This is not the description of a man.  This is the description of a teenaged frat boy living in a man’s body, not impressing anyone while destroying this poor man’s internal organs.  I blame the fact that I was raised without a father.  No man around to teach me how to change a tire or how not to crumple into a pile of tears in the face of a bully.   I find myself in need of something.  An event.  An obstacle course. A girlfriend to buy diamond earrings for.   Hand-to-hand combat with a sleeping kangaroo.  Anything to set me apart from the immature, irresponsible man-child who nearly set his apartment ablaze while changing a light bulb.

The following are extreme examples of how other cultures separate the men from the boys, many of which separated the smile from my face and the joy from my soul.

Hide and Go Stab

Practically handed a shield, a spear and a pair of crossbows once the umbilical cord was cut. The Spartan boy was taken from his family and trained in the art of war from the tender age of 7.  He is trained to fight and kill for the next 11 years, and once he reaches the age of 18 he undergoes a rite of passage known as the krypteia.  Armed with nothing more than a knife and his arms, he is sent out to kill as many helots (state-owned slaves) as he can and return home without getting caught.

Regular slave to another regular slave:  Could be worse! These fields could be riddled with pimple-faced Spartans just waiting for the chance to jump out of the bushes and shiv you.

Bungee Jumping’s for Suckers

I am proud to say that I have jumped out of an airplane, while it was in the sky.  Okay, well technically the skydiver jumped, I was the quivering mess of a “man” attached to him.  But the point is that I had to courage to let it happen.  I had to testicular fortitude to remain conscious as we fell towards the earth at unbelievable speeds.  Did I scream at frequencies only detectable by dogs and bats?  Yes.  Did my underwear fill to the brim with the evacuated contents of my colon?  Thankfully, no.  Will I ever give bungee jumping a try?  Hells to the no!  I’ll trust a highly skilled professional under a parachute over a giant rubber band any day.  Which is why the land divers of Vanuatu are what medical professional would call “bananas.”
Without a helmet, a crash mat, or a thousand feathered pillows to break their fall, the young men from the Vanuatu archipelago of the South Pacific prove their manliness by jumping from 100-foot wooden towers, with nothing but two tree vines attached to their legs.

The goal is to jump from as high as possible, and stop as close to the ground as possible.  Which means the vines have to be of the perfect length, and the right thickness to support the weight of each jumper.   “The judgments have to be precise. Just 1 ounce too much weight, or 1 inch of dry vine, can cause the vines to snap, slamming the jumper into the ground. A fall can cause serious injury, or even death.” (source)  The manliest of men actually touch the ground, hopefully without shattering their faces.  Umm, no thanks, I’ll just hang out over here, with the girls.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Walkabout

So much more than just a book I was forced to read in high school, and later forced to watch as a movie.  When an aboriginal Australian boy would reach the appropriate age, he was sent on a journey into the desert, alone, for periods lasting up to 6 months.  The Australian desert? Are you shitting me?  I wouldn’t last 6 days in the suburbs!  You know a rite of passage is baddass when your elders hand you a stick, extend their arm, and with a slight grin on their face say “Go ahead, walk.  If you come back, we’ll call you ‘sir’”.

Ant Gloves from Hell

I know what you’re wondering and the answer is “yes,” Ant Gloves from Hell is the greatest band name of all time.  It is also one of the most diabolical tortures-dressed-in-a-rites-of-passage-suit I have ever seen.  Whenever I start complaining that my hair is turning grey or that my love handles are becoming more love handly, I will think of the boys from the Sater-Mawe tribe in the Brazilian Amazon, and I will shut the hell up.

Hanging the Mandans

Have you ever been in so much pain, that you wish you could be knocked unconscious?  Anyone who’s ever rolled an ankle or dislocated their knee knows of the pain I speak.  Now imagine how much pain you’d actually have to be in for your brain to be like “Okay that’s too much, time to shut down”.  It’s quite an amazing gift actually.  Now imagine waking up, the worst of the pain has passed, and then your uncle kicks you in the balls.  This is sort of what the young men from the Native American Mandan tribe had to endure before they were considered true warriors.  First they would fast for three days.  Then they would have wooden splints pierced through their back, their chest and their shoulders, from which they would then be hoisted towards the ceiling on ropes.  Eventually, the warrior-to-be’s brain would grant him the sweet sleep that comes from the pain and loss of blood.  But wait, it gets better!  When the boy wakes up, his pinky finger is chopped off as an offering to the gods.  But wait, it gets better!  The man would then have to run around as the other men of the village ripped out the splints, and not from where they were entered, but from the other side, causing extra damage, making him an extra man.

Mardudjara Manginas

I am extremely thankful that my foreskin was removed when I was tough enough to handle it and baby enough not to remember it.  Not so fortunate are the 15-16-year old boys from the Australian aboriginal Mardudjara tribe.  During their coming of age ceremonies, two tribal moyles slice off the kid’s junk hood.  The elders would then tell the boy to close his eyes and open his mouth, at which point they would feed him his own shaft sleeve.  Once swallowed, they would tell him what he just ate, and that he will now grow up to be strong.  A few months later, just as he started to lose his awkward limp and learned how to smile again, the boy is once again abducted by the people he has come to call “Those f**king a**hole c**k mun**ing s**t squat***ers!”  They drag him to a nearby fire,and with one elder sitting on his chest holding his boy bits, and with one stick jammed in his pee tube to brace the tip of a blade against, a second elder slices his sausage open from tip to scrote.

If you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go vomit my skeleton into a wastebasket now.

Okay, I’m back…now wait, there’s more…

Alright I’m really back this time.  The boy is now considered a man, even though he now has to squat whenever he pees.

I’d love to hear a Mardudjara and a Jew discussing their rites of passage into manhood.

Jew: When I was 13 I had to read from a book, I was thrown a giant party and then handed a giant sack filled with cash.  What did you have to do?

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The cult of Cybele

A cult following that has some ancient Mediterranean flavour.  This cult spread to Rome all the way back in 203 BCE when the Senate adopted Cybele as a state goddess.  However, due to the nature of the cult there was a ban on Roman citizens becoming Galli (priests) until Claudius lifted it in the first century AD.

Cybele was a fertility goddess whose lover, Attis, committed suicide in a fit of rage.  Cybele had Attis resurrected; that is why Cybele is associated with the cycle of death and rebirth.

The bizarre factor comes in to play when the actions of the cult are examined.  The Galli were priests in the cult of Cybele.  These dedicated followers would participate in wild dances to work themselves up in to an orgiastic frenzy and then castrate themselves.  Once their male genitalia was removed they would dress and act like females.   Another strange ritual that the cult of Cybele practiced was the initiation ritual called the taurobolium.  During this a new candidate would stand inside a pit underneath a wooded grate while a bull was sacrificed above them. The blood would then baptize the new initiate to symbolize rebirth and purification.  HBO’s popular historical-drama Rome has a scene depicting this initiation ritual during one of their episodes for anyone interested in watching a reenactment of the taurobolium.

