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8 Morning Exercises To Make You Feel Better All Day

October 23, 2021 by Chris Butler

In today’s world, not many people jump out of bed in the morning, ready to seize the day. You may awaken with cramps in your back and neck pain that makes you feel lackluster. Early morning exercises may ease these problems and help you get off the right foot.

Have you ever watched your furry friends when they awaken from a nap? The first thing they do is give their bodies and limbs a healthy stretch to shake off their sleep. Then, they’re ready for another great adventure.

An article published by the South Dakota State University Extension Agency explains the benefits of stretching exercises each morning. They alleviate tension and pain in your joints and muscles and increase blood flow.

According to the article, you are more apt to improve your posture and have less pain in your lower back.

Getting Started on Performing Morning Exercises Every Day

You don’t have to jump out of bed at five in the morning and run to the gym to work out effectively. Fortunately, most early morning exercises can be completed right in your bedroom or wherever you feel most comfortable. All you need is room to move safely and a sturdy exercise mat.

Do your morning workouts wherever it’s best for you. Some people enjoy doing them outside to receive energy from the rising sun. You can also add music and incense to create a meditative ambiance.

The beauty of these exercises is that you can combine them with your routine or make them your morning workout. Most people like morning workouts before eating breakfast, but that’s up to you. You’ll probably notice a difference in your energy level within a few days.

Try These Morning Exercises for More Energy All Day Long

Remember that everyone is different, and you can exercise at your own pace. If you are experiencing pain, stop the movement immediately and rest. Here are eight helpful early-morning exercises for you to consider.

Morning Exercises 1-5

1. Dead Beetle Bug

When you awaken from bed, your body has been lying for six to eight hours. These early morning exercises prepare your spine and core for the long day ahead of you. Your spine needs mobilization for the best movement and to minimize pain and injury.

How To:

Sit on your exercise mat, then lie comfortably on your back.
Bend your hips and knees at 90 degrees.
Next, raise both arms upward while keeping your abs and lower back flat on the mat.
As you inhale slowly through your nostrils, bring your right hand behind your head while extending your left leg until it’s right above the floor.
Exhale through your mouth while returning to the starting position.
Reverse and do the same steps with your left hand and right leg.
Try to do at least ten reps per side.

2. Planks

Do your muscles feel like stiff boards when your alarm clock buzzes? Planks are classic strength training and are ideal for early morning exercises. They mobilize your core and ease the stress on your hips and spine.

How To:

Position yourself with your hands and knees flat on your mat. Your hands should align with your shoulder.
Gently step your feet back until your body is in a straight line, almost as if you’re doing a push-up.
Align your head and heels and look toward the mat.
Take a deep breath and tighten the muscles in your core and glutes.
Hold this position while mindfully breathing for at least a minute.
Repeat these steps at least five times.

3. All-Four Rotation

Tasks that keep you sitting most of the day, called the thoracic spine, can be challenging in the middle of your back. This movement is called a quadruped exercise because it requires you to be on your arms and legs. It can strengthen your thoracic spine and encourage better posture.

How To:

Position yourself on all fours or the dog position, and make sure you’re comfortable.
Place your hands where they are so they perfectly align with your shoulders.
The goal is to keep your knees and hips in a suitable range while relaxing the spine area.
Next, put your left hand on the back of your neck and rotate your body as close as possible to your right hand.
If it’s too complicated or painful to reach your neck, you can also place your left hand on your upper back.
Hold this position for two breaths and return to the starting position.
Reverse. Repeat these steps with your right hand on your neck or back and your knee on the floor. Your goal is at least four to five reps per side.

4. Pointer Dog

Revitalize your strength with early morning exercises like the pointer dog, which uses the whole body. It focuses on your trunk and the muscles and connective tissue of your spine. You may also notice that you have more stamina and better posture in your lower body.

How To:

Position yourself comfortably on your hands and knees.
Inhale while drawing in your gut and squeezing your glutes.
At the same time, pull your shoulders down and align your head with your spine.
Hold this position and continue mindful breathing as you lift and extend your left arm and right leg in a straight line.
Next, bend your left and right leg towards the body into a fetal position. At the same time, your left elbow should incline to touch the opposite knee.
Hold this position for at least three seconds.
Return to the starting position and try to do ten reps. Repeat the steps on the opposite side for another ten reps.

5. Cat-Cow Pose

You needn’t be an experienced yogi to reap the benefits of yogic exercise. According to an article published in Yoga Basics by Timothy Burgin, doing yoga early in the morning helps your body and mind, and spirit. As with most classic yoga poses, this easy one mimics the poses of a cat and a cow.

How To:

Position yourself on your mat on all fours or in a doggie position.
Make sure that your hands are parallel with your shoulders.
It would also be best to keep your knees and hips aligned to ease any discomfort.
As you take a deep breath, lower your chest while pushing your hips and shoulder back in a cow position.
Hold your breath for a second and lift your chin and chest to look toward the wall.
Gently exhale through your mouth, bring your tummy toward your spine, and arch your back like a stretching cat.
Repeat these steps five to ten times.

Morning Exercises 6-10

6. “Y” and Handcuff Position

Do you battle weakness and tightness in your upper back and pecs? Here’s an early morning exercise to consider for your routine. It will help strengthen these muscles, so you feel taller throughout the day.

How To:

First, lie on your mat face-down and extend your arms over your head to form a “Y.” Your hands should be flat on their sides with both thumbs pointed upwards toward the ceiling.
Tighten your upper back muscles while raising your chest and arms off the mat.
Breathe deeply while holding this position for at least ten seconds.
Now, smoothly bring your arms down and beyond your lower back as if you were in handcuffs.
Hold your right hand over your left wrist and draw your shoulders together for one to two breaths. This completes one rep.
Try to do three to five reps while alternating hand clasps.

7. Glute Bridge

When your back aches, it affects your whole body. An article published by the American Chiropractic Association states that at least 31 million people in the U.S. struggle with lower back pain at any given time. Fortunately, the glute bridge is an easy exercise that benefits back muscles and helps your posture.

How To:

Lie flat on your back and bend your knees until your feet are flat on the mat. If done right, your knees should be about shoulder-width apart.
As you inhale, push your heels against the mat and raise your hips.
Hold your breath briefly while squeezing your glutes and tightening your abs. Try to keep your shins vertical and keep your back from arching.
Exhale while bringing your hips down to the starting position.
Continue mindful breathing and try to do at least fifteen to twenty reps.
Rest for a couple of minutes if you need.

8. Do the Twist

Consider gently twisting as part of your early morning exercise regimen. This one prepares your torso for constant rotating movements throughout the day. It also targets your hips and ankles.

How To:

Start by standing naturally on your mat.
Take a deep breath while stepping back into a reverse lunge. Your right knee should almost touch the mat.
Take another breath and extend your arms to the ceiling while twisting your torso toward your left leg.
Bring your torso back to the center and press your heel against the mat to stand in the starting position.
Repeat the same steps on your opposite side. Do at least three to five reps per side.

Final Thoughts on Early Morning Exercises

Even if you aren’t a morning person, you can enjoy these early morning exercises to strengthen and tone your body. It gets your blood flowing and helps lift that smothering morning brain fog. Soon, early workouts will become an essential part of your daily routine.

Mass General Physicians Propose Using Emojis for a Communication Tool

October 23, 2021 by Kristen Lawrence

You probably use emojis every day to communicate with friends and family. Most people only think of them as cute ways to express emotions, but they have other uses as well. Physicians from Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) believe that emojis can improve interactions between doctors and patients.

Emojis, meaning “picture character,” originated in Japan about 10 years ago. Today, they’re used universally across many online platforms, providing a fun, unique way to express emotions. The colorful, adorable symbols often replace words, making communication faster and easier. Physicians believe these symbols could have important implications for medical professionals.

How Emojis Could Improve the Medical Field

For one, emojis could help patients communicate symptoms and concerns with their doctors more easily. Also, they can improve interactions with young children, people with disabilities, and patients who speak other languages. This unique, modern communication tool offers a wealth of possibilities in the field of medicine.

