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OPINION: LGBTQ Pride Must Extend to the Trades – southseattleemerald.com

Posted: May 22, 2021 at 1:56 am


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by Morgan Mentzer and Deaunte Damper

President Joe Bidens multiple restructure plans focus significantly on building and creating new infrastructure, training trades workers, and supporting labor unions. However, without a cultural reckoning for the trades that addresses the toxic workplace culture permeating much of the industry and preventing nontraditional workers from entering or remaining in the trades, the restructure plan will further exacerbate the racial and gender disparities. Bidens ambitious plans lean on the trades to address the economic impacts of COVID-19, the significant unemployment and the subsequent lack of health insurance.

However, the trades are rife with racism, toxic masculinity, and stagnant representation. For the restructure plans to succeed, the trades must address the toxic workplace culture to move the trades toward safety, inclusion, and not just cultural competence but cultural humility. Without safety, inclusion and humility, the restructure plan will further exacerbate the racialized inequality mirrored across Americas history and contemporary policies. ANEW and Reckoning Trade Project have an answer, and the compass to continue to guide. It starts with cultural humility.

At the Reckoning Trade Project, an organization committed to increasing representation and retention of LGBTQ trades workers, we recognize that the prospect of entering the trades for many LGBTQ folks is entirely too dangerous. We are working together with Apprenticeship & Nontraditional Employment for Women (ANEW) to address toxic workplace cultures in the trades.

By cultural humility we mean the self-awareness of personal and cultural biases, as well as awareness and sensitivity to significant cultural issues of others. The trades and unions have both facilitated social change and perpetrated injustice based on race and gender, and leadership in the trades and unions are majorly white, cisgendered men. The culture of the trades is entrenched in misogyny, racism, transphobia, and homophobia and does not provide for safety and inclusion and remains a dangerous and unappealing avenue for many nontraditional workers.

LGBTQ trades workers face increased rates of violence and discrimination in the trades. Worker complaints about harassment and bullying must be taken seriously, and perpetrators must be fired; there must be representation of LGBTQ trades workers in upper management, affinity groups to address ongoing harassment, and safe spaces for all LGBTQIA community members. Studies show that anywhere from 15% to 43% of queer people have experienced some form of discrimination and harassment at the workplace. Moreover, a staggering 90% of transgender workers report some form of harassment or mistreatment on the job. These workplace abuses pose a real and immediate threat to the economic security of gay and transgender workers.

For the trades to remain as relevant and critical, recognition of this history, and contemporary culture is required. Worker demographics are shifting, and the trades will have to adapt. In 2042, whites will be the minority, while currently over 9.5% of youths identify as LGBTQ. The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects better-than-average employment in the building trades through 2026. Furthermore, the most in-demand skilled trade jobs are remaining unfilled the longest due to a shortage of qualified workers. We need a new blueprint.

With Pride month rapidly approaching, before the flag raising, WE as all community members need to focus on calls to action safety, inclusion.

I believe that telling our stories, first to ourselves and then to one another and the world, is a revolutionary act. It is an act that can be met with hostility, exclusion, and violence. It can also lead to love, understanding, transcendence, and community. I hope that my being real with you will help empower you to step into who you are and encourage you to share yourself with those around you.

Apprenticeships & Nontraditional Employment for Women was founded in 1980. ANEW improves peoples lives by providing quality training, employment navigation and supportive services leading to successful family wage careers.

RISE Up (Respect, Inclusion, Safety, and Equity in the Construction Trades) is a Respectful Workplace Campaign designed to shift the culture of construction to be more inclusive to a diverse workforce. This campaign is designed to be used by public entities, construction companies, apprenticeship training programs, unions and community-based organizations.

Reckoning Trade Project was founded in 2018 by a former auto mechanic, and a welder. The Reckoning Trade Project (RTP) works toward creating safer and more equitable workplaces and increasing job retention in the trades by building support systems, hosting educational forums, and organizing social events with a focus on LGBTQ+, BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) and other nontraditional trades workers.

ANEW and RTP are centering LGBTQ+ trade workers; we have created an affinity group specifically for LGBTQ+ trade workers. A first of its kind, this group creates a safe space for nontraditional trade workers across the trades to address workplace discrimination and violence and promote solidarity for those who are often isolated from other nontraditional trade workers and management. The affinity group will provide trade workers opportunities to engage, learn and develop policies and practices that can be implemented across the trades, and promote representation in leadership across the trades. Nontraditional trade workers need to be centered in the fight for equity and the restructure plan.

This is a call to action to the traditional trade workers who think that pronouns are just an option, who see us just as the alphabet people, who constantly jeopardize the safety of LGBTQ+ workers, and who fail to recognize their own privilege and complicity in the toxic trades culture. ANEW and RTP collaborate on workplace trainings around safety, inclusion, gender identity, and racism. Both organizations can be hired to provide trainings that address workplace harassment.

Morgan Mentzer (she/her) co-founded the Lavender Rights Project, a by-and-for legal services and community organizing nonprofit. As a lead attorney, Morgan specializes in employment law and family law focusing on intersections of gender identity and racism. Prior to pursuing a career in law, Morgan was an auto mechanic. Rooted in the trades, she is the co-founder of the Reckoning Trade Project, an organization committed to increasing representation and retention of QTIPOC (Queer, Trans, Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) trades workers.

Deaunte Damper (moderator) born in Seattle, has focused his work on bringing HIV awareness and LGBTQ-affirming education to marginalized communities throughout the City of Seattle. This started through his nonprofit work at POCAAN as a peer navigator for the Department of Health. In April 2019, Damper made history as the NAACPS first LGBTQIA chair, the first in 110 years of the organization. In October 2019, Damper began as a transitional specialist for the Washington State Department of Corrections. And as of November 2019, he is Rainier Beach High Schools Black Student Union advisor. He also started a support group for Young Men of Color, B.R.O.T.H.A (Blacks Recovering Overcoming Trauma Health and Awareness). Deaunte was recently named the incoming board chair for Black Lives Matter Seattle-King County as of 2021 Damper is currently working as the new apprenticeship navigator for ANEW.

Featured image is attributed to Ivan Radic (under a Creative Commons, CC BY 2.0 license).

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OPINION: LGBTQ Pride Must Extend to the Trades - southseattleemerald.com

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May 22nd, 2021 at 1:56 am

Posted in Self-Awareness

Embracing the divine feminine power within us all – Yahoo Lifestyle

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Deepak Chopra explains that in one way or another, we all express qualities of the divine feminine. (Photo by: Nathan Congleton/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images)

One feels a change in the wind that has been a long time coming. There has been an awakening that has brought on a call to attain and embrace social equity and justice. The fault lines are related to race, socioeconomics and gender. This change we sense around us is brought on by a rise in embracing feminine energy, a potent energy that goes beyond political and social factors. There is something deeply spiritual stirring.

Lets approach feminine energy as a universal quality in consciousness. This quality is divine and has been part of every spiritual tradition, yet each generation has to reinterpret it. At the moment, embedded in a secular society where daily demands and distractions are the rule, connecting with the divine feminine requires going deeper into our self-awareness.

Awakening to the divine feminine

Beyond constructs of gender, everyones source is pure awareness. When pure awareness manifests into creation, gender isnt in evidence, nor are many of the labels we take on in our physical manifestation. When you wake up from deep sleep and become aware of your existence, the experience has no labels. The division between masculine and feminine enters in a social context, defined by the beliefs, attitudes, and mental conditioning of yourself and the world around you. To be confined in a solely binary experience of gender is a creation of many factors, going far beyond the physiological.

The divine feminine isnt to be confused with gender or restricted to women because in reality, the divine feminine is part of everyones wholeness. When we divide all human experiences into the narrow categories of women and men, we lose the opportunity to access wholeness. In order to truly love all people, and for them to love themselves, we each must nurture the universal values that belong to the divine feminine. Every human quality that we cherish has a pure source, and the closer you are to the source, the more intense, personal and lasting your values will be.

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Exploring the healing qualities within

What does the divine feminine add to everyones life? In one way or another, we all express qualities of the divine feminine. Whenever there is nurturing, devotional, compassionate, loving, intuitive or reflective energy the divine feminine is present. You might feel yourself resisting the expression of certain qualities to meet social approval because we have all been conditioned to do so.

When the feminine energy is ignored or wounded the same values that this energy carries are lost. In their absence a presence of qualities associated with masculine energy takes form. Forceful, overly competitive, controlling, domineeringthese attributes are exaggerated and far removed from wholeness. Society tells us that these energies are either/or, and we are made to feel uncomfortable expressing ourselves as we truly are a union of all.

