Cancer survivor’s inspiring story starts Perth Race for Life

Breast cancer survivor Ailsa Smith joined 1,000 determined women to cross the Race for Life finish line in Perth on Sunday.

It was Ailsa’s eighth time taking part in a Race For Life event and, before she went to the start line for the 10K race, she stood on stage and shared her story to inspire the women who had gathered to support Cancer Research UK.

The former Perth High School pupil was diagnosed with cancer after she noticed an abnormality in her right breast when her then 18-month-old daughter Leah bumped into her while playing.

Leah, now aged three, sounded the klaxon that started the 250 women taking part in the 10K, including her mum.

Ailsa, 40, said: “Taking part in Race for Life is about beating cancer and I wanted to go on stage, not only to share my story but to thank the charity and its scientists for all the lives they have saved, including mine.”
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Four ways to get to sleep: how mindfulness can help you stop worrying and end your insomnia

Sleep. It’s where our brains travel to every night. It’s the shift in consciousness that our bodies require every day. If you’re experiencing sleep problems, you’re not alone: most of us have had trouble sleeping at one time or another. It’s normal and usually temporary.

Often, you want to sleep but your brain keeps talking to itself. Your mind is in overdrive. Thoughts and worries seem to grow and loom larger at night.

You need to switch off and sleep but there’s nothing to distract you from thinking about what you did or didn’t do or what you have yet to face. And in any case, night-time is not usually a practical time to do anything about whatever is worrying you.

We stay at London’s sleep hotel

There’s no need to suffer, though. Although you can’t make yourself go to sleep, you can help sleep to occur by keeping yourself in the present.

“A ruffled mind makes a restless pillow.” Charlotte Brontë

Four natural ways to get to sleep

1. Observe your thoughts and feelings
Don’t try to ignore, fight or control them. Instead, simply observe them, without reacting to them or judging.

2. A tip for turning your thoughts off
Notice that when you don’t try to control the thoughts they soon pass, like clouds moving across the sky.

If you find yourself getting stuck on a particular thought, bring your attention to your breathing. As you are being aware of your breathing, allow yourself to sink into the bed with each breath.


3. Write down what’s on your mind
If you can’t fall asleep because of unwanted thoughts – concerns about money and work, relationship, family or health worries, for example – you may find it useful to write them down.

This helps because you’re externalizing your thoughts, getting them out of your head and down on to paper.

4. Can’t sleep? Open your eyes
If you’re lying in bed and are unable to sleep, try keeping your eyes open. As they start to close, tell yourself to resist. Often, the more you try to stay awake, the sleepier you become.

“Your future depends on your dreams. So go to sleep.” Mesut Barazany.
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High Levels of Dopamine May Lead to Increased Risk-Taking

ASHINGTON, DC — Boosting levels of the neurotransmitter dopamine can lead to increased risk-taking, according to research published July 8 in The Journal of Neuroscience. Dopamine is involved in reward learning, and previous research has linked dopamine drugs such as L-DOPA with compulsive gambling problems in people with Parkinson’s disease. This study, led by Robb Rutledge at University College London, found that increasing dopamine levels in healthy adults led participants to choose more risky options in a gambling task.

Thirty healthy adults performed a gambling ta

sk on two separate occasions, once after receiving L-DOPA and once after receiving a placebo. The task required subjects to choose between safe and risky options that led to monetary gains and losses. Sometimes, the subjects could choose between a small reward or a gamble where there were equal chances of winning a larger reward or getting nothing. Other times, subjects could accept a small loss or choose a gamble where there were equal chances of losing a larger amount or losing nothing. During the testing, subjects were repeatedly asked, “How happy are you at this moment?” The researchers found that:

• Subjects took more risks to try to get bigger rewards after receiving L-DOPA but not placebo. However, L-DOPA did not affect how often subjects took risks when there were potential losses.
• After receiving L-DOPA, subjects chose more risky options regardless of how much larger the potential reward was compared to the safe alternative.
• Subjects were happier after winning a small reward while on L-DOPA than they were winning the same reward while on a placebo. On a placebo, happiness was higher after large rewards than after small rewards, but on L-DOPA subjects were as happy about small rewards as they were about large rewards.

The researchers proposed that L-DOPA made potential rewards more appealing but did not affect subjects’ perception of potential losses. They also speculated that, while on L-DOPA, subjects might experience similar dopamine release for all reward levels, which would explain why they were similarly happy after small and large rewards.

