by Rick Hanson | May 29, 2014 | At Home in Your Body, Blog, Just One Thing
Eating healthy is one way to be a good role model for your children. Good nutrition is a key part of maintaining your energy as a parent. Eating healthy helps parents stay good-humored and patient with children, even when the oatmeal starts flying.
by Rick Hanson | May 26, 2014 | Articles, Blog
Have you ever scolded a dog and seen him or her look guilty? Obviously, animals do not have the elaborated textures of thoughts and feelings that humans do. But our emotions, even the most subtle ones, have their roots in our ancient evolutionary history. By...
by Rick Hanson | May 23, 2014 | Blog
Looks like fun, doesn’t it?
by Rick Hanson | May 19, 2014 | Blog
With practice we can change our brains, and our lives, for the better.
by Rick Hanson | May 16, 2014 | Blog
Nature’s beauty can be easily missed — but not through Louie Schwartzberg’s lens. His stunning time-lapse photography, accompanied by powerful words from Benedictine monk Brother David Steindl-Rast, serves as a meditation on being grateful for every day....
by Rick Hanson | May 12, 2014 | Blog
What is the reason for the remarkable complexity, speed, activity, and evolution of the brain? It is the mind. By “mind,” I mean the flows of information within the brain; a synonymous term is “mental activity.” Much as the function of the heart is to move blood...
by Rick Hanson | May 9, 2014 | Blog
I thought you might enjoy these murals adapted from my presentation on Positive Neuroplasticity at the Hudson Institute of Coaching earlier this month. They were illustrated by Nancy Turner, Graphic Recorder/Facilitator, phrases@fuse.net.
by Rick Hanson | May 5, 2014 | Blog
Guest post by Randy Roark, Producer for Sounds True. I’ve recently returned from recording a new program with Rick Hanson in Corte Madera, California. I first worked with Rick and his co-author Rick Mendius in 2009, when we recorded Meditations to Change Your Brain...
by Rick Hanson | Apr 28, 2014 | Blog
Q: If you focus on the positive for long enough, does it actually make your brain more receptive to doing that? Turn it into “velcro” for happiness, to use your expression? A: Research shows that repeated practice of any positive behavior (e.g., gratitude) will...
by Rick Hanson | Apr 25, 2014 | Blog
Here we give up angry, punishing reactions toward others, animals, plants, and things. If such attitudes arise, we resolve not to feed them, and to cut them off as fast as we can. The Buddha placed great stress on the importance of releasing ill will. In the extreme,...
by Rick Hanson | Apr 18, 2014 | Articles, Blog
“Let go a little, you’ll have a little happiness. Let go completely, you’ll be completely happy.” Letting Go of Body Sensations Ordinary breathing, focusing on exhalation, intending to let go. Diaphragm breathing. Breath of fire. Heartmath:...
by Rick Hanson | Apr 14, 2014 | Blog
Is the “Self” real? What’s the nature of the sense of being that remains when parts of the psyche fall away? The answer depends on how you define “Self.” I use that word to refer to the central “I” that’s presumed in Western psychology and philosophy (and everyday...
by Rick Hanson | Apr 10, 2014 | Blog
Your brain is the product of 3.5 billion years of intense evolutionary pressure, including 2.7 million years as tool-using hominids and over 100,000 years as homo sapiens. Human DNA is about 98-99% identical to chimpanzee DNA. But that crucial 1-2% difference is...
by Rick Hanson | Apr 4, 2014 | Blog
What is the Best Time of Day to Meditate? In all the studies (and reviews of studies) I’ve seen on meditation, I’ve never seen anything scientific about best time of day to meditate. Maybe it exists, but I’ve never heard of it. From the standpoint of a long-time...
