Parenting Philosophy

Dr. M’s Women and Children First Podcast #69 – Stephen Porges, Ph.D. – Polyvagal Theory

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This week I sit down with Dr. Stephen Porges,
He is a Distinguished University Scientist at Indiana University where he is the founding director of the Traumatic Stress Research Consortium. He is Professor of Psychiatry at the University of North Carolina, and Professor Emeritus at both the University of Illinois at Chicago and the University of Maryland.
He served as president of the Society for Psychophysiological Research and the Federation of Associations in Behavioral & Brain Sciences and is a former recipient of a National Institute of Mental Health Research Scientist Development Award. He has published more than 400 peer-reviewed papers across several disciplines including anesthesiology, biomedical engineering, critical care medicine, ergonomics, exercise physiology, gerontology, neurology, neuroscience, obstetrics, pediatrics, psychiatry, psychology, psychometrics, space medicine, and substance abuse. In 1994 he proposed the Polyvagal Theory, a theory that links the evolution of the mammalian autonomic nervous system to social behavior and emphasizes the importance of physiological state in the expression of behavioral problems and psychiatric disorders. The theory is leading to innovative treatments based on insights into the mechanisms mediating symptoms observed in several behavioral, psychiatric, and physical disorders.
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He is the author of multiple books on his Polyvagal Theory: including the Neurophysiological foundations of Emotions, Attachment, Communication, and Self-regulation, as well as Polyvagal Safety: Attachment, Communication, Self-Regulation. His newest book cowritten with his son is called Our Polyvagal World, How Safety and Trauma Change Us. Dr. Porges is the creator of a music-based intervention, the Safe and Sound Protocol ™ (SSP), which is used by therapists to improve social engagement, language processing, and state regulation, as well as to reduce hearing sensitivities.
This is such a fascinating conversation. He brings the worlds of psychiatry and anthropological physiology into union for us to understand the why of trauma reactions and the future unwinding that is now possible. This is a must listen to conversation if you know anyone with trauma history.
Please enjoy my conversation with Professor Porges,
Dr. M
His recent paper in Frontiers in Integrative Neuroscience
Website for Dr. Porges
Newest Book – Our Polyvagal World

Dr. M’s SPA Newsletter Audiocast Volume 14 Issue 13

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To Forgive
The act as defined as I see it – to release consciously another person from your negative feelings based on an event that was hurtful toward you from them whether it is perceived on your part or known by both parties.
What I find fascinating is that often the act of forgiveness may have to push past an unconscious threat injury in order to take root. This is to say that we can be harmed at a conscious and an unconscious level. The unconscious harm is understood at the vagal nerve level which is a primitive emotional safety response state that all mammals have that developed a long time ago. This is the essence of polyvagal theory which states that when humans feel safe, their nervous system supports the homeostatic functions of health, growth and restoration, while simultaneously become accessible to others without feeling or expressing threat and vulnerability. (Porges S. 2022) Thus, the opposite exists, when humans are threatened, their nervous system supports a break in homeostasis that can be short lived or long persistent based on the severity and chronicity of the harm. This break can lead to persistent mental and physical health challenges….. and a section on sleep followed by the recipe of the week.
Enjoy,
Dr. M

Dr. M’s SPA Newsletter Audiocast Volume 14 Issue 3

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Resolutions? Do we need them?
The simple answer for me is this – if it causes beneficial change, then yes we need them. Ideally, change should occur real time as the need or knowledge of benefit becomes apparent.
New Years is traditionally a time that we introspect and set new goals for a better life. What that means to each one of us is as varied as the plants that exist, save for human health. We all WANT to be healthy. We all WANT to be happy. The impediment to being is not changing…..plus audience questions answered and a recipe of the week.
Enjoy,
Dr. M

Dr. M’s SPA Newsletter Audiocast Volume 13 Issue 47

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Covid 19 Post Mortem
As you all know, after reading countless articles that I have posted about COVID and the policies that were put in place by “well meaning” bureaucrats, I have been highly critical of the events that took place and the US Government’s failure on so many fronts. There are two seminal articles that have been written on these topics to date: 1) COVID-19 Origins: Investigating a “Complex and Grave Situation” Inside a Wuhan Lab, 2) COVID Lockdowns Were a Giant Experiment. It Was a Failure. A key lesson of the pandemic. 3) The third and equally critical article that remains unpublished is the story of the Standard American Diet and its direct connection to death from Covid…..also conversations on picky eaters and a recipe of the week.
Enjoy, Dr. M

Dr. M’s SPA Newsletter Audiocast Volume 13 Issue 46

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Delaying Gratification and Dopamine
When we think of our current societal view on raising children, we have a conundrum. We want our children to experience the world as it is progressing through a technological viewpoint, a growth mentality. What does that mean? . When technology enters the learning process, we progress at log rates. We can process more information and incorporate it into our memory. For a simple example, let’s look back in time. When I was in school, I had to go to the library and search through the library’s archaic dewey decimal system to find a book to reference for information for a project or assignment. Time wasting to say the least compared to the internet age. It took forever to accumulate old data that was in a book. No real time action…Also a mini literature review and a recipe of the week.
Enjoy,
Dr. M

Dr. M’s SPA Newsletter Audiocast Volume 13 Issue 43

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The Power of Suggestion
Can our thoughts affect us at a biological level not just a subjective level?
In a new study published in pre print in BioRxIV entitled: A thalamic circuit represents dose-like responses induced by nicotine-related beliefs in human smokers, we see some new research looking at the power of suggestion well beyond the placebo effect……
Plus a mini literature review as well as a discussion on autism etiology.
Enjoy,
Dr. M

Dr. M’s SPA Newsletter Audiocast Volume 13 Issue 42

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Musk and Rand
Elon Musk by Walter Isaacson is a book worthy of your time. He is an amazing writer and the context and content are so timely for the happenings of today. The story of Elon Musk remains one to be completely written, but it is being partially displayed in this new book that I am in the early stages of reading. The truth of the matter remains that Elon suffered some significant traumas as a child that have vexed him throughout his life. However, the triumph of his story that is an amazing lesson for all is that the traumas do not define your trajectory nor final outcome. Elon has proven what many others have before him. That in this country, you are the architect of your destiny. Your are NOT defined by your past in anyway. You are NEVER a victim unless you choose that path. You can always choose to rise above trauma and pain to be your best self. This is not to say that the trauma does not weigh on you and your psyche. To the contrary, as Elon clearly demonstrates, the past is in all of us. It will rise up at times to haunt us. Therein lies your work, to witness, work through and rise above it…..Plus a mini lit review as well as the recipe of the week.
Enjoy,
Dr. M

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