Improving Mental Health Through Mindfulness Exercise

A video of a lecture given by Dr. Stuart Eisendrath, director of the UCSF Depression Center on "Staying in the Now: Maintaining Mental Health Through Mindfulness - Mindfulness Exercise."

The lecture is presented by the UCSF Osher Center for Integrative Medicine from February 2010 for UCTV for educational use only.




In this video lecture Dr. Stuart Eisendrath leads a mindfulness exercise as a technique for maintaining mental health.

The Meaning of Namasté

I found two different meanings of Namasté, a greeting, a blessing and a way of bidding others good by and good health.

The first is a shorter version:

I honor that place in you where the universe resides
And when I am in that place in me
and you are in that place in you
We are one.

The second, a bit longer version:

I honor the place in you
in which the entire universe dwells.
I honor the place in you
which is of live,
of truth, of light
and of peace.
When you are in that place in you
and I am in that place in me,
we are one.

Namasté.
Go in health. Go in Peace. Go in Love.

Image: Modified Microsoft Clipart.

The Power of Sharing Namaste

The Hindu American Foundation brings you its first three minute short film as a reminder of the power of the Hindu greeting, Namaste ("The Divine within me bows to the Divine within you").

Namaste

Mindfulness, Stress Reduction and Healing with John Kabat-Zinn

Another Google TechTalk from Jon Kabot-Zinn this one on "Mindfulness, Stress Reduction and Healing" from March 8, 2007



In this talk Jon describes the revolution in medicine that has occurred over the past 30 years that has integrated the mind back into the body and developed a remarkable range of practices for integrating one's experience, reducing stress, healing the body, coping more effectively with emotions such as anxiety, anger, and depression, and cultivating greater well-being and happiness.

His work has been instrumental in bringing Buddhist meditative practices, as he likes to say, "without the Buddhism" to full acceptance within the mainstream of medicine, psychology, and health care, and has shown them to be effective in people suffering from a wide range of medical conditions.

Source: Kabot-Zinn J. 2007. Mindfulness with Jon Kabat-Zinn. Google Talks.

Open Heart Meditation

An Open Heart Meditation that was published on the Oprah.com website in June as part of the article, "Listen Up! Why Being in Your Heart is Better Than In Your Head."

This opening heart meditation comes from Ed and Deb Shapiro, authors of Be The Change, How Meditation Can Transform You and the World.

You may want to record the meditation so you can listen to the words and not focus on reading them.

Opening Heart Meditation

Settle your body in an upright and seated posture.
Bring your focus to the natural flow of your breath as it enters and leaves your body.
Just watch your breath as your mind settles.

Now bring your attention to the heart space in the center of your chest.
And just breathe in and out of this space.


With each in-breathe feel your heart gently opening and softening; with each out-breathe release any tension or resistance.

Silently repeat, "My heart is opening and softening."
You may experience great joy or even sadness.
Let the feelings come and go, while you just keep breathing into your heart space.

Stay here as long as you wish.
When you are ready, take a deep breath and let it go.
Gently open your eyes and take the peace of your heart with you through your day.


May you feel more peaceful after finishing this meditation.

Read more of the Listen Up! Why Being in Your Heart is Better Than In Your Head article at the Oprah.com website.

Source: Shapiro E. 2010. Listen Up! Why Being in Your Heart is Better Than In Your Head. Oprah.com

Image: Mary R. Vogt. Garden Fence. Morgue File Free Photo.

Quote for the Week - Living a Health Life

These wise words of advice on living a healthy life come from Roman encyclopedist, A. Cornelius Celsus:

Live in rooms full of light.
Avoid heavy food.
Be moderate in
the drinking of wine.
Take massage, baths,
exercise, and gymnastics.
Fight insomnia with
gentle rocking or
the sound of running water.
Change surroundings
and take long journeys.
Strictly avoid frightening ideas.
Indulge in
cheerful conversation
and amusements.
Listen to music.

A. Cornelius Celsus

25 BC-50 AD

Image: Gracey. Yellow Tulips. Morgue File Free Photo.

