Choices – we almost always have choices. However, we usually don’t like the options.
– junk & fast food vs. healthy unprocessed foods
– elevators vs. stairs
– responsible alcohol consumption vs. drinking to become drunk
– smoking tobacco vs. never even starting
– drive vs. walk
– sit vs. stand
– lounge vs. exercise or activity
– smartphone vs. face-to-face interactions
– watching news or other disturbing info vs. turning it off
– becoming aggravated over things which we have no control vs. controlling what we actually can affect
We know these issues to be true, but many don’t have the will power (in the moment) or self-discipline (structured and consistent). Some people innately have self-discipline, while others need to learn and cultivate it. Control the body with the mind. Manage the mind by disciplining the body, through physical activity. Learn to be more active, eat healthier, sleep better, stress less – these are the key components to maintaining a strong mind, body, immune system, and outlook on life.
I am currently offering wellness lectures and classes for group, small group & private instruction in Wekiva, Longwood and Winter Park.
Conspiracy mentality is a generalized belief that secret and powerful forces aspire to control or rule the world. A lack of control has been identified as one of the driving forces of conspiracy beliefs. When people fear a lack of control in their lives, they compensate for this deficiency by seeking patterns, even if these patterns are based on illusion. Events of a large magnitude warrant an explanation of comparable proportions. Studies conducted in both the USA and the UK showed the belief that Covid19 is a hoax or a stronger belief that the virus originated in a medical laboratory (Imhoff & Lamberty 2020).
Conspiracy theories are not supported by sound evidence but rather are based on various thinking patterns that are known to be unreliable tools for tracking reality. True conspiracies are revealed through available evidence of actual and verifiable events, along with a healthy dose of skepticism. People might look to a particular conspiracy of scientists to explain a general scientific conclusion when it aligns with their political ideology, but not when the scientific consensus has no relevance to their own politics (Lewandowsky & Cook 2020).
Not all conspiracies are false theories, as many were actually true such as the US government poisoning alcohol during Prohibition, to discourage people from drinking booze, the CIA testing behavior modification using LSD and other hallucinogenic drugs on Americans in a top-secret experiment, and the Gulf of Tonkin incident of 1964, which was faked to encourage American support for the Vietnam War (Cahn 2021). Another proven conspiracy is The Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment, which speaks volumes of how America’s medical culture has used race as a way to wield power for its own personal gain (Lombardo, 2006). The list continues with “Operation Berkshire”: the international tobacco companies’ conspiracy, where the industry’s commercial interests were protected by both promoting controversy over smoking and disease and through strategies directed at reassuring smokers (Francey & Chapman 2000).
Or when the AMA got caught conspiring to “contain and eliminate the chiropractic profession. As reported in Marc Micozzi’s Fundamentals of Complementary, Alternative, and Integrative Medicine:A staunchly antichiropractic policy was pursued by the American Medical Association (AMA). In 1990 the U.S. Supreme Court affirmed a lower court ruling in which the AMA was found liable for federal antitrust violations for having engaged in a conspiracy to “contain and eliminate” (the AMA’s own words) the chiropractic profession (Wilk v. AMA, 1990). The process that culminated in this landmark decision began in 1974 when a large packet of confidential AMA documents was provided anonymously to leaders of the American Chiropractic Association and the International Chiropractors Association. As a result of the ensuing Wilk v. AMA litigation, the AMA reversed its long-standing ban on interprofessional cooperation between medical doctors and chiropractors, agreed to publish the full findings of the court in the Journal of the American Medical Association, and paid an undisclosed sum, most of which was earmarked for chiropractic research. This ruling has not completely reversed the effects of organized medicine’s boycott, especially when it comes to application of the most effective and cost-effective treatments for common pain conditions.
Conspiracy mentality is interconnected to a feeling of lack of control to a perceived threat. When people feel more in control of their environment and decisions within it, they are more able to tolerate the seemingly constant ebb and flow of conspiracy theories. If people are educated to be aware of unsound reasoning found in most conspiracy theories, they have a better chance of not being influenced by such theories. When people are educated or prebunked, prior to their knowledge of a particular conspiracy, they can develop a resilience or awareness of the conspiratorial messages. Prebunking, also known as inoculation, consists of an explicit warning of an impending threat of being misled, and an objection to the misinformation’s arguments (Lewandowsky & Cook 2020).
Logic-based facts can help to explain misleading methods in unsound reasoning used in conspiracy theories. Educating skeptics about the logical misconceptions found in anti-vaccination conspiracies has been found to be effective by drawing attention to vaccination research that has been conducted by independent, publicly funded scientists who can discredit conspiracy theories about the pharmaceutical industry. Fact-based information can support that the conspiracy theory is false by communicating accurate data. Fact-based and logic-based inoculations have both been successful in prebunking other conspiracies such as some of those surrounding the terrorist attacks of 9/11 (Lewandowsky & Cook 2020).
References:
Imhoff, R. & Lamberty, P. (2020). A bioweapon or a hoax? The link between distinct conspiracy beliefs about the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak and pandemic behavior. Social Psychological and Personality Science.
Micozzi, Marc S.. Fundamentals of Complementary, Alternative, and Integrative Medicine – E-Book (p. 537). Elsevier Health Sciences. Kindle Edition
Lombardo, P. A., & Dorr, G. M. (2006). Eugenics, Medical Education, and the Public Health Service: Another Perspective on the Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment. Bulletin of the History of Medicine, 291-316.
