To Be or Not to be Neuro....or “Neuroticism” is one of the “dimensions”

They think it’s all in their head, when in fact they feel it in their body; they’re fatigued, they have these somatic aches and pains, the pit in the stomach — it’s experienced in the whole body.”

drawing collage by marguerita
In recent years psychiatrists have developed a more specialized medical vocabulary to describe anxiety, the core component of neurosis, and as a result the public has gained a greater appreciation of its many dimensions. But in the process we’ve lost entirely the romance of neurosis, as well as its physical embodiment — a restless, grumbling, needy presence that once functioned in the collective mind as an early warning system, an inner voice that hedged against excessive optimism.
.ttp://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/01/sunday-review/where-have-all-the-neurotics-gone.html

Of Kidneys,Adjacências,Mercury Healing and Light

drawing by marguerita
One of the most neglected conditions in many hospitals, medical facilities involved in health care,despite all the talking ,is in fact the aspect of lighting,the environment and food, regarding healing.
I already have experienced that fact in the past and observed that aspect.
Since I am now forced to spend three hours ,three times a week ,tethered to a dialyser, a machine that runs my blood in and out to remove toxic wastes, I kept wondering why in hell ,as soon as I arrive,I feel so exhausted and during and after. exacerbating my already existing symptoms.
I try to read or divert my mind,maybe listen to music or forget the ordeal So I started to understand my surroundings.
I look at the ceilings and realize that the space in reality is adequate for storage of inanimate objects and now I am in reality being injected with mercury, through the artificial lighting, the fluorescent industrial lighting all over me.
"All fluorescent lamps contain a small amount of elemental mercury (Hg), also known as quicksilver. When lamps are cold, some of the mercury in the lamp is in liquid form, but while the lamp is operating, or when the lamp is hot, most of the mercury is in a gaseous or vapor form.

Mercury vapor is a highly toxic substance, with an "extreme" rating as a poison. Even in liquid form, contact with mercury is considered life-threatening or a "severe" risk to health. Mercury can cause severe respiratory tract damage, brain damage, kidney damage, central nervous system damage, and many other serious medical conditions even for extremely small doses."http://nemesis.lonestar.org/reference/electricity/fluorescent/safety.html

I then invest myself in understanding the phenomena of lighting,which is from ancient and primitive times a concern of humans.
"The philosophy that guides this concept is rooted in research in the neurosciences, environmental psychology, psychoneuroimmunology, and evolutionary biology. The common thread linking these bodies of research is the physiological effects of stress on the individual and the ability to heal. Psychologically supportive environments enable patients and families to cope with and transcend illness. There is considerable confusion about what constitutes a healing environment. Some refer to what we have come to know as "hospitality healthcare design" of the 1980s as healing environments. While some hotels have a high level of design and drama which may be aesthetically appealing, they generally lack those qualities that one would consider to be restorative or conducive to physical, emotional, and spiritual healing. The goal of all healing environments is to engage patients in the conscious process of self-healing and spiritual growth. Spaces should be designed to be nurturing and therapeutic and, most important, to reduce stress, aimed at eliminating environmental stressors and putting patients in contact with nature in the treatment setting. The Importance of Lighting Eighty percent of what we interpret of our surroundings comes to us from what we see of our environment and that is greatly affected by the light available in that environment. Lighting design in healthcare environments is a major factor in creating healing situations. Since the design of healthcare environments is said to influence patient’s outcomes, yet high costs prevent most hospitals from renovating or rebuilding, changes in lighting becomes a cost effective way to improve existing environments. It is proven that people who are surrounded by natural light are more productive and live healthier lives." Humans are an electromagnetic, energy phenomena with swirls, currents, pulsations and vibrations that move through and extend out from the body creating a field of energy. This field vitally serves us in a number of ways. Like skin, it protects us from other energetic phenomena such as sun flares, strong electromagnetic fields of energy created around power lines, fluorescent lighting, nuclear radiation and a multitude of other unbalanced energies. It assimilates and organizes sensory information before it enters the body, helping us from becoming overwhelmed or disoriented. It communicates to others our intentions and what we want to create in the world. It connects us to others. We are biologically wired to be social and our energy field helps us feel part of the human race. It’s part of our grounding mechanisms, connecting us to Earth’s magnetic grids, providing the energetic stance for a focused, quiet mind. It creates a container for our body systems that creates vital well being and communication among all parts. It balances and synchronizes our internal systems with external systems that include changes in weather, seasons, moon cycles as well as social interactions with those around us. As our planet continues to lose its ozone layer, is affected by radiation from nuclear and toxic waste sites, increases its electrical usage and experiences other ecosystem breakdowns, our energy fields are more and more challenged to stay strong, healthy and vibrant. Proof of a Human Energy Field How do we know a human energy field exists? The human energy field has been known for millennium in both Eastern and Western systems, primarily from the higher senses of feeling or seeing. Yoga, a scientific system developed in India thousands of years ago and still vital and relevant today, introduced the concept of chakras, energetic centers found in seven major locations in the body that contribute to an energy field around us. Chi Kung, Tai Chi and other martial arts from China and Japan actively work with the energy emanating from the body, directing it in powerful ways for healing or fighting. In Western religious art, the human energy field has been acknowledged with golden halos painted above saints’ heads. Intuitives, psychics and other higher sense perceivers have long talked about seeing an aura of multiple colors emanating from around the body. Most recently, Western science has begun to discover and measure the energies created by the body. Over a 20 year period, Valerie Hunt, a neurophysiologist, scientifically investigated energy fields. Her findings were published in her book titled Infinite Mind: Science of the Human Vibrations of Consciousness. Quantum physicists in their investigations have also discovered human energy fields. In true scientific fashion, however, what healers simply call the energy field or aura, a quantum physicist refers to as a “hyperfield containing hyperspatial properties of torsion fields.” Other noted books for a scientific explanation of the human energy field are: Science and Human Transformation; Subtle Energies, Intentionality and Consciousness by William Tiller and Energy Medicine by James Oshman. Chakra is a concept referring to wheel-like vortices which, according to traditional Indian medicine, are believed to exist in the surface of the etheric double of man.^[2] The Chakras are said to be "force centers" or whorls of energy permeating, from a point on the physical body, the layers of the subtle bodies in an ever-increasing fan-shaped formation. Rotating vortices of subtle matter, they are considered the focal points for the reception and transmission of energies.^[3] Different systems posit a varying number of chakras; the most well known system in the West is that of 7 chakras.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chakra