This study sheds light on dopamine’s effects on decision-making and emotion, said Nathaniel Daw, a neuroscientist at New York University who was not involved in the study. The results “may help to explain some kinds of gambling and impulse control problems, and also aspects of mood disorders.”

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14 things to do during the Perth school holidays

FOURTEEN days, so much to do! Here’s our school holiday picks for adventurous families.

KIDS WONDERLAND
Roll up through the Luna-like laughing mouth into a 4000sq m big top for three hours of indoor games, activities, live shows, exhibits — and even massages for parents run off their feet. Oh, did we mention all-inclusive unlimited rides?
When and where: July 9-12, 8am-11am, 12pm-3pm, 3.45pm-6.45pm, Hertha Rd Reserve, Cedric St, Stirling.
Cost: Children $25+bf, adults $10+bf
Bookings/info: www.kidswonderland.com.au

KIDS WONDERLAND GRAND OPENING
Perth’s Kids Wonderland features rides and entertainment for children and adults over the school holidays at Hertha Road Reserve in Stirling. Darren and Alexie Beygelaar and daughter Jenna. Photo: Stewart Allen

MISTER MAKER
Paper, scissors, rock! Mister Maker makes contraptions like trains and spaceships out of everyday detritus like toothpaste boxes and toilet rolls and is bringing his musical sidekicks The Shapes to Perth for the first time for some rollicking edu-entertainment.
When and where: July 14-15, Perth Concert Hall.
Cost: From $40
Bookings/info: www.ticketek.com.au
Pack up your troubles with Mister Maker.
Pack up your troubles with Mister Maker. Source: Supplied


HOUSE OF DREAMS
There are two ways to see Hi-5 these holidays — in full or for free, The fivesome will be at two shopping centres to give fans a sneak peek of their House of Dreams tour.
When and where: July 11, 11am-12:30pm, Westfield Whitford City; and 2pm-3:30pm at Westfield Carousel.
Cost: Free
When and where: July 14-15, 10am and 1.30pm, Regal Theatre, Subiaco
Cost: From $35
Bookings/more info: www.hi-5world.com
No need to slumber: see Hi 5’s House of Dreams.
No need to slumber: see Hi 5’s House of Dreams. Source: Supplied

DISNEY FROZEN FRENZY
Did someone say Frozen?! Expect a stampede (in a good way) as Disney characters, including Elsa and Anna, come together for meet-and-greets and daily activities. Armed with a Disney map, families can go on an adventure uncovering Frozen, Planes, Cinderella, Toy Story, Monsters Inc and Mickey Mouse. A Frozen wax ice-skating rink is the icing on the cake.
When and where: Daily-July 12, various locations within Karrinyup Shopping Centre.
Cost: Free
More info:www.karrinyupcentre.com.au

GALAXY GIRL
A planisphere (or star wheel) is a useful astronomy tool that helps identify stars and constellations in the night sky. Galaxy Girl from Stargazers Club WA will step in to show budding astronomers how it’s done without getting up in the middle of the night.
When and where: July 11, 10am-11am, Australian Geographic store at Karrinyup Shopping Centre.
Cost: Free
Bookings/more info: www.stargazersclubwa.com.au/planisphere

SPACE JUNK
Fifty years after launching into space, we’re left with a troubling legacy: a growing ring of orbiting debris. Scitech’s newest planetarium show, Space Junk, may shock you as it looks at what’s out there.
When and where: Daily-July 19, Scitech, City West Centre, 98 Railway St, Perth.
Cost: $11 children, $17 adult
Bookings/more info: www.scitech.org.au

FOSSIL FOSSICKING
Did you know the Gogo Fish is WA’s fossil emblem? Discover more fun facts about our State’s ancient fossil discoveries and creatures that lived in WA’s ancient oceans.
When and where: Daily-July 19, 10.30am-1pm, Museum of WA Discovery Centre, Perth Cultural Centre.
Cost: $2 per child
More info: www.museum.wa.gov.au/whats-on/school-holidays/perth

BOAT BONANZA
Build and race balloon-powered boats while uncovering the secret to Australia’s success in one of the most famous yacht races in this maritime “time-trekker’’ challenge which allows kids to get up close to maritime treasures that are otherwise out of bounds to regular museum goers.
When and where: July 16-18, 9.15am — 12.30pm at the WA Maritime Musuem, Victoria Quay,
Fremantle.
Cost: $38 a child
Bookings/more info: www.museum.wa.gov.au/whats-on/school-holidays

