Today was the final presidential debate where two candidates get to duke it out over two diverging views of what America is and what America could be. Much hot air was expelled extorting differing plans on how to grow the U.S. economy. Opposing views from other candidates are not allowed to be heard (Except on Democracy Now http://www.democracynow.org/ who allowed Third party candidates to answer the questions posed to the candidates in each of the debates). Many talking heads are getting to exhale their well rehearsed lines that they have been awaiting all week to let loose. Separate from all the spin, many real issues remain glanced over or completely untouched. Let's examine some of these.
1. Tax Code- This complicated juggernaut of esoteric rules and loopholes is unlikely to be changed with either administration.
2. Education Crisis/Student loans- Banks remain the winners on this one as a large segment of the American population are now indentured servants. Neither candidate has a plan to change this debt system.
3. US Foreign Policy direction- Unlikely to change much in either administration. There were some indications in the debates that an Obama administration would shrink down the size of the military.
4. Energy policy- Mr. Romney clearly wants to drill the US. Pres Obama would like to grow the green renewable economy.
5. Deficit- A direct result of multiple wars with some of the lowest tax rates for the wealthy. Romney's plan to cut entitlements will not affect the deficit much as it is not a significant part of the budget... As I understand it the military makes up half of the budget.
6. Financial reform- Glass Stegall Act. Was never brought up. Clearly the banks should be regulated. Or be allowed to fail when they screw up. Record bonuses and bailouts under the Obama administration.
7. Patriot Act- Was never mentioned. Americans can be detained without trial or charges. In violation of the constitution (Thanks Idaho upbringing, where the constitution is pounded into us at an early age!)
8. Citizen's United- Never mentioned. Allows unlimited spending by corporations based on them being given personhood and therefore protection of free speech under the first amendment. Aka the government and political process goes to the highest bidder...
9. Iraq/Afganistan/Iran wars- much hot air about this tonight, however, not much would likely change here under either administration... The generals and main advisers on these topics do not change much with elections. If it did we would have pulled out troops at this point per Obama's prior election promise.
10. Poverty- Indirectly discussed via the conversation on the economy. Neither candidate has a convincing plan to eradicate the growing poverty. Arguably Obama may understand this topic better as he did not grow up with a silver spoon.
Ultimately, the two America's presented and represented by the two parties are at odds. They need not be though. I personally am tired of the partisan politics and would like to see a no party system or an every party system. This duality serves no one but the elites at the top of each party. A real democracy to me would have all the players at the table, including 3rd parties. I have always voted for a third party mostly because I live in Washington state where it always goes to the Democrats. I am a political anomaly in that I am a Liberal that is fiscally conservative.
In the end, I do think for America to move forward and reach its full potential, be need a less divided and more unified national plan. Given the current political climate, I do not see that happening soon. And so the empire will continue to crumble as all divided empires do...
Monday, October 22, 2012
Sunday, October 14, 2012
Lance Armstrong a fallen hero...
Yesterday, I saw the news that the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) released its 200 page report alleging that Lance Armstrong not only had doped, but had also masterminded a complex doping ring that included many of his teammates at US Postal Service and later Discovery Channel team. You can read all 200 pages of it here... (I did last night, for hours..) http://www.scribd.com/fullscreen/109619079?access_key=key-1bqo5b4zjqqjnkz4izt5 Many former teammates, friends, and trainers are now testifying against him.
This story has affected me more than I thought. For me cycling was a respite for a rough life at home. It was also my main transportation throughout my teens and most of the time I was in college. I have logged thousands of miles on my Raleigh and Giant bikes. When my Giant road bike was stolen three years ago, I felt as I lost a body part. Cycling is a sport that I have always followed, and have always been a huge fan of Lance Armstrong. I distinctly remember vehemently defending him in 2003 against the allegations of cheating by my then French girlfriend Karine. I was a big stubborn asshole about it. I wanted so badly to believe in his inspiring story of conquering testicular cancer and then making a big come back.
A year earlier in 2002 I had a testicular cancer scare (and another in 2009, 2011) from a cyst that occasionally grows. Being the information junkie that I am, in no time, I came across Lance Armstrong's book "Its not about the bike". I loved it. It chronicles his illness with testicular cancer and his subsequent comeback to cycling. I liked his hard work ethic and kick some ass mentality. I sought to emulate that in my academic and athletic life. Needless to say he is a big hero to me.
My first love was cycling, I wanted to be a pro mountain bike racer at one point. At another I had a dream of being a pro bike mechanic. In college I joined the crew team, another sport requiring inhuman endurance. Later in medical school I learned that I had an enlarged heart (hypertrophic cardiomyopathy for you medical nerds) likely as a result of my long term cycling and rowing in college. Rowers and cyclists are known for having huge hearts and low heart rates (mine frequently sets off EKG machines as it beats below 60bpm at rest). Lance Armstrong's heart is so efficient that he is around 34 bpm!
Since college I have always had high hematocrits, frequently over 50. In fact if I were to compete in the Tour de France nowadays, I would be disqualified because my hematocrits are too high. I have always ranged between 49 and 55. I had 2 different doctors ask whether I had ever doped or taken EPO when I was in college (I have not). Consequently, when rumors started to abound surrounding Lance Armstrong having abnormally high hematocrits, I assumed he was innocent and just had naturally high levels like me.
As it turns out, it seems that Lance Armstrong has likely been using performance enhancing drugs for a long time now. Allegations include cortisone, testosterone, HGH, EPO, and blood doping. His doctors have all been named and it seems that they had a carefully designed program to keep his hematocrits high while evading detection. (I will spare everyone the technical details, but if you are interested, contact me, it is fascinating!)
It is with great sadness that I see my hero fall. One of the greatest stories in sports seems likely a fraud. When I look back at it, there was one thing that bothered me... In his book, he describes his tumors in detail... A large one on his testicle, 13 in his lungs, abdomen, and 2 in his brain. How the hell does a cyclist not notice that? The second thing that bothered later (after Medical school) was whether he had been taking something that would have increased the growth and spread of his cancer such as testosterone or HGH. Especially, for someone in tune with his body to have caught it at such a late stage. Hormones and cancer go hand in hand, especially cancers of the reproductive tract.
I feel like I knew all along that his story was improbable, yet we all wanted to believe him. Such a great human feat! I think it is just a matter of time now for everything to come out. Until then, I am mourning the loss of my sports hero.
This story has affected me more than I thought. For me cycling was a respite for a rough life at home. It was also my main transportation throughout my teens and most of the time I was in college. I have logged thousands of miles on my Raleigh and Giant bikes. When my Giant road bike was stolen three years ago, I felt as I lost a body part. Cycling is a sport that I have always followed, and have always been a huge fan of Lance Armstrong. I distinctly remember vehemently defending him in 2003 against the allegations of cheating by my then French girlfriend Karine. I was a big stubborn asshole about it. I wanted so badly to believe in his inspiring story of conquering testicular cancer and then making a big come back.
A year earlier in 2002 I had a testicular cancer scare (and another in 2009, 2011) from a cyst that occasionally grows. Being the information junkie that I am, in no time, I came across Lance Armstrong's book "Its not about the bike". I loved it. It chronicles his illness with testicular cancer and his subsequent comeback to cycling. I liked his hard work ethic and kick some ass mentality. I sought to emulate that in my academic and athletic life. Needless to say he is a big hero to me.
My first love was cycling, I wanted to be a pro mountain bike racer at one point. At another I had a dream of being a pro bike mechanic. In college I joined the crew team, another sport requiring inhuman endurance. Later in medical school I learned that I had an enlarged heart (hypertrophic cardiomyopathy for you medical nerds) likely as a result of my long term cycling and rowing in college. Rowers and cyclists are known for having huge hearts and low heart rates (mine frequently sets off EKG machines as it beats below 60bpm at rest). Lance Armstrong's heart is so efficient that he is around 34 bpm!
Since college I have always had high hematocrits, frequently over 50. In fact if I were to compete in the Tour de France nowadays, I would be disqualified because my hematocrits are too high. I have always ranged between 49 and 55. I had 2 different doctors ask whether I had ever doped or taken EPO when I was in college (I have not). Consequently, when rumors started to abound surrounding Lance Armstrong having abnormally high hematocrits, I assumed he was innocent and just had naturally high levels like me.
As it turns out, it seems that Lance Armstrong has likely been using performance enhancing drugs for a long time now. Allegations include cortisone, testosterone, HGH, EPO, and blood doping. His doctors have all been named and it seems that they had a carefully designed program to keep his hematocrits high while evading detection. (I will spare everyone the technical details, but if you are interested, contact me, it is fascinating!)
It is with great sadness that I see my hero fall. One of the greatest stories in sports seems likely a fraud. When I look back at it, there was one thing that bothered me... In his book, he describes his tumors in detail... A large one on his testicle, 13 in his lungs, abdomen, and 2 in his brain. How the hell does a cyclist not notice that? The second thing that bothered later (after Medical school) was whether he had been taking something that would have increased the growth and spread of his cancer such as testosterone or HGH. Especially, for someone in tune with his body to have caught it at such a late stage. Hormones and cancer go hand in hand, especially cancers of the reproductive tract.
I feel like I knew all along that his story was improbable, yet we all wanted to believe him. Such a great human feat! I think it is just a matter of time now for everything to come out. Until then, I am mourning the loss of my sports hero.
Tuesday, October 9, 2012
Race based admissions in higher education
The Supreme Court is getting ready to hear a case on affirmative action and in reading the story in the NY times this morning I could not help but be a little triggered. http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/09/us/supreme-court-to-hear-case-on-affirmative-action.html?src=recg
Maybe it is because I am black or am I. My multiracial mix often leads to mass confusion when trying to stereotype me or fit me into a box on a racial category. My mother is East Indian and my father is African and Chinese. They were born in Guyana (also confusing, not Ghana in Africa, but Guyana, North of Brazil next to Venezuela and Suriname (they are in South America for those of you who really suck at geography)) http://www.lonelyplanet.com/the-guianas/guyana I was a boon to college admissions officers looking for diversity. (Actually I wasn't and was rejected by Boston College and University of Washington, and went to my third choice Seattle University) Interestingly my dark skin is from my mother and my father is rather fair skinned. So despite my 25% African blood, all the schools wanted me to choose the box "African American" when applying for financial aid and any other program tracking race. This was back in the days when multi-racial was not a choice and you had to choose one box. I typically chose Asian or East Indian.
In the end I went to two private schools Seattle University and then Bastyr University for Medical school. Both are private and not diverse. Fall of 1998, my freshman year, Initiative 200 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Initiative_200 passed in Washington State banning race based admissions. As this topic was in the limelight, I felt many eyes watching me in the discussions that followed in the classrooms and halls. In the end maybe it was a good thing, I felt tremendous pressure to not "get a free ride" and was determined to get top grades so no one would doubt that I belonged there. I felt like everyone wondered whether I got into the school based on race.
In 1999 underrepresented minority enrollment plummeted in Washington State. In response, Jim Senegal and Jeff Brotman (cofounders of Costco) formed the Costco Scholarship Breakfast http://www.costcoscholarshipfund.org/ Many of you know I was the first student speaker and received a full scholarship at Seattle University for my final 2 years. (I was also a keynote speaker at the 10th annual breakfast).
In between the lines of these stories and many other cases involving affirmative action is really economics. Many people of color (including myself) cannot afford higher education and wonder whether the loan/debt system is worth the risk. My reaction to signing my first loan papers at Seattle University was "Oh I remember this... Indentured Servitude, I get to go to school and in repayment I get to work for the banks for 10-30 years" This is the story of my East Indian heritage in Guyana, only in the end we did not get the land we were promised. Higher education for many of us has not proven to be the economic boon or the escape from a life of poverty for many of us. Arguably, I am poorer now due to the debt. When comparing my debt to other class mates and friends, I typically have 2-3 to 10 times more school debt (and way less credit card debt, but that is another blog).
I particularly think the case Regents of the University of California v Bakke in 1978 is an interesting one http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regents_of_the_University_of_California_v._Bakke This is where a 33 yr old white male was not admitted to University of California at Davis medical school. He sued and the case went to the Supreme Court, striking down the race quota system there in a 5-4 decision. It is interesting to note at least with respect to Medical school, if admissions were based on merit alone (GPA and MCAT scores) then the bulk of the doctors would be Asian and East Indian with a handful of white students, as these groups traditionally have the highest GPA and MCAT scores.
I am not going to comment much on this case as I don't know what the reality of the situation is at the University of Texas. However, I do think her contention that she has been harmed by job discrimination as a result of graduating from Louisiana State University is laughable... She should see the kind of job discrimination I have experienced (or any other person of color). She is working in Austin and in the field of her choice.
Clearly these cases if anything reflect the economic divide between minorities and majorities (my new word!), as well as the continued legacy of slavery, the ongoing destruction of native peoples. I truely hope we do get to a place where race is no longer used or even thought about in admissions to anything, but until then we will all have to keep talking about these tough topics and heal.
Maybe it is because I am black or am I. My multiracial mix often leads to mass confusion when trying to stereotype me or fit me into a box on a racial category. My mother is East Indian and my father is African and Chinese. They were born in Guyana (also confusing, not Ghana in Africa, but Guyana, North of Brazil next to Venezuela and Suriname (they are in South America for those of you who really suck at geography)) http://www.lonelyplanet.com/the-guianas/guyana I was a boon to college admissions officers looking for diversity. (Actually I wasn't and was rejected by Boston College and University of Washington, and went to my third choice Seattle University) Interestingly my dark skin is from my mother and my father is rather fair skinned. So despite my 25% African blood, all the schools wanted me to choose the box "African American" when applying for financial aid and any other program tracking race. This was back in the days when multi-racial was not a choice and you had to choose one box. I typically chose Asian or East Indian.
In the end I went to two private schools Seattle University and then Bastyr University for Medical school. Both are private and not diverse. Fall of 1998, my freshman year, Initiative 200 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Initiative_200 passed in Washington State banning race based admissions. As this topic was in the limelight, I felt many eyes watching me in the discussions that followed in the classrooms and halls. In the end maybe it was a good thing, I felt tremendous pressure to not "get a free ride" and was determined to get top grades so no one would doubt that I belonged there. I felt like everyone wondered whether I got into the school based on race.
