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Hospice nurse explains why we shouldn't be afraid to die

A hospice nurse has shared why we shouldn't be afraid to die, explaining all the ways in which our bodies "shut off" to make for a "peaceful" death. Julie McFadden, a nurse based in Los Angeles, has long been sharing videos and explanations about end of life care in an attempt to destigmatise the conversations and fear around death and dying. In her latest YouTube video, McFadden got candid with her followers as she confessed she isn't afraid to die and why no one else should be either. She went on to explain all the ways in which our bodies are supposed to "shut off" in our final moments, making for a "peaceful" and "natural" death. " "I'm not afraid of death and here's the science behind it, our body biologically helps us die, so here is what I've seen and learned as a hospice nurse over the years - our body is literally built to die," she said. The hospice nurse revealed that bodies began to slowly shut down in the six months leading up to death, explaining that a person nearing the end of their life would start "eating less, drinking less, and sleeping more." "Why is that happening? Because calcium levels in the body are going up and because calcium levels are going up the person is getting sleepier," Julie said. "Our brains have built in mechanisms to make us hungry and thirsty. Biologically, when the body knows it's getting towards the end of life those mechanisms shut off, so the person does not usually feel hungry and does not usually feel thirsty, which is helping the body slowly shut down." <iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/CJEkzA0gt6s?si=CIzcf3xchddKtf1D" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe> She put minds at ease by debunking a common concern, saying that while certain diseases could make death more uncomfortable, dying in itself wasn't painful. "There are times when the disease that the person is experiencing can cause symptoms and it's more difficult because they're dying from a certain disease, but the actual process that the body is going through to help it die is actually helping that person," Julie added. "There have been many times as a hospice nurse that I have watched someone slowly die on hospice and I have not needed to give them any medication because their disease was not causing any symptoms - no pain, no shortness of breath, they were just more tired and weren't eating or drinking." "They still did all of the things any other person on hospice would be doing, like they slowly go unconscious, they slowly stop eating and drinking. I didn't have to give them any medications. They were perfectly comfortable and died a very peaceful death." Julie explained that death was even "comforting" in a way because when you're about to take your last breath, your body released endorphins, making you feel euphoric in your final moments. "The body slowly goes into something called ketosis, which releases endorphins. In that person's body those endorphins dull pain, dull nerves, and they also give that person a euphoric sense, so they feel good," she said. "There are many reasons why I don't fear death. Yes, I have had some pretty crazy spiritual experiences as a hospice nurse that led me to not fear death, but there are also biological, metabolical, and physiological things that happen in the body that truly, truly comforted me." She concluded, "Our bodies are built to die. The less we mess with that, the more peaceful it will be." Image credits: YouTube / Instagram

Caring

Fear of ageing is really a fear of the unknown – and modern society is making things worse

<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/chao-fang-1010933">Chao Fang</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-liverpool-1198">University of Liverpool</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/alastair-comery-1501915">Alastair Comery</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-bath-1325">University of Bath</a> For the first time in human history, we have entered an era in which reaching old age is taken for granted. Unlike in ages past, when living to an older age was a luxury afforded mainly to the privileged, globally around <a href="https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.DYN.TO65.FE.ZS?locations=1W">79% of women</a> and <a href="https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.DYN.TO65.MA.ZS?locations=1W">70% of men</a> can expect to reach the age of 65 and beyond. Despite longer life expectancy, many people in the contemporary west see growing old as undesirable and <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/science/2023/apr/02/ageing-and-the-mortality-alarm-i-started-panicking-about-future-me">even scary</a>. Research shows, however, that anxiety about ageing may in fact be <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0164027500225004">fear of the unknown</a>. Society’s <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/intl/articles/199409/learning-love-growing-old">focus on youthfulness</a> and <a href="https://www.apa.org/ed/precollege/psychology-teacher-network/introductory-psychology/ableism-negative-reactions-disability">capability</a> can cause anxiety about becoming weak and unwanted. Adverts for anti-ageing products <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-20th-century-rejuvenation-techniques-gave-rise-to-the-modern-anti-ageing-industry-133569">are everywhere</a>, reinforcing the idea that growing older is inherently unattractive. Some people fear ageing so much that it becomes a pathological condition <a href="https://mind.help/topic/gerascophobia/">called gerascophobia</a>, leading to irrational thoughts and behaviour, for example, a fixation on health, illness and mortality and a preoccupation with hiding the signs of ageing. We frequently hear about attempts to reverse ageing, often by the super rich. For example, <a href="https://fortune.com/well/2023/01/26/bryan-johnson-extreme-anti-aging/">Bryan Johnson</a>, a 45-year-old American entrepreneur, is spending millions of dollars a year to obtain the physical age of 18. While the desire to reverse ageing is not a new phenomenon, advancements in biomedicine have brought it closer. Work published by genetics professor <a href="https://lifespanbook.com/">David Sinclair</a> at Harvard University in 2019 suggests that it may be possible to challenge the limits of cell reproduction to extend our lifespan, for example. His <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s43587-023-00527-6">information theory of ageing</a> argues that <a href="https://epigeneticsandchromatin.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1756-8935-6-3">reprogramming DNA</a> can improve damaged and old tissues, and delay or even reverse ageing. However, these new possibilities can also heighten our fear of ageing. <h2>From the unproductive to undervalued</h2> People haven’t always dreaded growing older. In many societies, older people used to be widely regarded as wise and important – and in some they still are. In ancient China, there was a <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/605890">culture</a> of respecting and seeking advice from older family members. There is still an ethos of <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6363941/">filial piety</a> (showing reverence and care for elders and ancestors) today, even if it’s not as pronounced as it used to be. The same went for <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/ageing-and-society/article/abs/old-age-in-the-dark-ages-the-status-of-old-age-during-the-early-middle-ages/3699DC4100DE852BDA1E1B3BBF33DDBC">medieval Europe</a>, where older people’s experiences and wisdom were highly valued. However, the industrial revolution in the west from the 18th century led to a cultural shift where older people <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1023/A:1014358415896">became excluded from society</a> and were considered unproductive. People who had surpassed the age to work, alongside those with incurable diseases, were regarded by society as <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/13607860903228762">“evils”</a> in need of assistance. The treatment of older people has taken a different form since the early 20th century. The introduction of <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/30/business/retirement/why-the-world-needs-to-rethink-retirement.html">universal pension systems</a> made ageing a central concern in welfare systems. But as the demands for social and health care have increased, journalists increasingly portray ageing as a <a href="https://www.ageuk.org.uk/latest-news/archive/older-people-feel-a-burden-to-society/">burden</a> on society. Consequently, growing older is often associated with managing the risk of ill health and alleviating the onus of care from younger relatives. This can result in the <a href="https://utpjournals.press/doi/abs/10.3138/utq.90.2.09">institutionalisation</a> of older people in residential facilities that keep them hidden, sequestered from the awareness of younger generations. <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0164027500225004">Research</a> analysing the responses of 1,200 US adults from the American Association of Retired Persons’ Images of Ageing survey shows that much of the perceived fear of ageing is closely aligned with the fear of the unknown, rather than the ageing process itself. This fear is only exacerbated by the largely separate lives lived by older and younger generations. The prevalence of nuclear families and the decline of <a href="https://www.cpc.ac.uk/docs/BP45_UnAffordable_housing_and_the_residential_separation_of_age_groups.pdf">traditional mixed-generational communities</a> have deprived younger people of the opportunity to more fully understand the experiences of older people. Plus, the rapid increase in <a href="https://news.sky.com/story/why-its-more-difficult-for-young-people-to-buy-a-house-now-than-it-was-fifty-years-ago-12537254">house prices</a> means many young people cannot afford to live near their older relatives. The separation of older people from children and young people has sparked generational conflicts that seemingly continue to <a href="https://www.economist.com/britain/2017/05/04/britains-generational-divide-has-never-been-wider">grow wider than ever</a>. Older people are frequently portrayed in the media as conservative and privileged, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/jan/12/old-young-gap-britain-generation-dysfunctional-family">making it difficult</a> for younger generations to comprehend why older people act and think the way they do. <h2>Intergenerational interactions</h2> Academics suggest that creating <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2022.996520/full">a system</a> for older and younger generations to interact in everyday settings is vital. A set of three <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5031197/#bjso12146-bib-0004">UK-based studies</a> in 2016 analysed and compared the effects of direct contact, extended contact and interactions between younger (aged 17 to 30) and older people (65 and over). The findings indicated that good quality direct intergenerational contact can improve young people’s attitudes towards older adults (especially when sustained over time). Intergenerational programmes have been adopted globally, including mixed and <a href="https://www.cohousing.org/multigenerational-cohousing/">intergenerational housing</a>, <a href="https://www.nurseryinbelong.org.uk/intergenerational-choir-hits-high-note-at-belong-chester/">community choirs</a> and <a href="https://www.shareable.net/how-sharing-can-bring-japans-elderly-and-youth-together/">senior volunteers reading to young children in nurseries</a>. <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10433-018-00497-4">Studies show</a> that these activities can not only enhance the wellbeing of older people but also help younger people gain an appreciation of ageing as a valuable and fulfilling life stage. Getting worried about growing older is normal, just as we experience anxieties in other stages of life, such as adolescence and marriage. But here’s the thing – instead of seeing ageing as a looming figure, it is important to realise it is just a part of life. Once we understand ageing as a regular experience, <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/gb/blog/changepower/202106/do-you-have-fogo-taming-the-fear-getting-old">we can let go</a> of these worries and approach the journey through different life stages with a positive attitude and a fortified will to enrich our lives and the lives of those around us.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/220925/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/chao-fang-1010933">Chao Fang</a>, Lecturer in Sociology, Deputy Director of the Centre for Ageing and the Life Course, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-liverpool-1198">University of Liverpool</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/alastair-comery-1501915">Alastair Comery</a>, PhD Candidate, Sociology, Centre for Death and Society, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-bath-1325">University of Bath</a> Image credits: Getty Images This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/fear-of-ageing-is-really-a-fear-of-the-unknown-and-modern-society-is-making-things-worse-220925">original article</a>.

