Because learning about your brain and sleep can be fun . . .
When they’re out in the field, soldiers don’t spend a lot of time thinking about the “vibe” of the area where they sleep. Male or female, they have a cot and maybe a footlocker. Maybe they live out of a rucksack. It’s a simple, spartan existence. Of greater concern than the vibe projected by where they sleep are the…
Sometimes doing an action can take the place of taking a certain medication. Positive morning affirmations can work like an antidepressant. Grounding can decrease inflammation. Chiropractors routinely prescribe exercise routines to relieve pain. Some doctors have said, “If exercise were a drug, I’d give everyone a prescription.” Sometimes what you’re doing is making a drug…
Fifty-one years ago the nightly news was full of gory, gut-wrenching images from Vietnam. Nevertheless, the prospect of fighting that war or fleeing didn’t keep people up at night the way smartphones do today. The smartphone is apparently worse for sleep than a war. The effect of screens on sleep Adults often read and tell…
Having an out-of-the-body experience (an OBE) doesn’t make you special. An OBE can make you feel unmoored. An OBE can change your perspective on how you once thought the world worked. An OBE can make you realign your priorities. Once you accept these changes, you’ll feel less anxious. They might feel weird, but they’re so…
Meet the glymphatic system. It might be the most obscure system in the human body. By way of introduction, let’s remember that the three pillars of good health are diet, exercise, and sleep. Everyone knows that if you don’t exercise or move around, you affect your cardiovascular system. They also know exercise is also good…
When someone thinks of the health effects of missing sleep, they don’t always think of hormone problems. Perhaps they should. I once knew a man who was stronger, tougher, and smarter than me. Considering the two of us and commonly compared talents and aptitudes, he was the better person in every objective way. We’ll call…
Am I crazy? Am I insane? It’s a question people can have after they have an experience—or experiences—that defy easy explanation. Skepticism is valued in our society. Being skeptical shows you’re no fool. Knee-jerk skepticism, even cynicism, is easy. Sometimes it takes work and courage to ask questions. You may not like the answer either.…
Vitamin B-6 can help you have more dreams. When you’re learning about nutrition, it’s hard to distinguish one B vitamin from another. That’s probably because of how they’re presented to the learner: all in one group. They all sound alike. They’re distinct, however; biochemically separate. As B vitamins they’re grouped by function. It’s an attempt to…
To nap or not to nap: that is the question. Some people swear by the power of naps, actually calling them “power naps.” They’re powerful, they say, because they feel recharged, refreshed, and rejuvenated after they wake up. Others, not so much. They insist that if you’re struggling through your day after a night of sleeplessness,…
People frequently compare the human body to a machine. It’s not, but making a comparison like that is taking a mental shortcut. Writers searching for convenient analogies are guilty. We probably should forgive them. They’re just trying to explain how stuff works in easily understood ways. Besides the fact humans are living and machines aren’t,…