Mind/Body Health Science and Application

Transcription

1 NL Smith-Mind Body Class 1 Mind/Body Health Science and Application Instructor: N. Lee Smith MD Phones: Smith: Smith: smithnleeut@gmail.com Office hours: By appointment Prerequisites: none Course Information Course Description This course is designed to introduce you to the concept of the mindbody connection and the implications for creating good health due to that connection. The science of this will be explored, and practical applications will be experienced. Textbook: Karren KJ, Smith NL, Gordon KJ, Mind-Body Health: The Effects of Attitudes, Emotions and Relationships. (San Francisco; Pearson Higher Ed., Fifth Edition 2014). Class Objectives: At completion, the student will be able to: Describe some physiological reasons why mental thoughts and attitudes impact health so significantly: Understand the body super system Describe why there is so much stress-related medical illness Identify and experience the key principles of stress resilience and positive psychology that create better health outcomes Describe how one s explanatory style about life, including optimism and pessimism, effects health processes, and can be changed to be in line with one's inner wisdom Describe why events don t distress us so much as our chosen thoughts about those events, and how that realization brings the locus of control back to the thinker. Describe what anger, hostility and being judgmental does to cardiovascular health, and experience changing this if desired Understand how excess worry, fear and depression cause so many medical problems, and experience personal processes that reduce these Describe the differing neurobiology of our seeming two different minds, and experience actualizing your own inner wisdom to solve problems

2 NL Smith-Mind Body Class 2 Describe how loving, supportive relationships impact health, what proof there is for this, and why. Experience a process for changing these to be as desired. Describe why core spiritual principles and healthy mental principles often coincide, and how health science could help identify what healthy spiritual attitudes, motivations and practices might be. Experience the healing power of forgiveness Realize the importance of purpose and meaning, and how these, with their altruism, contribute to (real) self actualization and the healing mechanisms of love Experience and describe how to change undesired habits most quickly to actualize the above Describe studies proving the health and medical benefits of behavioral medicine (mind-body) interventions. Experience how these interventions work Teaching and Learning Methods: The class will include lecture, discussions, literature search and experiential learning. Course policies Participation: Students are expected to be in class during class times, contributing to discussion. (Full attendance and participation is worth 30 points) Preparation: Students are expected to read assigned materials before class and bring thoughtful questions to class for discussion. Students are expected to take notes while completing reading assignments and during class. Respect: Students are expected to demonstrate respect for the instructors and classmates, as well as ideas and comments expressed in class. Use of Technology: Use of laptops in class to legitimately take notes or work on class projects is allowed, but all other use of laptops in class is prohibited. Assignments (Total Points Possible 347) Attendance and participation- Due weekly: 2 points each week (30 points total) Quizzes - Due: weekly A total of 12 weekly Quizzes, based on the What have you learned? sections of the textbook chapters, will be given throughout the term. Each Quiz is worth 10 points and should be completed on Canvas before coming to the next class. Each student s lowest two Quiz scores

3 NL Smith-Mind Body Class 3 will be dropped at the end of the semester. Late Quizzes will not be accepted. (120 points total) Literature search: Bring one excellent article published 2012 or later pertaining to the previous week s subject to summarize in one minute or less for the group. This will be for the first 12 classes. Place a published abstract (or your one paragraph summary), including the full citation information, in the discussion section on Canvas. Each article is worth 2 points (24 points total) Midterm summary of Learning Paper - Due: October 16, midnight Each student will complete a four-page Summary of Learning Paper where he/she presents and discusses the five most important concepts or principles he/she has learned from the first half of the course, and why. Support your reasons for choosing these with citations of studies you have found most impressive. The Midterm Summary of Learning Paper is worth 25 points. Papers will be graded 21 points on content and 4 points on writing quality. Papers should be typed, doublespaced, and must be ed to Dr. Smith at smithnleeut@gmail.com. Credit for late Summary of Learning Papers will be reduced by 50%. Share Fair Due: December 1 Each student will host a Mind-Body Health Share Fair where they invite 4-15 friends or family to their home or other location to discuss and implement at least 4-6 of the main points presented in the course that have distinct meaning for you personally. Make sure you use bonafide research to support each of your concepts. You may host this fair with a class colleague if you so choose. Limit your Fair to a maximum of two (2) hours. Each student will then submit an activity report consisting of an outline of items discussed at the share fair, and a two-page report of the event. The Mind-Body Health Share Fair and Activity Report is worth 50 points and must be ed to Dr. Smith at smithnleeut@gmail.com by midnight, Dec. 1. Late Mind-Body Health Share Fair Activity Reports cannot be accepted. Final Paper Due December 11 Each student will write an 8-10 page paper that discusses how the principles elucidated in studies of stress hardiness, self actualization, positive psychology, type B Behavior pattern, and the large I am interact with each other and include principles proven to improve health outcomes. Describe how some of these principles affect the neurobiology of well being.

