Latest Brain Research and How We Can Boost our Learning Ability

“The human brain is the most fascinatingly organized three pounds of matter on this planet.” -Schiller, 2008

I am pausing my studies in this moment to share with you some really amazing facts about our brain!

I’ve turned our dining area into my work station…

Did you know that the brain continues to grow throughout the life cycle? Or that a baby’s brain is the most powerful learning computer on the planet? Pretty cool, huh.

According to the latest brain research findings by Cengage Learning (2011):

• The brain is strongly run by patterns rather than facts. The key to our intelligence is the recognition of patterns and relationships. We learn best when we develop the learning around “themes”. Plan some kinds of “immersion learning” that will encourage you to go deeply into your play and work.

• Stress and threat affect the brain in many ways. Emotions run the brain, bad emotions reduce the capacity for memory and understanding, as well as reducing higher-order thinking skills. Good emotions create excitement and love for learning. Create a peaceful environment in your home and work. A secure environment counteracts the problems that may occur when the stress regulation mechanisms are triggered too often. Good emotions enhance the memory. For me personally, the number one cause of my stress is when I think about things that happened in the past and how I could’ve done things differently. It sends me to a bad direction–I am basically flooding my body with cortisol every time this happens. The answer to why I do this is simply because it is part of the human condition. My current professor at UCLA said that we can’t control the things that has already happened but we can control how we react to it (This is a great mantra!) The brain is like a video recorder that records everything that happened to us in our life, it gets stored in our memory and we remember it when it is triggered by an event in our present.

• The brain runs better when food intake is regular. Insulin levels stay more even, cortisol levels are lower, and glucose tolerance is better. Diet activates memory. Be sure to include foods that are rich in proteins (meats, nuts, cheese), omega-3 fatty acids, and selenium and boron (leafy green vegetables), as well as enough restful sleep so that the brain can reorganize itself. Regular snack times lead to better cognitive functioning and an enhanced sense of well-being. A well nourished person is more likely to be successful in learning and thinking than those that do not eat on time. Our brain needs good fats so it can continue producing newer cells.

• All learning is mind-body. Our whole body is a sacred temple. Our physical state, our posture, and breathing affect learning. Our brain is designed for cycles and rhythms. Practice makes permanent, and memory is kept more accurate when information is revisited. If you want to get good at doing something, take some time figuring out the pattern, learn how to recreate the process, and repeat the process over and over until you have mastered it. Create a balanced lifestyle, if you work hard, be sure to add activities that are rewarding to you.

TRY THIS: Get the brain actively working by practicing Conscious Competence (this term was introduced to me two weeks ago by my brilliant teacher, Dr. Andrews). Understand what you are learning and why you are learning it. It empowers our minds and our well-being when we are aware of the reason why we are doing the things that we’re doing. So go ahead, start getting even more curious!

Sautéed Vegetables and Quinoa with Chicken Sausage

I am not a fan of eating meat but I eat it once or twice a week just cause I think it’s the right thing to do for my body.

I have a preference for organic and lean meat. If the chicken is not certified organic, I won’t buy it. The same thing with beef, if it is not organic and grass-fed, I won’t buy it. The same principle applies to the fruits and vegetables that we buy.

My husband and I support the organic community and that’s the best we can do right now as two people who care about our health, our environment, and animal welfare. Who wants to eat food that’s GMO? Have you watched the Food Inc. documentary? (Click for the link to the video) Do you know how much cruelty there is in the world of animal farming? (Click here to be informed) Who wants to eat meat full of anti-biotic, hormones, food color, and who knows what else is in there…don’t you think it’s much better if we carefully think about what we put in our body? There is still leniency on the regulations of the organic food label but this is the best protection we have right now on our food against toxic farming. Might as well call it toxic farming because the additives and treatments are toxic to both our soul and our body.

So I got sidetracked a little bit. Here’s the recipe that I want to share with you…

We were having this earlier for lunch and my husband said,
“How can something so simple be this delicious?”
Because all the ingredients are fresh, wholesome, and are grown the way they are supposed to be grown: natural. organic. unadulterated.

