December 2015 - Healing Arts & Learning Center

Men vs. Women and Directions

Women’s Health versus Men’s Health

Tina Brigitini

Argosy University

Sexual Dysfunctions
Cholesterol
S.T.D.’s

Men have been conditioned to believe “real men do not cry” they have learned to minimize pain. Messages received as boys is; “tough it out,” never allow others to see you might be in pain, physically or emotionally. Learning to override the signals of the body as a little boy continues into adult life. “Men are as likely to seek medical assistance, particularly pertaining to emotional health, as they are to stop and ask directions.” They have learned that they can fix problems, they are not the problem.

The basis of many health problems whether they are men or women is lack of education around self nurturance and caring for self. In general most people fail to recognize the true gift of giving is from a fullness of self, otherwise giving is a reaction to a place of emptiness within.

Men and women complain of lack of time and then they feel guilty for taking the time when they do something for themselves. Poor nutrition, and lack of proper exercise are a couple of areas that lead to health issues, these areas however appear to be related to stress as a result of too much to do in a society that values productivity. “Stress has been defined when circumstances place people in situations where there are not enough resources.” (Brannon, 2007) Heart disease is the leading cause of death in both men and women, only recently medical professionals are acknowledging this fact pertains to women as well.

Both men and women struggle, we are all on the same battle field and for reasons beyond our understanding we think we are fighting a different battle. Men and women hold high expectations of each other and self resulting in tremendous amounts of stress. Learning to ask for help from others is a sign of strength that many perceive as weakness. “The biggest problem that men have is not so much a specific disease, says Bonhomme, but the diseases are the result of lack of health care monitoring earlier in life.” (Zamora, n.d.) Monitoring health care is a sign of self-care and self-nurturance, something that both men and women fail to do well.

Women’s Health versus Men’s Health

Major areas of concern in the area of male health are:

Mental Health Issues
Depression
Anxiety
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
Physical Health Issues

References

Brannon, L. (2007). Genders: Psychological Perspectives (5th ed.). : Pearson.

Zamora, D. (n.d.). Mens Top Five Health Concerns. Retrieved from http://men.webmd.com

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http://www.crystallineawaken.com

Marijuana Legalized? Decisions & Future

Marijuana History directed towards students. Below is a research paper on the effects of marijuana long term. The changes in the plant over the years and the impact it will have used medicinally or as a tool to promote relaxation. I wrote this paper prior to it’s legalization in many states.

Author: Tina Brigitini, CCIH, DAP, LMT, RPT

Legalize Marijuana?

Hello and welcome! I understand that many of you are upset about the recent crack down to the use and distribution of marijuana on campus. I am also aware that you feel that the use of marijuana is similar to that of caffeine use. Quite honestly both caffeine and marijuana are detrimental to your overall health; however I am here today to educate you to the physical, psychological, and social consequences of engaging in the use of marijuana.

As students you will continue to be faced with the stresses of school, preparation for exams, financial challenges, and social challenges as you strive to achieve your educational goals which will prepare you for the rest of your life. You will also have many opportunities to make decisions that will directly impact your health, your success, your ability to excel or fail. Some of these opportunities will be presented in how you choose to handle your stress levels. I am here to speak with you specifically on the impact of marijuana, although considered by many to be a safe drug of choice, you are about to educated on the detrimental effects marijuana has on the physical body including the brain and the lungs. You will be educated to make decisions as to whether or not this drug will support your long term goals in relation to your education as well as your physical and emotional well being.

Let us begin with the history of the cannabis plant and the uses and then the changes that have been made to this natural plant which have changed the chemistry providing even more danger to the physical body. The plant was first observed in 1545 by European explorers. The hemp plant, cannabis was once considered to be a useful crop, farmers were actually fined for not growing hemp as early as 1617 when it was introduced to England and later cultivated in Virginia. This plant was used as a natural household drug to treat common ailments such as headaches and menstrual cramps. Things began to change as the drug companies began to cultivate stronger varieties of the plant for use in drug products. The plant was renamed to “cannabis Americana.” It was not until 1910 with the Mexican Revolution when drug trafficking opened up and growth and transport became a profitable business. (“Marijuana - History”) This created a change in this once considered household medicine as changes to the plant became more potent and harmful.