The Rocky Horror Picture Show Cult Following

In 1975 a film called The Rocky Horror Picture Show was released.   The rock-musical film is a creepy story about transsexual aliens. After a while the show began to sell out regularly; and it was noticed that many of the same people were returning.  One extreme fan, Sal Prio, wrote about the cult-film phenomenon and how he has seen it more than 1300 times.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Over time the audience began to yell out slogans during specific scenes; these lines consisted of pop culture references, current events, vulgar jokes and clever puns.  This helped spread the film’s popularity and packed midnight showings began to pop up across the country.  The reason for this massive jump in popularity is not only due to the film, the ‘shadow cast’ was a draw as well.  A ‘shadow cast’ is a group of fans who act out the film in the theater by the screen; they can be witnessed at most showings.  Members of the audience would also show up wearing elaborate drag clothes to resemble characters in the movie.  Many of these fans would join in during popular scenes like the Time Warp dance; and bring various props like toast, water, toilet paper, hot dogs, and rice to throw at specific parts of the film.  Some theaters had to outlaw the throwing of items because the clean up was too difficult.

Presently this cult following is still in existence, but its popularity has waned slightly.  There are showings in most cities, especially on Halloween.  There are also numerous fan sites dedicated to the cult film.  So if you are feeling a bit on the ‘wild side’ one night and have some spare women clothing, look up The Rocky Horror Picture Show.

Furries

This cult-following comprises of men and women who have a passion for all things related to furries.  Furries are fictional creatures where animal and sentient human forms are melded together.  They can range from cartoon animals to sentient animal creatures and even walking cat-people. Despite the name, furries do not have to be covered with fur, there are bird and lizard furries as well.  All furries do have certain human-like features with an animal face and other bestial parts like claws, tails, wings, etc.  Furries have various types of human personalities mixed with animal traits.

Furrydom is the furry scene/fan base. This includes fan mags and comic strips; Albedo is a very popular comic book which contains material from different artists and writers. There are furry films, which are films that have a leading furry character.  For example Disney’s Robin Hood is considered a furry film.  A major part of furrydom is the furry art.  There are many furry artists and amateur artists who submit their art to various online websites.  One of the biggest furry art/story web sites is VCL with over 3,000 artists and 20,000 pieces.  Furrydom also hosts conventions where furry fans gather to celebrate all things furry.  Most attendees claim that they go to these gatherings just to socialize with like-minded people.  Some fans take it to the extreme by creating expensive and elaborate full body costumes to wear at these conventions; but the majority of fans only wear partial costumes like tails or ears.  Furry fans can even take part in role playing games where Anthropomorphic characters, known as fursonas, are used.

Most of the controversy surrounding this strange following concerns the sexual nature that surrounds certain aspects of furrydom.   The term ‘yiff’ was created to indicate sexual activity or material (art, comics, etc).  This term also applies to sexual activity/interaction within the furry following (cybersex and traditional).  Many in furrydom believe that this sexual component makes the rest of them look bad.  This is why they use the derogatory term “furvert” to describe these perverted fans.

Trekkies

These fanatical fans of the Star Trek television franchise have been around since the sixties.  But it was not until the first television show was canceled in 1969 and the first convention or ‘con’ was held in 1972 that this cult-following became well known to the public.

Trekkies are comprised of many different Star Trek fan clubs from all of the different Star Trek shows.  The largest fan club is called STARFLEET and it was founded in 1974 as the USS Enterprise Fan Club.  This club states that it comprises of 3,875 members in 217 chapters located around the globe as of July 30, 2009.  These fans tend to wear sci-fi costumes to the trekky cons.  For those of you who do not know what a con is you might remember the SNL skit with William Shatner on trekkies where he told them to get a life. But despite popular belief most trekkies do not speak Klingon fluently and know only a few words; it is the language experts who tend to speak the fictitious language.

While searching for an example of how extreme these “nerds” can be I came across a community located in Alberta, Canada that is actually called Vulcan.  On the tourist website for Vulcan, Alberta there is a list of comparisons between the fictional planet and the Alberta community.  This list comprises of:

a)Both have grain farming and the passage of land down through generations.

b)Natives of both Vulcan County, Alberta and the planet Vulcan share similar humanoid characteristics; however, unlike the 14.9 billion Star Trek Vulcans, the 6,000 plus Vulcan County residents don’t have upswept brows and a greenish tinge due to copper-based blood.

c)Pointy ears seen around vulcan county especially when special occasions.

You can imagine why swarms of trekkies flock to Vulcan’s annual community wide star trek convention held June 12-14 called Galaxyfest.  During their stay trekkies can visit the Space Station shaped Tourist Information Center.  Or try out a virtual reality game called “TheVulcan Space Adventure”where players take part in a “Starflight Academy” with look alikes of the original Captains as your teachers.

So if you are ever driving in Alberta do not be surprised if you come across a large space ship monument; it is just the town entrance to Vulcan.

Jediism

This is another bizarre cult following that is attracted to science-fiction.   This group centers around the jedi who were created by George Lucas for the Star Wars films. This cult following took it a step further than their interstellar rivals, the trekkies, by forming a religion.  The use of online forums enabled them to accomplish this.  The followers claim to understand that the films are fiction, but they stress that certain aspects about the jedi had real spiritual significance.  George Lucas did research various religions while writing the story for the saga.  For example they believe that the ‘force’ (the energy flowing throughout the universe) is similar to the Holy Spirit or Qi.   Unlike these religions, the Force does not require prayer or worship; but many Jedi do practice meditation.  In Jediism, the most common explanation of the Light and Dark sides of the Force are reflected by the practitioner’s emotional state or character.  They believe that compassion and helping others are good traits while it is wrong to focus solely on self improvement and to be selfish.

Jediism has a code for jedi to use as a guideline in their lives; and a creed which was taken from one of the Star Wars novels:

Jedi are the guardians of peace in the Galaxy.

Jedi use their powers to defend and protect, never to attack others.

Jedi respect all life, in any form.

Jedi serve others rather than rule over them, for the good of the Galaxy.

Jedi seek to improve themselves through knowledge and training.

One interesting event involving jediism that I found occurred in November 2006 when two people wearing Star Wars robes and another wearing a Chewbacca costume demanded that the UN rename the “International Day of Tolerance” to “Interstellar Day of Tolerance”.  I guess that some people take their favourite films a little too serious.

While I did enjoy being a part f the boy scouts as a child I am not sure how “far out there” I am willing to go in order to find another group of people to hang out with. Hopefully this list of notable odd cult followings will inspire you to keep your weird hobbies hidden so that everyone will think that you are normal.

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How to Win Friends and Influence People- Dale Carnegie

Though it may sound like a manual for manipulation, How to Win Friends and Influence People is still one of the most inspirational and useful books dealing in interpersonal communication, even though it was first published in 1937. The book encourages sincerity and seeking the beauty in people, proposing that we don’t truly influence a person until we like and respect them first. I believe this to be an essential read for those in leadership positions, particularly dealing in things like employee performance management.

The 4 Hour Work Week- Tim Ferriss

Author Tim Ferriss is certainly a sensationalist marketer, yet despite the hype title, the point he makes is that people can reexamine what they want from life and explore possibilities that give them more time to do things they are passionate about. Very often, the boundaries people feel entrapped by are in great part self-imposed. Though the Tim Ferris philosophy is not for everyone, it certainly gives a fresh perspective on the nature of work.