Medical societies could collaborate with graphic designers to create emojis that best represent their fields. Then, they’d work with the standards-setting organization for emojis to gain the stamp of approval. The senior author of the research, Shuhan He, MD, believes each medical discipline should discuss the adoption of emojis for everyday use.

“They need to listen to patients is at the core of our mission as physicians, and the use of emoji is a great opportunity to take communication to another level,” says He, who is director of growth for the MGH Center for Innovation in Digital HealthCare and a member of MGH’s Lab of Computer Science. “Emoji could be particularly important in treating children with still-developing language skills, people with disabilities that impair their ability to communicate, and the many patients who speak a different language.”

The research was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association on September 7, 2021.

Mass General Physicians Propose Using Emojis for a Communication Tool

Today, people send about five billion emojis through Facebook and Facebook Messenger alone. Around 3,500 emojis have been approved by the Unicode Consortium, the nonprofit organization that upholds text standards online. They also must approve emojis before they make their way into daily conversations. As it stands, only around 45 emojis relate to medical fields.

However, they’ve come a long way since the first medically related emojis, the syringe and pill, came out in 2015. In 2017, Apple added emojis to represent people with disabilities, collaborating with the American Council of the Blind, the Cerebral Palsy Foundation, and the National Association of the Deaf. They introduced the white cane, mechanical arm, mechanical leg, and hearing aid into the world of emojis. Symbols of the stethoscope, bone, tooth, and microbe appeared in the emoji database in 2019.

Dr. He from Mass General co-created the anatomical heart and lung emoji introduced worldwide in 2020. Furthermore, he’s now working with co-authors Debbie Lai and Jennifer 8. Lee, along with other medical professionals to create 15 new medical emojis.

The proposed emojis include the following:

leg cast
intestines
stomach
spine
liver
kidney
pill pack
blood bag
IV bag
CT scan
weight scale
pill box
ECG
crutches
white blood cell

“It’s tempting to dismiss emoji as a millennial fad, but they possess the power of standardization, universality, and familiarity, and in the hands of physicians and other health care providers could represent a new and highly effective way to communicate pictorially with patients,” says He.

In addition to helping children, non-English speakers, and disabled people, emojis could have another medical function. He says that emojis could offer a point-and-tap form of communication to facilitate important decisions in time-sensitive emergencies. The small symbols could also help communicate hospital discharge instructions to patients in a more concise manner.

Finally, with the huge increase in telemedicine recently, emojis can provide another communication avenue online. The interactive platform may help patients better communicate their symptom intensity and frequency with doctors. For example, the emojis could provide visual information that tracks pain intensity experienced over weeks or months. Then, providers would incorporate the data into a patient’s digital health file for continued treatment.

Emojis Offer Many Opportunities to the Medical Community

He will continue researching how emojis could enhance patient and doctor communications. He believes that it could revolutionize the field of medicine, especially regarding treating common symptoms. Using emojis, patients could provide information on mobility, mood, duration, and the intensity of pain associated with certain diseases.

Regarding young children, emojis already have a successful history in pediatric settings. The Smiley Face Likert scale, a rating system used to evaluate children, makes communication easier for this age group. They choose the emoji that best represents how they feel on a scale from 1-5. This provides doctors with a brief snapshot of the child’s overall health and mood.

“It’s clear that emoji have become part of the global, mainstream conversation, and that medical societies and physician committees and organizations need to take them seriously,” says He. “Which means they should be determining now which emoji would best serve the interests of their patients, building consensus around the medical accuracy of these emoji, then working on getting them approved through the global standard-setting body and working through the long adaptation and implementation process.”

Co-author Jennifer 8. Lee founded Emojination, a grassroots organization that prompted the launch of a hundred or more new emojis over the past five years. Co-author Debbie Lai is COO of the Act Now Coalition, a nonprofit that visualizes data on COVID-19 and climate change.

Final Thoughts: Improving the Medical Field with Emojis

You probably use at least one emoji in your conversations every day without thinking twice about it. Most of us view them as fun ways to express ourselves, but they can also benefit the medical field. Doctors and patients can communicate using these symbols, making it easier for young children and disabled patients. They can also improve communications in telemedicine, which has grown in popularity during the pandemic.

The researchers will keep working on improving emojis for use in the medical field. Indeed, it’s exciting to think about how this will impact the future of medicine as the technology continues to evolve.

How Chronic Sleep Deprivation Hurts Your Mental Health

October 23, 2021 by Lakeisha Ethans

Do you ever have difficulties falling asleep? Are you always tired, no matter how much you try to rest? Is your sleep schedule all over the place? Many people suffer from chronic sleep deprivation, and they don’t even know it.

With everything there is to do in a workday, people find less time to sleep. And even when they do, they never seem to wake up rested.

With this widespread epidemic of sleeplessness, people are becoming more irritated, less efficient, and less happy. So, what risks link to chronic sleep deprivation? And what changes can you make in your lifestyle to make sure you never have to struggle with this loss of sleep again?

What Is Chronic Sleep Deprivation?

Chronic sleep deprivation is a condition caused by getting insufficient sleep or experiencing sleeplessness over an extended period. It can vary in severity, and, in some cases, its cause could be an underlying sleep disorder.

Adults need between seven and nine hours of sleep per night, while children and teens need even more. Even if you can sleep the amount required, sleep quality can also play a role in developing this condition.

Chronic sleep deprivation can be primary or secondary. Primary means that it is an issue in and of itself caused by insomnia or anxiety. Secondary means driven by an unrelated concern, for example, certain medical conditions.

The symptoms include dark under-eye circles, inability to keep your eyes open, head nodding, being irritable, lack of energy, trouble concentrating and yawning,

While you might try to offset these issues by using stimulants, that will not solve anything. Caffeine and other stimulants can make sleep deprivation worse by making it harder to fall asleep. This result can create a harmful cycle of night-time insomnia, followed by caffeine consumption to manage tiredness.

5 Ways Chronic Sleep Deprivation Affects Your Health And Mental Wellbeing

Sleep loss has devastating consequences on mental health. Here are a few possible outcomes of insomnia.

1. Increases Risk Of Certain Diseases

Sleep loss is the cause of many health issues people are struggling with. While lack of sleep seems like a minor issue, it can have long-lasting effects on the quality of your life. Studies have shown that lack of sleep affects all areas of people’s health, from obesity to cardiovascular issues, diabetes, and immunodeficiency.

When a person sleeps less than the necessary amount, they create a relationship between sleep loss and obesity. In fact, by the age of 27, people who struggle with insufficient sleep were 7.5 times more likely to have a higher BMI. Further research showed that there is a U-shaped relationship between duration of sleep and BMI. This means that adults who sleep 7.7 hours on average have the lowest BMI, while those who sleep more or less have a progressively higher BMI.

How Disease Complicates Chronic Sleep Deprivation

Lack of sleep was associated with lower levels of leptin (a hormone that suppresses appetite) and higher levels of ghrelin (a peptide that stimulates appetite). So, people who don’t get enough sleep are more likely to feel hungry. Satisfying that need means eating more than necessary, thus putting people at risk of reaching an unhealthy weight.

Obesity is an issue because it correlates with higher rates of mortality, the CDC says. It can lead to high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, coronary heart disease, strokes, sleep apnea, cancer, and mental health issues.

Another issue that can be derivative of sleep loss is diabetes, or impaired glucose tolerance, which is a precursor to diabetes. Adults who reported less than five hours of sleep are 2.5 more likely to have diabetes than those who get the necessary amount. Insufficient sleep affects the body’s ability to regulate blood sugar levels, thus increasing the risk of developing metabolic conditions.

Sleep loss is also associated with heart attacks and strokes. Five hours or less of sleep leads to a 45% increase in risk after adjusting for age, BMI, hypertension, diabetes, and other factors. Similar risks are linked with sleeping nine hours or more. Potential mechanisms linking sleep loss with cardiovascular issues include blood pressure increase or impaired glucose intolerance.