4 NL Smith-Mind Body Class 4 The final paper is worth 100 points, and will be due by midnight, December 11. Papers will be graded 92 points on content and 8 points on writing quality.. Late papers before December 15 will receive 50% credit. Grading Scale A B D A C D B C D B C E 175 and lower Class outlines: CLASS 1 (Aug )-INTRODUCTION TO THE MIND/BODY CONNECTION An overview of the course: where we are going and why. How seemingly separate physiological body systems are all parts of a large, integrated super system, and how perturbing one communicative system (such as the nervous system or immune system) perturbs the others. How homeostatic still points allow dynamic and effective responses to stimuli, and how finding mental still points do the same. How the body affects the mind: experience how breathing and progressive muscle relaxation illustrate the integration of poles by the body Text Chapter 1 CLASS 2 (Aug )- THE IMPACT OF STRESS ON HEALTH The epidemiological and biological science of this will be summarized. How life is one stressor after another, and how turning distress into eustress improves not only measurable health, but life s experience as well. Experience this transition by identifying, then learning tools to implement how you would deeply admire someone handling challenging situations. Introduction to mindfulness. Text Chapter 2 CLASS 3 (Sept. 4-8 )- THE DISEASE-PRONE PERSONALITY Do people really have an inherent, unchangeable personality, or is this malleable? Explore genetic vulnerability, but the importance of epigenetics in changing expression of those genes. Discuss whether

5 NL Smith-Mind Body Class 5 some habitual personality styles seem to be associated with different disease states. Explore practical change tasks for modifying risky styles. ABCs of Feelings and Reactions Introduction to imaging Text Chapter 3 CLASS 4 (Sept ) THE DISEASE-RESISTANT PERSONALITY Explore the principles of positive psychology, noting the overlap with studies of stress hardiness. Major stress buffers, and why some people exposed to the same disease causes don t get sick as much. How studies of the ways used by people who cope well with difficult circumstances can guide our choices. Take a personality test, to see if there are areas to be cultivated toward better health. How to change old undesired habits to healthy ones: Introduction to imagery Our Two Minds Text Chapter 4 CLASS 5 (Sept ) DEPRESSION, GRIEF AND DISEASE How does the neurobiology of clinical depression lead to body disease? What is the difference between clinical depression and the usual ups and downs of life? How is it diagnosed? What can you do about depression, for yourself or a loved one? We all experience grief with loss. What are the health effects of bereavement? How to lessen the pain. What can you do to affect the neurobiology of clinical depression nonpharmacologically Self compassion Feelings as a guide Text Chapters 9-10 (Quiz: Ch. 9-#1, 2, 5; Ch. 10-#4) CLASS 6 (Sept ) EXPLANATORY STYLE and LOCUS OF CONTROL Healthy control is not about controlling the external world, but the internal one. How thinking changes health behavior: The ABCs of feelings and behaviors. (ABCs diary). The proven effects of selfefficacy and self-esteem; how they can be cultivated. How optimistic and pessimistic explanatory styles affect health and body processes, and how optimism can be learned. What hope really is, and how hope and mental sense of control translate to body systems capacity to deal well with their challenges.