On the individual level, the loss of the divine feminine can be devastating. There is an imbalance toward the masculine, which no one can sustain without damaging their capacity for loving acceptance, beginning with self-acceptance. I doubt there is anyone who cant benefit from healing the wounded feminine energy within. We regain wholeness in meditation, but it is in applying self-awareness in daily life that healing steps can be taken.

Restoring wholenesss

Take a moment every day and look through these qualities associated with the feminine energy Ive listed here: nurturing, caretaking, devotional, compassionate, intuitive, receptive. Think of one value youd like to encourage and enhance, then make a mental note of the action youll take that day to implement it. At night before you go to bed, reflect on your day to see if you carried out the action you planned. If so, how did it make you feel?

Here are some suggestions about how you might carry out healing the feminine side of wholeness:

Nurturingisabout all the things a parent does to raise their child, and we often identify it with helping the young. But adults also need support, encouragement, protection from harm and wise guidance. These are nurturing values too often neglected in our relationships. We forget that the child within us hasnt vanished with the passage of time. So, acting as a nurturing figure in anyone elses life is deeply appreciated.

Caretakingis warm, caring, accepting, and embracing. You might show someone close to you that you care by listening without judgement. You might include a person who seems like an outsider to your group and make them feel welcome.

Devotional energyis about the hearts need to surrender to something outside yourself, pouring out love and appreciation. Devotion is private and happens in silent communion. It doesnt have to be showy or even outwardly expressed. When you feel the impulse to express loving devotion, act upon it.

Compassionis about loving-kindness and the values that flow from it, such as empathy, acceptance, and non-judgment. Being easy with yourself and ending your own self-judgment are acts of compassion. The same is true when you extend the same attitude to others. As exalted as compassion sounds, it comes down to deciding that you are on the side of acceptance and kindness rather than judgment and harshness.

Intuition and receptivityare about making reconnecting to the source and living from that place. This is the energy of creation and inspiration; pure consciousness endlessly creates and is based on a flow of renewal every day. The opposite of renewal is habit, routine, mental conditioning and fixed beliefs. Rather than struggling to be more creative, use your efforts to tune in and intuitively remove the obstacles that block inspiration from coming through. Once you stop identifying with habit and routine, lifes freshness returns naturally, like water gushing from a spring.

DEEPAK CHOPRA MD, FACP, founder of The Chopra Foundation, a nonprofit entity for research on well-being and humanitarianism, and Chopra Global, a modern-day health company at the intersection of science and spirituality, is a world-renowned pioneer in integrative medicine and personal transformation. Chopra is a Clinical Professor of Family Medicine and Public Health at the University of California, San Diego and serves as a senior scientist with Gallup Organization. He is the author of over 89 books translated into over forty-three languages, including numerous New York Times bestsellers. His 90th book, Metahuman: Unleashing Your Infinite Potential, unlocks the secrets to moving beyond our present limitations to access a field of infinite possibilities. For the last thirty years, Chopra has been at the forefront of the meditation revolution and his next book, Total Meditation (Harmony Books) will help to achieve new dimensions of stress-free living and joyful living. Time magazine has described Dr. Chopra as one of the top 100 heroes and icons of the century.

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Embracing the divine feminine power within us all - Yahoo Lifestyle

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May 22nd, 2021 at 1:56 am

Posted in Self-Awareness

Oliver Gillie obituary – The Guardian

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The medical journalist Oliver Gillie, who has died aged 83 of lymphocytic leukaemia, once said that his chief duty as a reporter was to be a reasoning critic of developments in medicine, as well as a celebrant of the good they often, but not always, did. Science writing had changed dramatically over the previous two decades, he wrote in 1980: a shift from the simple popularisation of expert knowledge in the didactic spirit of Thomas Huxley and HG Wells to a stance that was more analytical, informed by a greater awareness of the damage caused by uncontrolled pollution and the too-ready use of pharmaceuticals.

Gillie was in the vanguard of this revolution. Over a journalistic career lasting more than 40 years, he wrote with great versatility about subjects that in the 1960s and 70s were only beginning to edge their way into the macho atmosphere of newspaper offices, where a foreign coup traditionally commanded more respect, space and attention than news of new birthing methods or the diets least likely to cause heart disease or cancer.

Healthy food, the risks of the contraceptive pill, the easiest way to stop smoking, the best exercise: all these ordinary topics interested him and featured regularly in his health page, the first to appear in a British newspaper, which he started in the Independent in 1986.

He believed in self-improvement and the unorthodox, traits that had their foundation in his Quaker childhood his father was a teetotal vegetarian who took cold-water baths and were developed during his 15 pre-Independent years as medical correspondent of the Sunday Times, whose then editor, Harold Evans, was committed to spreading notions of what Gillie called body maintenance among the papers staff as well as its readers. Out of this spirit of self-help came his fascination with sunlight and its role in supplying the body with vitamin D.

Some saw Gillies behaviour as eccentric: he would run every day on Hampstead Heath wearing only shorts and trainers, sometimes embarrassing his children by collecting them from school bare-chested. But it was more than faddism. Gillie held a doctorate in genetics from Edinburgh University and before embarking on his journalistic career worked under Sir Peter Medawar at the National Institute for Medical Research in London. The central debate about human behaviour whether the bigger influence is environmental or genetic underpinned most of Gillies serious work, and with vitamin D he came down clearly on the side of the first.

Scotlands Health Deficit: An Explanation and a Plan (2008) was a study of the excess mortality of a country that was, and by some measures remains, the sickest in Europe. It drew the attention of scientists and policymakers, and made a valuable contribution to public health.

Diet, poverty, social deprivation, alcohol, tobacco: many reasons had been advanced for Scotlands ill-health and its slow rate of improvement, particularly by comparison with England and Wales, but the combination could never completely explain the countrys distressing morbidity statistics, even when heredity was included. South Asians in Scotland suffered more heart disease than South Asians in England, despite similar ancestry, diets and habits.

Gillies solution to the epidemiological puzzle known as the Scottish effect involved another form of deprivation: the populations relative lack of vitamin D. It was caused, so Gillie argued, by the cloud cover that, especially in western Scotland, blocks out so much of the ultraviolet light that in other European countries and the US supplies 90% of a healthy persons stock of the vitamin. His paper ran to 100 pages and attracted the support of many distinguished academics, including Harvards professor of nutrition of epidemiology, Edward Giovannucci, who said it made a compelling case. Today, thanks largely to Gillies work, the Scottish government recommends that everyone, including children, should consider taking a vitamin D supplement, particularly during the low-sunlight months that run from October to March.

Born in North Shields, at the mouth of the River Tyne in Northumberland, Oliver was the second of three brothers. His father, John Gillie, was a nautical instrument maker with a particular interest in ships magnetic compasses; he was also, as a Quaker elder, a pacifist. His mother, Ann (nee Philipson), studied fine art in Newcastle and Paris, and had a long and successful career as a painter and embroiderer whose pictures were collected privately in several countries and by public galleries in northern England.

Oliver went to local schools and then a private Quaker boarding establishment, Bootham school in York. He graduated with a first-class degree in natural sciences at Edinburgh, and after his PhD won a Fulbright scholarship to Stanford in California.

He had an intriguing, otherworldly kind of frankness questions and remarks would just pop out which perhaps came from a successful struggle to overcome self-consciousness. A large strawberry birthmark stretched across his left cheek and neck, and early in 1975 he decided to write about it, with photographs, in the features pages of the Sunday Times. The blemish, he wrote, had made him miserable and awkward one of its effects was to lose him a place at Cambridge University after an interview with a don who had a similar mark even more disconcerting than mine, so that the pair froze in embarrassment. It was a bold piece of personal disclosure, much rarer then than now, and both honest and compassionate in its view of what disfigurement meant. Someone with a crippled face does not get the sympathy of someone with a crippled leg I understand how, with people uglier or more marked than myself, it can erode the mind like the drip of water on a stone. It was typical of him.

Gillie sometimes reported on non-medical subjects, including modern slavery and the end of communism in Romania. His several narrative pieces for the Sunday Times magazine, including a close-up account of a heart transplant and the smoking habit that killed four kings, won him attention and added to his long list of awards.

His books ranged in subject matter from male impotence to sickle cell anaemia. His curiosity and wide reading of academic periodicals what he called the grey literature provided a constant stream of ideas and stories, and made him a valuable asset to his editors and newspapers.

He liked to run, walk and sail. Apart from his daily trots around the Heath, not far from where he lived, he ran two marathons when he was in his 40s. He and his family sailed regularly on the River Stour in East Anglia. In Scotland, he vowed to climb every Munro, a project that illness curtailed.

In 1969 he married the documentary film-maker Louise Panton. They had two daughters, Lucy and Juliet, and divorced in 1991. In 1999 he married Jan Thompson, a journalist and managing editor of the Guardian, and they had two sons, Calder and Sholto. She and his children survive him.