MINECRAFT CAMPS
If your child is obsessed with Minecraft, you may wish to treat them to a meeting of the minds at a camp in which at least 24 kids collaborate and play together. The day includes lengthy breaks and a build competition.
When and where: Today-July 7, 9am-3pm. Kerry St Community School, Fremantle; July 13-14 9am-3pm State Library of WA, July 17 9am-3pm, Ellenbrook Community Library.
Cost: $65 a day
Bookings and further info: www.buddyverse.net/minecraft-camps

CITY PLAYGROUND PASS
The City of Perth says there are “47 awesome reasons’’ to make the CBD a school holiday destination. The Playground Pass takes parents and kids on an exploration of the city, with bonus offers including cut-price food and drinks and free stuff.
When and where: Today-July 19, Forrest Place and beyond.
Cost: Free.
Bookings/more info: www.visitperthcity.com or ph: 9461 3368
Get a taste of winter at Snow Slide.
Get a taste of winter at Snow Slide. Source: Supplied

CITY SNOW SLIDE
Take to the “slopes’’ in the heart of the city on either a 4m or 12m slide under a giant marquee — registration is essential.
When and where: Today-July 19, Forrest Place.
Cost: Free
Bookings/more info: www.visitperthcity.com or ph: 9461 3368

INTERACTIVE AQWA
Our aquarium goes hi-tech with a new app that kids use as a companion while following caves and crevices, open ocean and coral reefs. The app creates a storybook of little visitors’ journeys that theycan save, print and decorate at home. Holiday visitors can also go in the running to win an iPad mini.
When and where: Daily, 10am-5pm, Hillary’s Boat Harbour.
Cost: $18 children, $30 adults
Bookings/more info:www.aqwa.com.au
Climb the walls at Bounce INC, Cannington

BOUNCE IN WALL JAM
Climbing the wall has never been so much fun. Cannington’s indoor urban trampoline park has added Wall Jam programs to its regular sessions so older kids can learn and perfect tricks on The Wall in supervised evening classes. Wall Jam kids must be over 125cm.
When and where: Tues. & Thurs., 6pm-9pm, 1371 Albany Hwy, Cannington.
Cost: $17 but there’s a 2 for 1 deal on
Bookings/more info: www.bounceinc.com.au or 1300 000 540
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Simple meditation practices for kids

As more adults turn to meditation for peace and balance in their hectic lives, more children are being introduced to this ancient practice to help deal with stress, and have a more peaceful outlook.

LOOK AT CLOUDS:

On nice days, go outside, lie on your backs in the grass looking up at the sky. Bring your attention, begin to notice, the clouds in the sky. Talk about the different shapes and sizes. Notice how they just drift through the sky moving in and out of view…. Appearing and disappearing. Just simply watch the clouds in the beautiful blue sky. The Blue Sky isn’t bothered by the clouds , the sky stays the same vast, clear, open and free even as the clouds move through the sky. This is how our thoughts work… thoughts float in and out of our minds just like clouds… thoughts appear and disappear. Come and go. But our mind just like the great Blue Sky is always clear, open and free. Allow your thoughts to just come and go knowing your mind is amazingly clear and free just like the sky.

MINDFULNESS JAR:

Take an 8 0z Mason Jar and colored sand (you can find at Michael’s Craft store). You can have different colors representing different things: Red is our thoughts, blue is our feelings and emotions. Fill the jar with water (the jar of water is our mind) and then add the red sand (our mind holds our thoughts) , add the blue for feelings and emotions (our mind holds our feelings and emotions). Now shake it up… the sand will start to swirl and the water will get cloudy from all the sand (thoughts, feeling and emotions) sometimes we just need to sit and relax and allow our thoughts and feelings to settle. As we watch the jar what happens to the sand? The sand begins to float to the bottom and the water starts to clear again. Lets try it once more just watching the sand settle as our thoughts, feeling and emotions settle just like the sand. Breathing easy as we watch everything become clear and calm.

 MINDFUL LISTENING, A MEDITATION EXERCISE FOR CHILDREN

Sitting comfortably, bring out a bell, chime or anything that makes a simple sound that will carry when struck. Allow the children to hold it in their hands, feeling and hearing its sound as you ring the bell, chime, etc.

This time, ring the bell and have the children listen very carefully — paying attention from the very first moment the child hears the sound of the bell all way to the end. When the children can’t hear the sound anymore, they open their eyes or raise their hand. You can first try it with eyes open and then with eyes closed.

