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Acid Casualty a Myth: No Link Found Between Psychedelics and Psychosis (Study)

Acid Casualty a Myth: No Link Found Between Psychedelics and Psychosis (Study) | Third Monk

Psychedelics and Psychosis

Data from population surveys in the United States challenge public fears that psychedelic drugs such as LSD can lead to psychosis and other mental-health conditions and to increased risk of suicide, two studies have found.

In the first study, clinical psychologists Pål-Ørjan Johansen and Teri Suzanne Krebs, both at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology in Trondheim, scoured data from the US National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), an annual random sample of the general population, and analysed answers from more than 135,000 people who took part in surveys from 2008 to 2011.

Of those, 14% described themselves as having used at any point in their lives any of the three ‘classic’ psychedelics: LSD, psilocybin (the active ingredient in so-called magic mushrooms) and mescaline (found in the peyote and San Pedro cacti).

The researchers found that individuals in this group were not at increased risk of developing 11 indicators of mental health problems such as schizophrenia, psychosis, depression, anxiety disorders and suicide attempts. Their paper appears in the March issue of the Journal of Psychopharmacology.

The findings are likely to raise eyebrows. Fears that psychedelics can lead to psychosis date to the 1960s, with widespread reports of “acid casualties” in the mainstream news. But Krebs says that because psychotic disorders are relatively prevalent, affecting about one in 50 people, correlations can often be mistaken for causations.

Psychedelics are psychologically intense, and many people will blame anything that happens for the rest of their lives on a psychedelic experience. – Krebs

The three substances Johansen and Krebs looked at all act through the brain’s serotonin 2A receptor. The authors did not include ketamine, PCP, MDMA, fly agaric mushrooms, DMT or other drugs that fall broadly into the category of hallucinogens, because they act on other receptors and have different modes of biochemical action. Ketamine and PCP, for example, act on the NMDA receptor and are both known to be addictive and to cause severe physical harms, such as damage to the bladder.

Absolutely, people can become addicted to drugs like ketamine or PCP, and the effects can be very destructive. We restricted our study to the ‘classic psychedelics’ to clarify the findings. – Johansen

The ‘Acid Casualty’ Myth: Psychedelics and Psychosis

“This study assures us that there were not widespread ‘acid casualties’ in the 1960s,” says Charles Grob, a paediatric psychiatrist at the University of California, Los Angeles. He has long has advocated the therapeutic use of psychedelics, such as administering psilocybin to treat anxiety in terminal-stage cancer. But he has concerns about Krebs and Johansen’s overall conclusions, he says, because individual cases of adverse effects use can and do occur.

For example, people may develop hallucinogen persisting perception disorder (HPPD), a ‘trip’ that never seems to end, involving incessant distortions in the visual field, shimmering lights and coloured dots. “I’ve seen a number of people with these symptoms following a psychedelic experience, and it can be a very serious condition,” says Grob.

Krebs and Johansen, however, point to studies that have found symptoms of HPPD in people who have never used psychedelics.

The second of the new two studies, also published in the Journal of Psychopharmacology, looked at 190,000 NSDUH respondents from 2008 to 2012. It also found that the classic psychedelics were not associated with adverse mental health outcomes. In addition, it found that people who had used LSD and psilocybin had lower lifetime rates of suicidal thoughts and attempts.

“We are not claiming that no individuals have ever been harmed by psychedelics,” says author Matthew Johnson, an associate professor in the Behavioral Pharmacology Research Unit at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland.

“Anecdotes about acid casualties can be very powerful — but these instances are rare,” he says. At the population level, he says, the data suggest that the harms of psychedelics “have been overstated”.

> No Link Found Between Psychosis and Psychedelics | Nature

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My Experience as a Guide in the Johns Hopkins Psilocybin Research Project

My Experience as a Guide in the Johns Hopkins Psilocybin Research Project | Third Monk image 1

JHU Session Room - Psyilocybin Research Project

Written by Mary Cosimano, M.S.W.

Johns Hopkins University initiated their psilocybin studies in the year 2000. Since that time, I have been extensively involved with the research and clinical components of all six psilocybin and other hallucinogen studies that have taken place at Johns Hopkins. I have also personally guided over 300 study sessions and have participated in over 1,000 preparatory and integration meetings.

Based on my clinical perspective, I would like to share what I personally believe to be one of the most important outcomes of this work: that psilocybin can offer a means to reconnect to our true nature—our authentic self—and thereby help find meaning in our lives. The experiences recounted to me by study participants, as well as my concurrent personal journey, together with our study results, represent a large body of data from which I derive my conclusions.

When I have difficulty expressing myself, I remember what Ernest Hemingway wrote in A Moveable Feast about what he did when he had a hard time getting started writing. “All you have to do is write one true sentence. Write the truest sentence that you know.”

What comes to me now is a very short sentence—in fact, not a sentence but a word: love. I believe that what humans really want is to receive and to give love. I believe that love is what connects us to each other and that such a connection is brought about by being intimate with each other, by sharing ourselves with others. I believe that the nature of our true self is love.

I believe this theme—love, the need to reconnect with our true selves—addresses the underlying outcome of our psilocybin studies. Yet very often we’re afraid to open ourselves to this connection so we put up barriers and wear masks. If we are able to remove the barriers, to let down our defenses, we can begin to know and accept ourselves, thus allowing ourselves to receive and to give love.

In her TED talk on “The Power of Vulnerability,” Brené Brown, Ph.D., helps us understand how important this sense of connection is on a deep level. Briefly, she states that connection is why we’re here. It’s what gives purpose and meaning to our lives. The way to connect is by being vulnerable, which means having the courage to face our fears—fears that we might fail, fears that others will realize that we aren’t perfect, fears that we are somehow unworthy of connection.

Because this honesty could risk jeopardizing a connection, we shut down, cover up, or “fake it.” Dr. Brown’s answer for overcoming these fears is courage. She points out that courage comes from the Latin word cor (heart), and that the original meaning of courage was to tell your story with your whole heart.

How do we help psilocybin study participants achieve a state of mind wherein it is possible for them to reconnect to their true self and face their fears? I believe it’s a combination of our preparatory meetings with the effects of psilocybin itself.

In our preparatory meetings, we aim to create a space where participants feel secure and safe. We believe this peaceful, positive environment is necessary for them to have the courage to tell the story of who they are. We work to create a deep sense of trust so that the participants feel comfortable to share anything and everything—their fears, joys, disappointments, and shame—without fear of being rejected. Intimate conversation is one of the most important practices to assist in this self-disclosure, and some of our participants have shared that their session was the first time they felt they had been fully seen.

Once they have opened up and shared, they are much more likely to let go and progress though their psilocybin experiences, managing difficult moments with more ease, and eventually restoring their deep and intrinsic connection to their true selves.

After their story has been told and trust established, the psilocybin session follows. In order to achieve maximum benefit from the psilocybin sessions and to access these states of a deep sense of love and connectedness, I believe it is necessary to be relaxed in both body and mind. When we are stressed, anxious, or afraid, we hold ourselves in and tense our bodies.