Autogenic Relaxation Exercise

An Autogenic Relaxation Exercise adapted from patient handout materials from the Ohio State University Medical Center, a designated National Cancer Institute Comprehensive Cancer Center.

This Autogenic Relaxation Exercise is a beneficial way to help start the relaxation process.

Follow the directions below:

Repeat each of these phases 3 times, with a 15 second pause after each phase:

My arms and legs are heavy and warm.
My heartbeat is calm and regular.
My body breathes freely and easily.
My abdomen is warm.
My forehead is cool.
My mind is quiet and still.
I am at peace.

You can go on to customize your own version of the Autogenic Relaxation Exercise by writing out your own series of phrases, ones that resonate best with you. By generating your own phrases, you can create an exercise designed to work specifically for you.

Source: Autogenic Relaxation Exercise. Ohio State University Medical Center, a designated National Cancer Institute Comprehensive Cancer Center.

Image: bjearwicke. Toes in the Grass. Royalty Free Use.

Adenosine May be Missing Link to Explain Acupuncture Pain Relief

A new advanced online article published May 20, 2010 in the Nature Neuroscience journal is shedding some light on how acupuncture may work to relieve pain.

The article "Adenosine A1 receptors mediate local anti-nociceptive effects of acupuncture" written by researchers at the Center for Translational Neuromedicine, University of Rochester Medical Center in Rochester, N.Y.;  Department of Neurology, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston and the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, US National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland have demonstrated that the neurotransmitter Adenosine may be the missing link in explaining how acupuncture needles relieve pain. Adenosine is an inhibitory neurotransmitter, a neuromodulator with anti-nociceptive (pain) properties.

The Findings

Using a variety of different studies in mice, these researchers found that adenosine was released during acupuncture in mice and that its anti-nociceptive actions required adenosine A1 receptor expression. In one study direct injection of an adenosine A1 receptor agonist replicated the analgesic effect of acupuncture. In another, inhibition of enzymes involved in adenosine degradation potentiated the acupuncture-elicited increase in adenosine, as well as its anti-nociceptive (pain relieving) effect.

Their findings indicate that adenosine is the neurotransmitter responsible for the effects of acupuncture. Furthermore they discovered that interfering with adenosine metabolism (through inhibition of enzymes or other mechanisms) may help to prolong the clinical benefit of acupuncture.


Sources:

Nanna Goldman, Michael Chen, Takumi Fujita, Qiwu Xu, Weiguo Peng, Wei Liu, Tina K Jensen, Yong Pei, Fushun Wang, Xiaoning Han, Jiang-Fan Chen, Jurgen Schnermann, Takahiro Takano, Lane Bekar, Kim Tieu & Maiken Nedergaard. (2010) Adenosine A1 receptors mediate local anti-nociceptive effects of acupuncture. Nature Neuroscience. doi:10.1038/nn.2562. Published online 30 May 2010.

Emily Shon. May 31, 2010. Acupuncture Releases Natural Painkiller. Discovery News.

Karen Hopkin. May 30, 2010. Mechanism Points To Acupuncture Pain Relief. Scientific American Podcast Transcript.

Image: Thunderchild. Acupuncture Model. Creative Commons.

Memorial Day Meditation from Pema Chodron and Richard Reoch

This amazing Meditation comes from Pema Chodron & Richard Reoch.

Their Memorial Day Meditation from 2007 is a good way to honor those who have served, but still holding true to values of a peaceful existence.



Other Memorial Day Meditations

From Bellaonline, a Memorial Day Prayer and a Memorial Day Prayer and Meditation Ceremony both from Susan Helene Kramer. For the ceremony they start with this lovely prayer:

We show our thankfulness in prayer
This honor you deserve
Giving all for freedom's call
That we may live without reserve.

Another more reflective Memorial Day Meditation comes from the blog, "An Innocent Okie Lost on the Potomac" written by Unbleached Brun.

The Remember on Memorial Days lens on Squidoo is one that I wrote last year, to honor and remember those who have served.