One of Clement’s meditation practice for older kids who are between 9 and 13 includes pressing a thumb on a each finger (on the same hand) one by one, by saying affirmations such as “I am strong.” “I am confident.”

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Dania's Exclusive Interview with Allan Wallace on Cultivating Emotional Balance

Register for the five day retreat 'Cultivating Emotional Balance'
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Adult colouring in books in high demand

Colouring in books for adults are the latest phenomenon to hit bookstores throughout the country leading to a shortage.

Adults colouring in pictures for relaxation started in France about 18 months ago as the concept of Mindfulness took hold and seems to have arrived here about three months ago.

Mindfulness, has its roots in Buddhism and is about actively focusing attention on the present without judging it.

Timaru counsellor and Mindfulness facilitator Christine Macfarlane said colouring in, in a busy world with high anxiety, activates the right creative side of the brain.

"It allows you to have space to be, instead of do."

Temuka kindergarten teacher Haylee Darling started colouring in after researching Mindfulness about a year ago.

"I enjoyed the result. It's a simple pleasure."

Depending on how stressed she was will determine how long she will fill In the shapes in her book with coloured pencils.

"Usually for five to 10 minutes or half an hour. "

People may scoff but it was a "fabulous" thing to do, she said.

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"I highly recommend it."

Like many adults who have taken up colouring in, sourcing the books was challenging.

"I'm on a waiting list for one."

Whitcoulls national book manager Joan Mackenzie said the demand was "massive" and the company's suppliers had struggled to keep up.

"It's the biggest phenomenon I have seen since Harry Potter."

The Timaru store was selling between 10 and 20 of the books a day and had a waiting list. Mackenzie expects the Timaru branch to sell about 1000 between now and Christmas.

One of the most sought-after adult books was by Scottish illustrator Johanna Basford who has published intricate picture outlines within pictures. For example, an outline of a fox may have forest flora shaped within its body and puzzles with clues imbedded visually as a narrative. Some New Zealand artists were starting to create books but it would be a while before they were produced. Children's colouring in books were selling by default when the ones the adults wanted were unavailable, Mackenzie said.

Though more women were interested in the pastime than men, Mackenzie knew of the chief executive of a large company who was encouraging all his staff to colour in for relaxation regardless of gender.

"These things do have a life cycle so I think it will be around and dominant into 2016," Mackenzie said.

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Fairytales feed our minds with the enchanted thoughts about finding a situation where our wishes are fulfilled and we live "happily ever after." Contrary to this belief, happiness is not something to go out and find. Happiness is made (with focus and effort) from within. Following the guidance of researchers and masters in wellbeing we can extract these key points:

1. Accept the unfamiliar.

If you only find value in what you know well and ignore or dislike everything unfamiliar, you may be passing up on life's diamonds. Open yourself up to learning new perspectives. "Novelty, or exposing ourselves to new ideas and experiences, promotes the growth of new connections among existing neurons," Daniel J. Siegel explains in Mindsight. Siegel explains how the brain and personality forms and transforms as we incorporate new behaviors. Openness to a new practice such as meditation that focuses on balance and fulfillment can not only give you a new experience, but can change your personality to becoming a harmonious, happy person.

As Bob Dylan puts it, "He not busy being born is busy dying." Life is growth and linked to happiness through the joy of expanding our abilities. For example, learning a new specialty, language or other ability brings greater pleasure than limiting yourself to continuing to only do what you know. Like a coal miner who knows and depends on the value of coal, if he is open to find something "not coal" he may find a diamond.

Open up and expand yourself towards happiness.

2. Activate your intuition.

Not everything is figured out rationally. In fact, sometimes we can use logic to disclaim truth. (Think of the rational belief people once had that the world is flat and had an edge to fall off. Thankfully, someone had an intuition that opened up new territories. )

For those of us that have been so schooled to only trust knowledge that comes from books or backed by scientific studies, we could access meaningful wisdom by listening to intuition. "The intuitive way of perceiving has always put me in touch with the effortless, truly joyful nature of life and showed me how, when we approach our experiences with childlike innocence and awe, miracles abound," delights Penny Peirce, intuitive development trainer in the introduction of her book, The Intuitive Way.

Learning the wisdom you have inside can begin filling you with joy.

3. Mindfully sort through information.

We are constantly bombarded with information. Deciding what we take in either moves us toward happiness of derails us into depression. Be conscious of the underlying direction of the information that you take in from the books you read, shows you watch and conversations that you participate in. Ask yourself, "Is the message here moving me towards hopefulness and compassion or hopelessness, fear and anger?"

