Author: aryask@gmail.com

Wrestling with depression can feel like crawling through mud, fog, and flamingos. It has taught me the value of kindness toward oneself, and that the brain is a complex and mysterious work of nature. With an understanding of its biology, depression can be manageable and even remedied. This essay is not about the emotional wound of depression or the spiritual significance of kindness but about the biological basis of a complex condition. Depression involves a constellation of factors and its symptoms and treatment protocols depend on the individual. Types of depression In general, there are 2 types of depression: bipolar depression (includes manic highs and lows) and major depression (or unipolar as characterized by only the lows). According to World Health Organization (WHO), major depression affects 5% of the population.…

5 times a second, your brain is scanning the environment around you and asking itself, "is it safe? or is it dangerous?" this is happening subconsciously all day everyday. in a traumatized brain state, the fear-center is over-active and over-extends itself, which makes it more likely to default to "its dangerous", assume the worse, and create adverserial relationships. the ability to "read the room" is partly about reading a person's capacity to listen which really depends on reading one's own capacity to pay attention. without this initial read, the chance for misunderstandings increases, which can be costly especially with strong emotions and high stakes situations. when listening is deep enough the problem solves itself. creating the conditions where listening can flourish is a superpower and it starts with paying attention…

Art making is an ancient part of the human story, maybe even older than religion? In any case, science attempts to investigate the biological effects of expressive dialogue with material. Here's the question: Can art-making affect levels of cortisol, the stress hormone, in adults? In one 2016 study, 39 participants provided saliva samples to assess cortisol levels before and after 45 minutes of art making (using collage materials, clay, and markers). participants also provided written responses about the experience at the end of the session. The saliva samples showed that cortisol levels had significantly dropped after the session. 75% of the group had decreases in cortisol while 25% had unchanged or increased levels. Written responses showed that they found the session relaxing, enjoyable, and helpful for learning about new aspects…

In one study (Andrade, 2010) participants listened to a phone message that contained details about an upcoming party. Participants were asked to write down the names of people who could attend the party and ignore the names of those who could not attend. One group was instructed to doodle in little squares and circles on a piece of paper while writing down names; the other group just listened to the messages and only wrote down names. Afterward participants were given a surprise memory test, after being specifically told they didn’t have to remember anything. The doodlers performed better in memory retention -- almost thirty percent better!Drawing has been shown to deactivate the default mode network which is associated with mind-wandering and self-evaluation. So it can be inferred that doodling can…