The 12 DO's of Christmas
Happy Holidays!!
What are you getting up to on your break?
Here’s 12 ideas that might make you think a little about how you do what you do this Christmas!
PARTY
What do we have at a party?
We have people and we have music!
Neuroscientist Donald Hebb coined the phrase ‘what fires together wires together’ and the people we are with, and the music we are listening to, are absolutely a part of this firing wiring brain party matrix.
While it can seem that the soundtrack may just be something that strums along in the background, it is actually a profound neural connection creator, and a future trigger, for strong emotional and sensory memories from the experience.
The main aim of a party is to have fun and make happy memories isn’t it? So, the tunes should reflect this. If you get the chance to make a playlist combining everyone’s go-to happy party mix that’s a great start. You could also think of adding some sing-a-long show tunes from musicals and some well-known carols – maybe a secret ‘song and dance man’ will step out from the crowd, or an impromptu chorus will chime in. Perhaps a few epic cinematic tracks could really make everything feel uplifting, inspiring and awesome…the holiday season may have never looked so big and bright!
FLOW
Psychologist and researcher Mihalyi Csikszentmihalyi was best known for his masterworks defining the science of flow states. Flow is that powerful feeling when you totally lose track of time as you are completely immersed in an activity. Some describe it as being ‘in the zone’. We may all be happiest when we are in this state of flow. Some of us might get there detangling our Christmas lights, creating decorations, climbing a mountain, or reading a captivating novel…almost any activity you can name has this flow potential. It is where the degree of challenge is a perfect match for how prepared you are for the task at the time.
There are QEEG and fMRI studies looking at the areas of the brain that are activated during flow states. There are some fascinating overlaps within this area of research and studies examining when people produce alpha brain waves. Alpha brain waves are associated with the feeling of being ‘relaxed and ready’, and with our abilities to self-regulate, relax, remember, process visual information, express our intellect and creativity. There is some evidence that reveals activities like LEGO, colouring in, origami, making mandalas, meditation, yoga, and even closing your eyes to imagine can increase alpha activity – indeed these are the sorts of activities we can ‘get lost in’.
What activities will you be doing when you experience flow this Christmas?
…and could you find ways to do more of these next year?
DANCE
Have you been too busy to remember how good it feels to get lost in the groove?
Dancing to music is good for both cognition and coordination. If you get right into it and sway and spin around it is particularly excellent for your balance – your vestibular network and cerebellum get a workout. And, grown-ups, if you get a bit dizzy after one little spin around the kitchen…that may mean that perhaps you need to get groovy and whirl around a bit more than you realised.
Photo by Aditya Ali on Unsplash
EAT
The Mediterranean Diet, is a traditional and heritage diet, considered more a way of life, that has been researched for over 50 years. It has evidenced outstandingly significant positive impacts on a number of health risk factors, including: cardiovascular disease; cancer; Parkinson’s Disease; Alzheimer’s Disease; Stroke; Diabetes; and neurodegenerative diseases. The body and brain benefits are undeniable, and this lifestyle continues to be researched.
For maximum benefit, and to avoid misinformation, we should take the time to clarify the essential components and the origins of what is ‘The Mediterranean Diet’.
The diet itself is characterised by important key factors:
You’ll find some super yum recipes for your eating adventures over the holidays here: Search Results | Oldways (oldwayspt.org)
LOVE
Love should include loving ourselves.
How can we cultivate self-love? Well, we may try to practice self-compassion.
Recent research suggests self-compassion is a way to build happiness, resilience, and wellbeing.
Self-compassion includes:
generally being kind to ourselves
practicing mindful awareness of our thoughts and feelings
fully accepting our humanness – accepting the fact that we all make mistakes, we all struggle with some things sometimes, and we all feel hurt and pain.
When we are able to effectively practice self-compassion we can truly care about ourselves and expand how we are able to think about ourselves positively. When we can consider ourselves positively it can make it easier to do this for others too.