http://www.google.com/gwt/x?q=the+importance+of+lighting+in+healing&ei=40veTOjjC4vsMKyWnRQ&ved=0CAgQFjAA&hl=en&source=m&rd=1&u=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Healing_environments
http://www.google.com/gwt/x?q=the+importance+of+lighting+in+healing&ei=40veTOjjC4vsMKyWnRQ&ved=0CA4QFjAD&hl=en&source=m&rd=1&u=http://scienceofenergyhealing.com/the-importance-of-a-vital-energy-field/

The Renalpenal Diet: Relax and Enjoy........

drawing by marguerita
As much as I try to come to a logical understanding, for someone who always loved and still loves food, I am in a real tough spot.
Now more than ever i crave for all the ingredients, spices, fruits, vegetables,and different ways of cooking food, I am forced to calculate,to forget about and just imagine how green is my valley.
So I read and study every possible way of finding how to negotiate this deal with Life and Death.
Below, a text about phosphorus. Ain't that great: I even glow in the Dark. Ha!!!!!!

To get a better understanding of phosphate binders, let's talk about what roles phosphorus and calcium play in your body. Phosphorus and calcium are two minerals that are vital for keeping your body in good health. In particular, they help to maintain strong, healthy bones and teeth. They are also important for the cells in your body to store and use energy efficiently. These minerals play important roles in nerve function as well.

Normally, your body maintains a delicate balance between the levels of phosphorus and calcium. The amount of calcium and phosphorus (in the form of phosphate) in your blood is tightly regulated in various ways. One of these ways is by controlling the amount of phosphate that is absorbed from your food and excreted by your kidneys. Another important way to control phosphate and calcium levels is through a hormone called parathyroid hormone (PTH).

When your kidneys fail, they are no longer able to get rid of excess phosphate from your body. Kidney failure also results in excess PTH production, which further disrupts the balance between calcium and phosphate in your blood. As a result, excess phosphate starts to build up in your blood.

If you don't control your phosphate levels, you may be at risk for developing complications like heart disease, bone damage and other diseases. High phosphate levels can also contribute to vitamin D deficiency. This may require treatment with vitamin D supplements, which can make your body absorb more calcium from your food or medications.

Luckily, as a dialysis patient, you have three ways to help control phosphorus levels in your blood through diet, dialysis and phosphate binders:

Diet: Cutting back on phosphorus-rich food such as dairy products, nuts and beans help lower your phosphorus blood levels. However, it's important to have a balanced, nutritious diet, so it's difficult to control your phosphate levels by relying only on your renal diet.