6 NL Smith-Mind Body Class 6 Self actualization Separate Realities Text Chapters 5-6 (Quiz: Ch. 5-#1, 2; Ch. 6-#1, 4, 7) CLASS 7 (Oct. 2-6 ) SOCIAL SUPPORT, RELATIONSHIPS, LONELINESS AND HEALTH How does social support protect health? What are the neurobiological differences between feeling separate (with it s judgmentalism and competition) versus feeling interconnected (and cooperative, part of something larger)? How do these differences show up in the body? How strong is the health data for the difference? What is the difference between loneliness and being alone? Do loving pets change health outcomes? How self compassion may be more important than self esteem Ideal relationship exercise Imaging changing modalities Text Chapters (Quiz: Ch. 11-#1, 2, 6; Ch. 12-#1) FALL BREAK OCTOBER 8-15 CLASS 8 (Oct ) - DO ANGER AND HOSTILITY KILL? Explore the powerful data on the dangers of these. What is the difference between anger and hostility? Which is worse for health? What are healthy expressions of anger? Does it always need to be expressed or stuffed, or can it be transformed? How we create grievance stories, and how forgiveness is the solution. What happens to health (and sense of control) when you do transform this? Understanding separate realities: how you have learned to mentally process your reality. Forgiveness exercises Text Chapter 7 CLASS 9 (Oct ) - WORRY, ANXIETY, FEAR AND DISEASE How the over-responsive fear parts of the brain (amygdala) drives other systems (pain, gut, neural) responses to be over-responsive also, causing very common somatization medical problems. How activating the wise and loving parts of the brain quiet the fear, and how to do that. Why worry is deceiving, and how to change it if excessive. Our two minds: Feelings as a guide as to which mind you are using. Creating new ABC s of Behavior Worry and the Law of Expectations

7 NL Smith-Mind Body Class 7 The fastest ways to change fearful habits Text Chapter 8 CLASS 10 (Oct. 30-Nov. 3) MARRIAGE, AND FAMILIES: HEALTH EFFECTS? Is marriage good or bad for health? Is it harder on health to be divorced or remain in an unhappy marriage? How powerful are the effects of a good marriage? How do family relationships affect mental and physical health? Fifteen traits of healthy families. Discovering how your own inner wisdom solves relationship problems. Creating a wellformed image of this, and using visualization to create the changes you want in your part of relationships. Why don t we just do it that way? How do the elements you imagine fit with all the positive health factors discussed thus far? Conflict Management Well formed outcomes Text Chapters (Quiz: Ch. 13-#2,5; Ch. 14-#3) CLASS 11 (Nov. 6-10) THE HEALING POWER OF SPIRITUALITY What is spirituality (and it s most essential elements for well being)? How does this differ from religion? What is healing all about? What do the great spiritual traditions have in common? What effects do spiritual (or religious) practices have on health? What makes the difference? How would health science clarify what spiritual well being really is? How does spiritual well being relate to mental, physical and social well being? How do faith (and placebos) create physiological changes? Details of the difference between our two minds (or selves): How to identify who you really are, and how awareness of this allows one s deep, inner wisdom to solve life s challenges. The role of acceptance. Text Chapter 15 CLASS 12 (Nov ) FINDING MEANING AND PURPOSE; THE HEALING POWER OF ALTRUISM, HUMOR AND LAUGHTER How altruism relates to finding meaning and purpose to one s life. How finding meaning in life s events, even difficult ones, transforms suffering. Experiencing the helper s high. How does that work neurobiologically to improve health? How humor allows us not to take ourselves so seriously, and thus affects this same neurobiology. Issues of self worth. Dealing with the time crunch. The importance of sleep. Finding your unique purpose and priorities. How to effectively visualize how you want to be.