UNPLUG
A little pause with a holiday break can give us the time to flip our screens on ourselves and take a good look at our screen time. A recent Australian surveys suggests our kids are watching their parents and adult care-givers check their phones up to 85 times a day. Children know how important screens are to you too. Take some time to check in with ‘your number’. If your phone tells you at the end of the week you’re spending 2 hours a day on your phone ‘your number’ is a whopping 30 days on that screen a year, a month of awake time.
With the impact of that figure fresh in your mind, the changes needed will probably stand out. Changes we can put in place when it comes to screen time might be:
Putting physical activity at the top of the priorities list. Exercise is good for bodies and brains.
Switch screen time for green time. We should get outside more and stay outside for longer.
Set realistic visual timers on devices and make a commitment to stick to them in a consistent way.
Use a lock box or charge box and put all devices away at a set time EVERY DAY.
Keep bedrooms as a sanctuary for sleep. No screens at all allowed, in anyone’s room.
Print out lists of brainy activity ideas, like: 42 To Do’s and Holiday Survival Tips…and get busy doing other things.
Photo by Thalia Ruiz on Unsplash
PLAY
It is totally ok to play, no matter what your age. In fact, silly grown-ups might actually be smarter than serious ones. Neuroscientists are encouraging grown-ups to be more playful because of the undeniable benefits you can see with science. A playful brain in childhood that is encouraged to stay and play all through life, may grow up to not just be happier, but be more flexible, better at emotional regulation and stress reduction, have good motor control, be socially skilled, securely attached and curious. Adults that are still playful in adulthood may tend to be more confident, outgoing, creative, agreeable, and perhaps more spontaneous with a fun sense of humour.
Why do brains laugh at silly things? Funny podcaster and smart neuroscientist Dean Burnett reassures us that our brains are more idiot than supercomputer. It is ok to laugh at Christmas cracker jokes and like the crazy happy feeling of being tickled. Being playful, childlike and silly – especially having a good giggle - is actually marvellously good for us. Laughter decreases our stress levels and lowers production of damaging stress hormones, it increases some feel-good chemicals too that decrease pain and improve mood, and can increase the production of immune cells as well. Truly a magical medicine.
SNOOZE
We know crucially important brainy busyness happens when you sleep - your body may rest, but your brain does not. Organisation, encoding and consolidation of memories takes place, and the incredible clean-up system in your brain can ONLY work when you are sleeping.
Some tips in this list may be the changes you need to help get the rest your brain needs over your break and beyond:
Go to bed and wake up at the same times every day.
Wake up and get out into the sunshine in the morning.
Get a good amount of outdoor exercise during the day.
Reduce stimulating foods/beverages. Caffeine and chocolate, limit to before midday.
Limit alcohol in the 4 hours before going to bed. Or better yet have fun with all the wonderful no-alcohol grown-up beverage options we have these days.
Decrease evening blue light exposure by using device settings or apps for ‘night mode’ and set these to change at least 2 hours before you plan on going to bed.
Try being completely screen free in the 2 hours leading up to bedtime.
Dim the lights through your home if sunset comes later ie. during summer season.
Having a warm bath/shower then slip into a cool bed and bedroom.
Being read to, or reading, a paper book before bed.
Surrendering and riding the ‘wave of drowsiness’ when it comes - this is melatonin in action.
Make your bedroom ONLY about sleep and relaxation - a real sanctuary for sleep.
Try a relaxation, mindfulness or meditation exercise designed for sleep in bed.
If you do need to get up during the night do your best to not turn on bright lights or look at any devices, just jump back into bed quickly after you’ve done what you need to do (now…where is that Elf on the Shelf?).
Photo by Matthew Fournier on Unsplash
FORGIVE
The beneficial mental health effects of forgiveness are at the frontiers of health research. A study of 81 adults measured physical and emotional markers and found that true forgiveness can improve mood and reduce stress. Brain imaging reveals apologies are processed by the brain in a number of areas, but, it seems forgiveness may happen in a really specific area that carries responsibilities for language, memory, attention and theory of mind – the part of our brain that enables us to understand that other people have their own minds, their own beliefs, hopes, plans, and lived experiences that are different from our own.