Beauty & Style

How dangerous is insomnia? How fear of what it’s doing to your body can wreck your sleep

<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/leon-lack-1142">Leon Lack</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/flinders-university-972">Flinders University</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/nicole-lovato-60684">Nicole Lovato</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/flinders-university-972">Flinders University</a> I (Leon) have recently seen several patients who were concerned their insomnia symptoms would increase their risk for dementia. They were in their 70s and were awakening two or three times a night, which they took to be insomnia. But they were not impaired in the daytime in a way typical of insomnia. Their brief awakenings are normal for most people and <a href="https://theconversation.com/broken-sleep-its-a-rollercoaster-ride-1792">completely harmless</a>. Brief awakenings emerge from the periodic phases of light sleep that occur naturally between the four or five 90-minute deep sleep cycles. If you’re unaware of this “rollercoaster” of 90-minute cycles, you might think such awakenings are a sign of disease. In fact, they are perfectly normal and experienced more as people age when sleep naturally becomes lighter and shorter – <a href="https://theconversation.com/mondays-medical-myth-you-need-eight-hours-of-continuous-sleep-each-night-5643">with no ill effect</a>. Therefore, I reassured them their sleep patters were normal and they did not have insomnia. This requires daytime impairments – fatigue, cognitive problems, mild depression, irritability, distress or anxiety – in addition to night time symptoms. I trust they were reassured, and so they avoided the type of fear and worry that would have triggered a cascade of events leading to insomnia. <h2>Is it really insomnia?</h2> So where did my patients get the notion their sleep symptoms could lead to dementia? Let’s pick apart this tsunami of alarming information. It usually starts with very <a href="https://bmcpsychiatry.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12888-018-1623-0">large surveys</a> that find a statistically significant relationship between measures of sleep problems and subsequently developing dementia. First, most of these studies ask participants to report how long they typically sleep. Those reporting less than six hours a night show a small but statistically elevated risk of developing dementia. These studies do not say if people have clinical insomnia diagnosed by a health professional. Instead they rely solely on participants guessing how long they’ve slept, which <a href="https://academic.oup.com/sleep/article/25/5/559/2750164?login=false">can be inaccurate</a>. The studies would have also included many people without insomnia who are not allowing themselves adequate opportunity for sleep. Perhaps they’d been in the habit of socialising or playing computer games late at night. In other words, we don’t know what proportion of these short-sleepers are simply over-estimating their sleep problems, or restricting their sleep and experiencing chronic sleep loss rather than insomnia. <h2>What do the numbers really mean?</h2> A second problem is with interpreting the meaning of “statistically significant”. This only means the results were unlikely to be due to pure chance. If a single study shows a 20% increased risk of a physical health problem associated with insomnia, how worried should we be? This single finding does not necessarily mean it’s worth considering in our everyday lives. Studies relating insomnia to health risks are also typically inconsistent. For example, although some studies have found small increases in dementia risk with having insomnia, a very <a href="https://mentalhealth.bmj.com/content/ebmental/26/1/e300719.full.pdf">large UK study</a> did not find any relationship between the amount of sleep or sleeping difficulties and dementia risk. <h2>What’s the context?</h2> A third problem is communicating a balanced perspective to the public about the potential dangers of insomnia. Some in the mainstream media, with the help of the researcher’s institution, will report on studies showing a statistically significant increase in the risk of a frightening disease, such as dementia. But <a href="https://theconversation.com/essays-on-health-reporting-medical-news-is-too-important-to-mess-up-68920">not all media reports</a> ask about how clinically meaningful the risk is, whether there are alternative explanations, or how this result compares with what other researchers have found. So the public is left with no context to temper the scary, “increased risk” narrative. This narrative is then shared on social media, amplifying the scary finding. <h2>Obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure</h2> We’ve used dementia as one example of how fears about potential risks to physical health from insomnia arise and are magnified. But we could have used a potential increased risk of obesity, diabetes or high blood pressure. All have been associated with shorter sleep, but researchers are debating whether these links are real, meaningful or related to insomnia. When we looked at the impact of sleep problems on life expectancy, we found <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30529432/">no evidence</a> sleep symptoms alone shorten your life. Only when daytime symptoms such as fatigue, memory problems and distress are included is there a <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-023-36016-4">small increased risk</a> of dying prematurely. However, it’s difficult to know if that excess mortality can be explained by undiagnosed heart, kidney, liver or brain disease causing those daytime symptoms. <h2>We should be talking about mental health</h2> However, there is stronger evidence of increased <a href="https://theconversation.com/explainer-whats-the-link-between-insomnia-and-mental-illness-49597">mental health</a> problems, especially depression, with insomnia. The typical daytime impairments of fatigue, distress, cognitive impairments and irritability certainly lower the quality of life. Life becomes more of a challenge and less enjoyable. Over time, this can trigger <a href="https://theconversation.com/explainer-whats-the-link-between-insomnia-and-mental-illness-49597">hopelessness and depression</a> in some people. This is enough reason to seek help to improve sleep and quality of life. People with these problems should seek help from a health practitioner. The good news is there is an effective, long-term, non-drug treatment with no side effects – cognitive behavioural therapy for insomnia <a href="https://bmcprimcare.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1471-2296-13-40">or CBTi</a>. Even better, successful CBTi also <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1389945720303828">decreases</a> symptoms of depression and other mental distress. What is not helpful is unnecessary fear triggered by reports suggesting serious physical health dangers of insomnia. This fear is only likely to increase insomnia rather than mitigate it. <hr /> If this article has raised issues for you, or if you’re concerned about someone you know, call Lifeline on 13 11 14.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/212248/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/leon-lack-1142">Leon Lack</a>, Emeritus Professor of Psychology, Adelaide Institute for Sleep Health, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/flinders-university-972">Flinders University</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/nicole-lovato-60684">Nicole Lovato</a>, Associate Professor, Adelaide Institute for Sleep Health, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/flinders-university-972">Flinders University</a> Image credits: Getty Images This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-dangerous-is-insomnia-how-fear-of-what-its-doing-to-your-body-can-wreck-your-sleep-212248">original article</a>.