Oliver John Gillie, medical journalist and writer, born 31 October 1937; died 15 May 2021

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Oliver Gillie obituary - The Guardian

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May 22nd, 2021 at 1:56 am

Posted in Self-Awareness

A Frank Conversation: Scott and Lukas Frank on Father-Son Creative Process, Co-Directing Music Video and Collaborating on The Queens Gambit -…

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Lukas Frank, the 27-year-old indie singer-songwriter-musician also known by his band name Storefront Church, had an idea for a music video concept for his new single, Us Against Us. Hed been learning a lot lately about self-states, the psychology concept that posits that individuals take on or are made up of different personas, and he was particularly interested in a visual representation of that, especially if those selves were kind of annoyed with one another.

It meshed well with the lyrics too, so he drafted an accomplished Oscar-nominated writer-director to bring it to life as his co-director. It was an easy ask as theyd worked together before Lukas contributed songs to the Hollywood veterans TV shows Godless and the pandemic phenomenon The Queens Gambit (for which he also had a one-word cameo role). Plus, how could his father say no?

Lucky for Lukas, Scott Frank did say yes and they pulled off the shoot in one day at a soundstage in Williamsburg. The music video, which debuted today, finds Lukas playing five versions of himself, all riding in the same car. Theres the formal one, decked out in a suit and tie; an exhausted one curled up with a pillow; a hip version with tinted shades, cell phone and hoodie; an over-it driver; and a melancholic passenger in the middle seat in back. Its a striking scene set against the backdrop of hyper-capitalist imagery.

While that may sound serious, the mood on set was anything but. We had a lot of fun, Scott tells The Hollywood Reporter. It was fun to direct Luke, because being a director is being a father anyway. I always find it is a version of that most days, no matter how old the person is youre directing. Its a very scary thing to sit there and be in front of a camera and in front of a crew. What youre really looking for is reassurance that youre, A, not going to look like an idiot and that this person will be the best audience ever. Thats my job as a director a lot, and certainly my job as a father.

Lukas, who has collaborated with Phoebe Bridgers and as a onetime drummer for Portugal. The Man, is ready to find an audience for the single and his new album, As We Pass, the first from his new label/management company Sargent House. Its been a years-long process from finishing the album, shopping it to labels, securing representation and waiting out a global pandemic for the right time to debut the personal work.

On a joint Zoom call Lukas connected from Los Angeles while his father joined from New York the two discussed their creative process, the story behind Lukas one-word cameo and musical contribution to his dads The Queens Gambit, possible tour plans and follow-up projects and how Lukas recovery has impacted his music. (And pay close attention to the humorous ribbing in between.)

This is my first father-son interview of my life.

LUKAS FRANK: Ours too.

SCOTT FRANK: How about that? Its the first for all of us.

Lets start with the video because it makes sense that you would do a joint interview since you co-directed. Whose decision was that to jump in and co-direct?

SCOTT FRANK: Well, very simply, nothing was my decision. I followed Lukas lead on this. We thought it would be really fun to do this together and he had a very clear idea of what he wanted to do. I really saw my job as helping him get what was in his feeble mind.

LUKAS FRANK: I would give you a little more credit than that. We really came together with a concept for the video in a cool way. I definitely threw this on my dad last minute. We had talked about doing a video before the pandemic hit, and then we tabled it and thought well just do it for the next album or something. Then as things started to become a little safer, this idea came to me last minute, and I was like, Dad, we have to do a video in the next month. Please.

SCOTT FRANK: Month? It was three weeks.

LUKAS FRANK: Yeah, it was [three weeks]. We had no time to put it together. He really came through for me and made it work.

Tell me about how that concept came to you, the idea to play five different versions of yourself? How did you feel the visuals of that would play with the lyrics of the song?

LUKAS FRANK: Ive been learning a lot about self-states and how we have these different personalities and voices within us that are all in conflict with each other. I was really interested in doing a visual representation of that, and, particularly, a representation of them all being annoyed with each other. That meshed with the theme of the song, which is one of helplessness and individualism and feeling trapped in your own head.

I love that idea. How was it, then, to be on set and play different five different characters?

LUKAS FRANK: It was a lot of fun, and it was a lot of fun doing it with my dad, who knows me pretty well. We would joke about, oh, that ones the real you, the pretentious turtleneck one or the sleepy one. Theres a lot of ribbing that goes on in our household, a lot of teasing. I think it was fun to make a tongue-in-cheek video in that way, where were caricatures of my different personalities. I just tried to think of five distinct characteristics of mine that felt honest. So yeah, theres a sleepy one; theres an irreverent, douchey one; theres a more serious nerdy one; theres a real basic, boring one.

And as that relates to the album, theres a lot of aesthetic diversity to the songs on the album, and I think that comes from that same place of each self-wanting to have the stage for a moment on the album, to have their voice heard. So, thats why therell be a real grunge punk one right next to a softer Mazzy Star-sounding one or something.

Scott, what was it like to direct your son?

SCOTT FRANK: It was awful because Lukas was so difficult and wouldnt come out of his trailer. Except he didnt have a trailer. (Laughs.) No, it was a treat, and it was really a lot of fun to figure it out together. Like Lukas was saying, it came together so fast and we had one day to shoot it. We were very lucky that we had a gentleman named Nick Castle as our producer with his company, verytaste, so we had a ready-made production group to help us. Lukas and I could walk into that and Nick took care of us so we could focus on the creative aspects.

We had a lot of fun. It was fun to direct Luke, because being a director is being a father anyway. I always find it is a version of that most days, no matter how old the person is youre directing. Its a very scary thing to sit there and be in front of a camera and in front of a crew. What youre really looking for is reassurance that youre, A, not going to look like an idiot and that this person will be the best audience ever. Thats my job as a director a lot and certainly my job as a father.

Lukas, not everyone has an Oscar-nominated father available to direct them

LUKAS FRANK: Dont remind him.

Im sure youve been to his sets and watched him work, but did you learn anything new from him during this project?

LUKAS FRANK: Im trying to think if I learned anything about him from doing this with each other because I have been around him on set and worked with him

SCOTT FRANK: Ive directed him before. Lukas has played parts in

LUKAS FRANK: Oh, yeah. I had a one-word line in The Queens Gambit. I said, Shit.

Oh, wow, I didnt know that. What episode?

SCOTT FRANK: Episode three. Beth Harmon introduces herself to a chess player, and when he realizes he has to play Beth Harmon, he just gives up and basically says, Oh, shit. Thats Lukas.

I remember you!

LUKAS FRANK: Im honored. [Laughs}

SCOTT FRANK: He was really brilliant. Basically, all attention went right to Lukas on that.

LUKAS FRANK: Dad has a pretty collected way of working. Hes a pretty even-keeled guy. Im not directly answering your question, but I would say that most of what I know about him as an artist comes from just watching movies with him and knowing what he likes. Thats always been our bonding thing. Its our father-son activity; we watch movies together and we sit and talk about it afterward.

We have a shared taste and language, and theres this inherent trust there from just that. My taste is built off of watching movies with him and him showing me all of these cool things, or us discovering things together that we didnt know wed like. So much of my music is directly influenced by Hollywood and films. But as a director, everyone always says how he takes care of his actors. Thats what you always hear in the interviews, and its true. Hes a sensitive guy. Hes a loving, sensitive, caring guy and he looks out for people. Thats what he does.

That was really sweet. Lukas, I wanted to ask about the album too, because I was really struck by what you posted on Instagram last month. You were sharing gratitude to those who surround you, writing, As we pass through the in between spaces, as weve lived through the discomfort of change, as we move towards some kind of ending, which feels like it speaks to the current times but maybe also the album? How are you feeling about just putting this album out into the world?

LUKAS FRANK: The EP that I made before this album was a very lonely, alcoholic EP, and just a very dark inward journey. I did end up releasing it just under my name, and I almost released it anonymously. So, the transition from that EP to this album, this album became about community. I got sober. It became about letting people into the process. I gave it a project name instead of my own name.

The theme throughout is about things ending as we pass, being in a transition, being inside of the process of something ending, and the discomfort of that and living with that discomfort. Or the catharsis of something you want to end, being close to the end of something. Thats the only through line in the album but it is a metaphor for itself in that Ive been waiting for it Ive been working on this project for years now behind closed doors, and this is the first step out into sharing it with people, and thats its own ending and beginning of itself. It is strange to be sharing something thats to me now so old, but also something that Im proud of and have been looking forward to sharing with people.

How has getting sober affected your music?