In 1999 underrepresented minority enrollment plummeted in Washington State. In response, Jim Senegal and Jeff Brotman (cofounders of Costco) formed the Costco Scholarship Breakfast http://www.costcoscholarshipfund.org/ Many of you know I was the first student speaker and received a full scholarship at Seattle University for my final 2 years. (I was also a keynote speaker at the 10th annual breakfast).
In between the lines of these stories and many other cases involving affirmative action is really economics. Many people of color (including myself) cannot afford higher education and wonder whether the loan/debt system is worth the risk. My reaction to signing my first loan papers at Seattle University was "Oh I remember this... Indentured Servitude, I get to go to school and in repayment I get to work for the banks for 10-30 years" This is the story of my East Indian heritage in Guyana, only in the end we did not get the land we were promised. Higher education for many of us has not proven to be the economic boon or the escape from a life of poverty for many of us. Arguably, I am poorer now due to the debt. When comparing my debt to other class mates and friends, I typically have 2-3 to 10 times more school debt (and way less credit card debt, but that is another blog).
I particularly think the case Regents of the University of California v Bakke in 1978 is an interesting one http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regents_of_the_University_of_California_v._Bakke This is where a 33 yr old white male was not admitted to University of California at Davis medical school. He sued and the case went to the Supreme Court, striking down the race quota system there in a 5-4 decision. It is interesting to note at least with respect to Medical school, if admissions were based on merit alone (GPA and MCAT scores) then the bulk of the doctors would be Asian and East Indian with a handful of white students, as these groups traditionally have the highest GPA and MCAT scores.
I am not going to comment much on this case as I don't know what the reality of the situation is at the University of Texas. However, I do think her contention that she has been harmed by job discrimination as a result of graduating from Louisiana State University is laughable... She should see the kind of job discrimination I have experienced (or any other person of color). She is working in Austin and in the field of her choice.
Clearly these cases if anything reflect the economic divide between minorities and majorities (my new word!), as well as the continued legacy of slavery, the ongoing destruction of native peoples. I truely hope we do get to a place where race is no longer used or even thought about in admissions to anything, but until then we will all have to keep talking about these tough topics and heal.
Tuesday, September 18, 2012
Detoxification at Body Mind Retreats
When you arrive here you are greeted with “Welcome Home” and indeed it is for me. It is here that I am able to shed all the labels and facades that I hide behind. I am able to be me as I am. The birth of solutions to problems big and small arise on this land, in the sauna, where you are stripped naked, and in the meditation hall where your mind is stripped naked. What you are left with is your essence, and some of the finest members of humanity I have met... The staff that runs the place.
The center is run by David and Marcia Radin, two wonderfully spiritual beings. David from a lineage of Zen Buddhism and Marcia from the Sufi Dervish tradition. They have taught me unconditional love for others and most importantly for myself. Together they built a wonderful retreat than helps enable one to detox the physical body and to detox the mind.
I have recovered from a separation from a great love there. I have found great love there. I have learned to sit in the unknowing of the outcome of love relationships there with love and grace. I have made lifelong friends and true companions on this journey called life. It is in this place that I am able to have my stone heart cracked open and express the emotions that are hidden from those in my everyday life. I have healed from physical ailments there. I have recovered from psychological problems. I dropped my fear of water and swam freely for the first time there several years ago. I have recovered from addiction there. I recovered from a heartbreaking trip to Haiti there. I have learned how to die there (thanks David) and I have learned to live there (thanks Marcia).
I always leave there with tears and great reluctance, but am excited to return next September and find myself all over again. For those in need of healing on multiple levels, check it out. You may find a new outlook on life and a passion for coffee enemas!
Monday, July 16, 2012
Travels in Lakota country
First of all thank you to the creator for this divine life we all share. A big Wopila to my Lakota friends and family for their hospitality and generosity. I had the honor and pleasure of attending one of the many Sundances in the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota. In respect of the culture, I will not be posting any pictures or writings of my experiences at the Sundance. The Lakota people have a deep oral tradition and I will honor that by sharing my stories with you in person.
Many of you are probably wondering why I spend my vacation time hanging out on the rez... There is no simple answer to this, but here is my attempt...
In my exploration of medicines modern and ancient, I have become convinced that many of the solutions for today's problems lay embedded in the past. These solutions exist in the cultural diversity that humans have developed over our 100,000+ years of existence. Unfortunately this vast diversity is being rapidly replaced with modern consumer driven capitalism and all the gifts and problems that come with it.
Unfortunately many of the cultures carrying this technology are dying out as their languages, medicines and belief systems are no longer being spoken, practiced, or taught. Many might say "so what, humans no longer need those out dated ways". Ah but we do, for these cultures have developed ways to live in harmony with the Earth in a manner that is sustainable. Our culture is at a cross road, no matter what belief system you participate in, it is hard to ignore that the Earth has changed rapidly in a short amount of time.
For those relying on the notion that technology and human ingenuity will save us, it likely will not. Our technology requires vast resources from all over the planet (ironically I am typing this on an iPhone while flying on an airplane), and it is a flaw in our belief system that the resources on the planet are for human use only. Developing new technologies to continue our way of life while ignoring that our fates are all interwoven: plant, animal, and human will only speed our destruction. It is no coincidence that cancer rates are increasing as our culture behaves like a cancerous cell: growing out of control and utilizing all the resources on its path. Then we treat our cancer with more things that cause cancer.
Dying cultures contain many of the solutions needed for life and humans to thrive on the planet. We must rapidly preserve and protect them. We must dialog with these people. We must right the wrongs of the past (there are many... That could take a while...) in order to secure a future. We can start by sharing music, dance, and food together to foster trust and understanding.
We cannot wait for an election, we cannot wait for leaders, we must all begin to act on the information we have been given for some time now. What changes in life has your heart been calling out to you?
Life is beautiful, let's preserve and protect it not sell it and consume it. Every action sends a ripple through existence shaping the future. Every action has a thought behind it.. What are yours? Every thought that we choose to bring into existence by action has a belief behind it. Does your belief system enhance life or destroy it?
This blog has been heavily influenced by many writers and many of my experiences traveling. For more information check out Thom Hartmann's "The Last Hours of Ancient Sunlight". For more information on the history of the Lakota read "In the Spirit of Crazy Horse". A good read on the end of indigenous life in North America see Dee Brown's "Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee". See also Wade Davis's TED talk on preserving the ethnosphere (what?).
Please join me in becoming part of the solutions needed for life to thrive on the planet.
Many of you are probably wondering why I spend my vacation time hanging out on the rez... There is no simple answer to this, but here is my attempt...
In my exploration of medicines modern and ancient, I have become convinced that many of the solutions for today's problems lay embedded in the past. These solutions exist in the cultural diversity that humans have developed over our 100,000+ years of existence. Unfortunately this vast diversity is being rapidly replaced with modern consumer driven capitalism and all the gifts and problems that come with it.
Unfortunately many of the cultures carrying this technology are dying out as their languages, medicines and belief systems are no longer being spoken, practiced, or taught. Many might say "so what, humans no longer need those out dated ways". Ah but we do, for these cultures have developed ways to live in harmony with the Earth in a manner that is sustainable. Our culture is at a cross road, no matter what belief system you participate in, it is hard to ignore that the Earth has changed rapidly in a short amount of time.
For those relying on the notion that technology and human ingenuity will save us, it likely will not. Our technology requires vast resources from all over the planet (ironically I am typing this on an iPhone while flying on an airplane), and it is a flaw in our belief system that the resources on the planet are for human use only. Developing new technologies to continue our way of life while ignoring that our fates are all interwoven: plant, animal, and human will only speed our destruction. It is no coincidence that cancer rates are increasing as our culture behaves like a cancerous cell: growing out of control and utilizing all the resources on its path. Then we treat our cancer with more things that cause cancer.
Dying cultures contain many of the solutions needed for life and humans to thrive on the planet. We must rapidly preserve and protect them. We must dialog with these people. We must right the wrongs of the past (there are many... That could take a while...) in order to secure a future. We can start by sharing music, dance, and food together to foster trust and understanding.
We cannot wait for an election, we cannot wait for leaders, we must all begin to act on the information we have been given for some time now. What changes in life has your heart been calling out to you?
Life is beautiful, let's preserve and protect it not sell it and consume it. Every action sends a ripple through existence shaping the future. Every action has a thought behind it.. What are yours? Every thought that we choose to bring into existence by action has a belief behind it. Does your belief system enhance life or destroy it?
This blog has been heavily influenced by many writers and many of my experiences traveling. For more information check out Thom Hartmann's "The Last Hours of Ancient Sunlight". For more information on the history of the Lakota read "In the Spirit of Crazy Horse". A good read on the end of indigenous life in North America see Dee Brown's "Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee". See also Wade Davis's TED talk on preserving the ethnosphere (what?).
Please join me in becoming part of the solutions needed for life to thrive on the planet.
Saturday, June 30, 2012
The Case Against the Banks
If you have been at all awake in the last year, and have been watching the news, banks have been at the forefront of multiple scandals. If you happen to be among the minority of people affected by the economic downturn and thus are not concerned, I would like to attempt to convince you that it does matter. I have hoping that by the end of this blog you are convinced to drop that Bank of America, Chase, Wells Fargo, big national naughty bank from managing your money.
I used to bank with Bank of America. I had a Gold account and it was great. (Long story about how I got that) A few years into that relationship, some middle manager noticed that I did not meet the requirements for said gold account ($10,000 min balance) and canceled that account and moved me to a more plebeian account worthy of my student life savings. A few months later, my meager account was barraged with little stupid fees here and there. Then I was watching some debt documentary, I think it was "In Debt We Trust" http://topdocumentaryfilms.com/in-debt-we-trust/ where I learned that MBNA/Bank of America was George Bushes biggest campaign contributor at over $900,000. (Now with Citizen's United ruling, these number is probably pocket change but who knows since donating to Super Pacs shields you from having to disclose who is donating) I promptly left and never looked back. This was years before all the craziness began in the economy.
As the economy continued to melt away, more and more evidence is pointing to these banks bad behavior at the source of the economic downturn. I will spare everyone the details, if you want to know more google it. Then the Obama administration bailed out the banks with taxpayer money and no rules on how the banks use the TARP bailout funds. So, they paid themselves record bonuses and continued to pillage the rest of us.
The best way to fight all this is to take your money out of these institutions and put them in places that are not destroying the economy with their business practices. In November there was a Bank Transfer Day Movement that definately affected Bank of America and Chase. This had a direct effect on their bottom line as their stock value plummeted.
These big banks are also frequently responsible for the bankrolling of big scale projects that have a destructive effect on the planet such as drilling oil, natural gas, nuclear power, ect. If you don't like these things, then don't give your money to those banks (and minimize electrical use)
JP Morgan executive Jamie Dimon made news with his testimony of being unaware of a blotched derivitive trade loss by his bank somewhere between 2 and 9 billion (with a b) dollars. http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2012/06/29/will-the-whale-swallow-jpmorgans-2nd-quarter-earnings/
What's a derivative? It's very confusing... So confusing it seems that most bankers and economists don't understand them, and they are very unpredictable. Here is a simple explanation: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EH_52gFFhXM
So how do these big banks do all this? They do it with our deposits! Not only that but they can leverage it at a 9 to 1 ratio which means for every $100 deposit they can loan $900. During the last depression there was legislation enacted called the Glass-Stegall Act enacted to separate banking deposits from being used by banks to speculate on the stock market with those deposits. (Good idea right, so if stock market tanks, it doesn't take our deposits with it!) Thus separating commercial and investment banking. Then in 1999 the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act struck down sections in the Glass Stegall act that separated commercial from investment banking. This was signed into law by President Clinton. This now allowed banks to use our deposits to speculate on the stock market, yet still have the money protected by FDIC insurance, a nice deal! With your $100 deposit they can speculate with $900 in global markets. If they loose the money your deposit is still protected. The problem with all this is that they are speculating with money that does not exist where the rest of us have to use money that does exist if we want to buy stocks, bonds, and other investment banking products. As all this debt is created, then more money has to be released into the system, but more money in the system means money is worth less. This is known as Inflation.
The solution? Since Congress seems unable or unwilling to properly regulate the banking and finance industry, then we will have to do it ourselves. We can best do this by not banking with the banks that are causing all the trouble in their pursuit of profits by creating money that does not exist. Please remove yourself from the following banks: Bank of America, Chase, Citibank/Citigroup, HBSC, Wells Fargo. Without deposits there is no money to leverage and cause trouble with. Please change your bank to a small local credit union.
Oh, and be forewarned; if you are out to dinner with me and you pull out a Chase card, I will comment on it and how unAmerican you are acting by giving money to economic terrorists that are causing all the economic troubles.
I used to bank with Bank of America. I had a Gold account and it was great. (Long story about how I got that) A few years into that relationship, some middle manager noticed that I did not meet the requirements for said gold account ($10,000 min balance) and canceled that account and moved me to a more plebeian account worthy of my student life savings. A few months later, my meager account was barraged with little stupid fees here and there. Then I was watching some debt documentary, I think it was "In Debt We Trust" http://topdocumentaryfilms.com/in-debt-we-trust/ where I learned that MBNA/Bank of America was George Bushes biggest campaign contributor at over $900,000. (Now with Citizen's United ruling, these number is probably pocket change but who knows since donating to Super Pacs shields you from having to disclose who is donating) I promptly left and never looked back. This was years before all the craziness began in the economy.
As the economy continued to melt away, more and more evidence is pointing to these banks bad behavior at the source of the economic downturn. I will spare everyone the details, if you want to know more google it. Then the Obama administration bailed out the banks with taxpayer money and no rules on how the banks use the TARP bailout funds. So, they paid themselves record bonuses and continued to pillage the rest of us.