Musicians were the first to claim that smoking the marijuana plant provided them with more freedom and ease in the creation of their music. This lead to an increase in mind altering drugs primarily marijuana and alcohol which quickly spread into many popular cities such as Chicago, New York, London, and Paris.

Scientist have since discovered that use of this plant once considered medicinal has many detrimental effects on the brain, the primary reason for this is due to the chemical THC which has the ability to attach to the cannabis receptors of the brain which lead to the “high” associated with the drug. Specific parts of the brain affected are those that effect coordination, memory, pleasure, concentration, appetite, thinking, and time perception. “Research has shown that, in chronic users, marijuana’s adverse impact on learning and memory can last for days or weeks after the acute effects of the drug wear off.²” (“Info Facts: Marijuana”)

Considering the fact that most people abusing this drug are smoking it would lead us to the next conclusion; the impact to the healthy lung tissue. Marijuana smoking, like cigarette smoking causes inflammation to the lung tissue leading to respiratory issues, marijuana has 50-70 percent more carcinogenic hydrocarbons than cigarette smoke. People who smoke marijuana inhale the smoke more deeply than cigarette smokers creating similar issues to that of tobacco users. It has not yet been proven, however in time we may see an increase in lung cancer as a result of marijuana smoking. The fact is both marijuana and tobacco contain carcinogens, cancer causing agents; this will compromise the immune system diminishing the body’s ability to ward off infection. It is fact that the physiological changes to the body include increase in heart rate, this may not be detrimental to the person with no other health concerns however many health issues are undetected. The fact is that anyone who has undiagnosed health issues runs the risk of serious health challenges as a result of increasing heart rate.

From a psychological perspective research has proven that smoking marijuana in vulnerable individuals may contribute to the onset of schizophrenia, and paranoia, while also increasing levels of anxiety. “A number of studies have shown an association between chronic marijuana use and increased rates of anxiety, depression, and schizophrenia.”(“Info Facts: Marijuana”) Anyone can experience feelings of panic, particularly those who have early childhood traumas; these feeling can be exasperated with the use of marijuana leading to visits to the emergency room. In the 1930’s the connection between marijuana and psychotic break down was one of the main arguments in outlawing marijuana. “There have been reports of psychotic “breakdowns” occurring with rare frequency after marijuana has been smoked, but the causal relationship is in question.” (Hart, Ksir, & Ray, 2009, p. 384)

Other physical concerns are the possible interference of the reproductive systems in both men and women. This determination may be more speculation as evidence has yet to be able to provide direct correlation due to the fact that most people have also been cigarette smokers and or alcohol abusers.

As college students you have created many goals in your life, marijuana use is not going to support your ability to attain these goals. The long term effects on memory impairment, motivation, and your ability to learn have been shown to be dramatically reduced over time. In stopping the abuse of marijuana and in time studies have shown students can reverse this symptom of marijuana abuse. “Several studies associate workers’ marijuana smoking with increased absences, tardiness, accidents, workers’ compensation claims, and job turnover.”(“Info Facts: Marijuana”)

I would like to thank you for your time today and do hope that you can make your decisions based clear and accurate information around the use of marijuana as it relates to your long term goals in obtaining financial success and freedom while also enjoying your college years motivated and with clear thinking.

Looking for stress reduction? Try yoga, polarity therapy, hypnosis, enzyme replacement therapy, or floatation. www.crystallineawaken.com

References

Hart, C. L., Ksir, C., & Ray, O. (2009). DRUGS, SOCIETY & HUMAN BEHAVIOR (13th ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.

Info Facts: Marijuana. (). Retrieved from www.nida.nih.gov/Infofacts

Marijuana - History - Drug, Medical, Laws, Drugs, Limited, and Plant. (). Retrieved from www.science.jrank.org

Preventing Drug Abuse

Running head: PREVENTING DRUG ABUSE 1
Preventing Drug Abuse
Tina Brigitini
Argosy University

Preventing Drug Abuse
“Preventing or delaying use of psychoactive drugs, alcohol, and tobacco among adolescents is a critical, national public health goal. The simplest and most cost-effective way to lower the human and societal costs of drug abuse is to prevent it in the first place.”(“Preventing Drug Abuse”) Dealing with drug abuse issues after the fact is costly as well as painful for many people, families are subjected to loss of loved ones, relationships suffer, and we continue to produce more and more addicts as a result.