Body

If anxiety is in my brain, why is my heart pounding? A psychiatrist explains the neuroscience and physiology of fear

<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/arash-javanbakht-416594">Arash Javanbakht</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/wayne-state-university-989">Wayne State University</a> Heart in your throat. Butterflies in your stomach. Bad gut feeling. These are all phrases many people use to describe fear and anxiety. You have likely felt anxiety inside your chest or stomach, and your brain usually doesn’t hurt when you’re scared. Many cultures tie cowardice and bravery more <a href="https://afosa.org/the-meaning-of-heart-qalb-in-quran/">to the heart</a> <a href="https://byustudies.byu.edu/article/bowels-of-mercy/">or the guts</a> than to the brain. But science has traditionally seen the brain as the birthplace and processing site of fear and anxiety. Then why and how do you feel these emotions in other parts of your body? I am a <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=UDytFmIAAAAJ&hl=en">psychiatrist and neuroscientist</a> who researches and treats fear and anxiety. In my book “<a href="https://rowman.com/ISBN/9781538170380/Afraid-Understanding-the-Purpose-of-Fear-and-Harnessing-the-Power-of-Anxiety">Afraid,</a>” I explain how fear works in the brain and the body and what too much anxiety does to the body. Research confirms that while emotions do originate in your brain, it’s your body that carries out the orders. <h2>Fear and the brain</h2> While your brain evolved to save you from a falling rock or speeding predator, the anxieties of modern life are often a lot more abstract. Fifty-thousand years ago, being rejected by your tribe could mean death, but not doing a great job on a public speech at school or at work doesn’t have the same consequences. Your brain, however, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1006/nimg.2002.1179">might not know the difference</a>. There are a few key areas of the brain that are heavily involved in processing fear. When you perceive something as dangerous, whether it’s a gun pointed at you or a group of people looking unhappily at you, these sensory inputs are first relayed to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038%2Fnpp.2009.121">the amygdala</a>. This small, almond-shaped area of the brain located near your ears detects salience, or the emotional relevance of a situation and how to react to it. When you see something, it determines whether you should eat it, attack it, run away from it or have sex with it. <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-science-of-fright-why-we-love-to-be-scared-85885">Threat detection</a> is a vital part of this process, and it has to be fast. Early humans did not have much time to think when a lion was lunging toward them. They had to act quickly. For this reason, the amygdala evolved to bypass brain areas involved in logical thinking and can directly engage physical responses. For example, seeing an angry face on a computer screen can immediately trigger a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1006/nimg.2002.1179">detectable response from the amygdala</a> without the viewer even being aware of this reaction. <figure><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/xoU9tw6Jgyw?wmode=transparent&start=0" width="440" height="260" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe><figcaption>In response to a looming threat, mammals often fight, flee or freeze.</figcaption></figure> <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/npp.2009.83">The hippocampus</a> is near and tightly connected to the amygdala. It’s involved in memorizing what is safe and what is dangerous, especially in relation to the environment – it puts fear in context. For example, seeing an angry lion in the zoo and in the Sahara both trigger a fear response in the amygdala. But the hippocampus steps in and blocks this response when you’re at the zoo because you aren’t in danger. The <a href="https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ajp.2016.16030353">prefrontal cortex</a>, located above your eyes, is mostly involved in the cognitive and social aspects of fear processing. For example, you might be scared of a snake until you read a sign that the snake is nonpoisonous or the owner tells you it’s their friendly pet. Although the prefrontal cortex is usually seen as the part of the brain that regulates emotions, it can also teach you fear based on your social environment. For example, you might feel neutral about a meeting with your boss but immediately feel nervous when a colleague tells you about rumors of layoffs. Many <a href="https://theconversation.com/trump-the-politics-of-fear-and-racism-how-our-brains-can-be-manipulated-to-tribalism-139811">prejudices like racism</a> are rooted in learning fear through tribalism. <h2>Fear and the rest of the body</h2> If your brain decides that a fear response is justified in a particular situation, it activates a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1093/med/9780190259440.003.0019">cascade of neuronal and hormonal pathways</a> to prepare you for immediate action. Some of the fight-or-flight response – like heightened attention and threat detection – takes place in the brain. But the body is where most of the action happens. Several pathways prepare different body systems for intense physical action. The <a href="https://doi.org/10.3389/fnins.2014.00043">motor cortex</a> of the brain sends rapid signals to your muscles to prepare them for quick and forceful movements. These include muscles in the chest and stomach that help protect vital organs in those areas. That might contribute to a feeling of tightness in your chest and stomach in stressful conditions. <figure><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/0IDgBlCHVsA?wmode=transparent&start=0" width="440" height="260" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe><figcaption>Your sympathetic nervous system is involved in regulating stress.</figcaption></figure> The <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK542195/">sympathetic nervous system</a> is the gas pedal that speeds up the systems involved in fight or flight. Sympathetic neurons are spread throughout the body and are especially dense in places like the heart, lungs and intestines. These neurons trigger the adrenal gland to release hormones like adrenaline that travel through the blood to reach those organs and increase the rate at which they undergo the fear response. To assure sufficient blood supply to your muscles when they’re in high demand, signals from the sympathetic nervous system increase the rate your heart beats and the force with which it contracts. You feel both increased heart rate and contraction force in your chest, which is why you may connect the feeling of intense emotions to your heart. In your lungs, signals from the sympathetic nervous system dilate airways and often increase your breathing rate and depth. Sometimes this results in a feeling of <a href="https://theconversation.com/pain-and-anxiety-are-linked-to-breathing-in-mouse-brains-suggesting-a-potential-target-to-prevent-opioid-overdose-deaths-174187">shortness of breath</a>. As digestion is the last priority during a fight-or-flight situation, sympathetic activation slows down your gut and reduces blood flow to your stomach to save oxygen and nutrients for more vital organs like the heart and the brain. These changes to your gastrointestinal system can be perceived as the discomfort linked to fear and anxiety. <h2>It all goes back to the brain</h2> All bodily sensations, including those visceral feelings from your chest and stomach, are relayed back to the brain through the pathways <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK555915/">via the spinal cord</a>. Your already anxious and highly alert brain then processes these signals at both conscious and unconscious levels. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ajp.2016.16030353">The insula</a> is a part of the brain specifically involved in conscious awareness of your emotions, pain and bodily sensations. The <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038%2Fs41598-019-52776-4">prefrontal cortex</a> also engages in self-awareness, especially by labeling and naming these physical sensations, like feeling tightness or pain in your stomach, and attributing cognitive value to them, like “this is fine and will go away” or “this is terrible and I am dying.” These physical sensations can sometimes create a loop of increasing anxiety as they make the brain feel more scared of the situation because of the turmoil it senses in the body. Although the feelings of fear and anxiety start in your brain, you also feel them in your body because your brain alters your bodily functions. Emotions take place in both your body and your brain, but you become aware of their existence with your brain. As the rapper Eminem recounted in his song “Lose Yourself,” the reason his palms were sweaty, his knees weak and his arms heavy was because his brain was nervous.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/210871/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/arash-javanbakht-416594">Arash Javanbakht</a>, Associate Professor of Psychiatry, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/wayne-state-university-989">Wayne State University</a> Image credits: Getty Images This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/if-anxiety-is-in-my-brain-why-is-my-heart-pounding-a-psychiatrist-explains-the-neuroscience-and-physiology-of-fear-210871">original article</a>.

Body

How to cope with a fear of flying

Accept how you’re feeling The first step in overcoming a fear of flying is to recognise the fear. “Don’t fight it,” advises Dr Ian Shulman, a psychologist specialising in cognitive therapy. “Allow yourself to feel it. If you can go into a situation that scares you and say to yourself, ‘It’s okay to be scared even though I’m not comfortable,’ – that doesn’t trip off your body’s internal alarm system as much and it’s easier to cope.” By telling yourself that “yes this is happening, and I’ll go with it,” your brain tends to calm down – and as a result, the uncomfortable tightness in your throat, shallow breathing, and upset stomach will loosen their grip on you. Take a fear of flying course Before you consider booking a trip, sign up for a course that can help unravel your fear of flying. Shulman runs seminars on how to bust your flying phobia. “These programs are very useful because you get to see first-hand that there are lots of other people with similar experiences and that helps you feel like you’re not alone and what you’re going through isn’t strange,” says Shulman. Fear of flying programs look at how and why fear develops, offer calming techniques and insight into how a plane works so that nervous flyers can gain an understanding of what they’re experiencing when they hear strange noises or feel turbulence. Avoid anxious thinking patterns “People prone to anxiety tend to make two thinking errors. The first is that they exaggerate the dangerousness of the situation they are in, and the second is that they minimise their ability to cope with that danger,” says Shulman. “They’ll be thinking of the future and what could happen, and start to sweat, shake and panic.” If you’re feeling anxious on the plane, it helps to realise that you’re actually safe and not really in any danger. “The symptoms are just your body’s way of reacting to your thoughts of what might happen,” says Shulman. Realising that you’re okay and more than able to cope will help to squash anxious thought patterns. Adopt a calming technique that works for you There’s no right or wrong way to find inner calm when you’re feeling anxious. “Figure out what’s going to work for you and go with that,” says Shulman. Some anxious individuals find that repeating positive affirmations in their head helps them to alleviate their fear of flying, while others prefer to visualise that they’re somewhere relaxing such as on a beach. Cultivating a “mindful awareness” of your breathing can also help. “Focus on your breath at the tips of your nostrils, or as your belly rises and falls,” says Shulman. “As you focus on the breath, you’ll notice that your mind wanders. If you can practice this skill, it trains the brain to have a little more control over itself, and brings it back to where everything is calm.” Don’t rely on alcohol or medications While booze or prescription drugs can temporarily take the edge off a scary situation, they come with major drawbacks. Passing out for the duration of a long flight could make you a candidate for deep vein thrombosis (DVT) – the formation of blood clots in the legs. Studies from the Stanford University School of Medicine in California have also found that in-flight users of anti-anxiety medications could be making their situation worse. “The research showed medicated fliers had higher heart and breathing rates than unmedicated fliers on the same flight who were in a state of panic,” says Tom Bunn, an airline pilot and founder of SOAR. “The researchers believe this hyperarousal with medication traumatises the central nervous system, making it more sensitive to flying,” says Bunn. Become acquainted with oxytocin Here’s a substance that is more beneficial in-flight than alcohol, or prescription drugs. “Oxytocin is a chemical that your brain produces when you’re feeling relaxed and safe,” says Shulman. When a loved one holds your hand, or someone you care about is with you, your brain releases the calming effects of oxytocin. So grab a good friend or loved one as your travel buddy, and reap of the soothing benefits of your brain’s “cuddle hormone.” Image credits: Getty Images This article originally appeared on <a href="https://www.readersdigest.co.nz/flightstravel-hints-tips/how-to-cope-with-a-fear-of-flying" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Reader's Digest</a>.