These big banks are also frequently responsible for the bankrolling of big scale projects that have a destructive effect on the planet such as drilling oil, natural gas, nuclear power, ect. If you don't like these things, then don't give your money to those banks (and minimize electrical use)
JP Morgan executive Jamie Dimon made news with his testimony of being unaware of a blotched derivitive trade loss by his bank somewhere between 2 and 9 billion (with a b) dollars. http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2012/06/29/will-the-whale-swallow-jpmorgans-2nd-quarter-earnings/
What's a derivative? It's very confusing... So confusing it seems that most bankers and economists don't understand them, and they are very unpredictable. Here is a simple explanation: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EH_52gFFhXM
So how do these big banks do all this? They do it with our deposits! Not only that but they can leverage it at a 9 to 1 ratio which means for every $100 deposit they can loan $900. During the last depression there was legislation enacted called the Glass-Stegall Act enacted to separate banking deposits from being used by banks to speculate on the stock market with those deposits. (Good idea right, so if stock market tanks, it doesn't take our deposits with it!) Thus separating commercial and investment banking. Then in 1999 the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act struck down sections in the Glass Stegall act that separated commercial from investment banking. This was signed into law by President Clinton. This now allowed banks to use our deposits to speculate on the stock market, yet still have the money protected by FDIC insurance, a nice deal! With your $100 deposit they can speculate with $900 in global markets. If they loose the money your deposit is still protected. The problem with all this is that they are speculating with money that does not exist where the rest of us have to use money that does exist if we want to buy stocks, bonds, and other investment banking products. As all this debt is created, then more money has to be released into the system, but more money in the system means money is worth less. This is known as Inflation.
The solution? Since Congress seems unable or unwilling to properly regulate the banking and finance industry, then we will have to do it ourselves. We can best do this by not banking with the banks that are causing all the trouble in their pursuit of profits by creating money that does not exist. Please remove yourself from the following banks: Bank of America, Chase, Citibank/Citigroup, HBSC, Wells Fargo. Without deposits there is no money to leverage and cause trouble with. Please change your bank to a small local credit union.
Oh, and be forewarned; if you are out to dinner with me and you pull out a Chase card, I will comment on it and how unAmerican you are acting by giving money to economic terrorists that are causing all the economic troubles.
Tuesday, April 17, 2012
Special Tax Day Rant
So I am about 2 seconds away from either joining the Tea party or moving to Sweden (where taxes pay for education not war). First, my accountant calculated my taxes last min... ie this afternoon. He got my info on the 30th, so I don't quite get what the hold up was. Then he proceeds to tell me that I have a gigantic tax bill. Then he wants me to buy an IRA and drop several thousand dollars into it... Today. Needless to say this is right in the middle of a full day of patients (2pm) and I don't have time to find someone to open a last min IRA. I then was also notified that I would pay less taxes if I owned a house, a car, and claimed my child this year (this is not my year). Yes, I pay more taxes because I don't have a car to deduct miles from! Then, I get a $500 bill from them for their services. I was pretty livid! Between not claiming my child and not maximally contributing to my Roth IRA I will pay $9000 more in taxes than I would need to! WTF!
For some reason I was still a nice person as I very calmly (probably creepily calm) told him that I was dissatisfied with his services, not to mention his bill. In my head it was something like "Why the #$%& are you telling me this hours before the %&*#ing thing needs to be filed???
Here is what I learned in this 2011 Tax season:
1. I need to put away at least 30% of my income to pay taxes. (best paid in quarterly installments... who knew?)
2. I need a new accountant.
3. I need to open and max out an IRA
4. I need to max out my Roth IRA
5. I need more children. (both for the tax break and because I don't trust that social security will be around to take care of me in my old age!)
Why is the tax code so complicated? So rich folks can have a bunch of loop holes to hide money in that do not apply to the rest of us slaves. Between paying the IRS and the Banks that own my school loans, not much is left, yet it looks like I make plenty of money!
I feel like I got ripped off. For all this schooling, I have no car, no home, no furniture other than a bed, and no future financial stability. I am poorer now than ever (but have great credit)! HA! The kicker is that I feel most terrible about paying the taxes as it is likely funding wars I do not believe in. Yes, I have become a good Idahoan ranting about taxes and the power of the federal government! Ron Paul for President! Better yet, lets just get rid of the executive branch and save us all some money... What do they do anyway?
On a personal note, I have been learning alot about what pushes my buttons in my mind and it is predominantly money (thank you Zen meditation/David). The flawed logic goes something like this: I would like to be loved/have a life partner. Men are providers. I am a Man. As a Man my worth is based on my ability to provide. I am not making much money. I am not a good provider. I am not worthy of love. I won't have a life partner. All over a bunch of #$%*ing numbers on a piece of paper that don't really exist! I have finally noticed that anytime I am not doing well financially or I perceive that I am not doing well I subconsciously sabotage the relationship I am in to make this flawed logic true. Stay tuned while I attempt to heal, change the flawed logic that is making my love life so challenging.
For some reason I was still a nice person as I very calmly (probably creepily calm) told him that I was dissatisfied with his services, not to mention his bill. In my head it was something like "Why the #$%& are you telling me this hours before the %&*#ing thing needs to be filed???
Here is what I learned in this 2011 Tax season:
1. I need to put away at least 30% of my income to pay taxes. (best paid in quarterly installments... who knew?)
2. I need a new accountant.
3. I need to open and max out an IRA
4. I need to max out my Roth IRA
5. I need more children. (both for the tax break and because I don't trust that social security will be around to take care of me in my old age!)
Why is the tax code so complicated? So rich folks can have a bunch of loop holes to hide money in that do not apply to the rest of us slaves. Between paying the IRS and the Banks that own my school loans, not much is left, yet it looks like I make plenty of money!
I feel like I got ripped off. For all this schooling, I have no car, no home, no furniture other than a bed, and no future financial stability. I am poorer now than ever (but have great credit)! HA! The kicker is that I feel most terrible about paying the taxes as it is likely funding wars I do not believe in. Yes, I have become a good Idahoan ranting about taxes and the power of the federal government! Ron Paul for President! Better yet, lets just get rid of the executive branch and save us all some money... What do they do anyway?
On a personal note, I have been learning alot about what pushes my buttons in my mind and it is predominantly money (thank you Zen meditation/David). The flawed logic goes something like this: I would like to be loved/have a life partner. Men are providers. I am a Man. As a Man my worth is based on my ability to provide. I am not making much money. I am not a good provider. I am not worthy of love. I won't have a life partner. All over a bunch of #$%*ing numbers on a piece of paper that don't really exist! I have finally noticed that anytime I am not doing well financially or I perceive that I am not doing well I subconsciously sabotage the relationship I am in to make this flawed logic true. Stay tuned while I attempt to heal, change the flawed logic that is making my love life so challenging.
Saturday, April 14, 2012
Trials and Tribulations of Parenthood
There is something pre-programmed in kids where they can push buttons. They can automatically work the newest technology and they seem to know exactly what to say/do to push your buttons. I had a ballistic moment today when Peanut flat out refused to eat lunch today and then had a few choice words to throw gasoline on my fire. ("I hate you") We ended up eating lunch for about 3 hours today, loosing the better part of a gorgeous sunny day. Talk about a battle of strong wills! What happened to my little angel? I think she is picking up bad habits in preschool that she sees the other kids doing.
It has been awhile since I have flat out lost my cool. I had a "limbic system meltdown". That is what we call it, Peanut even calls it that! (I got a budding neuroscientist!) The limbic system is a set of brain structures that regulate emotions and memories. It seems funny writing about it now, but was not the least bit funny in the moment. Here's to a new stage of boundary testing, arguing (capricorn), and explaining things 100 times.
Then she pulls a Dr. Jeckel and Ms. Hyde on me and then starts appealing to my daddy ego. "Your a good daddy" "I like your hair" Then she starts batting her long eyelashes... I felt so manipulated. How can she have learned that already, she is three! We hugged and talked things out until she understood and the rest of the day went much better.
Well, it's off to anger management class for me... aka meditation
It has been awhile since I have flat out lost my cool. I had a "limbic system meltdown". That is what we call it, Peanut even calls it that! (I got a budding neuroscientist!) The limbic system is a set of brain structures that regulate emotions and memories. It seems funny writing about it now, but was not the least bit funny in the moment. Here's to a new stage of boundary testing, arguing (capricorn), and explaining things 100 times.
Then she pulls a Dr. Jeckel and Ms. Hyde on me and then starts appealing to my daddy ego. "Your a good daddy" "I like your hair" Then she starts batting her long eyelashes... I felt so manipulated. How can she have learned that already, she is three! We hugged and talked things out until she understood and the rest of the day went much better.
Well, it's off to anger management class for me... aka meditation
Monday, March 26, 2012
The trials and tribulations of being young, black, and male
I have been avoiding reading about the Treyvon Martin killing. Until today, I did not read any of the stories, click any links, ect. For me it was too emotionally charged. Today I read about the case and like most found it troubling. However for me it went deeper. This was a great fear of my mother that I would be shot for some reason. She never liked me to go running in the evening, was always concerned about what I was wearing, never let me go hunting, ect.
It reminded me that how I look matters. Being a mixed race dark skin male has made for some interesting events in life. Here are some of the highlights...
Being consistently searched at TSA
Being detained at the Canadian Boarder for several hours (remember that one guys!)
People getting nervous with me in an elevator
A classmate in school had a dog that would go apeshit when it saw me because it was specifically trained to attack black males. (first racist dog I met) It had to be kept in a cage when I was around and would bark non-stop until I was gone.
Not experimenting with drugs in teens (like everyone else) as I was already being searched...
Being perceived as being overly sexual or treated like a sex toy. (long social history feeding into this as well as the porn category "interracial", see also Emmitt Till case)
Swastikas carved into my desks in junior high by neo nazis
Caricatures of me with giant lips left in my desk and locker throughout school
Being told to go back to Iraq (wrong country dumbass...)
Having a patient refuse to see me as a student because of the color of my skin
Being refused service in multiple restaurants (very embarrassing...)
Ironically Treyvon was suspended from school when the shooting occurred due to trace amounts of marijuana in a bag. Maybe his death has saved him from later doing time in prison on a mj charge once he became an adult. Gotta love the prison industrial complex... I can totally understand how he looked had led to this disaster as I have experienced what he has experienced.
I have a kid now and have a vague idea of the absolute horror it must be to loose your child. My heart goes out to his parents. No one should have to outlive their child. I am ashamed to say I am glad I have a daughter as I don't have the slightest clue how to teach a young racially mixed male how to navigate the complexities and prejudices of the world around him. I am not sure how I made it this far myself... I am not sure if I will make it...
It reminded me that how I look matters. Being a mixed race dark skin male has made for some interesting events in life. Here are some of the highlights...
Being consistently searched at TSA
Being detained at the Canadian Boarder for several hours (remember that one guys!)
People getting nervous with me in an elevator
A classmate in school had a dog that would go apeshit when it saw me because it was specifically trained to attack black males. (first racist dog I met) It had to be kept in a cage when I was around and would bark non-stop until I was gone.
Not experimenting with drugs in teens (like everyone else) as I was already being searched...
Being perceived as being overly sexual or treated like a sex toy. (long social history feeding into this as well as the porn category "interracial", see also Emmitt Till case)
Swastikas carved into my desks in junior high by neo nazis
Caricatures of me with giant lips left in my desk and locker throughout school
Being told to go back to Iraq (wrong country dumbass...)
Having a patient refuse to see me as a student because of the color of my skin
Being refused service in multiple restaurants (very embarrassing...)
Ironically Treyvon was suspended from school when the shooting occurred due to trace amounts of marijuana in a bag. Maybe his death has saved him from later doing time in prison on a mj charge once he became an adult. Gotta love the prison industrial complex... I can totally understand how he looked had led to this disaster as I have experienced what he has experienced.
I have a kid now and have a vague idea of the absolute horror it must be to loose your child. My heart goes out to his parents. No one should have to outlive their child. I am ashamed to say I am glad I have a daughter as I don't have the slightest clue how to teach a young racially mixed male how to navigate the complexities and prejudices of the world around him. I am not sure how I made it this far myself... I am not sure if I will make it...
Thursday, March 8, 2012
Happy International Women's day Some thoughts on making the world a better place for women
Happy International Women's Day! While not well celebrated in the U.S. it is a national holiday in many countries. http://www.internationalwomensday.com/about.asp
Women have been making many changes in their lives over the past 100 years (ok, probably since the dawn of time) that have helped shape society as we know it today. In celebrating this today, I would like to propose that we move to a more gender positive culture. For both men and women there are many negative stereotypes and teachings that are holding us back from having a bliss filled coexistence together.
I once asked an indigenous healer why men and women have such a hard time getting along. He laughed and said "they have different purposes... Women's purpose is to bring life into the world, and men's purpose it to bring death in the world. Both are needed to prosper, as part of the death-life-death cycle, but both are fundamentally at odds with one another." Profound! Talk about "killing me softly with his song"...
It got me thinking... Men are blamed for everything that is going wrong in the world today. Maybe justifiably so. However, for every man out their raping and pillaging mother earth for material wealth, there is a woman (or women) backing him and enjoying the exploits. I sometimes wonder if so much of this behavior occurs because at some level it does get the girls.
Maybe if women stopped having sex with the men pillaging the place, then maybe that model of success would die out. (This of course is how women got the right to vote... stopped having sex with the men till they got it!) After all 95% of male actions are directly or indirectly related to making sure they have some place in the sexing order... JK but you get the point. The messages I received as a young man was that it was more important to get money and material things to insure my mating success than it was to do it in a way that did not destroy the planet we live on. Consequently, we have people destroying the place to support their families, because that is the model of success we have been shown.
Speaking of raping and pillaging... The rape and assault of women must stop. On Friday March 2 Democracy Now had a good interview with Eve Ensler, author of "The Vagina Monologues". http://www.democracynow.org/2012/3/2/one_billion_rising_v_days_eve
In it she is calling for a day of action Feb 14, 2013 of a billion women world wide walking out of jobs, schools, ect in solidarity with women who have been raped or sexually assaulted. I hope all 7 billion of us shows up, because it affects us all. As a physician, I am continually shocked at the sheer number of women that answer positively to this question on our intake form. Our brief work in Haiti after the earthquake was probably over 90% of our female patients were sexually assaulted. I fully agree with Eve Ensler's notion that the rape of the planet and the rape of women is one issue.