These states of mind and postures keep us from being able to relax and expand our consciousness. In order to relax, a safe and trusting environment is necessary. Ideally, our preparation meetings have provided that, thus enabling participants to relax into a deeper and more expansive experience. This expansiveness often leads to a deep sense of love and connection for self and all; both this expansiveness and this sense of connection are recurrent themes in psilocybin experiences.

fb-tw-gp-tu-psychedelic-contemplation-alex-grey Psychedelic Research

After their session one participant wrote: “I was reveling in the undeniable feelings of infinite love. I said [to myself], ‘I am love, and all I ever want to be is love.’ I repeated this several times and was overwhelmed with the intensity of the love. I was aware of tears flooding my eyes at this point. All the other goals in life seemed completely stupid.”

InLove 2.0, Barbara Fredrickson, Ph.D., wrote: “Love is far more ubiquitous than you ever thought possible for the simple fact thatlove is connection.”

Another participant said: “Once I was past the darkness, I began to feel an increasing feeling of peace and connectedness…An intense feeling of love and joy emanated from all over my body and I can’t imagine feeling any happier. I knew that the worries of everyday life were meaningless and that all that mattered were my connections with the wonderful people who are my family and friends.”

The first two psilocybin studies conducted at Johns Hopkins (Griffiths et al. 2008, 2011) showed that psilocybin occasions personally meaningful and spiritually significant mystical experiences producing positive changes in attitudes, mood, altruism, behavior, and life satisfaction. A further analysis (MacLean et al. 2011) found significant increases in openness following a high-dose psilocybin in participants who had mystical experiences.

I believe these findings suggest that increased personal meaning, a sense of spiritual significance, and an increase in openness are what allow humans to connect to their true selves—which is, at its core, love.

I observed how participants in our study of psilocybin-assisted therapy for cancer anxiety often came into the study feeling “disconnected”—not only from their place in the world but also more importantly from themselves, due to the fact that their lives had changed dramatically since their diagnosis. Many are too weak to continue to work, and many have lost their jobs. Outward appearances may also have changed, as they lose weight, muscle tone, and often their hair. Their thoughts and feelings of what had once defined them are no longer accurate. What once gave purpose and meaning to their lives seems meaningless.

One participant said: “Once you have a cancer diagnosis you’re like the ‘walking dead.’” Another told us that she was living like she’d already died.

Our structured psychiatric interviews include two questions that target this sense of disconnection:

1. Have you all of a sudden changed your sense of who you are and where you are headed?

2. Do you often feel empty inside?

Among our cancer participants, there was a high positive response rate to both of these questions, which I believe was due to their loss of a sense of self and meaning in their lives. Our cancer study often enables our participants to get back that connection to their true self, to believing that they are worthy of love and connection. One participant wrote in her six-month report that her “depression lifted completely” and that she was “able to get out of the ‘cancer world’ and back to myself…and able to connect with others and care better for [her partner].”

Two additional quotes from our volunteers nicely summarize my thoughts about the importance of love, true self, and meaning during and after the sessions:

Everything is swept up into a climactic epiphany of love as the universal essence and meaning of all things.

The journey of spirit coming to itself, revealing to itself its own inner mystery, is nothing but the self-realization of love.

The purpose of all of us here together is to be constant reminders to each other of Who We Really Are.

It is interesting to reflect on the differences and similarities between our Johns Hopkins psilocybin studies and MAPS’ MDMA-assisted psychotherapy studies. The Johns Hopkins studies have characterized the phenomenology of psilocybin experience in healthy volunteers, and explored the therapeutic use of psilocybin in treating anxiety associated with life-threatening cancer diagnosis, and in treating cigarette smoking addiction.

Although the therapeutic endpoints differ between the psilocybin (cancer anxiety and addiction) and MDMA (posttraumatic stress disorder or PTSD) studies, both approaches highlight the importance of trust and rapport between participant and guide/therapist. One notable difference is that the psilocybin studies have characterized mystical-type experiences, and have suggested that such experiences may underlie the therapeutic and other enduring positive effects of psilocybin session experiences. It would be productive and valuable to assess whether similar changes occur in response to guided MDMA sessions as well.

I’d like to acknowledge and thank the Johns Hopkins Psilocybin Research Team, our study participants, and our funders.

Hemingway, Ernest; A Moveable Feast. Scribner Classics: New York, 1996.

Fredrickson, B. L. 2013. Love 2.0: How Our Supreme Emotion Affects Everything We Feel, Think, Do, and Become.

Brown, Brené 2010. TEDx talk: The Power of Vulnerability June 2010

Griffiths, R.R., Richards, W.A., Johnson, M.W., McCann, U.D., Jesse, R. 2008. “Mystical-type experiences occasioned by psilocybin mediate the attribution of personal meaning and spiritual significance 14 months later.”Journal of Psychopharmacology, 22(6), 621-632.

Johnson, M.W., Garcia-Romeu, A., Cosimano, M.P., and Griffiths R.R. 2014. “Pilot study of the 5-HT2AR agonist psilocybin in the treatment of tobacco addiction.” Journal of Psychopharmacology, 28(11), 983-92.

Griffiths, R.R., Johnson, M.W., McCann, U., Richards, W.A., Richards, B.D., and Jesse, R.. 2011. “Psilocybin occasioned mystical-type experiences: immediate and persisting dose-related effects.” Psychopharmacology, 218(4), 649-665.

MacLean, K.A., Johnson, M.W., and Griffiths, R.R. 2011. “Mystical experiences occasioned by the hallucinogen psilocybin lead to increases in the personality domain of openness.” Journal of Psychopharmacology, 25(11), 1453-1461.

is currently with the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and has served as study guide and research coordinator for the psilocybin studies for 15 years. During that time she has served as a session guide for the six psilocybin studies and other hallucinogen studies and has conducted over 300 sessions. She has worked as a clinician teaching individual and group meditation to breast cancer patients in research at Johns Hopkins, was a behavior modification counselor for weight loss, and has 15 years of experience with direct patient care as a hospice volunteer.

> My Experience as a Guide in the John Hopkins PRP | MAPS

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Psychedelic Trip Sitting (A Helpful Guide)

Psychedelic Trip Sitting (A Helpful Guide) | Third Monk

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Psychedelic Trip sitting just means a sober person being present while one or more people take a psychedelic drug, such as magic mushrooms or LSD.

Let’s take a brief look at some things you should be thinking about if you’re going to be someone’s trip sitter.

The presence of a caring sitter provides safety and comfort, ensuring the trip goes smoothly and allowing those tripping to immerse themselves in their experience more freely and without some of the worries or concerns they might otherwise have.

Gather Knowledge…

For starters, you must be well-informed about the substance in question. Do some research until you are comfortable answering questions about duration, dosage, effects and possible side effects.

Having personal experience with the substance is extremely useful, and although recommended, it isn’t necessary. Read reports of people’s experiences, both positive and negative, to get an idea of what an experience on this substance looks like. A great place to find such trip reports is on Erowid.