Getting Things Done- David Allen

In 2007, Time Magazine called Getting Things Done “the self-help business book of its time”. Author David Allen gained notoriety in corporate circles with his philosophy on doing more with less stress. Giving helpful guidance in simplifying tasks, managing projects and boosting efficiency, he proposes a workflow process to gain control over all the tasks one needs to get done, and “6 different levels of focus” to help them do it. His method is based on making the information you need to get things done (GTD) easy to store, track and retrieve. By doing the thinking in advance, you essentially generate a series of actions which you can later undertake without any further planning.

7 habits of highly effective people- Stephen R. Covey

Author Stephen R. Covey presents an approach to being effective by consistently doing the things that will bring about the results we are after. The book provides a useful framework for understanding the process of personal development and professional management.

The Artist’s Way- Julia Cameron

The Artist’s Way is a collection of tips and hints from different artists and authors, which were compiled and published by Julia Cameron, as a set of helpful methods for maximizing the creativity and productivity of artists. It offers advice and a 12 week program to activate your creative juices, and is an invaluable guide for anyone embarking on a creative journey or trying to reactivate their artistic engines.

Zen Habits- Leo Babauta

Zen Habits is one of the most visited blogs on the Internet and covers topics like achieving goals, bring productive, organized, GTD, motivation, eliminating debt, saving, eating healthy, living frugally, parenting, happiness, and successfully implementing good habits. Zen Habits “is about finding simplicity in the daily chaos of our lives”, as written by the creator and writer of the blog, Leo Babauta.

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CULTURE-BOUND SYNDROMES

Amok (South Asia)

Amok or running amok is derived from the Malay/Indonesian word amuk, meaning mad with rage. It quite literally is a mad fit of rage where a person who hasn’t shown any previous signs of anger or inclination to violence will suddenly switch into homicidal maniac mode and attempt to kill or seriously injure anyone around them. Their fit will be followed by a bout of amnesia wherein the person will return to their premorbid state (i.e. the state before they went haywire) with no recollection of the incident. This violent outburst is prevalent almost exclusively among males. Episodes of this kind normally end with the attacker being killed by bystanders, or committing suicide. Many researchers theorize that amok is closely related to male honor. Some element of deep shame has prevented them from living an honourable life and running amok is a way of escaping the world (as the perpetrator usually gets killed) as well as re-establishing one’s reputation as a man to be feared and respected.

Koro or Penis Panics –(South Asia, Africa)

Also known as genital retraction syndrome (GRS), koro is a condition in which an individual is overcome with the belief that his/her external genitals are retracting into the body, shrinking, or in some male cases, disappearing entirely. Koro most commonly strikes men, but rare cases are known to involve women and the fear that either their external genitals or nipples are retracting into the body. Though Koro itself is not physically harmful, and no actual retraction has ever taken place, injuries have occurred when koro-stricken men have resorted to apparatuses such as needles, hooks, fishing line, or shoe strings, to prevent the disappearance of their penises. (Typing that sentence just made my guts churn.) Some Western scholars claim that GRS is similar to the Western category of a panic attack, with sexual elaborations. In cultures where sexual anxiety is high and stories exist of death by genital retraction, a man in the right frame of mind could panic at the observation that his genitals are shrinking in response to cold or anxiety.

Pibloktoq or Arctic Hysteria (Arctic Circle)

It is probably safe to assume, that if you live in the Arctic you are already a stark raving mad lunatic. Pibloktoq is a condition that is prevalent in winter (how shocking!) and is exclusive to Eskimo societies living within the Arctic Circle. The condition is characterized by an abrupt dissociative episode of intense hysteria, frequently followed by convulsive seizures and coma lasting up to 12 hours. Symptoms can include intense screaming, uncontrolled wild behavior, depression, coprophagia (i.e. eating feces- nothing like warm poo on a cold day), insensitivity to extreme cold (such as running around in the snow naked), echolalia (senseless repetition of overheard words, e.g. red rum, red rum) and other irrational and dangerous acts. This condition is most often seen in Eskimo women and is linked to vitamin A toxicity (hypervitaminosis A) found in the native Eskimo diet which consists primarily of organ meats, arctic fish and mammal liver.

Grisi Siknis (Central America)

Grisi Siknis is a contagious, culture-bound syndrome that occurs predominantly among the Miskito people of eastern Central America and affects mainly young girls ranging from 15 to 18 years old. According to Dr. Phil Dennis of Texas Tech University, grisi siknis is typically characterized by long periods of anxiety, nausea, dizziness, irrational anger and fear, interlaced with short periods of rapid frenzy, in which the victim “lose[s] consciousness, believe[s] that devils are beating them and trying to have sexual relations with them”. In the majority of cases the victim will try and run away. Miskito tradition, according to Dennis, holds that grisi siknis is caused by the possession of an evil spirit. The victim may view other people as devils, feel no pain for bodily injuries and have absolute amnesia regarding their physical circumstances.

“Some grab machetes or broken bottles to wave off unseen assailants. Other victims are reported to have performed superhuman feats, vomited strange objects such as spiders, hair and coins and spoken in tongues. In some cases the semi-conscious victim will speak the names of the next to be infected, although it is not always accurate.”

Susto (Latin America)

Susto is a cultural illness, specifically a “fright sickness” characterized by a sudden intense fear of a threatening spirit. Most common among adult women (although men and children have also been affected), it is attributed to a “soul loss” resulting from a frightful or traumatic experience. Through this fright, Earth spirits capture a person’s soul removing it from their body, never again to return. Symptoms include fatigue, insomnia, feelings of loss and depression and eating disorders. Traditional Western medicine has not yet recognized susto but there are some similarities between susto and certain anxiety disorders, “post-traumatic stress disorder” and “acute stress disorder” in particular.

Anorexia Nervosa (North America, Western Europe)

Though anorexia mainly affects young girls and women living in Western societies, cases of anorexia are becoming increasingly common in places such as Singapore and China. A survey found that most of the patients tend to be from rich families, thus ruling out malnutrition as a cause, but a result. Anorexia is the severe restriction of food intake, associated with a morbid fear of obesity. In places in the world where food is scarce, the concern about getting fat is…  non-existent. For many anorexics, self-starvation is a way to feel in control. People with anorexia may feel powerless in their everyday lives, but they can control what they eat. Restricting food is a way to cope with painful feelings such as anger, shame, and self-loathing. Methods used to lose weight include excessive exercise, laxative use and purging, as symptoms of bulimia nervosa may overlap.

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Is Depression Different For Men and Women?

Depression is complicated. It is a subjective experience and both men and women do react to it in very different ways. Men will often correlate depression with weakness and loss of emotional control—traits society deems feminine. Most men will not talk about their depression and tend to deal with it in more aggressive ways—traits society usually attributes to be masculine.

Though depression is about twice as likely to affect women, the rate of completed suicide in men is four times higher, though women are more likely to attempt. This is of great concern, as according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), suicide was the ninth leading cause of death in the United States in 1996. As of now, 15% of the population in most developed countries suffers severe depression. Moreover, a recent study has shown that depression actually increases the risk of heart failure in patients with heart disease and according to the CDC, between 70%-89% of sudden cardiac events occur in men.

