According to Prevention: Outsmart Diabetes, minty aromas can help people exercise longer and complete tasks faster and with more accuracy. And, supposedly, mint is a stimulating herb that evokes a primordial response to odours "we can also feel". (1) According to Pamela Dalton, a senior research scientist at the Monell Chemical Senses Centre in Philadelphia, "such smells make us more vigilant, leading to greater energy". (2)
I sometimes chew spearmint gum after a meal, because I like the way it makes my teeth feel squeaky clean. I don't drink any type of mint tea, though, because it makes me cold and gives me a headache. I do put a few chopped mint leaves in my homemade turkey burgers, and many people use the leaves to garnish a drink or throw into a salad. I grow many different mint varieties in my garden, including chocolate and orange.
So, on the next dark and stormy night, or perhaps just on a day where you're feeling a little tired, try breathing in the heady aroma of mint. Brush a fresh leaf with your fingers to release the scent, breathe in a bit of mint aromatherapy, or wear a lotion fragranced with mint - "the cooling sensation it gives your skin coupled with the tingle it puts in your airways can be doubly invigorating." (3)
D.
(1), (2) and (3), Prevention: Outsmart Diabetes, "End Your Energy Shortage", Sarah Reistad-Long, p.156.
About Me
- Deborah K. Hanula
- Deborah K. Hanula has a year of Journalism training from Humber College, a Political Science degree from the University of Waterloo, and a Law degree from the University of British Columbia. In addition, she has Diplomas in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, Child Psychology, and Psychotherapy and Counselling as well as a Family Life Educator and Coach Certificate and Certificates in Reflexology, Assertiveness Training, and Mindfulness Meditation. She is the author of five cookbooks, primarily concerned with gluten-free and dairy-free diets, although one pertains to chocolate. As an adult, in the past she worked primarily as a lawyer, but also as a university and college lecturer, a tutor, editor, writer, counsellor, researcher and piano teacher. She enjoys a multi-faceted approach when it comes to life, work and study, in order to keep things fresh and interesting. Check out her new book: A Murder of Crows & Other Poems (2023).
Wednesday, November 16, 2011
A Civil Society
Cyberbullying has been in the news a lot lately; so has sexual harassment. The former, I have never experienced; the latter, I have. In fact, when I was 20, I quit an internship with Key To Toronto magazine because my boss wouldn't take "no" for an answer. That turned out to be only the 'tip of the iceberg' of the sexual harassment yet to come during my early twenties, both at work and at university. I never dressed or acted provocatively at any of my jobs, but by the time I got to law school, and the male predators who wouldn't take "no" for an answer, I protected myself as best I could, by wearing baggy sweaters and jeans most of the time. (Didn't work and it wasn't about me or how I dressed anyhow...it was about power plays, and 'scoring', and aggression.)
Both cyberbullying and harassment - any kind of harassment - are about power. Sometimes they are about a sense of entitlement, too. (For example, I'm entitled to coerce you into sex because I hold more power than you; or, I am man, you are woman - you know - cave man stuff.) Some feel threatened by you and need to ensure that they hold the power, that's why they do it.
But, this article is not going to be about the effects of harassment and cyberbullying on those targeted; nor, is it going to address the traits/problems of the perpetrators. It's going to look at the question of how humans stay good. Until we make it clear through serious sanctions in our homes, in our organizations, in our communities, and in our societies as a whole that neither of these aggressions is acceptable and that they will not be tolerated, these types of behaviours will not cease. It's time to get beyond old ideas and notions about kids and about adults, about men and about women, and adopt a zero tolerance policy in society as a whole. After all, it is within society that our schools, workplaces, and communities operate. And, there is something else that's been seeping into articles lately - and that is language that essentially places at least some, if not all, of the blame on the target - on the victim. I don't care how different someone is, how disabled someone might be, how quiet, or small, or vulnerable, or gay, or coloured, or pale, or skinny, or overweight, or sexy, or attractive, or naive, or Jewish, or Christian, another human has no right to zero in on another simply because he or she doesn't ‘like’ them, or like what they stand for, or because they need to feel powerful and in control. Consider this: is it okay for you to attack/harass someone because you have decided that you don't like green eyes? (Yes, that's as absurd as it can get sometimes...)
Humans are wired for gentleness and for aggressiveness.. Throughout history, we have had to nurture (gentleness) and protect (aggressiveness) our young, both of which acts ensure that our species endures. Most of us have been equipped with moral programming, but this does not mean that we will always practice moral behaviour. Knowing right from wrong doesn't guarantee that we will always act accordingly. It is up to society to make it clear what is acceptable and what is not. If you live in a society where protection of vulnerable people is a value, then policies must be adopted which ensure that protection. It may be okay to be aggressive towards someone in order to protect our children, but to act aggressively just because we don't like how someone looks or acts, or because we want power and control over them, or because they threaten our psyche - well, that's not okay.
