Got Back Pain?

In the Journal of Neuroscience, November, 2004, researchers at Northwestern University, concluded that sufferers of chronic back pain had brains that aged 20 times that of normal healthy folks.

They went further and reported that the brains of those with chronic back pain had as much as 11% brain shrinkage. It is gray matter that is lost, which is responsible for information processing (I.Q), and memory.

The leading researcher, A. Vania Apkanian, said the average healthy person loses 0.5% of gray matter annually, but having sciatica, chronic back pain, produces 10 to 20 years of normal aging. The longer one suffers from chronic back pain (years), larger the brain loss. Yes, really.

The reason for brain shrinkage appears to be the almost permanent state of a negative mood and attitude, and the stress associated with it. Apkanian believes brain shrinkage (loss of gray matter), is a result of nerve cells in a constant state of activity they are overworked to the extreme.

He concludes, that the longer the back pain persists, the greater its irreversibility because the brain structures and functions change permanently.

What is New?

In 2006, Dr. Sean Mackey, Stanford University, reported a different approach in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Dealing with chronic back pain, his research indicates that patients looking at their own live brain scans can learn to control pain activation.

There are two brain systems involved in pain - pain perception and pain modulation. Wait there is no single pain center, but 5-10 areas that transmit pain feedback.

Here is the killer conclusion of Dr. Mackey, top-gun at Stanford Medical School:

Pain modulation (change, alteration), is triggered by BELIEF. A placebo (sugar pill or an injection of plain water), can shut down the pain, while a nocibo (belief in harm), will augment the pain, when your brain is convinced you are being hurt.

How Come?

The brain releases its endogenous (originating from within), endorphins (pleasure hormones), an opiate-like substance.

The reason a placebo works is the brain releases a chemical that attaches to our Mu Opioid Receptors. Get this fake opiates cause the brain to produce its own real ones in response. It is the bandwagon effect.

Does Believing in Change Cause Change in Reality?

The answer is yes, with practice, as the mind unites with the body.

It appears to be a brain thing called the power of suggestion. The same one used in hypnosis and auto-suggestion, where you convince yourself.

A physician telling a group of patients in an experiment, that the pain they were feeling would positively be relieved by their (placebo) medication, resulted in 99% effectiveness. We believe in the authority and his/her expertise. It sounds weird, but our belief changes our state-of-mind, which in turn alters our body receptors.

Hold it! Thinking about pain produces physical changes in our - pain, no-pain - perception. It is visible on the fMRI (functional Magnetic Resonance Imagery), and is not a schizophrenic episode.

They have zeroed in on the area that produces human awareness of our mind-numbing pain it is called - rostral Anterior Cingulate Cotex (rACC). We can see it in action, in living color, on the fMRI, and see it modulated by our Prefrontal Cortex, the brain area that makes decisions.

The scientists do not claim they know why cognitive effort can reduce the activation of the rACC, it just does. Thinking too deeply about the why, delivers us to the realm of Huh? We are rational creatures motivated by emotion, let us not go any further.

Soft Wired

You have heard that our genes make us hard-wired, we come to life preprogrammed to a substantial degree.

Another reality is that our brain is Soft-Wired, (plastic), so that we can learn. When we learn it is followed by structural and functional changes in our brain. Practice, according to the experts, can reduce pain an average of 64%, no mean trick.

One more once what you believe and expect, creates your reality. It does not alter the world, only your world. Another thing we do not know a whit about the source of consciousness. It is not neurons firing, but depends on our neurons that are wired together, to fire together.

Endwords

It is intuitive that having a positive attitude is better than holding a belief that you will fail. We are at the next threshold of reason what you actively believe, mentally visualize and expect come to pass in your brain, and perhaps in your motivations and behaviors.

Professor William James, 1890, at Harvard, created the Law of As-If. Whatever your mind consistently thinks and feels drives your brain to discover and bring to pass. If you Act, Think, Feel and Believe AS-IF you have already obtain the goal you are chasing it is a direction to both hemispheres of your brain to attract it.