Have a Conversation…

Having a conversation prior to the trip is important. Ask what they expect from you as a sitter. One person might want you to be quietly present unless something is needed, whereas someone else might want you to play a more active role in the experience, perhaps by talking or guiding a meditation.

Additionally, ask how they would like you to respond if they feel anxious or panicked.

You can also use this opportunity to set some ground rules, such as establishing that it’s okay for the tripper to express sexual or aggressive feelings, should they arise, but that they cannot act on them.

Another ground rule could be that sexual contact can only take place between people who have a pre-existing relationship. Setting such boundaries helps ensure that the trip goes smoothly and without confusion as to what is and isn’t appropriate.

During the trip, your role is to create a safe and comfortable setting in which they can have their experience. The setting includes things like lighting, music, room temperature and, more generally, location. A good place for a trip is in the comfort of someone’s home, where the sitter can easily regulate the environment. Being outside or at a party are less ideal places for tripping, as the setting is more unpredictable and difficult to control.

Above all, remember that you are there to facilitate someone else’s experience, and not to have your own. Don’t treat their trip as your novelty by asking them how they’re feeling, what they’re seeing or trying to show them things that you think might be “trippy” to see how they’ll react. It’s not that you shouldn’t talk at all, but be mindful that you are enhancing someone else’s experience.

Stay Open-Minded…

Try to keep an open and receptive mindset. If you meditate regularly, those skills will come in handy here. Rather than actively searching for whether you should intervene, try to remain uninvolved unless you’re needed. Make it clear that you are there to help and that they shouldn’t hesitate to ask if they want snacks or water, to talk or have a change of setting, or if they feel anxious or uncomfortable.

If the tripper finds themselves in a state of panic or anxiety, the presence of a caring sitter is itself very comforting. A gentle touch on the arm or shoulder can be reassuring, and a change in setting can also help, but be sure to ask and get their consent prior to either of these.

Unless agreed upon before the trip, it’s best not to probe them about what they’re going through, as having to do mental excavation in the moment may become an added stress. Instead, remind them that they’re safe, that you’re there with them, and that it’s okay for them to let themselves experience whatever they are experiencing.

28 Days Later…

In the days following the experience, make yourself available to discuss it.

Psychedelic experiences can be profound and rich in content, and you can help them understand and integrate this experience by providing a space for them to process it. Talking it through can ensure that important aspects of the trip are not forgotten.

Sitting for someone’s trip is a privilege. Being asked to be someone’s sitter is an expression of their trust and of their willingness to have you be part of a highly personal and intimate experience, so approach it with care and respect. Done right, it can be an insightful experience for both parties. And who knows, they might be willing to return the favor.

Safe and happy travels!

> Trip Sitting | Link Newspaper

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Aldous Huxley on Psychedelics and Creativity (Interview)

Aldous Huxley on Psychedelics and Creativity (Interview) | Third Monk image 1

Huxley_Visionary Huxley on Psychedelics

Aldous Huxley interviewed for The Paris Review (1960), reprinted in Moksha: Aldous Huxley’s Classic Writings on Psychedelics and the Visionary Experience, edited by Michael Horowitz and Cynthia Palmer (Park Street Press, 1999)

PDF version of this document

Huxley on Psychedelics and Creativity

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Interviewers: Do you see any relation between the creative process and the use of such drugs as lysergic acid [diethylamide]?

Huxley: I don’t think there is any generalization one can make on this. Experience has shown that there’s an enormous variation in the way people respond to lysergic acid. Some people probably could get direct aesthetic inspiration for painting or poetry out of it. Others I don’t think could. For most people it’s an extremely significant experience, and I suppose in an indirect way it could help the creative process. But I don’t think one can sit down and say, “I want to write a magnificent poem, and so I’m going to take lysergic acid [diethylamide].” I don’t think it’s by any means certain that you would get the result you wanted — you might get almost any result.

Interviewers: Would the drug give more help to the lyric poet than the novelist?

Huxley: Well, the poet would certainly get an extraordinary view of life which he wouldn’t have had in any other way, and this might help him a great deal. But you see (and this is the most significant thing about the experience), during the experience you’re really not interested in doing anything practical — even writing lyric poetry. If you were having a love affair with a woman, would you be interested in writing about it? Of course not. And during the experience you’re not particularly in words, because the experience transcends words and is quite inexpressible in terms of words. So the whole notion of conceptualizing what is happening seems very silly. After the event, it seems to me quite possible that it might be of great assistance: people would see the universe around them in a very different way and would be inspired, possibly, to write about it.

Interviewers: But is there much carry-over from the experience?

Huxley: Well, there’s always a complete memory of the experience. You remember something extraordinary having happened. And to some extent you can relive the experience, particularly the transformation of the outside world. You get hints of this, you see the world in this transfigured way now and then — not to the same pitch of intensity, but something of the kind. It does help you to look at the world in a new way. And you come to understand very clearly the way that certain specially gifted people have seen the world. You are actually introduced into the kind of world that Van Gogh lived in, or the kind of world that Blake lived in. You begin to have a direct experience of this kind of world while you’re under the drug, and afterwards you can remember and to some slight extent recapture this kind of world, which certain privileged people have moved in and out of, as Blake obviously did all the time.

Interviewers: But the artist’s talents won’t be any different from what they were before he took the drug?

Huxley: I don’t see why they should be different. Some experiments have been made to see what painters can do under the influence of the drug, but most of the examples I have seen are very uninteresting. You could never hope to reproduce to the full extent the quite incredible intensity of color that you get under the influence of the drug. Most of the things I have seen are just rather tiresome bits of expressionism, which correspond hardly at all, I would think, to the actual experience. Maybe an immensely gifted artist — someone like Odilon Redon (who probably saw the world like this all the time anyhow) — maybe such a man could profit by the lysergic acid [diethylamide] experience, could use his visions as models, could reproduce on canvas the external world as it is transfigured by the drug.

Interviewers: Here this afternoon, as in your book, The Doors of Perception, you’ve been talking chiefly about the visual experience under the drug, and about painting. Is there any similar gain in psychological insight?

Huxley: Yes, I think there is. While one is under the drug one has penetrating insights into the people around one, and also into one’s own life. Many people get tremendous recalls of buried material. A process which may take six years of psychoanalysis happens in an hour — and considerably cheaper! And the experience can be very liberating and widening in other ways. It shows that the world one habitually lives in is merely a creation of this conventional, closely conditioned being which one is, and that there are quite other kinds of worlds outside. It’s a very salutary thing to realize that the rather dull universe in which most of us spend most of our time is not the only universe there is. I think it’s healthy that people should have this experience.

> Huxley on LSD and Creativity | MAPS Org

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Consciously Control Your Immune System with The Wim Hof Method

Consciously Control Your Immune System with The Wim Hof Method | Third Monk image 1

Wim Hof Method

Wim Hof is a holder of 20 Guinness World Records for withstanding extreme temperatures.

He has climbed Everest and Kilimanjaro in only shorts and shoes, stayed comfortably in ice baths for hours, and run a marathon in the desert with no water.