Travel Tips

“My fear is obvious”: Shannen Doherty’s tearful health update

Actress Shannen Doherty, best known for her roles in the hit TV series Charmed and Beverly Hills, 90210, has shared an update on her cancer battle with her concerned followers. The star was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 2015, and has been open about her ongoing fight, from her 2017 remission to her 2020 stage 4 diagnosis, and has now made the heartbreaking announcement that the cancer has spread to her brain. In two videos posted to her social media account, Shannen has detailed this latest chapter in her journey, and confessed the fear that comes along with the whole ordeal. In the first post, Shannen detailed the experience of having her radiation mask fitted, <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CtHpmIdpNRg/?hl=en" target="_blank" rel="noopener">after CT scans revealed mets on her brain on January 5</a>. Her followers wasted no time in offering their support, with many revealing their own - or their loved ones’ - experiences fighting cancer, and wishing her all of the positive thoughts they had to offer. “I just had my bilateral mastectomy on May 31st along with a lymph node dissection,” one wrote, “and I just want to let you know that you are my hero right now and I am totally here for you as well”. “My brother was given 6-8 months in ‘94 - he went through radiotherapy, chemo, and is still with us today,” another shared. “The power of positive thinking, of ‘I CAN beat this’, was his mantra. He is living proof it can be beaten!!! Thinking of you and sending strength”. A day later, Shannen returned with another update, <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CtKfA9QLdDm/?hl=en" target="_blank" rel="noopener">this time with a video taken on January 12</a>, when the radiation process began. “January 12, the first round of radiation took place,” she revealed. “My fear is obvious. I am extremely claustrophobic and there was a lot going on in my life.” Shannen took a moment then to thank her “amazing doctors”, before making the heartbreaking confession that “that fear…. The turmoil….. the timing of it all…. This is what cancer can look like.” Friends and fans could once again be found in force in her comments, with another round of love and support being sent her way, and words of encouragement shared throughout. “This is a lot. This is a lot to take on, still again. And I am wishing for all the wise peace you have learned to find you in the terror moments. To know we are holding you. Love. All love,” fellow actress Selma Blair wrote. As actress Sarah Michelle Gellar put it, “you are a warrior”. “I send you love, strength and lighting thoughts. If I only could fight for you too, or just, take your hands and spread my strength through your soul,” a fan said. “I’m not gonna tell you that you are a warrior, you already knows that and you may think ‘I have to. What other choice do I have?’ “But trust me, you are remarkable. I worked on oncology service for years and never seen someone with stage four, fighting like you do. You have all my admiration and support. As always.” Images: Instagram

Caring

Benedict Cumberbatch fearing for his life after terrifying home invasion

Benedict Cumberbatch and his family have reportedly been left fearing for their lives as a knife-wielding man broke into the star’s North London home and threatened him. The Daily Mail reported that 35-year-old Jack Bissell, who previously worked as a chef at the Beaumont Hotel in Mayfair, kicked his way through the front gate of the Marvel star’s multimillion-dollar property, allegedly shouting, “I know you’ve moved here. I hope it burns down.” Cumberbatch, 46, his wife, Sophia Hunter, 45, and their three children were reportedly in the home at the time of the break-in and could hear the intruder screaming outside, according to Page Six. Bissell also allegedly took one of the family’s plants and threw it at the garden wall, and ripped the intercom off the building after spitting on it. The intruder reportedly fled the scene before police arrived but, authorities were able to track him down due to DNA evidence he left on the intercom. Bissell was reportedly arrested, fined and slapped with a three-year restraining order from the Cumberbatch family. A source told the outlet, “Naturally all of the family were absolutely terrified and thought this guy was going to get in and hurt them. “Luckily it never went that far. Benedict and Sophie have had many sleepless nights since, worrying that they may be targeted again,” the insider said. “The fact that it was a targeted intrusion makes it a lot more scary.” During the trial, prosecutors said Bissell allegedly told a nearby shopkeeper that he had planned to break into the actor’s home and burn it down. Bissell pleaded guilty and was sentenced on May 10. However, details surrounding the date of the incident have not been disclosed. According to the Daily Mail, facts of the case could not be reported until they “successfully challenged blanket reporting restrictions this week”. No clear connection between Bissell and Cumberbatch has been established. Image credit: Getty / Instagram

News

“Rare for a mother to say that”: Tina Turner’s heartbreaking fear revealed

Tina Turner’s daughter-in-law, Afida, has revealed the star’s deepest fear for her children, and her agonising health struggles prior to her <a href="https://www.oversixty.com.au/news/news/tributes-flow-for-tina-turner" target="_blank" rel="noopener">death</a>, in an emotional interview with the Daily Mail. Afida revealed that the Proud Mary singer, who outlived two of her four children, grieved for them every day and was “extremely sick” by the time her second son, Craig, passed away. “If you lose a child, or a loved one, you are going to cry every morning and every night,” Afida said. Craig, had passed away at the age of 59 by suicide in 2018. His brother Ronnie passed away just four years later at the age of 62 from colon cancer. Afida, who is Ronnie’s widow, shared that the only comfort was that Tina was finally reunited with her beloved sons. “They never had time to spend together and now all three of them are together.” Afida also revealed Tina’s deepest fear for her son Ronnie, and how she was worried he could “turn out like” his abusive father, Ike Turner “[Tina] sometimes told me, ‘You don’t want to stay with him. He is going to be like his father’. It is pretty rare for a mother to say that,” she said. “At first, he was kind of like his father, but after that he was going very well,” she added\, revealing that she’d given Ronnie an ultimatum to get his act together. “He made a very big effort to keep me. In the beginning it was very hard because I was not willing to stay with him,” she said. Afida also opened up about the star’s death and revealed that despite Tina’s health struggles, the singer was extremely strong and resilient, which made her family think that she would live forever. <blockquote class="instagram-media" style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/CsoyspoMrqy/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"> </div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <div style="padding: 12.5% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;"> <div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: auto;"> <div style="width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;"> </div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CsoyspoMrqy/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A post shared by Afida Turner (@afida_turner)</a> </div> </blockquote> “She was ill for a long time, but she was extraordinarily strong too,” she said. “She was fighting for her life from 2017 until now. We knew how sick she was, but she was doing so well that this was not expected,” Afida added. Image: Getty

