Stress Stinks

Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Actually found “A Haunting” episode on today that I had not seen so Gabby and I watched it over his lunch. Listened to “CoastToCoastAM” which had Neuropsychiatrist Dr. Peter Fenwick, author of “The Art of Dying,” as the guest for 3 hours. Dr. Fenwick believes near-death experiences are real and they give us insight into the afterlife. He gave accounts of deceased relatives that watch over their living family members. It was a good show but I remain very skeptical. I think near-death experiences can be explained through natural biological responses to the onset of death. This would include oxygen deprivation during death and also the fact that the body releases chemicals (such as DMT) at this time that cause hallucinations.

Later, I walked on the treadmill and went outside with the Chow. Dad went to get a haircut and eat dinner out and he asked me to go with him. I told him I just didn’t feel like getting out tonight and that I’m still not real comfortable out in public. “MonsterQuest” was about the search for Giant Bears – none were found. “Man vs Wild” took place in the Mexican desert. Bear (the host) drank his own urine for fluid and caught, killed, skinned and ate both a skunk and a rattlesnake.

The economic collapse continued today. Congress can’t agree on an economic bailout plan for Wall Street. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson came up with a plan but it has mostly been rejected because it bails out big companies that made bad loans that caused this crisis while doing nothing for homeowners facing foreclosure. People are also tired of the CEO’s of these companies getting millions of dollars in retirement packages after they run their company to the ground. I would agree that both issues need to be addressed. Both Obama and McCain have suspended their Presidential campaigns to focus on the economic crisis. McCain even wants to cancel the 1st debate scheduled for Friday. President Bush addressed the American people tonight with a primetime speech about how important a government bailout is for the nation’s economy.

There was a fascinating show on PBS tonight about how stress affects the body. The show followed scientists that collected and studied blood samples from baboons and monkeys – both primates that establish a social hierarchy (like humans). What they found was a bit chilling, the monkeys and baboons higher up in the hierarchy had much less stress, and as a result, a lower rate of heart disease and lower blood pressure. Also, it is known the stress decreases the body’s autoimmune system’s ability to fight disease and sickness. Then scientists compared the results to the British Civil Service, which is a strict hierarchy and found the same results. The lower the worker was on the civil service hierarchy, the more days of work they missed due to sickness. Stress decreases one’s life expectancy. It makes perfect sense. Stress is horrible and panic attacks, depression and anxiety can make you actually feel like you are dying at times. This is why I think happiness is seeking pleasure and avoiding pain. My hope in life isn’t to make a lot of money or be way up high on the social ladder, I just want a life with a minimal amount of stress. Unfortunately, life doesn’t usually cooperate with our desires.