Some people don't have a moral compass, or at least, a good one that's fully operational. And, most people are very good at rationalization: at explaining to themselves and to others why their behaviour is justified. For example, "ya, but she's a slut so she deserves it" (translation: "I don't like how she acts or dresses, so heaven forbid I should have to tolerate someone who bothers me, so she deserves to be bullied"); or, "ya, but he looks like a rat" (translation: "he really bugs me because he's ugly and I don't enjoy looking at ugly people, so he deserves to be bullied!")
The human condition itself causes us to be grossly imperfect creatures. And, personality disorders/syndromes, immature brains, injured brains, sociopathic tendencies, self-centeredness, self-esteem issues, and the narrow-minded attitudes we glean from popular television shows, internet sites (like porn sites and other sites promoting hatred, persecution, or violence), and from our families, friends, and some religious teachings, fertilize the ground which foments these types of behaviours.
To truly live in a civil society, we have much more work to do. We may never achieve our full potential in that regard, but we can at least strive to go as far as we can along that developmental road. Because let's face it, people bully because they can, and people harass because they can.
D.
Both cyberbullying and harassment - any kind of harassment - are about power. Sometimes they are about a sense of entitlement, too. (For example, I'm entitled to coerce you into sex because I hold more power than you; or, I am man, you are woman - you know - cave man stuff.) Some feel threatened by you and need to ensure that they hold the power, that's why they do it.
But, this article is not going to be about the effects of harassment and cyberbullying on those targeted; nor, is it going to address the traits/problems of the perpetrators. It's going to look at the question of how humans stay good. Until we make it clear through serious sanctions in our homes, in our organizations, in our communities, and in our societies as a whole that neither of these aggressions is acceptable and that they will not be tolerated, these types of behaviours will not cease. It's time to get beyond old ideas and notions about kids and about adults, about men and about women, and adopt a zero tolerance policy in society as a whole. After all, it is within society that our schools, workplaces, and communities operate. And, there is something else that's been seeping into articles lately - and that is language that essentially places at least some, if not all, of the blame on the target - on the victim. I don't care how different someone is, how disabled someone might be, how quiet, or small, or vulnerable, or gay, or coloured, or pale, or skinny, or overweight, or sexy, or attractive, or naive, or Jewish, or Christian, another human has no right to zero in on another simply because he or she doesn't ‘like’ them, or like what they stand for, or because they need to feel powerful and in control. Consider this: is it okay for you to attack/harass someone because you have decided that you don't like green eyes? (Yes, that's as absurd as it can get sometimes...)
Humans are wired for gentleness and for aggressiveness.. Throughout history, we have had to nurture (gentleness) and protect (aggressiveness) our young, both of which acts ensure that our species endures. Most of us have been equipped with moral programming, but this does not mean that we will always practice moral behaviour. Knowing right from wrong doesn't guarantee that we will always act accordingly. It is up to society to make it clear what is acceptable and what is not. If you live in a society where protection of vulnerable people is a value, then policies must be adopted which ensure that protection. It may be okay to be aggressive towards someone in order to protect our children, but to act aggressively just because we don't like how someone looks or acts, or because we want power and control over them, or because they threaten our psyche - well, that's not okay.
Some people don't have a moral compass, or at least, a good one that's fully operational. And, most people are very good at rationalization: at explaining to themselves and to others why their behaviour is justified. For example, "ya, but she's a slut so she deserves it" (translation: "I don't like how she acts or dresses, so heaven forbid I should have to tolerate someone who bothers me, so she deserves to be bullied"); or, "ya, but he looks like a rat" (translation: "he really bugs me because he's ugly and I don't enjoy looking at ugly people, so he deserves to be bullied!")
The human condition itself causes us to be grossly imperfect creatures. And, personality disorders/syndromes, immature brains, injured brains, sociopathic tendencies, self-centeredness, self-esteem issues, and the narrow-minded attitudes we glean from popular television shows, internet sites (like porn sites and other sites promoting hatred, persecution, or violence), and from our families, friends, and some religious teachings, fertilize the ground which foments these types of behaviours.
To truly live in a civil society, we have much more work to do. We may never achieve our full potential in that regard, but we can at least strive to go as far as we can along that developmental road. Because let's face it, people bully because they can, and people harass because they can.
D.
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