Family & Pets

Stylist’s top tips for the fashion fearful

Whether you enjoy fully committing to the art of dressing up or prefer just to throw on the first things you can find, knowing a few basic tips and tricks can make all the difference. And luckily, personal stylist Natalie Baker has revealed to MammaMia’s Laura Jackel her 6 best pieces of advice for those hoping to level up their wardrobe without spending a fortune. <ol> <li dir="ltr" aria-level="1"> Have fun with colour, but don’t turn your back on black </li> </ol> Many people can be unsure about dipping into the wild world of colour when selecting pieces to wear, but as Natalie explained, they ultimately come to love it when they try on certain combinations - be those seasonal colours, or simply palettes they might not have considered otherwise. And, according to Natalie, wearing some colour has an unexpected benefit, as “wearing a colour that's not black, close to your face, is also much more flattering for mature skin.” For those who have a difficult time stepping away from black, Natalie suggests trying other neutral tones such as navy, grey, and camel. “It doesn’t mean you can’t wear black,” she assured, “but maybe pair your black blazer with a white or light coloured cami or t-shirt and jewellery to help light up the face." <ol start="2"> <li dir="ltr" aria-level="1"> Invest in classics </li> </ol> While trends can be fun - for a while - Natalie stressed the importance of well tailored classics. She suggested purchasing the “best your budget can afford”, as a flattering style will never go out of date. “A quality suit is great as it can be styled up or down and used as separates,” she explained. “A good pair of jeans and some basic tops to wear over and over really make up the basis of any wardrobe.” For those who would like to have a little more fun with their look, or who love to embrace a fad, she recommended adding a trendy accessory, or a splash of popular colour to suit your needs. <ol start="3"> <li dir="ltr" aria-level="1"> Don’t be so hard on yourself </li> </ol> Natalie opened up about her experience in guiding people over the age of 40 who lack self-confidence, or don’t know how to embrace their bodies after the changes life has brought their way. She explained that, in these cases, she helps her clients to “pick out elements of colours or styles that they used to love and bring them up-to-date so they suit them now.” “Clients can be very self-critical, and I know we all do it,” she said, “but I tell people to speak to themselves gently and kindly and to focus on their best traits." <ol start="4"> <li dir="ltr" aria-level="1"> Tucking a top </li> </ol> Tucking in a shirt is a popular trick amongst stylists, but Natalie has one very particular rule when it comes to perfecting the twist: tucking up, not down, to create a better silhouette and to prevent creasing. "If you take the bottom of your shirt and tuck it up and under your bra, it creates a tidy 'tucked in' look but without the fabric 'bulk' around your middle that happens when you tuck shirts down into your pants or jeans,” she instructed. <ol start="5"> <li dir="ltr" aria-level="1"> Consider what you already have </li> </ol> According to Natalie, it helps to consider your specific “wardrobe dilemmas” and know what it is you hope to resolve. That way, when you next set out to the shops, you’ll know what you already have in your wardrobe, and what you can pair your new pieces with. One rule of thumb is not to buy something new without first having a couple of outfits in mind for it. <ol start="6"> <li dir="ltr" aria-level="1"> Enjoy yourself </li> </ol> Changes for the better should make you feel good, and finding the right outfit for you can work wonders on that front. “I recently saw a 91-year-old client who wanted to look smart because it made her feel good,” Natalie shared, “which shows that nice clothes can do that for you at any age.” She went on to mention that life can get busier and trickier as time goes on, and that the least she can do is help people go out without worrying and stressing over how they look in what they’re wearing - because feeling good, at the end of the day, is the most important thing. Images: Getty

Prince Andrew’s eviction fears

Prince Andrew is facing eviction from his £30 million (~$53m) Windsor home, according to reports. The controversial royal figure is allegedly “distraught” over the news that a cut to his yearly earnings is on the horizon. It is expected that Andrew will have his allowance of 249,000 (~$440,000) cut in April, the same allowance that he has been “dependent” on since he took a step back from his royal duties in 2019 in the wake of sexual assault allegations against him. Andrew has reportedly informed his friends that he will be unable to maintain his home, Royal Lodge, without the money from his brother, and will be forced to leave the property by September. Reports claim that the 30-room mansion is in need of extensive work. Despite the cutbacks, Andrew will not be left penniless, as he will maintain his Navy pension. The Duke of York currently resides at the property with his ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson. It has served at the official country residence of the 63-year-old since 2004, and was previously the Windsor residence of Queen Elizabeth II’s mother. Andrew’s yearly allowance, paid out from his mother’s private estate, has allowed for the upkeep of Royal Lodge. However, King Charles III is now in control of those payments, and with his goals for the British monarchy, his sights have been set on Andrew. Over the Christmas period, it is alleged that a senior royal made the joke that “we will kick Andrew out of the house.” The jest is likely to have fallen flat with the royal, as a source informed The Sun, “Andrew and Sarah are distraught they have been given such short notice. “The Queen died only a few months ago. He’s not being explicitly kicked out but it’s expected that he won’t be able to afford the maintenance - Royal Lodge has a swimming pool, 98 acres of land, and is already in need of some repair.” The source went on to explain that Charles’ decision was about telling Andrew “he can use his own money to pay for things” and how the same went for other members of the royal family, such as Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie. “And while there is leniency with working members of the family, who have offices funded by the Sovereign Grant,” they added, “there have been other examples.” It was mentioned that Charles “doesn’t feel he should pay for the upkeep of ponies to pull the carriage” in reference to Charles’ aim to slim down the British monarchy, and the review into how their money is being spent. “He knows the public won’t want to see money wasted,” the source surmised. “Particularly in the current climate.” Images: Getty

News

Why are people so afraid of heights?

Rebekah Boynton is a PhD candidate and Anne Swinbourne is a Senior Lecturer in Psychology at James Cook University. If you’ve ever felt your heart race as you looked down from the top of a tall ladder, you’re not alone. But for some people, their distress is far more serious. Simply thinking about climbing a ladder can lead to intense fear and anxiety. These are the roughly <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs00406-014-0548-y" target="_blank">one in 15 people</a> who have a fear of heights (<a href="https://psychcentral.com/encyclopedia/acrophobia/" target="_blank">acrophobia</a>) at some point in their lives. So, what leads some people to feel anxious even thinking about climbing the ladder? And others happily climb up onto the roof? What is acrophobia? About <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00415-012-6685-1" target="_blank">one in three people</a> say they experience some discomfort or distress when exposed to heights. But not all of these have acrophobia. The term <a href="https://psychcentral.com/encyclopedia/acrophobia/" target="_blank">acrophobia</a> is reserved for people with extreme, irrational and persistent fears of heights and situations associated with them. It’s one of the so-called <a href="https://www.beyondblue.org.au/the-facts/anxiety/types-of-anxiety/specific-phobias" target="_blank">natural environment phobias</a>, which also include a fear of thunder and lightning (astraphobia) or water (aquaphobia). People with acrophobia <a href="https://www.sydneyphobiaclinic.com.au/programmes/acrophobia/" target="_blank">often avoid situations</a> where they will be exposed to heights. However, this is not always possible. When faced with heights or anticipating them, their <a href="https://backyardbrains.com/experiments/Sympathetic_Nervous_System" target="_blank">sympathetic nervous system</a> is aroused, as if preparing the body for an emergency. This arousal helps either approach or escape from a threat (commonly known as the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/fight-or-flight-response" target="_blank">fight-or-flight response</a>). They may experience <a href="http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/vertigo/Pages/Introduction.aspx" target="_blank">vertigo</a> (a moving or spinning sensation), increased heart rate, shortness of breath, sweating, <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0005796709000229" target="_blank">anxiety</a>, shaking or trembling, and <a href="https://theconversation.com/explainer-why-do-we-get-butterflies-in-our-stomachs-72232" target="_blank">nausea or an upset stomach</a>. A fight-or-flight response can be <a href="https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-0-387-72577-2_12" target="_blank">adaptive</a> in dangerous situations, because it can help us respond to dangerous situations. But in people with acrophobia, this response can occur when <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/why-do-we-panic/" target="_blank">no danger is present</a>. For instance, some people are extremely distressed when thinking about heights. There are <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/a0017759" target="_blank">two main perspectives</a> about how acrophobia develops. Broadly, fears and phobias are either innate (evolutionary perspective) or learned (behaviourist perspective). Are we born with a fear of heights? According to the <a href="http://www.iep.utm.edu/evol-psy/" target="_blank">evolutionary psychology perspective</a>, fears and phobias are innate. That is, people can experience a fear of heights <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0005796797100377" target="_blank">without direct (or indirect) contact</a> with heights. Instead, acrophobia is somehow hardwired so people have this fear before they <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/000579679390093A" target="_blank">first come into contact</a> with heights. Evolutionary psychologists suggest people who are afraid of heights are more likely to escape from this potentially dangerous situation or avoid it altogether. By doing this, they are then more likely to survive and later reproduce, allowing them to pass on their genes. Researchers suggest that as a result, this fear has been passed down from generation to generation. But this mechanism cannot account for all phobias. Innate phobias must reflect objects or situations that have presented a <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0005796701000456" target="_blank">long-term threat to human survival</a>. Avoiding the object or situation must also increase opportunities for reproduction. While the evolutionary perspective may explain phobias such as a fear of heights or snakes, it has difficulty explaining phobias associated with going to the dentist or public speaking. Do we learn to be afraid of heights? According to <a href="http://www.iep.utm.edu/behavior/" target="_blank">behaviourists</a>, fears and phobias are learnt, most commonly due to what’s known as <a href="https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/thoughtful-animal/what-is-classical-conditioning-and-why-does-it-matter/" target="_blank">classical conditioning</a>. To demonstrate how <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/014664029290010L" target="_blank">classical conditioning of phobias</a> occurs, consider the following scenario. Imagine you climbed a tree for the first time. What is your reaction to being up a tree? According to the behaviourist perspective, you’d be unlikely to be afraid. But if you then fell from the tree, you would likely experience distress and fear. A behaviourist would expect that because the experience of being up high is followed by the trauma of falling, you may then learn to associate the negative event with heights. Because of these learnt associations between heights and trauma, behaviourists suggest people can then be afraid of heights in future encounters. The behaviourist perspective also has some problems. It finds it difficult to explain why people who have never been exposed to an object or situation can report a phobia. For example there are no snakes in New Zealand, but there are people in New Zealand with <a href="https://www.mentalhealth.org.nz/get-help/a-z/resource/24/phobias" target="_blank">snake phobias</a>. Behaviourists also suggest fears and phobias can also be learnt <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0272735808000901" target="_blank">vicariously</a>. So behaviourists suggest it may be that some people in New Zealand may have learnt their fear of snakes by hearing stories from other people with a fear of snakes. In reality, the best explanation may be a mix of both behaviourist and evolutionary perspectives. Can it be treated? In treatment, both evolutionary and behaviourist accounts draw on <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0887618509000280" target="_blank">the behaviourist perspective of how fears and phobias are learnt</a>. Systematic desensitisation (or exposure therapy) is a <a href="https://www.mja.com.au/journal/2017/206/6/systematic-review-and-meta-analysis-treatments-acrophobia" target="_blank">commonly used therapy</a> for various phobias, whether the fear is innate or learnt. It involves <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-virtual-reality-spiders-are-helping-people-face-their-arachnophobia-73769" target="_blank">gradual exposure</a> to the feared object or situation in a safe and controlled environment. This is so that when coming into contact with the feared object or situation, people learn that they are not in danger and no longer experience a phobic response. Written by Rebekah Boynton and Anne Swinbourne. Republished with permission of <a href="http://theconversation.com/" target="_blank">The Conversation.</a> <img width="1" height="1" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/82893/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-advanced" alt="The Conversation"/>