Wim is able to accomplish these feats with ease through the use of The Wim Hof Method – a breathing technique that allows you to control the autonomous systems of the body.

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However, the most earthshaking effect of the Wim Hof method is the ability to consciously control the immune system to fight off any disease.

By becoming more in tune with the body, Wim says you can rid yourself of even the most destructive diseases, including AIDS, Multiple Sclerosis, and cancer.

The Wim Hof Method

The Wim Hof Method is similar to Tummo (inner heat) Meditation and Pranayama (yogic breathing). Yet it is something else entirely. While Wim has studied yoga and meditation for many years, this technique primordially comes from what he terms ‘cold hard nature’. By subjecting himself to the bitter conditions of nature, he learned to withstand the extreme forces of cold, heat and fear.

The first part is a breathing exercise which can be likened to controlled hyperventilation.

The image will consist of rapid breathing that makes one languid, invigorates one, makes one high on oxygen. One mechanism of this practice is the complete oxygenation of your blood and cells.

Get Comfortable and Close Your Eyes

Sit in a meditation posture, whatever is most comfortable for you. Make sure you can expand your lungs freely without feeling any constriction. It is recommended to do this practice right after waking up since your stomach is still empty.

Warm Up

Inhale deeply. Really draw the breath in until you feel a slight pressure from inside your chest on your solar plexus. Hold this for a moment and then exhale completely. Push the air out as much as you can. Hold this for a moment. Repeat this warm up round 15 times.

30 Power Breaths

Imagine you’re blowing up a balloon. Inhale through the nose and exhale through the mouth in short but powerful bursts. The belly is pulled inward when you are breathing out and is pulled outward when you are breathing in. Keep a steady pace and use your midriff fully. Close your eyes and do this around 30 times or until you feel your body is saturated with oxygen. Symptoms could be light-headedness, tingling sensations in the body, electrical surges of energy.

Scan Your Body

During the 30 power breaths, delve into your body and become aware of it as possible. Trace your awareness up and down your body and use your intuition as to what parts lack energy and what parts are overflowing. Scan for any blockage between the two. Try to send energy/warmth to those blockages. Then release them deeper and deeper. Tremors, traumas and emotional releases can come up. It can be likened to kundalini rising. Feel the whole body fill up with warmth and love.

Feel the negativity burn away.

Often people report swirling colors and other visual imagery during this exercise. Once you encounter them, go into them, embrace them, merge with them. Get to know this inner world and how it correlates to the feeling of tension or blockages in your body.

The Hold

After the the 30 rapid succession of breath cycles, draw the breath in once more and fill the lungs to maximum capacity without using too much force. Then push all of the air out and hold for as long as you can. Draw the chin in a bit so as to prevent air from coming in again.

Really relax and open all energy channels in your body. Notice how all the oxygen is spreading around in your body. Hold the breath until you experience the gasp reflex on the top of your chest.

Recovery Breath

Inhale to full capacity. Feel your chest expanding. Release any tension in the solar plexus. When you are at full capacity, hold the breath once more. Drop the chin to the chest and hold this for around 15 seconds.

Notice that you can direct the energy with your awareness. Use this time to scan the body and see where there is no color, tension or blockages. Feel the edges of this tension, go into it, move the energy towards this black hole. Feel the constrictions burning away, the dark places fill with light. Relax the body deeper as you move further inward, let everything go. Your body knows better than you do. After 15 seconds you have completed the first round.

Start this practice with one or two rounds. Try to do it daily and add two more rounds in a few days. After you feel more comfortable with holding your breath you can start to add exercises and stretches. Work up to a minimum of 15 minutes or 6 rounds with exercises. You can do this practice for how long it pleases you.

If you feel dizziness or pain, get out of the posture and lie on your back. Breathe easily again and stop this practice session.

Reserve at least 5 minutes after this practice to relax and scan the body.

Summary

  1. 30 times balloon blowing
  2. Breathe in fully
  3. Breath out fully and hold until gasp reflex
  4. Inhale fully and hold for 10-15 seconds.
  5. Repeat until finished
  6. Take 5 minutes to relax and scan your body

Bonus Power-ups

  • Add push-ups or yoga poses during the time you are holding your breath until you wait for the gasp reflex. Notice that you are stronger without air than you would normally be if you could breathe!
  • Charge the energy up the spine by holding moola banda, contract the rectum & sex organ and pull the navel inward towards the spine.
  • Stand up in squat position and do the balloon breath. Try to breathe away the burn. (get seated again the moment you continue the cycle, you don’t want to be standing and faint) See if you can get the energy overtake the pain. Don’t give up easily and see how far you can go if you have the willpower!

Cold Exposure

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After the  body scan of the previous exercise you are ready let your body embrace the cold. It is very important to try to relax as much as you can, really be with the cold, only then can your body process the signals and start thermogenesis.

As Wim says, “The cold is your warm friend!”

Cold Showers

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If you are new to cold exposure, start with cold showers. Begin with your feet and then follow with your legs, your stomach, shoulders, neck and back and finally your head. An initial shock, shivering and hyperventilation is normal. Try to remain calm and breathe easily. Close your eyes and really try to embrace the cold.

If you feel any strong physical uncomfortableness, like heavy shivering, numbness or pain, get your body warm again as soon as possible.

Once you are out of the shower, take a moment to do another slow body scan before you dry yourself.
Cold exposure works like weight lifting, you get stronger over time. There are little muscles around your veins that contract when they get into contact with the cold. After some time (only 1-2 weeks according to Wim) these become stronger, making your veins healthier and reducing the force that your heart has to use to pump blood around your body.

You can increase exposure over time. At one point the cold will feel just as comfortable as wearing your favorite pajamas and you can skip the warm shower completely. Notice how you feel amazing after a cold shower and sluggish after a warm one.

Ice Baths

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After a few weeks of cold showers you can up the ante to an ice bath. Get 2-3 bags of ice at your local convenience store and put them in a half-full bath tub. Wait until around two thirds is melted or that the water has reached your designated temperature (10 / 12 °C (50 / 59 °F)). You can throw in a couple of handfuls of salt to speed up this process.

As with the cold showers, try to relax as much as you can. Start out with around 10 minutes and increase exposure over time. If you feel uncomfortable or in doubt, get out. After this exercise make sure you do another body scan.

It is normal to feel extra cold after a small period of time after the ice bath. This is called the after-drop. Take a hot glass of raw coca and keep your blood flowing by talking a walk.

You’ll feel amazing after!

These exercises are extremely powerful when done consistently and with intent. Try them and out and report your findings in the comments below!

Remember, the cold is your warm friend.

> Consciously Control Your Immune System | High Existence

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Munchies – 10 Super Simple Two-Ingredient Recipes For Stoners (Guide)

Munchies - 10 Super Simple Two-Ingredient Recipes For Stoners (Guide) | Third Monk image 1

Cooking doesn’t get much easier! But don’t let the simple two-ingredient recipes fool you, these are some delicious munchies.

