt for food and move between caves is something we can all do without, but we need to make sure that we give our stone-age brains what they need to thrive. One of the most vital of these is exercise. Though we are still working to understand why exercise is so important to mental health, we know for certain that the relationship is there, and that it’s a powerful one.

The post How to Calm Anxiety and Depression – The Easy Way to Restore Vital Neurochemicals appeared first on Hey Sigmund.

When the anxiety becomes intense, it can lead to avoidance of experiences that would likely bring more joy than trouble. For people who don’t understand anxiety, or for those who cruise through their days with a more laid back connection with the world, it can seem as though this avoidance and other anxiety-driven behaviours are more a matter of ‘playing it safe’. Not so, says new research.

People with anxiety have something in common. Their brains have a unique wiring that is different to people who don’t have anxiety. This causes them to interpret things as harmful, even if they aren’t. The scientists call is ‘overgeneralisation’. Now to explain.

What is it about anxious brains?

We are all wired to notice and respond to threats in the environment. When we notice something potentially dangerous, our body gets us ready to fight the danger or run from it. This is something that happens in all of us, and it’s a healthy, normal thing to do. It’s one of the things that has kept us humans alive, so when it’s happening in the right dose, it’s a great thing.

For people with anxiety, this happens a little too much. An anxious brain is an overprotective brain. It does exactly what healthy, normal brains are meant to do, but more often. What this means is that people with anxiety tend to overgeneralise – their brains and their bodies respond to things as though they are dangerous or threatening, even when they aren’t. 

A recent study explored whether or not this was due to the way people with anxiety perceive things in the environment.

The Research – What They Did

A group of people with anxiety were trained to associate three distinct tones with one of three outcomes: money loss, money gain or no consequence.

Next, participants were asked to listen to one of 15 tones and to indicate whether or not they had heard the tone in their earlier training. If they guessed correctly, they were rewarded with money.

The money was the incentive to discriminate between the tones. If the participants overgeneralised, and weren’t able to tell the difference between the tones, they would mistake tones they hadn’t heard for tones they had, and vice versa. This would mean no money.

What they Found

The study showed that people with anxiety were more likely to mistake a new tone for one they had heard earlier. They had a ‘perceptual inability to discriminate’, which means that they were less able to notice the differences between the sounds. They were more likely to associate a new, unheard tone with money loss or gain.

What it Means

We all own a custom made brain. This is a great thing. Guided by our experiences, our brains develop to be the best brain for our own individual circumstances and needs. Every experience we have changes our brain in some way. These changes will eventually influence future behaviour and experiences. This is referred to as the plasticity of the brain.The brain is plastic in that it is open to influence and change.

The brain’s plasticity (the ability of the brain to change according to experience) allows us to adapt and grow in response to our environment, but it can also lead to changes in the brain that are less helpful.

In people who have anxiety, emotional experiences cause changes in the brain that persist even after the emotional experience is over. These changes cause difficulties in being able to tell the difference between the original experience and subsequent experiences.

What this means is that people with anxiety will have a similar emotional response to new and unrelated or irrelevant situations, even when those situations would not typically warrant the same response. 

These fundamental differences in people with anxiety cause them to perceive the world differently. Rather than assessing the potential harm of things in the environment, people with anxiety tend to overgeneralise and interpret everything as potentially harmful.

As part of the study, researchers used brain imaging to measure brain responses and found that there were noticeable differences in the brains of people with anxiety, and those without. The differences were found in the amygdala, the part of the brain that is responsible for the experience of intense emotion, such as fear and anxiety, and the perception of potential danger in the environment. It is also responsible for the changes that happen in the body as a result of the fight or flight response, the body’s natural response to potential threat or danger. Increased activity in the amygdala has been associated with panic attacks and anxiety.

The researchers stress that the flexibility of the brain that leads to anxiety isn’t ‘bad’. 

‘Anxiety traits can be completely normal, and even beneficial evolutionarily. Yet an emotional event, even minor sometimes, can induce brain changes that might lead to full-blown anxiety.’ – Rony Paz, Researcher, Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel.

The avoidance that is often driven by anxiety is physiological and is not a choice. It’s not a question of won’t, it’s a question of can’t. If you love someone with anxiety, understanding this will hopefully help you understand those times of avoidance that don’t make sense. The ‘no’ isn’t to you, it’s to a situation or an experience that will trigger the feeling of being in danger. 

For anyone with anxiety, or for anyone who loves someone with anxiety, it is also important to remember that brains can change. Anxious brains are strong brains – wilful, determined, cautious – and as much as brains can change in ways that aren’t helpful, they are also open to changing in ways that are. Mindfulness and exercise are two things that have consistently been shown to strengthen the brain against anxiety. This doesn’t mean that anxiety will completely go away. We all need a little bit of anxiety to predict danger and to keep us safe. It’s about bringing as close as possible to more manageable levels, but the more we can understand about the workings of the brain, the closer we get to understanding how to influence it in ways that will lead to a healthier, more enriched way of living.

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