Mind

Pilot’s holy grail tips to overcome your fear of flying

A US pilot has shared her five top tips to help nervous travellers ease their pre-flight anxiety. The 32-year-old captain said there are a few things passengers can do, such as picking the perfect time to fly and selecting your seat carefully, to make air travel a breeze. The Boeing 737 pilot who calls herself “Captain Morgan”, said anxious travellers should always book a seat in the front of the plane. “Try to sit more towards the front of the plane,” Morgan said in a TikTok video. “You’ll feel the effects of turbulence less if you sit over the wing or towards the front.” She also said that flying early in the morning is bound to make a flight easier. “There’s usually less turbulence and airports and airplanes are less crowded, which gives you more personal space,” she said. For solo travellers, Morgan suggested a no-brainer way to distract yourself in the air. “If you can’t fly with a family member or friend, have someone on the ground you can text. Most planes have free texting. You’ll have someone for moral support and they can distract you from flying,” she said. “You can turn your phone to Airplane Mode but turn on the Wi-Fi. Then you text over the Wi-Fi with either iMessage or WhatsApp for free.” Morgan said you can mentally prepare yourself for what to expect by “learning the sounds the plane makes”. “Familiarise yourself with the sounds of the airplane,” she said. “For example, when you’re getting close to landing at the airport, the thud you hear is usually just the landing gear coming down.” Morgan said her number one tip for anxious flyers is to “introduce yourself to the flight crew”. “If the flight attendants know you’re nervous, they can check on you more during the flight,” she said. “If you go talk to the pilots, they can tell you a bit more about the flight. For example, if we are expecting any turbulence. Just ask the flight attendant in the galley if you can meet and talk to the pilots. It might not be a long conversation but we can still chat.” She added, “More than likely we will give you a tour of the flight deck and answer all your questions.” Image credits: TikTok

Travel Tips

Johnny Ruffo opens up about biggest fear

Aussie star Johnny Ruffo has shared an update on his battle with terminal brain cancer and opened up about the one thing that scares him above all else. The former Home and Away star told <a href="https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/national/johnny-ruffo-shares-biggest-fear-amid-brain-cancer-battle/news-story/f1adaa768aa06f838dfe1ac9af0e4d94" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Daily Telegraph</a> that he hasn’t given up the fight against his brain tumour, which first appeared in 2017, but that he is also thinking about the possibility of death. Speaking about his biggest fear, the 34-year-old revealed that he was scared that his immediate family, including his partner Tahnee Sims, wouldn’t be around him when he dies. “I’m scared for my brother, my mum, Dad and Tahnee that they won’t be here with me [when I die],” he told the outlet. “There is no way my family will all be here. The likelihood of that is [slim]. It would be ideal if everyone was there – not for my sake, but theirs.” During the interview, Ruffo became emotional while speaking about Tahnee, who he described as his “guardian angel”. “She is living with it as much as I am. She is here with me every step of the way. I’m so very grateful to have her by my side, I don’t know what I would do without her,” he said. <blockquote class="instagram-media" style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/CjUyMHXOvxt/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"> </div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <div style="padding: 12.5% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;"> <div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: auto;"> <div style="width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;"> </div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CjUyMHXOvxt/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A post shared by Tahnee Sims (@tahneesims)</a> </div> </blockquote> Ruffo, who shot to fame as a finalist on the 2011 season of X Factor, has been candid about his battle with cancer, giving fans the devastating update that <a href="https://www.oversixty.co.nz/health/caring/johnny-ruffo-s-devastating-news" target="_blank" rel="noopener">it was terminal</a> in an interview with The Project co-host Carrie Bickmore in August. “At some point it will get me, but I’m still fighting, still kicking on,” he said at the time. “Looking up my diagnosis and my tumour, the average life expectancy was three years. And for me it’s now been five years. I’m already winning. My goal now is to try and help as many people as I can and also live a happy life.” In the weeks before he broke the news, the West Australian <a href="https://www.oversixty.co.nz/health/caring/johnny-ruffo-marks-five-years-since-cancer-diagnosis" target="_blank" rel="noopener">marked five years since he was diagnosed</a> and released his first book, a memoir titled No Finish Line. Image: @johnny_ruffo (Instagram)

Caring

Emma Watkins fears due to debilitating condition

Emma Watkins has opened about her greatest fears when it comes to starting a family due to a debilitating condition. The former Yellow Wiggle married partner Oliver Brian in a small afternoon garden party in the gorgeous Longmeadow Estate in the Victorian town of Tyrendarra earlier this month. She has since opened up about her fears of not being able to become a mum due to her endometriosis. “Speaking plainly, I just don’t know if I will be able to,” the 32-year-old told <a href="https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/entertainment/sydney-confidential/former-yellow-wiggle-emma-watkins-reveals-baby-battle-after-marriage/news-story/e66cf271152aa4a6f9480744ffa80cf4" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Daily Telegraph</a>. “After stage four endo, I am pretty realistic in the fact I don’t know what my chances are. If it happens, that would be amazing, if it doesn’t, that is okay too.” Endometriosis is a disease that affects more than 11 per cent of Australian women and girls where the tissue similar to the lining of the womb grows outside it in other parts of the body. The debilitating condition which takes at least seven years to diagnose could also impact a woman's fertility. Check out Emma and Oliver’s wedding photos <a href="https://oversixty.com.au/lifestyle/relationships/emma-watkins-shares-gorgeous-wedding-snaps" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>. Images: Instagram