Hope and compassion encourages us to connect into viable support systems with others, allowing for greater possibilities in collaboration. "Mindfulness can also be described as compassion, because it is an empathetic awareness," as explained in the book, Mindfulness by Mark Williams, John Teasdale, Zindel Segal and Jon Kabat-Zinn. The authors, professors and researchers in psychology and medicine, explain that depression is overcome by empathetic awareness. When we create bonds of caring with others, those bonds build our secure sense of self.

Stories, real or fiction, that describe love and caring stimulate our internal position to the mindful compassionate state of being. Choose to expose yourself to the friends, news, shows, books and other media that convey hopeful accounts.

4. Use language carefully.

What we say forms our thinking and eventually our actions. For those who speak different languages, you know that a different way of thinking accommodates the tongue.

In the English language we experience words that call for harmony from Martin Luther King Jr, words that inspire courage from Winston Churchill and words that evoke passion from William Shakespeare. In our personal lives, we recall encouraging words of a parent, teacher or coach that carry us through challenges. We probably recall how a criticism was phrased in a supportive way or in a style that crushed us.

The language we use to describe others and ourselves forms thoughts and behaviors that shift our identity. "Words will and do influence your actions. They start the painting of your self-projection to others and reinforce this image within," David Fastiggi reminds us in Your True Identity. We tend to follow the words we say about ourselves into becoming our personality.

5. Appreciate who you are.

Recognize the positives of your qualities. All qualities have a plus side and aspects that can irritate others. Instead of focusing on wanting to change your qualities, change the way you use your qualities. Appreciating yourself facilitates your ability to love, respect and value others as well.

"Everything, even your success issues and your circumstances, boils down to whether you are in an internal state of fear or an internal state of love," Alexander Loyd clarifies in his recently released book, Beyond Willpower: The Secret Principle to Achieve Success in Life, Love and Happiness. Compassionate acceptance of yourself with love frees you to make choices towards fulfillment and happiness. The small choices we make based on love or fear accumulate to the life we build. Therefore love yourself.

AND as you appreciate who you are, do the same for others. We are mirrors to one another.

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Working Mothers Raise More Successful Daughters and Empathetic Sons

A mother's guilt never ends.

You can never quite do enough, try juggle enough, be enough in an age where the demands of family, work and (hopefully) a personal life keep you hopping morning, noon and night.

Huffington Post titles tell mothers how to "Be a Working Mom Without Hating Your Life," "End the Mommy Guilt for Good!" and "Conquer Mommy Guilt Once and for All."

But what if you needn't feel so guilty in the first place?

What if the very fact that you're a working mom actually has substantial and meaningful benefits for your children?

A new working paper by Kathleen McGinn and her colleagues for Harvard Business School purports that working mothers are more likely to raise successful daughters and caring, empathetic sons. It's true!

McGinn, the Cahners-Rabb Professor of Business Administration at HBS, conducted the study alongside Mayra Ruiz Castro, HBS researcher, and Elizabeth Long Lingo, an embedded practitioner at Mt. Holyoke College. In their study of the International Social Survey Programme and the results of two surveys called "Family and Changing Gender Roles," conducted in 2002 and 2012, the group found that working mothers may be doing a far better job than they thought.

Among their surprising findings:

Men with mothers who worked outside the home are just as likely to hold supervisory positions in their adult life as those with stay-at-home moms. Women with mothers who worked outside the home, however, are more likely to supervise others at work.
Being raised by a mother who worked outside the home had no effect on a man's adult income, but women raised by working mothers had a higher income than their peers whose mothers stayed home full-time.
Men whose mothers had worked outside the home at any point were more likely to contribute to household chores and the care of family members.
Women raised by a working mother spent more time, on average, with their children than those raised by stay-at-home mothers.
Their definition of a working mother was based on this one question: "Did your mother ever work for pay, after you were born and before you were 14?"

This means working mothers, for the purposes of this study, don't have to be career professionals. Mothers who work part-time, or temporarily, still benefit their children in these ways.

McGinn reassures working mothers that they're doing the family as a whole a lot of good as she notes, "There's a lot of potential guilt about having both parents working outside the home. But what this research says to us is that not only are you helping your family economically -- and helping yourself professionally and emotionally if you have a job you love -- but you're also helping your kids."

And there you have it. Spouses of working moms, grab her some flowers on the way home and be sure to say thank you. She deserves it!

And Moms -- stop being so hard on yourselves.


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