Salty Sam’s Fun Blog for Children
Number 570
Brain Chemicals
Hello Everyone
Do these grey, miserable January days get you down sometimes?
Christmas seems a long time ago now, doesn’t it?
All the decorations have been taken down, and the evenings are cold and dark.
Spring seems a long way away still.
Our environment affects the way we feel, and situations we get caught up in do too.
Our bodies make many different kinds of chemicals, and sometimes they affect our mood too.
Scientists have studied these chemicals for a long time now, and understand quite a lot about them.
One body chemical (known as a hormone) we make is called cortisol. lt is also known as the stress hormone.
Cortisol is made in the adrenal glands; they are associated with the kidneys and are located at the back of your waist each side of your spine.
Your body needs to produce cortisol all the time.
Cortisol helps to warn you of danger by creating fear, and it also creates motivation which helps you to get things done. But the body produces too much of it when you are frequently stressed – and that is not good news.
Cortisol is transported around your body to most other cells via your blood.
Too much of it can even cause people to gain weight, especially on the stomach area.
The good news is, that you can suppress cortisol with other hormones that are made in your brain.
They are called dopamine, oxytocin and serotonin.
These three chemicals together are sometimes called DOS – this is an acronym, (or word made up of the initials of a few words put together).
DOS makes you feel good!
You release dopamine when you feel excited. This can be triggered by riding on a roller coaster, walking across the tops of mountains, starting a new and exciting project, getting a lovely present, or spending money.
You release oxytocin when you feel connected to other people, or even pets, especially when you give and receive affection. Feeling connected calms down any chronic (ongoing) anxiety because we feel supported; we are tribal animals after all.
Helping other people gives you a sense of self-worth, and also reinforces how capable you are. This makes you feel stronger.
You release serotonin when you feel calm and secure.
Sunshine helps you to release serotonin. Serotonin affects your whole body and notably your digestive system. Your brain and your gut are linked together. That is why your get butterflies in your tummy when you are nervous.
We all need a sense of purpose in life, and also that we are getting rewards for our efforts.
Being happy keeps us younger, boosts our immune system (which helps fight off infections), gives us hope to keep us going and gives us good health. lt even helps our eyesight.
Our brains like new things, new interests and challenges.
Our brains also love singing, dancing and laughing. Laughing is really good at releasing tension and strain.
Learning to relax is a very useful skill to learn. Always struggling with worries does not make us function well. Without functioning well, we cannot find the strength or metal agility to sort out our problems.
Children at school are encouraged to let off steam at playtime and in games lessons so that they can feel refreshed to go back into the classroom and start studying again. lt is difficult to concentrate for hours on end without a break.
How many grown-ups don’t do the same sort of thing?
So what other things reduce cortisol?
Well, living in a clean, tidy, ordered environment for a start. You need to feel that you have everything you need and you can find all your stuff when you need it as well. You need to feel secure, in control and that all your needs are met.
Routines and healthy habits help give you a sense of control and security.
Listening to the movement of water reduces cortisol. You may prefer the gushing sound of a waterfall or the soft, lapping, rhythmic sound of sea waves along a shoreline.
Yoga and grooming yourself can be very soothing. Stress and trauma is stored in the body in something called the parasympathetic nervous system. So soothing your body can soothe your brain. Massage is really helpful. lt is difficult to massage your own back, but you can massage your own feet. You can use a nice-smelling body lotion.
Having plenty of sleep in a fresh and comfortable bed can be very soothing.
Early bed times are good for you.
ln your diet, you may need to check that you are getting Vitamins D3, K2 and B1 and also potassium and calcium (not calcium carbonate).
Talking to people is good; especially if you are worried about anything.
And looking at your problems in different ways to see if you can come up with new solutions is always useful.
Anything that gives you a sense of freedom, flow and progress is good for you and reduces cortisol. Journaling can help to reinforce any progress and goals you have achieved. Talking to yourself and giving yourself praise is good for your brain too.
Other chemicals called endorphins are produced in the pituitary gland. This gland is situated at the base of the brain. Endorphins are released to reduce pain, anxiety and depression.
Endorphins are released through exercise. So, walking, cycling, swimming and any other aerobic exercise – aerobic exercise is when you lose your breath whilst exercising. Do you notice how uplifted you feel after you have been running around in the fresh air?
Listening to music that you like, and eating chocolate is good for lifting your mood too. Laughing can suppress pain.
All of these things really help mental well-being. There are plenty to choose from.
The more you pick up good habits for your brain health, the stronger and more resilient you will be if troubled times hit you.
lt is actually very good news that working all the time is not good for you, and getting plenty of rest, play, affection and laughter is, isn’t it?
Bye bye everyone – don’t forget to subscribe to my blog!
Love and kisses
Salty Sam
www.christina-sinclair.com
Bill and Bob’s Joke of the Week
Bob: Why did the idiot stare at the carton of orange juice?
Bill: l don’t know
Bob: Because it said concentrate on the label.
Salty Sam © Christina Sinclair 2015
Unauthorized use and/or duplication of material from this blog without express and written permission from this blog’s author and owner is strictly prohibited.
Links may be used to www.christina-sinclair.com
Picture Gallery
Endorphins are released through exercise
The structure of dopamine
The way chemicals are constructed from their building blocks
Their building blocks can be labelled
O stands for oxygen for example
Melatonin helps you to sleep when it gets dark
Serotonin is a chemical that makes you feel happy
Your serotonin levels can drop in the winter when days are shorter
Yay!