Exercise to Improve the Mood and Aid with Depression

A video clip from Baylor Health looking at the benefits of exercise in treating depression.

In this video from Baylor Health Care System, experts take a look at the studies that show that exercise can also help us to not only trim down, but also to "psych up" as part of the "relaxation response."

Another Loving Kindness Meditation

Another variant of a Loving Kindness Meditation that can be used when you want to practice Loving Kindness.

May I live in safety.
May I be happy.
May I be healthy.
May I live with ease.


May you live in safety,
May you be happy,
May you be healthy,
May you live with ease.


May all beings live in safety.
May all beings be happy.
May all beings be healthy.
May all beings live with ease.


May all beings everywhere live in safety.
May all beings everywhere be happy.
May all beings everywhere be healthy.
May all beings everywhere live with ease.

Source Adapted from: Rink. R. (2009). Buddhist Belief - Metta Meditation - Loving Kindness. Buddhist Belief Blog.

Benefits of Exercise for Physical and Mental Health

This knowledge of the benefits of exercise has been known for centuries.

Lack of activity destroys
the good condition of every human being,
while movement and methodical physical exercise
save it and preserve it.

Plato

In this video clip from Dr. Michael McKee of the Cleveland Clinic on "Exercise for physical and mental health," he explains how exercise can not only benefit your physical well being, but your mental well being as well.




Dr. McKee discusses how he uses exercise as a prescription to help his patient feel better.

A Healing Blessing for Kristiina

A Healing Blessing was written when my youngest daughter was hospitalized.

This version of A Healing Blessing was created as a Vodcast Episode for an introductory course on Vodcasting for Teaching and uploaded so other instructors could more easily access the video file.



This Healing Blessing expands on an Episode 4 from the NICU Parent Support Audio and Podcast. In this Vodcast Episode the Blessing has been set to photographs to create a video.

• Episode 4 - A Special Healing Blessing - Version 1 With Tibetan Bowls, Bells & Chimes
• PDF Transcript for Episode 4 (Version 1)

Dyer KA. A Healing Blessing. Squidoo.com
Dyer KA. Creating a Circle of Healing and Support. NICU Parent Support Site.

Quote for the Week - Subtle Mind

A quote on the Subtle Mind for this week, from the Buddha:

All living beings,
and all sorts of
illusory events,
are all born
in the completely awake
subtle mind
of those who
realize suchness.

Buddha

Image: miamiamia. Meditation. Royalty Free Use.

More Resources, More Versions Loving Kindness Meditation

This week you've already seen a couple of video posts on Loving Kindness Meditation, the first, a Loving Kindness Meditation Podcast, and the second, "How To Practice Buddhist Loving-Kindness Meditation."

Both of these resources have slightly different versions of the words used for a Loving Kindness Meditation.

Four additional resources have good information on Loving Kindness Meditations.

The first comes from "The Center for Contemplative Mind in Society" and is entitled, "The Tree of Contemplative Practices - Loving Kindness Meditation."

The second is a PDF File of a Patient Handout used by the University of Wisconsin's Integrative Medicine/Department of Family Medicine entitled, "Loving-Kindness Meditation"

The third is a series of links to MP3 audio files to different Mindful Meditations from MARC or the Mindful Awareness Research Center at UCLA. One of the resources includes a link to a Loving Kindness Meditation. (MARC is a part of the UCLA Cousins Psychoneuroimmunology Institute.)

The final resource is from Ron Rink of the Buddhist Belief Blog and is entitled, "Buddhist Belief – Metta Meditation — Loving Kindness."

How To Practice Buddhist Loving-Kindness Meditation

A How Cast video on Loving-Kindness Meditation. This instructional video has a lot of words to it, so do not listen to the video if you are hoping to relax.

How To Practice Buddhist Loving-Kindness Meditation on Howcast

Metta bhavana, or loving-kindness meditation, is one of the two simplest meditations in Buddhism. It helps develop positive feelings towards all other living creatures.