Symptoms of Depression in Men

• Violent or abusive behavior

• Inappropriate rage

• Escapist behavior, such as over involvement in work or sports

• Risky behavior, such as reckless driving

• Sexual liaisons

• Alcohol or substance abuse

• More frequent thoughts of suicide

Source: mayoclinc.com

Jed Diamond, therapist and author of ‘Male Menopause’ also adds these symptoms to male depression:

• Feels others are to blame

• Feels angry, irritable, and ego inflated

• Feels suspicious and guarded

• Creates conflicts

• Overtly or covertly hostile

• Attack when feeling hurt

• Demands respect from others

• Compulsive time keeper

• Sleeps too little

• Needs control at all costs

• Feels ashamed for who they are

• Frustrated if not praised enough

• Terrified to talk about weaknesses and doubts

• Strong fear of failure

• Needs to be “top dog” to feel safe

• Uses alcohol, TV, sports, and sex to self medicate

• Believe their problems could be solved only if their (spouse, co-worker, parent, friend) would treat them better

• Constantly wonder, “Am I being loved enough?”

Also visit mcmanwec.com for a very interesting article on male depression

Treating Male Depression

The first step to treating and curing male depression is asking for help. Male depression often goes untreated because men feel ashamed to speak up. But depression hurts men just as much as it does women, and deserves as much of a chance to be treated accordingly. Regular exercise, hydration and proper nutrition helps increase energy, boost serotonin levels and also helps regulate sleep. A healthy body promotes a healthy mind.

Treatments

Depression Therapies

1. Psychotherapy or Talk Therapy for Depression

2. Depression ECT Therapy, or Electroconvulsive Therapy

3. Depression Light Therapy

4. Vagus Nerve Stimulation (VNS Therapy)

5. rTMS

6. Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation

Herbal Treatments

1. St. John Wort (Hypericum perforatum)

2. Hyperforin

3. 5HTP (5-hydroxytryptophan)

4. Ginkgo Biloba

5. Omega-Joy

Medication Treatments

1. Tricyclic drugs

2. MAOI(Monoamine oxidase inhibitors )

3. SSRIs antidepressant medication

4. Antidepressant

5. Antipsychotic Medication

6. Antianxiety medications

7. Anticonvulsants

For more detailed information about these medications visit: http://www.depression-guide.com/treatment-of-depression.htm

Alternative Treatments

1. Exercise or Yoga

2. Meditation

3. Clarocet NRI

4. Aromatherapy

5. Vitamins

6. Diet factors

Source: depression-guide.com

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Robert Schumann

Photo credit: Martin Missfeldt

Famous music composer, Robert Schumann, spent the end of his life experiencing auditory hallucinations. Auditory hallucinations usually manifest themselves through one or more voices in the sufferer’s head and are often associated with psychotic disorders such as schizophrenia. Schumann’s diaries state that he suffered perpetually from imagining that he had the note “A5” sounding in his ears. The musical hallucinations became increasingly complex. One night he claimed to have been visited by the ghost of Schubert and wrote down the music that he was hearing. Thereafter, he began making claims that he could hear an angelic choir singing to him. As his condition worsened, the angelic voices transmogrified into devil voices. Much of the music created during his “madness” was rumored to have been destroyed by his wife Clara and their close friend Johannes Brahms. However, some years later Brahms published Opus 23, a piece for four hands called Variations on a Theme by Robert Schumann in honor of the composer.

Jim Morrison

Indians scattered on Dawn’s highway bleeding,
Ghosts crowd the young child’s fragile eggshell mind

If you’ve seen the Oliver Stone movie or Wayne’s World 2, than you are no doubt familiar with a recurring theme in much of Jim Morrison’s lyrics and poems. That of the family of bleeding Indians he saw in an accident on the side of the highway as a child. Interestingly, his family does not recall it happening in the way he told it. In one of Morrison’s biographies No One Here Gets Out Alive, his sister is quoted as saying “He enjoyed telling that story and exaggerating it. He said he saw a dead Indian by the side of the road and I don’t even know if that’s true”. The incident occurred in 1947, when Morrison was only four years old. He claims it was the most formative event of his life and that the spirit of an Indian, a shaman, had entered his soul. Throughout the rest of his short life, he would continue to have a strong attachment to Native American culture and his work was heavily influenced by this traumatic memory.

Lewis Carroll

A guy writes a kid’s book about a little girl who chases white rabbits, time running backwards, tea parties with Mad Hatters and evil card queens obsessed with chopping off people’s heads and everyone assumes the writer was on drugs. Okay, so opium was rampant at the time Lewis Carroll (really Charles Lutwidge Dodgson) was writing the book. But some medical researchers suspect that Carroll’s widely imaginative story was not necessarily the product of month-long benders, but brain conditions called micropsia and macropsia, coined the “Alice in Wonderland Syndrome” in 1955, after the book. Sufferers of this condition see objects around them growing or shrinking.

Some have concluded that Carroll was a lifetime sufferer of this condition. Author Sadi Ranson, who has written widely about Carroll, suggests that he may have suffered from temporal lobe epilepsy in which the person won’t fall completely unconscious but their reality can become very altered. Many of the author’s symptoms mimicked experiences in Alice in Wonderland.

William Blake

William Blake claimed to have experienced visions his whole life. They were often associated with beautiful religious themes and imagery. Blake believed that he was personally instructed and encouraged by Archangels to create his artistic works, which he claimed were actively read and enjoyed by those same Archangels.

Salvador Dali- Paranoiac Critical Method

Unlike those who couldn’t escape their visions, Salvador Dalì was inducing hallucinations in order to create art. Freud’s theory of the subconscious became the basis of his “paranoiac-critical method” of painting. Dalì hallucinated images of his own subconscious desires and libidinal urges to create these sensational, twisted alternate universes on canvas. Dalì called the paintings of this period “hand-painted dream photographs”. These photographs were painted representations of the images he would see in his paranoid state. Though he was not a true paranoid, he claims to have been able to simulate a paranoid state. Well done.

Joan of Arc

I include Joan of Arc because her visions most definitely triggered her actions and her lifetime’s work. Claimed to have been sent by ‘the King of Heaven’ to raise the siege at Orleans and have Charles crowned King, Joan of Arc accomplished her callings at the young age of seventeen showing unparalleled courage and strength on the battlefield. Joan claimed to hear the voices of Saints whom were the force that guided her. She was resolved on obeying these messages as she believed they were sent directly from the Big G himself. She first began hearing voices when she was thirteen, and soon after had visions of St. Francis, St Catherine and St Margaret. When put on trial, she told the courts she had even kissed their feet, and stated how good they smelled (the Saints, not the feet). Though no one can deny her incredible almost miraculous feats, in more recent times, medical researchers have claimed that she could have suffered a panoply of different diseases that caused her to see such holy vivid images including schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, bovine tuberculosis and temporal lobe epilepsy.