Equipment:

Cast Iron Skillet
Stainless Steel Skillet
Wooden Spoon

Ingredients:

FOR THE GRAINS:
1/2 cup quinoa
1/2 cup hulled millet
1 tbsp. coconut oil
2 1/4 cups filtered water

Procedure:

1. On the stainless steel skillet, saute the quinoa and millet in coconut oil.
2. Once it starts to smell really good (coconutty scent), add the water with caution. It will sizzle because the skillet is hot (I shield myself with the cover when doing this). Bring it to a boil on high heat.
3. When it’s boiling, cover it and let it simmer on medium heat. This will cook in 15-20 minutes. Set aside.

FOR THE SAUTE:
1 1/2 tbsp. coconut oil (Nutiva)
1 cup asparagus (chopped)
2 cups cauliflower
1/2 cup mushrooms
2 artichokes (chopped)
3 chicken & maple sausages, chopped (from Applegate organic and naturals)
1/4 cup leeks
1 scallion
2 garlic cloves
1/2 tsp. organic tamari
Dash himalayan salt
freshly crushed black pepper
1/4 tsp. sage
1/4 tsp. rosemary
1/4 tsp. thyme
1/4 cup water (to create steam)
1/2 tsp. roasted sesame oil

Procedure:

1. In medium-high heat, saute garlic and scallions in coconut oil on the iron skillet.
2. Add cauliflower and asparagus.
3. Add the water to create steam. Stir until the water has evaporated from the skillet.
4. Add leeks, sage, rosemary, thyme, himalayan salt, tamari, and crushed black pepper. Saute for 1 minute then add the mushroom and sausage.
5. When the cauliflower and asparagus are cooked, turn off the heat and stir in the roasted sesame oil.
6. Serve in a bowl on top of the quinoa/millet combo and garnish with artichokes.

How You Can Fight BLOATING

When I am bloated, I feel sluggish and cranky. I don’t feel 100%. It takes me away from the self that wants to be productive. From all the studying that I’ve been doing regarding diet and wellness, it all boils down to nutrition and what we put in our body. And if you’re a woman, hormonal fluctuations also trigger bloating. I have moments of feeling as though I’m as big as a whale.

When it comes to food, the common culprits are foods that cause water retention and gas in our body like salty foods, fried foods, dairy, carbohydrates, legumes, cauliflower, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, onions, peppers, citrus fruits, acidic drinks, carbonated drinks, and many more.

Personally I find it hard to avoid salty foods (I like miso and tamari for seasoning), cheese, vegetables, and sparkling mineral water. These are a few of my favorites. I know I am not going to give them up but I can moderate my intake of these foods at the very least.

If I feel really bloated, I take a soothing and detoxing Epsom salt bath. The sulfates in Epsom salt help flush toxins and heavy metals from the cells, easing muscle pain and helping the body to eliminate harmful substances. Our skin is a highly porous membrane and adding the right minerals to the bathwater triggers a process called reverse osmosis, which actually pulls salt out of the body, and harmful toxins along with it. For a detoxifying bath, at least once weekly add two cups of Epsom salt to the water in a bathtub and soak for at least 30 minutes.

Here are some dietary tips on how you can help your body ease the bloating:

1. Eat fruits and veggies with a high-water content. Watermelon, pineapple (contains digestion-promoting enzyme) , papaya, tomatoes, and cucumbers help to flush out belly-bloating sodium and relieve constipation.

2. Eat raw celery. This is a known diuretic (helps to relieve fluid retention).

3. Eat asparagus. They are known to encourage the growth of friendly gut bacteria. Friendly bacteria work to reduce the build-up of stomach gas. I like to eat this with cooked quinoa.

4. Hydrate with water. You would think that this will only make your belly feel like it’s going to explode when you’re already bloated but what water does is it helps the body restore its sodium balance. So drink up.