This of course gets me thinking...What has to happen to men to get them to rape? I think it is more complex than they want power... I think something has to happen to them (and of course their dopamine pathways) to make this. What has to happen so they don't see the joy and beauty in the feminine form and energy? The nature vs nurture debate, I think that society makes rapist, that it is not inherent in our genetics or in maleness. Initially I wanted to blame the media and pornography, but rape has been happening well before these came around, and it is unknown what effect this has had on rape rates as it is hard to get good statistics as it is a very under reported crime. (Most of my patients raped or assaulted did not report it)
Check out Tony Porter's TED talk on "the man box" and his programs as one idea how how men may be socialized into assaulting women. http://www.ted.com/talks/tony_porter_a_call_to_men.html
As someone with a young daughter, we need to change this type of socialization immediately. Not just for Penelope's sake but for the sake of all women and men.
I guess a solution for me would be this: just like we have classes and programs teaching women how to avoid, prevent, and stop rape, we should also drop some money into researching why men rape and under what circumstances and also have classes for men and treatment well before they get to a point of acting out. I have some research work to do... Stay tuned. Please support Eve Ensler's programs as well as Tony Porter if these issues affect you in some way. Unfortunately, it effects us all. For more links on the topic of International Women's day (as well as other issues of individual and social change, see our facebook page "Upstartist" http://www.facebook.com/pages/Upstartist/198739706861199
Women have been making many changes in their lives over the past 100 years (ok, probably since the dawn of time) that have helped shape society as we know it today. In celebrating this today, I would like to propose that we move to a more gender positive culture. For both men and women there are many negative stereotypes and teachings that are holding us back from having a bliss filled coexistence together.
I once asked an indigenous healer why men and women have such a hard time getting along. He laughed and said "they have different purposes... Women's purpose is to bring life into the world, and men's purpose it to bring death in the world. Both are needed to prosper, as part of the death-life-death cycle, but both are fundamentally at odds with one another." Profound! Talk about "killing me softly with his song"...
It got me thinking... Men are blamed for everything that is going wrong in the world today. Maybe justifiably so. However, for every man out their raping and pillaging mother earth for material wealth, there is a woman (or women) backing him and enjoying the exploits. I sometimes wonder if so much of this behavior occurs because at some level it does get the girls.
Maybe if women stopped having sex with the men pillaging the place, then maybe that model of success would die out. (This of course is how women got the right to vote... stopped having sex with the men till they got it!) After all 95% of male actions are directly or indirectly related to making sure they have some place in the sexing order... JK but you get the point. The messages I received as a young man was that it was more important to get money and material things to insure my mating success than it was to do it in a way that did not destroy the planet we live on. Consequently, we have people destroying the place to support their families, because that is the model of success we have been shown.
Speaking of raping and pillaging... The rape and assault of women must stop. On Friday March 2 Democracy Now had a good interview with Eve Ensler, author of "The Vagina Monologues". http://www.democracynow.org/2012/3/2/one_billion_rising_v_days_eve
In it she is calling for a day of action Feb 14, 2013 of a billion women world wide walking out of jobs, schools, ect in solidarity with women who have been raped or sexually assaulted. I hope all 7 billion of us shows up, because it affects us all. As a physician, I am continually shocked at the sheer number of women that answer positively to this question on our intake form. Our brief work in Haiti after the earthquake was probably over 90% of our female patients were sexually assaulted. I fully agree with Eve Ensler's notion that the rape of the planet and the rape of women is one issue.
This of course gets me thinking...What has to happen to men to get them to rape? I think it is more complex than they want power... I think something has to happen to them (and of course their dopamine pathways) to make this. What has to happen so they don't see the joy and beauty in the feminine form and energy? The nature vs nurture debate, I think that society makes rapist, that it is not inherent in our genetics or in maleness. Initially I wanted to blame the media and pornography, but rape has been happening well before these came around, and it is unknown what effect this has had on rape rates as it is hard to get good statistics as it is a very under reported crime. (Most of my patients raped or assaulted did not report it)
Check out Tony Porter's TED talk on "the man box" and his programs as one idea how how men may be socialized into assaulting women. http://www.ted.com/talks/tony_porter_a_call_to_men.html
As someone with a young daughter, we need to change this type of socialization immediately. Not just for Penelope's sake but for the sake of all women and men.
I guess a solution for me would be this: just like we have classes and programs teaching women how to avoid, prevent, and stop rape, we should also drop some money into researching why men rape and under what circumstances and also have classes for men and treatment well before they get to a point of acting out. I have some research work to do... Stay tuned. Please support Eve Ensler's programs as well as Tony Porter if these issues affect you in some way. Unfortunately, it effects us all. For more links on the topic of International Women's day (as well as other issues of individual and social change, see our facebook page "Upstartist" http://www.facebook.com/pages/Upstartist/198739706861199
Sunday, March 4, 2012
The Case Against Orgasm?!! What?!!
Yes, even orgasm is not without peril! So as it is turning out the notion that orgasm is safe and healthy may be a little less black and white and more in a grey area. (like so much of sexuality!) I am reading the book "Cupid's Poisoned Arrow" by Marnia Robinson. It is convincing me that everything we are being told about sexuality is much different than reality. Much of the argument is steeped in neurobiology that goes a little something like this:
Guy likes girl, girl likes guy. Guy gets surge in dopamine and testosterone due to prospect of mating with novel mate. Girl gets surge in dopamine and estrogen at guy's pursuit of her. The bigger the pursuit, the bigger the dopamine build. Tension heightens, they have vigorous sex with orgasms and ejaculation. Guy's prolactin surges and he falls blissfully asleep. Girl's testosterone surges, she would like more. She cajoles him into more, he obliges. Both experience drastic falls in dopamine 12 to 36 hours post sex. Both become cranky, anxious, jittery.... basically they are going through withdrawal like any other addiction. He becomes an insensitive asshole, she becomes a nagging bitch... Two weeks later dopamine receptors recover, they exhibit loving behaviors and do it all over again. Sound familiar?
Unfortunately, real life is not as simple as this short synopsis of the book. It is well referenced and makes a great case as to all the reasons our brains get hijacked when we begin having sex with someone. Hence all the talking about it with girlfriends and siblings ala Sex in the City. We need someone with their rational brain still functioning to give us feed back! (yet we frequently ignore them until we hit rock bottom!) According to one fMRI based study the male brain ejaculating looks no different than a heroin addict getting a hit. (apparently the study subjects had to hold their head very still and not move while their partner serviced them inside the MRI machine! Lots of practice before attempting the imaging!)
Fortunately, the authors have some recommendations to avoid the roller coaster's dramatic ups and downs. The technique they recommend is called Karreza (What?). It is basically a sexual technique that involves slow lovemaking, caresses, cuddling, and avoidance of orgasm by both sexes. This prevents the massive release of dopamine that eventually drives couples apart and in search of other mates. In other words by not seeking satiation it is easier to stay together and avoid our neurobiological programing to spread our genes far and wide.
This concept is not really new and interspersed in the book are vignettes from other traditions such as taoism and tantra which also advocate for avoidance of orgasm except for when conception is desired. Many comment that they feel even greater satisfaction with their relationships as it promotes bonding behaviors that stimulate oxytocin release rather than dopaminergic highs.
Pretty interesting huh? Here is a link to the website http://www.reuniting.info/first_visit for those interested. The book so far is excellent, stay tuned for more insights. I am learning alot!
Guy likes girl, girl likes guy. Guy gets surge in dopamine and testosterone due to prospect of mating with novel mate. Girl gets surge in dopamine and estrogen at guy's pursuit of her. The bigger the pursuit, the bigger the dopamine build. Tension heightens, they have vigorous sex with orgasms and ejaculation. Guy's prolactin surges and he falls blissfully asleep. Girl's testosterone surges, she would like more. She cajoles him into more, he obliges. Both experience drastic falls in dopamine 12 to 36 hours post sex. Both become cranky, anxious, jittery.... basically they are going through withdrawal like any other addiction. He becomes an insensitive asshole, she becomes a nagging bitch... Two weeks later dopamine receptors recover, they exhibit loving behaviors and do it all over again. Sound familiar?
Unfortunately, real life is not as simple as this short synopsis of the book. It is well referenced and makes a great case as to all the reasons our brains get hijacked when we begin having sex with someone. Hence all the talking about it with girlfriends and siblings ala Sex in the City. We need someone with their rational brain still functioning to give us feed back! (yet we frequently ignore them until we hit rock bottom!) According to one fMRI based study the male brain ejaculating looks no different than a heroin addict getting a hit. (apparently the study subjects had to hold their head very still and not move while their partner serviced them inside the MRI machine! Lots of practice before attempting the imaging!)
Fortunately, the authors have some recommendations to avoid the roller coaster's dramatic ups and downs. The technique they recommend is called Karreza (What?). It is basically a sexual technique that involves slow lovemaking, caresses, cuddling, and avoidance of orgasm by both sexes. This prevents the massive release of dopamine that eventually drives couples apart and in search of other mates. In other words by not seeking satiation it is easier to stay together and avoid our neurobiological programing to spread our genes far and wide.
This concept is not really new and interspersed in the book are vignettes from other traditions such as taoism and tantra which also advocate for avoidance of orgasm except for when conception is desired. Many comment that they feel even greater satisfaction with their relationships as it promotes bonding behaviors that stimulate oxytocin release rather than dopaminergic highs.
Pretty interesting huh? Here is a link to the website http://www.reuniting.info/first_visit for those interested. The book so far is excellent, stay tuned for more insights. I am learning alot!
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
The Demise of Guys (part 2) aka The Penis Dialogs
Interestingly, the first part of this blog "The Demise of Guys" has beat out all the porn laden posts. This may just mean I have more female readers, than males, not sure. In an effort to please, here are some more thoughts on the topic.
Today I had an interesting movement forward in my inner development. I have always been a little reactive with money, I will spare everyone all the history and details. Let's just say when I don't have money my self esteem plummets. I feel unworthy. I will tend to sabotage any relationship I am in because I think that as a man I need to have money for someone to be attracted to me. When the money goes away so too does my ability to think I have value in a relationship.
I have been working on looking at that inner voice, key as money comes and goes and in my profession there are periods of wealth and periods of drought. It is during these periods of drought that anger creeps in. "I am a successful doctor, I am not supposed to have these issues". Well, surprise they are here for us all. I am learning that money ebbs and flows and my value in a relationship does not have to ebb and flow in that tide.
So today I had a big, annoying financial surprise first thing in the morning. In the past two months I have multiple smaller annoying financial surprises, so this one should have been the topper! But alas, my mind was calm and blank! I calmly called the appropriate parties and did what I could to resolve the situation, then I let it go! Deep inside I knew that everything would work out. (It always does) Only this time I did not loose a ton of energy complaining and berating myself. (Oh to be a fly on the wall of my mind!) I had pure action with no reactivity in my mind about the whole thing! I think I may have finally decoupled my sexual attractiveness from the mythical number that says how much monetary value I own.
The irony of the whole situation is that I make good money, I have a rich life, and for the most part I am able to do what I want. (And tend to do so whether the money exists or not!) So how did it get so tied in with my ability to feel safe in a relationship? The answer is probably pretty obvious, it was socially programmed in at a young age.
Ok, get to the Penis dialog part... The real reason you are reading this. I have you by the dopamine receptors! (See prior blogs if you don't know what I am talking about)
This situation got me thinking about guys and their demise. I wonder how many guys associate their value with their net worth? I suppose it is similar to girls basing their value in a relationship on their sexual attractiveness or breast size. It is amazing to me how long that programming has lasted as I have not had a TV in years and like to think of myself as relatively sheltered from media and popular culture where those messages are blaring constantly.
The feminist revolution va-jayjay monologues and all have been good for both men and women. However, as social standards are shifting, I think a penis dialogue (thanks Dr. Brandies) is needed. After all, what is the good of a feminist movement with no enlightened males to enjoy it with? Ok, that was pretty hetero of me, but yes this affects my lovely lesbian friends as someone needs to make high quality sperm so you too may have babies. Here are the topics I would suggest for the dialogue:
1. It is a double standard to want economic equality for women while still expecting men to make more.
2. Your sexual attractiveness is not coupled to your pocketbook or breast size.
3. Zero tolerance for sexually abusive comments or actions no matter what she is wearing/doing. To be enforced by both sexes.
4. Role of media in perpetuating stereotypes of both sexes that are not desired.
Ultimately I think the uncoupling of the demise of guys is do give them a place at the discussion table. What do you guys think?
Today I had an interesting movement forward in my inner development. I have always been a little reactive with money, I will spare everyone all the history and details. Let's just say when I don't have money my self esteem plummets. I feel unworthy. I will tend to sabotage any relationship I am in because I think that as a man I need to have money for someone to be attracted to me. When the money goes away so too does my ability to think I have value in a relationship.
I have been working on looking at that inner voice, key as money comes and goes and in my profession there are periods of wealth and periods of drought. It is during these periods of drought that anger creeps in. "I am a successful doctor, I am not supposed to have these issues". Well, surprise they are here for us all. I am learning that money ebbs and flows and my value in a relationship does not have to ebb and flow in that tide.
So today I had a big, annoying financial surprise first thing in the morning. In the past two months I have multiple smaller annoying financial surprises, so this one should have been the topper! But alas, my mind was calm and blank! I calmly called the appropriate parties and did what I could to resolve the situation, then I let it go! Deep inside I knew that everything would work out. (It always does) Only this time I did not loose a ton of energy complaining and berating myself. (Oh to be a fly on the wall of my mind!) I had pure action with no reactivity in my mind about the whole thing! I think I may have finally decoupled my sexual attractiveness from the mythical number that says how much monetary value I own.
The irony of the whole situation is that I make good money, I have a rich life, and for the most part I am able to do what I want. (And tend to do so whether the money exists or not!) So how did it get so tied in with my ability to feel safe in a relationship? The answer is probably pretty obvious, it was socially programmed in at a young age.