LUKAS FRANK: Its the best thing Ive ever done for myself. Its affected everything in my life positively. Not to look at it with rose colored glasses because its been really hard, but theres the myth that you have to be struggling and intoxicated or whatever to be creative and that has never been more squashed by me and the people around me. Like [Zachary Cole Smith] from DIIV getting sober and making, to me, what is his most fully realized work, or the Deafheaven boys doing the same thing. All these bands around me, we came together in this sober community and Ive watched everyone make, to me, what is their most exciting work. So, yeah, its one of the best things I ever did for myself.

Dad, how does that make you feel to hear that?

SCOTT FRANK: Proud. Incredibly proud. He is so far ahead of me in terms of wisdom when I was his age. Its a hard thing to turn certain aspects of our lives around, especially when were so young, and to make these kinds of bold moves and commitments when were so young, and to recognize that were to have enough self-awareness to know what isnt working. Im just proud of him, and I lucked out when somebody picked him to be my son.

Do you have a favorite track on his album?

SCOTT FRANK: I love this one [were talking about, Us Against Us] but also Total Strangers. I also have Us Against Us permanently welded into my brain after shooting the video and listening to the song at various speeds for eight hours straight.

LUKAS FRANK: Yeah, it was double-timed so that we could shoot it in slow motion, and it sounds particularly psychotic at the double speed.

SCOTT FRANK: I find myself at various times during the day realizing that this song is playing in my head.

Lukas, you also have a track featured on The Queens Gambit. How did that come about? Do you present a track to your dad? Or does your dad say, I have a scene that I need this type of music for?

LUKAS FRANK: Well, we did it for Godless, and it ended up working out pretty well. Did you tell me what scene you needed something for?

SCOTT FRANK: I did. I gave you a spot.

LUKAS FRANK: So, both times hes given me a scene in the script, and I read the scene and I just tried to write to that scene like I was scoring the scene myself. I would just picture it in my head and be like, okay, well, whats the tone of whats happening here? What would I want to hear? In both cases, it was used as punctuation to the scene, which I really liked.

SCOTT FRANK: In the case of The Queens Gambit, it was a very sad moment and I was looking for something. I just knew Luke would be able to play against it in a way. Not in a cheerful way, but in a way that was unexpected. The trick was to do something that felt different, but not modern in both cases. We, again, took his music and started playing it as score earlier in the episode. In this case, it was right before the very end but it segued from [Carlos Rafael Riveras] original score into Lukas music and then into the song at the end, which was great. Watching a full orchestra record his song was really fun.

Its episode four, right?

SCOTT FRANK: Yes, its after her mother dies and shes in a pharmacia in Mexico and you hear Luke singing acapella and the music comes in while shes on the airplane in this sequence at the end. Its a really gorgeous piece of music.

LUKAS FRANK: I read that scene on the plane, and immediately wrote the chorus melody afterward. Ive never really had an experience like that where I read the thing and got the melody immediately. I find it really easy to come up with things that my dad would like. Theres such a specific musical language that he uses. He likes dramatic statements and I like that too. He played guitar in the house growing up. And writing Shame [a track for Godless featuring Phoebe Bridgers], I wrote towards what I would hear coming from his office. I think the one note that he gave me before writing Shame was no jazz chords. I was like, okay, cool, no jazz chords for the old Western track.

About The Queens Gambit, the word phenomenon doesnt even properly capture how big it has become. How does it feel to have contributed even a small part to that because Im told that you both sort of thought that nobody would watch?

LUKAS FRANK: Well, I have a responsibility to deflate his head at every possible turn. But its so cool. Its cool to see a passion project of his that he wrote, directed and worked on for so long get this much attention. Its awesome and its well-deserved validation. To have a small part in it makes it that much cooler. And be the first person nominated for an Emmy for a one-word line in a miniseries, its an honor and Im moved. (Laughs.)

This is your big FYC interview. Scott, how did it feel for you to sit back and witness this phenomenon take hold? Did it affect how you want to approach your work going forward?

SCOTT FRANK: Well, first of all, Im glad Im the age I am and not, say, Lukes age when this happened, because Im not sure how it would have affected me then. I was confused and then bemused. I remember saying to my wife, Lukes mom, when we finished cutting it, that for the first time ever in 30-some years of doing this, Im just so glad I got to make this. I never thought I would get to make this one. I honestly dont really care what anybody thinks. Then I forgot about it.

When I convinced Netflix to stupidly say yes to do it, I never thought anyone would watch it. I thought wed have an audience and it might come out okay, but it wasnt the kind of thing would become a part of the zeitgeist. It was not ever intended to be. While we were shooting, I was just so happy to be shooting. That was enough. I had half the budget that I had on the last one, so that was my thinking.

In terms of how it affects my decision-making matrix going forward, the things Im working on now are the same things that I was working on before the show happened. Im lucky in that I have a lot of things that I really love and care about that Im working on, and they all take time. Godless was a 12-year haul. Ive had several projects that were almost as long as that. This one certainly was. Ive been in and out of it over the years. I feel like Im just going to keep doing what Im doing and not take too much of a message from this beyond, isnt this a really nice thing?

LUKAS FRANK: While also breaking into the music video game at the same time.

SCOTT FRANK: As a fallback, I now am in the music video game.

Lukas, let me ask you too, now that your album is done and youve spent some time with it and youre putting As We Pass out there, how has this project affected what you want to do next? Or have you already been creating more music during this time?

LUKAS FRANK: Next week, I start rehearsals to get in the studio for the second album. Since I finished As We Pass, Ive been obsessively working on the second album. I learned so much making As We Pass that I immediately wanted to get back and do it again. But one thing, I started touring and then the pandemic hit. It was just all these things got in the way. Now I really have the time and space, and so Ill be taking the summer to do this second album.

Will you tour for As We Pass?

LUKAS FRANK: Yeah, absolutely. The second album probably wont see the light of day for another year or so. But in the meantime, Im taking this last minute of things being closed to get the second album done. Then Ill probably spend the early part or the bulk of 2022 touring off of As We Pass.

Lets end where we started with the father-son co-directing team. Are there more music videos in your future together?

SCOTT FRANK: If he lets me. Im available, Luke. I hope he might give me the offer. Im always waiting for the offer.

LUKAS FRANK: Well see. Well see. Well see. (Laughs.) Yeah, absolutely. Were both really happy with how this turned out. While theres the baked in father-son bickering that comes with it, theres also that inherent trust. We do have a good relationship as far as father-son relationships go.

SCOTT FRANK: And even though I havent heard any of the music on the new album, I have lots of ideas for you. Lots of ideas. So, stand by.

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A Frank Conversation: Scott and Lukas Frank on Father-Son Creative Process, Co-Directing Music Video and Collaborating on The Queens Gambit -...

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May 22nd, 2021 at 1:56 am

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Central Church Hosting Day in the Park-ing Lot Is Sunday May 30th – b985.fm

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According to a Facebook event page made by Central Church, is hosting their annual Day in the Park-ing lot Sunday, May 30th. This is a day where Central Church opens its doors aka "Parking-lot" to members from all of their locations and those in the community who are interested in attending a service.

The service will get kicked off at 10:30 am, but the worship service isn't the only thing happening. Central Church will be hosting baptisms, testimonies, and even a free bbq. Outdoor seating will be provided, but you are welcome to bring your own chair or blanket.

Day in the Park-ing Lot will be taking place at the Central ChurchAugusta location at 20 Mission Ave in Augusta. Parking for this event will be at Cony High School, located at 60 Pierce Drive, in Augusta. Those unable to make the walk from Cony to Central Church can be dropped off at the Church's door.

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Central Church Hosting Day in the Park-ing Lot Is Sunday May 30th - b985.fm

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May 22nd, 2021 at 1:56 am

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Self Defense Essentials and the Combat Triad – Outdoor Life Magazine

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Imagine youre new to firearms and want to be armed for self-defense. Youre probably wondering which gun to buy, what type of holster you need, and what kind of ammunition would be best. Some will argue the gun is the most important element because it must work every time. Others will insist the holster matters most because if youre uncomfortable carrying, you wont carry. And then there are those who maintain that ammunition is paramount because ultimately, its the bullet that does all the work. Without question, all these items are important and can contribute to your survival, but what is most important?

Former Marine Jeff Cooper founded what is now known as Gunsite Academy in Paulden, Arizona, in 1976. It is the oldest and largest civilian firearms training school in the world. In an effort to codify the basics of using a firearm to survive a lethal confrontation, Cooper established what he called the Combat Triad. This triangle of guidance consists of mindset, gun handling, and marksmanship. Though the three sides of the triangle are considered equilateral, the base or foundation of the Triad is mindset, for without the combat mindset, your skills and abilities with weaponry and tactics are of little value.

