spirituality – Page 10 – Christian Science Committee on Publication for Michigan

Daylight Savings Time and spirituality

By Bob CummingsMarch 10, 2012Health, Notes from Bob CummingsDaylight Savings Time, DST, insomnia, mind-body, prayer, sleep, spirituality, Spring, Spring forward

(Photo courtesy of Flickr.com user ckaiserca)

A recent study found that sleep problems were noted after three-day weekends and Spring and Fall Daylight Savings time changes. Research has found that spirituality can help.

Daylight savings time (DST) was first conceived by Benjamin Franklin. Germany and England were the first countries to formally adopt DST. It was first enacted in the U.S. in March 19, 1918 with a law entitled, “An Act To save daylight and to provide standard time, for the United States.”

Music and health – really?

By Bob CummingsMarch 5, 2012Health, Notes from Bob Cummingscomfort, Gabby Giffords, harp, health, hymns, music therapy, spirituality, well-being

(Courtesy of flickr user Labanex)

Cancer patients were provided with 30 minutes of culturally appropriate music to relieve pain. This provided a level of 50% pain relief in 42% of the music group compared to 8% in the control group.

This from a 2010 randomized controlled trial¹ conducted at the Fooyin University School of Nursing in Taiwan.

60 Minutes, Placebos, and an Impossible Study

By Bob CummingsFebruary 20, 20123 commentsHealth, Notes from Bob Cummings60 Minutes, antidepressants, depression, health, Irving Kirsh, Lesley Stahl, mecebo, placebo, placebos, spirituality, thought

Explosive! That’s how correspondent Lesley Stahl described it.¹ And a study on the implications it raises for all drug-based therapy would be impossible – or would it?

“Beam me up, Scotty”

By Bob CummingsFebruary 7, 2012Health, Notes from Bob Cummingsconsciousness, health, McCoy's syndrome, spirituality, Star Trek, The Lancet, thought, Tricorder

Picture courtesy of Flickr user javacolleen

“McCoy’s syndrome” is defined, in an article¹ in a leading medical journal called The Lancet, as an excessive faith in medical technology (especially imaging), an absence of clinical reasoning and a lack of making emotional connections with the sick. The problem: frequent misdiagnosis.

Technological equipment in medicine helps physicians do their job better. But there can be a temptation to rely excessively or exclusively on a test result or image scan.

TRICORDER (Picture courtesy of Flickr user ted.sali)

The reference to McCoy’s syndrome is based on the fictional character named Dr. McCoy on a TV show called Star Trek in which the doctor diagnosed patients using a medical “tricorder” that scanned the patient and eliminated any need to discuss things with the patient or examine them any further. Take a reading, get a diagnosis.

But in real life, medical machinery today doesn’t accomplish this. And it may never do so. And one reason for this is that there is a mental component to health.

Anatomy and mysterious Italian diseases?

By Bob CummingsJanuary 16, 20124 commentsHealth, Notes from Bob Cummingsanatomy, cervicale, colpo d'aria, health, prayer, spirituality, thought

DaVinci’s VITRUVIAN MAN (photo courtesy of Flickr.com user I BE GINZ)

“The knee bone’s connected to the thigh bone…” That’s how the song goes.

Are you well versed in anatomy? I am most definitely not. My biology class in school covered the subject, but to this day, with a few exceptions, I just couldn’t tell you what bone is where. Most of them, I seem to never even have heard of. This handicaps me a bit when doing crossword puzzles and other word-based puzzles that use these words.

But recently I read an article online that suggests that this might actually be good for my health. Sound a little strange? Perhaps.

Thinking and effective exercise

By Bob CummingsJanuary 3, 2012Health, Notes from Bob Cummingsdepression, exercise, health, placebo, prayer, spirituality, thought

Picture courtesy of Flickr user Jacobunny

When thought meets exercise, exercise is more beneficial.

“A particular mind-set or belief about one’s body or health may lead to improvements in disease symptoms as well as changes in appetite, brain chemicals and even vision, several recent studies have found, highlighting how fundamentally the mind and body are connected” writes Shirley S. Wang in an article in the Wall Street Journal today.

A 1999 study conducted by James A. Blumenthal, PhD at the Duke University Medical Center found that older patients with major depression experienced therapeutic benefits from an exercise program equal to what others received from antidepressant medication.

Spirituality can relieve stress

By Bob CummingsDecember 12, 20114 commentsHealth, Notes from Bob Cummingshealth, holiday stress, prayer, spirituality, stress

Picture courtesy of flickr user Samael Kreutz

A 2010 Mayo Clinic article says that spirituality can help relieve stress.

And some ways it does this is by helping us feel a sense of purpose, connect to the world, release control and burden, expand our support network and lead a healthier life.

Spirituality means different things to different people. This article states, “spirituality takes the form of religious observance, prayer, meditation or a belief in a higher power. For others, it can be found in nature, music, art or a secular community. ”

Stress is mental and emotional strain resulting from excessive demands on our strength, abilities and resources. Doesn’t it follow then that what would help is a mental and emotional change for the better?

Cyber Health Day?

By Bob CummingsNovember 28, 2011Health, Notes from Bob CummingsBlack Friday, Cyber Monday, health, iCrossing-a digital marketing company, Pew Research Center, prayer, spirituality

Cyber Monday courtesy of Flickr user Geektonic

The Monday after Thanksgiving is known as Cyber Monday, which shoppers look forward to. But is there a Cyber Health Day?

I never used to be very interested in shopping on “Black Friday” (the day after Thanksgiving). But a few years ago my wife and I wanted to get a printer for a relative and we saw a good choice at a great price advertised for Black Friday so we got out to the store at 6:00 a.m. We purchased the printer at the much-reduced price. And we purchased a number of other items, also at significant savings. As long as we were out-and-about we went to a couple of other stores nearby. Then we went out for breakfast. We were back home around 9:00 a.m. And we actually had fun doing all this.

Gabby Giffords on ABC’s 20/20

By Bob CummingsNovember 15, 20113 commentsHealth, Notes from Bob Cummings20/20, ABC, Diane Sawyer, Gabrielle Giffords, Healing, health, hope, Mark Kelley, optimism, rehabilitation, spirituality, traumatic brain injury

I watched Diane Sawyer’s exclusive interview with Gabrielle (“Gabby”) Giffords and her husband Mark Kelley on ABC TV’s 20/20 last night. It was very moving! And it was wonderful to see the progress that Congresswoman Giffords has made since she was shot in the head last January.

Her husband Mark said he believes that optimism is a form of healing and hope a form of love. He said, “You can’t have too much hope“. Sawyer shared how Gabby’s husband Mark and her mother Gloria formed an indomitable alliance of optimism.

For health: forgiveness is good, bitterness is not

By Bob CummingsNovember 7, 2011Health, Notes from Bob Cummingsbitterness, CNN, Elizabeth Cohen, forgiveness, Healing, health, spirituality, University of Michigan Institute for Social Research

Recently, while in an airport waiting for a flight, I heard on CNN a summary of an article by Elizabeth Cohen, Senior Medical Correspondent for CNN, in which it was pointed out that bitterness is bad for our health.

In her article Cohen shares some significant points made by some contributors to a new book entitled, “Embitterment: Societal, psychological, and clinical perspectives.” In short, bitterness interferes with the body’s hormonal and immune systems, leads to higher blood pressure and contributes to heart disease and other illnesses.

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