• 24Apr

    EFFECT OF STRESS BREAKDOWN ON THE SEXUAL RELATIONSHIP

    One of the early symptoms of stage three breakdown is an inability to tolerate high levels of sensory stimulation. Previously enjoyable stimulation can become disagreeable and actually uncomfortable. Sexual stimulation, likewise, can become disagreeable.
    In this stage of stress breakdown, men and women, particularly women, who previously enjoyed an active sex life, can be turned off sex for no reason apparent to either partner. The real reason is, of course, simply that the nervous system cannot tolerate high levels of stimulation. However, it is rare that couples have the insight to accept this as an explanation and leave it at that. If they did, there would be less unhappiness arising as a result of what these couples usually wrongly see as a failure of their sexual relationship.
    Some women who are accustomed, at times, to having sexual intercourse with their husbands without orgasm, may be satisfied, when they are suffering from stress breakdown symptoms, with the warmth of close contact without orgasm. ‘I just don’t want to be bothered with feeling anything’, she says. Unfortunately, this turning off sex may be misinterpreted, usually by both of them.
    There are always enough unresolved difficulties between husband and wife in any marriage which can be used to explain why one or both of them seem to have lost interest in each other sexually. Pressed for an explanation for the current lack of sexual interest, wife or husband might bring up one of their old, unresolved conflicts as a reason. The other partner might erroneously believe, then, that it is necessary to solve this particular problem in order to restore the former sexually-satisfying status quo. When this problem seems to be irresolvable, he or she may feel deceived or humiliated, hurt and rejected.
    In our society, where it is culturally acceptable or normal for women to lose interest in sexual activity at times in their lives, a relatively young man who begins to lose interest in sexual relationships with his wife is usually suspected of having another woman, or of being mentally ill. It is often the wrong assumptions and misinterpretations in this situation which lead to trouble. Take, for example, the case where a couple was both experiencing stage three symptoms, behaving in unusual ways, responding strangely. He turns off sex, she thinks he has another woman (he hasn’t); she decides to behave in a way entirely inappropriate for her and goes out and picks up a casual lover. Such an out-of-character change in behaviour is not uncommon in third stage breakdown.
    The marriage might then fail, not on the basis of the primary lack of sexual interest, but because of the unfortunate responses which might result.
    *60/129/5*
    Filed under: Anti Depressants-Sleeping Aid
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  • 21Apr

    LOSS OF THE ‘LAW OF STRENGTH’ IN CONDITIONED REFLEXES UNDER CONDITIONS OF SEVERE STRESS BREAKDOWN

    In stage three stress breakdown the law of strength of the nervous system no longer operates; the more intense the stimuli coming in to the nervous system in preparation for eating, the less the response might be. The proper reception of food into the stomach and the efficient initiation of the appropriate stomach, gall bladder and pancreatic responses to the food, might well be interfered with. Thus real difficulties with the initial handling of food could arise as a symptom in third stage stress breakdown. Such a disorder would usually be described as nervous dyspepsia.There is a reflex concerned with the elimination of faeces, which we human beings are able to inhibit to some extent. This is the gastro-colic reflex. When food reaches the stomach, the large bowel automatically increases the rate of propulsion of its contents towards the rectum. Thus our bowels usually move after breakfast. However, if we don’t eat breakfast, the regular association of eating breakfast at that time of day will result in a bowel movement anyway, because the nervous system has been conditioned to move the bowels first thing in the morning.We have usually learned to inhibit this reflex later in the day. Most people find they don’t have to move their bowels after lunch at work. Some people do, some don’t. We have therefore learned how to inhibit this reflex when it is socially inappropriate for our bowels to move. We can see that the task we set the nervous system with regard to when we will allow elimination of faeces is very complex, and it is not difficult to imagine that malfunction of these conditioned reflexes in third stage stress breakdown might be responsible for abnormal large bowel activity. This disordered state is usually diagnosed as irritable bowel syndrome.
    *37/129/5*