Ok, get to the Penis dialog part... The real reason you are reading this. I have you by the dopamine receptors! (See prior blogs if you don't know what I am talking about)
This situation got me thinking about guys and their demise. I wonder how many guys associate their value with their net worth? I suppose it is similar to girls basing their value in a relationship on their sexual attractiveness or breast size. It is amazing to me how long that programming has lasted as I have not had a TV in years and like to think of myself as relatively sheltered from media and popular culture where those messages are blaring constantly.
The feminist revolution va-jayjay monologues and all have been good for both men and women. However, as social standards are shifting, I think a penis dialogue (thanks Dr. Brandies) is needed. After all, what is the good of a feminist movement with no enlightened males to enjoy it with? Ok, that was pretty hetero of me, but yes this affects my lovely lesbian friends as someone needs to make high quality sperm so you too may have babies. Here are the topics I would suggest for the dialogue:
1. It is a double standard to want economic equality for women while still expecting men to make more.
2. Your sexual attractiveness is not coupled to your pocketbook or breast size.
3. Zero tolerance for sexually abusive comments or actions no matter what she is wearing/doing. To be enforced by both sexes.
4. Role of media in perpetuating stereotypes of both sexes that are not desired.
Ultimately I think the uncoupling of the demise of guys is do give them a place at the discussion table. What do you guys think?
Sunday, February 19, 2012
In Defense of the 1%
Yes folks, after much consideration and analysis of the situation I have decided that I am wrong about the 1% and especially the 0.001% who own the large banking conglomerations. First of all I would not be a doctor today without them after all it was their large banking conglomerates (in this case Bank of America) that were able to loan me the extra money I needed to complete both undergrad and medical school. After all it would be ridiculous to expect that the government or anyone else give or loan me the money to go to school. That would be socialism. No hand outs needed here as it is my place as someone from the underclass to support the banking elite. In fact I am now part of the 0.00001% that have been allowed to really rack up a massive debt making me one of the poorest people I know. I completely take the blame for this, for when my soul was entering my body I did not choose a wealthy set of parents which would have facilitated easier financing of medical school and thus helping me become a better contributor to society.
After much sleepless nights, I am ashamed to say I am a terrible contributor to society. I am much more of a job killer than Romney! As I survey the possessions in my house I realize that I don't even have a TV. I worry about this at night, that some night federal agents will break down the door to my apartment and arrest me for such an un-American activity of not owning a TV. To mitigate this internal terror, I watch the Stephen Colbert show on Comedy central's website and avoid getting my news from Al-Jazeera despite Hillary Clinton's assertation that it is "real news". (I think it is a set up!) http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/03/03/hillary-clinton-calls-al-_n_830890.html And I definitely avoid the program "Democracy Now" with Amy Goodman! It should have been called "Commie-Socialism Now" with Amy Goodman. However, my biggest beef (nice American word) with these two media outlets is that they do not enrich my favorite media moguls or their banking buddies. Thank God Comcast has put its foot down and refuses to give Al-Jazeera a channel in the U.S. And what about Rupert Murdock, Ted Turner, Sumner Redstone, who have much to loose with these media outlets that don't make revenue with advertisements?
Without Advertising how will you strip away my self worth and sexuality and then sell it back to me? I won't know which pill to cajole my doctor to give me to make me happier. I won't know which penis-pill will resurrect me after years of internet porn. I won't know which car to buy when I have my midlife crisis. Advertising helps us all as it gives us reasons to purchase all kinds of things that we don't really need and thus creates massive amounts of jobs. For the Chinese. But that's ok since it is still the big banking conglomerates and stock market folk that benefit.
Shit! A car. I don't have a car. I did have one, but it doesn't count. I bought it used with cash and so I never benefited the banks or auto industry with my purchase. Besides it was one of those fuel efficient Japanese models that rarely breaks down. Talk about a job killer! I think the best car to buy would be a Chevy Volt. American made, sort of enviro, but still burns gas, is expensive (so I can take out a loan from my fav bank), and uses electricity so I can support my local coal plant, nuclear plant, and hydroelectric dam. It is an equal opportunity employer for the entire energy sector! I will definitely not be taking the large tax break from purchasing this car because I believe in a free market with no government intervention or hand outs.
Supporting the banking elite has been a long tradition in my family and a tradition that I intend to keep. You see, four generations ago we were slaves in Barbados growing sugar to make the bankers and investors in England rich. Man did they love the sugar in their tea! Loved it so much they went to great length to get it! Finance a big boat, sail to another continent, buy a bunch of people, put them back on boat, sail to another continent half way around the world, make them grow sugar cane, then haul it back. Like it was cocaine! Thank God we have Federal Express now! Alas, I am glad this all happened because I loved watching Prince Williams wedding. How I fantasized that it was me standing across from Princess Kate! How else would the royal family make enough money to throw such a lavish wedding for Prince William generations later without working were it not for the broken backs of my family and fellow plantation family? (The wedding which, by the way, generated tremendous TV ratings and advertisement revenue!)
The bankers deserve our undying support. For who else could dream up such a system where you can loan money out in a 9 to 1 ratio and make the people pay you back with real money. Where 9 of the 10 dollars you created out of thin air! Brilliant! I would like to contact the Nobel committee and nominate the Bilderbergs, Rothschilds, and Chases for the 2012 Nobel Prize in Economics! (They will likely be disappointed in the return as the prize is only worth $1.46 million and they will have to split it 3 ways. Maybe the Nobel Committee can make an exception in this case and give them each $1.46 million)
I don't approve of welfare, the government should have given my mother a loan. If she could not pay it back after going to nursing school with 4 kids, then her kids should have to pay it back. I am happy to say that the 1/4 of the welfare I owe will likely get paid in its entirety with interest this 2011 tax season. Thus avenging my share of the welfare debt my family owes this country! Now for my slacker sisters, they will have to continue working their 2-3 jobs to get by. But that is what they get for not being "job creators".
My biggest defense of the 1% is that they can't help it. The rest of us get our dopamine fix from mundane things like eating, sex, lottery tickets, and trying something new. They get their dopamine fix off Power. Now how are you supposed to wean someone off of Power? Clearly it is not money giving them the dopamine hit as they have all of it and can buy anything they want. This is a truely dangerous situation. If you can't get life motivating dopamine from money and buying new things, than all you are left with is Power. I feel bad for them. After the withdrawal kicks in from buying yet another Bentley, and there is nothing left to buy, and no more money to consolidate, no more corporations to take over.... then all there is left is to consolidate Power. Furthermore, their is no treatment center for them. We have every other kind of addiction center, but no Power Anonymous!
The worst thing about being a 1%er.... You have problems money can't solve! The least the government should do is to help these large corporate owners mitigate some of these problems. Like pesky protesters. So you see, only Corporations should get welfare form the government as it is them who are creating all our jobs through their illness! Without these jobs we would have not tax base. And their illness has no treatment! No one has ever done a research study for them to see how to mitigate the hole in the soul that allows one to do just about anything to get Power.
So until we come up with a viable treatment plan for the 1%, we should all just shut up, shop, and pay our taxes. For we are blessed with problems that money would solve.
After much sleepless nights, I am ashamed to say I am a terrible contributor to society. I am much more of a job killer than Romney! As I survey the possessions in my house I realize that I don't even have a TV. I worry about this at night, that some night federal agents will break down the door to my apartment and arrest me for such an un-American activity of not owning a TV. To mitigate this internal terror, I watch the Stephen Colbert show on Comedy central's website and avoid getting my news from Al-Jazeera despite Hillary Clinton's assertation that it is "real news". (I think it is a set up!) http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/03/03/hillary-clinton-calls-al-_n_830890.html And I definitely avoid the program "Democracy Now" with Amy Goodman! It should have been called "Commie-Socialism Now" with Amy Goodman. However, my biggest beef (nice American word) with these two media outlets is that they do not enrich my favorite media moguls or their banking buddies. Thank God Comcast has put its foot down and refuses to give Al-Jazeera a channel in the U.S. And what about Rupert Murdock, Ted Turner, Sumner Redstone, who have much to loose with these media outlets that don't make revenue with advertisements?
Without Advertising how will you strip away my self worth and sexuality and then sell it back to me? I won't know which pill to cajole my doctor to give me to make me happier. I won't know which penis-pill will resurrect me after years of internet porn. I won't know which car to buy when I have my midlife crisis. Advertising helps us all as it gives us reasons to purchase all kinds of things that we don't really need and thus creates massive amounts of jobs. For the Chinese. But that's ok since it is still the big banking conglomerates and stock market folk that benefit.
Shit! A car. I don't have a car. I did have one, but it doesn't count. I bought it used with cash and so I never benefited the banks or auto industry with my purchase. Besides it was one of those fuel efficient Japanese models that rarely breaks down. Talk about a job killer! I think the best car to buy would be a Chevy Volt. American made, sort of enviro, but still burns gas, is expensive (so I can take out a loan from my fav bank), and uses electricity so I can support my local coal plant, nuclear plant, and hydroelectric dam. It is an equal opportunity employer for the entire energy sector! I will definitely not be taking the large tax break from purchasing this car because I believe in a free market with no government intervention or hand outs.
Supporting the banking elite has been a long tradition in my family and a tradition that I intend to keep. You see, four generations ago we were slaves in Barbados growing sugar to make the bankers and investors in England rich. Man did they love the sugar in their tea! Loved it so much they went to great length to get it! Finance a big boat, sail to another continent, buy a bunch of people, put them back on boat, sail to another continent half way around the world, make them grow sugar cane, then haul it back. Like it was cocaine! Thank God we have Federal Express now! Alas, I am glad this all happened because I loved watching Prince Williams wedding. How I fantasized that it was me standing across from Princess Kate! How else would the royal family make enough money to throw such a lavish wedding for Prince William generations later without working were it not for the broken backs of my family and fellow plantation family? (The wedding which, by the way, generated tremendous TV ratings and advertisement revenue!)
The bankers deserve our undying support. For who else could dream up such a system where you can loan money out in a 9 to 1 ratio and make the people pay you back with real money. Where 9 of the 10 dollars you created out of thin air! Brilliant! I would like to contact the Nobel committee and nominate the Bilderbergs, Rothschilds, and Chases for the 2012 Nobel Prize in Economics! (They will likely be disappointed in the return as the prize is only worth $1.46 million and they will have to split it 3 ways. Maybe the Nobel Committee can make an exception in this case and give them each $1.46 million)
I don't approve of welfare, the government should have given my mother a loan. If she could not pay it back after going to nursing school with 4 kids, then her kids should have to pay it back. I am happy to say that the 1/4 of the welfare I owe will likely get paid in its entirety with interest this 2011 tax season. Thus avenging my share of the welfare debt my family owes this country! Now for my slacker sisters, they will have to continue working their 2-3 jobs to get by. But that is what they get for not being "job creators".
My biggest defense of the 1% is that they can't help it. The rest of us get our dopamine fix from mundane things like eating, sex, lottery tickets, and trying something new. They get their dopamine fix off Power. Now how are you supposed to wean someone off of Power? Clearly it is not money giving them the dopamine hit as they have all of it and can buy anything they want. This is a truely dangerous situation. If you can't get life motivating dopamine from money and buying new things, than all you are left with is Power. I feel bad for them. After the withdrawal kicks in from buying yet another Bentley, and there is nothing left to buy, and no more money to consolidate, no more corporations to take over.... then all there is left is to consolidate Power. Furthermore, their is no treatment center for them. We have every other kind of addiction center, but no Power Anonymous!
The worst thing about being a 1%er.... You have problems money can't solve! The least the government should do is to help these large corporate owners mitigate some of these problems. Like pesky protesters. So you see, only Corporations should get welfare form the government as it is them who are creating all our jobs through their illness! Without these jobs we would have not tax base. And their illness has no treatment! No one has ever done a research study for them to see how to mitigate the hole in the soul that allows one to do just about anything to get Power.
So until we come up with a viable treatment plan for the 1%, we should all just shut up, shop, and pay our taxes. For we are blessed with problems that money would solve.
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
Love on the Brain or the Brain in Love
Happy Valentines day special. Those of us in partnerships are likely out at some overcrowded restaurant right now getting lousy service. Some of you are getting DOWN. The rest of us are wishing we were getting down. Me, I am writing this blog and researching the neuroscience of love.
Anthropologist Helen Fisher placed people in love in a functional MRI and found the same pattern as when one is having a rush from cocaine. She claims that three brain systems are working with respect to love. We are designed to look for variety (hence the overwhelming popularity of porn (see prior post)), but that romantic love serves the purpose of "focusing our mating energy on just one individual at a time". Attachment serves the purpose of "allowing us to tolerate that person long enough to raise a child as a team". I would summarize this in 3 words eye candy, obsession, and submission. Ok, that was 4 words. Just kidding... the three concepts are lust, romantic love and attachment.
http://www.ted.com/talks/helen_fisher_tells_us_why_we_love_cheat.html
http://www.ted.com/talks/helen_fisher_studies_the_brain_in_love.html
I was glad to hear her dispel the myth that men cheat more than women... "who do you think they are cheating with... do the math!" The divorce rate in America is actually declining according to Fisher, however, it may be due to younger couples are less likely to get married and when they do they are older and more mature in their choices. She thinks this is an opportune time to make good marriage. Best case is when you lust, have romantic love, and attachment to the same person.
She then ends with a commentary on antidepressants. Pervasive in our society, and used long term. If you raise serotonin you suppress dopamine. This kills romantic love, orgasm, and the ability to form stable attachments as they are all mediated by the dopaminergic systems. I definitely agree with her on this point based on my observations with my patients. I treat many mood/mind disorders in my clinic and have found this to be true. They feel Ok, but they don't feel that deep urge to merge with another.