Dialysis: Following your regular dialysis treatments will help remove some of the excess phosphorus from your body. But dialysis and diet alone may not be enough to control phosphorus levels.

Phosphate binders: Phosphate binders help to pass excess phosphate out of your body in your stool, reducing the amount of phosphate that gets into your blood. These medicines "bind" the phosphate in your digestive tract by combining with it to form a compound that isn't absorbed into your blood. You normally take phosphate binders with every meal to help protect you from absorbing too much phosphate from your food and drink. When you take phosphate binders as prescribed, and follow your renal diet, you can take back control of your phosphate levels. You must also make sure to get your full dialysis treatment.

It is very important to control phosphate levels when you have kidney disease. Doing so can help reduce the risk of a variety of complications. It's also important to control your calcium levels, especially when your phosphate levels are high. Most of your calcium intake is from food (dairy products), calcium containing phosphate binders and dialysis solutions. Your doctor can help you balance your calcium by adjusting your prescriptions for calcium-containing phosphate binders, calcium and vitamin D supplements or by prescribing a calcium-free phosphate binder.

When you take in too much calcium, you can develop an excess calcium load. Because your body tightly controls blood calcium levels, the excess calcium may "spill over" into other tissues, even though calcium levels in your blood remain normal. When excess calcium and excess phosphate are present, they can combine to form bony deposits in your tissues and organs. This process is called metastatic calcification. These bony deposits can cause severe pain, itchy skin, red eyes and other symptoms. These deposits can occur in your lungs, causing pain and difficulty in breathing. When these bony deposits occur in your heart and blood vessels, this is called cardiac calcification. The consequences of cardiac calcification are severe heart damage and even death may follow.

There are three common types of phosphate binders:

1. Aluminum-based phosphate binders were the first type of phosphate binders to be used. They are very effective at controlling phosphorus. The most common binder of this type is aluminum hydroxide. However, aluminum has toxic effects that cause bone disease and damage the nervous system. For this reason, aluminum-based phosphate binders are not often used much anymore.

2. Calcium-based phosphate binders are effective but don't bind phosphorus as well as aluminum. Common types of calcium-based binders include calcium acetate and calcium carbonate. These binders can also serve as calcium supplements if your calcium is low. However, if you are taking vitamin D supplements, you may already have high calcium levels, and these types of phosphate binders may provide more calcium than you should safely have (i.e., excess calcium load). This can increase the risk of metastatic calcification and the complications described below.

3. Aluminum-free, calcium-free phosphate binders are newer binders that are effective at controlling phosphorus. Because they do not contain aluminum or calcium, they do not cause problems with excess aluminum or calcium load.

You can now see why it's important to control your phosphorus and calcium levels. With the help of your healthcare team, find out your target calcium and phosphorus levels. By following your renal diet, dialyzing regularly, and taking your prescribed phosphate binders, you can control your phosphorus and calcium levels. This will help you feel better, stay healthier and avoid some of the complications of kidney disease.

Keith Norris, MD is Professor and Executive Vice Chair of Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science and the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). He serves on the AAKP Board of Directors and the AAKP Medical Advisory Board and is an AAKP Life Member.

To Kid or Not to Kid or d'apres Bellow,sharing his "private consciousness"

drawing by marguerita

.....fiction ought to address the great moral questions of human existence and “account for the mysterious circumstance of being,”
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/09/books/09book.html
Healthy kidneys clean your blood by removing excess fluid, minerals, and wastes. They also make hormones that keep your bones strong and your blood healthy. When your kidneys fail, harmful wastes build up in your body, your blood pressure may rise, and your body may retain excess fluid and not make enough red blood cells. When this happens, you need treatment to replace the work of your failed kidneys.

• Blood becomes more acidic, anemia develops, nerves are damaged, bone tissue deteriorates, and risk of atherosclerosis increases.
• Symptoms can include urinating at night, fatigue, nausea, itching, muscle twitching and cramps, loss of sensation, confusion, difficulty breathing, and yellow skin.
• Diagnosis is by blood and urine tests.
• Treatment aims to restrict fluids, sodium, and potassium in the diet, use drugs to correct other conditions (such as diabetes, high blood pressure, anemia, and electrolyte imbalances), and, when necessary, use dialysis. from the web

Observatory:We can’t leave nature alone. We are a part of it, as much as any other animal.

drawing by marguerita
....we may actually face the kind of dilemma I called attention to in my article, in which there is a conflict between the value of preserving existing species and the value of preventing suffering and early death for an enormously large number of animals.

