Pump Up Your Vagal Tone: 3 Simple Practices by Shanti Medina
The vagus nerve is an important part of the parasympathetic nervous system, also knows as the “rest-and-digest” system. The word vagus means “wanderer,” because it branches out and wanders all over the body connecting to the brain, the intestines and stomach, and major organs such as the heart, kidney, lungs as well as the ears, […]
I resent your tone of voice!
Although there can be too much generalization out there about being either right-brained or emotional beings, or left-brained logical beings, one thing seems clear to neuroscience: we default to prosody, or tone of voice, over the semantic meaning of words when push comes to shove. As babies we need to understand tone of voice before […]
Cynicism May be Leading You to Dementia
Do you suspect others have ulterior motives more often than not? Do you feel that others only assist you because they’ll want something in return? If you tend to look at the world through this lens you may be more inclined to develop dementia in your later years! Social Cognitive neuroscience is consistently finding links […]
A Path to Empowerment
There are many paths to personal empowerment. Some are spiritual, others mental or emotional; yet it’s the rare path that enfolds all aspects of our lives into the process. What if you could invite and engage your analytical self, or more left-brain tendencies, into the process of spiritual expansion without it hijacking each moment of […]
When Breathing in Love is Not Enough
Are you tired of pretending to be calm and compassionate when inside you really feel like kicking and screaming? In my life-long meditation training I was often told to “breathe in love”. I so desperately wanted to do this, but there was no manual other than to just do it. When one is in a […]
Can your choices alter your sperm’s genetic code?
The verdict is in! We live in a time where we finally understand the smallest bit about our own power of influence over our DNA. Let’s not be selfish…eating right, exercising and manage your stress isn’t just for you, it’s for the health and well-being of your offspring. It’s now known that oxidative damage, which […]
Is Your Head full of Plastic?
In the last few decades the concept of neuroplasticity has taken hold of the science community. We agree now that our brains are malleable, waxing and waning in their structure and function, and ever changeable. NOW we know it’s even more plastic than that! Not only can we birth new brain cells, and strengthen […]
What a Difference a Verb can Make!
I AM vs I FEEL Did you know that when the fight-or-flight center of the brain is engaged (the limbic system) saying things like I AM so angry keeps the blood flowing in that direction, feeding that center. But when you switch to I FEEL so angry there is a measurable shift in blood flow […]
How the Brain Creates Beauty: this is NOT about Renee Zellweger’s Face
They say beauty is in the eye of the beholder, yet so many of us are concerned about social standards of beauty and body image. If it’s truly in the beholder’s eye, then perhaps we should remind ourselves that we behold our own image each time we look in the mirror. What if my beauty […]
We ARE Magicians
What if you had superhero powers to sculpt reality as you wanted it to be? What if science began to admit such powers? When scientists discovered our gifts of neuroplasticity late in the last century we officially entered the age of the Magician. According to Dr. Robert Scaer, author of 8 Keys to Brain-Body […]