There are many effective strategies that have been implemented and have produced desired effects. There have also been many non-effective prevention strategies, however due to the inability to measure effectiveness in a relatively short time span, the ineffectiveness is not known for some time after implementing.
In consideration to the efforts to minimize cigarette smoking, considered to be the doorway to substance abuse, I would like to make mention of the media as a source to many drug abuse issues of today. People do not tend to differentiate a street drug from a prescription drug, particularly children. I have witnessed children referring to medication as the cure all for all pain; they regard medication as the appropriate treatment to all that ails regardless of what
behavior they may be doing to create the issue.
Our country took a stand and banned cigarette commercials aimed at getting children addicted for the sake of a profit, why then do we continue to allow the pharmaceuticals companies to profit by brainwashing children to the idea of drug use? “The first is that a coordinated approach using schools, parent and peer groups, civic organizations, police, newspapers, radio, and television can have a much greater impact than an isolated program that occurs only in school.”(Hart, Ksir, & Ray, 2009) Why would a child resist the temptation of a
drug in the school yard if their brains have been programmed to think that drugs are ok? This is an oxy-moron, similar to the idea of reducing gang violence yet our country goes to war and arms the biggest gangs to fight for our country. This is the example of the impact the macrocosm has on the microcosm. The child opens the medicine cabinet to see all the prescription drugs their parents are taking, with little understanding of the difference between a drug prescribed and a drug at hand. “Take this drug and you will feel better.” “As a result,
adolescents are more likely to exercise poor judgment, especially in terms of evaluating and appreciating the risks and long-term consequences associated with high-risk behaviors such assubstance use” (Hart et al., 2009) Don’t we all self-medicate? Cigarettes, coffee, alcohol, pharmaceuticals, all take the edge off.

The old adage, practice what you preach applies to all forms of self-medication whether it be prescribed or recreational. When we legalized alcohol we
basically gave all people the freedom to become addicts. If we want to be pro-active in preventing drug abuse we would need the media to educate children in ways to self-medicate in healthy ways, exercise, meditation, yoga, and bodywork. What if we ran a campaign aimed at getting our children addicted to relaxation techniques that produced euphoria, where drugs were not necessary for coping later on in life?
Educating our children through the school systems to the dangers has been effective, one such method is “Project Alert” which found that education in seventh grade with a booster in eighth grade and a follow up fifteen months later produced a four percent difference between controlled group and non-controlled group in relation to marijuana. “A Cornell University study of six
thousand students in New York State found that the odds of drinking, smoking, and using marijuana were 40 percent lower among students who participated in a school-based substance abuse program in grades seven through nine than among their counterparts who did not”. (“Preventing Drug Abuse”)
Other successful interventions include peers, parents, and communities, such as the YMCA’s or church organizations. These each have a strong capacity to influence children to discern what may be harmful to them while helping them to hold their power in a tough situation like being faced with the pressure of trying marijuana or alcohol.

One of the methods used in my neighborhood when I was a teenager was a parent holding a teen meeting at their house once a
week, the parents took turns. The problem was that parents were not educated to the types of drugs that infiltrated the school systems, nor were they educated to how to communicate with teens around drug abuse and the potential dangers. In the end, the meetings were fun and possibly effective as there were twenty-two teens in this neighborhood, of the twenty-two teens, all used both marijuana and alcohol and only five went on to experiment with hallucenogenic drugs.

Educating adolescents with a focus on prevention is one of the most effective methods of prevention; why not begin training them for the workplace while in school? Why not implement random drug testing for high school students?
We have identified adolescents as a group most susceptible to drug and alcohol abuse and yes, this is the beginning of creating a safe society for all.