Your awareness, anticipation, concentration, coolness, and self-control are part of your mindset. With the proper mindset you will not be caught off guard. You will be able to unleash your inner monster in order to prevail upon your antagonist. With the proper mindset youre prepared to win. To stay alive and fight kicking, clawing, and screaming until youve expended your last breath. It also means youre prepared to act in a manner that, while not with malice, could ultimately result in the death of your attacker.

The proper mindset for self-defense is not something you can get from a book or purchase online; its a state of mind that must be matured. Good marksmanship and gun handling contribute to the proper mindset because they breed the confidence that you have the necessary physical skills to deal with an attack. The employment of a handgun for self-defense is nothing more than an extension of your will; you fight with your mind; the handgun is just a tool you use.

Gun Handling deals with skill at arms. It encompasses your ability to swiftly access and present your defensive handgun into the fight. It concerns your ability to keep your handgun operational; you must be able to reload when necessary as well as efficiently and effectively deal with any malfunctions or stoppages that might occur. But safety is part of gun handling as well. It represents your commitment to being a responsible gun owner who does not endanger others while handling a firearm, and it deals storing the handgun so that its secure from unwanted access.

Can you present your handgun to the target in less than a second and a half? Can you conduct a reload in two seconds or clear a stoppage in three? Can you holster the handgun safely or move in a crowd without pointing the gun at innocent people? These are all elements of gun handling.

Simply explained, marksmanship is the ability to maintain the proper sight alignment while the trigger is pressed. If done correctly, the bullet lands exactly where you want it to. But as it relates to self-defense, marksmanship it is much more than that. Marksmanship is the ability to shoot with speed while under enormous stress. Its not about trick shooting or little groups, its about being able to hurriedly deliver single or multiple shots into an attackers lethal zone. Marksmanship is not about how well you can shoot on your best day; its about how you will shoot on demand, when the stakes are at the highest.

Read Next: This Rifle Training Program Will Make You a Better Shot in 200 Rounds

Can you execute a critical-zone hit at five yards, from the holster, in less than two seconds? Deliver a head shot at 10 yards in three seconds or less? Can you fire an accurate double tap or perform the failure drill with two good torso hits and one to the head? These are basic marksmanship benchmarks that should be your goal.

If youre aware that when it comes to survival you are your own first responder, you have taken the first step in the development of the correct mindset. Acquiring a firearm and related gear is often the next step. This should be followed by the training you need to develop the skills of gun handling and marksmanship, because they provide the confidence and foundation you need to help cultivate the proper mindset to fight and survive.

While guns, holsters, and ammunition, are a part of the self-defense equation the parts that often get the most attention they are a distant second to what is most important and thats the Combat Triad. Built it and develop it; make it your aim.

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Self Defense Essentials and the Combat Triad - Outdoor Life Magazine

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May 22nd, 2021 at 1:56 am

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11 health benefits of Ashwagandha (backed by science) – Eminetra

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You may have heard people say, Im too tired to exercise. Perhaps this is also our own excuse when others ask why we are not consistently engaged in physical activity. According to the Heart Foundation, this is the number one reason for physical inactivity.

This is a paradox that you need energy to exercise, but one of the major effects of lack of physical activity is low energy levels. This makes it very difficult to get started in the first place. Oxygen is an important source of energy production fuel, and lack of exercise limits the supply of oxygen to our brain and body, causing a dip in energy.

So how does lack of physical activity affect our energy levels?

Low energy levels not only make us dull and unmotivated. The effects of physical inactivity cause concentration, wise decision-making, mood management, building resilience to stress, and the domino effect of overthrowing the ability to perform at best. Basically, its all the basic pillars for maintaining optimal energy levels.

If left unchecked, this can cause dissatisfaction in our own lives and create ripples that affect everyone around us.

But there is good news. You dont have to suffer for hours in the gym, get out of bed for jogging at dawn, or endure this discomfort and change this dynamic yourself.

Here are some of the ways in which the effects of physical inactivity can manifest themselves in different areas of our lives, as well as some simple, painless activities to increase energy levels.

Have you ever felt an energy drain when you were involved in a discussion with your partner, or when your child had a meltdown? Its like someone unplugging and the last drop of your vitality is flushed into a tube.

It turns out that lack of physical activity may be the cause of this phenomenon. According to one study, when people exercise, a cascade of positive interactions with friends and family is created on the day and the next day of the activity.

These benefits increase when we exercise with our loved ones. Next time, when you feel that a family feud is imminent, take a time-out to do physical activity together. When my child was a toddler, he abandoned our plans at the moment of frustration to go out with him and quickly moved the days trajectory to a more positive trajectory, even for just a few minutes. I remember many times. This is still true for teens and pre-teens today. It may take a little more patience these days to persuade you to change gear, but its always worth it!

Play basketball and tennis games. Bicycle around block. Trekk on the nearest trail or green space. Go find creatures in your local park or in your backyard. Not only does this tactic help spread the situation before it becomes unstable, but if you make it a habit, you may notice an overall reduction in these energy consumption moments.

An estimated 40 million adults in the United States alone suffer from anxiety disorders. When we are triggered by a threat, our brains deliver hormones, whether they are real or perceived, and deal with what is known as the fight-escape-freeze reaction. Help to do. The aftermath can feel like a massive depletion of our energy.

Sleep is a great way to recover, but persistent anxiety often makes this difficult. This is exacerbated by the lack of physical activity, which means that you are losing one of the most effective and natural ways to regulate your sleep patterns. Exercise also promotes mental clarity by effectively wiping the mind and body of excess stress hormones caused by anxiety.

Anxiety disorders are not the only thing that holds our energy levels together. Daily stress and mood swings can make us feel stuck on a roller coaster that is exhausted of emotions.

Physical inactivity contributes to the depletion of serotonin and dopamine. These chemicals help to naturally regulate our mood and energy. Physical activity enhances these chemicals and enhances the activity of the prefrontal cortex (the part of the brain involved in higher thinking). This process calms the limbic brain (our emotional headquarters) and automatically shuts down energy-wasting emotional triggers.

Exercise helps us grow Mind and body consciousness While we learn to get out of the logical thinking process. The more we align with our bodies and what they are saying to us, the better we can utilize our inner knowledge. We can stop running out of energy by chasing solutions and verifications that come from outside ourselves.

Our connectivity to space or higher power can also be a catalyst for improving our energy levels. There are several approaches to strengthening this through physical activity. For example, yoga and tai chi are well-known spiritual practices that have been used for centuries to connect the mind, body, and spirit. From a Western perspective, they also help create harmony between our needs for achieved and peaceful energies. Too much focus on both ends of the spectrum can lead to burnout and depression.

Meditation is another spiritual habit that is also a proven energy booster. Unfortunately, sitting still and calming can be a challenge, especially for people with anxiety problems.

Walking meditation is a ritual that facilitates this while providing a combination of powerful energy enhancements for both physical activity and intentional reflexes. The Greater Good Science Center at the University of California, Berkeley describes this as a basic way to develop mindfulness. .. .. This involves a close focus on the physical experience of walking, paying attention to the specific components of each step.

Hiking in nature also counteracts physical inactivity, helping us reconnect with our spirituality by paying attention to the wonders of the world beyond ourselves. Awe-inspiring experiences contribute to positive changes in mood, attitudes and behaviors. This raises our energy level by freeing our spiritual space from overthinking and negativeness. We can trust our own inner knowledge and be devoted to the belief that the universe always has our back.

When your inner critics say you are too weak, too old, or too broken to achieve your greatest goals and fulfill the full purpose of life. How energetic do you feel? It drags you down, right?

When our brain believes in these negative thoughts, it runs out of our energy levels, but fortunately there is an easy way to counteract these lies.

You guessed it exercise.

Physical outcomes change our self-awareness, enhance empowerment emotions, Self-esteem.. For example, the increased agility and flexibility gained by repeated practice of HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training), martial arts, or metabolic conditioning sessions creates neural patterns in the brain. It takes over our mind and body and rewires for grit, strength, coordination, and resilience in all areas of our lives. What can feel more vibrant than knowing that you are powerful and can overcome any challenge that comes your way?

Our energy levels can also be improved through self-expression activities (eg, dance) by helping to unleash the emotional turmoil that may plague us. You dont have to focus on your appearance or weight to get the rewards of physical activity. Whether its salsa class, your favorite sport, Pilates or Zumba, or just a walk in the neighborhood, youll find what you like and move your body to make you feel better.

We also dont have to dive into the go getter approach that most efforts tend to adopt. We dont even have to think of it as athletic, artistic, or dramatic. What is needed is to take a step forward with a focus on personal progress. Get rid of expectations, self-judgment, comparisons and see yourself bloom.

Globally, one in four adults does not meet the recommended level of physical activity, according to the WHO. It is important to understand the impact of improper exercise on our health and longevity, but this is only part of the equation. There are many more issues here.