5. Organic Peppermint tea. This tea works like a miracle. When I feel there’s trapped gas in my belly (that causes abdominal cramping. Ugh!), I drink this tea and after 15 minutes I start burping.

6. Quinoa. This delicious grain is rich in magnesium and potassium (both are known to beat bloating).

7. Chew, don’t gobble. Like my father, I eat really fast. But I learned that eating fast creates more gas in our belly. So now, I am retraining myself to eat slowly like a gracious queen.

8. Raw Sauerkraut. It contains healthful lactobacilli and enzymes that’s necessary for proper digestive health. Rejuvenative brand is a good source of raw sauerkraut.

9. Add Omega-3 fatty acids in your daily diet. Sources like salmon, flax seeds, pecans, and many more contain omega-3 fatty acids that help reduce inflammation in the body and helps decrease bloating. I take 2 fish oil with lunch and dinner.

10. Take a walk. Moving the body will help move the gas that’s trapped in the belly. If it hurts too much to go out and do the walk, try standing up and pace back and forth in the room you’re in.

Recognizing Feelings and Self-expression

“Look.”

The problem with growing up in a culture where feelings are rarely ever recognized and expressed is that a child can grow up and see themselves as a mind walking around in a body. Expressions are pacified through “intellectualizing”: getting out of the feelings and into the head. Many adults who model this type of treatment towards feelings learn techniques (like I did) of denying their own emotions from surfacing their external in fear of receiving judgement from the people around them or in fear that they might crumble if they choose to expose who they are and how they feel.

I attended a school for a long period of my life where bullies and bullying is not recognized by the teachers and the institution itself. So when problems and conflict between students arise, even the smartest teacher in the school didn’t know how to address the situation where a young student can gain social and emotional learning. It’s tough being a small kid and be bullied by boys and girls alike. When I’d speak to my teachers about it, they’d tell me to be a good Catholic and practice forgiveness. In other words, stuff it down, apologize to the other child even if you didn’t do anything wrong, and pretend like it never happened. I guess it’s better than telling a child to get lost. It was a cycle of experiencing my ego and confidence getting crushed by others for twelve years of attending the same school from kinder till senior high school. I didn’t say anything at home because I saw how my parents were already having a hard time with my elder sister (she was in high school then and I was in grade school). I was scared that I’d get in trouble for saying something and both mom and dad will give me a silent treatment. I was scared to be ignored and that I would feel worse than I already do. I learned to mask myself well both at home and school. I’d just tell my parents about the good things (academic stuff) and leave out all the rest.

By the time I’m in high school, I was a bonafide rebel. I’d skip school whenever I can and when that became obvious to my parents, I got into a lot of trouble. My parents thought there’s something wrong with me. Of course they did. They’d have a one way communication (talking-back-is-disrespectful) “blow out” sessions with me. For what it’s worth, I liked the ‘attention’ they were giving me but at the same time it makes me want to isolate myself even more and go far far away. I still didn’t have the nerve to tell them what’s going on with me. In my head, it would be like betraying myself and my hard work of masking. I was scared to lose the toughness that I needed to survive that God awful school environment.

In 2002, I graduated from high school and moved on to college. It’s such a relief to be in an environment where you are either admired or not seen. I had my first long term relationship (lasted for 5 years) with a guy whom I loved from my head. Everybody I knew were dating, so should I, I thought. Not recognizing and honoring my feelings back then has taught me a great deal of control: control on myself and control on the other person. I mastered stewing my feelings until it builds up and eventually boils over to a point of explosion. It felt good to explode and release the tension but at the same time, I felt the guilt that came along with it. That relationship did not last long because we weren’t real with each other.

I hated myself for being so horrible with myself and not really knowing how to create the change that I wanted to create in my life.

When I moved to the US and started working, I met a lot of cool people. I began to feel appreciated and valued. Thank you. You know who you are. One of the most remarkable events that happened to me during that phase of my life was when I recognized my own feelings of love, grief, and jealousy through the relationship that I have with one of my best friends (who is now my husband).

