Psychology

It’s not “proving that crickets can be traumatized”. It’s proving that *animals can genetically pass on the stress that a dangerous situation causes, and the offspring will instinctually respond to the same situation without ever having personally experienced it.*

And that’s a big deal for many things, including human psychology.

When Nazis invaded The Netherlands, local Dutch peoples were under extreme emotional and physical duress. The Nazi army took their food for the soldiers, starving the population. They patrolled the streets and harshly reinforced their new laws. Existence was horrible and some parents had to give their children away to wealthier families because they couldn’t feed them anymore. This event is known as the Hongerwinter, or Dutch Famine.

One generation later, the children of mothers who were pregnant at the time of the famine have been proven to exhibit intense reactions to stress, and heightened fight or flight responses. They also experience more obesity because their bodies are prepared for starvation.

Some of these children were never personally exposed to the famine. Their mothers gave birth after conditions had improved, or even after moving to another country. But the effects are there, and those people are now adults who can recognize this and attest that they didn’t experience something else traumatic during childhood. It was passed on in the womb.

You can read about it here: https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.nytimes.com/2018/01/31/science/dutch-famine-genes.amp.html

This is called epigenetics. It’s essential to understanding how the human brain and body works. That our responses to stress can be passed on genetically. That it can show up in how we look physically, our physical health, our mental responses, our instinctual reactions. It’s especially important for people who are in therapy and need to understand *why* they act a certain way before they can actually work on it.

If you’d like to learn more, check out this TEDTalk video on epigenetics:

**credit to my research advisor, she’s an amazing mentor and I aspire to be just like her someday :)

Read the abstract. Write down what the paper says it is going to be about.

Read the introduction. Write down what the paper says it is looking to accomplish and how.

Read the conclusion. Write down what the paper actually did accomplish.

Go through and find all the pictures, graphs, or diagrams. Write notes explaining these images to yourself.

Read the whole paper start to finish. Write a summary of the paper as though you are explaining it to a layperson, and then another summary as though you are explaining it to a colleague.

Throughout all of the above steps:

If there are words you don’t know google them and write down the definitions

If the paper defines a formula, law, variable, etc in a certain way write that down

How to Study when Sick

A week or so ago I fell sick and of course I still had a mountain of work to do, so during that time I found a few things that helped me when studying while I was sick. Without further ado here are a few tips on how to study when sick…

Before studying

Fluids

When you’re sick, your body needs fluids! Sometimes water can taste really gross when you have a sore throat so grab some tea; either herbal tea or good old English breakfast or try some hot water with lemon and honey; it does wonders for the throat! Make sure you have a big old cup next to you that you can grab for often.

Comfort is key

Dress comfy for your study sess! If that means your daggy sweatpants and oversized jumper or even pyjamas, do whatever is going to keep you warm and comfortable. But not too comfortable where you will fall asleep haha.

Eye drops

If you need to use computers while you’re sick make sure to have some lubricating eye drops on hand! You don’t want to get sore, tired eyes or even a headache when your body is already run down.

Gather supplies

Gather what ever supplies you will need when your studying. Here’s a list of some things might be helpful (of course just get whatever works best for your sickness!) :

What you are studying! (Flash cards, notes, computer)

Stationary (highlighters, pen, white out, ruler, sticky notes)

Tissues

Blanket

Cough drops

Tea/fluids

Snack

Medication

Deep heat

Hot water bottle

Hand sanitiser

Eye drops

Nasal spray

Humidifier

When studying

Small tasks

Do small tasks that require less brain power, so you don’t over exert your brain. Think easier tasks like flipping through flashcards, writing flash cards, organising notes, re-writing notes, planning your week, compiling lecture notes with textbook notes, making quizzes for yourself, an easy work sheet or going through last week’s class content.

Set timers

Set timers for when to take breaks and medication. You could even try using the Pomodoro technique to keep you motivated and productive.

Have a small do to list

Along with doing smaller easier tasks, have only a small to do list or maybe 2 – 4 items that will only take you 1 – 3 hours to complete in total, depending on how well you are feeling. By doing this you will feel more motivated to complete the small to do list as you know the tasks are simple. Additionally, by adding in breaks or using Pomodoro you are taking extra precautions against working to hard which will slow down recovery.

Ambient study sounds

The best thing I found to help me stay focused is to listen to ASMR ambient sounds. I found some great channels that make ASMR ambient sounds based on different rooms from movies, tv shows and books. Here are my two favourite channels ASMR Rooms & Story Ambiance. Some of my favourite videos (all harry potter themed, so I can feel like Hermione haha) are Hogwarts Library, Studying in the Great hall, Gryffindor Common Room, Potions Classroom and Sitting in a Hogwarts Class.

After studying

Make a to do list for tomorrow

After you have finished everything from today, make a to do list for tomorrow. This is an opportunity to brain dump anything in terms of school that you are worried about completing and gives you direction for the next day.

Have something to look forward too after your session

Have something planned after your study session that will be relaxing and enjoyable. Something like watching a movie, reading a book, calling a friend, watching a YouTube video; basically, anything you enjoy and look forward to doing. This can act to motivate you to get work down yet also be a much-needed winding down reward for you brain and body.

Take a nap!

You worked hard, made a dent in your to do list and feel productive so take a nap! Your body needs to rest so give it what it needs and take a nap. This will help your body recover quicker and will help your mind to relax from working for a long time.

Extra tips

Be easy on yourself

If you only complete one item before getting too tired, or if you couldn’t even complete one to-do, then that’s fine! Have some self-compassion and realise that you’re sick and won’t be able to be as productive as normal. Once when I was sick, a task that took me normally 45 minutes to do took me 2 hours because my brain was so foggy, and it was hard to concentrate. You’re not alone in being unproductive, we all go through it went sick and run down.

Don’t overwork yourself

Nothing is worse than over working yourself when you are sick, it will only make you stay sick for longer! Do not push your self to be a productive super human when your body can’t handle it, its only going to make you less productive in the long run