#went from largely being explorations of medical ethics

[lorenzobane]

What *was* Julian Bashir’s backstory? Wild speculation for fun and profit!* 

So as some people may know, for five and a half seasons they did not have Julian’s Augment characterization planned. In fact, Siddig found out about that arc when he got the script for Dr. Bashir, I Presume? And really smart, cool people have gone back and essentially backfilled canon to make it make sense. They have come up with some really good explanations and headcanons. 

But I want to take it in the other direction. So, for five+ seasons they were writing Julian and definitely referenced many things from his past/created characterization with an entirely different fictionalized backstory. So I want to try and think through what that backstory was. Or: The Lost Julian Bashir Plot. Who was he before they decided to re-write his history? 

*Disclaimer: if any of this information exists in beta canon or in interviews I haven’t read/seen it so I’m operating fully on the text of the show itself and nothing else. 

First, the facts: 

(I’ll put this under a cut because its getting long) 

He clearly likes flexing his knowledge, and he has a fairly wide range of interests: literature, music, comparative culture (re: his complaints about 24th century theater), geology (given that Julian doesn’t seem to actually know the exact plot in Our Man Bashir I have to assume he just had that gem knowledge), his oft mentioned engineering extension course 

He played tennis, and wanted to go professional but realized he wasn’t particularly good at it (according to him) and decided to go into medicine

His character was always not close to his parents- in Homefront (S4x11) O’Brien asks Odo and Sisko to say hi to his family while they’re on Earth, they ask Julian if he wants the same thing and he very awkwardly says no suggesting the writers were always intending a complicated family dynamic 

He was afraid of Doctors, and the implication is that he was in and out of hospitals a lot as a child 

His father was a diplomat at some point 

Especially in early characterization, he’s clearly extremely ambitious, competitive, and desperate to prove himself; if we take the fact that they didn’t plan the augment arc seriously, then he really did just screw up an exam question in medical school and never let it fucking go. Or with the Carrington Award, he clearly was trying to convince himself that he doesn’t want to win, but of course he does! He’s a competitive guy, he wants to win things. 

He was engaged to a ballerina from a prestigious family, Palis’ father was the top administrator at a medical complex in Paris  

DS9, as i often harp on, is his first job out of college

He’s somewhat ambivalent about authority figures (see: Kai Winn, publicly humiliating Gul Dukat, calling Sisko out when he disagrees with him, calling Worf out when he disagrees with him, his attitude towards the Healer in The Quickening, yelling at Admiral Ross- though that is after the Augment arc, his actions in Past Tense, that time he and Kira end up in a Mirror-verse and he can’t stop sassing Mirror!Odo), and about authority for himself (see: him asking everyone to call him Julian, even though technically at least some of them should call him sir) 

My theory: 

I think the original intended backstory for Julian was that he was the son of a wealthy and respected Diplomat who was relentlessly hard on him and impossible to please. The way, especially early on, he uses his academic and professional achievements as a shield is extremely indicative of someone who has always had to prove their worth through achievement. I think that also explains his love of James Bond- a character who is often the smartest person in the room, filled with expertise on things like fancy wines, and literature. It makes sense that Julian would be attracted to a character whose expertise and general knowledge makes them cool and sexy, not annoying. 

The fear of doctors suggests to me that he maybe was extremely sick as a child, in and out of hospitals a lot until he got better. At some point falling in love with tennis and becoming extremely competitive in it. I think his parents, who I’ve already guessed are extremely impossible to please, convinced him he wasn’t very good and wanted him to do something more respectable instead. The fact that he didn’t want anyone to go see or check on his parents, even though Homefront implies there may be an invasion of earth is TELLING. 

He probably fell out with them when he decided to join Starfleet. I mean before that, he was engaged to a high class woman and about to get a cushy, fancy job- he rejected all of that for the opportunity to take a job that basically no one else wanted on the edge of space. If you’re an impossible to please parent, your son walking away from a perfect cushy life probably makes you crazy. This also might explain his deep distrust for authority figures, or people who try to tell him what to do. 

I’ve often felt that it was a seriously good thing that Julian doesn’t have a “boss” per say. Yes, Sisko is his boss, but Julian still outranks him on medical issues AND the medical bay seems somewhat separate from general Station goings on. Sisko doesn’t seem to particularly care how Julian runs his med bay or what research he’s ever doing- Julian is more or less allowed to just do his own thing which is great. I think if he had a boss in a real sense, he would lose his mind because he clearly and obviously hates being told what to do.  

So yeah- that’s my theory! What do other people think? I’m sure @sigynpenniman has given this subject some thought so would love your opinion! 

[girlactionfigure]

Historian of the Ghetto

“Let the world read and know”

Emanuel Ringelblum, the “historian of the Warsaw ghetto,” compiled an extensive archive of documents depicting the everyday life of the ghetto’s doomed inhabitants. The Ringelbaum Archive is the most important eyewitness accounting of the Holocaust to survive the war.

Born in Buczacz, Poland (now Ukraine) in 1900, Emanuel was a bright child and a top student. His native language was Yiddish and although he learned several other languages, he had a special affection for his native tongue and a lifelong interest in Yiddish literature and theater. Emanuel attended Warsaw University, where he studied history, completing his doctoral thesis in 1927 on the Jews of Warsaw during the Middle Ages.

Emanuel worked as a history teacher in multiple Jewish high schools and in 1923 he co-founded the Young Historians Circle, an influential organization that brought together Jewish history teachers and students to advocate for Jewish causes. Two years later he joined YIVO, the preeminent organization for the study and preservation of Jewish European culture. Emanuel published 126 scholarly articles and was recognized as the world’s foremost expert in the history of the Jews of Europe.

As the Nazis rose to power in the early 1930’s, Emanuel started working with international Jewish relief organizations to help refugees by collecting and distributing funds, as well as providing emotional support. The American Joint Distribution Fund sent him to Zbaszyn, a Polish town near the German border where 6000 Jewish refugees from Germany were being held. Germany had expelled them and Poland didn’t want them so the Jews were stateless. Emanuel spent five weeks there, passing up his own opportunity to escape from Europe so that he could help his suffering Jewish brothers and sisters.

When Germany invaded Poland in 1939, Emanuel described it as “a wave of evil rolled over the whole city.” He became the leader of Aleynilf (Self Help), a group that provided Jews with tools to survive in an increasingly hostile environment. In 1940, Emanuel and his family – his wife Yehudit and small son Uri – were forced into a squalid ghetto, along with all the other Jewish inhabitants of Warsaw. Every city with a Jewish population soon had its own ghetto.

As the days, weeks, and months passed, conditions grew steadily worse. Emanuel wrote, “No day was like the preceding. Images succeeded one another with cinematic speed.” The necessities of life became increasingly scarce – running water, electricity, medical supplies and most critically of all, food. Every day people died of starvation or illness, and there was no way to bury them. Rotting bodies, many of them children, lay in the street.

Emanuel decided to write about life in the ghetto. It was the most important story he would ever tell. He encouraged other inhabitants to write their own testimonies, recording history as it happened. During the day Emanuel wandered the ghetto collecting information, stories and data, and he wrote at night. Emanuel defined the mission: “It must all be recorded with not a single fact omitted. And when the time comes – as it surely will – let the world read and know what the murderers have done.” He knew that the archive would likely be the only testimony about what had happened to the Jews of Poland. It was especially important for him to preserve documents in Yiddish as he feared there would be nobody left to speak his beloved native tongue.

Contributors included writers, rabbis, teachers, social workers, artists, children, and Jews of all ages and backgrounds. They knew they were doomed and the pain was even sharper because all their friends and family were also doomed – leaving nobody behind to remember them. Emanuel’s project was a chance to not be forgotten. The material submitted included essays, diaries, letters, drawings, poetry, music, stories, dark humor, recipes and more. It was an extensive chronicle of ghetto life.

The archive was called Oneg Shabbos – “Pleasure of Shabbat” – because the contributors met on Saturdays to share their writings and discuss their progress. Journalistic ethics were important to Emanuel. “Many-sidedness was the main principle of our work. Objectivity was our other guiding principle. We aspired to reveal the whole truth, as bitter as it may be.” The Oneg Shabbos documents were kept in large milk jars and buried in three different places.

The first document was a poem by Wladyslaw Szlengel called “Telephone” about his apartment building’s last working phone. “With my heart broken and sick/ I think: let me ring/someone on the other side…/and suddenly I realize: my God there/is actually no one to call….”

Hunger was ever-present in the ghetto, and a common theme in the documents is the desperate yearning for food. Leyb Goldin wrote, “It’s you and your stomach. It’s your stomach and you. It’s 90 percent your stomach and a little bit you… Each day the profiles of our children, of our wives, acquire the mourning look of foxes, dingoes, kangaroos. Our howls are like the cry of jackals…The world’s turning upside down. A planet melts in tears. And I – I am hungry, hungry. I am hungry.” (August 1941)

“What we were unable to cry out and shriek to the world, we buried in the ground.” – David Graber, 19

“Sometimes I worry that these terrible pictures of the life we are looking at every day will die with us, like pictures of a panic on a sinking ship. So, let the witness be our writing.” – Rachel Auerbach

“I do not ask for any thanks, for any memorial, for any praise. I only wish to be remembered. I wish my wife to be remembered, Gele Seksztajn. I wish my little daughter to be remembered. Margalit is 20 months old today.” – Israel Lichtenstein

The Oneg Shabbos archive ended in 1943, when the ghetto was liquidated and its inhabitants sent to the gas chambers of Treblinka. Emanuel, his wife Yehudit and son Uri managed to escape before the deportations started and went into hiding. However, in March 1944 their hiding place was discovered. The family was forced outside at gunpoint and executed.