As for immunodeficiency, lack of sleep links to worsened immune function, including a poorer response to vaccines, prolonged lack of sleep has a similar reaction to high levels of stress. It decreases the antibody response and makes you more vulnerable when exposed to viruses.

2. Leads To Mental Health Issues

Chronic sleep deprivation affects your mood in the short term but can lead to long-term mental health problems. Research has linked lack of sleep with depression, anxiety, and mood swings.

Adults suffering from this issue have reported increased mental distress, depressive symptoms, and a higher likelihood of alcohol consumption. Loss of sleep affects the amygdala, which is the area that handles emotions. This can make you more vulnerable to developing certain conditions or engaging in certain toxic behaviors.

Sleep cycle and mood regulation are both regulated by melatonin, so lower levels of melatonin lead to lack of sleep and depression. People struggling with lack of sleep have a lower tolerance for stressors, even mild and common ones. This leads to an increased risk of developing anxiety or having panic attacks. Poor sleep itself can often become a stressor.

Poor sleep can also lead to mood swings. The more tired you become, the less you can manage and control your emotions. There are higher chances for any stimuli to affect the way you feel immediately. That means you can go from being happy to fuming in a split second for no apparent reason. Even if you can somewhat control your mood, there is a high likelihood that you will be irritable and stressed all the time.

3. Affects Learning

While this might seem unlikely, there is a strong link between lack of sleep and your ability to learn new things. Also, sleep loss affects your thought process, rendering you unable to perform specific tasks at maximum capacity.

Sleep deprivation affects the prefrontal cortex, which handles reasoning, making it harder to form the new memories needed in the learning process. Neurons can’t function normally without sleep, so you lose the ability to access previously learned information.

Cognitive abilities are also impaired by attentional lapses and slowed responses. While sleep-deprived, a person’s focus, attention, and vigilance tend to drift. Your ability to interpret events could also be affected. This outcome can lead to the loss of your ability to make accurate and logical decisions.

4. Increases Risk Of Infertility

Although they seem unrelated, infertility links to sleeplessness through hormonal means. Infertility is a severe consequence of sleep deprivation that should be acknowledged.

Sleep loss can affect fertility in both men and women. For both sexes, the same part of the brain that regulates sleep-wake hormones, such as melatonin, also deals with the daily release of reproductive hormones. This means that the hormones that trigger ovulation and sperm-maturation processes tie to sleep-wake patterns. For example, a woman suffering from sleep deprivation might experience issues with the release of LH (a hormone that triggers ovulation).

Besides the hormonal reasons, lack of sleep and infertility are tied through emotional and physical links. Being moody and irritable can increase stress levels, leading to developing unhealthy behaviors, such as drinking or smoking, which link to fertility issues. The physical diseases associated with lack of sleep (diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, and obesity) can also increase the risk of infertility.

5. Affects Social Life

Lack of sleep can make even the most outgoing people dread having to socialize. The tiredness and irritability associated with sleep deprivation aren’t helpful when it comes to being surrounded by people.

A study conducted at UC Berkley has found that sleep-deprived people feel less inclined to engage with others. They avoid close contact as much as people with social anxiety would. This makes them feel lonelier and less capable of dealing with social pressures and expectations. The more people avoid socializing, the harder it will be to get back on track and start again. Once their relationships with people become colder and they feel lonelier, they find it impossible to reconnect. This problem can ruin their social life.

Loneliness has been found to increase one’s risk of mortality by more than 45%. So, this is not just a social issue; it can turn into a massive health concern if not dealt with.

How Can Chronic Sleep Deprivation Be Treated?

Sleep deprivation is a serious concern, and it can irreparably affect people’s lives. Luckily, it is something that can be treated, and there are three main methods to do that:

· Behavioral And Cognitive Treatments

This approach doesn’t involve medication, so that it might be the best option for some people. You can try relaxation techniques, such as meditation, breathing exercises, mindfulness training, and sleep apps. These therapies may reduce tension and get you in the right state of mind to fall asleep. If that doesn’t work, you can try Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), which is a form of therapy.

· Medications

For some people, this condition is so severe that they need medication, or medication works better for them. But be careful and only take them after consulting a medical professional. Some options include Benadryl and Unisom. After consulting a doctor, they might prescribe you medication for any underlying issues you might have.

· Home Care

For most people, changing sleeping habits and sleep environments can be a game-changer. Creating better habits is a long-lasting and accessible approach to tackling this issue.

Try creating a sleep schedule. Set in place an hour at which you must get in bed every night and try to wake up at the same time every day. Avoid eating for a couple of hours before bedtime and limit the consumption of caffeine and alcohol. Make sure you get regular exercise during the day. Turn off electronic devices and make sure your bedroom is dark, calm, and quiet.

Final Thoughts On How Chronic Sleep Deprivation Affects Your Health And Mental Wellbeing

Struggling with sleep is so common that one-third of people in the US suffer from sleep irregularities. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t fix this issue if you are dealing with it too.

Lack of sleep can affect it all, from diseases to depression and anxiety, impairment of learning skills, infertility, and social life. If you are struggling, make sure you enforce healthy changes in your lifestyle, such as a sleep routine. Try relaxation techniques and therapy. If needed, consult a doctor and see if medication is required. Once you get through this issue and get a good night’s sleep, your life will change for the better!

6 Best Ways To Limit The Time You Spend On Social Media

October 22, 2021 by Lakeisha Ethans

The wonders of technology have provided us with endless, constant connectivity. Unfortunately, with that modern power has come its misuse. This can even reach the point of counterproductivity. Social media, for example, was designed to be social, as its name states. Despite that, spending time on social media can damage mental health and distract you from authentic relationships.

Worse still, social media is incredibly addictive. Many people find themselves stuck on their apps for hours and hours on end, sometimes to the detriment of productivity. How can you ensure that you break this terrible habit and better manage and balance your time? Here are the six best ways to limit the time you spend on social media.

1. Limit Spending Time On Social Media By Tracking Your Usage

To limit social media time, you must first know how and when you engage with these platforms. Plus, the act of seeing and realizing how much time you’re spending on these sites can be a wake-up call.

There are plenty of applications available that you can use to be aware of your habits. Some phones even come with them built-in. Look up popular options and see what works best for your phone and needs. Once you have that application set up, pay attention to:

Which social media platform you use the most.
How long you spend on each social media platform.
What times you tend to use specific social media platforms.
Possible contributing factors to what makes you click onto social media platforms.

Once you start to understand and track your usage of social media, then you can begin to impose limits. You’ll be able to see direct evidence of what is too much and what is fine!

2. Keep Social Media Out Of Sight

Ever heard the phrase “out of sight, out of mind”? Well, it’s true! Research has long shown that attention is typically most easily given to things that provide sensory information. If it’s giving you input that you can perceive, it’ll be on your mind. So put your social media applications and access methods away where you can’t perceive them. Here are some tips for doing so:

· Turn Off Notifications

Notifications trigger involuntary reactions from you, whether you like it or not! If you hear a notification alert, you’ll think about checking it. If you see a notification pop up on your screen, you’ll want to click it. Turning these notifications off removes sensory information, so you don’t think about social media too much. Most modern smartphones let you individually toggle notifications for different apps so that you can choose to only mute social media ones.

· Move Apps Away

When you see the tiny app icon for social media apps, you’ll be tempted to click. Storing them away from your phone’s home screen or in a folder can prevent those itchy fingers. You can even download an app that puts them in a separate, password-protected space!

· Delete Apps

It’s a very drastic move, but if you’re serious about limiting your time and have been struggling to do so, it works! Deleting apps from your phone forces you to only use social media on your computer. If you prefer using your phone, this can reduce your time by making it less convenient to access them.

3. Fill Your Time With Something Better Than Spending Time On Social Media

All the time you spend on social media is draining, and it adds up. With all that time you spend on it, you’re likely to be losing lots of productivity. Look at all those hours your tracking apps are telling you that you’re wasting!