How to Put a PowerPoint Presentation in Your Blog using SlideShare

From The Edublogger, Sue Waters, a Slideshare presentation on "How to share a PowerPoint Presentation using SlideShare."

This basic presentation should give you the basic information on getting started, so you can include your PowerPoint presentation in your blogs.

How to share a PowerPoint Presentation using SlideShare

For more information you can watch the SlideShare quick tour, or visit their help desk.

Loving Kindness Meditation Podcast

Sylvia Boorstein of Spirit Rock in Marin County, California guides viewers through a loving kindness meditation:

May I feel protected and safe

May I feel contented and pleased

May my physical body support me with strength

May my life unfold smoothly with ease.

Sylvia Boorstein Teaches Loving Kindness Meditation - Daily Path Podcast From MyPath TV

This universal teaching has a 2,500-year lineage traced to the Buddha, who is said to have originally taught the practice.

Creating a PowerPoint Presentation

Unit 5's Project requires that you create a PowerPoint Presentation. The PowerPoint program comes as part of Microsoft Office and allows you to create slide presentations. 

Here are several resources that I've found that may help those who have not used PowerPoint prior to the course:

From Cabrillo College, "How Can I Make a PowerPoint Presentation?": http://libwww.cabrillo.edu/about/workshops/howmakepowerpoint.html

From the University of Wisconsin, Madison, "How to Create Accessible PowerPoint Presentations from Scratch": http://www.cew.wisc.edu/accessibility/tutorials/pptscratch.htm

From Microsoft, an Overview of PowerPoint:
http://office.microsoft.com/training/training.aspx?AssetID=RC100687671033

More from Microsoft, "Presenting with PowerPoint: 10 do's and don'ts":
http://www.microsoft.com/smallbusiness/resources/technology/business-software/presenting-with-powerpoint-10-dos-and-donts.aspx#Powerpointtips

Other options for creating a Slide Presentation are Google Presentations and Open Office. Both of these allow you to create PowerPoint-like slides.

Quote for the Week - Loving Kindness

Thoughts for this week on Loving Kindness:

The perfection of loving-kindness is the wish to provide for the welfare and happiness of the world, accompanied by compassion and skilfull means;
literally it means benevolence.

A Treatise on the Paramis

Dhammapala

Image: Microsoft Clipart

Mindfulness with John Kabat-Zinn

A lecture session on Mindfulness by Jon Kabat-Zinn at Google. This talk is focuses "Mindfulness Meditation" and was given as a Google Talk on October 11, 2007

Quote for the Week - Spiritual Ailments

Many wellness practitioners look at 'disease' as the process of dis ease, or a disruption in the normal homeostasis or ease state of the body.

This week's wellness quote comes from Nathaniel Hawthorne, famed author of The Scarlet Letter.

His quote underscores some of the research on the mind-body connection and how much the mind plays a role in the healing or the disease process.

A bodily disease
which we look upon as
whole and entire within itself,
may after all be
but a symptom of
some ailment
in the spiritual part.

Nathaniel Hawthorne

Image: Clarita. Old Brain Model. Morgue File Free Photo.

Ken Wilber's AQAL as it Applies to Those Suffering from Addictions

A YouTube video with a explanation of the 4 Quadrants of the Ken Wilber's AQAL (All Quadrants All Levels) model and how the model applies to those suffering from addictions.

The video also shows how the Integral Model applies to an integral recovery approach.

Updated Resources for Creating a Blog

The initial list of Resources for Creating a Blog was published during the first week of the course. I've added in several additional blog posts with tips and links to resources for creating your blog. This week the focus has been on adding gadgets (or widgets), setting blog permissions and controlling blog comments.

List of latest blog posts on Creating a Blog.

• Basic Blogger Gadgets 
• Adding Gadgets to Blogger
• Setting Blog Permissions - Selecting Readers
• Controlling Blog Comments

List of initial blog posts on Creating a Blog.

