Section 1: H&E for all networks

Anxiety reduction

Input control

Memory

Connectivity & Congruent Association

Anxiety reduction

Meditation (hack + exercise)

When we meditate, our brain begins a kind of functioning that’s similar to sleep, but carries some added benefits we can’t achieve as well in any other state, including the release of certain hormones that promote health. Our body and mind go into 'growth & development mode', cellular repairs take place, and our mind transfers more data into long term memory. Also, the mental focus on nothingness stops our conscious mind from working overtime and increasing our anxiety level.

It doesn’t matter what kind of meditation you choose, and if you follow any particular method already there’s no need to change that. But you might want to try other methods out and see what they’re like. The easiest forms of meditation we have found in books are those taught by Richard Hittleman in his ‘yoga for health’ books; these should be available from libraries for free or to buy online.

Resource: Mindfulness Meditation

http://www.urbandharma.org/udharma4/mpe.html (free online/pdf book)

The relaxation response (hack + exercise)

With practice, this hack should cause the ‘relaxation response’. Practice the technique once or twice daily, but not within two hours after any meal, since the digestive processes seem to interfere with the elicitation of the Relaxation Response. Best done before sleeping, and don't worry if it causes you to go to sleep at first!

Lie down somewhere comfortable and relax. Turn off the phone, radio and/or TV.

Close your eyes. Pay attention to any areas of your body that are tense.

Breathe calmly and as you breathe naturally out, deliberately relax the tense areas, beginning at your feet and progressing up to your face.

Go over them all again and keep them relaxed.

Breathe through your nose if you can, unless it is blocked. Become aware of and listen to your breathing. Each time you breathe out, say the word, "ONE", silently to yourself.

Breathe easily and naturally.

Continue for 10 to 20 minutes. You may open your eyes to check the time, but do not use an alarm. Do not worry about whether you are successful in achieving a deep level of relaxation. Maintain a passive attitude and permit relaxation to occur at its own pace.

When distracting thoughts occur, try to ignore them by not dwelling upon them and return to repeating "ONE" silently to yourself.

When you finish, sit quietly for several minutes, at first with your eyes closed and later with your eyes opened. Do not stand up for a few minutes.

Breathing Exercises

Deep breathing is an easy anxiety reducer that has numerous benefits for the body, including oxygenating the blood, which ‘wakes up’ the brain, relaxing muscles and quieting the mind. Breathing exercises are especially helpful because you can do them anywhere, and they work quickly so you can relax in a flash.

Simple breathing cycle: breathe slowly in through the nose for a count of 2 and out for a count of three.

Input control

Smile hack (quick mood-booster)

Only takes a minute, best done in private as it looks strange. Find a pen or pencil. Put the blunt end of the pen between your front teeth as though it were a cigar. Do not allow your lips to touch the pen for one minute. Don’t worry if it makes you laugh; it is a bit of a strange feeling.

The facial expression you have to pull with a pen in your teeth without the lips touching uses muscles that send signals to your brain, to tell it that you’re ‘smiling’ for quite a long period of time (a minute is a long time, to the brain). Of course, you know consciously that you’re not really smiling, you’re doing some strange exercise with a pen. But for the unconscious part of the brain that reads muscular signals, it’s ‘close enough’, in other words this is a hack. You’re basically fooling the mind into thinking that something good is happening “out there” in your real life.

When the mind gets these signals from the muscles in your face, it prepares your brain and body to interact with it. It releases chemicals into your bloodstream that increase your confidence, focus your attention and boost your immune system (just in case whatever is going on out there might be fun and exciting but also dangerous.)

Memory

Troubleshooting Memory Test/ Exercise: (make a copy of the text below. Where direct answers are required, type or write them in on your copy.) All memory tests are memory exercises.

1. Read these words, but don’t try to memorize them: peach, computer, crow.

2. Read this address, but don’t try to memorize it:

Yoko Ramani

1643 Broadsway Crescent,

Kenmare, Eire.