Only three of the 60+ contributors to the Oneg Shabbos archive survived the war. Rachel Auerbach led the search for the buried archive, and her team was able to discover two of the caches, which became known as the Dead Sea Scrolls of the ghetto. The third cache has never been found.

For making sure the murdered Jews of Warsaw would not be forgotten, we honor Emanuel Ringelblum as this week’s Thursday Hero.

Explore the Ringelblum Archive

[mythgirlimagines]

Reaching the stars and coming back none for the worse is this Tuesday’s Talentswap, Myth Anon, the Former Ultimate Astronaut! (Fusion’s Interpretation)

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BACKSTORY AND TALENT

Having grown up in a rich and affluent family known for their contributions to scientific research, Myth had a whole bevy of scientific knowledge forced into her at a young age, ranging from physics to medical studies, and her hunger for knowledge meant that she just ate the knowledge up. But deep down, the sheltered yet studious heiress wants to explore the world beyond her lavish estate. Fortunately, Myth’s intellect made her a prime volunteer for NASA’s research, despite her age. She passed the high-difficulty astronomy and astrophysics exams with flying colors, and is slated to go on the research shuttle when she becomes a legal adult. But she is willing to postpone her studies if it means chaperoning the Ultimates and Jr. Ultimates, as well as meeting up with some fellow Former Ultimates. 

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RELATIONSHIPS

Wyre Anon, Former Ultimate Tennis Pro

With Wyre’s parents being business partners with Myth’s parents, they were practically inseparable, ever since they first met during a charity gala. Wyre regularly helps to physically train Myth for her astronaut exams, and Myth regularly helps Wyre study up for academic tests. Wyre regularly tries to get Myth to loosen up and have some fun for once, and they just live for one of Myth’s rare smiles. Despite Wyre’s rough, tough, and rebellious attitude regularly getting on Myth’s nerves, Myth knows that Wyre is a loyal and kindhearted companion to have. 

Outfit: A red visor with a black checkmark on the front, a red tennis jersey, a white undershirt and shorts, red and white knee-high socks, white sneakers with red laces, intact glasses.

Anon Scar, Ultimate Artist

Spending most of her elementary and middle school years as a wallflower, Anon Scar has taken to sketchbooks as her prime mode of entertainment. Although Scar mainly specializes in pencil sketches, Scar eventually mastered a whole museum of art forms. Now that she is in high school, she decided to forge herself a new identity, as the “Overlord of the Monochrome Realm”. But she doesn’t do a particularly good job of keeping up the charade, and turns out to be a bit of a concerned mother hen. Myth is regularly confused by Scar’s vocabulary and rich inner world.

Outfit: Shaggy hair in double buns held up by art supplies, elaborate black and white make-up, black overalls splattered with paint, a black and white striped sweater, black and white striped stockings, black rain boots with paint on the bottom, a black and white striped scarf.

Fusion Anon, Ultimate Magician

Having started out performing magic on the streets to help his struggling family, Fusion is a master at both quiet sleight of hand and loud bombastic performances. Fusion’s specialization is pulling disproportionately large items out of his long sleeves and large afro. Despite Fusion’s unnatural talent, Myth couldn’t help but admire his optimistic and paternal personality. Somehow, Fusion always knows whenever Myth needs something and pulls whatever she needs out of his hair/sleeves, and he always weirds the lady of science ever time. However, Fusion couldn’t help but envy Myth’s upbringing.

Outfit: A blue cloak with oversized and floppy sleeves and yellow details over a red t-shirt with a big yellow star on the front, blue pants with a red pattern on the end held up by a brown belt with a yellow star-shaped buckle, blue curly-toes shoes with yellow jingle bells on the end, glasses from original design.

Fusion Anon II, Ultimate Pianist

As the only child and rebellious heiress of a wealthy family, Fusion II has dominated piano competitions after piano competitions with her fast-paced and finger-flying compositions. But with the pressure by her parents to inherit the family business, Fusion II adopted a flippant and aloof personality that is dominated by piano-covered meme songs. Both Fusion II and Myth bonded over the troubles of being born into wealthy families and having to shoulder various burdens. Myth also regularly has memes taught to her by Fusion, and in exchange, Fusion II gets to play a soothing piano piece for Myth.

Outfit: Smoothed down hair, music note pin in the center of her red bow, light blue off-the-shoulder sweater with a piano key design on the ends over a white tank top, floor-length white skirt with a black music note design near the bottom, black heels.

Just Anon, Ultimate Inventor

A lazy yet strategically and mechanically intelligent young man, Janon would much rather lie in bed all day then actually lift up a tool to complete an invention. Despite being a chronic procrastinator, the few inventions that he manages to finish managed to revolutionize the scientific world as a whole. When meeting the Ultimate Inventor, Myth was internally excited to meet a fellow genius. But when Janon’s foul mouth and poor work ethic was revealed, Myth instantly took all of that back. Even today, Myth and Janon regularly feud about each other’s work ethic and general attitudes. 

Outfit: A grey gas mask that hides his face, an oversized pink overcoat with grease stains all over over a white button-up shirt, brown gloves, pants, and boots.

Sparkle Anon, Former Ultimate Child Caregiver

Having started a successful babysitting business from a young age, Sparkle’s eccentric, dramatic and rather childish attitude just attracts kids like metal to a magnet, particularly when it comes to her magical girl persona, “SPARKLE THE SPECTACULAR SPELLCASTER”. Eventually, Sparkle decided to just keep up the persona full-time, and that just attracted even more children and parents to her babysitting agency. While confused by Sparkle’s magical girl persona and general attitude, Myth knows that Sparkle means no harm, and just yearns to entertain and care for people.

Outfit: A pink frilly dress with white and gold details, an elaborate and long pink wig, white gloves with red flower bracelets, red knee-high boots with white details and laces, light blue contacts. 

3-GG (aka. Egg Anon), Former Ultimate Robot, and Wet Sock Anon, Former Ultimate Entomologist

Just like Myth, Wet Sock is the heirexx to a prestigious scientific family, with Egg being specially-crafted by the family to be a sibling figure to Wet Sock. But ever since one of Wet Sock’s pet moths flew into one of Egg’s circuit boards, Egg’s mindset hasn’t been the same, causing their parents to boot them both out of their estate to never be seen again. Myth couldn’t help but take pity on the two, and looking past the cursed comments that both of them made, Myth found two broken and lonely individuals. Myth yearns to get closer to the two and learn more about them. 

Egg’s Outfit: Pale armor-like skin, an ahoge that functions like a satellite dish.

Wet Sock’s Outfit: Glasses from original design, a black jacket with a blue butterfly design near the bottom over a blue sweater vest, a matching tie and a white button-up shirt, black pants and matching shoes.

Curious Anon, Jr. Ultimate Cosplayer

Growing up with an unremarkable presence and a trouble with expressing emotions, Curious has taken to cosplaying and pretending to be different fictional characters. No matter the gender or personality, Curious manages to accurately portray the character, both in appearance and personality, with hand-crafted costumes. Because of Myth‘s sheltered upbringing, she hasn’t been exposed to anime until Curious came along to educate her. Myth is currently interested in magical girl and science fiction anime. However, Myth couldn’t help but want to craft Curious a proper identity. 

Outfit: A white-button up shirt, a red tie, dark green pants, black slip-on shoes, fake glasses.

Anon Nerd, Former Ultimate Adventurer

Having been abandoned in the wild at a young age, Anon Nerd had to do his best to survive in a dog-eat-dog world, as well as find a permanent home. Nerd’s socially isolated backstory made him rude and irritable, regularly mauling and pummeling people he doesn’t like (read: everybody) with his fists. Myth understandably steers well away from Nerd, fearing what would happen if she got on Nerd’s bad side. Which is a shame on Nerd‘s part, considering that he finds Myth cute. Unfortunately, Myth is far too dense to pick up on those feelings, and Nerd responds to unknown emotions with violence. 

Outfit: Mid-back length hair, a red headband, a black sleeveless parka over a tight white shirt that shows off his muscles, blue jeans, nothing on his feet. 

Eldritch Anon, Ultimate Anthropologist

Eldritch is well-known in the anthropology circuit for his cynical and misanthropic philosophies, and his elusive shut-in behavior. Eldritch seems to have the idea that Myth is either a malicious robotic overlord or a hostile alien queen, considering her fascination with space and her limited emotional range, and yearns to stay as far away from her as possible. Myth wonders what could have went on in Eldritch’s past to make him despise and distrust humanity this much, and why he doesn‘t seem to view Myth as a human. Myth just wants Eldritch to trust her, and gain his friendship. 

Outfit: Shoulder-length hair in a ponytail, a black face mask that covers his mouth and nose, a lavender and black poncho over a matching sweater and pants, bandaged hands, white shoes.

Dream Anon, Ultimate Supreme Leader

Despite Dream’s impulsive and childish behavior, Dream‘s followers renown her as sunshine in human form, and a beacon of hope, joy and optimism. At first, Myth was skeptical about the validity of Dream’s talent. She thought that a teenage girl, let alone someone as childish as Dream, couldn’t possibly be the leader of such a large organization. But upon witnessing Dream’s optimistic and rousing speeches, Myth was beginning to see why her followers named her the leader. Dream gifted her a sports jersey with her name on it, as a sign of friendship and acceptance. 