• Understanding Blogs
  
• How to Create a Blogger Blog
• More on Blogger Reading Lists
• How to Use Google FriendConnect and Blogger Reading List
  
• Getting Started with Google Reader
  
• Understanding RSS Feeds
• Keeping Your Blog More Private
  

With these different posts and the resources available to you under blogger help, with a bit of time, the process of creating a blog will be more fun and less confusing.

Ken Wilber's Four Quadrants

Defining Integral Model
JFK University who offer a Master's in Integral Theory offer this definition of the Integral Model:

The integral model is a unifying and comprehensive framework, bringing together many discrete disciplines – from psychology to politics, ecology to social sciences, business to spiritual studies – that can be used to develop comprehensive, effective, and integrally informed approaches to specific problems and their solutions.

Image of Integral Model

Additional Resource for Understanding Integral Model
One of your classmates found these additional resources that do an excellent job in explaining Wilber's Four Quadrants.

• An article What are the Four Quadrants from Holons News 
• An online presentation What are the four quadrants? from Integrallife.com

I highly recommend viewing these for those who are having difficulty understanding Wilber's Model.

Image Source: Integral Futures. Thinking Futures.

Controlling Blog Comments

You have several options for controlling the comments made to your blog.

Start by looking under the "Settings" tab for "Comments."

The first choice you have in controlling blog comments is to answer the question "Who Can Comment?" Your choices are 

• Anyone (This includes Anonymous Users)
• Users with Google Accounts
• Only members of the blog

If you want to restrict comments in your blog to classmates, you could set the blog permissions and limit readers to only other classmates. The next step would be to restrict comments on the blog to only members of the blog, or only people that you have allowed to read your blog.

Comment moderation
Another way to restrict comments is to have the Comment moderation option ticked as "Always." This ensures that you read any comment before it gets posted.

For more on Comment moderation, see the Blogger Help topic on "How do I moderate comments in my blog?"

Word Verification
A third way of restricting comments (and reducing spam) is to tick, "Yes" for "Show word verification for comments?"

Requiring people leaving comments to complete a word verification step will help reduce spam.

For more about Word Verification, see the Blogger Help topic on "What is the word verification option?"

Online Meditation Video - Zen Garden

Another online Meditation with music from Kokin Gumi and Zen Garden. This video clip also features Japanese Proverbs.

Relax and Enjoy

Setting Blog Permissions - Selecting Readers

Blogger allows you to choose who has access to your blog.

To choose who has access to your blog, go under the "Settings" Tab and select "Permissions."

Look for Blog Readers

Answer the question, "Who can view this blog?" Your choices are:

• Anybody
• Only people I choose
• Only blog authors.

By default your blog is open to all readers.

You can restrict your blog to only readers you choose. If you chose to restrict your blog, the readers will need to log into Blogger before being able to read your blog.

For more on restricting your blog, see the Blogger Help topic "How do I control who can view my blog?"

Meditation Music and Image Video - Zen Garden

Beautiful Buddhist Meditation with Zen Garden Music from Kokin Gumi.

A way to relax for a few minutes.

Adding Gadgets to Blogger

Gadgets are an easy way to customize the layout of your blog. Any of the Basic Blogger Gadgets, Featured Gadgets, Popular Gadgets and many others (More Gadgets) can be added to your blog.

How to Add a Gadget to Blogger

1. From the Page Elements sub-tab, click Edit to edit existing gadgets, or Add a Gadget to add new ones.
2. To add a new gadget after you've clicked Add a Gadget, simply click the plus sign next to your desired gadget. You can choose from gadgets by category, or search for a specific gadget in the top right of the pop-up window. 

For more on adding gadgets to blogger, see the Blogger Help topic on "Getting Started with Blogger" under Customize Your Layout.

Gadgets can be added in several places to your blog from the Layout Screen. Look for the areas that say "Add a Gadget." In the basic blog layout, you can add Gadgets to

• The top of the blog
• The bottom of the blog
• The top of the side bar
• The bottom of the side bar

If you adjust your blog layout template, just look for the areas that say "Add a Gadget" to see where you can add a gadget to the new layout.