It’s pretty awesome being married to a man who has the same initiative as I do of working together to keep the practice of conscious partnering alive in the relationship. I can be angry without feeling judged. I can express my anger without exploding. I can say I love you from my heart and not be ashamed about it–or think of it as weakness. I can be happy and not associate it with shame. I can say ‘no’ without feeling guilty that I did not satisfy the need of the other person. I’m learning to let go of whatever control I think I have over something or someone. My relationship with my family has gotten so much better and secured.

Over the weekend, I attended a heart-opening ceremony where I saw my guide for the first time in 6 months. I wouldn’t lie, I get nervous every time I see him, thinking to myself, ‘oh boy, what is he going to see in me and reveal this time?’ He’s always spot on and doesn’t miss a thing. He saw how I disappear inside of myself and lose my expression when I interact with someone (in the most unobvious way to me). I am not aware that I do it. With his help I was able to dive in and navigate past the surface of my own darkness and sadness. I was able to get to a place of recognition and face the emotion that was laying underneath the surface of sadness, which was none other than emptiness. I got clarity. Why I fear emptiness is what I am exploring for the next months by practicing awareness of my own disappearances inside–it always starts with recognizing your own patterns and catching yourself in the act. I have to remind myself to handle it carefully and with respect because I know that I can be harsh with myself sometimes.

If you are like me who wants to break the habit of intellectualizing your emotions, see if you can find a person whom you trust and feel safe with (he or she can be a family member, a friend, or your partner) whom you can practice talking to about the things that bother you and notice the emotions that comes a long with it. Most of the time, the reason why we feel that we can’t express ourselves is that we don’t feel safe to express. Instead of ignoring the feelings, stay with it, recognize it. Stuffing seems like an easier route than facing who we are but it doesn’t do us any good, it can be damaging both physically and psychologically (ex. I know people who look 10 years older than their real age caused by stuffing so much of who they really are and how they really feel–it’s hard to pretend and mask the real self all the time). It can be destructive. Felt feelings bring emotional energy. How can we use this energy in a constructive way? We can use it to improve our relationships with the people outside ourselves, our friends for example. It is only when we are being ourselves, expressing, that we can truly deepen our relationship with another human being.

I Am Longing

I am sitting under the sun on our balcony. I am sitting under the sun and I am breathing as I let this moment sink in. I am sitting under the sun. This makes me feel content and happy with my life in this moment.

Lately I’ve been having this intense feeling of longing to hold a child in my arms. It feels like a sudden rush of hollowness in the pit of the stomach, then loneliness followed by an urge to feed the longing.

I get present, the longing goes away but the feeling of loneliness stays. It stays until I find something in my reality to mask my loneliness then it goes away somehow. It’s been a cycle of just this.

I get present and I realize that there are a few more journeys that are waiting to happen before I can continue to explore the meaning of this…this longing. There are a few more things that my partner and I want to accomplish before we bring our creation to this world. Ultimately my own desire is for my heart to have less or no hatred at all before I become a mother. There are a few people from my past and my present that are swimming in my head that I would like to make peace with. Even if they are not in my life now, I want nothing but to forgive them and forgive myself for still carrying this load. I’d like to feel that freedom inside.

I continue to be amazed by the changes that are happening in my life. It certainly becomes more real every day. Real, meaning, I am slowly feeling the surface of the Earth, the ground, and discovering more meaning here. Here in between heaven and Earth. I am opening up to more emotions everyday, I am learning what they are and how and when to approach (and NOT to approach) them through trial and error. I am learning to embrace womanhood while I continue to nurture my inner Peter Pan. I continue to discover what it is to be a part of this, to be a part of a you, and all that surrounds us. And you know what? It does take a lot of patience, understanding, and motivation to play in this playground. My breath constantly reminds me that I am here with a body equipped to survive, this is my motivation.

Now I feel that my writing has come to an end and I leave you with my thanks for allowing me to share this with you.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Denise

This is where I am today, in this moment.