Wean yourself off social media by filling your time with better endeavors in the physical world. This will give you less time to get on those apps, and you’ll be positively enriching your life, too! Plus, the distraction can be enough to help you kick the habit. Here are some things to devote all of that time to instead:

· Hobbies

Spend at least one hour every day dedicated to a hobby. This time will boost your positive thinking, and research shows time spent on what you love is good for you. It gives you the chance to engage your mind and keep yourself happy while also avoiding the pull of social media.

· Friends and Socializing

A lot of people use social media to stay in touch with others. Why do that all the time when you can cut it down by staying in touch in person? Spend more time with your friends and even rope them into a no-phone hangout. If you need more social activity, you can join clubs and groups in your local area. Studies prove that social relationships have tons of health benefits, so you’ve got nothing to lose!

· Learning

Want to use all your social media time more productively? Dedicate it to learning! When you’re bored, instead of hopping onto a feed and scrolling, pull up an educational podcast. Read a book, watch a documentary, or try out a new skill. It’s so empowering to be able to replace something so idle and unproductive with all this knowledge!

4. Do A “Detox” Of Social Media

Few can deny that social media can have addictive properties. Studies have already shown that this can be a severe problem. This temptation means it may be challenging for you to want to click away and stay off of your favorite platforms. As such, a “cold turkey” approach can be effective in encouraging reduction.

A social media “detox” involves not going on social media for a prolonged period. It can be for as short a period as three days! Still, a minimum of one week can help to set a new standard. After that period, you’ll see how emotionally freeing staying off social media can be! Here are some tips for that detox:

· Set A Goal For The Detox

Decide how long the detox will last and what its specific rules are. Write the goal down and put it somewhere you can see. You can even set it as your phone lock screen picture! If you’d like, you can add additional goals for the detox. For example, if your daily social media time is four hours, you have 28 extra hours a week. With all the time, you’ll have lots of space to fill with positive and productive endeavors!

· Have Someone To Hold You Accountable

Doing the detox with a friend or loved one can be helpful, especially if they’re detoxing too. You can hold each other accountable, form a friendly rivalry, and celebrate milestones together. It’s a great way to see each other’s improvement over time and get external feedback on your progress.

· Do It During A Break

If social media is a part of your daily routine, it can be hard to break the habit on regular days. This behavior is especially true if you use social media during daily commutes or to talk to colleagues. While you can certainly work your way up to stop social media daily, it’s a good idea to start small. Over a long weekend or during an extended holiday, don’t use social media at all. The difference in your routine will help make the reduction easier, and you’ll come back feeling fresh. When you feel good despite a lack of social media use, you’ll start to realize you don’t need it.

5. Set Clear Limits

For most people, quitting all social media forever isn’t the goal. That’s fine! What matters is maintaining a positive balance between social media use and everything else. You’ll have to set clear limits with yourself about your usage of these platforms. You can do so by:

Setting alarms before you get on social media to alert you when it’s time to stop
Using applications that alert you when you’ve been scrolling for too long
Properly planning social media time as part of your schedule, keeping it contained and away from everything else
Setting easy-to-remember rules, like “no social media before noon.”
No longer multitasking with your phone by using it while you work; multitasking is terrible for you, anyway!

6. Make It Difficult To Use Social Media

Social media is addictive because it’s accessible. It’s so easy to lean over and scoop up a phone and use it. You can log into your accounts from anywhere, and you can lose hours with easy, mindless scrolling. By making the process challenging – or even impossible – you’ll be able to kick social media to the curb. Here are some ways to do so:

· Use Apps That Block You

It’s ironic, but did you know that you can find phone apps to block social media use? Many different varieties with different settings are available. Some may lock you out of certain apps for a set period or after you’ve been on them for a maximum period. Some allow you to determine hours where you can never use certain apps. With more drastic measures, others make it so you can’t unlock your phone at all for a chosen period! Check out your relevant app store to see what options are available to you.

· Use Site-Blocking Browser Extensions

There are plenty of browser extensions and settings that allow you to block access to specific sites. There are also extensions and software that work similarly to the phone mentioned above app blocking applications. Again, you’ll need to “shop around” a little to see what works best for you!

· Don’t Bring Your Devices With You

When you’re going out on the town or for an engaging activity, try leaving your smart devices behind. That forces you to stay engaged and completely removes the chance of drifting onto social media. Of course, you might be concerned about your safety if you’re stranded without a phone. You can invest in a cheap phone without innovative technology for this purpose if desired.

· Leave Your Phone Far Away At Night

Don’t bring your phone to bed with you! That’s how you’ll get trapped in hours of late-night scrolling that tires you out and deprives you of sleep. Put your phone somewhere outside of your bedroom to make it harder for you to reach over for it. Need alarms for the morning? Buy a simple, cheap alarm clock!

Final Thoughts On Some Ways To Limit Spending Time On Social Media

Social media isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but it’s certainly being overused in today’s world. Limiting the time that you spend on it can help you achieve a better balance of your life. Plus, you won’t be bogged down by the worst bits of social media. Thus you’ll gain positive thinking when you quit spending so much time on social media.

Can Self-Awareness Make You More Anxious?

October 22, 2021 by Lakeisha Ethans

Especially in the last few years, more and more people have started pushing the idea that self-awareness is the key to happiness. And while it’s true that being self-aware can bring people certain benefits in life in limited doses, there are also risks associated with it, like becoming more anxious.

Learning to be self-aware is a rocky road. Everyone keeps shouting, “Just be mindful! Look inwards!” but it’s not that easy. And sometimes, the more you try, the more harmful it can become. At some point, the people on the road to becoming self-aware can bump into some issues. And one of the worst bumps out there is the anxiety you can suffer from if you take self-awareness too far.

What Is Self-Awareness?

If you have ever read even one self-help article, you have undoubtedly heard that you can solve everything by being self-aware. That it is some miracle cure that will make all aspects of your life better. And that idea has a snippet of truth, but the way it is pushed can be misleading.

Psychologists haven’t yet decided on one strict definition of self-awareness. Some say it is the ability to monitor and understand your inner world. Others think it is similar to self-consciousness. In some cases, it is described as the difference between how you see yourself versus how others see you. Generally, people define it as the ability to understand who you are through introspection.

Awareness means noticing things in the world. So, following that, self-awareness is about noticing things about yourself. Understanding your feelings, thoughts, strengths, and flaws. The same way you see something about others, you “see” things about yourself when you are self-aware.

And all of this might seem significant. Why wouldn’t you want to introspect? Why wouldn’t you want to be in tune with your emotions? And while understanding yourself is essential, being stuck in your head all day can be detrimental. People can be prone to overthinking and being negative, so learning to be self-aware can quickly go south.

How Self-Awareness Makes People More Anxious

Read how being self aware can cause overthinking and anxiety.

1. Leads To Self-Consciousness

If you ever embark on the journey of self-awareness, you will inevitably be told that you need to understand how the outside world perceives you.

Understanding how you appear to other people is called external self-awareness. This is a process not about introspection but about gathering information from outside sources. It is about paying attention to how others interact with you and how your actions impact them.

This might seem significant. Once you fully understand how others see you, you’ll adjust your behavior to meet certain expectations. And if you can do that, you can become a better friend, partner, or overall, a better member of society. But it’s not quite that easy.

One of the risks associated with becoming obsessed with external self-awareness is becoming self-conscious. Being self-conscious is often used as a synonym for self-awareness, but it is not. While they are somewhat similar, self-consciousness has a negative connotation. It means being concerned with how you appear to the point where it becomes an obsession and makes you experience negative feelings.

Self-consciousness might feel like others constantly watch and judge you. It can make you lose confidence in yourself, how you look, your morals, and many other aspects. It makes you feel like you are constantly in the spotlight. In many cases, this leads to feelings of embarrassment. Because of that, it puts immense pressure on yourself to be perfect and act precisely how others expect you to.