Famous Hallucinating Machine: The Dreamachine

I came across the dreamachine in researching Naked Lunch author William S. Burroughs, to see whether his work had been influenced by hallucinations. If you’ve ever read Naked Lunch, or seen the film adaptation, you’d think no one in their right mind could have thought up something that messed up. However, it seems that using what is called the “cut-up technique” [watch Burroughs on cut-ups] and years and years of using morphine and heroin, may be more telling of the book’s utter bizarreness. The dreamachine was created in 1958 by artist Brion Gysin, a colleague and friend of  Burroughs.  Many have used the dream machine in order to induce altered perceptions of reality including both men and others in their artisitc circle.  Rumor has it that when Kurt Cobain was found dead, he had locked himself in a room for 72 hours with a dreamachine. The machine had apparently put him into some sort hypnotic trance that drove him to kill himself. The whole thing turned out to be a hoax, but I thought it was worth mentioning.

In case you’re wondering how it works, one sits in front of the dreamachine with their eyes closed while the pulsating light stimulates the optical nerve and alters the brain’s electrical oscillations. The dreamachine is made from a cylinder with slits cut in the sides. The cylinder is placed on a record turntable and rotated at 78 or 45 revolutions per minute. A light bulb is suspended in the center of the cylinder and the rotation speed allows the light to come out from the holes at a constant frequency, situated between 8 and 13 pulses per second. The “viewer” experiences increasingly bright, complex patterns of color behind their closed eyelids. The patterns become shapes and symbols, swirling around, until the viewer feels surrounded by colors. It is claimed that viewing a dream machine allows one to enter a hypnagogic state. This experience may sometimes be quite intense, but to escape from it, one needs only open one’s eyes.

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From 1953 until the early 1970’s, Project MK-ULTRA was the CIA’s code name for a mind-control research program run by the Office of Scientific Intelligence. Their purpose was to study mind-control, interrogation methods and behaviour modification. In order to manipulate mental states and alter brain function, doctors administered various types of drugs such as LSD, mescaline, heroin, morphine, psilocybin, scopolamine, marijuana, alcohol, and sodium pentothal, usually without the subject’s awareness or consent.

Experiments were tested on CIA employees, military personnel, doctors, government agents, prostitutes, members of the public and mentally ill patients [source].

Research and goals for the project included:
• Substances which would enhance the ability of individuals to withstand privation, torture and coercion during interrogation and so-called “brain-washing”.
• Substances which would promote illogical thinking and impulsiveness to the point where the recipient would be discredited in public.
• Materials and physical methods which would produce amnesia for events preceding and during their use.
• Substances which would produce physical disablement such as paralysis of the legs, acute anemia, etc.
• A material which would cause mental confusion of such a type that the individual under its influence would find it difficult to maintain a fabrication under questioning.

Senate Select Committee on Intelligence and Committee on Human Resources. August 3, 1977. Retrieved on 2007-08-22.

In 1964, the project was renamed MK-SEARCH. This project attempted to create a “perfect truth drug” which could then be used to interrogate suspected Soviet spies during the Cold War.

In 1973, CIA Director Richard Helms ordered all MK-ULTRA files be destroyed. A full investigation of MK-ULTRA will therefore never be possible.

Project MK-ULTRA was the inspiration behind The Manchurian Candidate.

The Stanford Prison Experiment

Led by famous psychologist Philip Zimbardo, the Stanford Prison Experiment, conducted in 1971, was executed in order to show how roles define behaviour. Zimbardo tried to demonstrate that prison guards and convicts would behave in ways they thought was required. Participants were offered $15 per day and the study was to last two weeks.

Twenty-four male subjects, considered to be most mentally and emotionally stable, were chosen. Zimbardo divided the participants evenly into guards and prisoners, at random. He himself was going to take on the role of prison warden. The guards were given one rule: no physical punishment allowed, but other than that, they were able to run the prison as they see fit. The guards were outfitted in military attire and sunglasses and also provided batons. The prisoners, in contrast, were dressed in smocks and refused permission to wear underwear.

Prisoners were only to be addressed by their identity numbers and also had a small chain around one ankle. On the first day of the experiment, prisoners were instructed to stay at home and wait to be ‘called’ for the start of the experiment. Their homes were raided by the real Paolo Alto police, they were charged with armed-robbery, read their rights and had their fingerprints and mug shots taken. They were strip-searched and taken to the basement of Stanford: ‘the mock prison’.

The guards were brutal, humiliating and demoralizing to the prisoners. By the second day prisoners were already revolting, wanting to be let out. Zimbardo and his colleagues were also beginning to be affected by the experiment, trying to keep the revolting prisoner subjects in detention and siding with guards.
On the sixth day, Christina Maslach, a recent Stanford Ph.D., (also the fiancée of Zimbardo), was brought in to interview the guards and prisoners. She was stunned by what she saw and demanded that the experiment be terminated. Apparently, Maslach was the only person to even raise any concerns out of the fifty external visitors that had come to examine the experiment.
Zimbardo certainly managed to prove his theory, revealing a disturbing truth about the potential for evil that lies in human nature.

Aversion Therapy for Curing Homosexuality

Aversion therapy is a psychiatric treatment where a patient is exposed to a stimulus while simultaneously being subjected to some form of discomfort (the therapy undergone by Stanley Kubrick’s twisted character Alex DeLarge in the 1971 classic, A Clockwork Orange). Used in order to ‘cure’ homosexuality, it was only in 2006 that aversion therapy to treat homosexuality was considered to be a violation of the codes of conduct and professional guidelines of the American Psychological Association and American Psychiatric Association.

In 1962, 29 year old Captain Billy Clegg-Hill of the Royal Tank Regiment, was arrested in a police swoop in Southampton and sentenced to six months of aversion therapy. After three days of therapy, he died. Doctors and authorities covered up his death, claiming he died of “natural causes”. But thirty four years after his death, the doctor who conducted the post-mortem confirmed that he had actually died from a coma and convulsions resulting from injections of apomorphine, a potent vomit-inducing drug. Doctor’s would show Clegg-Hill pin-up pictures of men, then inject him with apomorphine, causing him to become violently ill. The doctor’s believed that he would eventually associate men with nausea and vomiting. The idea of homosexuality would be so repugnant that he would subsequently become straight.

In 1965, 19 year old Peter Price was sent to a psychiatric hospital to treat his homosexuality. Doctors forced him to lie in a bed filled with his own vomit, urine and feces for three days while they would show him images of half-naked men, inject him with drugs and play tapes telling him he was a ‘dirty queer’. He was also administered electric shocks, while being shown erotic pictures of attractive men.

The Monster Study

Dubbed the ‘monster study’, the experiment was conducted by speech expert Wendell Johnson, led in part by graduate student Mary Tudor Jacobs in 1939. Johnson believed that stuttering was a learned behavior, attributed to outside factors such as constant criticism from a parent to its child for even the slightest speech imperfections. 22 orphan children with no prior speech impediment were chosen for the experiment. Wendell’s goal was to induce the disorder in orphans.

One group of orphans received praise for positive speech therapy whereas the other group was belittled, badgered and told they were stutterers. By the end of the study, none of the test subjects in the negative therapy group became stutterers, but the experience caused them low self-esteem and irreparable damage.

Little Albert

In order to determine whether fear was innate or a conditioned response, father of behaviorism, John Watson, used a nine month old orphan he nicknamed Little Albert to test his theory. Watson began the experiment by placing Little Albert in the middle of a room. A white laboratory rat was placed near Albert, who was allowed to play with it. Albert was not scared.