The latest research states that folks with chronic back pain have annual brain shrinkage of an extra 1.3%. That is far too much. We have over 100 billion brain cells, so it is not an immediate ticket to Alzheimers, but it does you no good.

Here is the core of it meditation, hypnosis, distractions, mental visualizations, and placebos all offer a method to train the brain to obey our prefrontal cortex our active consciousness. It works for me personally, to reduce pain, and enhance healing.

It is your assignment to check it out. The Indian charkas are real, seven subtle areas of energy that can be manipulated by acupressure and acupuncture to help you heal faster, and reduce pain. My personal favorite is daily chanting Uh-(as in Accountant, OO (as in Book), and Mng as in Mee-ing (Uh-OO-Mng) for 20 minutes twice a day. Google Mudras (hand gestures), too

Now I know that you are far too busy to find a total of forty minutes daily to maintain your health, reduce if not eliminate pain, and actively live to age 90.

Deal-Or-No-Deal?

See ya,

copyright
H. Bernard Wechsler
www.speedlearning.org
hbw@speedlearning.org

Author of Speed Reading For Professionals, published by Barron's Educational, original partner of Evelyn Wood, creator of speed reading, graduating 2 million, including the White House staff of four U.S. Presidents.

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Vacations Made Easy: Buying a Florida Investment Property

Vacations Made Easy: Buying a Florida Investment Property

A relaxing beach vacation means different things to different families. However, imagine returning from a long day in the sand and waves, hair dripping and tan glowing to a place where you and your family have settled over the years. You know where your favorite beach towels are tucked away and where the soothing aloe gel sits in your medicine cabinet. This is what you call a home away from home. You can avoid the regular vacation stress by buying a Florida investment property, close to the theme parks and beautiful beaches of Florida; your own Florida Investment Property. With the increasing popularity of vacation homes, travelers can find their own place in the sun tailored to fit their familys needs. Plenty of websites offer condominium listings to help you find a condo in the area you desire. These condominium listings give an overview of properties and the features they offer along with special deals. Owning a Florida Investment Property gives families the chance to experience a comfortable vacation at their own pace. all it takes is finding the perfect condominium in the right location.

Hot Places to find a Florida Investment Property

When searching for the perfect place near a Florida Investment Property for your family, there are a lot of choices to consider. First, find an area that is near the places you want to see. For families with kids, a place near the attractions may be the best option. There are plenty of areas surrounding Walt Disney world. Kissimmee and Davenport are two Central Florida towns that are right around the neighborhood of the theme parks. Beachside vacation condos also offer specials at certain times of the year. If you choose to stay by the beach, your family is still close to the inland attractions. Many Florida Investment Properties may offer decreases in sales prices during the Winter months sine it will be very slow season.

Your Florida Investment Property Style

One of the first things to decide on when searching for a Florida Investment Property is the style of home that a property offers. Ask for detailed floor plans. Do the room sizes meet your familys needs? Some condos dont offer only a basic kitchen space while others include a full kitchen and dining room. Find out if the condo comes furnished or if you will need to factor in the cost of furniture to fill another house.

Another point to consider is the actual purchasing of the condo. If the property is a time-share, you will be locked in to certain times during a year to visit and will need to plan your vacations accordingly. If you are purchasing the condo, there will be maintenance fees. Properties offer a range of purchasing options. One property near Orlando Florida, the Bimini Bay Resort offers a revolutionary system. Vacationers purchase a condo and receive fees from the property for its use when owners arent in residence. Finding the perfect Florida Investment Property also requires love at first sight. Do cool Caribbean houses make a splash in your mind or do you prefer pristine white high rises? Almost every vacation community today offers a website where perspective buyers can view the property and its amenities. This is good for narrowing down the candidates. However, once you decide on a property its best to call them directly and ask questions that can be answered by someone on the property. Ask for any type of visuals, schematics and possible links to pictures from previous buyers. Finally, visit the site. Most Florida Investment Property offer a personal tour of their vacation homes. This way, you can get a feel for not only the condos themselves, but also the community surrounding the property. You can then make the deal in person and avoid unanswered questions later. Now all you have to do is pack your bags and enjoy the Florida sun!