Outfit: Same outfit from her original design, only with her sidebag being replaced by a cardboard crown and a black cape. 

Iris Anon, Jr. Ultimate Detective/Assassin

While Astronomer!Iris has her interest in true crime, Detective/Assassin!Iris has this interest taken to an entirely new level. While Iris is known on the lawful side for her clumsy, yet intelligent and optimistic personality, Iris has an entirely different reputation on the opposite side of the law, as a devious little assassination master, who uses her clumsy and dorky personality as a facade to draw suspicion away from herself. Having a positive outlook to just about anybody, Iris took a liking to Myth already, loving how intelligent and well-put-together she is. However, Myth can’t help but feel as though there’s something off about Iris.

Outfit: A dark blue overcoat with a star badge pinned on the front over a black button-up shirt and a yellow tie, a light blue plaid skirt, black knee-high socks with a noticeable sliver taken out of the right one, red Mary Janes, glasses from original design. 

Purple Anon, Ultimate Aikido Master

Having been raised in a traditional family skilled in both martial arts and traditional dance, Purple’s aikido manages to mesh both of these traditional art forms together into one picturesque martial art. Purple, despite her combat-based talent, is timid and cowardly, regularly hiding behind her good friend Fusion. Purple’s vocabulary, if you managed to get it out of her, is very old-fashioned and loquacious. Luckily, Myth is intelligent enough to understand Purple. Just like with Wyre, Purple and Myth regularly like to meet up together and do physical training together. 

Outfit: A black headband, black hakama top, bandaged arms, purple hakama pants, white socks, brown sandals.

This series centers around the intelligent yet awkward and isolated astronaut learning about friendship from the colorful personalities surrounding her. 

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PERSONALITY

Because of her upbringing, Astronaut!Myth is cultured, highly-educated, mild-mannered and polite, never raising her voice or speaking before she’s spoken to, and when she speaks, her words come out clearly and precisely. Also because of her upbringing, Astronaut!Myth is also solitary, socially inept, not very good with emotions, and has a tendency to come off as cold. Despite her cold tendencies, Astronaut!Myth is actually really kind-hearted and tends to get excited and cheery when talking about her interests, about the only times when she ever actually smiles.  In her off-time, Astronaut!Myth can sometimes be seen practicing her smile in the mirror, in order to come off as more friendly.

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APPEARANCE

Astronaut!Myth wears her undyed hair in a moon-shaped ponytail. Astronaut!Myth’s upbringing is shown very clearly through her clothes, which consists of a navy blue vest with golden buttons and her family’s logo on the right lapel, a white dress shirt with a light blue tie and sleeve ruffs, a black belt with a gold star in the center, a navy blue skirt with a constellation design, black leggings, and black boots with light blue buckles and soles and white fluff on the insides of them. 

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Well, I’m finished with this week’s design. Let me know what you think of this talentswap! And don’t forget to tune in later for more of Fusion Anon’s creations, both in written form and visual form!

-Fusion Anon

---

Very nice!

[mailorderfictionalcharacter]

to love & be loved

@startreksecretsanta and @spinifex-ao3, I present my humble gift for the 2020 Secret Santa Exchange. 

to love & be loved is a Raffi-centric short fic. It can be read on AO3 here, or below the cut. 

There was this thing Raffi's therapist recommended. She said that we tend to view mental ailments as a result of a singular issue, when that was not the case. This isn't unique to the so-called mental conditions; physical ailments are always the result of multiple convergent factors, many of them largely outside of our control. Whether you break a bone running down a corridor depends on the gravity levels, the angle, your physical ability to catch yourself (or not), your species' biological attributes, and so on. But because the bone is easier to fix, we don't place as much value on all these could-have-happeneds.

So her therapist recommended that she looks at her alcoholism, even at the collapse of her family, and traces its lineage. To assemble the history in whatever way she preferred; a narrative, an artwork, a quasi-scientific graph, a mission report. Raffi tried and failed.

She ended up with a start chart of the Milky way, no, too big, zooming into a few classic earth constellations. She grabbed her stylus and pulled it across the screen, trying to connect disparate factors.

Childhood??? --- > my son --- > my husband left me

kicked out of starfleet --- > Starfleet = War?

Starfleet = JL? -- > betrayal?

She couldn't talk about any of it. She brought in a star chart with a handful of annotations explaining her biggest failures and regrets. She could barely explain why she wrote them down without crying, her hand itching for the phantom weight of a glass, even filled with water. So mapping the lineage of her alcoholism & her life became their goal. The implication being that you cannot fight a monster you cannot name.

***

Raffi's therapist was an Andorian woman with deep blue skin, almost an indigo tone. She was tall and friendly in a way that was sometimes clean and professional and sometimes cute and childish. On Earth, she took the name of Julia for some of her clients. Her actual name was J''ul/sth, but more humans were able to pronounce the vowels in Julia, so Julia it is. Julia was a fiercely intellectual woman and would cater her services to different conceptions of what it means to be mentally unwell. She was familiar with centuries of earth, Betazoid, and Andorian theories of mental illness, many of which weren't even addressed within the medical model preferred by Starfleet. Even in her darkest hours, Raffi could barely think a negative thought about Julia; her competence, her expertise was... illuminating.

For someone who had been judged by her own spouse as incapable, for someone who struggled to take care of her hair or to sweep a floor, it was intoxicating to have this brilliant woman focused solely on her for an hour each week. Julia never condescended. She had this assured confidence that Raffi was an interesting person, still worth talking to. It was the sort of thing that could give you hope, if you let yourself believe. It was also the sort of thing Raffi fucked up.

***

Julia was not a believer in abstinence from alcohol as the definition as sobriety. She pointed to it as an outdated Earth concept that had far too long of a shelf life for the evidence behind it. She encouraged Raffi to define her own boundaries about what substance use or lack thereof meant. And Raffi remembered when she could go to a bar for the music and the sensory experience of one or three Saurian brandies without the all consuming urge, twisting under her skin, telling her to escape from her life. And that was their goal. But Raffi didn't tell Julia which bar. She went to a local bar, one that straddled the line between bar and pub and played live music, an eclectic mix of whoever was willing to play for cheap, across genres, cultures, and species. Tonight was a young human teen, not a singer. They were remixing Vulcan instrumental music, very peaceful and precise, with bright and happy sounds. It was almost gauche, the way the emotions would intercut through the melodies. The sort of thing that art and music journals would comment on, asking if it was subversion or a childish rebellion, a blending of cultures or a mocking. The sort of thing that goes good with brandy.

And it was good. It was good for an hour, slowly nursing two drinks. It was good until she saw her, walking in kind of tipsy, skin flushed a warm blue. Surrounded by friends, bar hopping. On a youthful adventure. She felt ashamed, in that moment. That this woman half her age was supposed to be giving her advice, pretending to listen to her problems. That she could never be one of those friends, all so young, with a world to explore.

When Julia caught her eye, she walked over to say hello. And when Julia's friends asked her who she was, Raffi called herself a friend; not a client, not a patient. She doesn't know what it says that Julia didn't correct her; probably that outing a client was a breach of professional ethics. Raffi has more brandy, to wash away the deception, the feeling of herself as lecherous and pathetic and weak.

Raffi wakes up in an unfamiliar bed, entangled in long blue limbs. For a moment, this brings her happiness. The idea that she was wanted, that the woman who knew so much about her made love to her.

It was only for a moment.

She shifted out of the bed, cautiously. She left to the sound of gentle snoring and the feeling of breeze and slick on her public hair.

She didn't go back to therapy, after that.

--

She met Benjamin Sisko, Emissary to the Prophets and legendary war hero, at a Starfleet Intelligence conference. It was near the end of her career; there wasn't much longer she could hold onto the idea of the person she used to be, of whatever Starfleet begged from her. There were always threats on the horizon and she had become numb to it all. But Sisko interested her.

In a way, his life was quite possibly her worst nightmare. The idea of being essentially forced into a religion because, by the way, you are now an important figure in our religion and its impact on interstellar politics... what a nightmare. That wasn't mentioning being pulled out of linear time by powerful aliens worshipped as gods. At least -

At least when Q had showed up that one time, JL and him had a bit of a rapport.

But he didn't seem unhappy. She was used to seeing the haunted faces at conferences, as people who were raised in peace and sent out to explore ended up soldiers for war. Starfleet Intelligence was different, it attracted a more cynical bunch. The sort who wouldn't show it. But Sisko seemed... happy. He didn't look like a man who was kidnapped in order to appease powerful beings, or even someone straining under a PR lie. He looked like he had transcended beyond it all. And yeah, she wanted a piece of that.

But she couldn't ask for it. It was a crazy request. It was her imprinting her desires and pains onto a stranger's life.

It surprised her, after the conference, when he approached her and asked if she knew any Bajorans.

“Just the one.” Something in her felt compelled to add, “he wasn't religious.”

“So I'll be the first one to surprise you like this.”

And he grabbed her by the ear, what the shit, and said, in a low voice. “Your pagh is strong.”

***

After Agnes Jurati confessed to murdering a man, on their ship, the scientist had cried, and asked her, “Why are you still being so nice to me?” There were a lot of answers Raffi did not give. She did not say that she had a son and a husband who wouldn't let her love them and her desire to care for someone was apparently stronger than the realization that they were a semi-brainwashed murderer. She did not say that at this point, she didn't feel like she could judge anyone, morally speaking. Or that maybe this was pragmatism, keeping your friends close and your potential enemies closer. Or that at the very least, there wasn't much she could do to fuck up Agnes' life anymore, which is a marked improvement from the rest of her relationships.