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Ingredients:

4 large or extra large eggs
8 1/2 ounces Nutella (weigh this out on a scale)

Directions:

  1. Grease a 6 or 7 inch round springform pan. Then line with parchment paper on sides and on bottom. (One of the cakes I made, I simply sprayed pan, but it still sticks, so it is best to line with parchment paper. By spraying with oil first, the parchment paper stick on better.) Preheat oven to 350F. Beat eggs on highest speed with stand mixer until about triple in volume, about 6 minutes. The egg consistency is the key to making this recipe work, so don’t try to save time on this step. Eggs must be beaten until triple in volume as that is what creates the cake.
  2. Measure out Nutella into a glass bowl. Microwave Nutella for about 20 seconds to make it softer. Add in 1/3 of the egg mixture. Gently stir with a spatula in the same clockwise direction until all of the egg is mixed in, and no streaks remain. Then add another 1/3 of egg mixture and fold again until no egg streaks remain. Pour in remaining third and make sure to scrape the foam that sticks to the mixing bowl into the batter and stir until no streaks remain. Make sure to do this in 3 batches because otherwise the whipped eggs may lose too much of the air that has been whipped into them if you try to do it all at once.
  3. Pour batter into spring foam pan. Bake for 20-25 minutes until knife inserted comes out clean. Let cake cool completely before removing from pan and cutting and serving.

Recipe via Kirbie Cravings

the-34-insanely-simple-two-ingredient-recipes-3Ingredients:

10oz. Ghirardelli white chocolate chips
15 regular size Oreos, plus 3 more for topping

Directions:

Line an 8×8 pan with enough parchment or wax paper for a 1 inch overhang on each side.

  1. Place chocolate in a double boiler over low heat and stir continuously, until chocolate is completely melted.  Transfer chocolate to a heat proof bowl and cool for 5 minutes. Add chopped Oreos and stir to combine. Pour mixture into pan. Use a spatula to smooth out top.
  2. Finely chop remaining Oreos and sprinkle on top. Chill for about 10 minutes until chocolate becomes solid.
  3. Lift whole bark out of the pan by holding onto parchment or wax overhang. Split bark into pieces with a fork.

Recipe via Bakers Royale

the-34-insanely-simple-two-ingredient-recipes-5Ingredients:

1 1/2 pounds sirloin
Large pieces of fat removed
1/2 cup whiskey
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
Fine Sea Salt and Freshly Cracked Pepper (to taste)

Directions:

  1. In a large airtight plastic bag combine trimmed sirloin, whiskey and balsamic vinegar. Massage into the fibers of the meat. Place in the refrigerator for 1-2 hour(s).
  2. Removesirloin from the refrigerator and allow to come to room temperature for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, heat the grill.
  3. Remove sirloin from the marinade and place onto a plate. Season the top with fine sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste.
  4. Preheat the grill to a high heat. Place steak on the hot grill. If you are using a gas grill, cover the grill. Grill for 4-6 minutes on each side for medium rare. If you do not have a grill, you can follow the same instructions using the broiler of your oven on the second to top rack. Make sure to keep the door cracked and properly ventilate to not set off your smoke detectors.

Recipe via Savory Experiments
the-34-insanely-simple-two-ingredient-recipes-6Ingredients:

1 cup chocolate chips
2 tbsp. coconut oil (can substitute butter or shortening)

Directions:

  1. In a small-medium, microwave safe, bowl combine chocolate chip and coconut oil.
  2. Microwave on high for 30 seconds. Stir. Microwave in 15 second increments, removing and stirring between each, until smooth. Let cool to room temperature.
  3. Serve (it should become solid when it is put on something cold, if it is taking a bit to harden up, pop the ice cream or popsicle, etc. in the refrigerator for a minute.) or cover and store at room temperature for up to a month (if it solidifies-because the temperature in your home may be too cool-just microwave and stir again until melted, and make sure to let come back to room temperature before using.)

Recipe via Cooking Actress

the-34-insanely-simple-two-ingredient-recipes-13Ingredients:

2 cups granulated sugar
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
2 sheets puff pastry, defrosted

Directions:

  1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
  2. Combine the sugar and kosher salt. Pour 1 cup of the sugar/salt mixture on a flat surface such as wooden board or marble.
  3. Unfold each sheet of puff pastry onto the sugar and pour 1/2 cup of the sugar mixture on top, spreading it evenly on the puff pastry. This is not about sprinkling, it’s about an even covering of sugar.
  4. With a rolling pin, roll the dough until it’s 13 by 13-inches square and the sugar is pressed into the puff pastry on top and bottom. Fold the sides of the square towards the center so they go halfway to the middle. Fold them again so the two folds meet exactly at the middle of the dough. Then fold 1 half over the other half as though closing a book. You will have 6 layers.
  5. Slice the dough into 3/8-inch slices and place the slices, cut side up, on baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Place the second sheet of pastry on the sugared board, sprinkle with the remaining 1/2 cup of sugar mixture, and continue as above. (There will be quite a bit of sugar left over on the board.) Slice and arrange on baking sheets lined with parchment.
  6. Bake the cookies for 6 minutes until caramelized and brown on the bottom, then turn with a spatula and bake another 3 to 5 minutes, until caramelized on the other side. Transfer to a baking rack to cool.

Recipe via Food Network

the-34-insanely-simple-two-ingredient-recipes-16Ingredients:

3 1/2 cups broccoli florets
1/2 cup creamy garlic hummus
black pepper + lemon juice to taste

Directions:

  1. Steam, boil, roast or grill your broccoli florets.
  2. Toss the warm florets in the hummus — coating it as you would pasta with pasta sauce.
  3. Serve warm or place in the fridge to chill. This broccoli is delicious served both warm and chilled.

Add lemon juice and black pepper over top to serve.

Customize it! If you are not a garlic fan, you can use any variety of hummus, including lemon, chili, roasted eggplant, olive, parsley and more.

Recipe via Babble

the-34-insanely-simple-two-ingredient-recipes-20Ingredients:

1 Box Vanilla Wafer Cookies (such as Nilla Wafers)
2 Cups mint white chocolate candy melts
Sprinkles (optional)

Directions:

  1. Melt chocolate in microwave (Use about 1 Tablespoon shortening or vegetable oil to thin it out if it is too think for dipping.)
  2. Dip cookies into mint white chocolate. Garnish with sprinkles if desired. Let cool.

Recipe via In Katrina’s Kitchen

the-34-insanely-simple-two-ingredient-recipes-22Ingredients:

1 cup milk (per preference)
1 1/2-2 tablespoons Nutella

Directions:

  1. Heat milk to steaming. You can do this in a microwave or in a pan on top of the stove. When steaming hot, pour into a mug. Stir in Nutella until it dissolves.
  2. Enjoy!

Recipe via Shockingly Delicious

the-34-insanely-simple-two-ingredient-recipes-32Ingredients:

2-parts Ginger Ale
1-part Mustard
(Example: 2/3 cup ginger ale for 1/3 cup mustard)

Directions:

  1. Combine your 2-ingredient marinade
  2. Prepare your ham by making diamond slices in the top (make cuts about 1/2 inch into the ham both length-wise and width-wise.  This will create “diamond” shapes into the ham and allow the marinade to seep into the ham so that they ham can cook and soak up the flavors!
  3. Pour your marinade over the ham (it will be thicker) and let it seep into the cuts and cook to package directions.
  4. Throughout the cooking process, use a baster, suck up the juices that leaked out and baste it over the top again. Use a spoon for this if you don’t have a baster.
  5. Serve and enjoy the sweet/tart and deliciously unique flavors of your Ham.