For two months he was exposed to various things without any sort of conditioning; a white rabbit, a monkey, masks etc… Watson placed Albert in a room again with the rat, however this time, when Albert would touch the rat, Watson would make loud sounds behind him, such as the striking of a steel bar with a hammer. When this occurred, Albert would get frightened and begin to cry. Watson continued to do this until eventually, Albert became very distressed whenever exposed to the rat. Eventually, Albert associated anything fluffy or white with the loud noise. Little Albert was never desensitized to his fear and was released from the hospital before Watson was able to do so.

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Before You Interrogate

Whether it’s your child, an employee, a criminal suspect or a POW, you should have as complete a psychological profile of them as possible before you even begin your interrogation. The more you know about them the better your questions will be, and the more you can use certain information against them as leverage. It also really helps to have an in depth knowledge of human psychology and behaviour to properly interrogate a subject. Get the info, and lock ‘em up! (until pardons release them, of course…)

According to a “confidential” army manual on “Interrogation Procedures,” which I confidentially found on the internet, the following are some examples of human behaviour which are useful to know as an interrogator:

1. Human beings tend to be talkative, especially after harrowing experiences. If someone accidentally crashed their car into a truck filled with live chickens, its best to ask them questions about the experience as soon as possible, while the traumatic images and emotions are fresh in their brain, and while they still feel the need to tell the story.
2. Human beings tend to be deferential when confronted by superior authority, and are therefore inclined to be cooperative with persons demonstrating power. This is usually why kids crack easily when interrogated by parents, teachers, the police, or anyone significantly older or larger than they are.
3. Human beings seek opportunities to rationalize acts about which they feel guilty.
4. Human beings, under pressure, tend to forget what they have been taught, especially if such lessons have not been practiced to the point of becoming habitual. For example, if a soldier has learned interrogation resistance techniques, while under the excitement and strain of capture, he or she will forget what they’ve learned and are more vulnerable to questioning.
5. Human beings tend to attach less importance to their own information when someone else demonstrates that he too possesses the same or related information.
6. Human beings tend to appreciate flattery and exoneration from guilt.
7. Human beings resent the belittling of cherished individuals or ideals, and may be aroused to the extent of sharp verbal defense.

When I read through these I had to laugh. They reminded me of the time when three of my idiot friends and I were being interrogated at the age of 17 for vandalising cars. The detective must have been well versed in dumb-teenager psychology, ‘cause he used nearly every one of these examples to get me to spill the beans.

1. Humans are talkative: I was dragged into the police station just hours after they caught one of my friends near the scene of the crime. I was still slightly traumatized from being chased through the neighbourhood backyards by the damaged car owner and his huge friends.
2. Humans are deferential: He was a big cop with a big gun. I don’t think “deferential” quite covers how I was feeling that day. I was feeling a little closer to “pooping in my pants.”
3. Forgetful under stress:  Under the stress of being caught, the stress of the big cop with the big gun, and the stress of my mother being in the room, I completely forgot the whole “right to remain silent” thing. This is the greatest lesson I learned during the whole experience, one which I will pass on to my kids should they get themselves in trouble: Whenever the cops question you, NEVER forget that “YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO REMAIN SILENT!” It’s the first right they read you, and there I was, worried that I’d get in more trouble if I kept quiet. Idiot!
4. Info no longer valuable: When the detective told me that one of my buddies had already sang about who was there and what they did, giving names and street locations, I felt that my info was no longer important and went on to confirm what they “already knew.”
5. Flattery and exoneration: When the cop told me I had lovely blue eyes, I told him everything he needed to know. Just kidding, but he did say that cooperation would look good in his report, which may affect the judge’s decision when sentencing. If I was in the mob, I wouldn’t have lived to be 18.
6. Belittling of cherished individuals: The detective never told me that he banged my mom last night, but if he had I would have been upset.

During the Interrogation

“America’s Policy should be to oppose torture, to honour the Geneva conventions, for several reasons. One is, it’s almost always counter productive. If you beat someone up they’ll tell you what you want to hear. Two is it really hurts us and the rest of the world, and helps to recruit other terrorists. And thirdly it makes our own people vulnerable to torture.” – Bill Clinton

If you pinned me down and started tickling the bottoms of my feet with a feather, I would very quickly admit to being the captain of a Somali pirate ship. This doesn’t necessarily make me a Somali pirate. When a questioner uses physical abuse during an interrogation he or she is demonstrating frustration, impatience, a lack of interrogation skills, and the information acquired is at high risk of being false. The following are some basic approaches to an effective interrogation, and to help illustrate I’ve decided to invite some friends from a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away.  Don’t ask why, just run with it okay?

1. The direct approach. Just come right out with it.  Darth Vader attempted this approach in “Star Wars IV: A New Hope”: “Where are those transmissions you intercepted? What have you done with those plans? If this is a consular ship, where is the ambassador?” This approach only works, however, when the interrogator knows that the interrogated will not refuse to give up information. Vader failed to pull up a psychological profile on the rebel before questioning him, and as a result he obtained no information, and the rebel obtained a crushed oesophagus.
2. Stressing the futility of withholding information. A person is more likely to talk if: a) They feel that defeat is already inevitable for their cause. b) Someone has already talked c) More casualties will result if the information is withheld. For this technique to work, the interrogator must be aware of any weaknesses the captor may possess in order to exploit them.  An example would be when Governor Tarkin interrogates Princess Leia as to the whereabouts of the secret rebel base. Even with the knowledge that her execution is imminent, Leia remains steadfast in her defiance. It is not until she discovers that her home planet of Alderaan  is about to be destroyed that she waivers. Tarkin knew Leia’s weakness was for the millions of innocent lives back home, and he exploited it. Leia refused to give up information until she heard the intercom voice announcing the Death Star’s approach to Alderaan, and knew that defeat was inevitable. Of course, this technique doesn’t always work, as Princess Leia demonstrated by lying in the end about the base being on Dantooine.
3. The emotional approach. When you toy with someone’s emotions you are more likely to get them to talk. People’s security walls come crumbling down when they begin to feel scared for their lives, angry about what you’re threatening to do to their country, sad about their family, or hatred towards you. When you have personal information about someone it becomes easier to manipulate their emotions towards your advantage. Being a Jedi is all about controlling your emotions. In “Return of the Jedi,” Luke Skywalker thought he had his emotions under control as he hid in the shadows from his evil father. There was nothing Darth Vader could say to get him to reveal his hidden location (the desired information) and fight. That is until Darth Vader threatened to turn his sister to the Dark Side of the force. Luke goes berserk and comes out of hiding, letting his anger, his fear, and his hatred get the better of him.

There are many variations of these techniques, where the interrogator can manipulate a captive by means of messing with their national pride, their egos, their sympathies, and many of which would work on most criminals, POWs, Jedis, and anyone in between. But unfortunately, as interrogators in Afghanistan, Cuba and Iraq have discovered, modern terrorists are unlike any enemy the military has encountered in the past, and they are dealing with people who don’t play by the army rule book. They do not answer direct questioning, they do not crumble under any form of intimidation, and they do not fall for any psychological or emotional games.