Love hurts, a good song and a common song theme. Love and pain pathways go together. When we fall out of love dopamine levels plummet and you go through withdrawal. Just being dumped, you end up loving them harder according to these functional MRI studies, you crave them even more! You may even take more risks to get their love at this point. Try something novel and risky to get them. At least you will get some dopamine from this. Sound familiar? Love is something we need and it can become an addiction. Fisher thinks that love is the most addictive substance on earth. I agree with her and can cite personal experience! I will decline to tell the stories here, but those of you who know me well have experienced the over the top creativity elicited from my dopamine highs! Never a boring moment with me around...
All these insights may point to why abused women may stay with their abuser, they may be addicted to them. I have not found a study on this yet, but would love to test this hypothesis. Unfortunately the most current example in my mind is the late Whitney Houston. Why would such a talented, wealthy, and successful woman stay with Bobby Brown? Love, and likely dopamine. I cried today after listening to her song "I will always love you". It was not the words, it was the energy, that song shifts energy. Or maybe it completely captured my emotional state. Transcendent. Criticise her all you want, that album went 4X platinum, she touched more people than any of her critics. Released my stagnant emotions better than any acupuncture treatment. That is the power of music. I would love to watch my brain on music. Music is medicine, and likely could be an addiction... ever play a song over and over... just like rats pressing the lever for cocaine... "and IIIIII willllll allllllways love yyooooooooooouuuuuu" I get a dopamine hit off that one! I am also suspecting that all these singers get dopamine dis regulation from channeling those songs from the collective unconscious. They get hooked on all kinds of stuff trying to re-balence their brain chemistry. Check out Steven Tyler's (how is he still alive? Angels according to him) biography for an inner look at dopamine gone wild. All that coke, women, amphetamines, you name it... The biggest high for him? Writing songs and singing them in front of thousands of people. Makes me wonder about the dopamine plummet as they loose the spotlight. And all the pharmaceutical crap they are put on to treat it.
For those reading these blogs, clearly I am obsessed with dopamine right now. The reason is simple. Patients coming in with dopaminergic problems are hard to treat and I see alot of them. There is no reductionist way to treat this, no magic pill to shift this balance. Educating patients is costly due to time involved. I wonder how the dopaminergic system evolved and why is it so hard to treat? I suspect it is because this little neurotransmitter may be the link between the mind and spirit. When we don't treat it well the results can be, well, heartbreaking. RIP Whitney. Comments and treatment ideas are much appreciated.
Anthropologist Helen Fisher placed people in love in a functional MRI and found the same pattern as when one is having a rush from cocaine. She claims that three brain systems are working with respect to love. We are designed to look for variety (hence the overwhelming popularity of porn (see prior post)), but that romantic love serves the purpose of "focusing our mating energy on just one individual at a time". Attachment serves the purpose of "allowing us to tolerate that person long enough to raise a child as a team". I would summarize this in 3 words eye candy, obsession, and submission. Ok, that was 4 words. Just kidding... the three concepts are lust, romantic love and attachment.
http://www.ted.com/talks/helen_fisher_tells_us_why_we_love_cheat.html
http://www.ted.com/talks/helen_fisher_studies_the_brain_in_love.html
I was glad to hear her dispel the myth that men cheat more than women... "who do you think they are cheating with... do the math!" The divorce rate in America is actually declining according to Fisher, however, it may be due to younger couples are less likely to get married and when they do they are older and more mature in their choices. She thinks this is an opportune time to make good marriage. Best case is when you lust, have romantic love, and attachment to the same person.
She then ends with a commentary on antidepressants. Pervasive in our society, and used long term. If you raise serotonin you suppress dopamine. This kills romantic love, orgasm, and the ability to form stable attachments as they are all mediated by the dopaminergic systems. I definitely agree with her on this point based on my observations with my patients. I treat many mood/mind disorders in my clinic and have found this to be true. They feel Ok, but they don't feel that deep urge to merge with another.
Love hurts, a good song and a common song theme. Love and pain pathways go together. When we fall out of love dopamine levels plummet and you go through withdrawal. Just being dumped, you end up loving them harder according to these functional MRI studies, you crave them even more! You may even take more risks to get their love at this point. Try something novel and risky to get them. At least you will get some dopamine from this. Sound familiar? Love is something we need and it can become an addiction. Fisher thinks that love is the most addictive substance on earth. I agree with her and can cite personal experience! I will decline to tell the stories here, but those of you who know me well have experienced the over the top creativity elicited from my dopamine highs! Never a boring moment with me around...
All these insights may point to why abused women may stay with their abuser, they may be addicted to them. I have not found a study on this yet, but would love to test this hypothesis. Unfortunately the most current example in my mind is the late Whitney Houston. Why would such a talented, wealthy, and successful woman stay with Bobby Brown? Love, and likely dopamine. I cried today after listening to her song "I will always love you". It was not the words, it was the energy, that song shifts energy. Or maybe it completely captured my emotional state. Transcendent. Criticise her all you want, that album went 4X platinum, she touched more people than any of her critics. Released my stagnant emotions better than any acupuncture treatment. That is the power of music. I would love to watch my brain on music. Music is medicine, and likely could be an addiction... ever play a song over and over... just like rats pressing the lever for cocaine... "and IIIIII willllll allllllways love yyooooooooooouuuuuu" I get a dopamine hit off that one! I am also suspecting that all these singers get dopamine dis regulation from channeling those songs from the collective unconscious. They get hooked on all kinds of stuff trying to re-balence their brain chemistry. Check out Steven Tyler's (how is he still alive? Angels according to him) biography for an inner look at dopamine gone wild. All that coke, women, amphetamines, you name it... The biggest high for him? Writing songs and singing them in front of thousands of people. Makes me wonder about the dopamine plummet as they loose the spotlight. And all the pharmaceutical crap they are put on to treat it.
For those reading these blogs, clearly I am obsessed with dopamine right now. The reason is simple. Patients coming in with dopaminergic problems are hard to treat and I see alot of them. There is no reductionist way to treat this, no magic pill to shift this balance. Educating patients is costly due to time involved. I wonder how the dopaminergic system evolved and why is it so hard to treat? I suspect it is because this little neurotransmitter may be the link between the mind and spirit. When we don't treat it well the results can be, well, heartbreaking. RIP Whitney. Comments and treatment ideas are much appreciated.
Sunday, February 12, 2012
Getting your oxytocin fix?
I just watched a fascinating TED talk that got my little brain going... It was by Paul Zak a neuroeconomist. A what? A neuroeconomist, he studies the molecules involved with making certain decisions, especially those relating to money, morality, and other human interactions. http://www.ted.com/talks/paul_zak_trust_morality_and_oxytocin.html
Oxytocin is most famously known for stimulating uterine contractions during both orgasm and childbirth. (The drug Pitocin is used to induce labor and slow post partum hemorrhage by this mechanism) Studies are now being done looking at its role in pair bonding, trust, decision making, maternal behaviors, and psychopathy. Oxytocin appears to encourage trust by inhibiting the amygdala, the fear and strong emotion processing center of the brain. Empathy as it turns out is very related to oxytocin secretion.
I have been interested in oxytocin since my many readings on pheromones. Many of you probably remember all my papers and rants about pheromones in med school. My interest in pheromones started in high school, there was a specific girl who's smell drove me wild. I could smell her when she entered the room! After a session of massaging each other's feet, I felt absolutely bonded to her. I had eyes for no other after that, for years! In retrospect my little juvenile brain was reacting to the potent combination of her pheromones and my release of oxytocin from her touch! (first time I was touched by a girl for a prolonged amount of time)
It was interesting to hear in Paul Zak's talk that using social media spikes oxytocin. Connecting to other people in any way sexual or not seems to drive up oxytocin levels. People who release more oxytocin are happier in studies. Those 5% in the population who do not tend to be psychopaths. Which begs the question as to whether oxytocin may be used to rehabilitate criminals.
There is also some evidence that one of the long term consequences of those of us who have been sexually abused have dysregulation in the oxytocin system. They tend to not like being touched and have trouble trusting those touching them. Oxytocin based treatments, may be a key to recovery.
Autistic children are now being treated with oxytocin and are exhibiting more socially appropriate behavior post treatment.
Oxytocin may also ameliorate some symptoms of addiction and is being investigated for treatment. Interestingly, MDMA "Ecstasy" gets its affects from its interaction with the oxytocin system.
I of course have to put a line in here about oxytocin and porn. Yes, men can become "bonded" to their porn. Many porn sites are moving to the model with private chat rooms, etc so it feels more like a relationship, more likely to release oxytocin and create a bond in addition to the massive hit of dopamine that one gets. Here is what guys who gave up porn report... http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/cupids-poisoned-arrow/201202/guys-who-gave-porn-sex-and-romance
I also wonder if some of the antisocial behavior elicited by the 1% could be ameliorated by treatment with oxytocin? Can someone take one for the team and stimulate Dick Cheney's nipples?
Top ways to get oxytosin
1. Hugs, Paul Zac recommends 8 per day
2. Nipple stimulation (and yes it works for males as well, I uh, looked it up)
3. Massage (unfortunately not for the masseuse)
4. Philanthropy- give something away
5. Fall in love (not lust, that is dopamine driven, real love)
6. Any healthy touch, holding hands, ect.
7. Orgasm with a partner (it is theorized that this may be why orgasm by one's self is not quite satisfying)
Oxytocin is most famously known for stimulating uterine contractions during both orgasm and childbirth. (The drug Pitocin is used to induce labor and slow post partum hemorrhage by this mechanism) Studies are now being done looking at its role in pair bonding, trust, decision making, maternal behaviors, and psychopathy. Oxytocin appears to encourage trust by inhibiting the amygdala, the fear and strong emotion processing center of the brain. Empathy as it turns out is very related to oxytocin secretion.
I have been interested in oxytocin since my many readings on pheromones. Many of you probably remember all my papers and rants about pheromones in med school. My interest in pheromones started in high school, there was a specific girl who's smell drove me wild. I could smell her when she entered the room! After a session of massaging each other's feet, I felt absolutely bonded to her. I had eyes for no other after that, for years! In retrospect my little juvenile brain was reacting to the potent combination of her pheromones and my release of oxytocin from her touch! (first time I was touched by a girl for a prolonged amount of time)
It was interesting to hear in Paul Zak's talk that using social media spikes oxytocin. Connecting to other people in any way sexual or not seems to drive up oxytocin levels. People who release more oxytocin are happier in studies. Those 5% in the population who do not tend to be psychopaths. Which begs the question as to whether oxytocin may be used to rehabilitate criminals.
There is also some evidence that one of the long term consequences of those of us who have been sexually abused have dysregulation in the oxytocin system. They tend to not like being touched and have trouble trusting those touching them. Oxytocin based treatments, may be a key to recovery.
Autistic children are now being treated with oxytocin and are exhibiting more socially appropriate behavior post treatment.
Oxytocin may also ameliorate some symptoms of addiction and is being investigated for treatment. Interestingly, MDMA "Ecstasy" gets its affects from its interaction with the oxytocin system.
I of course have to put a line in here about oxytocin and porn. Yes, men can become "bonded" to their porn. Many porn sites are moving to the model with private chat rooms, etc so it feels more like a relationship, more likely to release oxytocin and create a bond in addition to the massive hit of dopamine that one gets. Here is what guys who gave up porn report... http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/cupids-poisoned-arrow/201202/guys-who-gave-porn-sex-and-romance
I also wonder if some of the antisocial behavior elicited by the 1% could be ameliorated by treatment with oxytocin? Can someone take one for the team and stimulate Dick Cheney's nipples?
Top ways to get oxytosin
1. Hugs, Paul Zac recommends 8 per day
2. Nipple stimulation (and yes it works for males as well, I uh, looked it up)
3. Massage (unfortunately not for the masseuse)
4. Philanthropy- give something away
5. Fall in love (not lust, that is dopamine driven, real love)
6. Any healthy touch, holding hands, ect.
7. Orgasm with a partner (it is theorized that this may be why orgasm by one's self is not quite satisfying)
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
The Demise of Guys
Interesting TED talk entitled "The Demise of Guys" by Phillip Zimbardo. http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=FMJgZ4s2E3w#!
In it he goes through some of the reasoning for the declining performance of males in a variety of aspects. Guys are 30% more likely to drop out of school. Girls outperform guys in all academic aspects from elementary school to grad school. There is now a 10% difference in # of guys getting undergraduate and graduate degrees compared to girls.
According to Zimbardo the cause is excessive internet use, porn use, and video game use. He has coined this as "Arousal Addiction". This is so pervasive that the porn industry has now become the fastest growing industry in the U.S. Made me think of more guys sitting at home watching porn while girls go out and get porn jobs. An irony given the current economic situation.
Constantly being programmed for high arousal leads to poor performance in the classroom and an ADD or ADHD label. Lack of interest in real women I would call ADD in the bedroom or ADD-B rather than ED for Erectile Dysfunction.
Many other authors are talking about how growing numbers of women are opting out of marriage, especially the more education they have had. The data is not entirely clear what is driving it other than possibly a shortage of eligible men for these women that meet their similar demographic criteria. Many more are predicting that this will get worse as the economic downturn has affected males in greater numbers than females.
Many of the commentators on the video also cite the growing confusion in the roles males play in society. I agree with it. We are being simultaneously told "Be a man" and then being told it is not ok to display masculine traits. Growing up, I felt like I continuously consciously and subconsciously getting the message that being a male was not ok (and definitely being a dark skinned male was downright criminal!).
The book "The Decline of Males" by Lionel Tiger (great name! very manly!) has a section where he links the drop in sperm and testosterone counts in males in the first world to the fact that they are perpetually exposed to pheromones of pregnant women. Males normally have a drop in sperm counts and testosterone when their partner is pregnant, or they are around lots of pregnant women. Now with the oral birthcontrol pill, they are constantly around many pregnant women. No wonder they want to be by themselves and play video games or watch porn! J/K
The article “Are Men Necessary?” in The Economist December 23, 1995-January 5, 1996 issue has data on how sperm are affected by some chemical components in plastics. These components encourage the production of estrogen, which causes the birth of feminized offspring with small testicles and low sperm counts. Another article in March 11, 1996 issue of U.S. News and World Report entitled “Investigating the Next ‘Silent Spring’: Why Are Sperm Counts Falling So Precipitously?” discusses decreases in sperm concentration and motility as well as the quadrupled rate of testicular cancer in industrialized countries post World War II.