Family & Pets

Palace confirms Queen's absence from historic event over health fears

Queen Elizabeth is set to miss a major event for the first time in almost 60 years due to health fears. Buckingham Palace confirmed the Queen, 96, is experiencing mobility problems and it was recommended she sit out the State Opening of Parliament. "The Queen continues to experience episodic mobility problems, and in consultation with her doctors has reluctantly decided that she will not attend the State Opening of Parliament,” the palace confirmed in a statement. "At Her Majesty's request, and with the agreement of the relevant authorities, The Prince of Wales will read The Queen's speech on Her Majesty's behalf, with The Duke of Cambridge also in attendance." The Queen’s speech will instead be read by the Prince of Wales and will reveal what the British government has in store for the country over the next year. This is the first time since 1963 the Queen will miss the event due to a health issue. Queen Elizabeth did not attend in 1959 because she was pregnant with Prince Andrew, and then again in 1963 when she was pregnant with Prince Edward. Both times her speech was read by the chancellor. Image: Getty

News

Fears over new Omicron subvariant

There are fears in China that a new subvariant of Omicron has been discovered. The country recorded 13,000 cases of Covid-19 but found a different strain in a patient with mild symptoms. Health officials in Suzhou, west of Shanghai, said the subvariant came from the BA.1.1 branch of Omicron. “This means a new variant of Omicron has been discovered locally,” Zhang Jun, deputy director of the Suzhou Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, told state press agency Xinhua. GISAID, the global database for mutations to be recorded, did not match with the new subvariant. The subvariant has not yet been reported in any other parts of China or globally. However, another variant has been reported in Dalian city, in northern China, which also does not match with any other variant in the database. China is still aiming to eliminate the virus and placed the city of Shanghai, a population of 26 million, into lockdown last week to help lower cases. Image: Getty

News

Fears grow for missing little girl

The search for a missing four-year-old girl who vanished from her mother’s backyard in Tasmania has continued, with police becoming increasingly concerned about her welfare. Shayla Phillips was playing with a neighbour’s two dogs in her mum’s backyard in Stormlea, southeast of Hobart, on Wednesday afternoon at about 2.30pm. But, when Shayla’s mother, Bianca, went to check on her daughter after 30 minutes, she found that Shayla and one of the dogs had disappeared, as reported by the <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10646747/Shayla-Phillips-Growing-fears-missing-girl-4-desperate-search-enters-second-night.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Daily Mail</a>. After frantically searching the property herself, Bianca called Tasmania Police at 3pm. The missing dog was found later that same night about 800 metres from where Shayla was last seen, but no trace of the “happy healthy child” has been found in over 24 hours despite extensive search efforts from Tasmania Police. <iframe style="overflow: hidden; border: initial none initial;" src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?height=469&href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FTas.Police%2Fvideos%2F741911827217753%2F&show_text=true&width=560&t=0" width="560" height="584" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe> “As we enter day two of the search for Shayla, increasing concerns are held for her welfare,” Inspector Gavin Hallett said in a <a href="https://www.police.tas.gov.au/news-events/media-releases/significant-search-ongoing-in-stormlea-area-for-missing-4-year-old-girl-shayla-phillips/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">statement</a> released on Thursday afternoon. “Due to the isolation and terrain in the Stormlea Road area where Shayla was last seen, a broad range of resources are continuing to be utilised to search from the air and on the ground,” Inspector Hallett said. With locals reporting temperatures of 10 C on Wednesday night, concerns for Shayla’s safety have been growing due to her young age and the dense terrain. Police are searching for Shayla using divers, sniffer dogs, drones with thermal sensors, and investigators, and are being assisted by Tasmania SES, Ambulance Tasmania, a Westpac Rescue Helicopter and even people on horseback, according to the <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-03-25/missing-girl-spends-second-night-lost-in-southern-tasmania/100937436" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ABC</a>. <img src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/2022/03/shayla.jpg" alt="" /> Police divers searched ponds and dams on the property on the first day of the search. Image: Tasmania Police “In all we’ve had close to 100 emergency service personnel assisting us in the search,” Inspector Hallett said. “Because of the isolation, terrain and age of Shayla the rescue helicopter was deployed immediately.” With this many resources being deployed and the isolation of the area, police have requested no additional help from the public in their search. However, a new image of Shayla wearing a two-piece pink tracksuit has been circulating on social media with the hopes it could help her be recognised. She was last seen wearing pink leggings, a cream top and gumboots. Since the dogs were found “quite a distance away” from the backyard, Inspector Hallett said it was an indicator that Shayla’s disappearance wasn’t due to any “untoward activity”. “That’s an indicator to us, that if there had been some untoward activity the dogs wouldn’t have been gone, they would have been here,” he said. Authorities don’t believe any other parties were involved in Shayla’s disappearance at this stage. “I’ve spoken to the mother Bianca and she’s very stoic,” Inspector Hallett said. “She’s a strong woman and hopeful we will find Shayla.” Image: Tasmania Police

News

URGENT RECALL: Fears for deadly contamination in baby formula

Australia and New Zealand's food standards watchdog have issued an urgent recall for a batch of baby formula over fears it could be contaminated with Salmonella and Cronobacter bacteria. Food Standards Australia and New Zealand (FSANZ) on Saturday issued the recall notice for some EleCare, Similac and Alimentum infant formula products. The products were manufactured in the United States but were available nationally in Australia through prescription at pharmacies, hospitals and via direct mail order. Abbott’s Executive Vice President Joe Manning said the company was voluntarily recalling products out of an abundance of caution. “We deeply regret the concern and inconvenience this situation will cause parents, caregivers and health care professionals,” he said. According to FSANZ, the recalled products can be identified by the “7 to 9 digit code and expiration date on the bottom of the package”.”. FSANZ says the recall notice is due to a potential microbial contamination of Cronobacter and Salmonella. According to the US Food and Drug Administration, which issued a warning against using the products on Thursday, the complaints registered related to Cronobacter sakazakii and Salmonella Newport. “To date, this investigation has been associated with four illnesses (three for Cronobacter and one for Salmonella),” it said in a statement. “All four cases related to these complaints were hospitalised and Cronobacter may have contributed to a death in one case.” It continued to note that Cronobacter bacteria can cause life-threatening infections, including sepsis and meningitis. <div>EDITOR'S NOTE: According to an Abbott spokesperson, for Australian consumers, the recall only impacts specific batches of EleCare in Australia. No other nutrition products – or Similac products – distributed by Abbott in Australia are affected by this recall.</div> <div>Alimentum and Similac Human Milk Fortifier (HMF) are not sold by Abbott in Australia and these products are not available in Australia by prescription at pharmacies and hospitals. In Australia, two batches of EleCare are impacted by the recall:</div> <ul data-stringify-type="unordered-list" data-indent="0" data-border="0"> <li style="list-style-type: none;" data-stringify-indent="0" data-stringify-border="0">EleCare Unflavoured 400 g can (lot number: 26811Z200)</li> <li style="list-style-type: none;" data-stringify-indent="0" data-stringify-border="0">EleCare LCP 400 g can (lot number: 27871Z202)</li> </ul> <div>If parents have EleCare, they should call 1800 225 311 or email <a tabindex="-1" href="mailto:NutritionANZ@abbott.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-stringify-link="mailto:NutritionANZ@abbott.com" data-sk="tooltip_parent" aria-haspopup="menu" aria-expanded="false" data-remove-tab-index="true">NutritionANZ@abbott.com</a> to find out if they have impacted product. Do not use the impacted product. Parents should talk to their child’s healthcare professional about suitable, alternative feeding options. No other nutrition products distributed by Abbott in Australia are affected by this recall, and you can continue to use those.</div> Image: NBC

News

Queen's health fears after "close contact" meeting with Charles

As Prince Charles has tested positive for Covid-19 for a second time, Buckingham Palace have expressed their concerns for the Queen. Charles' positive result was announced by Clarence House on Thursday evening, and confirmed the royal was isolating and had cancelled all upcoming events."HRH is deeply disappointed not to be able to attend today's events in Winchester and will look to reschedule his visit as soon as possible," Clarence House said. Clarence House went on to confirm that Prince Charles is triple vaccinated, but did not state the severity of his Covid symptoms. <blockquote class="twitter-tweet">This morning The Prince of Wales has tested positive for COVID-19 and is now self-isolating. HRH is deeply disappointed not to be able to attend today's events in Winchester and will look to reschedule his visit as soon as possible.— The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall (@ClarenceHouse) <a href="https://twitter.com/ClarenceHouse/status/1491743935647166468?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 10, 2022</a></blockquote>As news of his diagnosis arose, Buckingham Palace confirmed that Prince Charles had met with his mother Queen Elizabeth earlier this week. The palace said Her Majesty is currently "not displaying any symptoms" but would continue to be monitored.While it is unknown exactly when the royal met, Prince Charles performed a round of investitures at Windsor Castle on Tuesday, where the Queen had returned the day before from Sandringham. Prince Charles' Covid diagnosis comes just one day after he and Camilla attended a large gathering for the British Museum for the British Asian Trust, where they met with dozens of people including UK Treasury chief Rishi Sunak.The Duchess of Cornwall tested negative Thursday morning and went ahead with a number of planned engagements, including a visit to a London community food hub.This is the second time Prince Charles has tested positive for Covid, after he contracted the virus in March 2020 after having suffered "mild symptoms".Image credits: Getty Images