Instead, she let herself feel soft. “Because, sometimes we make mistakes. And even if we can't fix them, I think we should still let ourselves love and be loved.”

[ladyloveandjustice]

Summer 2019 Anime Overview: Carole and Tuesday (final episodes)

I ended up having a lot more to say about Carole and Tuesday’s second season than I thought I did! It delved into some pretty varied and complex issues, after all. I did an EXTREMELY brief review/reaction( to the first half/season of the show you can see here. This review continues from that but is much more involved.

Carole and Tuesday (second half/ episodes 13-24)

Carole and Tuesday’s second half really expands its scope and goes all-out into the zone of social commentary in a way that I didn’t expect. Dang. I’m definitely impressed. There were hints of this in the first part, with Carole being a refugee from Earth who had very limited means and opportunities, while Tuesday came from a privileged background but ran away to escape a mother who cared more about her political career and public approval than her children’s well-being.

The second half delves into this much more, and condemns the policies of deportation and general public attitudes towards refugees and undocumented immigrants. Since the part of Mars our protagonists live inhabit pretty clearly meant to be analogous to New York, the plotline definitely meant to be a criticism of what’s going on in American politics right now. Of course Japan also notoriously has a lot of problems accepting immigrants and I think Watanabe and the rest of the staff probably wanted to say something about that too. 

Tuesday’s mom is able to climb the political ranks by calling for deportation of refugees on Mars- and in a chillingly accurate bit of commentary, she does this  solely to gain popularity with the public, and an even richer white man who has a corporate monopoly easily flouts laws and ethics to push her campaign. Black people are shown to be the first ones targeted for deportation and the black men who speak out are “made an example of”. The show doesn’t go so far to have anyone be killed (which is for the best, it’s unnecessary to go that far to make the point), police brutality is depicted and condemned, one man is targeted and beaten a bit despite not physically resisting, and a pair of men simply walking on the street are manhandled and arrested for “obstructing officers” despite doing absolutely nothing illegal. These marginalized folks continue to bravely fight back, even releasing protest raps from jail. And it’s pointed out to Tuesday that her mom is targeting people who are like her best friend and maybe she should step up and do something about it.

All of that is really good, and the show is firmly on the side of the minorities fighting back, and is all about how art should be used to challenge and reject oppression. It encourages diversity, unity, and takes a stand against persecution of immigrants, forced deportation and censorship. And how the show does this witha multi-cultural cast and a lot of developed characters from different backgrounds is great- there’s a love for all different kinds of music and acknowledgement that music owes everything to people of color. I especially appreciated the show going out of it’s way to depict how rap is often a tool for resistance.

That said, while the show’s message is positive and I appreciate its optimism and good intentions, the ending felt a little too neat and overly simplistic.It might be reductive to say the show goes so far to say racism can be solved if you sing a song, it’s more like “yeah use music to resist!” but the way the police are SO EASILY talked out of violence when they come to shut things down, the neat and simple way the political situation is resolved, and ALL the prison guards being willing to help out minorities in jail with no argument- yeah, I think it’s fair to say it wouldn’t go that smoothly in real life. However, the show seems to sincerely trying to send a message of hope, even if the execution is a little simplistic and lacking. 

The show is just sort of messy when it comes to its plot, themes and issues in general- I’d say it tries to do a little too much, so every arc is left feeling kind of underdeveloped and a lot of things are just...dropped. There are several examples of this.

Two mothers are both major characters in the show, and the show tries to make a connection there and say something about motherhood at the last second, but it’s muddled and contradictory. It’s stated that mothers can either chain you down or give you guidance and freedom, which is true, but we’re ONLY shown awful moms throughout the show, who have a large negative impact on their childrens’ life and hardly any positive impact, so celebrating motherhood at all feels bizarre. 

And the idea that this one mom isn’t all bad and maybe can be reasoned with is jarring since there aren’t any examples in the show of her postively affecting her child or being a good mom in the past. It’s so muddled I don’t know if I can say the show crosses over into abuse apologism (it’s at least made clear that if that mom doesn’t take her one chance to start to make amends, the kids will step aside and let her be taken down) but it really edges on it, and this is definitely something the show should have developed more and executed better

Another really muddled plot element with a lot of weird implications was the whole “martian androgyny syndrome” thing. It didn’t tun out as badly as I feared it might, but it was really hard to say why it was even there or what the show was trying to do with it. 

Basically, being on Mars can lead to some sort of vague condition where your sex changes I guess? And maybe it’s eventually fatal for some reason? And maybe the medication that treats it (by trying to stop the change? by addressing side effects? it’s not clear what it even does) causes uncontrollable anger??? That last part is especially uncertain because it’s only stated once by a person who might be trying to justify their abusive behavior BUT it’s also true that out of the three groups introduced in the show who have the syndrome, the people who (probably) take the meds have explosive tempers while the person who explicitly doesn’t is calm so????

 Anyway, the syndrome isn’t presented as uniformly negative, the calm person who doesn’t take the meds is a good person who is okay with their condition and they identify as non-binary and make a nice speech about it. But they’re also, y’know, dying, so. Again, it’s really unclear why this is even a plot element since it goes nowhere and gets explored so little and what is actually even going on with the syndrome and the medication is SO VAGUE. It doesn’t help that 2/3 of the people afflicted look like stereotypical anime caricatures of trans women. The idea that being intersex/getting a sex change/whatever is supposed to be happening is a death sentence isn’t great either.

And that kind of extends to the character arcs, relationships and plot in general a bit- there were a lot of things that were underdeveloped and muddled, which made the characters a little hard to connect to. Even the sci-fi aesthetic felt a little half-baked- I guess it’s a alternate history because we’re in Mars but Instagram is still a thing and modern singers are being referenced, but exactly how this world works went pretty underexplored. At least the text at the encourages viewers to use their creativity and continue the story themselves, so even the show itself is telling ficcers to get on it and make sense of this mess, okay. (Seriously though, I always enjoy seeing pro writers inviting the viewers to continue their story. Let those fic flags fly!)

Carole and Tuesday is definitely not perfect, but it’s entertaining, warm, visually beautiful and bursting with a love and respect for music. It’s features awesome tunes and varied and intriguing characters. The pro-diversity message that extends support for the marginalized and especially immigrants and refugees is very needed in these troubled times, and it’s theme of unity is very sweet

It’s an thought-provoking show clearly made with a lot love and largely positive intentions, so if you can handle the mixed and concerning implications of some of the more muddled bits, I encourage checking it out. 

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Masculinity Report, USA 2018

While we hear much discourse about the negative aspects of military service on men’s mental wellbeing – with suicide and PTSD never far from the headlines, especially after tragedies such as the recent Thousand Oaks mass shooting in California – the Harry’s Masculinity Report points to clear evidence that military service lifts men’s Positive Mindset Index. This fits perfectly with our broader findings that being part of something bigger that matters beyond the individual – “not self but country,” or “band of brothers” sentiment – is entirely in keeping with increased male positivity. It appears the residual pride, values, appearance, structure, self-worth, and patriotism reside long after active service ends. There seems to be evidence that the US forces can “build better men” – and perhaps this could be the basis of an armed forces recruitment/advertising campaign? Conversely, we know that former servicemen can often experience mental health difficulties associated with their lived experiences. This can later be exacerbated to a point where their sense of masculinity means they “bottle up” their feelings or self-medicate with alcohol or substance abuse. These are the men we need to reach out to, and say “it’s strong to talk, to take mastery and control over your destiny”. Here, other servicemen are the mental health role models they are most likely to listen to: strong men like them. All of that said, the findings regarding PMI and military service are intriguing and deserve further research in order to fully understand this phenomenon. Ethnicity & sexuality 2. Inner health is key A bespoke US study for Harry’s, in partnership with Dr. John Barry of University College London, exploring positive masculinity in 21st Century America.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 

  In September 2018, research led by Dr. John Barry, Honorary Lecturer at University College London and co-founder of the Male Psychology Section of the British Psychological Society, and ethically approved by University College London, was conducted. 

The aim of this academic survey was to identify the values and priorities of American men and the factors which contribute to their emotional, physical and mental health and wellbeing. In a comprehensive, intimate survey of 5,000 male respondents aged 18-95 spread all across the United States, subjects were asked first to gauge their Positive Mindset Index (PMI) which was determined by asking men about their happiness, confidence, sense of being in control, emotional stability, motivation and optimism.

 Respondents were then asked about how satisfied they were with key areas of their lives, such as careers, work/life balance, relationships, money, physicality and mental health. Finally, to ascertain what kind of men they aspired to be, we asked them which core values they truly held dear. 

By cross-analyzing all of this rich data, we were able to construct a comprehensive picture of who the most positive American men were: what they did, how and where they lived their lives. On the whole, we discovered that modern American men are doing pretty well – and absolutely stand for something commendably selfless, as opposed to selfish. 

Forget unattainable celebrity lifestyles or chasing physical perfection: regular, stand-up guys and team players are the happiest men of all. The values American men most aspired to are those of everyday heroes: fathers, father figures, respectful co-workers, mentors. These are hardworking, loving, friendly men with a social conscience, which is great news for the men, women and children of America. 