Top tips for forgiveness could include:
Exercise your empathy. Really put yourself in the other person’s shoes.
Write the situation down, this can help to separate the event from the emotions.
Recreate in your mind a time where you needed to be forgiven by someone – What happened? How did you feel? How did that person forgive you?
Remember why the person you need to forgive is so important to you.
Think about what has happened as part of your story. Think about it as a narrative that you have the power to change.
Respect that forgiveness isn’t easy, but that trying to do it right will make it easier to do.
There is no quick formula but finding out more and working on forgiveness is well worth the effort, for both those that need to forgive and those that need forgiveness.
MINDFULNESS
Think about the gift of this mindful moment. This present moment awareness. ‘Being here now’. Zone in. Quiet. Calm. Breathe. Simple prompts like this are dappled throughout our days, often escaping our attention, and are sometimes seen in seemingly odd spaces – like on a screen where you pump your petrol, on the cover of a magazine at the checkout, or in the smile of a baby over their parents’ shoulder.
These days there are great easy to find and follow guides to get you to more mindful spaces:
CHALLENGE
Brains grow and brains shrink. Brains get thick and brains get thin. A very young brain can grow up to 1000 new neural connections every second! At the other end, a brain with only very mild symptoms of dementia can be already losing nearly 1% of whole brain volume a year. On average we lose around 5% of brain volume every decade over the age of 40…but we don’t have to. Brains thrive and are driven to grow new brain cells, sprout more dendrites, and strengthen connections every single time they are challenged.
There is a special shift in arousal states that happens when we move from fear to excitement, that helps us overcome the ‘flight or freeze’ mode when we challenge ourselves in adventurous ways. The key is controlling the deeper survival response through the thinking brain. But it’s not so simple. You’ve got to keep checking in with yourself the further up the ladder you go. If you are too frightened your thinking brain can’t work well enough to reassure you that you are not in danger, and you might not be able to make that shift into being excited about how much progress you are making. Empowering tools like biofeedback training can help improve how flexible our dynamic nervous systems are.
Your brain will do its best to rise to the challenges you present it with every time. The more you challenge it, the more prepared it is for novelty, newness and the unknown – and therefore the better it can handle it when these challenging experiences pop up later.
What new activities will you challenge your brain with during your holidays?
Have you always wanted to learn how to surf? Go indoor rock climbing? Or salsa the night away?
What you want to challenge yourself with will be as unique as you are.
GRATITUDE
The Greater Good Science Centre has long understood the value of gratitude in a good life. Seeing and being thankful for positive things is a humble practice, one that can get easier and more powerful the more you do it. Gratitude techniques can boost optimism, reduce depression and improve relationships.
In a brain-based investigation exploring the benefits of gratitude practice they studied some participants using fMRI studies of two groups. Both groups were actively participating in psychotherapy. One group also wrote gratitude letters to other people, and the other didn’t write any letters or practice gratitude at all. The results revealed greater activation in brain areas associated with learning and decision making for those writing the letters. It seems the action of gratitude letter writing may train the brain to learn gratefulness, increase grateful behaviour, and wire us to be more sensitive to the experience of gratitude in the future.
But it is going to take a bit of time to reap the benefits. The initial positive lift in mental health from this study wasn’t seen until 4 weeks after the activity, and wonderfully this boost got bigger after 3 months. Just imagine how your brain would be wired for gratefulness, and this related positivity, in a year!
Should the 12 DO’s of CHRISTMAS have you thinking more about the brain health of you and your Family, The Perth Brain Centre is available to help. You can watch, read, call or email, to find out more today.
About the author - Ms. Emily Goss (Occupational Therapist, Senior Clinician, The Perth Brain Centre).