Modern life allows us to achieve most of our daily needs with the least amount of physical effort possible. Not only do you not get enough exercise, but you rarely move unless you move from the sofa to the fridge or from the front door to the car.

Physical inactivity is a powerful element that enriches our lives: ourselves, our loved ones, our inner peace, and the deeper universe around us. Take away the connection. Our ability to feel fulfilled and successful in life depends on the link between movement and vitality. Simply put, physical inactivity reduces our energy at all levels.

The breakdown to easily fit the schedule is as follows. Every 5 days a week, do 15 minutes of intense exercise (HIIT, jogging, metabolic conditioning, high-intensity swimming or cycling) or 30 minutes of moderate exercise (HIIT, jogging, metabolic conditioning). Lively walking, dancing, hiking, tennis, or underwater aerobics). And remember, any form of movement is better than nothing.

Featured Photo Credits: Adrian Swan Car via unsplash.com

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11 health benefits of Ashwagandha (backed by science) - Eminetra

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May 22nd, 2021 at 1:56 am

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Homer Learning App Review 2021: Price, Features And Free Trial – International Business Times

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With the onset of COVID-19, we were forced to stay indoors and work from home while our children were required to be homeschooled. Thiscan be challengingto both parents and children giventhe lack of resources and creativity. Fortunately, a number of educational apps and programs are now available to keep our kids stimulated and always ready to learn.

Homer app Photo: learnwithhomer.com

Homer is aproven early learning program that provides the best educational start possible. It offers personalized, funand proven learning products for kids ages 2-8 to help build confidence, masteryand a love forlearning. Homers learning experts have crafted the Homer Method to support parents in delivering knowledge, personal developmentand motivation for lifelong learners.

Homer is the product of parent company BEGiN, an award-winning education technology company that creates engaging and effective learning products to bring the highest quality education to young children everywhere.A New York City-based company, it leverages the best talent in technology, educationand entertainment to create learning programs that cultivate the critical skills children need to succeed in the future. Its team is deeply committed to its members and their children that continually develop a portfolio of early learning products that supportlearning everywhere.

Homer app bundles Photo: learnwithhomer.com

Part of Homers essential early learning program, the Learn & Grow app takes kids on a personalized learning journey that boosts their confidence and grows with them.

It features lessons and activities personalized to age, interestsand skill level for kids ages 2 to 8, plus playful learning across subjects: reading, math, social-emotional learning, creativityand more, to build learning confidence. The app also features ad-free, kid-friendly navigation for independent play and is designed by experts, backed by researchand tested by kids.

Homer has teamed up with Fisher-Price to giveits members the best in learning and play, delighting little learners in games, storiesand songs as they build foundational skills. It is ideal for younger children up to age 3. It lets your children learn through play that teaches ABCs, colors, shapesand more through fun activities led by familiar characters.

The app is expert-designed to support your child through the early stages of learning and development that grows along with your child. It is kid-safe, offering ad-free, thoughtfully-curated content for safe digital learning and play.

These hands-on learning kits bring lessons to life. Homers very own learning experts designed The Homer Method to teach skills in the best format for kids to learn. Homer Explore Kits expand on the skills your child is building with the Learn & Grow app, giving them a chance to apply what they're learning in real life.

Your children will discover ABC Island, where curious critters love to learn. This activity kit lets your childs imagination lead as they build literacy skills through play. This is best suited for children ages 3-6. It developsskills like Letters & Sounds, Language Development, Early Writingand Self Expression.

Each kit includes:

The kitwelcomes your kids to Sumville, where numbers rule. This numbers kit practices math strategies through play to help your child build math confidence. This is best suited for children ages 3-6. It develops practical skills like Numbers & Counting, Operations & Manipulatives, Math Confidence and Self Expression.

Each kit includes:

This kit brings your child to the Feelings Forest where ups and downs are part of the journey. This kit lets your child learn social-emotional skills through play to help him or her practice for real life. This is best suited for children ages 3-6. It develops skills like Identifying Feelings, Self Awareness, Social Skillsand Self Expression.

Each kit includes:

Homer's positive feedback from real parents Photo: learnwithhomer.com

What we love about Homer is that it is very affordable. At just $9.99/month, you can personalize your child's learning journey and build confidence so that he or she is ready for school and life.

Whats even better is that you can explore the program without any costs with their FREE 1-month trial! So what are you waiting for?

Make your childs learning journey memorable andfun with Homers 1-month Free Trial here.

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Homer Learning App Review 2021: Price, Features And Free Trial - International Business Times

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May 22nd, 2021 at 1:56 am

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Meet the companies that presented at the Future of Behavioral and Mental Health startup showcase – VatorNews

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Mantra Health, Floreo, Daybreak Health, Mindset Health, XFERALL, Move This World, and Tiatros

One of the most exciting parts of every Vator event is the startup showcase; we'vebeen showcasing some of the most promising startup companies for many years now, and we've identified some very successful companies early on that have gone on to raise big funding rounds.

At this year's Future of Behavioral and Mental Health event, held on Wednesday, we had seven extremely promising companies present, and they ranged from startups tackling mental health gaps in education and in teens, to those working with HR departments and hospital transfer workers.

The showcase was emceed by Mark Goldstein, Chairman at UCSF Health Hub. Joining us as judges were Kevin Lynch, investor at MGV, and healthcare executive Nico Arcino.

Daybreak Health, a company thatspecializes in providing online counseling services specifically for teens, helping to stabilize their mental fitness.

"We look at the 10 million teens in the US alone that are struggling with mental health needs and that was pre-pandemic. During the pandemic, there have been reports that 50% of parents have reported new or growing needs from their teens with regards to mental health. So, that's the problem we're trying to solve at Daybreak Health,"said Alex Alvarado, CEO of Daybreak.

The company identified three main problems withadolescent care:one being that access looks really different for families.

"The most important thing to understand about access when you're working with teens is that parents have to engage. And, unfortunately, right now, we're in a situation as a society where parents are a little bit behind on the educational awareness curve when it comes to mental health for their teens. And that's the first thing that we need to solve in order to get teens the care they need," he said.

"In addition, funding for adolescents looks totally different than the adult market, and we've heard from a lot of great folks today that are going after the employer space and that doesn't really work when you're trying to reach teens."

Second is the lack of family-centered care models, as opposed to all of the care models for single individuals or adults. And, third, that the adolescent care ecosystem is fragmented, even more so than the adult ecosystem.

"As an adolescent, you might be getting care at school, you might be getting care from your pediatrician, which is most of the time where parents are going to start, you might then go to a therapy office and you might also get referred to a psychiatric office and all of those are not going to be working or coordinating together," saidAlvarado.

To solve these problems, Daybreak is building a digital mental health clinic for adolescents, which includes three layers:family awareness and education, family-centered counseling services, and then medication management.The company offers free classes for parents, as well as digital assessments for teens and parents. The family-centered counseling services include a personalized counselor match, evidence-based treatment plan and measurement based care.Parents are given coaching, and family therapy when its needed.

The company is also solving this through it's go-to-market strategy, which involves building community partnerships.

"I talked about that fragmented ecosystem in adolescent care; it's really, really important to integrate and work well with where kids are already getting their care today, whether that's at the school, whether that's with pediatrics. So, we've built partnerships in both of those areas," said Alvarado.

The second part of that strategy is around how the company is paid, which is different from how adult care is covered.

"It's not just private insurance, it's not employers, you really have to think about public funding, school districts, and Medicaid. 40% of kids are on Medicaid in the United States, and so you really can't build a solution without going down that route and that's the direction Daybreak is heading, building on the great school partnerships that we've built in the early days."

Ultimately,Alvarado said, the mission at Daybreak "is creating a world where every young person benefits from mental health support." Floreois a companybuilding virtual reality tools for people with autism.

The idea for the company came when the son of CEO Vijay Ravindran begandisplaying developmental delays, which led to a diagnosis for autism and then thousands of hours of behavioral therapy to build social and behavioral skills.

"Along the way, a magical thing happened: when he was six, he saw me with an Oculus DK2 and a Samsung Gear VR headset and decided to try it out. His first experience was magical. He started pretend playing for the first time, and that was the moment Floreo was born," said Ravindran.

Floreo create clinically designed therapy content in VR, and delivers that to mobile virtual reality headsets. The company pairs that headset with a coaching console for supervising adults, enabling therapists, special educators and parents to step into active therapy, seeing what the child is sitting in VR, providing coaching and recording data. The coaching console can run either in-person or remotely, as a telehealth application.

"We've built a proprietary process for rapidly creating VR therapy content: we can create new lessons in less than three weeks, and we have used that to create a large catalogue of over 175 lessons that span early social skill development, life situation training, including safety, and emotional regulation content," saidRavindran.