THE SALTY SAM NEWS DESK
This week, Miss Pringle told her class at the Rocky Bay Primary School about a man who lived a very long time ago in China.
His name was Confucius.
When I say a long time ago, I mean a long time ago.
He was born in 551 BC and died in 479 BC.
BC, of course, means Before Christ, so we are talking about around two and a half thousand years ago.
The reason that we know this fact, is because Confucius became famous in his own lifetime, and so it was a fact that was recorded for posterity (the people that lived after that time – like us).
That is because he became a statesman – that means a famous politician.
But being a politician is not really what we remember him for.
We know of him mostly as a philosopher – and also a poet and teacher.
This is because many of the things he said – nuggets of wisdom you could call them; that have been passed down through the centuries and are still often quoted today – although some of his sayings are more famous than others.
He is famous in the Eastern World and he is famous in the Western World too.
Miss Pringle had printed out some of his quotes on sheets of paper, and showed them to her class one by one.
Each time she showed the class a quote, she asked them what they thought it really meant – or how it could be put in other words, or explained with an example.
She thought that her class came up with a lot of really good ideas.
Anyway…
On one of the notice boards on the side wall of the classroom had been some winter landscape drawings that the class did last term – but the children had taken their artwork home at the beginning of the Christmas holidays and the board had been looking a bit bare ever since.
Miss Pringle said that she would put all the sayings up on the wall at the side of the classroom and her class would be able to see them every day.
She said when you see something every day it gets into your brain really well.
You may even remember something for a whole lifetime, if you thought it was important enough.
If you want to get something into your brain – whether it is a saying to make you brave, some words you have to remember for a test, or something you have to remember to do, it is a good idea to put a note up so that you are constantly seeing it.
You could put it on the fridge or your mirror or notice board – do not stick anything to your wallpaper!
Then Miss Pringle showed her class what Chinese art looked like and they drew some pictures that were quite similar.
Miss Pringle would choose the best pictures to put up with the sayings so that the whole notice board would be covered with new work.
What would you say to Miss Pringle about these old sayings?
What do you think they mean?
Education breeds confidence
Confidence breeds hope
Hope breeds peace
The man who says he can
And the man who says he cannot
Are both correct
A lion chased me up a tree
And I greatly enjoyed the view from the top
The man who asks a question
Is a fool for a minute
The man who does not ask
Is a fool for life
What a superior man seeks is in himself
What the small man seeks is in others
The gem cannot be polished without friction
Nor a man perfected without trials
The superior man is modest in his speech
But exceeds in his actions
Do not impose on others
What you yourself do not desire
Wherever you go
Go with all your heart
The children really enjoyed their lesson and did some lovely artwork to be put up on their vacant notice board after Miss Pringle had given them lots of ideas of what Chinese artwork looked like.
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Quick Quiz
Do you know what these phrases mean?
- To tell which way the wind is blowing
- Going with the flow
- To trust in divine timing
- To be solution-orientated
- To spread your wings
- To be in the doldrums
- To be as happy as a lark
lt’s the Weekend!
HOW TO MAKE CHlNESE ART
The children in Miss Pringle’s class did some lovely artwork to be put up on their class notice board.
Could you draw some pictures like this too?
Please note that the material on this blog is for personal use and for use in classrooms only.
It is a copyright infringement and, therefore, illegal under international law to sell items made with these patterns.
Use of the toys and projects is at your own risk.
©Christina Sinclair Designs 2015
Explanations of the News Desk Quotes
Education breeds confidence
Confidence breeds hope
Hope breeds peace
When you have knowledge you have confidence in yourself
and an educated population is more likely to behave in a good way
The man who says he can
And the man who says he cannot
Are both correct
If you have belief in yourself, you will succeed in what you do
A lion chased me up a tree
And I greatly enjoyed the view from the top
Sometimes life forces you into something that was not your choice; but it turns out to be a good situation nevertheless
The man who asks a question
Is a fool for a minute
The man who does not ask
Is a fool for life
Don’t be afraid of admitting you don’t know something because we all have to learn in order to grow
What a superior man seeks is in himself
What the small man seeks is in others
A superior person takes responsibility for his life and a small person expects other people to sort them out all the time – like they are a perpetual (forever) child all their life
The gem cannot be polished without friction
Nor a man perfected without trials
Sometimes going through hard times can strengthen you and develop a superior character
The superior man is modest in his speech
But exceeds in his actions
Don’t just talk the talk – walk the walk
Only by doing something and achieving it, can you prove yourself – just talking about it is not enough
Do not impose on others
What you yourself do not desire
Do not do unto others what you do not want done to yourself
Wherever you go
Go with all your heart
Whatever you decide to do in life make a proper effort of it in order to do it properly and get the best results possible
Remember that although Confucius talked about men doing things all the time, all these truths relate to females as well!
Quick Quiz Answers
- To tell which way the wind is blowing – to look at a situation and have a pretty good idea what the future holds
- Going with the flow – to be progressing well – in a state that is neither stress nor boredom
- To trust in divine timing – to realize that there are forces in the universe that have a higher perspective on what is happening than you do and have a better idea of when the right time for something to happen is
- To be solution-orientated – to focus on solutions rather than problems – not blaming and complaining but getting on with trying to sort out a problem
- To spread your wings – to find more independence for yourself
- To be in the doldrums – to be despondent – the word was used by sailors to mean being becalmed and going nowhere – the Doldrums nowadays is also an area just north of the equator where the wind does not blow much because it is between two belts of trade winds
- To be as happy as a lark – to be very happy – the lark has a high-pitched song which lasts a long time