A study cited by CNN correlates this drop in sperm counts and testosterone levels with agricultural chemicals (http://www.cnn.com/2002/HEALTH/11/11/sperm.quality.ap/index.html). Men in a rural agricultural setting had far lower sperm counts and motility than men in cities. The data is very preliminary and the scientists are now trying to find if agricultural chemicals may be the factor.
What if this is really happening? What if sperm counts and testosterone levels are dropping due to chemicals that act as estrogen mimickers or estrogen stimulators in our environment? What if girls are having their periods earlier by the same mechanism? Increases in breast cancer? The studies for these topics go on and on providing substantial evidence for the hypothesis that chemical contamination of our food, water, and environment is decreasing our fertility and increasing rates of cancer.
Furthermore, there are many social considerations of low testosterone levels (What if men lose their aggressiveness? Want to get asked out? Comments ladies at SU, Bastyr?) Oddly enough, the decrease in fertility may provide a “solution” to the overpopulation problem if sperm production continues to fall.
I find this all very problematic since from a strictly biological point of view, the meaning of life is to reproduce successfully and ensure future generations of your genetic lineage. (Just think of all the time we spend each day doing things to ensure our eventual reproductive success…wear stylish clothes, earn money, consume, learn pick up lines, buy Viagra®, and wear cockroaches, as their wings provide an excellent shade of red for the lips!)
What's a guy to do? No jobs, poor economy, porn wrecking his brain, sperm going awol, and those crazy people at Monsanto continue to wreck the food and water supply. Better go buy a gun, stockpile food, and download a cashe of porn to the hard drive!
Stay tuned for my next film (after "The Thirty Year Old Internet Porn Virgin") called "Save the Males, an endangered, but potentially useful species".
In it he goes through some of the reasoning for the declining performance of males in a variety of aspects. Guys are 30% more likely to drop out of school. Girls outperform guys in all academic aspects from elementary school to grad school. There is now a 10% difference in # of guys getting undergraduate and graduate degrees compared to girls.
According to Zimbardo the cause is excessive internet use, porn use, and video game use. He has coined this as "Arousal Addiction". This is so pervasive that the porn industry has now become the fastest growing industry in the U.S. Made me think of more guys sitting at home watching porn while girls go out and get porn jobs. An irony given the current economic situation.
Constantly being programmed for high arousal leads to poor performance in the classroom and an ADD or ADHD label. Lack of interest in real women I would call ADD in the bedroom or ADD-B rather than ED for Erectile Dysfunction.
Many other authors are talking about how growing numbers of women are opting out of marriage, especially the more education they have had. The data is not entirely clear what is driving it other than possibly a shortage of eligible men for these women that meet their similar demographic criteria. Many more are predicting that this will get worse as the economic downturn has affected males in greater numbers than females.
Many of the commentators on the video also cite the growing confusion in the roles males play in society. I agree with it. We are being simultaneously told "Be a man" and then being told it is not ok to display masculine traits. Growing up, I felt like I continuously consciously and subconsciously getting the message that being a male was not ok (and definitely being a dark skinned male was downright criminal!).
The book "The Decline of Males" by Lionel Tiger (great name! very manly!) has a section where he links the drop in sperm and testosterone counts in males in the first world to the fact that they are perpetually exposed to pheromones of pregnant women. Males normally have a drop in sperm counts and testosterone when their partner is pregnant, or they are around lots of pregnant women. Now with the oral birthcontrol pill, they are constantly around many pregnant women. No wonder they want to be by themselves and play video games or watch porn! J/K
The article “Are Men Necessary?” in The Economist December 23, 1995-January 5, 1996 issue has data on how sperm are affected by some chemical components in plastics. These components encourage the production of estrogen, which causes the birth of feminized offspring with small testicles and low sperm counts. Another article in March 11, 1996 issue of U.S. News and World Report entitled “Investigating the Next ‘Silent Spring’: Why Are Sperm Counts Falling So Precipitously?” discusses decreases in sperm concentration and motility as well as the quadrupled rate of testicular cancer in industrialized countries post World War II.
A study cited by CNN correlates this drop in sperm counts and testosterone levels with agricultural chemicals (http://www.cnn.com/2002/HEALTH/11/11/sperm.quality.ap/index.html). Men in a rural agricultural setting had far lower sperm counts and motility than men in cities. The data is very preliminary and the scientists are now trying to find if agricultural chemicals may be the factor.
What if this is really happening? What if sperm counts and testosterone levels are dropping due to chemicals that act as estrogen mimickers or estrogen stimulators in our environment? What if girls are having their periods earlier by the same mechanism? Increases in breast cancer? The studies for these topics go on and on providing substantial evidence for the hypothesis that chemical contamination of our food, water, and environment is decreasing our fertility and increasing rates of cancer.
Furthermore, there are many social considerations of low testosterone levels (What if men lose their aggressiveness? Want to get asked out? Comments ladies at SU, Bastyr?) Oddly enough, the decrease in fertility may provide a “solution” to the overpopulation problem if sperm production continues to fall.
I find this all very problematic since from a strictly biological point of view, the meaning of life is to reproduce successfully and ensure future generations of your genetic lineage. (Just think of all the time we spend each day doing things to ensure our eventual reproductive success…wear stylish clothes, earn money, consume, learn pick up lines, buy Viagra®, and wear cockroaches, as their wings provide an excellent shade of red for the lips!)
What's a guy to do? No jobs, poor economy, porn wrecking his brain, sperm going awol, and those crazy people at Monsanto continue to wreck the food and water supply. Better go buy a gun, stockpile food, and download a cashe of porn to the hard drive!
Stay tuned for my next film (after "The Thirty Year Old Internet Porn Virgin") called "Save the Males, an endangered, but potentially useful species".
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
Internet Porn Virgin
So my previous post "The Case Against Porn" was quite the hit garnering a record number of hits for me in a short amount of time. In observing this process I learned a few things:
1. You all are very, VERY interested in the topic of Pornography.
2. You all are very scared to write any comments about the topic.
3. You all have no problem calling me or talking to me in person about said topic.
4. There was very little interest in my lets save the world blog "The Case for Action: The world needs us now" that was released 20 min prior to "The Case Against Porn". (4x more views and multiple forwards)
5. Several of you thought I should market myself as "the Porn Addict Doc" and make my millions.
6. .XXX website domain names are expensive, I learned this tonight after buying a website for another soon to be blogged about project. No it is not a porn site... let's just say .com was much cheaper than .xxx for the same name. $8.99 versus $78.99.
7. Multiple females admitted to me that they enjoy porn... They shall remain unnamed. But for the right price I could make a list. (For the right price I can keep you off the list too!) J/K everything will be kept in strict confidentiality as you all were to chicken to comment on the blog.
8. No on argued in favor of Porn. So maybe I will do one... "The Case for Porn".
9. One of you thought I should produce "free range, organic, grass fed, loving Porn" and make my millions.
10. One of you claims to be an internet porn virgin (yet clicks and reads the blog), yes they are in the U.S., yes, they have access to the internet, they even have several degrees. For now I am calling bull$hit, but consequently I am now looking for venture capital to fund my inaugural production "The 30 year old internet porn virgin". I am casting Christina Ricci in your role unless you want to out yourself and play with yourself. I mean, play yourself.
1. You all are very, VERY interested in the topic of Pornography.
2. You all are very scared to write any comments about the topic.
3. You all have no problem calling me or talking to me in person about said topic.
4. There was very little interest in my lets save the world blog "The Case for Action: The world needs us now" that was released 20 min prior to "The Case Against Porn". (4x more views and multiple forwards)
5. Several of you thought I should market myself as "the Porn Addict Doc" and make my millions.
6. .XXX website domain names are expensive, I learned this tonight after buying a website for another soon to be blogged about project. No it is not a porn site... let's just say .com was much cheaper than .xxx for the same name. $8.99 versus $78.99.
7. Multiple females admitted to me that they enjoy porn... They shall remain unnamed. But for the right price I could make a list. (For the right price I can keep you off the list too!) J/K everything will be kept in strict confidentiality as you all were to chicken to comment on the blog.
8. No on argued in favor of Porn. So maybe I will do one... "The Case for Porn".
9. One of you thought I should produce "free range, organic, grass fed, loving Porn" and make my millions.
10. One of you claims to be an internet porn virgin (yet clicks and reads the blog), yes they are in the U.S., yes, they have access to the internet, they even have several degrees. For now I am calling bull$hit, but consequently I am now looking for venture capital to fund my inaugural production "The 30 year old internet porn virgin". I am casting Christina Ricci in your role unless you want to out yourself and play with yourself. I mean, play yourself.
Saturday, February 4, 2012
Friday, February 3, 2012
The Case for Action: Our world needs us now!
The last couple weeks have been good for activism. Protesters won several battles: the Susan G Komen foundation reversed a decision where it had decided to pull funding of breast exams from Planned Parenthood, PIPA and SOPA at least temporarily derailed, Keystone XL pipeline also temporarily dismantled, Health and Human services is now allowing Naturopathic physicians to serve in the Indian Health Service, the Obama administration has stated that it will begin investigating the banks that played a role in the economic and mortgage crises, Washington state is now licensing gay marriage. It has been a nice respite after months of gloomy news!
Much of the pressure for these changes has come from online petitions such as Credo http://www.credoaction.com/ and move on http://front.moveon.org/ . These groups have made it extremely easy to add your name to a plethora of online petitions, usually just one or two clicks. Great for busy folks that want to help but are busy working hard to pay banks for a variety of debt.
Two upcoming battles of utmost importance need to have mass action:
1. Overturning the Citizens United ruling which has allowed corporations to give money to political campaigns due to being ruled that they too are people (ridiculous i know!).
2. Banning Natural Gas fracking, it will not solve our energy independence needs and will likely contaminate the water supply for millions of people. Please see Josh Fox's "Gasland" http://www.gaslandthemovie.com/whats-fracking for a look at how this is a catastrophe in the making.
In honor of those who have gone before and made changes so I can enjoy drinking from the same fountain as everyone else, sit where I like on buses, attend medical school, date who I want, and have reasonable work hours and safe working conditions; I have decided to begin taking action against the things in the world that need rapid change. Some changes I have made are big, I am 9 months car free. Other changes small. I no longer bank with corporate banks. I have paid off my credit cards and have not payed a dime of interest to them in 6 months. I have solar powered lights for reading at night. I walk to work. I am attempting to make 25% of my Internet time productive, rather that passive consumption, this blog is part of that project. Every time I hear a negative news story I try to do something small to affect change, even if it is only signing a petition.
These changes have enabled me to feel empowered in my situation and have begun encouraging my patients to do the same. You begin to feel less depressed about things and you can sleep at night. Action releases the pent up emotion that gets trapped in your body from reading about and experiencing that world around us. For all the negative news that is around us, there are masses of people working on the solutions to all of our problems. Join them and support them! You will become a part of a movement bigger than yourself. Anger is good when used well as it creates energy from within that can be used to evoke change. It is two sided in that it can destroy when out of place or context.
Sometimes change is about where we put our money. Stoneyfield farms is now in Walmart because it is now profitable to do so. Vote with your pocket book. Avoid companies with known problems. I have a retirement plan that does not invest in guns, oil, banks, ect. A bulk of it is in alternative energy technologies. If you have a retirement plan and you have not specified it, you likely are investing in things that you may not wish to be.
I will now end with one of my favorite quotes from Chief Seattle; "This we know: the earth does not belong to man, man belongs to the earth. All things are connected like the blood that unites us all. Man did not weave the web of life, he is merely a strand in it. Whatever he does to the web he does to himself."
Let's turn this thing around... Together we can create a society, economy, and planet that works for all. But only if we act. Now. It is time.
Much of the pressure for these changes has come from online petitions such as Credo http://www.credoaction.com/ and move on http://front.moveon.org/ . These groups have made it extremely easy to add your name to a plethora of online petitions, usually just one or two clicks. Great for busy folks that want to help but are busy working hard to pay banks for a variety of debt.
Two upcoming battles of utmost importance need to have mass action:
1. Overturning the Citizens United ruling which has allowed corporations to give money to political campaigns due to being ruled that they too are people (ridiculous i know!).
2. Banning Natural Gas fracking, it will not solve our energy independence needs and will likely contaminate the water supply for millions of people. Please see Josh Fox's "Gasland" http://www.gaslandthemovie.com/whats-fracking for a look at how this is a catastrophe in the making.
In honor of those who have gone before and made changes so I can enjoy drinking from the same fountain as everyone else, sit where I like on buses, attend medical school, date who I want, and have reasonable work hours and safe working conditions; I have decided to begin taking action against the things in the world that need rapid change. Some changes I have made are big, I am 9 months car free. Other changes small. I no longer bank with corporate banks. I have paid off my credit cards and have not payed a dime of interest to them in 6 months. I have solar powered lights for reading at night. I walk to work. I am attempting to make 25% of my Internet time productive, rather that passive consumption, this blog is part of that project. Every time I hear a negative news story I try to do something small to affect change, even if it is only signing a petition.
These changes have enabled me to feel empowered in my situation and have begun encouraging my patients to do the same. You begin to feel less depressed about things and you can sleep at night. Action releases the pent up emotion that gets trapped in your body from reading about and experiencing that world around us. For all the negative news that is around us, there are masses of people working on the solutions to all of our problems. Join them and support them! You will become a part of a movement bigger than yourself. Anger is good when used well as it creates energy from within that can be used to evoke change. It is two sided in that it can destroy when out of place or context.
Sometimes change is about where we put our money. Stoneyfield farms is now in Walmart because it is now profitable to do so. Vote with your pocket book. Avoid companies with known problems. I have a retirement plan that does not invest in guns, oil, banks, ect. A bulk of it is in alternative energy technologies. If you have a retirement plan and you have not specified it, you likely are investing in things that you may not wish to be.
I will now end with one of my favorite quotes from Chief Seattle; "This we know: the earth does not belong to man, man belongs to the earth. All things are connected like the blood that unites us all. Man did not weave the web of life, he is merely a strand in it. Whatever he does to the web he does to himself."