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  • 17Apr

    CANCER AND AGING: BREAST CANCER AND LUNG CANCER

    Breast Cancer
    In 1990 in the United States, 43,391 women died of breast cancer. Tests for early signs of this disease also are controversial. If, as a woman, you have a family history of breast cancer, ask your doctor when, how, and how often you should be tested. Self-examination of the breasts and mammography has saved lives through early detection. But some doctors rate the tests as ineffective, saying much is missed in self-exams. Because of denser breast tissue in younger women, mammograms don’t always reveal cancerous sites.
    Dr. Eyre urges that initial mammograms be taken at age 40, then – depending on the study’s results, the patient’s risk factors, and family history – every 2 years until age 50, and yearly after that.
    Some risk factors for breast cancer reportedly include alcohol consumption, a high-fat diet, and obesity. Researchers are testing a diet low in animal fats as a possible preventive. Detection is difficult: “Of women who get breast cancer,” Dr. Eyre says, “seventy percent have no known or identifiable risk factor.”
    Lung Cancer
    “In America, statistics show that smoking accounts for 90 percent of lung cancer in men and 85 percent in women,” Dr. Eyre says.
    The American Cancer Society projects that lung cancer will kill 94,000 men and 59,000 women this year, and it cites a terrifying mortality rate rise since 1960 – up by 104 percent in men and 452 percent in women! And a jump in lung cancer for the young is almost certain: a new study by the University of Michigan showed a 2 percent rise in smoking among schoolchildren in the 8th, 10th and 12th grades.
    *21/266/5*
    Filed under: Cancer
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  • 12Apr

    RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS: DEFINE AND ASSESS THE PROBLEM

    To confront a problem, you first need to identify it. Although this may appear to be the obvious first step, it is a step that many people fail to take, and, once attempted, it is a step that often proves more difficult to take than people think.
    As an example, suppose you are frustrated because you are having difficulty removing lids from jars. It may be that the physical act of removing the lids is your problem, but consider that this is easily remedied by calling upon other people to help you or by purchasing an assistive device. If you ask for and obtain assistance from someone else or if you purchase an assistive device and are pleased with the results, then the physical act was the problem, and it has been solved. If using these appliances or asking for assistance makes you feel dependent and helpless, however, the problem is not your inability to remove the jar lids but your response to the need to seek assistance with а task that formerly you could perform easily on your own. In that case, identifying the problem becomes more difficult.
    Before you can address it, you must recognize that a problem exists. Before you can solve a problem, you must properly identify it. Solving each of the problems identified above requires different coping strategies. As a general guideline, recognize that there will be times when you will need to think carefully about your own feelings to identify the problem properly.
    Assessing a problem is a different matter, in that assessment can best be carried out when you are as informed as possible about factual matters related to the problem. Being informed is particularly important if a physical limitation becomes a major problem, and that is one reason we recommend that you learn as much as you can about arthritis and its possible complications.
    Consider this scenario: You have numbness in your fingers that wakes you up at night. Consequently, your sleep is disturbed, and you are constantly fatigued. If you think that feeling sleepy is your major problem, you are mistaken. Instead, numbness-the cause of your restless nights- is the origin of your difficulties. Rather than resorting to taking sleeping pills, a better course would be to pause to identify the problem properly and then to assess it. Seek more information. Dig deep. If you do, you will learn that inflammation in the wrists sometimes causes carpal tunnel syndrome, and you will also learn that wearing a wrist splint at night or taking an injection of a corticosteroid can make the numbness disappear, allowing more restful sleep. The combination of proper identification and appropriate information, then, can often lead to proper treatment and resolution of a problem.
    There will definitely be times when you’ll need to consult more than one source of information to assess a problem. When you are consulting a physician, for example, you may want to obtain an opinion from a different physician (a second opinion) to satisfy yourself that you have enough information to assess and address the problem. Sometimes you’ll want to talk with someone else just to get a fresh perspective on the problem. These are fine strategies, but a word of caution is in order here: It is important to avoid over-intellectualizing a problem. If you spend all of your energy analyzing a problem, you will not move any closer to addressing it or solving it. Reading every available book and article on a subject or consulting numerous physicians (doctor shopping) is an exaggerated version of a healthy analysis of your arthritis.
    *33/209/5*
    Filed under: Arthritis
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  • 11Apr

