Every once in a while when at an airport too early for a flight I’ll indulge at the news stand and buy a few magazines. I don’t tend to have fashion or sports magazines lying around at home broadcasting perfect bodies and unrealistic beauty standards. Can’t help it. I’m too familiar with the research that shows that women experience lower body dissatisfaction a mere 15 minutes after exposure to such publications and that the longer you keep kids away from popular media the better their self esteem.
On the other hand, I like to keep up with the latest celeb gossip, health trends, movie or book reviews, because it’s also important to know the pulse of current cultural fads. So I decided to randomly choose 3 magazines I wouldn’t normally pick up: Wired, Teen, and Cookie (never had heard of it – it’s a parenting magazine not recipes).
I guess it wasn’t so random because I was inspired to get Cookie because one of the features screamed out at me, “Why are you so tired?”
I perused them over the next three hours. The sleep article, while well written by this freelancer who likely got a freebie trip to the spa, Miraval, for a sleep clinic consultation, did not gleam any new information for me since I pretty much teach the cognitive behavioral approach to life stress anyway. And, of course, one’s sleep is an obvious causality of stress. But who actually practices what they preach? Since I suffer from chronic insomnia I thought there might be some new gem I could gleam. I pretty much ticked off all of the following sleep hygiene to-do’s – been there, done that.
√ Hormonal cycles affect sleep, especially a rise in body temp that happens in women ALL THE TIME along with their menstrual patterns, pregnancies, and natural aging – so no relaxing baths at the end of a long day. (I’m probably peri-menopausal so no hope on body heat issue until I’m too old to care.)
√ Exercise releases endorphins that help stabilize mood – but don’t exercise too late in the day. (Exercise?)
√ Cut caffeine to one cup a day. (Gave up coffee years ago to rid myself of the accompanying muffin – but give up my sometimes twice-daily, engine boosting Chai? Never.)
√ Write down worries at night, make check lists, release the frets, and replace rumination with pleasant distractions. (Sometimes that works, sometimes it doesn’t – especially when my kids swipe the pen and pad to doodle or write threats to one another.)
√ Have time before bed to relax (Well, it helps if someone else does the laundry and cleanup).
√ A bedtime routine is just as important for grownups as it is for kids. (Duh.)
√ A snack of carbs – like cereal with milk – is an Ok evening snack because carbs and milk both release tryptophan, which can help sleep. (Ok, a new nutritional fact for me, but I often snack on cereal at night as it is since I haven’t gone grocery shopping yet.)
Bottom line: Until cloning or robotics is perfected and I can have another ME around, sleep is out. Which brings me to technology.
I then opened Wired magazine (April) and I think I am a convert. I found many new and interesting things that I simply was not aware of on the technology side of things. For instance, there is a new advertising medium out there call hypersonic sound, where you can hear voices or music in some specific location where the sound is beamed only to where you are situated… You literally hear voices without any reference point. What would my former psychiatric patients think of this?
Also, there is a new gadget for women – some kind of “smart bra”. I’m afraid I am going to have to quote (page 034): “Even small breasts can bounce up to 3 inches during exercise, causing significant discomfort. Researchers in Australia are using motion capture to design a bra that dynamically adjusts cups and strap stiffness as a woman moves around.” Wow. I appreciated the reference to small breasts.
This led me to Teen, a quarterly magazine. The spring issue is the “Guy Guide.” I sort of found myself appalled from the moment I opened it and read the intro about how to “catch your crush,” “have the perfect hair,” and “see how you can become an even better version of you.” Thank god it's not a monthly magazine. The section on puberty was not too bad and there was a whole page on boobs: hairy nipples, uneven size, tenderness, and yes, the flat chest anxiety (page 91): “If you know you are eating healthy and are a good weight for your shape, just relax. Whether you end up with lovely A-cups or curvy D-cups, you’ll get there in your own good time.” (Well, I’m still waiting – a time frame would help). This brought me back to the smart bra. Now what if those Australians add in a shape morpher for the type of clothes one wears? That could eliminate the bizarre trend of parents giving their high school senior daughters a breast augmentation for graduation.
So what about creating "even a better version" of you? For starters, how about liking the original one?
Hello Princess!
First of all, THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU for adding Nanny Goats in Panties to your blogroll. I promise to add you to my list of the world famous Midlife Bloggerettes by my next post.
I too, am a recent convert to Wired. So much info crammed into one magazine. I felt so behind the times reading about all this stuff I never knew about before.
I love your website and I'm now reading your through some of your posts. Great stuff!
Like you, I was writing personal essays to myself (and maybe 2 friends) until I ran into the Midlife Bloggers via ByJane.
Anyway, thanks again and I'll be seeing you around the Blogosphere!
- Margaret (Nanny Goats In Panties)
www.nannygoatsinpanties.com
Posted by: Margaret | April 22, 2008 at 01:23 AM