See the blog post on "Basic Blogger Gadgets" for a list of some of the Gadgets you can add to your Blogger Blog. You can also look at the earlier post on "Fun Wellness Widgets."

Basic Blogger Gadgets

Blogger offers many different gadgets that can be added to your blog and customize your layout.

Defining Gadget and Widget

The terms gadgets and widgets may be used interchangeably. They are defined as "a device or control that is very useful for a particular job."

In the case of a blog, they are applications or tools that you can add to your blog to add different functions (e.g. RSS Feeds, Calendars or Search capabilities) and to customize the layout or display of a blog or webpage.

The basic blogger gadgets include:

• Pages - Displays a list of stand-alone pages on your blog.
• Followers - Displays a list of users who follow your blog
• Search Box - Search over your blog, your blogroll, and everything you've linked to.
• HTML/JavaScript - Add third-party functionality or other code to your blog.
• Text - Add some words to your blog - like a welcome message - with our rich text editor.
• AdSense - Earn revenue by displaying relevant ads on your blog.
• Picture - Add a picture from your computer or from somewhere else on the web.
• Slideshow - Add a slideshow of your photos to your blog.
• Video Bar - Display clips from YouTube and Google Video for your readers to watch without leaving the page.
• Poll - Survey your visitors by adding a poll to your blog.
• Blog List - Show off what you read with a blogroll of your favorite blogs.
• Link List - Add a collection of your favorite sites, blogs, or web pages.
• List - Add a list of your favorite books, movies, or anything you like.
• Feed - Add content from an RSS or Atom feed to your blog.
• Newsreel - Automatically add current headlines from Google News to your blog.
• Labels - Show all the labels of posts in your blog.
• Subscription Links - Let your readers easily subscribe to your blog with popular feed readers.
• Logo - Choose from a variety of Blogger logos to add to your page.
• Profile - Display information about yourself.
• Blog Archive - Display links to older posts.
• Page Header - Display your blog's title and description.

For this week I've added the "Search This Blog" function to the Creating Wellness Blog. You can look for older blogs posts by looking under the Blog Archive or by using the "Search This Blog" search by Google.

Featured Gadgets
Under Featured Gadgets you can add in gadgets to link you blog to other popular online resources link flickr, Twitter, TwitPics, Picasa, YouTube and Amazon.

Be aware that these gadgets have been developed by third parties, which may bring in their advertising to your blog.

For how to install a Blogger Gadget, see the post on "Adding Gadgets to Blogger."

Quote for the Week - Crocus in the Spring

As we have begun to emerge from the very stormy winter this year, I am reminded of one of my favorite quotes on persevering during challenging times.

Like a crocus
in the snow,
I stand
knee-deep in Winter
Holding
Springtime
in my heart.

Joan Walsh Anglund

This quote is a reminder that "happy spring days filled with joy will once again emerge out of the gloom of winter."

Dyer KA. 2002. Nature Awareness as a Therapeutic Modality: Part 1: The Healing Qualities of Nature. Journey of Hearts.

Image: Betty George. Spring Delight. Royalty Free Use.

Resources for Starting a Blog

I've pulled together several resources in different posts to help get you started in creating a blog for this course.

• Understanding Blogs
  
• How to Create a Blogger Blog
• More on Blogger Reading Lists
• How to Use Google FriendConnect and Blogger Reading List
  
• Getting Started with Google Reader
  
• Understanding RSS Feeds
• Keeping Your Blog More Private
  

Hopefully this will make the process of creating a blog more fun and less confusing.

Keeping Your Blog More Private

Since this blog is being created in Blogger (a public free service), it could be viewed by everyone who has access to the Internet. If a blog is made available to search engines, it is more likely that people outside of the class might access it.

If you want to make you blog more private and more likely to only be viewed by other members of the class, you can change the settings on your blog.

To make the blog more private, select "Settings" from the tabs under your main menu.

Once you are in the settings mode, you can edit the Title, Description. The next two questions are the ones you want to change if you want your blog more private.

• Add your blog to our listings?
• Let search engines find your blog?