Another group to consider is the elderly population, this group has gone undetected for a variety of reasons, and many of those reasons seem to coincide with the behaviors of drug abuse and aging making it difficult to differentiate. Implementing programs to assist the elderly population while educating to the
dangers would serve our society well. The major differences are the ability to obtain a recreational drug or a pharmaceutical drug. The doctors are writing prescriptions at an alarming rate, of course their job is to help the patient to alleviate the symptom of the complaint. The misfortune to this vicious cycle is that the elderly often fall victim to the hands of the medical field, they have not learned that they may have choices to which drug they say “NO” to. Why
not a campaign “JUST SAY “NO” to the pharmaceutical drugs aimed at the elderly?
Drug problems in our society are not solely the street user or the drug pusher; they are in it for the money as well, this is no different on some level as our doctors and pharmaceutical industries. We must look at this problem and treat all the root causes not just the issue of drugs.
There are many recovered drug addicts using their experience and their wisdom to share with the youngsters today in an effort to show them the alternatives to drug abuse. This is part of the community education, educate the children to understand the importance of education, of psychological well being, give them support groups where they can share their concerns. Keep kids off the street and create programs aimed at becoming productive contributing citizens,
programs like these will increase their self-awareness and self-esteem, the very reasons many adolescents turn to drugs to begin with.

References
Hart, C. L., Ksir, C., & Ray, O. (2009). DRUGS, SOCIETY & HUMAN BEHAVIOR (13th ed.). New
York, NY: McGraw-Hill.
Preventing Drug Abuse. (). Retrieved from www.ncjrs.gov

Answering the BIG Question

Answering the BIG QUESTION!

What is this place all about?

I had to ask myself the BIG QUESTION;

How do I create a message that encapsulates the entire vision?

What do you do here?

My typical answer was “we offer everything”. Too vague I realized! I needed to understand what YOU were asking. I experimented with a few headlines to see what prompted responses from YOU and soon realized that you wanted to feel better, of course I knew that. What I didn’t know, was how to tell you we could help you.

What are your goals?

What I have learned is more important than what we do, it is discovering and learning more about you and your goals. The question you want to know; can you help me?

Chances of helping you are extremely high with your level of commitment to higher levels of health.

Best Session for YOU

We offer many services as you know and many times these services are integrated to provide you with the best session to support your vision and goals. An integration of services begins with the session you originally signed up to receive. During our pre-session discussion we may determine that an alternate or integrated approach will serve you best. We create a plan with YOU, it’s your session.

Addressing the ROOT CAUSE

Do understand this; we are not treating symptoms, we are addressing the root cause of your symptoms.

For example; you may come in looking for relief to chronic back pain, body pain, fatigue, low energy, diminished libido, IBS, blood pressure imbalance, cholesterol imbalance, thyroid disorders, diabetes, anxiety, panic disorder, depression, grief, self-esteem, confidence, fertility challenges, erectile dysfunction, weight management, or any othersymptom that = STRESS. The approach to any of these may vary as you are unique, so is your session.

TRUTH

One modality is simply not enough to provide long term relief. Again, we need to get to the ROOT cause of the symptom, not apply a band-aide. And we need to do it naturally in order to restore homeostasis!

The perfect remedy is to correct homeostasis; change your mind, and align your energetic systems to the part of you that holds your highest state of well-being. This is the definition of MIND, BODY, SPIRIT. All parts interrelate and one cannot be corrected without the other.

What do we do?

So what do we offer: Hypnosis for the mind, Polarity for the elemental balance,Energy Alignment for clear energy systems, Floatation to access your Highest Self,Yoga to deepen the connection to mind and body, FREE LECTURES to educate you in natural approaches to wellness, Weekly radio shows to answer your questions,FREE Signs and Symptoms Analysis to determine your nutritional deficiencies,Spiritual Counseling to assist you with clarity, Spirit Art to support you with the grief process.

Summarizing the MISSION

Simply stated; Crystalline/AWAKEN is a center that supports you an opportunity to access higher levels of well-being.

We specialize in Integrative Health Care Management.

Why? Because we care about your well-being and want to make a difference in the lives of people. It is our Soul’s Mission to be on this journey and participate with you in your journey to well-being so that you too may help others in your unique way.

We thank you for participating with us and would be honored to support you in 2016!