The stress associated with feeling like you have to act a certain way can often lead to anxiety. The more embarrassed and ashamed you think of yourself, the more you will feel like you have to change. The sheer volume of things you will have to do to reach a level of near-perfection is enough to make everyone panic. Being perfect is not possible, and you shouldn’t try to get those levels. But, when you become overly self-aware, you will feel like you have to, and you will only end up struggling with anxiety.

When you become self-conscious, you begin doubting how others perceive your abilities and morals. You might start questioning your every step and every choice. Are you even a good person? Do people like you, or do they pretend? Those are the questions that might constantly hover in your mind when you start feeling doubt. This can lead to social anxiety and a general lack of confidence.

If you don’t realize quickly that you are spiraling, these issues can worsen and become actual burdens in your life. If you ever feel self-conscious, maybe stop forcing yourself to lead a self-aware life. Stop focusing on appearance and trying to please everyone. Take a break from putting your flaws front and center and emphasize your strengths and attributes.

2. Makes You Overly Critical

A big part of the self-awareness culture is the focus on bettering yourself. To be self-aware means that you always have to identify your flaws and fix them. Always grow, never settle for who you are. You can always become a better version of yourself. That’s what you learn if you pursue this self-help method.

But that mentality can become toxic quickly. People are prone to overthinking and being hard on themselves as it is. If on top of that, you try to grow at all costs, a toxic amount of self-criticism might become an issue. You might start having negative thoughts about who you are regularly. While some self-criticism is usual, experiencing it constantly is very harmful.

When you force yourself to introspect and highlight all your flaws, you might risk getting hung up on those issues. While it is good to fix your weaknesses, obsessing over them day in and day out is not. It will only make you see yourself in a negative light. Moreover, people might struggle when engaging in growth. Sometimes, you will try to change something, but you will fail. But if your only goal in life is self-growth, every failure might hit you like a boulder. It will make you feel incapable and worthless.

All these things encourage you to start having a negative mindset. You might only begin to see yourself in a bad light. When you’re overly critical, you will have unreasonable expectations. You will exaggerate every minor defect, and you will become overly judgmental of yourself. There is a high risk of you starting to use derogatory words when describing yourself. People in this situation are prone to calling themselves stupid and incapable, and they might begin to see themselves in the worst way possible. Their flaws will become their identity, instead of being parts they can accept and be optimistic about.

When your image about yourself changes, and you only start seeing yourself in a bad light, you are prone to becoming stressed. You will not like who you are, you will feel burdened and overwhelmed, and you might start believing no one wants you. This can lead to an overall state of stress, fear, and even social anxiety.

If you want to avoid feeling that way, try to understand that being self-critical isn’t always helpful. If you feel like all you can think about is how flawed you are and how much you could change, take a step back. Try to stop engaging with those ideas and try to learn to embrace yourself. Accepting who you are and understanding that change might not be required for self-awareness.

3. Can Lead To Feelings Of Depersonalisation

Being stuck in your head should make you feel in tune with yourself. But surprisingly, it can have the opposite effect in some cases.

Depersonalization refers to feeling disconnected from your own body and thoughts. Instead of controlling your actions, you might feel like watching yourself from an outside perspective. Your perception of yourself gets distorted, and you feel like you have no say in what you are feeling and how you are acting.

While depersonalization disorder that stems from traumatic events and is much worse than what is discussed here, in the cases where you have too much self-awareness, you might feel periods of disconnection. You will feel depersonalization for short periods, but you will not be at risk of developing the disorder.

But in the cases where you are overly self-aware, your brain might need defense mechanisms to avoid dealing with self-consciousness and self-criticisms. And because those negative feelings are a by-product of introspecting too much, the brain needs to break from them. That’s why it might resort to disconnecting from the body.

When in that state of disconnection, people will have difficulty understanding what’s happening to them. This unknown feeling is likely to make people panic and grow anxious.

While this is a rare effect of being overly self-aware, it is still possible. If you want to avoid that, make sure that you listen to the signs your brain is giving you. Give it a break it needs and stay as far away as possible from too much introspection. While acknowledging your strengths and weaknesses is good, trying to live in your head isn’t. Remember to be present at all times and live in the outside world rather than succumbing to your thoughts.

Final Thoughts On If Self-Awareness Makes People More Anxious

If you’ve ever thought about trying to become more self-aware but you’ve wondered if they are any risks, the answer is yes. As with anything else in life, there is such a thing as being too self-aware. It might seem illogical, but it is a reality. Some people can go overboard when trying to introspect and reflect. And in many cases, the journey towards self-awareness can make you feel anxious rather than fulfilled.

There is a fine line between self-awareness and self-consciousness, and many people cross it. They become unsure of themselves and start obsessing over how they appear externally. You might also become self-critical, to the point where you strive towards unattainable goals. All the stress associated with these feelings makes people highly anxious. In the worst-case scenario. People might even experience depersonalization.

If you ever feel like being self-aware doesn’t work for you, drop it. It is much more important to accept yourself than to burden yourself with the desire to grow constantly.

Why People Judge Instead of Being Compassionate (And How to Change)

October 22, 2021 by Lakeisha Ethans

Have you ever wondered why sometimes it feels easier to default to being judgmental rather than compassionate? Have you ever felt that being altruistic is just too unreachable in certain situations? Do you think you want to start helping more and taking more accountability in the future?

Society has evolved so that sometimes people don’t know how to act empathetically. Instead, they resort to negative behaviors when engaging with others. It doesn’t make a difference whether they have to put in less effort or simply because don’t know how to be compassionate. The bottom line is that way too often, they turn to critiques and blame-shifting, which hurts others. People live in a society, so compassion is a must if you want to ensure proper communication. So, how can you learn to leave the redundant criticisms in the past and embrace a compassionate attitude?

What Is Compassion, And Why Is It Important?

In the most literal sense of the word, compassion means “to suffer together.” It is the feeling you experience when you feel the need or the want to relieve someone’s suffering.

Compassion differs from empathy and altruism. It adds a layer to the concept of empathy. It isn’t just about understanding what others are going through. Compassion means having the desire to help on top of those feelings of empathy. But it is less than altruism because altruism is the behavior prompted by feelings of compassion. It is important to note that you can feel compassion without acting on it and be altruistic without feeling compassion.

Because compassion is the main driving force behind altruism and acts of kindness, it is necessary to increase general well-being. Some people live solely with the help of compassionate acts. Because of the socioeconomic conditions of the world, many people lack food, shelter, and other necessities. Unfortunately, there are no frameworks that facilitate those needs in many cases, so altruism is the only way to meet that demand. Donating, volunteering, and other prosocial acts wouldn’t exist without compassion.

Compassion is also vital for the more fortunate people in society. Just because you are well off doesn’t mean you don’t need a shoulder to cry on. People are social creatures that lean on others when times get hard. And humanity is all in this together. Sometimes you might have an issue and need a bit of compassion, but another day the person in need of it might be a friend. There is a constant need for good people, but beggars can’t be choosers. You can’t expect compassion if you don’t offer it.

Everyone could be more proactive and kinder, from those experiencing those feelings to the ones benefiting from the actions prompted by compassion. But why does it feel so easy to be judgmental and blame others instead of engaging in something good?

5 Reasons Why It’s Easy To Judge And Blame Instead Of Being Compassionate

Read on to learn why people are so quick to play the blame game.

1. It Is A Defence Mechanism

When people have to be compassionate, they also have to be vulnerable. That means they must be honest about who they are, their flaws, and their principles.

The idea of being transparent can seem scary for most people. Being in touch with your own emotions is necessary for you to perceive others’ feelings. The more in touch you are with your feelings, the more personal flaws you will have to acknowledge. And that’s hard. People don’t want to see themselves imperfect because that would make them feel bad about themselves.

There is always a tremendous amount of societal pressure on people to be the best version of themselves, to grow constantly. But the reality is that not all people are in that place yet. Not all people have the time or the outside help to be able to grow. But that pressure makes them feel like they should act a certain way. They hide their flaws, begin acting fake, and stray away from their feelings. Losing touch with who you will not allow you to be compassionate.

