Risk Takers Live Longer

The Times OnLine, the UK’s most respected newspaper, published an article in the February 18, 2006 online edition, Who dares usually wins: Risk-takers will live longer, have more friends and are less likely to get Parkinson’s.

Quoted in part:

A study published this week in the Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry showed that people with a strong streak of sensation seeking were less likely to develop Parkinson’s disease, a disorder caused by the death of brain cells that make dopamine, a chemical that activates pleasure centres in the brain and which is involved in whether we feel a reward or motivation.

And further:

High-stimulus seekers actually drop their heart rate briefly and become more alert, which allows them to process all the information needed to stay upright on a black ski run. For the rest of us, heart rate immediately soars and our dominant thoughts are freeze or flee An appreciation of the benefits of pushing ourselves to extremes may be just what we need to fend off the rigours of ageing. “Quite the worst thing you can do is to avoid stress to either mind or body,” says Professor Mario Kyriazis, a GP specialising in anti-ageing medicine. “Ageing is due to the loss of complexity in our system and the way to boost complexity is to challenge the system. Don’t let it know what to expect if you want to live long and healthily; don ’t settle into routines.”

People who don’t know me but talk to me on the phone often think I am much younger than my 50 something age. Heck, I can’t really remember my ACTUAL age so I just claim 50. I’ll claim it ‘til I’m 60. It’s not about not wanting to get old, it’s really about not remembering the numbers.. But wait, I digress.

Some people in my family think I attract stress. Not the kind that makes it hard to manage my life, but the kind that really does a number on a routine. A plan of action that is sending that skier on the black slope to certain death, a complex organization structure that is careening out of whack, missed details in an event plan. These are the things that really put me on the jazz, as Colonel John “Hannibal” Smith used to say on the A-Team.

I can’t speak to the part about reduced Parkinson’s disease, but the rest of this sounds to me a lot like people with AD/HD: high-stimulus seekers, processing a whole situation in a flash, trying new things. I can’t say that all people with AD/HD have more friends. But I bet the ones who are most centered in themselves, the ones who know who they are and who they’re not – AD/HD and all – are more passionate about enjoying life and trying new things. People want to be with people like that.

I think it was Gail Sheehy who talked about passion, not sex, being the thing that keeps a person young. Passion keeps you looking at your world with open eyes and seeing what’s new. So, if you don’t have AD/HD, and therefore a natural bent toward seeing it almost without looking, make it a point to shake up your life. You’ll live longer. Or as they say in the movies.. Die tryin’!

Forgetful? or maybe I never learned it?

An interesting new study by a team at the University of Rochester Medical Center seems to indicate that perhaps when women think they can’t remember something, it’s really that they may never have really gotten it in the first place. “The team found a link between complaints of forgetfulness and the way middle-aged, stressed women learn or ‘encode’ new information.”

Mapstone and Weber liken the problem of encoding new information to a situation where a doctor tells a patient that something serious may be wrong and gives a lot of detail. Afterwards, the person gets home and can hardly remember what the doctor said. It’s not that the person necessarily forgot what was said; it’s more likely that they never really heard the doctor the first time, because they were so anxious and worried.

Here’s the rest of the article.

This may be the best reason to take someone with you to the doctor’s office if you’re worried about what he may say. Or why it’s a good idea to take an advocate with you to your child’s IEP meeting. It’s not an indication of your ability to speak for yourself, but might sure be a help when you are trying to remember later what went on. I wonder if there may be a further link to the ability to ask good questions of care providers when you are stressed or worried. Take advantage of the dispassionate third party when you can. That’s what friends are for!

I am a Chuck Norris Fan

Sometimes something just strikes me funny. Maybe it’s something warped in my childhood. Maybe it comes from letting my kids watch too much TV when they were sick.

But this website just cracks me up. There is no nutritional value at all.. www.chucknorrisfacts.com

There are pages of facts. But from the top ten list the following are my particular favs..
and who knows WHY I even care.

Chuck Norris’ tears cure cancer. Too bad he has never cried. Ever.

Chuck Norris does not sleep. He waits.

If you can see Chuck Norris, he can see you. If you can’t see Chuck Norris, you may be only seconds away from death.

Chuck Norris does not hunt because the word hunting implies the probability of failure. Chuck Norris goes killing.

Get a Coach – Be Among the “Worried Well”

A great article about coaching appeared in USA Today. Sorry I saved the link, but not the date. In part, it said:

“[Coaches] give clients the confidence to get unstuck — to change careers, repair relationships, or simply get their act together…

“We are not talking about being incompetent or weak. They are everyday, normal people who have their lives together. They realize the value of having somebody to help them think outside the box.” — life coach Laura Berman Fortgang.

“Life coaches are a new option for the worried well — those whose lives are only slightly askew. No longer do they need a diagnosis from a psychotherapist who delves into the painful past. Using the telephone or Internet, they can sign up with an upbeat life coach who becomes a partner in defining a better future.”

I love that concept of the “worried well.”

I use a management style I call “Management by the Group Worry.” When the boss is worried, she says to herself, “Why should I worry alone?” and she calls a meeting.
She tells her staff, “I’m worried about….”
Inevitably, someone at the meeting will say, “Oh, I have that covered.” Or “Oh, I think that’s part of my job.”

Sometimes no one has an answer but the group can come up with one together, and the boss goes away no longer worried.

So the “worried well” get coaches to help them see what they really already have undercontrol and what they don’t. The coach can help determine the problems and help guide the client’s plan of action.

The article continues:

“Although many coaches take extensive courses, many others are without credentials. Virtually anyone can declare himself a life coach, says David Fresco, a psychology professor at Kent State University, Kent, Ohio. “There are no qualifications, no unified approach to coaching, no oversight board. Basically they fly under the radar screen of any sort of oversight.” And the virtues of what many offer are unproven, he says.”

This is the truth. But coaching is all about the relationship. Do you think you’re getting value for your bucks? Great. Do you feel in control of the sessions and the relationship? Great.

You should ask about training and credentials. But like your SAT scores on the way into college, they aren’t the final word in the acceptance process.

By the way:
On the Christmas eve, I got word from the ICF (International Coach Federation) that they have accepted my application for certification as a Professional Certified Coach. The PCC designation requires certain training and verification of 750 hours of coaching.

Thanks to all who helped me file the paperwork!