Florida Investment Property Features

Families should look for a place where they can be comfortable away from home. Property owners know this and therefore cater to a wide range of features for buyers. Families can choose a Florida Investment Property with enough bedrooms for kids and parents, whether they need a full kitchen or just a simple area to prepare food, as well as the amenities that a property offers.

Many Florida Investment Properties offer three and four bedroom accommodationsenough to house a family comfortably or perhaps a few guests. Some condos provide a cozy upstairs to house the bedrooms while the bottom floor is devoted to living space. Most furnished condos provide a double bed so that a room can be split between children or other guests. Certain Florida Investment Properties are home to a slew of amenities that make a beach condo feel more like a luxury resort. From pools to tiki bars and cabanas, properties may also offer an exercise facility, sauna and even a personal massage room. The trick is to make sure that these luxuries come as an all-inclusive package with the Florida Investment Property. While most properties do offer basic amenities such as a pool, it is best to check before making a final decision. Families should look for kid-friendly activities such as a game room, kiddy pool or supervised childrens activities.

Florida Investment Property Listings

So, where to look? There are plenty of condominium listings on the internet. However, doing the general Google search can be pretty daunting. There are sites that connect you to local real estate based on the country and city where you want to search for a condominium. Below are a few user-friendly condominium listings that will help you get started. What may be the most informative place to turn to is the tourist information bureau. They can turn you over then to local tourist boards with their own condominium listings. Floridas interactive website is a vacation hotspot, with links to accommodations, attractions and many other vacation needs. For condominium listings, the easiest way to look is by a jump to search. After typing Florida Investment Property or vacation home, youll find a long list of places all over Florida. To browse by city, click on destinations and youll find an interactive Florida map that details each section of the state. Vacationers can find all this is on flausa.com.

Another broad condominium listing is condominiums.com. The site lets customers browse new, resale and ultra-luxury condos. This easy to use web page also allows browsers to select a country, state or province and city among thousands of condominium listings. Lists of local condos are ordered according to price and many show pictures of the property, which helps to give perspective buyers an idea of local style.

Homescape.com also allows perspective buyers to select by location, type of property desired and the number of bedrooms. This condominium listing takes browsers to links from local newspapers that include a detailed directory of properties for sale in the area. This way, perspective buyers can be assured that the condominium listing is up to date and accurate.

One more user-friendly condominium listing to try is homegain.com.

Homegain, like the other links, lets users select where in the country they want to look, what type of home they desire and also includes color pictures for most properties listed. Unlike other condominium listings, homegain.com provides information about home loans and mortgages.

Vacationing in Your Florida Investment Property

Wherever you choose to look, condominium listings are only the beginning. To find the perfect Florida Investment Property, take time to research the properties that interest your family. When you find the right place after browsing a condominium listing, calling the site directly can help you decide right away if the property has what you need. Properties may offer a toll-free number that will connect you directly to a real estate consultant for this very purpose. Remember to research the propertys website, where you can read testimonials and view pictures of the condominium. Thankfully, Florida Investment Property come in a range of locations and prices so you can find whats right for your family. If you choose a bustling vacation hub like Orlando Florida, decide whether you want to stay beach side or attraction side. Many Florida Investment Properties offer both options based on their location. Looking for a quiet place by the sea? There are so many options to choose from that can give your family the best vacation. Choosing a Florida Investment Property is the first step to a home away from home, a vacation that lets you feel comfortable in your own place without the hustle and bustle of a hotel. A vacation from the comfort of your own home is a rejuvenating experience that many have come to prefer. Whats waiting for you? More than you can imagine.

Lisa Carson: Bimini Bay Orlando Florida
http://www.biminibayresortinvestment.com
lcarson@biminibayresortinvestment.com All Rights Reserved 2005

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