Recipe via The Thrifty Couple

the-34-insanely-simple-two-ingredient-recipes-33Ingredients:

1 Package of Crescent Rolls
Package of Kraft Singles

Directions:

  1. Unwrap your cheese slices and pop open your can of crescent rolls.
  2. You’ll use a half slice of cheese in each roll.  We folded them into halves, then quarters, and then in half again before putting it on the crescent roll.
  3. Roll up your dough with the cheese inside.
  4. Put the rolls on a baking sheet and brush with melted butter. You can also sprinkle with a little extra parmesan cheese, garlic salt, etc.
  5. When they’re all buttered up and ready to go, put them in the oven and bake as directed for the crescent rolls.

Recipe via Come Together Kids

> Super Simple Recipes | Crazy Food

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45 Amazing Uses for Lemons

45 Amazing Uses for Lemons | Third Monk image 1

45 amazing uses for lemons

When life gives you lemons, REJOICE, there are 45 amazing uses for lemons that will have you begging for more lemons from life.

A glass of steeped lemon water in the morning on an empty stomach goes a long way for your body, but today we’re taking the use of lemons to the next level.

45 Amazing uses for Lemons

1. Freshen the Fridge

Remove refrigerator odors with ease. Dab lemon juice on a cotton ball or sponge and leave it in the fridge for several hours. Make sure to toss out any malodorous items that might be causing the bad smell.

2. High Blood Pressure

Lemon contains potassium which controls high blood pressure and reduces the effect of nausea and dizziness.

3. Prevent Cauliflower From Turning Brown

Cauliflower tend to turn brown with even the slightest cooking. You can make sure the white vegetables stay white by squeezing a teaspoon of fresh lemon juice on them before heating.

4. Mental Health

Lemon water can also prep up your mood and relieve you from depression and stress. Long distance walkers and world travelers as well as explorers look upon the lemon as a Godsend. When fatigue begins, a lemon is sucked through a hole in the top. Quick acting medicine it is, giving almost unbelievable refreshments.

5. Refresh Cutting Boards

No wonder your kitchen cutting board smells! After all, you use it to chop onions, crush garlic, and prepare fish. To get rid of the smell and help sanitize the cutting board, rub it all over with the cut side of half a lemon or wash it in undiluted juice straight from the bottle.

6. Respiratory Problems

Lemon water can reduce phlegm; and can also help you breathe properly and aids a person suffering with asthma.

7. Treating Arthritis and Rheumatism

Lemon is a diuretic – assists in the production of urine which helps you to reduce inflammation by flushing out toxins and bacteria while also giving you relief from arthritis and rheumatism.

8. Prevents Kidney Stones

Regular consumption of the refreshing drink — or even lemon juice mixed with water — may increase the production of urinary citrate, a chemical in the urine that prevents the formation of crystals that may build up into kidney stones.

9. Keep Insects Out of the Kitchen

You don’t need insecticides or ant traps to ant-proof your kitchen. Just give it the lemon treatment. First squirt some lemon juice on door thresholds and windowsills. Then squeeze lemon juice into any holes or cracks where the ants are getting in. Finally, scatter small slices of lemon peel around the outdoor entrance. The ants will get the message that they aren’t welcome. Lemons are also effective against roaches and fleas: Simply mix the juice of 4 lemons (along with the rinds) with 1/2 gallon (2 liters) water and wash your floors with it; then watch the fleas and roaches flee. They hate the smell.

45 amazing uses for lemons 1

10. Anti-Aging

Lemon water reduces the production of free radicals which are responsible for aging skin and skin damage. Lemon water is calorie free and an antioxidant.

11. Fruit and Vegetable Wash

You never know what kind of pesticides or dirt may be lurking on the skin of your favorite fruits and vegetables. Slice your lemon and squeeze out one tablespoon of lemon juice into your spray bottle. The lemon juice is a natural disinfectant and will leave your fruits and vegetables smelling nice too.

12. Treat Infections

Lemon water can fight throat infections thanks to its antibacterial property. If salt water does not work for you, try lime and water for gargling.

13. Deodorize Your Garbage

If your garbage is beginning to smell yucky, here’s an easy way to deodorize it: Save leftover lemon and orange peels and toss them at the base under the bag. To keep it smelling fresh, repeat once every couple of weeks.

14. Keep Guacamole Green

You’ve been making guacamole all day long for the big party, and you don’t want it to turn brown on top before the guests arrive. The solution: Sprinkle a liberal amount of fresh lemon juice over it and it will stay fresh and green. The flavor of the lemon juice is a natural complement to the avocados in the guacamole. Make the fruit salad hours in advance too. Just squeeze some lemon juice onto the apple slices, and they’ll stay snowy white.

15. Purges The Blood

We consume a lot of junk food or food with a lot of preservatives and artificial flavours. This builds up a lot of toxins in the blood and body but daily consumption of lemon water helps to purify the blood.

16. Make Soggy Lettuce Crisp

Don’t toss that soggy lettuce into the garbage. With the help of a little lemon juice you can toss it in a salad instead. Add the juice of half a lemon to a bowl of cold water. Then put the soggy lettuce in it and refrigerate for 1 hour. Make sure to dry the leaves completely before putting them into salads or sandwiches.

17. Oral Health

Lemon juice also stops bleeding gums and reduces toothaches

45 amazing uses for lemons 5

18. Lighten Age Spots

Why buy expensive creams when you’ve got lemon juice? To lighten liver spots or freckles, try applying lemon juice directly to the area. Let it sit for 15 minutes and then rinse your skin clean. It’s a safe and effective skin-lightening agent.

19. Create Blonde Highlights

For salon-worthy highlights, add 1/4 cup lemon juice to 3/4 cup water and rinse your hair with the mixture. Then, sit in the sun until your hair dries. To maximize the effect, repeat once daily for up to a week.

20. Make a Room Scent/Humidifier

Freshen and moisturize the air in your home on dry winter days. Make your own room scent that also doubles as a humidifier. If you have a wood-burning stove, place an enameled cast-iron pot or bowl on top, fill with water, and add lemon (and/or orange) peels, cinnamon sticks, cloves, and apple skins. No wood-burning stove? Use your stovetop instead and just simmer the water periodically.

21. Clean and Whiten Nails

Pamper your hands without a manicurist. Add the juice of 1/2 lemon to 1 cup warm water and soak your fingertips in the mixture for 5 minutes. After pushing back the cuticles, rub some lemon peel back and forth against the nail.

22. Cleanse Your Face

Zap zits naturally by dabbing lemon juice on blackheads to draw them out during the day. You can also wash your face with lemon juice for a natural cleanse and exfoliation. Your skin should improve after several days of treatment. Lemon water is also a cooling agent, best way to beat the heat.