3. [Type/write in your answer ‘Y’ or ‘N’.] Have you had more trouble than usual remembering what you've done for the past few weeks? [ ]

4. Has it been harder for you to remember lists recently? [ ]

5. Have you noticed a decline in your ability to calculate arithmetically in your head, such as adding a series of different quantities or making correct change? [ ]

6. Have you recently been forgetting to keep arrangements? [ ]

7. Have you suddenly had trouble remembering names? [ ]

8. Have you suddenly had trouble recognizing people you should know? [ ]

9. Have you had a hard time lately finding the right word you want to use? [ ]

10. Have you had recent trouble remembering how to do simple tasks such as using a kitchen appliance or a remote control? [ ]

11. Do memory lapses interfere with your functioning at work? [ ]

12. Do memory lapses interfere with your functioning at home? [ ]

13. Do memory lapses interfere with your functioning in social situations? [ ]

14. [type in the answers] Name the last three new people you met. [ 1 ] [ 2 ] [ 3 ]

15. Name five different foods & what areas of the world they are traditionally associated with. [1 ] [2 ] [3 ] [4 ] [5 ]

16. What was the main food you had for your biggest meal on each of the past two days? [1 ] [2 ]

17. What were the last two movies you watched? [1 ] [2 ]

18. Without looking back, write down the three words you were asked to read at the beginning of the quiz. [1 ] [2 ] [3 ]

19. Without looking back, write down the name and address you were asked to read at the beginning of the quiz. [ ]

20. Without going to look, what color is the floor in your bathroom? [ ]

Now check the answers to the last three questions.

Scoring:

Give yourself 1 point for each "no" answer for questions 3-13 (maximum 11 points)

Give yourself 1 point for each blank you correctly filled in for questions 14-20 (maximum 22 points)

Overall maximum score possible: 33

If you scored:

28-33 Congratulations! You have a better-than-average memory. Great potential for augmentation!

22-27 Pretty good, but you could probably benefit from some memory exercises.

15-21 Your memory is a bit weak; memory exercises should help you improve your memory.

0-14 Your memory may be compromised due to some problem and you may want to consider getting a diagnostic evaluation.

Techniques for improving memory in all networks

Physical Exercise –Is known to improve memory, especially in rear networks. Tai Chi is one of the best; swimming in moving water is another. Dancing of any kind where you have to remember the steps is good too. Any kind of basic workout that improves your blood flow will also help your memory (and the rest of your brain).

The health benefits of physical exercise, especially on a long term and strenuous basis, has a positive effect on epigenetic mechanisms and ultimately may reduce incidence and severity of disease.

The mere act of putting one foot in front of the other for a few minutes has a significant beneficial impact on our mood, regardless of where we do it, why we do it, or what effect we expect the walk to have.

Exercise has been shown to induce positive changes in DNA methylation within adipose tissue and regulate metabolism in both healthy and diseased individuals. Increased DNA methylation of genes has also shown to increase lipogenesis following exercise. Exercise also leads to beneficial changes in DNA methylation patterns in skeletal muscle. Exercise is also known to positively influence the expression patterns of miRNAs in leukocyte cells.

Recent research (2016) suggests a fat-burning hormone, released during exercise, plays a role. This hormone, irisin (aka 'FNDC5'), a cytokine or chemical messenger produced by muscle, helps your body shed fat and keeps body fat from forming in the first place. Irisin appears to work by boosting the activity of genes and a protein that are crucial to turning white fat cells into brown fat cells, the latter of which primarily burn energy rather than storing it. It also significantly increases the amount of energy used by those cells. Tests show irisin is able to suppress fat cell formation by 20 to 60 percent. Normally, your body produces only small quantities of irisin. And exercise is the key to boosting its production.

In addition to exercise, brown fat can be activated through exposure to cold temperatures such as ice baths or cold showers.

If using physical exercise to improve your memory, bear the following in mind:

Aerobic Training/ HIT

In 2006, MRIs were used to prove that aerobic exercise builds gray and white matter in the brains of adults, who also perform better on cognitive tests.

Impact on memory: Strong

Lifting Weights

When weight lifters talk about getting huge, they aren't referring to their hippocampus. Researchers have found only the most tenuous link between heavy resistance training and improved cognitive function.