The report mirrored The Harry’s Masculinity Report 2017 conducted in the UK on 2000 British men, but the American report went into even greater depth, asking questions on military service, gender identity, sexual orientation, political affiliation, employment status, educational level, and population density. As such, The Harry’s Masculinity Report 2018 stands as the most comprehensive, ethically-approved academic study of American masculinity on record. 

Source

PART I: KEY FINDINGS

The modern American man is a moral man. When asked what characteristics he aspires to, he chooses values that put the needs of others over his own. At the top were – honesty, reliability, dependability, being respectful of others and loyalty. At the bottom was athleticism (having a perfect body), proving the route to genuine contentment is who you are on the inside – not how you look on the outside. 

America’s most content men have good job satisfaction, value their health, have a good income, are over age 50 and are married. 

American men are largely happy, with an above average Positive Mindset Index (PMI), and typically have a more positive outlook on life than men in the UK. 

The strongest predictor of a positive mindset in men – by far – is satisfying employment. Hard work is the cornerstone of a contented man that all else is built upon. 

Significantly, American men now place more importance on their mental health than their physical health, while appreciating the two are fundamentally intertwined. Older men, especially, are tuned into the needs of their minds, as well as their bodies and souls. 

The third driver of positivity is income, and while it may be true you can’t buy happiness, the contentment of providing for others, especially one’s family, is a central pillar of American men’s sense of positive purpose. 

Next is health, and across the board is driven by, in the following order, good grooming, eating well, living longer and exercise. 

Men’s mental health is also related to connecting with others through sports, and connecting with friends by listening and giving advice. PART I: KEY FINDINGS 

The modern American man is a moral man. When asked what characteristics he aspires to, he chooses values that put the needs of others over his own. At the top were – honesty, reliability, dependability, being respectful of others and loyalty. At the bottom was athleticism (having a perfect body), proving the route to genuine contentment is who you are on the inside – not how you look on the outside. 

In terms of relationship status, forget the myth of the carefree bachelor. Across the board, married men are the happiest, with this especially being true in the South. 

Things can only get better! As men mature, their positivity rises and they become more likely to have a healthy and positive outlook on life. The over-50s were the most content group. 

In terms of sexual orientation, heterosexual and homosexual men (who made up 11% of the sample) scored very similar levels of PMI (3.7 v 3.6). Can we take this as a positive sign that gay men are feeling more self-contentment and pride than in the past generations? However, a note of concern. Some 14 respondents indentified as ‘non-binary’ and 10 as ‘female to male transgender.’ The mean PMI score of non-binary participants (3.02) and especially female-to-male transgender participants (2.63) spell out significantly lower levels of wellbeing compared to the other participants. These findings have important clinical implications for non-binary and transgender men. These are populations, who, although smaller in number, are more likely to need mental health support. 

PART II: WHAT GIVES AMERICAN MEN THE GREATEST SENSE OF WELLBEING?

1. Men at work: the dignity of labor

Men at work are men at peace: everything else flows down from satisfying employment. Men who have high job satisfaction are more likely to feel optimistic, happy, motivated, emotionally stable, in control and confident. 

Job Satisfaction is by far the strongest predictor of positivity, being around three times higher than the next strongest predictor in every region and across the US overall. And this isn’t primarily about money, rather making an impact on a company’s success was the main predictor of job satisfaction.

 96.4% of those with the top job satisfaction rating had normal or better levels of mental positivity compared to only 49% who gave the lowest rating for their job satisfaction. It, therefore, stands to reason that getting men into gainful employment is the best route to improving their positive mindset. This is not “greed is good”. It is difficult to conceive of these findings as pathological expressions of greed, workaholism, shallow ambition.

2. Inner health is key

Health – both physical and mental – was the second highest predictor of positivity across the US (interestingly, in the UK, it was being in a stable relationship: the more committed the man, the happier he typically is). 

Perhaps surprisingly, grooming – taking care of our appearance - was the strongest driver of positivity. A breakthrough moment that should afford great hope is the emphasis American men place on their mental health. Across every age group, American men placed greater importance on their mental health than even their physical health. Across all men, 52% said their mental health was “very important” compared to 43% who said the same of their physical health. 

In the UK, the most open about mental health was the 18-29 group, but in the US it is the over 60s (55.6% deemed mental health very important). This shows great awareness around age-related mental health issues, such as dementia, and shows senior citizens have a commendable openness to mental health that sets a shining example for younger men.

3. Men mature like fine wines

Men get happier as they get older, with men in their 50s at “peak positivity”. We found a clear correlation between age and well-being. This should encourage younger men to relax and the rest of us not to dread old age. According to American men, the future does look rosy! Perhaps we can (and should aim to) help younger men plan for future happiness by learning from happier older men. This should give great comfort to younger men: the future isn’t something to be feared but relished

4. Men in stable relationships

Being married was the fifth highest determinant of positivity in American men, showing men who are married have greater well-being than others. Interestingly, in the UK it was the second most important factor in British men’s happiness. Married men are the most positive, closely followed by those who are going steady or cohabiting. Single men are the least happy, worse than divorcées or even widows.

5. Friendship: the importance of buddies

Men who value friendship, family and sports and leisure have greater wellbeing. Sports – especially team sports – provide key benefits including, in order, socializing, feeling healthy and competition. Among the factors which were relatively unimportant to men were: winning; developing an attractive physique or ‘being skillful.’ As the old cliché would have it, it really isn’t the winning, it’s the taking part that counts.

This isn’t just about feeling healthy and fit, but also competing, being a team player and being sociable. When asked for details, the men who talked of health and fitness in this context specified not only the benefits to their own physical health but also to their mental health, alongside the importance of staying fit and healthy for the sake of their children and families. 

The social side of sports – playing in/for a team, the banter and perhaps even a cold beverage afterward – is three times more important to men than having a good body. Team players, not vain loners, are happiest.

6. Other noteworthy findings

Military Service

It’s official: the Harry’s Masculinity Report shows that being a member of the US’s armed forces – both past or present – is related to a higher Positive Mindset Index. Men currently on active duty have the highest PMI, and even those on active duty in past but not now have higher PMI than those with no service history. Our sample included men with various amounts of experience of military service. Some 22% of our respondents had previously served active duty (1,045 men); 2% (94 men) were currently on duty and 3.6% had undergone basic training. Some 3,863 had never served in the US or other Armed Forces. Overall, military service was the seventh highest predictor of PMI, proving military service is a significant determinant of positivity. It’s especially valued in the Midwest, where it ranks sixth as a predictor of PMI.

Political Leanings: 

Republicans are more positive Belonging to any political tribe gives a PMI boost. Men who voted Republican were generally more positive than Democrats. Voting Republican was the 11th highest determinant of positivity – higher than education level. While you’d expect men supporting a reigning President to be more positive, might this indicate that Democrat men are feeling the blues of the Trump administration? Overall, Republican voters have highest PMI, followed by Democrats, then Independents. All have better PMI than those who say no party represents them. Presumably, the latter feel a bit disenfranchised, which cannot be good for PMI.

Ethnicity & sexuality

Differing ethnicities or sexualities appeared to have no discernible impact on wellbeing in American men. There was no statistical evidence to point to white, heterosexual men being significantly more positive than any other demographic, although being white correlated to increased wealth.

PART III: REGIONAL VARIANCES

While positivity was typically standard across the US, there were some interesting variances that should give food for thought. Our data was split into “all US” and then four regions, namely Northeast; Midwest; West and South, and multi-variant analysis offered up some fascinating differences.

Being married was a significant predictor of PMI in the South, but not elsewhere 

Friendship was a strong predictor in the West but not elsewhere 

Being aged over 50 was a significant predictor in the West and especially the Midwest 

Sports & leisure was a significant predictor in the South, borderline in the Northeast, but not elsewhere 

Good pay varied in importance widely across the regions, from the top in the Northeast to fourth in the Midwest 

Chat with co-workers was a significant predictor in three of the four regions, and a nonsignificant predictor in the West 

In health, grooming was the highest predictor of PMI in the Northeast and West. “Living longer” mattered most in the Midwest, as did “exercise” in the South

Perhaps unsurprisingly, educational level was the highest determinant of salary in every US region, followed by being married, then being in full-time employment

In the Northeast, Midwest and South, “being white” was the fifth highest predictor of income, but did not feature in the South or West

PART IV: CONCLUSIONS & RECOMMENDATIONS

How can policy-makers, public services, charities and frontline professionals apply the findings of this research?

Across our research findings, the strongest single finding – by a factor of three – is that the happiest men are those who are happiest at work. This is not primarily about wealth, but a sense of making a difference, being part of something bigger and more meaningful. 

The characteristics which mean the most to American men in 2018 are moral values, such as honesty and dependability, rather than physical traits such as a perfect body, showing that true contentment comes from within. 

The lifestyle which is most effective at keeping American men happy, healthy and mentally robust is a combination of meaningful work that allows men to protect and provide for others, good health through a combination of good grooming (the exterior) and healthy diet and team sports (the interior), plus leisure and solid friendships that lay the bedrock of of a healthy social life. A winning Team America is made up of men who are team players.

PART V: MALE WELLBEING: SEVEN MAGNIFICENT PATHS TO INCREASED POSITIVITY

1. Get men into fulfilling work:

Across our research, by far the strongest finding was the importance of rewarding, secure employment to men’s health and wellbeing. Job satisfaction and the dignity of labor fulfills men’s desire to provide and protect. At the same time as noting that job satisfaction improves happiness, we should note the reverse: joblessness erodes the effectiveness of every significant protective factor and makes it harder for men to sustain a healthy, happy lifestyle. 