8 NL Smith-Mind Body Class 8 Your circle of excellence How to Effectively Visualize Text Chapters 16, 17 & 18 (Quiz: Ch. 17-#1,3; Ch.18-#1,4,5,7) CLASS 13 (Nov ) CREATING WELLNESS: IMPLEMENTING PRINCIPLES OF RESILIENCE What is health? Summarizing the mind body science into some proven core principles, the activation of which (through whatever means) is likely to create better health in all its dimensions. Methods for changing behaviors to evoke these core principles. How to check your most common responses to life as to compatibility (or not) with these principles. Experience a four step process to rapidly transform undesired habits Four steps for rapid behavior change Actualization exercise Text Chapter 21 CLASS 14 (Nov ) BEHAVIORAL MEDICINE TREATMENT: THE EFFECTS OF MIND/BODY INTERVENTIONS ON HEALTH OUTCOMES Discuss three types of medical research studies attempting top establish cause and effect relationships. Which is the most proof? Discuss the medical data on mind body interventions for various disorders. How would that work? What are the mental principles evoked by each intervention that has been proven to improve health outcomes? Why are such interventions the real proof of the mind body pudding? What are barriers in our health system to implementing such interventions? How could those barriers be overcome? Full Visualization Integral Polarity Practice Text Chapter 20 CLASS 15 (Dec. 4-7) THE IMPORTANCE TO HEALTH OF SLEEP Why adequate sleep is crucial, and how much sleep is enough? Discuss the behavioral and physiological effects of insomnia. Identify factors that predispose to insomnia, and how they affect what to do about it. Behavioral methods of treating insomnia. Text Chapter 18 References: Included in the Textbook University Policies

9 NL Smith-Mind Body Class 9 1. The Americans with Disabilities Act. The University of Utah seeks to provide equal access to its programs, services, and activities for people with disabilities. If you will need accommodations in this class, reasonable prior notice needs to be given to the Center for Disability Services (CDS; Olpin Union Building; (801) ). CDS will work with you and the instructor to make arrangements for accommodations. All written information in this course can be made available in an alternative format with prior notification to the CDS. 2. Addressing Sexual Misconduct. Title IX makes it clear that violence and harassment based on sex and gender (which Includes sexual orientation and gender identity/expression) is a Civil Rights offense subject to the same kinds of accountability and the same kinds of support applied to offenses against other protected categories such as race, national origin, color, religion, age, status as a person with a disability, veteran s status or genetic information. If you or someone you know has been harassed or assaulted, you are encouraged to report it to the Title IX Coordinator in the Office of Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action, 135 Park Building, , or the Office of the Dean of Students, 270 Union Building, For support and confidential consultation, contact the Center for Student Wellness, 426 SSB, To report to the police, contact the Department of Public Safety, (COPS). 3. The Code of Student Rights and Responsibilities. The code, which specifies student rights as well as conduct involving cheating, plagiarism, collusion, fraud, theft, etc., is provided at 4. Wellness Statement. Personal concerns such as stress, anxiety, relationship difficulties, depression, cross-cultural differences, etc., can interfere with a student s ability to succeed and thrive at the University of Utah. For helpful resources contact the Center for Student Wellness, Veterans Center. If you are a student veteran, I want you to know that the U of Utah has a Veterans Support Center on campus. They are located in Room 161 in the Olpin Union Building. Hours: M-F 8-5pm. Please visit their website for more information about what support they offer, a list of ongoing events and links to outside

10 NL Smith-Mind Body Class 10 resources: Please also let me know if you need any additional support in this class for any reason. 6. LGBT Resource Center. If you are a member of the LGBTQ community, I want you to know that my classroom is a safe zone*. Additionally, please know that the U of Utah has an LGBT Resource Center on campus. They are located in Room 409 in the Oplin Union Building. Hours: M-F 8-5pm. You can visit their website to find more information about the support they can offer, a list of events through the center and links to additional resources: Please also let me know if there is any additional support you need in this class. Learners of English as an Additional/Second Language. If you are an English language learner, please be aware of several resources on campus that will support you with your language development and writing. These resources include: the Writing Center ( the Writing Program ( the English Language Institute ( Please let me know if there is any additional support you would like to discuss for this class.