"The one who accomplished it is the one who failed to realize that he could not do it."
�Katrina and Your Health� You may think you�re safe because you don�t live on any of the 90,000 square miles hit by Katrina. But you are not safe from this storm�yet! As they did on 9/11, scenes of devastation and human suffering can take their toll on your health. If you don�t believe me, simply take a photo of this storm�s damage from any newspaper or magazine and muscle-test it. Have someone test the strength of your outstretched arm as you resist. Next, do the same while looking at pictures of the disaster. You�ll notice that you�ve just become weaker. What happened? Your cells retracted into a protection mode. The strange thing about this is that you cannot grow and prosper while worried about survival. Remember, your subconscious mind cannot tell the difference between a scene vividly imagined and the actual experience. Here�s what happens to your health. First, memory starts fading and you begin losing your mind. This is because stress or simply viewing stressful circumstances causes the release of cortisol, which reduces the utilization of blood sugar in the brain�s memory center. The brain suffers from the lack of fuel and thus has no way to chemically lay down a memory or access old ones. Next, your brain cells are killed by excess cortisol, because it causes massive amounts of calcium to enter them. This triggers the production of free radicals that are linked to cancer, heart disease, and many other life-threatening ailments. As you can see, a daily mental diet of bad news is dangerous to your health. While I�m not suggesting you stick your head in the sand and pretend life isn�t happening, I do suggest you spend more quiet time doing Qi Gong, yoga, meditating, or simply taking long, carefree walks with your dog. If research is correct that your mind uses 85% of your body�s energy, wouldn�t you agree it would be wise to conserve? How do you think reducing your mental gas-guzzling worries, fears, and apprehensions might affect your health? You don�t have to be psychic to predict the onset of a deadly disease with certainty�simply look at mental stress levels, diet, and lifestyle. It is my ardent desire that you gift yourself enough time to smell the roses, enough time to watch sunrises and sunsets with those you love, enough time to marvel at the stars at night, enough time for candlelight dinners, romance, and laughter. I hope you will take enough time to provide this world with one improved, happy human unit. If everyone did this, the whole world might find enough time to heal its wounds: then we will all have enough time. -Peter Ragnar