There has been a lot of talk in the media these days about the use of torture as an interrogation method, and where does one draw the line between harsh interrogation methods and torture. In Star Wars the line is pretty clear: Threatening to turn Leia to the Dark Side, Harsh. A floating black droid with needles sticking out everywhere, torture.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Do harsh methods work? According to a Kandahar interrogator, the answer is yes. “The harsher methods we used . . . the better information we got and the sooner we got it.” Apparently, in the face of frustration and futile interrogation techniques, there are even cases where soldiers are following the lead of “24’s” Jack Bauer: Doing “whatever it takes” to protect the country from attack. They seem to work 100% of the time on 24, so how does one interrogate an enemy invulnerable to interrogation? Feel free to respond in your comments.

Click here to view the embedded video.

As was mentioned earlier, when you beat up somebody they’ll tell you whatever you want to hear. Princess Leia pulled a fast one on Governor Tarkin when she told him that Dantooine was the location of the rebel base. So how does one tell when someone is lying to them? Watch Fox’s new television series “Lie to Me.” Not home Wednesday nights? Watch this clip from one of the world’s experts at lie detection, Steve Van Aperen.

Click here to view the embedded video.

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In my search for “what the kids are into these days,” I compiled this very short list of the more popular Cogs, wherein I tried to pick some from the worlds of the legally prescribed, the illegally imported, and the naturally occurring.

Piracetam

The term Nootropic comes from the Greek words noos, meaning “mind,” and tropein meaning “to bend/turn.” It was coined in 1964 by Dr. Corneliu E. Giurgea, a Romanian psychologist and chemist who was the first to synthesise Piracetam. The first of the Smart Drugs, Piracetam effects many parts of the brain in charge of learning, memory, oxygen production, and has been used to improve cognition in Alzheimer’s disease patients, as well as in schizophrenics. Tests have even indicated that it improves reading skills in people with dyslexia.

Piracetam has been a student favourite for years as it has very few short term side effects. Students buy it in powdered form and mix it with juice to create their very own Cog-tail. They claim that it “wakes up” their brains and they are able to focus for longer periods of time without getting tired or distracted.

Modafinil

Have you ever been driving down the road, dump-tee dum, when suddenly you’re waking up in ditch, with drool all over your steering wheel and the letters VW imprinted in your forehead? Have you ever competed in the pole vault, when one second you’re running at full speed and the next you’re curled in the fetal position on the mat hugging the pole? If you’ve answered ‘yes’ to these questions there’s a good chance you suffer from the spontaneous sleeping disorder known as narcolepsy. While there is no known cure for narcolepsy, sufferers are either treated with medication to help them get deeper sleeps at night, or medication to keep them awake during the day.

The heavily marketed Modafinil, also known as Provigil, Alertec, and Modalert falls under the latter category. If this non-amphetamine stimulant is helping to keep spontaneous day-nappers awake, then imagine its effects on the rest of us. One article provides evidence that Modafinil improves memory capacity, specifically “verbal working memory, planning performance, working memory and executive inhibitory control (ability to stay on task).” So its no surprise that the drug, which can be ordered off the internet, is becoming ever more popular as a cognitive enhancer for perfectly healthy people seeking to increase levels of concentration, focus, and memory over long periods of time without so much as a yawn. University students in the UK and the US taking Modafinil reported having better short-term memory, were better at remembering strings of numbers, and found they could write papers all night without energy depletion. Imagine a Redbull wrapped in a RockStar and dipped in Full Throttle.

Little is known about the long term effects of taking Modafinil, but so far there are no known short-term side effects and it is not addictive, although the results from the extra cognitive alertness might be.

Cocaine

Cocaine is a naturally occurring chemical compound found in Erythroxylon coca leaves, a shrub located in South America. The drug is a psychostimulant which according to this article “induces a sense of exhilaration in the user primarily by blocking the reuptake of the neurotransmitter dopamine in the midbrain.” Dopamine, also known as “awesome pleasure juice,” is the wonderful stuff produced by the brain which provides us with happy feelings when we perform activities like having sex or eating delicious food. Among many other roles, one of its purposes is to associate pleasure with these activities so we will want to perform them again. Cocaine basically disrupts the mechanism controlling how much awesome pleasure juice is dumped into our systems.
So is cocaine a cognitive enhancer? Any fan of standup comedian/actor Robin Williams would have to undoubtedly say “yes.” In fact famous psychiatrist and cocaine enthusiast Sigmund Freud would be forced to agree, as would “Robert Louis Stephenson, [who] wrote The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde during a six-day cocaine-binge.” If you’ve ever been stuck in a bar conversation with someone who’s been “skiing the slopes” you certainly wouldn’t say they were necessarily “smarter,” but you would admit they had a lot to say. While it doesn’t enhance human intelligence, the extra dopamine in the system as the result of snorting cocaine can lead to enhanced emotional state, sexual stimulation, self-confidence, conversational prowess and intensified consciousness. HOWEVER! Cocaine is highly addictive with side effects including: high blood pressure; anxiety; insomnia; damaged nasal cavity; lung damage; heart palpatations; heart attacks; strokes; convulsions and worst of all, tiny penis syndrome.
“I said to a guy, I said ‘Tell me. What it is it that makes cocaine so wonderful? And the guy said ‘Well, it intensifies your personality.’ And I said ‘Yes, but what if you’re an asshole?” – Bill Cosby

Sugar

Whether you’re chugging a can of Dr.Pepper or devouring an Oh Henry bar, whenever your body consumes sugar, the subsequent glucose in your bloodstream is broken down and transformed into fuel for your brain. It promotes brain cell function and is an important element in the creation of acetylcholine, a chemical linked to learning and memory. Of course too many sweet treats over time can lead to tooth decay, diabetes and fatty fat fat syndrome, but on occasion a well timed sugar injection can put your brain into fifth gear with increased mental abilities. Glucose levels peak at about one hour after ingestion, something to keep in mind the next time you have a brain-heavy task ahead of you.

Ritalin

In a world (feel free to insert ‘preview guy voice’ here) where 3-5% of children under the age of 7 are being diagnosed with Attention Deficit-Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), its shocking to discover how many people are prescribed Ritalin. The psychostimulant psychostimulates the central nervous system, helping hyperactive distracted children to focus. It’s ‘powers’ have attracted many people, mostly teenagers and university students, without ADD or ADHD, who consume Ritalin for its effects on appetite suppression, wakefulness, euphoria, and increased attentiveness. The most common complaints from patients who’ve been prescribed Ritalin are nervousness and insomnia, but these can be controlled by reducing the dosage and taking the pills earlier in the day. For people who abuse the drug, however, they are exposing themselves to psychotic episodes, heart problems, and psychological addiction.

Omega 3 Fatty Acids

Diet is arguably the most important factor when considering its effects on cognition and the brain. Studies have shown that many people who suffer from ADD or ADHD, also show low levels of omega 3 fatty acids. These low levels have also been linked to depression and aggression. Fatty acids play a vital role in the healthy formation and repair of your brain’s nerve cell membranes and membrane fluidity. If the membranes aren’t fluid, people will experience negative behaviour, bad moods, and poor mental function. According to this article “Symptoms of omega-3 fatty acid deficiency include extreme tiredness (fatigue), poor memory, dry skin, heart problems, mood swings or depression, and poor circulation.” So where does one procure these fatty acids? Fish contain the highest amounts of omega 3, so you should either eat fish twice a week or take fish oil supplements on a daily basis.