So, people have to find ways to protect themselves. They use judgmental rhetoric and blame to distract from their problems. If you judge someone and make them seem inferior to you, that makes you feel better about who you are. The more you judge and blame others, the fewer issues you will seem to have in comparison.

If you feel like you use judgment and blame as a shield, try to understand why. What are you afraid of? What flaws are you trying to hide? The sooner you acknowledge your shortcomings, the sooner you can start to get in touch with your emotions. Allow yourself to be vulnerable and practice compassion, not only towards others but also towards yourself.

2. Makes You Feel Part Of The Group

Humans are social beings. They need to feel like they belong, like they are part of something bigger than themselves. The worst blow that someone could take on a social level is becoming an outcast, being shunned from the group.

But to be part of a group means to share commonalities with the other people in the group. And, most importantly, being part of a group means being different from the people outside the group. And that can become dangerous.

People sometimes rely on being judgmental to demonstrate that you are part of the group. What better way to show how different you are than negatively criticizing others? People want to justify their choices, their group existence, so they look down on those who are outsiders.

The need to keep the group intact and make sure you stay in the group will not allow you to be compassionate. You will not want to show kindness to others because you fear your group will judge your actions. Or you think that showing compassion will conflict with the group beliefs. So, you decide not to be compassionate at all.

But the people you are compassionate towards will be grateful to you. They will be people who can become part of your life. And, most importantly, if your group shuns you for being kind, you should consider ditching them.

3. You Are Projecting

People often feel the need to address their flaws indirectly or subconsciously. And the most common way to do that is through projection.

Projection is placing your negative traits or feelings onto someone else. If someone keeps bullying a colleague, they might project their issues, weaknesses, or insecurities onto that person. That’s why people are judgmental towards others. That’s why they blame others. You see a trait you don’t like in someone else and judge them because of it. But you don’t realize that you are critical because you also have that trait, and you hate it. And by blaming and criticizing others, you indirectly address that issue.

Being compassionate disallows you from addressing those issues indirectly. When you start being empathetic, you have to stop projecting. You can’t help others while bullying them. And that would mean you have to start acknowledging your issues. You would have to solve your problems directly. That can be hard, but letting go of projection puts you on the right path towards healthily addressing your flaws. Moreover, compassion can make you feel accomplished and give you more confidence to own who you are.

4. You Have Negative Programming

One of the main reasons people are judgmental is because they have learned that being different is bad. Society teaches that poorer people are lazy, and overweight people don’t have self-control. Many misconceptions exist about how people look, their status, home life, or work. And unlearning these things is more complicated than it seems.

You don’t want to be surrounded by people you think are wrong. You don’t want to help those people either. So, if you see a person who needs money to buy food, your brain will immediately think they are lazy and don’t deserve it. You might even feel that they will buy alcohol instead of food. Those are the stereotypes, so that’s what you believe. But you lack information. That person might have just lost their job because their company closed. They might be sick and unable to work. You never know what others are going through. Try to unlearn these stereotypes and ask questions before you form an opinion.

Another issue is that people desensitize to suffering. There is so much pain in the world that people have learned to look the other way instead of engaging. Dr. Paul Slovic calls this psychic numbing. The more people are hurting, the less willing will others be to help, to be empathetic. Slovic states that there is no constant value for human life. For you, your cat might matter more than the people suffering in third-world countries. And that’s understandable. This is used as a defense mechanism to make sure that you don’t break emotionally.

But sometimes, it’s taken too far, to the point where you shut yourself out, you refuse to engage with any feelings. You need to be aware of this and actively try to fix this. Listen to people, try to understand what they need, where they are coming from. The more understanding you are, the more compassionate you can become.

Final Thoughts On Why It’s Easy To Judge And Blame Instead Of Being Compassionate

Learning to be compassionate can be tricky. It can be hard enough to deal with your issues. Having to deal with others’ problems on top of that? It can feel impossible.

Because people are afraid to acknowledge their flaws and be in tune with their emotions, it is much easier to project than to be kind. Being judgmental and blaming others is a defense mechanism that allows you to hide your flaws or deal with them indirectly. This also makes you feel part of a group. Also, the stereotypes people believe in are sometimes so strong that you can’t unlearn them.

But being compassionate is something you can learn. Be mindful and understand who you are and what you feel. The more in tune with your emotions, the more empathetic you can become. Listen to people, understand their needs, and see what little things you can do to improve their lives.

11 Ways to Improve Concentration and Make Fewer Mistakes

October 22, 2021 by Deborah Tayloe

Did you know that most careless mistakes happen because people are distracted and have poor concentration? While it might be easy to blame disorders like ADHD, which cause a lack of focus, you don’t need a medical diagnosis to have an issue. You’ve been programmed that you must multitask to get things done.

The only problem with trying to do too many things at once is that you’re not giving your undivided attention to one task. Take, for example, eating while driving your car. A study reported by Drive-Safely shows that 80 percent of all car accidents happen because of eating or drinking while driving.

That’s some staggering statistics considering that there are over 7 million car accidents in this country every year, as reported by Safe-America. Being distracted doesn’t always equate to something as devastating as a car crash, but being aware can help you make fewer mistakes. Consider this story. Ed works at a local manufacturing company that makes pizzas.

He’s not paying attention, and his mind is far away from his job. He is supposed to do quality assurance and check a product every few minutes. However, lost in his thoughts, he lets line after line of pizzas go to processing that is missing an essential topping. It isn’t until the company starts getting calls from supermarkets that they pinpoint the line and operator who caused this issue.

The mistakes cost the company dearly, and Ed was written up for not doing his job correctly. It can be a significant dollar error when you have poor concentration. So, it’s essential to learn to be more focused to avoid such mishaps.

Eleven Ways To Make Fewer Mistakes by Improving Concentration

It’s not always that your lack of concentration will cause significant issues, but it can reduce your productivity and cause careless mistakes. Here are 11 ways that you can reduce your misfortunes by simply enhancing your focus.

1. Be Present in the Moment

Part of the reason so many people struggle with focus is that there not present in the moment. Their mind is a million miles away from the task at hand. Practice grounding exercises that help you with the disconnect.

It would help if you made a conscious choice to improve your attention, and you can start by making sure your mind focuses on what you’re doing.

2. Get Sufficient Rest

If you’re not getting 6-8 hours of rest each night, it could be the reason why you can’t focus. Your body needs enough rest to be able to function correctly. Make sleep a priority, and never borrow time from your rest schedule and create a disastrous sleep deficiency.

3. Minimize Multitasking

Those who can multitask efficiently were once praised as superior workers. However, new research shows that multitasking isn’t so good for you. A study was done by the Cleveland Clinic that found people who multitask are less efficient and make more mistakes.

The study found that only 2.5 percent of people can multitask adequately, so don’t stress yourself out trying to do way too much at once. Just focus on the task at hand.

4. Eat Less Sugar and Carbs

If your diet consists of sugar, carbs, and unhealthy options, then you’re probably not feeling your best. Constant sugar intake affects your focus because it can make you sluggish. You need to eat foods that power the brain and do not deprive it of what it needs.

Try filling up on protein, omega three fats, and other nutritious offerings that will fuel your body and not deplete it.

5. Cognitive Training

Many games are engineered to help you with both your attention and your response times. While you don’t want to play these games to get better at gaming, you want to do them to enhance your cognitive activities. The good news is there is strong evidence that shows that if you can sustain your attention long enough to play a game that you can use that focus on your everyday life.

The Journal of Education and Practice reported on studies regarding children and gaming. Students with ADHD often find it’s easier to focus on games than work. Learning doesn’t have to be boring to be educational. The researchers found that students who can utilize video games can quickly learn to make fewer mistakes and have a better concentration level.

So, as an adult, you can find activities that help you too. Even games like sudoku, crossword puzzles, and word searches can be beneficial.

6. Remove Distractions

Turn off email, instant messaging, and other distractions that can hinder your focus. It’s impossible to stay focused when you’re constantly stopping to answer the phone or reply to a text message.