Floreo's first study showed quantified improvement in eye contact after five weeks of intervention, and the company has a partnership with NIHs National Human Genome Research Institute, which is using the platform to co-develop a set of ADHD interventions that will be researched and be available next year.The company also has Medicaid approval today in Maryland, DC, and Wisconsin and is in conversations with a half dozen other states to expand its Medicaid reimbursement.

"As a platform, weve built an ability to create and mix and match content, and part of the investment in the next two years in our product roadmap is a studio product to enable any other organization to be able to take existing therapy lessons as templates, customize those, and build out new areas, including new health indications that we might not be in today," said Ravindran.

"We believe we're building an essential indispensable tool in the era of teletherapy."Mindset Health helps manage chronic health issues like irritable bowel syndrome and anxiety with app-based hypnotherapy.

"Stress, anxiety and depression, not only do they have a mental health impact, but they impact many aspects of our physical health, from amplifying the perception of pain to decreasing immune response and triggering diarrhea and constipation. If you're sick, but you have a positive mindset, your brain is likely to produce chemicals that will boost your body's ability to heal itself; think of the placebo effect," saidAlex Naoumidis, co-founder and co-CEO at Mindset Health.

"On the flip side, negative expectations and mental health conditions can prevent the brain from producing these chemicals, as well as changing how you perceive your symptoms and discouraging healthy behavior."

While hypnosis not a therapy in and of itself, it can makes therapies, like CBT and guided imagery, more effective. However, it's been largely overlooked due to outdated misconceptions and a lack of access to qualified practitioners, as well as a lack of affordable options. Naoumidis likened it to where meditation was seven years ago, "except its focused on health outcomes for specific conditions."

"Hypnosis is uniquely suited for mobile app delivery because even in person, its an audio therapy, which allows users to self manage their condition at home whenever they need, for 10% of the cost of in-person therapy and accessible without a prescription."

Mindset isstarting with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), a chronic gut-brain condition that affects between 25 and 45 million Americans and causes symptoms like diarrhea, constipation and pain. It's a condition that has no cure, and most people rely on elimination diets to treat it. Mindset has built anapp called Nerva to specifically target people with IBS and it includes adaily program of hypnosis-based guided imagery, education and breathing exercises that can help people with IBS self regulate their symptoms and address the miscommunication between their gut and brain.

The company plans to build out similar apps for other underserved health conditions from menopause to depression, sleep, and chronic pain.

Were going to be making hypnosis-based therapies accessible for a billion people who have access to a phone, but not good healthcare," Naoumidis said.Mantra Healthis a digital mental healthcare company designed for all university students.

While it's well known that university students are going through a mental health crisis, "whats less known is how colleges and universities are really failing to meet the demand of mental health care for college students," saidEd Gaussen, co-founder and CEO of Mantra Health.

A survey that came out from the Journal of Adolescent Health in 2019 showed that the rates of anxiety and depression amongst college studentshave doubled over the last 10 years . Another one that came out last year shows that 24% of college students are on some kind of a psychiatric medication over the last 12 months, and during the pandemic, one out of four young adults had contemplated suicide during the pandemic.

"What universities are trying to do is, unfortunately, is not enough and they're struggling to provide the care that students need, while the waitlist at the counseling centers can be as long as a semester, and providers are really difficult to hire at the counseling centers, especially in rural areas. So, universities are now moving towards this short-term therapy model, where the available care for students is being reduced and then they get referred out to the community,"Gaussen said.

"With that broken experience and urgency and need, we think there's an opportunity to build a very large digital mental health practice that's entirely focused on the university student population"

To solve this, Mantra has built software called the Collaboration Portal, which allows schools to refer students into Mantra. Students can pick providers that best match their needs; they can interact with providers through video visits and 24/7 messaging.

"One thing we're able to do, as well as deploy on campus, is integrate the campus resources so that we're able to refer students back into in-person services if needed, and its something thats extremely customizable at scale with the universities. We've also built a lot of psychoeducation content, especially when it comes to medication management, to remove the scaries around getting on meds for students that need it," saidGaussen.

Today, the company is deployed on 26 campuses with over 180,000 students enrolled; it has been growing especially fast thanks to COVID, where campuses had to shut down and look for digital solutions overnight.

Mantraworks with payers, including Aetna, Cigna, and Blue Cross, and that will allow the company to increase its market size and make it so it is not necessarily reliant on the university sales cycles and budgets to work with schools.

"We use that as a way to remove some of the financial burdens that the schools have and accelerate the adoption of our program."XFERALL is a mobile application that automates transferring critical care, mental health, and substance abuse patients.

"We have created a behavioral health patient transfer network. So, our use cases are addressing patients in a crisis who are presenting into the ED, who have been assessed, who need to be placed in an inpatient behavioral health setting, whether voluntary or involuntary," saidNathan Read, CEO at XFERALL.

"Right now, when that occurs, hospitals pick up the phone and they start calling behavioral health hospitals. A lot of them just blast faxes out to all the behavioral hospitals in their region. And there's a whole back and forth process of phone calls and faxes that takes place just to accept these patients. National average for placing these patients is eight hours of boarding time in an emergency room, which has a significant cost to the sending hospital."

To solve for this, XFERALL hasbuilt a mobile app that replaces all of the phone calls and faxing, and allows a sender to put in a request that then broadcasts out to the intake departments at qualifying receiving hospitals, and allows them to communicate electronically. The goal isto reduce ED overcrowding, to divert patients from even presenting to the hospital EDs, diverting behavioral health patients from jails, improving access to behavioral health patients in a more effective way, and making sure they're getting the appropriate level of care.

"We're doing that by creating a network of senders and receivers, allowing senders to communicate with one or more receiving hospitals simultaneously. The app clinically matches the patient's needs so a sender will go in and answer a very basic set of questions about the patient. We've built a national database of all the behavioral health receiving hospitals and all of their capabilities and services, and no longer does that sender need to know what each hospital services provide, the application automatically matches that," said Read.

This becomes especially important as new behavioral health hospitals open, or they create new services; for example, if they have created a new program, they don't have to spend money marketing and sending business development out to educate everyone in the community that they now have a new program. Also, the senders don't need to know, since the app does that for them.

"For the senders, we're dramatically reducing ED boarding time, we're reducing harm events for patients and employees. These patients who present ED are high risk to harm themselves, they harm the nurses, physicians and others. We're establishing a transport system of record to help them keep up with regulations, we're tracking their transfer patterns and we're helping divert patients from the ED," Read said.

"For the receiving hospitals, we're improving their intake operations, helping them build better relationships, we're making it easier for their customers to send them patients. We're giving them data at their fingertips, real-time so that they can manage their business, and look at the market as a whole and determine if they need to add certain services because there's a market need. "

The app can only be accessed an authorized user, so employees of a hospital, law enforcement, first responders, or community workers. The product was launched in early 2019 in the panhandle of Texas, and the company now hasa significant presence in Houston and Dallas/Fort Worth. It launched in Georgia in March of last year, just as the pandemic hit, and in Washington DC a couple months ago.

"We're in small community hospitals, as well as large health systems. In a case study of 17 hospital Systems in Houston, their average median time to place patients was nine hours; by January 2020 it dropped to 2.5, so thats 1,200 hours saved a month, which has a real dollar amount to their health system with savings."

Move This Worldisa social emotional learning program that provides PreK-12 students, educators and families with multimedia experiences empowering students to navigate the rapidly-changing realities of their world.

"Like many of us who are parents in the pandemic, we're playing an increasingly active role in our children's education. Pre-pandemic, this was a problem where we had chronic absenteeism and suspensions, incident reports of conflict and violence. Cultures that were conducive to learning. But this has all been further exacerbated by the pandemic; if you weren't prioritizing mental health or social emotional wellness pre-pandemic, you certainly don't have a choice now. It's right in your face and right in your living room," saidSara Potler LaHayne, CEO of Move This World.

"Social emotional learning is the process through which we explore and cultivate self awareness, self management, relationship skills, social awareness, and responsible decision making. These are the critical life skills that help all of us succeed in school and work and in life."

Move This World supports preK through 12th grade students through short form, evidence-based, multimedia, to help kids and adults identify, express, and manage their emotions.The company has over 1,000 multimedia assets.

"The best analogy for this might be eight minute abs, but for social emotional learning, or Peloton but for social emotional health. The same way you, as a yogi, might pull up a short yoga video as you may not be confident in how to move through your yoga class, teachers and parents who arent mental health professionals have this contained and structured support to allow their students to identify, express and manage their feelings, unpack their emotional backpacks, and then move through it so that we can build a more resilient culture wherever we are, whether that's in the classroom, at home, or our entire district," said LaHayne.