23. Freshen Your Breath

Make an impromptu mouthwash by rinsing with lemon juice straight from the bottle. Swallow for longer-lasting fresh breath. The citric acid in the juice alters the pH level in your mouth, killing bacteria that causes bad breath. Rinse after a few minutes because long-term exposure to the acid in lemons can harm tooth enamel.

24. Treat Flaky Dandruff

If itchy, scaly dandruff has you scratching your head, relief may be no farther away than your refrigerator. Just massage two tablespoons lemon juice into your scalp and rinse with water. Then stir one teaspoon lemon juice into one cup water and rinse your hair with it. Repeat daily until your dandruff disappears.

25. Get Rid of Tough Stains on Marble

You probably think of marble as stone, but it is really petrified calcium (also known as old seashells). That explains why it is so porous and easily stained and damaged. Those stains can be hard to remove. If washing won’t remove a stubborn stain, try this: Cut a lemon in half, dip the exposed flesh into some table salt, and rub it vigorously on the stain. But do this only as a last resort; acid can damage marble. Rinse well. Use These Lemons To Clean – Easy and Effective

26. Remove Berry Stains

It sure was fun to pick your own berries, but now your fingers are stained with berry juice that won’t come off no matter how much you scrub with soap and water. Try washing your hands with undiluted lemon juice, then wait a few minutes and wash with warm, soapy water. Repeat until your hands are stain-free.

27. Soften Dry, Scaly Elbows

Itchy elbows are bad enough, but they look terrible too. For better looking (and feeling) elbows, mix baking soda and lemon juice to make an abrasive paste, then rub it into your elbows for a soothing, smoothing, and exfoliating treatment. Rinse your extremities in a mixture of equal parts lemon juice and water, then massage with olive oil and dab dry with a soft cloth.

45 amazing uses for lemons 4

28. Headaches

Lemon juice with a few teaspoons of hot tea added is the treatment of a sophisticated New York bartender, for those who suffer with hangover headaches–and from headaches due to many other causes. He converts his customers to this regime, and weans them away from drug remedies completely.

29. Chills and Fevers

Chills and fevers may be due to a variety of causes; never the less the lemon is always a helpful remedy. Spanish physicians regard it as an infallible friend.

30. Diphtheria

Skip the vaccine for this disease. Lemon Juice Treatment still proves as one of the most powerful antiseptics and the strong digestive qualities of the fruit are admired around the world. With the juice every hour or two, and at the same time, 1/2 to 1 tsp. should be swallowed. This cuts loose the false membrane in the throat and permits it to come out.

31. Vaginal Hygiene

Diluted lemon juice makes a safe and sane method of vaginal hygiene. Though it is a powerful antiseptic it is nevertheless free from irritating drugs in douches and suppositories.

32. Forget The Moth Balls

A charming French custom to keep closets free from moths is to take ripe lemons and stick them with cloves all over the skin. The heavily studded lemons slowly dry with their cloves, leaving a marvelous odor throughout the closets and rooms.

33. Stomach Health

Digestive problems are the most common ailments but warm water and lime juice is the solution to most digestive problems. Lemon juice helps to purify the blood, reduces your chances of indigestion, constipation, eliminates toxins from the body, adds digestion and reduces phlegm.

34. Disinfect Cuts and Scrapes

Stop bleeding and disinfect minor cuts and scraps by pouring a few drops of lemon juice directly on the cut. You can also apply the juice with a cotton ball and hold firmly in place for one minute.

35. Soothe Poison Ivy Rash

You won’t need an ocean of calamine lotion the next time poison ivy comes a-creeping. Just apply lemon juice directly to the affected area to soothe itching and alleviate the rash.

36. Remove Warts

You’ve tried countless remedies to banish warts and nothing seems to work. Next time, apply a dab of lemon juice directly to the wart using a cotton swab. Repeat for several days until the acids in the lemon juice dissolve the wart completely.

45 amazing uses for lemons 2

37. Bleach Delicate Fabrics

Avoid additional bleach stains by swapping ordinary household chlorine bleach with lemon juice, which is milder but no less effective. Soak your delicates in a mixture of lemon juice and baking soda for at least half an hour before washing.

38. Clean Tarnished Brass and Polish Chrome

Say good-bye to tarnish on brass, copper, or stainless steel. Make a paste of lemon juice and salt (or substitute baking soda or cream of tartar for the salt) and coat the affected area. Let it stay on for 5 minutes. Then wash in warm water, rinse, and polish dry. Use the same mixture to clean metal kitchen sinks too. Apply the paste, scrub gently, and rinse. Get rid of mineral deposits and polish chrome faucets and other tarnished chrome. Simply rub lemon rind over the chrome and watch it shine! Rinse well and dry with a soft cloth.

39. Replace Your Dry Cleaner

Ditch the expensive dry-cleaning bills (and harsh chemicals) with this homegrown trick. Simply scrub the stained area on shirts and blouses with equal parts lemon juice and water. Your “pits” will be good as new, and smell nice too.

40. Boost Laundry Detergent

For more powerful cleaning action, pour 1 cup lemon juice into the washer during the wash cycle. The natural bleaching action of the juice will zap stains and remove rust and mineral discolorations from cotton T-shirts and briefs and will leave your clothes smelling fresh. Your clothes will turn out brighter and also come out smelling lemon-fresh.

41. Rid Clothes of Mildew

Have you ever unpacked clothes you stored all winter and discovered some are stained with mildew? To get rid of it, make a paste of lemon juice and salt and rub it on the affected area, then dry the clothes in sunlight. Repeat the process until the stain is gone.

42. Eliminate Fireplace Odor

There’s nothing cozier on a cold winter night than a warm fire burning in the fireplace — unless the fire happens to smell horrible. Next time you have a fire that sends a stench into the room, try throwing a few lemon peels into the flames. Or simply burn some lemon peels along with your firewood as a preventive measure.

43. Neutralize Cat-Box Odor

You don’t have to use an aerosol spray to neutralize foul-smelling cat-box odors or freshen the air in your bathroom. Just cut a couple of lemons in half. Then place them, cut side up, in a dish in the room, and the air will soon smell lemon-fresh.

44. Deodorize a Humidifier

When your humidifier starts to smell funky, deodorize it with ease: Just pour 3 or 4 teaspoons lemon juice into the water. It will not only remove the off odor but will replace it with a lemon-fresh fragrance. Repeat every couple of weeks to keep the odor from returning.

45. Reduce Asthma Symptoms

In addition to a general detoxifying diet, 2 tablespoons of lemon juice before each meal, and before retiring can reduce asthma symptoms.

45 amazing uses for lemons 3

* If you do consume lemon peel, stick to organic lemons to reduce your pesticide exposure.

> 45 Uses for Lemons That Will Blow Your Socks Off | True Activist

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Neuroscience of Breathing Techniques – Ted Talk (Video)

Neuroscience of Breathing Techniques - Ted Talk (Video) | Third Monk image 1

Neuroscience of Breathing

Breathing is an action that we are all aware of, but are we taking full advantage of this action?

