BARBARA'S TCHATZKAHS

Researchers have uncovered new evidence in mice that may explain how emotionally charged situations can leave such a powerful mark on our memories. Surges of the stress hormone norepinephrine (also known as noradrenaline) that often accompany strong emotions spark a series of molecular events that ultimately strengthen the connections between neurons, the team reports in the October 5, 2007, issue of the journal Cell . “This phenomenon is something everyone can identify with,” said Roberto Malinow of the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory in New York. “You can probably remember where you were when you heard about 9/11, but you probably don’t know where you were on 9/10. We've identified one mechanism that may underlie this effect.” The parts of the brain where memories are stored need to distinguish between significant experiences and those that carry less importance, giving priority to the transformation of the former into long-term memory, the researchers explained. One factor th...

One thing 15 years of an unpredictable. excruciating disability has taught me - is to prioritize. Get straight what is important and what isn't. As a single, divorced mom and an advocate for abused women I get overloaded with requests. Of course my children come first. That is something I make very clear. But I am good at my advocacy. And being good at something can be a blessing and a curse. Very often I tend to overload myself with work. However, in the years since I was paralyzed on the left side and couldn't walk to the last few years where I have been extricating myself from a very abusive & controlling partner - I've learned to say NO. I don't ask much for myself. Like I said, my children are my primary focus and then my health. The latter tends to DEMAND I pay attention or it literally makes me sicker than the white noise of physical pain and feeling lousy I do most of the time. My friends are always telling me to do more nice things for myself and to...

OFFICE STRESS IS KILLING, LITERALLY Work really can kill you, according to a study on Wednesday providing the strongest evidence yet of how on-the-job stress raises the risk of heart disease by disrupting the body’s internal systems. The findings from a long-running study involving more than 10,000 British civil servants also suggest stress-induced biological changes may play a more direct role than previously thought, said Tarani Chandola, an epidemiologist at University College London. “This is the first large-scale population study looking at the effects of stress measured from everyday working life on heart disease,” said Chandola, who led the study. “One of the problems is people have been skeptical whether work stress really affects a person biologically.” Heart disease is the world’s leading cause of death. It is caused by fatty deposits that harden and block arteries, high blood pressure which damages blood vessels, and other factors. The researchers measured stress among the c...