Offering hope to these men is the most compelling clarion call of all, be it in the form of policy makers encouraging or incentivizing employers into socially deprived areas, or on an individual/community level by utilizing social networks, friends and the women in struggling men’s lives, who can lean in and be of assistance. Give a man a job he finds satisfying and you give him not only hope, but sometimes even a reason to live.

2. Health: Looking good and feeling good PART V:

Healthy men are happy men, but this is not about being a slave to a punishing or narcissistic physical routine, rather a more holistic approach to self-improvement. That journey begins in the morning – and the route to positivity could be literally looking at men in the mirror. In the category of health, good grooming was the highest predictor of PMI, proving good grooming isn’t about shallow vanity, rather it actually helps make men feel good about themselves. It’s beyond skin-deep. Clinically, it is important to remember that a lack of grooming can sometimes be an indicator of low mood. 

The findings of this survey should highlight to therapists that a change in the grooming of their client might be a proxy measure of their mental positivity. Likewise, encouraging men to take care of their appearance might give them a psychological boost. Furthermore, healthy food and exercise, especially in a team/social environment, all add to this. Combine these factors and you have a template for elevated mood: the proof is in Harry’s data.

3. Support relationships and families

For every age group, being in a relationship (married, cohabiting, or going steady) made men happier compared to being single. This was true of parents and non-parents, although men with children are happiest of all. Men who lose contact with their children after a relationship breakdown are particularly vulnerable to poor mental health and even suicide. Supporting mediation services and the work of charities is essential for men’s wellbeing.

4. Embrace aging

With so much media emphasis placed on the power of youth, it was extremely gratifying to discover that men in their 50s are the happiest of all. Harry’s findings smash the cliche of the “mid-life crisis”. Instead, a man’s mid-life looks to be his happiest life. A public awareness campaign around this would be most welcomed.

5. Support Sports

Americans who value sports & leisure have a more positive mindset. Men’s mental health and wellbeing soar when physical health improves. In particular, men seem to benefit most from more sociable team sports. Providing facilities for these activities, and promoting their benefits to men of all ages would have extensive and far-reaching benefits, well beyond physical health and fitness. This is particularly true for individual men who are struggling with their mental health. We would encourage policymakers to encourage men to stay fit and well for the sake of their families and setting a good example to their children than they are about their own fitness or physique.

6. Promote the positivity of military service

While we hear much discourse about the negative aspects of military service on men’s mental wellbeing – with suicide and PTSD never far from the headlines, especially after tragedies such as the recent Thousand Oaks mass shooting in California – the Harry’s Masculinity Report points to clear evidence that military service lifts men’s Positive Mindset Index. This fits perfectly with our broader findings that being part of something bigger that matters beyond the individual – “not self but country,” or “band of brothers” sentiment – is entirely in keeping with increased male positivity. It appears the residual pride, values, appearance, structure, self-worth, and patriotism reside long after active service ends. 

There seems to be evidence that the US forces can “build better men” – and perhaps this could be the basis of an armed forces recruitment/advertising campaign? Conversely, we know that former servicemen can often experience mental health difficulties associated with their lived experiences. This can later be exacerbated to a point where their sense of masculinity means they “bottle up” their feelings or self-medicate with alcohol or substance abuse. These are the men we need to reach out to, and say “it’s strong to talk, to take mastery and control over your destiny”. Here, other servicemen are the mental health role models they are most likely to listen to: strong men like them. All of that said, the findings regarding PMI and military service are intriguing and deserve further research in order to fully understand this phenomenon.

7. Engage with men as they are, and as they want to be

When service providers seek to engage men, whether in health, education, community, voluntary activities or any other front of social policy, there is often a temptation to address either the problems men have, at best, or the problems men cause, at worst. Our findings strongly suggest that the values which men aspire to most are traditional, moral frameworks. Men want to think of themselves as honest, reliable, dependable and fair-minded and it is perhaps those traits which agencies should emphasize when they wish to earn the trust and co-operation of male service users. 

Much previous research into masculinity has negatively focused on the problems men cause, often through the nefarious concept of “toxic masculinity”. This has never been more so than in this post-#MeToo landscape and after every mass shooting or domestic terrorist incident. Lately, the dialogue has expanded to include the problems men have: such as the male suicide epidemic, depression, anxiety and addiction, while offering scant few solutions.

But Harry’s wanted to progress this dialogue forward, by flipping the telescope and focusing on what gives men a positive outlook. We wanted to find out which American men were the most positive and content, then look at the core values and behavioral attributes that nurture these men’s mental wellbeing. 

Next, we want to utilize these findings to formulate a roadmap to men’s contentment that could help others and help shape government policy around issues that affect men. What we found was that the overriding majority of American men aren’t “in crisis”. Rather, they aspire to be decent; they want to work, provide and nurture; they want to be loving, sharing partners and caring friends, and take care of their health and appearance. Crucially, American men are ready to open up about their mental health which we should see as a real opportunity to help tackle male suicide in particular. 

Maybe it’s that when we see men playing/watching sports, or staying late at work, or not talking about their feelings like women do, that we see only one side of them and miss the rest. It could also be that men are too modest to show off how they really feel, and our survey has provided a rare insight into that aspect of the male psyche.

CREDITS AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

 Dr. John Barry, Director of Research, Male Psychology Network; principal investigator Ethical approval: 

University College London (UCL) Research Ethics Committee Funding: 

Harry’s Ltd Executive summary written by Martin Daubney, co-author of the Harry’s Masculinity Report UK Access the full US report on the Male Psychology Network here: 

https://malepsychology.org.uk/research-library/ Find the 2017 UK report on the Male Psychology Network here:

 https://www.malepsychology.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/The-Harrys-Masculinity-Report.pdf

Source

[byprickingofthumbs-blog]

Reading Report

The book I chose for this supplementary reading list is The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot. I picked this book originally as I tried to find a comprehensive reading of the relationships between doctors and patients, along with the wide array of issues that are commonplace within the medical system (classism, racism, sexism, .etc). There were many options to pick from, some more dry than others, but The Immortal Life really seems to encompass many of the issues I want to address for my final project. One of the major divides here was that of Bioethics regarding patient consent – many, if not most, of Henrietta’s life as a patient was largely disregarded by the medical field. Given that we owe so much of our advancement in medical technology to her cellular lines, it’s important to look at the past events like Henrietta and what patients have gone through to better the rhetoric between patient and doctor. Going forwards this will help me clue in more on the specific things I want to address in my final project, along with understanding that for primary texts I absolutely must include the lived experiences of patients, past, present, and future to extrapolate the concepts themselves.

The rhetoric in this book is that to explain life of Henrietta Lacks, and specifically the cellular lineage of the HeLa cell line taken from Henrietta in 1951. It is the oldest cellular line having been the first cellular line to be cloned and did not die after cellular division which made them vital for exploring biologic research on the cellular level. The cells were taken without Henrietta’s knowledge or consent and the book focuses on her being a black woman being focused heavily as to why she was not informed of these cells being taken. The rhetoric aims to explore concepts of informed consent in a way that doesn’t diverge from the importance of these cells even though they were taken unwillingly, as well as looking at the impact this had on Henrietta and her family.

The rhetoric of this story is Rebecca Skloot with a caveat; Rebecca aimed strongly to have the voices of Henrietta’s family as well as surviving doctors who worked with the HeLa line to be used authentically; as such much of the book is based on first hand conversations with these people.

The situation for this book is to give some notoriety to the HeLa cell line. Henrietta wasn’t credited for her own cells by the scientific community until 1971, 20 years after the cells were taken from her and subsequently the same year Henrietta died from aggressive cervical cancer.

Motivating factors for this research are the fact that while laws were in place at the time of the HeLa cell line being developed regarding patient rights re: the nurmberg trials, they were largely overlooked for the Black communities within the united states. The first major project for the HeLa line was that for developing research at the Tuskegee Institute which was another medical travesty in their blatant disregard for patient wellbeing. However the HeLa line went on to do many amazing things for the medical research world as Jonas Stalk used a strain of the HeLa line to develop the polio vaccine and many other treatments for things such as cancer, AIDs, and radiation. Henrietta’s line was the opener for many large scale cases across the world regarding informed patient consent and the storing of human tissue; because of the HeLa line we have laws in place to avoid happening to us exactly what happened to Henrietta.

The implied target of this book are people interested loosely in scientific research. Unintentionally Skloot has actually come forwards and said that the book has drawn the attention of people who would otherwise have had zero interest in this book but for personal reasons were drawn to it. The book also received reviews from numerous scientists. The primary audience is non-fiction readers who have an interest in medical history and biographies, the secondary audience is likely academia. A possible tertiary audience is Lacks’ family as Skloot mentions creating a way for them to have a history of Henrietta and her cell line.

There are many rhetorical agencies taken here; historically the power dynamics between low income, Black, female patients and doctors is the largest but the book also delves into general patient consent, power dynamics between research and marginalized groups, courts vs. civil cases, proper usage of patient samples.

Key concepts and terms: HeLa cell line, informed consent, racial disparity in the medical and scientific field, Black medical history, cell cloning

The rhetoric of this reading helps shape a platform for people marginalized within the medical community to speak up about their experiences. Studying the history and the outcome of HeLa helps these people understand that their experiences are not singular events, and that it’s ok to ask questions and demand answers when it comes to your bodily autonomy. Giving these people a platform is largely something that has been overlooked in the past and patient voices are becoming a driving force behind scientific and medical ethics.

