Neuroscientist Dr Sarah
Mackay offers a free download called 7
Habits of a Healthy Brain. We checked her advice against the Halo & Noose/ Culturescan 9M Model
covering the “whole person”: physical, intellectual, emotional, social and
spiritual.
Snap!
The two models fit
snugly. The factors covered by our 9Ms and expanded upon in the Bounce-Back-Ability
booklet that accompanies the Hardy Personality Questionnaire for individuals as
part of the Culturescan hardiness – to -
change topic (http://www.haloandnoose.com/content.asp?PageID=149) are shown below in the comments, in red.
The Culturescan
process topic Hardiness to Change is
designed to address change fatigue and readiness in organisations, as well as
individual coping with change and transition on a whole-person basis. The 9M
model is included.
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7 Habits of a Healthy Brain
by
neuroscientist Dr Sarah McKay
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Dr Sarah McKay is an Oxford University-educated
neuroscientist, science writer and founder of The Neuroscience
Academy. She writes a popular science-based blog Your Brain Health:
http://yourbrainhealth.com.au/
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1. SLEEP:
A good night’s sleep every night should be a priority, not a luxury.
Sleep is overlooked, underappreciated, and the number one, fundamental
bedrock of good health. Sleep deprivation (even a few hours a night)
impacts cognition (thinking), mood, memory and learning and leads to
chronic disease. Sleep is essential for consolidating memories and for
draining waste products from the brain. Not only do we under-sleep, we
under-consume natural light during the day and over-consume artificial
light at night leaving our circadian rhythms, hormones and immune systems
dysregulated. Short afternoon naps consolidate memory, spark creativity
and smooth your rough emotional edges (no guru, course or app
required!).
How much sleep is
recommended: Matthew Walker – author of ‘Why We Sleep’ - says a
minimum of 7 hours per night.
MEDITATION: Lower states (good sleep,
meditation) reduce anxiety, blood pressure, and raise creativity.
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2. MOVE:
The best exercise for your brain is physical exercise. Daily exercise
increases blood flow to the brain. Exercise triggers the release of
brain derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), which promotes neuronal
growth and survival, reduces inflammation, and supports the formation
of long-term memories. Exercise reduces the risk of dementia (and other
chronic lifestyle diseases), acts as an anti-depressant, and regulates
mood. Our brains evolved to support bodies that move through, make
sense of, and respond to the natural world around us. A simple walk
outdoors gets you away from digital devices and into nature. You’ll do
your best thinking when walking.
How much movement
is recommended: If you loathe exercise try 20 minutes gentle walking 4
to 5 times a week.
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MOVEMENT: The wonder of our chemical, electrical and mechanical
movement
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3: NOURISH:
A healthy brain requires a healthy well-nourished body. Research points
towards a Mediterranean-based diet of mostly plants (vegetables, fruit
and legumes), fish, some meat, olive oil and nuts as optimal
nourishment for brain health. Wine and coffee in moderation (yes,
really!) prevent cognitive decline, memory loss and protect against
dementia (Plus, the little pleasures in life are important too!).
Add a piece of
fruit or a vegetable to each meal.Fruit and veg provide your brain with
the essential nutrition it needs.Vitamin pills are no substitute for a
poor diet.
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MEALS:
In addition to healthy eating habits, ensure sufficient water intake
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4. CALM:
Find your moment of calm. Not all stress is bad, but chronic stress,
especially life events that are out of our control, can change the
wiring of our brains. Too much cortisol (a stress hormone) prevents the
birth of new neurons and causes the hippocampus (the brain structure
involved in learning and memory) to shrink, reducing your powers of
learning and memory. To de-stress find your place or moment of calm. Do
something pleasurable — meditate, practice mindfulness, walk, or nap.
The most pleasure is to be found in doing something you’re reasonably
good at and that also poses some degree of challenge.
And laugh … a lot!
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MEDITATION. Also MUSIC: Beethoven: “Music is the electric soil in which the spirit lives,
breathes and creates”
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5. CONNECT:
We are born as social animals and have a fundamental need for human
warmth and connection. Having supportive friends, family and social
connections helps you live longer, happier and healthier. Socialising
reduces the harmful effects of stress and requires many complex
cognitive functions such as thinking, feeling, sensing, reasoning and
intuition. Loneliness and social isolation have comparable impacts on
health and survival as smoking.
Find your
‘tribe’. Connecting with like-minded people gives us a comforting
sense of belonging
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MIRTH:
A recent Harvard finding is that humour is the number one
coping mechanism.
Also MASSAGE is both connecting and calming
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6. CHALLENGE:
Keep your brain mentally active. Adults who regularly challenge their
minds and stay mentally active throughout life have healthier brains
and are less likely to develop dementia. It’s thought ongoing education
and mentally challenging work build cognitive reserve (the capacity to
cope better and keep working properly if any brain cells are damaged or
die). Choose mentally challenging activities that you can practice
regularly, that are reasonably complex and that take you out of your
cognitive comfort zone. Try activities that combine mental, social and
physical challenges.
With technology
impacting everything, we also need to challenge ourselves to UNLEARN
what we think we know.
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MENTAL
STIMULATION: Read interesting books, do puzzles,
play word games,
interesting conversations …
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7. BELIEVE:
Seek out your purpose in life. Find your true north, your passion, your
bliss, your inner voice, your wisdom, your calling. Whatever you call
it. Research has found that people who score high on life purpose live
longer, healthier and more fulfilling lives. Do extraordinary things!
Set fantastic, passionate goals and work like crazy to achieve them.
Find your place of flow—that sweet spot where you so intensely and
completely focus on the present moment and the task at hand and that
time passes effortlessly. Some say flow is the point of life.
MEANING: Purpose, supported by well-considered virtues
Also MOTIVATION. A fulfilling purpose,
aims and goals
Csikzentmihályi’s
“flow”: that “satisfying, exhilarating feeling
of creative accomplishment and heightened functioning”
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