“Leave nature alone; the course of events in the natural world will go better without human intervention.”

In fact we can’t leave nature alone.

We are a part of it, as much as any other animal. More importantly, we can’t help but have a massive and pervasive impact on the natural world given our own numbers. Agricultural practices necessary for our survival constitute a continuing invasion and occupation of lands previously inhabited by others.

One explicit suggestion of my article was that it would be better to try to control our impact on the natural world in a purposeful way, guided by intelligence and moral values, including the value of diminishing suffering, rather than to continue to allow our effects on the natural world, including the extinction of species, to be determined by blind inadvertence — as, for example, in the case of the many extinctions of animal species that will be caused by global climate change.

2. Should human beings be the first to go?

3. What about the suffering of plants?

4. What about bacteria, viruses, and insects?

JEFF MCMAHAN is professor of philosophy at Rutgers University and a visiting research collaborator at the Center for Human Values at Princeton University. He is the author of many works on ethics and political philosophy, including “The Ethics of Killing: Problems at the Margins of Life” and “Killing in War.

http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/09/28/predators-a-response/

PS: Apropos

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/12/world/asia/12silk.html

Observatory :Apropos my friend Mario Vargas Llosa

drawing collage by marguerita

“The lies in novels are not gratuitous — they fill in the insufficiencies of life,” he wrote.

“Thus, when life seems full and absolute, and men, out of an all-consuming faith, are resigned to their destinies, novels perform no service at all.

Religious cultures produce poetry and theater, not novels.

Fiction is an art of societies in which faith is undergoing some sort of crisis, in which it’s necessary to believe in something, in which the unitarian, trusting and absolute vision has been supplanted by a shattered one and an uncertainty about the world we inhabit and the afterworld.”http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/08/books/08appraisal.html?hpw

In Solitude while listening to Duke

The Art of Being

drawing by marguerita
Someone asked me why the passion.......

Of Love and the World we live In :Reflexions

photo by marguerita
Jacqueline Boyer- Parlez-moi d'amour
Lyrics:
[Refrain:]

Parlez-moi d'amour
Redites-moi des choses tendres
Votre beau discours
Mon cœur n'est pas las de l'entendre
Pourvu que toujours
Vous répétiez ces mots suprêmes :
"Je vous aime"

Vous savez bien
Que dans le fond je n'en crois rien
Mais cependant je veux encore

Me berce de sa belle histoire
Et malgré moi je veux y croire

[Refrain]

Il est si doux
Mon cher trésor, d'être un peu fou
La vie est parfois trop amère
Si l'on ne croit pas aux chimères
Le chagrin est vite apaisé
Et se console d'un baiser
Du cœur on guérit la blessure
Par un serment qui le rassure
Parle-moi d'amour mon amour
Redis moi les mots de toujours
Même si le monde a bien changé
Ils ne sont pas si démodés
Tant que le ciel existera
On dira toujours ces mots-là
Tant qu'il y aura des amoureux
On échangera des aveux

Comme les chalands n'en finiront jamais de passer
Les Goélands n'en finiront jamais de voler
Comme le printemps fait toujours refleurir les lilas
L'amour m'a mis dans tes bras

Même si les mots ont bien changé
Ils ne sont pas si démodés
Ils ont fait rêver nos parents
Ils feront rêver nos enfants
Tant que la terre tournera
Parlez-moi d'amour mon amour.

Of Passion,Materialism,Wall Street and Waltzing Matilda

Ladies and Gentleman,Voila

THE HORMONES by marguerita

Of,Frazzles,Thoughts about in the Wind, Sondheim,Emotions, Real World

drawing by marguerita

A ntidepressants and performance-enhancing drugs, from steroids to mental stimulants toViagra, are modifying human behavior. Replaceable body parts, plastic surgery and gender re-assignment

are

undermining the traditional idea of the individual as a being with a

singular identity and destiny. Hand-held devices have turned us into

robotic mobile power stations continually transmitting and receivinginformation in computer language that has seeped into pop songs.

These developments are profoundly antithetical to the dream of sadly

civilized enlightenment evoked by Mr. Sondheim’s songs.

In this emerging world, the truth of existence is rooted more in

quantifiable physical reality than in ideas and emotions.

Musically it is embodied in hard digital beats and in performances

staged as competitive sports events.http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/01/arts/music/01sondheim.html?pagewanted=2&hpw