Perhaps the most compelling medical and scientific study for me in this story is that of Henrietta’s family who penultimately also ended up having their own rights flagrantly disregarded by the medical community. This brings up several specifics that might not otherwise be found in books and that is first hand accounts of how far the medical and scientific research fields will go in order to further these fields for “the greater good”. The fact that Henrietta was from an impoverished background as a Black woman is also something not frequently looked at to understand the specifics as to why there is mistrust in in these fields regarding bodily autonomy.

1)Why is environment so overlooked in regards to patients and case studies; when Henrietta’s cells were taken from her it was in a very violating way in a hospital setting. This is not unusual and yet despite us knowing the psychological damage and trauma this can cause in patients making them unwilling to speak up about concerns in the future and distrusting authority figures in this field, it’s still frequently overlooked as being a nonissue. 2)I know about this issue because of my own lived experiences as both a long term patient having been through similar experiences, as well as the other side of the stethoscope wanting to see how doctors can better interact with their patients to lessen the divide between them. 3)I learned a lot about the politics and laws behind patient consent and storing of human tissues from this book. I would like to learn more about these as they tend to be driving forces behind Doctors and researchers doing what they do, within legal confines yet pushing the boundaries. How might rhetoric here engage both sides to have a better understanding of what each other is going through. First hand accounts of the feelings of doctors seems to be in small supply but I’m eager to find more sources for this as well. 4)Looking into further readings, from past and present experiences will help here. Further understanding the “why” behind clinical research could also prove to be a vital source of information. 5)I’m hoping to improve the relationship between doctor and patient and to hopefully clear up misunderstandings. Helping patients understand why their doctors do the things they do and helping doctors understand why the mistrust is there in the first place will be incredibly important in the coming decades. There’s huge mistrust within the medical and scientific fields leading to harm of life on both sides. This will be a polarizing issue as the rift between these two groups of patient and doctor continue broadening.

Overall I think that The Immortal Life was an excellent read on understanding the issues brought forth. It also does so in a way that isn’t terribly dry while giving the reader the ability to comprehend what specifically happened during the reign of the HeLa cell line.

[pineaberry]

ESC: Life Day

ESC is a series of drabbles and ficlets that were really more like writing exercises created when inspiration struck. They’re labeled ESC because as you can probably tell, they’re choices that I’d like to explore but immediately hit ‘Esc’ in-game before they’re set in stone. These were never meant to see the light of day but seeing how I hit a 150 follower milestone, I’ll share this with you guys. Feel free to reblog and let me know what you think!

Life Day Event

Setting: Sith Warrior Timeline, immediately after recruiting Jaesa, before meeting Pierce on Taris.

Location: Dromund Kaas 

Players: Tremas Cidran (F!Sith Warrior), Malavai Quinn

Relationship: That part in the relationship where Quinn still fools himself into believing the relationship is professional. ‘We’re just friends. Really. Stop laughing.’

It was Life Day, or close enough to it, and the Fury Crew had returned to Dromund Kaas for the holiday. Vette had shuttled off to Nar Shadaa for revelry and partying with her old crew. All the while Jaesa had taken the first taxi available to her parent’s new penthouse in Kaas City. Tremas had been keen to do some last minute shopping downtown though she had stopped to ask if he had any plans. Quinn had managed to provide a vague reply about wanting to relax and catch-up on his reports. While she didn’t press him on details, Tremas left with him the spare key to her- the crew’s stronghold and sternly warned him not to spend all of his free time at the spaceport. He had merely nodded and as he continued calibrating the kolto tank’s filter.

He tried to remain busy to keep himself from thinking. He had accompanied his lord on business in Kaas City plenty of times before, but today was the first time he had stepped onto the planet without a definite schedule since… well since before his court martial. The first night as Captain he had agonized over his datapad before sending a letter to his mother informing him of his promotion. That felt like so long ago. He’d been to Nar Shadaa, Tattooine, Alderaan, and Hutta since then. Each time they arrived at a new spaceport he sent a message to his mother, yet he’d received no reply to his missives.

He was a grown man. The silence should not have stung as much as it did but, he honestly didn’t know what she thought of him and the uncertainty of it was all the more harrowing.

After his messages had failed to gain traction, he tried a different approach. He couldn’t give her the riches and prestige she coveted, but perhaps there was still a way to make amends. Tremas was an unusual Sith in that she divided all the rewards of a mission evenly among the crew members. He often criticized her decision to do so and spent his own exorbitant share on upgrading the ship. However, during their excursion on Alderaan, one of the nobles had rewarded them with a pink shimmersilk scarf. The rare Tyrian textile was valued in the thousands of credits; easily worth several months of his captain’s salary. Yet Tremas didn’t even bat an eye when he asked for it as his ‘cut’. He’d felt so guilty afterwards he’d spent a month’s worth of his Imperial stipend to upgrade the ship’s navigation systems. In spite of his misgivings, he’d packaged the shimmersilk scarf and sent it to his mother as a Life Day present several days ago.

It had felt like sending off a packet of detonite that could very well explode on contact.

Life Day had meant very little to him, even as a child. Even when his father had been alive, his parents were never particularly fond of the holiday calling it ‘Republic propaganda’ and ‘the inane superstitions of primitive species’. It was perhaps a bit hypocritical of them, for although they denied Malavai the thrill of presents, his parents were more than happy to attend every gala and social event associated with the holiday.

By the time he finished the testing the Fury’s internal critical systems, his stomach was in knots. He had timed the delivery and accompanying message to coincide with their arrival at the spaceport but had found no reply when they arrived. He moved on to inspect the cargo hold now filled to the brim with boxes. Tremas had begun receiving gifts the moment they crossed into Imperial space. More than a few were from Imperials that hinted at being willing to provide something more intimate to show their appreciation.

He felt a stab of anger which dissipated some of his nerves and redirected his focus at a gaudy package.

You presume much if you think she would EVER touch anyone as lowly as you.

More than once he had fielded a holo-call from some idiot ensign who developed a crush on the one Sith who didn’t treat him like dirt under her boot. They had all of them deluded themselves into thinking her mercy was a sign she was interested in them. More than once he threatened to report them all for their indiscretion only to have Tremas merely smile in amusement as though their insinuations were anything less than insulting. He never thought serving under a female CO would come with these complications. The sheer audacity and lewd remarks from some of these men made him want to neuter them with his blaster.

Is professionalism dead? What are they teaching in the Military Academy these days?

Quinn secured a taxi and had 2V begin unloading the boxes so they could be delivered to the stronghold. He scowled at a package that contained a bottle of cheap liquor and a private holo-frequency. He made a note to write a strongly worded letter to the Academy Officials. It was obvious there was a dire need for a course on Ethics and Personnel Boundaries.

They’d just about finished clearing out the cargo hold when a courier droid arrived.

“Delivery… Quinn, Malavai,” it blipped as it held an envelope just large enough to fit a datapad in.

Quinn felt the knots return as he approached the droid and signed for the package. His heart was pounding in his chest as he promptly marched into the ship and placed the steel-blue envelope on his desk. There were no visible markings on the outside other than his family’s coat of arms; nothing to betray the message he would find inside. He had been waiting for weeks for this moment, yet now he could only stare at the envelope as though it were a venomous snake about to bite him. Finally, he could stand the suspense no longer and he tore open the envelope…

Bits of pink shimmersilk fell like iridescent flower petals onto the desk. The scarf had been cut into precise squares rendering the fabric worthless. He stared at the destruction as he felt something hot yet cold douse him. A fist slowly closed over the pieces as he grappled with the message received.

Did you really expect anything different? You thought you’d send her a pretty scarf, and then what? She’d ask you over for tea? Stupid, worthless, idiot.

He felt a deep shame wash over him and he immediately stuffed the bits of shimmersilk back into the envelope as though to hide the evidence of his foolishness. All of a sudden the ship was too small, too constrained. He stormed out heading for the Spaceport’s exit, pausing only to shove the proof of his shame into the nearest incinerator.

I’m a fool.

He rushed outside blindly, not caring if it was raining as he took deep ragged breaths. He wanted to run, to punch something, to hide, to cease existing, he wanted…

“Sir? Sir!”

A voice cut into his thoughts and effectively cut off his nervous breakdown. He turned to face a field medic that was hesitantly stepping towards him scanner in hand.

“It’s fine, soldier. I was... ” Quinn’s voice trailed off as he failed to come up with a plausible lie.

“It’s easy to get disoriented during a storm, but if you keep heading this way, you’ll get lost in the jungle,” the medic said offering him a way to save face.

He’d walked off the trail without so much as a blaster.

What a mess...

“Yes, of course, thank you,” Quinn nodded before heading back to the Fury. 2V chirped a greeting when he arrived informing him the taxi was loaded and ready to go. He was soaked from head to toe but he didn’t think he could stay in that hangar for a moment longer. After securing the ship he joined 2V and headed to the stronghold.

Quinn watched the passing scenery with feigned detachment. He wished he could just go numb and forget the day had ever happened. It was moment like these that he understood the spike in suicides around Life Day. Holidays only accented a person’s misery… his misery.

“You’re worthless, Malavai.”