The assets provided by Move This World are meant to be experienced, so it's not likeconsuming content in the same way of watching a TV show. Instead, students are meant to get up and move.

"We're connecting our mind, body, so when I'm stressed or when I'm anxious, what's happening? My heart's racing, my palms are sweating, my stomach's in knots, and being really able to connect that visceral psychosomatic experience through techniques from expressive arts therapy. So, we shake our stress, we tighten and release our muscles, we focus on our breath, we embody our feelings, and that looks a little bit different for younger students,"LaHayne said.

"There's a little bit more play and music and movement, but older students are also embodying and playing and using techniques like free writing and group poetry to explore their emotions in deeper ways."

Move This World has impacted one and a half million students to date, over 2,500 school communities. It is currently working in 89 districts and has currently implemented programs in 38 states in the US.

We are in a moment in time that we're experiencing as educators, as families, as citizens, recognizing that if we don't have the foundational skills to identify, express, manage emotions, and move through conflict and move through challenges and unexpected things, like a pandemic, not much else matters.

Tiatros provides tools for HR departments and benefits groups to better manage mental health challenges.

"Tiatros makes it possible for the first time for millions of people to access highly effective and portable mental well-being and social services. Our multidisciplinary team of expert clinicians and technologists collaborated with thought leading providers and employment benefits, workers comp, and health insurance experts to create a versatile platform where millions of people can access services that rigorously adhere to the latest evidence-based, psychotherapeutic and social learning practices," saidKimberlie Cerrone, founder and CEO of Tiatros.

The platform uses technology enabled high-impact community interaction, where users engage with their peers, working asynchronously but together, sharing experiences and practicing social skills and behaviors.

"This uniquely social approach to mental well-being is a critical innovation because loneliness and social isolation are epidemic now, and they're deadly," saidCerrone.

The company's clients include provider systems, the American Heart Association, and Fortune 500 companies, including Salesforce, whereTaitros showed that it reduced stress-related physical symptoms by over 30%, which immediately reduced Salesforces healthcare provision costs as a self insured employer.

"We also empirically documented sustained behavioral changes that correlate with increased productivity, higher employee retention, more effective teamwork, and increased innovation across their workforce. That's why Salesforces CFO and President of HR made a value-on investment driven decision to roll out Tiatros services to their entire global workforce a year ago."

Another client is Metro National Public Schools, which piloted Tiatos last year. Over 94% of the over 220 pilot users completed the entire Tiatros program, and 100% of them materially increased their mental and physical health. This led the teachers union asking for Tiatros to be added to their insurance plan as a 100% paid benefit.

"Were prioritizing integrating Tiatros services into chronic disease treatment protocols to address, for the first time, the economic impact of comorbid chronic and mental health conditions on a population health scale. We've partnered with the American Heart Association to integrate Tiatros into diabetes, heart disease, obesity and stroke plans," saidCerrone.

"Our first jointly created program for cardiac rehabilitation was successfully piloted at UCSF. Our UCSF collaborators wants us to roll this program across the statewide University of California health system this year."

Tiatros' social approach to mental well-being is designed to meet users where they are today, and guides them towards their personal growth and health goals.

"Everyone works at their optimum level of emotional depth, preferred pace, and schedule on the Taitros platform, choosing the specific interventions, content and tools that will help them achieve their own mental health goals and strengthen their mental well being. This is how we achieve mental and physical health improvements across diverse user populations that are consistently comparable to expert in-person services,"Cerrone said.

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Meet the companies that presented at the Future of Behavioral and Mental Health startup showcase - VatorNews

Written by admin

May 22nd, 2021 at 1:56 am

Posted in Self-Awareness

How Creatives Can Neutralize Negativity and Cultivate Growth – Rolling Stone

Posted: May 9, 2021 at 1:55 am


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As life has come to a standstill this past year and weve been forced to forgo events, offices, restaurants, activities, and even time spent with family and friends, many of us have felt sad, anxious, uncertain and insecure. Perhaps angry, too, which is a normal response to such unique circumstances. Yet anger is not only harmful to our physical and emotional health; it can also manifest itself in harmful verbal or physical aggression.

Nonviolence, the first principle in the practice of yoga, gives us a healthy way to handle anger and thrive in trying times such as the present. Known as ahimsa, the Sanskrit word for noninjury, the concept of nonviolence as a way of life was codified in the Yoga Sutras, an ancient text compiled by the Indian philosopher Patanjali thousands of years ago from even older traditions.

In principle, nonviolence means an absence or lack of violence. But in practice, it means consciously avoiding or abstaining from causing physical and psychological pain to any living being. Or, to look at it as the renowned leader most associated with the practice Mahatma Gandhi did, observing nonviolence requires actively choosing peaceful behavior in the midst of conflict.

In fact, Gandhi made ahimsa famous when he followed it in practice, not only employing nonviolent resistance for freedom from British domination and social justice but also making it a way of life in everything he did right down to following a vegetarian diet.

Martin Luther King, Jr., who was inspired and deeply influenced by Gandhi, gave voice to the concept when he noted, Nonviolence means avoiding not only external physical violence but also internal violence of spirit. You not only refuse to shoot a man, but you refuse to hate him.

Being nonviolent means cultivating qualities such as compassion, empathy and kindness within yourself and with the people you interact with daily. This makes nonviolence a way of life.

It means engaging in practices that support you when negative emotions get the better of you or escalate to violence. These include various forms of yoga, meditation and nonviolent communication, a way of listening to hear your own deeper needs as well as those of others and reacting compassionately through speech. It focuses on solving disagreements rather than merely ending them, and like yoga and meditation, it is a technique to decrease anger.

Decreasing anger and embracing nonviolence is especially important for anyone who is a business leader, especially in creative fields dependent on collaboration and innovation. While traditional leadership theories typically dont focus on nonviolence, many leaders from business ethicists to executive coaches for major companies to CEOs believe practicing this approach can boost collaboration, productivity, innovation, focus and job satisfaction.

Perhaps the most famous case in point is Satya Nadella. When he took over as Microsofts CEO in 2018, he passed out copies of the 2003 book Nonviolent Communication by groundbreaking psychologist Marshall Rosenberg to his entire senior leadership team with instructions to read it. Many believed this helped him transform Microsofts culture from cutthroat to creative.

Of course, every leader wants their company to be a place where innovation and collaboration will thrive. Getting there means conquering anger, the emotion that underlies hostility and outrage. It can not only lead to violent behavior, but its also bad for our health and overall demeanor because anger can make us physically sick. It sends stress hormones throughout our bodies that can do significant damage to our immune systems over time.

But there is a solution: Instead of denying or ignoring anger, it should be dealt with immediately. As a yoga teacher and therapist, Ive taught many clients in creative fields how to neutralize inner hostilities, break through their anger and move on. Below is one of the most expedient and effective practices Ive developed to help anyone creatives and business leaders included transform anger into healthy emotional growth and practice nonviolence as a way of life.

The Rolling Stone Culture Council is an invitation-only community for Influencers, Innovators and Creatives. Do I qualify?

One of the skills that distinguishes star performers in every field from entry-level workers to leaders in executive positions is the ability to be self-aware. Research in the Harvard Business Review suggests that people who see themselves clearly are not only more confident and creative but also have a wide range of positive qualities that make them better leaders. This includes making sounder decisions, building stronger relationships and communicating more effectively.

Yet senior executives often dont give self-awareness the credit it deserves, psychologist Daniel Goleman maintains. His groundbreaking classic Emotional Intelligence showed that people who are self-aware can assess their emotions honestly and are well suited to do the same for the organizations they run.

Being able to neutralize negative emotions and transform them into positive ones is a quality that drives good leadership. Ive found this simple anger management practice an easy way to start:

Sit down, and be silent. Tune in to your body, and focus your attention on your breath.

Take a minute to observe any sensations in your body. Emotions cause physiological changes, so focus on your body, and look for any feelings of agitation or tension.

Think about what youre feeling, and label it.

Consider if its something you dont like feeling or thinking.

Once you identify your feelings, clarify them further by asking yourself why youre uncomfortable, unhappy or angry at the moment.

Investigate these feelings. Recognize why you feel the way you do, and acknowledge your anger.

Then ask yourself if anger is the best emotion for you to feel.

Once you discover the root causes of your anger, you can consider a way to redirect these negative feelings and make a choice to find a better way to feel.

By letting yourself fully feel your negative or angry feelings, you can make a choice to transform them into positive, affirming emotions. Properly channeled, they can become the power behind your emotional growth.

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How Creatives Can Neutralize Negativity and Cultivate Growth - Rolling Stone

Written by admin

May 9th, 2021 at 1:55 am

Posted in Self-Awareness


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