7. Physical Exercise

You know that exercise is good for you, but did you ever think it could help you make fewer mistakes throughout the day? Your focus and concentration are enhanced by the additional surge of brain chemicals when you’re working out. Not only will you feel better, but you will be able to focus on the task at hand.

8. Fix the Environment

The environment around you has a profound effect on your ability to focus. First, the color of the room matters. Blue tends to enhance productivity, while colors like red are off-putting. Additionally, the height of your desk, the comfort level of your chair, and lighting can all play into this equation.

What happens if you wear an outfit to work that is uncomfortable. You don’t feel your best, so it’s challenging to be productive when you’re constantly tugging at an itchy shirt or pants that are too tight.

Now, exchange those scratchy clothes for an uncomfortable office. You’re not going to be your best if you’re not relaxed.

Things that can make a significant impact are these:

The view from your desk
Pictures in your office
The noises or distractions around you
The temperature of the room
Chair comfort
Desk space

Take time to create a space that’s a haven for productivity, and you will make fewer mistakes.

9. Change Your Mindset

Your mindset is another crucial part of your productivity. For instance, if you hate folding laundry, it’s not going to be the highlight of your day. However, if you turn on your favorite television show while you’re folding, then the task suddenly becomes less mundane.

Instead of thinking about the dreaded chore, please start thinking about it as the time you get to watch your favorite show. When you start looking at your tasks differently, your mindset can be changed to a favorable position.

10. Switch Between High and Low-Attention Tasks

Some tasks require heavy concentration, while others don’t require as much. Think of it as doing your taxes versus paying bills. While you need to focus on paying your bills, the urgency for perfection isn’t nearly as great. When you go through a long period of intense concentration, your brain gets tired.

Try giving your brain a rest during these highly charged activities, and then you should switch to a low-attention task. Meditation is a great way to recharge your energy levels by shaking pressure. Altering between high and low-intensity jobs is a great way to keep your focus and make fewer mistakes.

11. Improve the Flow of Oxygen to the Brain

If you sit for too long, you’re likely to feel horrible. The problem is that when you sit for more extended periods, the blood automatically pools to your lower extremities. Why do you think people who sit get swelling in their legs and feet when they don’t move?

Have you ever heard that when you’re on a flight or long car ride that you need to get up and walk? It would be best if you moved to allow the blood to pump to your brain better. Sitting for extended time frames may cause brain fog, dizziness, and even exhaustion.

Additionally, blood clots can form easier when someone is sedentary. To enhance your focus, you need to make sure that you get up periodically and move your body. When you get a 15-minute break, don’t sit in the lunchroom.

Get up and walk around the office and stretch your legs. You will be surprised at how much this enhances your focus.

Final Thoughts on Ways to Make Fewer Mistakes

To err is human, but there are ways that you can make fewer mistakes. It would help if you learned how to improve your concentration by using simple methods. Try to be present, set up your workspace as a tranquil spot for productivity, and eliminate distractions around you.

By making some minor adjustments, you can soon learn how easy it is to be more productive. You can get more done in less time when you have the proper concentration and focus. What things from this list help you be a better spouse, parent, worker, or all-around productive person?

Scientists Discover Mutant Coral Reefs in Highly Polluted Areas

October 22, 2021 by Kristen Lawrence

Scientists recently discovered an area of ‘super corals’ growing in unlikely conditions. Normally, corals begin bleaching when exposed to extreme heat. However, a UT Austin hydrology professor found coral reefs thriving despite high carbon dioxide levels in the Philippines. This is encouraging news and warrants further investigation. Bayani Cardenas, the UT Austin professor, first made the discovery in 2019 during a research trip. On the journey, he intended to identify harmful nutrients flowing through groundwater into a coral reef in the Philippines. He completed the mission, but he also made an unexpected finding beneath the surface. He found a region of resilient ‘super corals’ seemingly unaffected by high levels of carbon dioxide. Instead of bleaching or dying, they adapted to the conditions and grew back. The research, based on the 2019 discovery, was published in August in the journal ACS ES&T Water. For the first time, the UT professor and a team of international scientists found that groundwater caused rising CO2 levels near the super corals. They also attributed other gases and nutrients in the seawater to groundwater runoff. This discovery highlights the vulnerability of coral reefs and the need for better management of wastewater. Agricultural runoff and other byproducts have previously been shown to harm marine life and ecosystems. “This is an unseen vulnerability,” said Cardenas, a professor in the Department of Geological Sciences at the UT Jackson School of Geosciences. “We’ve been able to show with this site that groundwater is part of these delicate coral reef environments. There is a connection, and that’s still not as accepted in science and in many parts of the world.”

Scientists Discover Super Corals in Highly Polluted Areas

Cardenas said the findings have also led to more questions and research ideas about the super corals. They hope to reproduce the study in other locations around the globe as CO2 levels continue to climb. Scientists have already observed the destruction of coral reefs around the world due to climate change. From 2014 to 2017, 75% of Earth’s coral reefs experienced heat stress. The unprecedented global coral bleaching event killed 30% of the species. However, the coral reefs in the Verde Islands Passage in the Philippines seemed to have the opposite response. There, Cardenas and his team discovered a coral reef so diverse and alive, they deemed it the “Amazon of the ocean.” The reefs thrived despite the high carbon dioxide levels entering into the groundwater. Lead author Rogger E. Correa, a researcher at Southern Cross University in Australia, estimated the CO2 levels flowing through groundwater into the researched area. He said nearly 989 grams of CO2 per square meter annually reached the “Twin Rocks,” an area adjacent to a volcano chain. Imagine two parked cars on the ocean floor emitting carbon dioxide for one year directly onto the corals. That’s how much CO2 is being pumped into the area, yet the reefs show no signs of distress.

About the Study of Super Corals

To differentiate the groundwater from seawater, the scientists deployed devices to measure CO2 levels near the super corals. They also measured radon 222, a naturally occurring radioactive isotope found in local groundwater but not in oceans. Co-author Isaac Santos, a professor at the University of Gothenburg in Sweden, created the measurement technique. The study builds upon a previous 2020 study conducted by Cardenas. In the prior research, he found CO2 bubbling up from the seafloor off an area of the Philippine coast he called “Soda Springs.” Cardenas said in regards to the latest findings, the unexpectedly resilient coral reefs warrant further investigation. However, Adina Paytan, a research scientist at the Institute of Marine Sciences at the University of California, warned other human activities still threaten coral reefs. Sedimentation, pollution, overfishing and acidification pose significant risks to corals worldwide. However, Paytan says that Cardenas’ finding about the super corals “provides some hope for the future of corals.” She did not take part in the study. Study co-authors included researchers from the Leibniz Centre for Tropical Marine Research (ZMT) in Germany; the State Office for Mining, Energy and Geology in Germany; and the following institutions in the Philippines: Ateneo de Manila University, Agricultural Sustainability Initiatives for Nature Inc., and Planet Dive Resort.

Other Ways Climate Change Impacts Coral Reefs

Hopefully, scientists will discover other coral reefs that can adapt to high CO2 like the super corals in the Philippines. However, the discovery is likely an outlier in regards to the effects of climate change on corals. Here are just some of the threats coral reefs face from a changing climate:

Warming oceans cause heat stress that contributes to infectious diseases in addition to bleaching.
Sea level rise increases sedimentation near reefs, which can smother coral.
Stronger, more frequent hurricanes and tropical storms can destroy coral reefs.
Higher rainfall totals lead to increased runoff of freshwater, sediment, and land-based pollutants, which cause algal blooms, reduced light, and murkier water.
Changes in ocean currents lead to temperature fluctuations, which decrease the food supply for corals.
Ocean acidification reduces pH levels which decrease coral growth and durability.

Oceans absorb around 48% of fossil fuel emissions, making them the world’s largest carbon sink. While this helps slow global warming, it also makes the oceans increasingly unhealthy and unable to support life. Some scientists believe 90% of coral reefs worldwide will experience annual severe bleaching by 2055. The super coral study by UT researchers provides encouragement for the future. However, whether other corals respond positively to higher CO2 levels remains to be seen.