Add your blog to our listings?
If you select "No" your blog will not appear in these places, but it will still be available on the Internet. This blog will still be displayed on your profile unless you hide it. To hide it from your profile you need to edit your displayed blogs. Follow the link to edit your displayed blogs on your dashboard, Settings page.

Let search engines find your blog?
If you select "Yes" we will include your blog in Google Blog Search and ping Weblogs.com.

If you select "No", everyone can still view your blog but search engines will be instructed not to crawl it.


While ticking the boxes helps to keep your blog out of the search engines, it is still potentially viewable by others who have access to your blog URL outside of the class.

If privacy is a big concern for you, think twice about what you are posting on your blog, since it is going out the Internet.


Blogger Privacy
You can read more about Blogger Privacy and Content Policy by following their links.

Fun Wellness Widgets

A widget is loosely defined as "a device or control that is very useful for a particular job." According to wikipedia, a web widget is "a portable chunk of code that can be installed and executed within any separate HTML-based web page by an end user without requiring additional compilation."

In searching for Wellness widgets to add to the Creating Wellness Blog, I found several from the Wellsphere website. Their mission is "to help millions of people live healthier, happier lives by connecting them with the knowledge, people and tools they need to manage and improve their health."

Wellsphere Widgets

You can add fun and free Wellness Widgets or WellWidgets to your blog from Wellsphere.

I've added two of the widgets available, the WellTip of the Day and the Wellevation Widget to the sidebar on this Creating Wellness Blog. Every time you refresh your browser, you get a new tip.

They also have a Wellternatives that gives you healthy meal alternatives at your local restaurant. You can customize what you want to display in each of the widgets.

Understanding RSS Feeds

A basic, short explanation of RSS from Common Craft, where they explain how RSS (Really Simple Syndication) helps save time when reading the web.

More on Blogger Reading Lists

You can follow your classmates' blogs using Blogger Reading List.

Visit their blog and sign up using Google FriendConnect (How to Use Google FriendConnect and Blogger Reading List) or go to your Blogger Dashboard and add the URL from their blogs by clicking on the "Add" button.

By selecting from "All blog updates" or a specific blog, you can read what has been recently posted in that blog.

Find out more about "What is Following?" by reading the answer on Blogger Help.

Getting Started with Google Reader

A video tutorial on how to sign up for Google Reader. The video also provides information on how to add your first subscription.

How to Use Google FriendConnect and Blogger Reading List

You can sign up to follow your classmate's blogs with Google FriendConnect.

Once signed in, the Blogger Reading List (available on your Blogger Dashboard) allows you to connect with any of the sites you have joined using Google FriendConnect.

Blogger Reading List allows you to read the latest posts from the blogs you are following on your Blogger Dashboard.

The list will update whenever a new post is published on any blog in your Reading List.

You can also subscribe to any blog with a RSS feed.

For more information on using the Blogger Reading List, see their help page.

Wellness - the Word

An interesting article, "On Language - Wellness" from Ben Zimmer at the New York Times looking at how Wellness, the word was introduced into our language.

The term was in part inspired by the WHO's definition of health from 1948:

"Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity."

Overtime the term "Wellness" has become part of our language.

How to Create a Blogger Blog

Here is a helpful video blog from Blogger on how to create a Blogger Blog.

For more information on creating a Blog in Blogger visit: http://help.blogger.com/

Happy blogging.

Lotus Credits

The beautiful pink lotus used to create the header for the Creating Wellness Blog is from Jin Neoh of Malaysia.

You can see more of his amazing photography at stock.xchng.

Image: Jon Neoh. Pink Lotus. Royalty Free Use.

Understanding Blogs

An 2007 YouTube video from Commoncraft, that helps people understand why blogs are such a big deal.

Quote for the Week - Total Wellness

An interesting quote on total wellness from Greg Anderson, founder of the American Wellness Project.

The concept of total wellness recognizes that our every thought, word, and behavior affects our greater health and well-being. And we, in turn, are affected not only emotionally but also physically and spiritually.

Greg Anderson