Let's turn this thing around... Together we can create a society, economy, and planet that works for all. But only if we act. Now. It is time.
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Healing power of stories
I just started reading "Women Who Run with the Wolves" by Clarissa Pinkola Estes. http://www.clarissapinkolaestes.com/women_who_run_with_the_wolves__myths_and_stories_of_the_wild_woman_archetype_101250.htm I am blown away by her ability to both tell a story and then break it down to its psycho-social-spiritual components in a way that leads to the reader (listener) to have a greater view of themselves.
It reminds me of "The Power of Myth" by Bill Moyers and Joseph Campbell http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Power_of_Myth both a book and a PBS series.
I love how many traditional medicines and indigenous cultures make use of telling a story to help and individual or group heal. Ultimately we are all telling a story. Our life is a story and we also tell ourselves a story in our heads that shapes reality based on how we act out our core beliefs.
I once asked a shaman a question about relationships (close friends are laughing) that I was struggling with, she paused and smiled, an then launched into an animated version of a traditional Inuit story called "Skeleton woman"http://www.redkite-animation.com/index.php?page=skeleton-women The story so captured the essence of the psychological drama, that I was floored by the ability to capture this and to heal the part that my own mind could not see within myself. That is the safety and genius of a story, as it manages to sidestep the Ego's defenses and implant a greater consciousness that normally the Ego would put up many defenses to... After all, it is only a story and what could this possibly have to do with me:) Perhaps everything. Now when I patient or couple comes to me in my office asking me a question about relationships, I can't help but pause, get a slight smile, and then launch into a rendition of "Skeleton Women" knowing that they will leave with a smile on their face and the knowledge that this beautiful oral tradition will continue to get passed down for it still contains the capacity to heal.
It reminds me of "The Power of Myth" by Bill Moyers and Joseph Campbell http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Power_of_Myth both a book and a PBS series.
I love how many traditional medicines and indigenous cultures make use of telling a story to help and individual or group heal. Ultimately we are all telling a story. Our life is a story and we also tell ourselves a story in our heads that shapes reality based on how we act out our core beliefs.
I once asked a shaman a question about relationships (close friends are laughing) that I was struggling with, she paused and smiled, an then launched into an animated version of a traditional Inuit story called "Skeleton woman"http://www.redkite-animation.com/index.php?page=skeleton-women The story so captured the essence of the psychological drama, that I was floored by the ability to capture this and to heal the part that my own mind could not see within myself. That is the safety and genius of a story, as it manages to sidestep the Ego's defenses and implant a greater consciousness that normally the Ego would put up many defenses to... After all, it is only a story and what could this possibly have to do with me:) Perhaps everything. Now when I patient or couple comes to me in my office asking me a question about relationships, I can't help but pause, get a slight smile, and then launch into a rendition of "Skeleton Women" knowing that they will leave with a smile on their face and the knowledge that this beautiful oral tradition will continue to get passed down for it still contains the capacity to heal.
Monday, January 30, 2012
A Shift in Perspective
I had a great run around Green Lake this morning. In the vein of trying new things, I decided to run it with no corrective eye wear. That's right, no contacts and no glasses. I need to first mention that I am blind as a bat from all the reading from too many degrees and my endless quest to find the end of the internet. What a spectacular experience! (Minus nearly getting hit by a car in the first block)
It was like running in a derranged Van Gogh painting... Corrupted by cars, they just have no place in my running painting. After my visual cortex settled in to the fact that it was not going to be overrun with information on this run, it relaxed. Then I started to notice something... Shit! I can smell it, but I can't see it. Oh there it is! I was able to smell it far sooner than I normally would have.
Then I noticed that I could hear the symphony of the world around me, the robins, the crows, the ducks, I-5. BUT It was different! I was part of it rather than a separate entity. I now have a whole different understanding of "The Spell of the Sensous" by David Abrams. A great book about experiencing the natural world as a part of it.
My feet began transmitting lots of information to my brain. The quality of the gravel, pavement, the wetness of puddles I could not see. It helps that I run in Vibram 5 fingers shoes, but still I was getting more feeling out of my feet than I normally would on a run.
I began to "see" that I normally process the world around me using heavy visual clues, while blotting out most other senses. Cutting down on the amount of visual imput allowed my other senses to come into sharper "focus" to paint/compose a different sensory experience of the same world I have been living in!
I think it would be pretty cool to spend a day blindfolded and be lead around the city to have a different experience... Any takers? Never a dull moment in my mind!
It was like running in a derranged Van Gogh painting... Corrupted by cars, they just have no place in my running painting. After my visual cortex settled in to the fact that it was not going to be overrun with information on this run, it relaxed. Then I started to notice something... Shit! I can smell it, but I can't see it. Oh there it is! I was able to smell it far sooner than I normally would have.
Then I noticed that I could hear the symphony of the world around me, the robins, the crows, the ducks, I-5. BUT It was different! I was part of it rather than a separate entity. I now have a whole different understanding of "The Spell of the Sensous" by David Abrams. A great book about experiencing the natural world as a part of it.
My feet began transmitting lots of information to my brain. The quality of the gravel, pavement, the wetness of puddles I could not see. It helps that I run in Vibram 5 fingers shoes, but still I was getting more feeling out of my feet than I normally would on a run.
I began to "see" that I normally process the world around me using heavy visual clues, while blotting out most other senses. Cutting down on the amount of visual imput allowed my other senses to come into sharper "focus" to paint/compose a different sensory experience of the same world I have been living in!
I think it would be pretty cool to spend a day blindfolded and be lead around the city to have a different experience... Any takers? Never a dull moment in my mind!
Friday, January 27, 2012
Human development in traditional cultures
I just came back from a great parenting class by a colleague Georgia Faye http://www.goldenmoonguidance.com/. She presented a child/adulthood development model developed by Bill Plotkin http://www.animas.org/ that was quite eye opening. Georgia talked about the ego centric model that we are familiar with in western industrial culture. She then talked about Plotkin's model of soul centric/ eco centric development from his book "Nature and the Human Soul" http://www.natureandthehumansoul.com/newbook/ It was quite intreguing.
I learned that humans are mystical beings that are not just meant to fill a role as a cog in the industrial system and then die a meaningless death. All humans have a soul gift that when expressed leads to a greater maturation in their culture and in the global community. All humans have an innate ability to be a creative visionary whereby they can express themselves authentically without having to abandon themselves to belong in a community.
Humans in development undergo rituals, initiations, and rites of passage throughout life. Plotkin notes that many get stuck in stages of development due to lack of initiation or a lack of appropriate mentors. Consequently, we have lots of chaos in our culture as we loose our initiations, our link to the natural world, and jump through the hoops to become cogs in the industrial complex. This makes me think of many of the shows on TV "reality" where people do what they want, don't cooperate, and create unnecessary drama. Basically acting like toddlers prior to parental direction, yet they are in adult bodies. How can we have a mass initiation in our culture so we can have a culture of adults acting as adults? Don't get me started on politics... that will come in later blogs!
I feel so grateful to have had so many teachers, mentors, and elders in my life to help walk (or push) me through initiations. I am particularly grateful to the Lakota people and those in medicine man Black Elk's lineage as their willingness to share their medicine and initiations with me have lead to a great healing for me personally. A big thank you to all indigenous healers that I have crossed paths with and who were so gracious to share their thoughts and teachings with me.
In summary I learned that we need to reclaim initiation and make new ones to match our changing world. I also learned that we as humans need to reclaim our role and connection to our place in the natural world to live and thrive. It is central to our having a future worth living for and passing on to our children a world in better shape than we found it.
I learned that humans are mystical beings that are not just meant to fill a role as a cog in the industrial system and then die a meaningless death. All humans have a soul gift that when expressed leads to a greater maturation in their culture and in the global community. All humans have an innate ability to be a creative visionary whereby they can express themselves authentically without having to abandon themselves to belong in a community.
Humans in development undergo rituals, initiations, and rites of passage throughout life. Plotkin notes that many get stuck in stages of development due to lack of initiation or a lack of appropriate mentors. Consequently, we have lots of chaos in our culture as we loose our initiations, our link to the natural world, and jump through the hoops to become cogs in the industrial complex. This makes me think of many of the shows on TV "reality" where people do what they want, don't cooperate, and create unnecessary drama. Basically acting like toddlers prior to parental direction, yet they are in adult bodies. How can we have a mass initiation in our culture so we can have a culture of adults acting as adults? Don't get me started on politics... that will come in later blogs!
I feel so grateful to have had so many teachers, mentors, and elders in my life to help walk (or push) me through initiations. I am particularly grateful to the Lakota people and those in medicine man Black Elk's lineage as their willingness to share their medicine and initiations with me have lead to a great healing for me personally. A big thank you to all indigenous healers that I have crossed paths with and who were so gracious to share their thoughts and teachings with me.
In summary I learned that we need to reclaim initiation and make new ones to match our changing world. I also learned that we as humans need to reclaim our role and connection to our place in the natural world to live and thrive. It is central to our having a future worth living for and passing on to our children a world in better shape than we found it.
Some thoughts on healthcare reform
Not an easy topic to find solutions to. Billions at stake, lives at stake. Others have done a good job debating the pros and cons of the current law as it makes its way through the courts, so I will not rehash those, but will just add a few ideas.
Many have an unease in advocating for a single payer system and for some good reasons, the current system Medicare does not pay well for the doctors, and creates many limitations for the patient. I am interested in the Swiss system where as I understand it, insurance is purchased by the individual (and thus not tied to employment), you can purchase a variety of plans to suit your needs and lifestyle, and the companies while private cannot make a profit. It is the middleman without the exorbitant middleman pay. Here are some examples of middleman profit and non-profit in insurance companies in America: (numbers from Wikipedia)
Aetna net profit 1.28 Billion for fiscal year 2009
Cigna operating income 1.3 Billion for fiscal year 2009
United net profit 3.82 Billion for fiscal year 2009
Regence Blue Cross/Blue Shield is Nonprofit (a favored insurance among many doctors in my area due to higher pay rates)
Premera Blue Cross is Nonprofit (another liked insurance due to paying doctors quickly) (Premera did try to go for profit but was rejected by Washington state insurance commission.)
I would love to go into further detail about how insurance contracts work, how much docs get paid, ect, however it is against the terms of my insurance contracts to discuss these details. It is also against the terms of my contracts to change my fee on a need basis other than a 25% time of service deduction. (I did go into it a few years back with some members of congress, that were quite astounded to hear how it all worked... or in our case does not work)
So far in the end I would propose a Swiss style system. Private companies not allowed to make a profit but can still pay CEOs their 6 figure salaries. States that want to, can put out their own plan as they do now... in Washington it is Lifewise a subsidary of Premera. This gives the control at the state level where currently states have the right to control healthcare law. I see the role of the federal government as two fold: help provide states with funds to build and run hospitals and emergency services, and to offer tax deductions for those purchasing health plans. Health plans would all be bought by individuals and would not be tied to employer however, and employer can pay an employee more to buy more insurance if they so choose. Brings alot more competition and free market into the system and does not tie you to a job you hate.
I like the idea of catastrophic plans for young healthy folks tied to a health savings account (HSA). This is a plan that only covers big medical emergencies and 1 annual visit per year, but allows you to put away tax free several thousands of dollars and rolls over from year to year. These HSAs can be used for over the medications, over the counter meds, supplements, massages, acupuncture, chiropractors, ect... Many things that conventional plans may not cover. This is the type of plan I currently have.
Comments, questions?
Many have an unease in advocating for a single payer system and for some good reasons, the current system Medicare does not pay well for the doctors, and creates many limitations for the patient. I am interested in the Swiss system where as I understand it, insurance is purchased by the individual (and thus not tied to employment), you can purchase a variety of plans to suit your needs and lifestyle, and the companies while private cannot make a profit. It is the middleman without the exorbitant middleman pay. Here are some examples of middleman profit and non-profit in insurance companies in America: (numbers from Wikipedia)
Aetna net profit 1.28 Billion for fiscal year 2009
Cigna operating income 1.3 Billion for fiscal year 2009
United net profit 3.82 Billion for fiscal year 2009
Regence Blue Cross/Blue Shield is Nonprofit (a favored insurance among many doctors in my area due to higher pay rates)
Premera Blue Cross is Nonprofit (another liked insurance due to paying doctors quickly) (Premera did try to go for profit but was rejected by Washington state insurance commission.)
I would love to go into further detail about how insurance contracts work, how much docs get paid, ect, however it is against the terms of my insurance contracts to discuss these details. It is also against the terms of my contracts to change my fee on a need basis other than a 25% time of service deduction. (I did go into it a few years back with some members of congress, that were quite astounded to hear how it all worked... or in our case does not work)
So far in the end I would propose a Swiss style system. Private companies not allowed to make a profit but can still pay CEOs their 6 figure salaries. States that want to, can put out their own plan as they do now... in Washington it is Lifewise a subsidary of Premera. This gives the control at the state level where currently states have the right to control healthcare law. I see the role of the federal government as two fold: help provide states with funds to build and run hospitals and emergency services, and to offer tax deductions for those purchasing health plans. Health plans would all be bought by individuals and would not be tied to employer however, and employer can pay an employee more to buy more insurance if they so choose. Brings alot more competition and free market into the system and does not tie you to a job you hate.
I like the idea of catastrophic plans for young healthy folks tied to a health savings account (HSA). This is a plan that only covers big medical emergencies and 1 annual visit per year, but allows you to put away tax free several thousands of dollars and rolls over from year to year. These HSAs can be used for over the medications, over the counter meds, supplements, massages, acupuncture, chiropractors, ect... Many things that conventional plans may not cover. This is the type of plan I currently have.
Comments, questions?
Welcome to my new blog. Some of you may be patients, others friends, and some just stumbled here while on your journey to find the end of the internet. I decided to start this blog as I have alot on my mind and have always turned to writing to explore ideas as well as creative expression. Thank you for joining me on the journey of my Wandering Mind Calm Heart. Fasten your safety belts!
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