News

‘Brain fog’ during menopause is real – it can disrupt women’s work and spark dementia fears

For nearly two-thirds of women, menopause comes with an undesirable <a href="https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/10.1089/152460901750269670">change in memory</a>. Despite great progress in understanding the medical aspects of <a href="https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/conditionsandtreatments/menopause#what-is-menopause">menopause</a> – a natural part of life that occurs when a woman has not had a menstrual period for 12 months – we are only beginning to recognise the experience and impact of <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/17042/the-psychology-of-menopause#overview">cognitive changes during menopause</a>. In most cases, it appears cognitive changes – that is, problems with thinking, reasoning or remembering – during menopause are subtle and possibly temporary. But for some women, these difficulties can negatively impact work productivity. And for others, they can raise concerns about developing dementia. <h2>The Big M</h2> Menopause marks the end of reproductive years. It can happen naturally, at an average age of 49 years, when the hairlike follicles in the ovaries are exhausted. Menopause can also happen surgically, with the removal of both ovaries (for example to reduce the risk of ovarian cancer). The change from reproductive to postmenopausal years, referred to as “perimenopause” usually lasts four to ten years. The symptoms of menopause, which can include vasomotor symptoms (hot flashes and night sweats), vaginal dryness, sleep disturbance, depression, anxiety and “brain fog” can span perimenopause and last for up to ten years. <h2>What kind of foggy thinking?</h2> Just over 60% of women <a href="https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/10.1089/152460901750269670">report cognitive difficulties</a> during their menopause transition. Women describe difficulties remembering people’s names or finding the right word in conversation. Some describe difficulties with concentrating or making decisions. As discussed in our <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0083672920300686?via%3Dihub">recent review</a>, these “subjective cognitive difficulties” appear to be linked to performance on tests of memory, recall and processing. Difficulties on tests of verbal memory (learning and remembering information new words you have heard), verbal fluency (quickly retrieving words from your memory) and attention are seen in perimenopausal women. <h2>Women at work</h2> While the degree of cognitive decline is subtle and performance generally remains within the normal limits of functioning, the symptoms can be bothersome for the individual. For many women, menopause coincides with the prime of their productive lives, when the load of caring for young children has eased and they’ve garnered experience and seniority in the workplace. <a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/436857/original/file-20211210-141979-g7ejsn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/436857/original/file-20211210-141979-g7ejsn.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" alt="Woman in glasses" /></a> Women might be hitting their professional peak just as menopause affects their cognition. <a href="https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1559856553-823ca11d1518?ixlib=rb-1.2.1&ixid=MnwxMjA3fDB8MHxwaG90by1wYWdlfHx8fGVufDB8fHx8&auto=format&fit=crop&w=2108&q=80" class="source">Unsplash/Maria Lupan</a>, <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/" class="license">CC BY</a> There is growing interest in the impact of <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2214911221000242?via%3Dihub">menopausal symptoms in the workplace</a>. Research suggests menopause symptoms can <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25830628/">adversely affect</a> work productivity and work satisfaction. Contributing factors include poor concentration and poor memory. The retention of menopausal female workers is important, for women themselves, but also to ensure we continue to strive for workforce diversity within our modern workforce. <h2>What causes menopausal brain fog?</h2> “Brain fog” is not a medical or psychological term, but a lay term that aptly describes the fogginess in thought experienced by many women during menopause. Menopause related cognitive changes are not just age-related cognitive decline. Rather, fluctuating and eventual decline of ovarian hormone production associated with menopause is likely to <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3763981/">play a key role</a>. Hormones produced by the ovaries, estradiol (a type of estrogen) and progesterone, are potent brain chemicals that are thought to protect the brain and <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6162653/">enhance thinking and memory</a>. The fluctuations and eventual loss of estradiol has been <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6162653/">suggested</a> to contribute to cognitive difficulties. Cognitive symptoms can occur in the <a href="https://academic.oup.com/aje/article/171/11/1214/102233">absence of other menopausal symptoms</a>. This means other menopausal symptoms are not responsible for cognitive symptoms. However, menopause related depressive and anxiety symptoms, sleep disturbance and vasomotor symptoms <a href="https://academic.oup.com/aje/article/171/11/1214/102233">may make cognitive symptoms worse</a>. <a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/436861/original/file-20211210-17-qacocb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/436861/original/file-20211210-17-qacocb.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" alt="Working women share coffee" /></a> More research is needed to determine if lifestyle changes could buffer cognitive problems related to menopause. <a href="https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1590650046871-92c887180603?ixlib=rb-1.2.1&ixid=MnwxMjA3fDB8MHxwaG90by1wYWdlfHx8fGVufDB8fHx8&auto=format&fit=crop&w=1770&q=80" class="source">Unsplash</a>, <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/" class="license">CC BY</a> <h2>Is there a link with Alzheimer’s disease?</h2> Alzheimer’s disease is the <a href="https://www.alz.org/alzheimers-dementia/what-is-dementia/types-of-dementia">most common form of dementia</a> and <a href="https://www.alz.org/blog/alz/february_2016/why_does_alzheimer_s_disease_affect_more_women_tha#:%7E:text=Women%20are%20disproportionately%20affected%20by,with%20Alzheimer's%20disease%20are%20women.">being female is a risk factor</a>. The greater longevity of women does not explain this increased risk. Instead, the loss of estradiol associated with menopause has been suggested to play a role. Early menopause, such as surgical menopause before the age of 45 years, <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0306453018311478?casa_token=v6m5g8k3kCcAAAAA:cW3RhpbLs2tAD7o2hcIXTR_e-LCQAv77WMpnciHZ8Rgp2cLJhwW74evz28z0Uf47JjZeF9V16c-U">has been associated</a> with an increased risk of dementia later in life as well as a faster rate of cognitive decline. Because similar symptoms may present during menopause and the early stages of Alzheimer’s disease (forgetfulness and word-finding difficulties) perimenopausal women can become concerned about dementia. Women should be reassured that dementia that begins before age 65 – called young onset dementia – is not common (unless there is a family history of early-onset dementia). Forgetfulness and other cognitive difficulties during the menopausal transition are common and a normal part of menopause. <h2>What can help?</h2> Although fluctuations and an eventual decline in estrogen play a role in cognitive difficulties, the use of hormone therapy <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8394691/">does not appear to have a clear benefit</a> on cognitive function (but evidence remains limited). More research is needed to determine whether lifestyle factors can help menopausal brain fog. We do know exercise can improve cognition during <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7907999/">midlife</a>, mindfulness and meditation may be <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4125424/">helpful</a>. At Monash University, we are currently conducting an <a href="https://redcap.link/menopause">online survey</a> for women aged 45 to 60 to better understand cognitive symptoms during menopause. Avoiding illicit drugs, prescription medication overuse, smoking and excessive alcohol may be <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8293659/">protective</a>. A diet that includes plant-based unprocessed foods (such as a Mediterranean diet), close social bonds and engagement, and a higher level of education have been <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8624903/">broadly linked</a> to better cognitive functioning during later life.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important; text-shadow: none !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/173150/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/caroline-gurvich-473295">Caroline Gurvich</a>, Associate professor and Clinical Neuropsychologist, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/monash-university-1065">Monash University</a>; <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/chen-zhu-1298027">Chen Zhu</a>, , <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/monash-university-1065">Monash University</a>, and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/shalini-arunogiri-385503">Shalini Arunogiri</a>, Addiction Psychiatrist, Senior Lecturer, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/monash-university-1065">Monash University</a> This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/brain-fog-during-menopause-is-real-it-can-disrupt-womens-work-and-spark-dementia-fears-173150">original article</a>. Image: Unsplash/Gantas Vaiciulenas

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