Francey, N., & Chapman, S. (2000). “Operation Berkshire”: the international tobacco companies’ conspiracy. BMJ (Clinical research ed.), 321(7257), 371–374. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.321.7257.371
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I write often about topics that affect our health and well-being. Additionally, I teach and offer lecture about qigong, tai chi, baguazhang, and yoga. For more info, contact Jim Moltzan at info@mindandbodyexercises.com, 407-234-0119 or through my site at http://www.mindandbodyexercises.com
If you are not striving to grow as a human being every day, you are consequently dying a little bit every day. Nature and our world within it, is constantly changing, evolving and moving forward. If we are not moving forward within this flow, we are not just stuck in place but rather falling behind.
Well then, Happy New Year!
Start a new traditional by stopping the usual New Year’s resolution shenanigans, which usually are seldom kept or maybe at best last a day, a week or maybe a month until they are revisited another year later.
The vicious cycle continues and often never changes, because there is no accountability to take care of yourself mentally, physically, and spiritually. And often there is a loss of proper motivation – until the spark arrives. An illness, an injury, or an event that enlightens us to what is truly important. Then this spark motivates us to pursue better methods to maintain our mind, body and spiritual awareness.
How someone behaves when there is no audience or opportunity to gain, is more of a gauge of an individual’s moral compass. Changing one’s behavior when in the presence of family, friends and others can be somewhat manageable, and truly just a facade for many people. Do you really care about your health and well-being, and reflect this in your daily actions or just parrot the words of others encouraging “be healthy, stay safe”? No one should care more about your health and well-being than you, right?
Instead of another face value New Year’s Resolution, this year seriously consider making a REAL promise or commitment to yourself to improve or maintain a healthy lifestyle. Eat healthier, be more active, sleep better, be more positive than negative in your outlook – live a purposeful live without fear.
Tai chi, qigong, wellness classes and lectures might be options in your future. My classes offer a diverse knowledge base covering the following aspects:
Anatomy and physiology
Body mechanics
Wellness concepts
Learning concepts
Stress management
Chronic pain management
Physical rehabilitation
Functionally specific exercise sets
Self-awareness
Traditional Chinese Medicine
Eastern philosophy
Sound Therapy
Various meditation methods
While it may seem selfish to put your own health and well-being first, it is actually the most giving of oneself to be a living vessel of love, compassion and knowledge to those around you, for as long as possible.
My understanding is that you can only give out, what you yourself have an abundance of.
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Be well, get healthy, be wise.
I am currently available for health and wellness lectures and classes for group, & private instruction in the Orlando, Florida area. Mind and Body Exercises on Google: https://posts.gle/aD47Qo
Every thought, has an emotional attachment on some level. Positive emotions keep organs in balance for optimal performance. Negative emotions disrupt this balance leading to other symptoms and ailments.
What You Think Affects Your Outlook
If your thoughts have a mostly positive emotional attachment on some level, you may have more of an optimistic outlook in your life. Conversely, mostly negative emotions tend to make people have a somewhat pessimistic outlook in their life.
Managing our thoughts and consequently, our blood chemistry can be accomplished through mindful practices.
I offer instruction in qigong, Taoist yoga, tai chi, martial arts, ship pal gye, hapkido, fitness, wellness and many other avenues to improve health and well-being.
I am currently accepting new clients for group, small group & private instruction.
Years back, mindfulness was called paying attention.
Some smart marketers decided that “paying attention” could be re-branded into “mindfulness” and a billion dollar industry was created. Seminars, retreats, classes, phone apps and a plethora of other events and items have come about to help people learn to pay attention or be more mindful.
However, Eastern philosophy and its methods of yoga (qigong), tai chi and others, have been around for thousands of years and have already been proven to improve mental and physical health. Better fitness, health and well-being usually help the body’s innate (natural) immunity to combat illness, disease and injuries.
Mind, Body & Spirit. Many people talk about this but how do you actually be more present. Watch my video below of my introductory Tai Chi & Qigong class at the University Club of Winter Park to learn how these methods help us to pay better attention to what is most important in our lives.
Physical Exercise (body)
Regulated Breathing (mind)
Self Awareness (spirit)
The former are key components to a healthy lifestyle. However, more important is the quality or specificity of how you exercise for your abilities and limitations. How deep and the frequency of your breaths is more important than just being able to breathe. What you think about determines the quality of your thoughts being positive or negative with both affecting the emotions and consequently the nervous system and blood chemistry.
It really is that simple. Our health, good or bad is the manifestation of our lifestyle. What we eat, what we think and how we move our bodies – all our reflected in our well-being. Our health is ultimately our own individual responsibility. Obviously some people’s individual situation requires help and/or assistance from within our society. Socioeconomic issues effect many. But mostly, people have choices in the US regarding their own lifestyle and how it affects their own health. People usually are not forced to eat low nutritional junk food, smoke or live a sedentary lifestyle. We make our own decisions and live with the causes, effects and results of our choices.
Pain is inevitable. Suffering is an option.
It is often very difficult to live a comfortable life, when someone has so much pain and suffering within it.
The keys to happiness are truly in our own hands. Self-discipline is the master key to do what we know needs to be done:
– maintain a nutritional diet
– consistently exercise and/or be active- prioritize sleep quality
– nurture healthy social interactions
– get fresh air and some sunlight everyday
– be more positive than negative in your outlook and input
I teach and encourage people how to live a healthy lifestyle. Learn how this works and relates to your health and well being.
United Martial Arts Association 