By taking full advantage of different breathing exercises we can enjoy positive effects in our daily lives.

Alan Watkins’ Ted Talk takes you into the neuroscience of breathing techniques, allowing us a look at breathing through a scientific filter.

Neuroscience of Breathing Techniques

In the second half he talks about how breathing techniques work physiologically. He mentions that there are 12 different ways that the breath can be adjusted, but only talked about the most important three:

Rhythmically
Smoothly
Location of the focus during the breath (in the center of the chest)

To remember this, Dr Watkins uses the acronym B.R.E.A.T.H.E:

Breathe
Regularly
Through the
Heart
Everyday

Posted on

33 Healthy Ways to Use Coconut Oil

33 Healthy Ways to Use Coconut Oil | Third Monk image 6

Benefits-of-Coconut-Oil1-use

Scientific research on coconut oil has revealed health benefits that affect your entire body, inside and out.

You’ve heard good things about it and now you have a tub of it sitting in your pantry. So how do you use coconut oil?

Cooking and Eating

cooking-coconut-oil

1) Cooking at High Heat – Some oils are unsafe to cook with at high temperatures, coconut oil is a great alternative.

2) Eat it by the Spoonful – Coconut oil is that delicious and healthful. Enjoy one spoonful each morning.

3) Smoothies – Add one tablespoon of coconut oil into your favorite smoothie recipe and increase your energy with the oil’s MCTs.

4) Replace Vegetable Oil for Baking – Next time you make your favorite brownie recipe, replace the vegetable oil with coconut oil. Your friends will be begging you for the recipe.

5) Pan Frying – Next time you fry up a batch of sweet potato fries or a piece of chicken, use coconut oil.

6) Coconut Oil Coffee – Adding a spoonful to your coffee is a delicious way to start your day with a huge energy boost! Here is a great recipe for coconut oil coffee.

7) Homemade Granola – Check out this delicious recipe for coconut granola.

8) A Spoonful in Tea – Allow some coconut oil to melt and mildly flavor your next cup of tea.

9) Salad Dressings – A simple recipe for a salad dressing with coconut oil can be found here.

Coconut Oil Skin Care

How-I-use-coconut-oil-in-my-beauty-routine

10) Cheekbone Highlighter – Apply a small amount on cheekbones over makeup.

11) Shaving Lotion – Close shave and a moisturizer at the same time.

12) Facial Scrub – Combine coconut oil with Himalayan crystal salt and apply to face each night. Washing it off is optional.

13) Body Scrub – Combine coconut oil and sugar. Check out this DIY Sugar Scrub recipe.

14) Makeup Remover – Healthier, stronger and longer eye lashes are just a bonus!

15) Homemade Deodorant – You only need a few ingredients in addition to coconut oil to make this simple deodorant recipe.

16) Homemade Lip Balm or Lip Gloss – Apply directly or create a flavored version with this simple lip balm recipe.

17) Sexual Lubricant – We swear by this one 😉

18) Massage Oil – Coconut oil is the perfect choice for a massage oil. Not too greasy and with a relaxing scent.

19) Body and Facial Moisturizer – Apply directly after showering.

20) Sunburn Care – A great moisturizer to use after you’ve gotten a bit too much sun.

21) Dry Feet Treatment – Mix with salt to form a foot scrub.

22) Elbow Rub – Helps manage the dry skin on your elbows.

Coconut Oil Hair Care

23) Leave-in Overnight Conditioner – Looking for a deep conditioning hair treatment? Rub a small amount of oil into hair (mostly at ends), comb through and put hair in a loose bun before bed, and wash out in the morning.

24) Defrizzer of Split Ends – Just put a tiny amount on your hands and run them through the frizzy areas.

25) Static Reducer – Rub your hands together with a little bit of coconut oil on them and run them through your static-y hair.

Other Healthy Uses for Coconut Oil

DIY-Toothpaste

26) Homemade Toothpaste – Combine equal parts coconut oil and baking soda. Sweeten with stevia and flavor with your favorite essential oil.

27) Aromatherapy – Whether you like coconut or not, the soothing aroma of coconut oil is pleasing to us all and can help us wind down after a long, stressful day.

28) Wound Care – Although you may not be ready to give up your Neosporin, coconut oil can even be used as a topical protector for wounds, shielding them with a thin chemical layer from outside contaminants. You can apply a small amount of coconut oil to small scrapes and cuts.

29) Metabolism Booster – 2 tablespoons per day are proven to rev up your metabolism.

30) Thyroid Supporter – Regular coconut oil consumption has been shown to support healthy thyroid function.

31) Energizer – 1 teaspoon can give you a burst of energy instead of turning towards a caffeinated energy drink.

Coconut Oil for Animals

BMC_1772-copy

32) Feed it to your Dog or Cat – Coconut oil isn’t just healthy for humans. Here is some good info on the benefits for dogs and cats.

33) Put It On Your Cat’s Paw – Put half a teaspoon on your kitty’s paw to keep a shiny coat and cut down on hairballs.

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Chia Fresca: The All Natural Revitalizing Energy Drink (Recipe)

Chia Fresca: The All Natural Revitalizing Energy Drink (Recipe) | Third Monk image 2

172413_Green Bags_KDM_

Chia Fresca (or iskiate as it is known in Central America) is an all natural revitalizing energy drink whose effects last all day, yet only takes seconds to prepare.

How Do I Make It?

Luckily, Chia Fresca requires few ingredients and is super simple to prepare.

Yield: 2 cups

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups water or coconut water
  • 1.5 tbsp chia seeds
  • 1/2 tbsp fresh lemon or lime juice, or to taste
  • Sweetener, to taste (1/2 tbsp maple syrup is good)

Preparation:

1. Add the chia and water into a jar or glass and stir well. Let sit for 10 minutes to allow the chia seeds to swell up. I like to use a jar with a lid so I can shake it up really well and break up the chia clumps.

2. Add lime or lemon juice and sweetener to taste. Stir well and enjoy!

For nutritional info, click here.

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It Looks Weird! Do I Have to?

Great Question! Here are a heap of reasons to make Chia seeds part of your routine:

1. Chia seeds are gluten free.

2. They are high in dietary fiber, making it great for digestion.

3. They contain 20% Omega 3 ALA, making it a super food for the brain and heart. Chia seeds have eight times more Omega 3 than salmon!

4. They boast 20% protein. The protein is a complete protein with all 8 essential amino acids.

5. They are high in antioxidants.

6. Chia seeds contain five times more calcium than milk.

7. They contain seven times more vitamin C than oranges.

8. Chia seeds contain three times more iron than spinach.

9. They contain twice the potassium content of a banana.

10. They have a positive impact balancing blood glucose levels (making it awesome for diabetics).

*Nutritionists recommend that 15g/0.53oz (one tablespoon) of Chia consumption each day. Make sure to drink plenty of water, as Chia is high in fiber.

Enjoy!

the-seeds

> A Natural Energy Drink | Oh She Glows

> Reasons to Eat Chia Seeds | The Wellness Warrior