Impact on memory: Negligible

Yoga/ Tai Chi

When facing a stressful situation or even a scary email, people often hold their breath. Under pressure, most people breathe incorrectly. The result: more anxiety and less oxygen to your brain. So the first thing that goes is your memory. Yoga or Tai Chi can break that habit.

Impact on memory: Possibly strong

Meditation

Particularly good for N4, because it improves your ability to get into alpha rhythm, but also helps all other networks, and increases attention and alertness.

Impact on memory: Very strong.

Psychological & cognitive techniques –Such as self-hypnosis, EFT, co counseling and CBT Can be particularly helpful for shifting traumatic memories.

Impact on memory: Varies widely according to individual

Connectivity & Association

To improve overall brain connectivity (hack and exercise)

In making mental associations, we are building denser networks and increasing overall intelligence.

It is worth taking the time to make deliberate and conscious symbolic connections between concrete material reality and abstract concepts, e.g.

the smell of freshly turned soil and the fertility of the earth and its potential bounty of resources. In this way, you can get both ends of the

brain associating the same things, and later a simple material perception brings to mind the abstract ideas. Association as a whole is enriched by

such consciously intended associations. A single flower can bring to mind the 'productive power of nature'. Smell is a potent sense with which to

make such associations. Consider what different smells remind you of.

Exercises for all networks 

Sit down comfortably and link your hands together in your lap. Pick an issue you would like to consider –this can be any subject, problem or question.

Looking at your hands, consider the physical material aspects of the problem or issue. How does the subject relate to you physical or material health and wellbeing?

Look straight ahead. Consider any emotional aspects of the subject you have in mind. Now think about how imagination might be applied to it. 

Look up and to your right. Keep your eyes in that position as you consider how creativity relates to the subject in mind. How might the issue affect groups and individuals?

Look up and to your left and think about the intellectual aspects of the issue. How confident do you feel about your understanding of it?

Look straight upwards [lean your head back against a cushion if you want, but do not lie down] and decide what are your priorities and where this issue ranks by comparison. [Remember to keep ‘sanity’ and ‘health’ up at the top or you won’t be in any good shape to decide the others!] Consider whether or not you need more information in order to adequately understand whatever you are thinking about to your own satisfaction. If the issue is a problem, now is when you consider the solution. If it is a subject you are interested in, ask yourself in which areas have you learned enough?

Exercise for a quick brain boost (Do not do this exercise just after eating!)

This is one of the few physical exercises we do. Stand or sit or lie down comfortably anywhere there is enough room in front of you to bend over. By whatever means is most comfortable to you, get into any physical position that leaves your head slightly lower than most of the rest of your body [on a chair with head between your knees, crouching with head lower than knees, hanging your head off the edge of the bed].

Remain in this position while you take ten slow, deep breaths.

Slowly return to your original position (if lying down, support your head with one of your hands as you sit up). If you feel at all dizzy, remain still and breathe deeply and slowly until it passes.

You have increased the blood and oxygen supply to your brain, and doing this now and again is a useful way of sharpening your mind –good for that ‘mid-afternoon drop’ in energy many people experience, or if you’re feeling too stoned (professional athletes adopt this ‘head below the knees’ posture to recover after great physical exertion, to prevent oxygen deprivation to the brain causing fainting.) For a short time you can take advantage of the increased glucose supply you have caused in the brain, so save this hack for those times when you need a quick boost. If you have a coffee or other stimulant just after doing the exercise the effects will last longer.

Quick yoga boost (Do not do this exercise just after eating!)

The ‘shoulderstand’ yoga posture is one of the finest exercises for the whole body and brain. Even if you can manage to do this for a 30 seconds a day you will notice a pretty immediate improvement in your overall vitality right away. The boost it gives to the cardiovascular system is the main reason (and you will also find it improves your digestion, your complexion, and your balance).

To do the shoulderstand, lie flat on your back and raise your legs and lower back, supporting your hips or your lower back with your hands. Keep your elbows on the ground. Point your toes upwards as far as you can. Do this just once per session, increasing the time slowly up to a maximum of three minutes. Rest lying flat on your back for thirty seconds after the exercise, and get up slowly.

Music (hack + exercise)

Learning to play a musical instrument increases brain connectivity across all networks.