Final Thoughts: Scientists Find Super Coral Reefs Thriving in High CO2 Areas

Most scientists thought coral reefs undergo severe bleaching in the presence of high carbon dioxide. However, a study by a UT professor and international researchers found thriving super corals in the Philippine waters. In this region, groundwater with high carbon dioxide levels regularly flows into the reefs. Despite this, the corals teemed with life and showed incredible resilience. Scientists will perform more studies in the future, hopefully in other coral reefs, to gain more insight into this phenomenon. In the meantime, it’s still crucial for world governments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and work to combat climate change.

15 Signs a Person Has a Growth Mindset

October 21, 2021 by Kristen Butler

People are indeed born with intellectual abilities that make them better at certain things than other people. Yet, those with a growth mindset believe working hard enough to surpass natural skills is possible. You may wonder if someone you know believes this. Here are fifteen signs to determine if someone embraces a growth mindset.

What is a growth mindset?

People who believe their abilities and talents can be developed through good strategies, hard work, and input have a growth mindset. They’re less worried about being smart but rather enjoy the learning process. These folks assume that over time, their skills will improve if they work to improve them.

What’s the difference between a growth mindset and a fixed mindset?

Researchers say that a growth mindset believes that your characteristics, such as your intellectual abilities, can be developed. On the other hand, a fixed mindset believes that your characteristics are unchangeable and fixed. They found that positive people are more apt to thrive in the face of difficulty, but those with a fixed mindset avoid challenges or fall below their full potential.

What are the benefits of a growth mindset?

There are lots of benefits to having a growth mindset. Some of these benefits include

Greater comfort taking risks
Desire to strive to reach your goals
More motivated
Eager to learn
Better brain development in the broader range of tasks you do
Lower stress
Less anxiety
Less depression
Good work relationships
Perform at a higher level

Positivity can also help you face challenges and stay motivated as you look for a solution to your problems. Instead of saying, “I can’t do it,” people with a growth mindset say, “I can’t do it now, but I will do it, eventually.”

Fifteen Signs Someone Embraces a Growth Mindset

Do you have these behaviors and habits?

1 – They believe the growth mindset can develop intelligence

Someone with a growth mindset believes that intelligence is flexible and enhanced by hard work and effort. Because their mind is pliable, they think they can push forward through problems instead of giving up because they aren’t smart enough. Students who think this way about intelligence have more positive attitudes and more significant learning goals.

2 – Embrace challenges

Those individuals with a growth mindset see challenges as opportunities to prove themselves. They face difficulties head-on instead of giving up. These folks are achievers because they don’t get stuck when things are tough. Growth mindset individuals overcome challenges and come out a better person. They are inspired by those individuals who challenge them intellectually and seek to learn from them.

3 – Persist in the face of setbacks

Someone with this mindset is persistent when they face a setback. They remain professional and strive to do the best they can under the circumstances. They’re not afraid to say they don’t know what to do next. Yet, they’re willing to engage and persist until the end is in sight. Their persistence motivates them and the other people working with them.

4 – The growth mindset effort results in mastery

Having a growth mindset inspires you to work hard until you master a specific skill or subject. This mastery mindset motivates you to strive until you’ve accomplished the goal, whether it’s playing the piano, learning a new language, or understanding the latest technology at work. Competition isn’t essential to you. You enjoy setting personal challenges for yourself and going beyond what you thought you could do.

Well-known martial arts performer Bruce Lee once said,

I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but I fear the man who has practiced one kick 10,000 times.

His statement demonstrates the tenacity of an individual with a growth mindset. You keep going until you have mastered something, even if it takes 10,000 times to practice.

5 – Learn from criticism

No one likes criticism, but you will have a favorable view of criticism if you have a growth mindset. Being criticized can help you improve your skills, reduce your errors and increase your efficiency. You’re a learner, so you don’t take offense when your boss or teacher points out weaknesses in your work. Here are some steps to help you accept criticism when it comes your way.

Pause for a minute-Don’t react right away. It’s easy to want to make excuses for yourself, but if you have a growth mindset, you know that this criticism could be helpful, even if it’s shocking.
Consider why-Think about why the person shared it with you. Most of the time, criticism is shared for a good reason. Someone isn’t trying to hurt you. Focus on the reason-it’s given to help you improve.
Listen to what they said-After you get over your first reaction, listen to their feedback.
Ask them to clarify if you need to understand better what they mean.
Thank them-Even if you’re still smarting from what was shared, you can thank the person. Tell them you’re still processing what they said, and you’ll get back to them, but you appreciate what they pointed out to you.

Having a growth mindset means you’re willing to receive criticism and see it positively in your life.

6 – Receive inspiration from the success of others

Someone who embraces a growth mindset learns from others without feeling jealous of their success. You find inspiration from your co-workers’ success instead of feeling competitive towards them. People with a fixed mindset need to make themselves look better than others, emphasizing who does worse than them to make themselves feel better. Those with a growth mindset want to learn from people who did better than they did.

7 – Embrace the here and now with the growth mindset

If you live with a growth mindset, you live your life in the present rather than the past. Because you view life this way, you can grow and change. You aren’t stuck in old ways of doing things but focus on present-day living. You make use of what can help you grow and achieve today. You’re not opposed to new methods but strive to learn how these methods will improve your productivity.

8 – Comfortable with uncertainty

Uncertainty doesn’t intimidate you when you have this mindset. You can step back and try to understand why certainty is present. You ask yourself questions to evaluate the situation. Life is full of uncertainty. You won’t fear uncertainty when you embrace positive thinking, but you’ll look expectantly at the circumstances. You believe that you’ll be able to learn something about yourself amid these circumstances.

9 – Active brains

If someone you know has an active brain, good chance, they have a growth mindset. They’re curious about life and love to learn new things. They probably ask you a thousand questions; if you don’t know the answer, they’ll research until they find the solution. People with active brains are fun to be around but can wear you out with many questions and wonderings.

10 – Action doesn’t intimate

Someone with a growth mindset understands that small steps count when you’re working toward your dreams. You take action when needed, but not without getting the knowledge you need to move forward strategically. You’re deliberate and professional. Those with a fixed mindset are hesitant to move forward. They fear failure, so they stay safe by not doing anything.

11 – Self-Discipline is important

Individuals with a growth mindset understand the need for self-discipline to get what they want. They know how important timing can be and how to have restraint when needed. They’re so committed to the result that they’re willing to do the hard work it takes to get there, which includes self-control. These folks don’t need to prove themselves to others. They’re entirely focused on their goals.

12 – Positive attitude

Of course, many people have a positive attitude, but those with a growth mindset are dedicated, optimists. This is one of the critical traits of someone with a growth mindset. They’re upbeat and encouraging. Even in the face of challenges, they stay positive. They see problems as opportunities and motivate those around them to have a positive mindset.

13 – Get help and help others – spread the growth mindset

Successful individuals know the importance of getting help and helping others. They’re willing to ask for help when needed because they understand they don’t know everything. Because they’re learners, they see others’ experiences as vital. Optimistic individuals are willing to offer guidance to others so they can be successful.

14 – Resilience

Another key characteristic of someone who has a growth mindset is resilience. They know that success doesn’t happen overnight. It takes time and effort. They’re in it for the long haul. They stay the course without getting distracted by what others are doing or thinking. Tough times motivate them. Someone who has a growth mindset is committed to the end. They’re willing to bring others along with them.

15 – Passionate learners

Someone with this mindset loves to learn. They attend seminars and take online courses. Reading is critical to them, and they’ll be voracious readers. Their love for learning motivates other people. Their passion for learning sets them apart from other people.

Final thoughts on embracing a growth mindset

A growth mindset is contagious. If you know someone who thinks like this, no doubt, they’ll spark your desire to grow and learn. Before you know it, you’ll be taking on new things in life and ultimately inspiring others around you when you always stay positive.

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