    ASTHMA AND HOME ENVIRONMENT: MOULD AND CHILDREN’S ROOMS AND TOYS

    Don’t allow your asthmatic child to take a fluffy toy to bed because it will attract dust and mites. If the child wants a soft toy, it should be of a washable fabric and laundered regularly.Consider the following advice from Sally, the mother of an asthmatic two-year-old:We have two identical rag dolls, so when one is being washed and dried the other one is used. My daughter will not go to bed without her doll and she has not yet realized there are two in circulation. Before I had the idea of rotating duplicate dolls, there would be a terrible scene at bedtime whenever the only one was in the wash. Because she is a bad asthmatic, I tried to introduce a wooden animal as the favourite toy, but it was firmly rejected on the grounds that it was not cuddly. I can see her point, so we have solved the problem by regular washings and airings.MouldIt is important for allergy sufferers not to be exposed to mould and spores. Make sure both indoor and outdoors drains have no seepage and there is adequate air circulation under the house and in all rooms. Bathrooms and laundries should be fitted with strong exhaust fans.Mould grows in warm, damp climates or in rooms that do not get any sunlight. Old houses frequently have problems with mould, particularly in bathrooms. If you have rooms that cannot be made mould-proof, check them regularly for mould growth. Anti-mould solutions may be effective in controlling persistent growth of mould. Cupboards and other storage areas should be well ventilated and cleaned and aired regularly. Mould can grow on plants and in soil, so indoor plants may have to to be avoided.*34\148\2*

    Filed under: Asthma
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  • 01Apr

    HEART AND ITS FUNCTIONS

    The human heart retains its priority among all the important organs of the human body because it is responsible for supplying blood to the entire human system, which is essential for the sustenance of our lives. Thus, it is of utmost importance that we should make every effort to familiarize ourselves with the heart and its functions.The human heart is a small muscular organ situated in the centre of the chest, a little to the left. In size, it is roughly the size of a clenched fist and weighs about 350 gms. Since it is such an important and delicate organ, it is protected by the chest bone (sternum) in front.Internally, the heart is divided into 4 chambers, and has four major valves. The upper two chambers are called the atria and the lower two, the ventricles. The right atrium receives impure or deoxygenated blood (blood which has been deprived of its oxygen content by the tissues) via veins from the entire body. This blood goes to the right ventricle which contracts and pumps it through the pulmonary arteries (blood vessels) connecting the heart to the lungs where it is oxygenated. The oxygenated or purified blood from the lungs goes to the left atrium via the pulmonary veins (the only veins in the human body to carry oxygenated blood) and into the left ventricle which contracts and pumps it with tremendous force throughout the body and supplies it to billions of tissues which make up the human body. This is how blood circulates in the human body.As the heart is continuously working, it also requires oxygen and nutrition which is transported by the blood. Hence, the heart has its own blood supply. Blood is supplied to the heart through vessels called coronary arteries. There are two coronary arteries, the right and the left. The left coronary artery further branches into the left anterior descending coronary artery (LAD) which descends down in front of the heart, and the left circumflex coronary artery (LCx) which encircles the heart from behind. The right coronary artery (RCA) supplies blood to the front and back of the right side of the heart. All these coronary arteries have connections between themselves. The heart is mostly made up of a strong muscle tissue called myocardium which works continuously like a tireless pump, day and night, throughout a man’s lifetime. It beats about 72 times a minute, and if we calculate the number of minutes in our lifetime, it amounts to about 2.5 billion beats in a person’s life-span of 70 years. It circulates about 7 litres of blood every minute, amounting to about 700 million litres of blood in a lifetime. During physical exercise and mental stress, this function can increase up to six-fold or even more; thus, making the heart the most efficient pump known to mankind. In spite of all the advances made in the field of science and medical technology, nobody has been able to artificially replicate such a pump.The main function of the heart is to supply blood and essential nutrients to the whole body. Besides supplying blood, oxygen and nutrition to all parts of the body, the circulatory system also regulates the body’s internal temperature, distributes hormones and removes the harmful by-products of metabolism, including a host of other functions.
    Functions of the heart- Supplying blood to the entire body.- Supplying oxygen and calorie nutrients (digested food particles that we eat) to the whole body and to billions of cells in the body.- Supplying vitamins and minerals to cells of the body, without which they cannot survive.- Carrying or pulling blood back to the heart and sending the same to the lungs for a refill of oxygen.- Help in distribution of hormones, neuro-chemicals from one part of the body to another.- Help taking the waste materials to the kidneys for purification of the blood. (The kidneys extract waste from the blood).*4/283/5*

    Filed under: Cardio & Blood- Сholesterol
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