A good friend of mine was diagnosed with ADD and was of course all too quickly prescribed Ritalin. An intelligent naturalist, he refused to believe that drugs were the answer. After conducting his own research he came across a fish oil supplement and discovered the benefits of an omega 3 rich diet. He swears by his fish oil capsules and he calls them his brain fuel. High amounts of fatty acids in the brain have shown to improve memory and performance, to stimulate learning ability, to reduce aggression and depression in teenagers, and they lower the risk of Alzheimer’s disease in adults.

After a long talk with my fish-fuelled friend and after reading several articles on the topic, I’ve picked omega 3 fatty acids as my cognitive enhancer of choice. They certainly demonstrate more benefits for the brain, and where most of the others can negatively affect the heart, omega 3 has also proven to reduce the risk of cardiovascular dysfunction. I’ve decided to give fish oil a try as an experiment, and I will certainly post another article reporting the results. Hopefully my new superpowers will have increased my vocabulary and improved my sentence structuring by then!

To conclude I’ve borrowed a quote from www.cerebralhealth.com which perfectly illustrates the “pro” side of the Smart Drug argument.

“Among the normal population are men and women with incredible memories, fast learners of language and music, and those with enhanced capabilities of all kinds. Something in their brains allows them to encode new information at lightning speed. We accept the fact that they must have some chemical system that is superior to ours or some neural circuitry that is more efficient. So why should we be upset if the same thing can be achieved with a pill? In some way, we were cheated by Mother Nature if we didn’t get the superior neural system, so for us to cheat her back through our own inventiveness seems like a smart thing to do. In my opinion it is exactly what we should do.”

—Michael Gazzaniga (Director of the Center for Cognitive Neuroscience at Dartmouth College)

Do you agree? Or do you feel that like steroids, Smart Drugs give people an unfair advantage? Do students or co-workers with enhanced noodles raise the bar for what is expected in terms of performance, and will these new expectations force everyone else to ride the Nootropic Slide if they want to keep up? Or are you of the belief that medicine is intended to heal the sick, not to temporarily and artificially supercharge the healthy? Feel free to comment with your opinions.

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By definition, insomnia is the “difficulty initiating or maintaining sleep, or both”.
Insomnia, contrary to what some may believe, is not a disease or a stand-alone diagnosis, it is a symptom caused by various factors. There are three types of insomnia:

1.    Transient or short term insomnia

Transient insomnia is caused by temporary factors and happens intermittently, usually lasting less than a week or two. Factors contributing to transient insomnia include: noisiness, jet lag, uncomfortable room temperature, changes in work schedule (people on night shifts tend to suffer more from sleep-related problems), or job related factors (upcoming projects, new responsibilities)

2.    Acute insomnia

Acute insomnia is the inability to sleep well for a period of three weeks to six months. Factors contributing to acute insomnia include: caring for a newborn, stressful personal situations (divorce, loss of a loved one), withdrawal from drugs (prescription or illicit) or alcohol, or severe injury (e.g. losing a limb)

3.    Chronic Insomnia

Chronic insomnia can actually be caused by many of the same factors as acute insomnia, however there are usually underlying physical or mental disorders that accompany. It can last anywhere from several months to years. One the most common causes of chronic insomnia is depression. Other factors include: anxiety, stress, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, arthritis, kidney disease, heart failure, asthma, restless leg syndrome (a burning, itching or tickling sensation in the legs that urges one to move their legs or body to stop the uncomfortable feeling), narcolepsy or sleep apnea (pauses in breathing during sleep)

Symptoms of Insomnia

•    Difficulty falling asleep
•    Difficulty staying asleep
•    Night walking
•    Waking up inconveniently early
•    Mood changes
•    Reduced energy
•    Difficulty concentrating, paying attention
•    Not feeling refreshed from a good night’s sleep
•    Daytime tiredness/drowsiness
•    Irritability
•    Racing mind
•    Headaches
•    Tension
•    Stomach symptoms
•    Difficulty with memory
•    Impaired social interaction

Treatments for Insomnia

There are many different solutions available to help treat insomnia, which vary depending on the type of insomnia you are diagnosed with. A good idea would be to consult a physician about your sleep deprivation.

Note that one of the best things you can do is make sure you maintain a healthy and balanced diet, as well as exercise regularly. The body and mind work as a team; if one trails behind, the other soon follows. By exercising and eating well, you produce a brain chemical called serotonin, which is essentially the neurotransmitter associated with your “happy feeling” and is also coined the “sleep hormone”. Serotonin is essential for sleep and people with low levels of serotonin are more likely to suffer from depression, sleep disorders and addictions.

Following is a list of possible treatments you can consider:

•    Relaxation techniques: Yoga, meditation, listening to relaxing music, audiotapes with nature sounds or other techniques recommended by a doctor or specialist
•    Avoid caffeine: teas, coffee, colas are stimulants that will increase your heart rate and mental alertness- all things you want to be avoiding when you’re trying to get some sleep.
•    Alcohol: Alcohol will lead you to fall asleep faster however it also reduces REM sleep during the fist portion of the night. This means a more shallow sleep and frequent awakenings.
•    Foods that help you sleep: Foods that are high in tryptophan such as milk, eggs, meat, nuts, fish, beans and cheese will encourage the release of serotonin. Foods that are high in carbohydrates help tryptophan enter your brain, and also raise your levels of serotonin. Consider eating a high-carbohydrate meal a few hours before going to bed. If you wake up in the middle of the night, eat a snack high in carbohydrates and fats as they are slower to digest and boost your serotonin levels.
•    Avoid taking naps during the day: If you really have to, try a 30 minute power nap in the early afternoon, but make sure you don’t oversleep. The key is to try and make a regular sleeping pattern for yourself where you go to bed at the same time everyday and wake up at the same time everyday too. Set an alarm and force yourself to wake up, regardless of how much you have slept the night before. It will help your body develop a proper sleeping routine.
•    Only use your bedroom for sleep: Help program your mind to associate your bed as a place where sleep happens. Don’t even read in bed. Reading is a good idea as it is relaxing and does promote sleepiness, but do it in another room.
•    Avoid being on the computer or watching television: These have an arousing effect and will contribute to your sleep deprivation.
•     Sleep-restriction therapy: This type of therapy restricts the amount of time spent in bed to the actual time sleeping. If the person only sleeps five hours of the eight hours they’re in bed, then they can only stay in bed five to five-and-a-half hours, timed by an alarm. This approach allows a “sleep debt” to build up, thus increasing the person’s ability to go to sleep and stay asleep.
•    Hypnosis and hypnotherapy: Hypnosis is very effective, especially in curing chronic insomnia. Hypnosis aims to change the way your subconscious mind works. It re-educates and trains your mind and body to slow down at the end of the day, so that you can learn to expect a good night’s sleep.
•    Medication: In some cases a person suffering from insomnia will be prescribed sleep medication, usually some type of sedative, tranquillizer or anti-anxiety drug. If the insomnia is related to depression, then antidepressant medication may help. These can all be habit-forming and can lose their effectiveness over time. You can also opt for over-the-counter sleep aids. Most of these sleeping pills are antihistamines, which are found in most cold or allergy medications. They will put you to sleep, however they do cause drowsiness the next day.

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