He arrived at the stronghold garage, chilled to the bone and still dripping water everywhere. Quinn left the droid to unload the boxes while he trudged up to his private quarters but even a change in clothing couldn’t shift his mood. He needed to forget, to just drown out his thoughts. It was a familiar a need.

He went to his office and reached out to grab a decanter of brandy when he noticed a black box with a gilded bow had been left atop his workspace. Curiously he approached the box but there was only a single handwritten word on the tag.

Malavai...

Inside was a real tome with the complete translation of the Discovery of Korriban. He sat down in stunned silence as he picked up the book. He couldn’t think of anything he would want more… And then he looked down see a display cube with a fragment of obsidian at the bottom of the box. Ancient Sith language was etched into the surface and next to the cube was a certificate of authenticity.

Location: Korriban, Tomb of Ajunta Pall.

Artifact Name: Malavai’s Tablet

Description: Obsidian stone fragments depicting the oldest known record of the discovery of Korriban.

Unearthed by: Lord Tremas Cidran

Recorded by: Imperial Archeological Society.

Of course it was from her.

Who else would know?

Who else would care?

He hugged the book to his chest unable to form a coherent thought when faced with this level of kindness.

“You know, you’re not supposed to open those until Life Day,” her voice called out from the doorway, “but I’ll give you a pass”

He looked up at her his eyes welling with emotion.

“This… I am… overwhelmed, my lord,” he said before standing up. Quinn tried to hide his gaze from her as he carefully placed the book back in the box.

“Oh, come now Captain, what’s with that face? It should be criminal for you to look so sad,” she frowned as she walked up to him and gave him a hug. The weight of the day seemed to lift of his shoulders with the action.

Ever since Tatooine, he had become comfortable with her touch. He couldn’t remember the last time someone had such a soothing effect on him. He didn’t know if it was a Sith mind trick, or just something uniquely hers, but her presence silenced his doubts and fears. The shame and self loathing that had threatened to overwhelm him vanished like a nightmare under the glare of the sun. He sighed in relief and pressed his forehead against her shoulder effectively hiding his face.

“You know, it shouldn’t be this easy to get into your head, Quinn.”

Ah. Force mind-trick then…

She’d been trying to train him against those.

“I’m sorry, my lord. It’s been… a disappointing day,” he murmured realizing she was easing him into a relaxed daze. She’d done this exactly twice, both times when he’d been on the brink of an anxiety attack. Tremas had also shown him how to shake her off, but he was not currently inclined to do so. Not yet.

You alone make me feel safe...

“I’m sorry you’ve had a bad day. Do you want to talk about it?” she asked as she rubbed him back and he felt himself sink deeper into the daze. The grime of his darker thoughts faded away.

“No. I don’t… I don’t want to think about it.”

Please keep me from thinking about it…

“You know, if you stay under too long, it’ll be harder to come back,” she murmured earning a soft grunt in reply.

I don’t care… 

He wanted to stay lost in her thrall forever. There was something irresistible about her willingness to take care of him. She tempted him by lifting his burden over and over again. And gods, how he just folded submissively every time. He just WANTED to let her do as she pleased. His weakness would mortify him to no end once he regained his senses.

“Well, how about we do this,” she said sensing his reluctance and offering him a middle ground, “we’ll order from the noodle place downtown. We’ll make a pillow fort in the library and I’ll put on that new Historical Holo everyone’s talking about.”

“The storyline is always riddled with inaccuracies,” he mumbled.

“Good. I’ll try to point them out and you can tell me if I’m right or not,” she smiled as she saw him stand up straight and finally push back enough to free himself from her thrall.

“Pillow fort, my lord?” he asked as he processed the entirety of what she’d suggested with a clearer mind.

“Yes. That part is essential,” she grinned impishly as she looped an arm around his and led him towards the second floor.

Now with fanart here: Pt. 1 

And here: Pt. 2

[siobhandesignstorytelling]

Week 3 | Reflections

Project Investigation: 2

Reflect on today’s workshop: What were the key activities and concepts?

Visualising information Part 1

One of the first things we went through as a class was our cognitive biases and the importance of questioning our assumptions.

We did this with the tool Gap Minder.org. It was interesting to do this - usually when asked the questions that 'gap minder' poses my first reaction is to not answer them as I'm not the kind of person who likes to answer something without at least know what I'm talking about (especially when it comes to facts and figures)

What I noticed about how we as a class answered the questions was that when it came to questions regarding the climate/environment, we tended to think it was better than what it was and when it came to social issues we tended to assume things were a lot worse. I think that's because we find it easier to relate to humans, being human, and so their suffering seems bigger and more conflated - whereas, how do you empathise with the environment? I think this goes back to how we learnt about narrative structure and storytelling back in Week 1. We identify with people, so their stories are more relatable. This to me, relate to our learnings on storytelling in week 1 - specifically Narrative Transportation. I think we feel the pain of human beings more acutely than we do with the planet. I think that may explain why a lot of time we see the climate being anthropomorphized as 'Mother Nature' and ascribe hurt, and sickness, among other things to her, to help us narratively understand the plight of the climate - because as shown in this gap minder exercise - we tend to think things aren't as bad as they actually are.

With this concept in mind, going forward into our research, it's important to check our assumptions, and make sure that the ways we tend to catastrophise humanitarian issues are brought in to check.

The next exercise we did was the Future Thinking Toolkit. In this exercise we took the toolkit to think about the future of Foods: to identify changes in eating habits over time and explore what might happen in the future.

Thinking about future foods: Identify changes in eating habits over time and explore what might happen in the future. In the activity, we looked at

In our teams, we then explore our project topic with mapping. We came together as a group and mapped out the future issues we had produced in previous weeks and collated them and tried to find trends among them and see what issue we could focus on as a group. Collectively, we began to discuss the issues that we thought would shape the future of Aotearoa.

When discussing our issues we found a lot of our conversation tended towards the implication of social media and its impact on different aspects of human health and the human experience. It was here we agreed that our group dynamic was most interested in Social Media as our Future issue and to focus on that.

We also began learning about the importance of Data Visualisation and how to do it effectively. We learnt that it is data that has been graphically represented. It uses graphic elements that make it easier to interpret and understand relationships, patterns and trends in Data. This particular concept of understanding patterns and relationships in complex data reminded me of the 'Making Toast' exercise we did in Week 1. To me, the data are the nodes, and the relationships between them are the links. The concept we learnt in week 1: "What gives people an edge in Systems thinking, is being able to see the world around them as movable nodes and links." Perhaps when interpreting the complex data that we will inevitably create visualisations with it'll be important to think of data and connections in terms of nodes and links. Data visualisation makes complex information accessible.

We also learned about data literacy - which is the ability to read, understand, use and communicate data as information. To support this learning, we watch a video called, 'Big data: why should you care?" One of the most helpful concepts in this video, in my opinion, was the DATA acronym:

Size does matter but it isn't the whole story. There are four other elements that make big data special:

D - Dimension/Diverse/different | by combining data from different sources you can get a multidimensional picture

A - Automatic | it's collected by default, anything we do collects data

T - Time | projected forward to help make predictions

A - A.I. | Artificial intelligence - finds patterns in data - machine learning - sorting data

I found it useful that there is a difference between Large Data and Big Data. Large data could be brain scans, for instance, even if there were thousands of brain scans, this would still only count as large data. Big Data, however, is taking those brain scans, and entire medical records, where someone grew up when they were born, weather records. From big data, we can ask more in-depth questions about an issue. This was an interesting concept to learn going forward. It stresses the importance of comparing and contrasting information, and how it can make for a more nuanced and accurate approach to issues.

Also, Because data is being collected in real-time, the patterns found in data can be projected forward to make predictions about the future. Again, this stresses the importance of finding and comparing patterns found in different sets of data - it's finding the different nodes from different data sets and linking them to better understand where our future is more likely projected.

With that said as well, it's imperative that we critically assess our data sources. Not only is it important for our own accuracy's sake, but ethically, when presenting our information. It's important to never mislead with data, whether we've done it consciously or not.

Find as much information as you can about the issue your group has chosen. Document your research on your blog.

https://siobhandesignstorytelling.tumblr.com/tagged/research

Please find my research documented in the above tag

[careerbitespod]

Episode 2 Transcript: (NURSE) Turning Setbacks into Success with Kim Ceccarelli

Rachael Barksdale: Welcome to the Career Bites podcast where we make career exploration easy - and fun! This week, I explore a career that has been front and center in this pandemic - nursing. I am so fortunate that my guest took time out of her busy schedule to speak with me, given that she is not only a full-time nurse, but also a mother to a toddler and expecting her second! Kim Ceccarelli is a progressive care unit (PCU) nurse in Oregon, but the path to get there wasn’t an easy one - and for Kim, the journey isn’t over yet. I hope her story will inspire you to persevere as you embark on your own path. Here’s my conversation with Kim.

A lot of people are watching the news and seeing all of these nurses talk about the COVID situation and personally, having worked with a lot of nurses when I had my first kid almost a year ago - nursing is really intense! I personally super admire anybody who’s a nurse or wants to be a nurse because I know I don’t have what it takes. Why did you choose to go into nursing?

Kim Ceccarelli: So the starting point, I mean in high school I always had like, you know, that career that I wanted to get into. But I never understood why I wanted to be in it. I just knew that it was something that I really liked being a part of because I always volunteered at the hospitals. My first volunteer gig was at the - like in the medical ICU at Madigan which is on the Fort Lewis military base back home in Tacoma. And I just always admired the work ethic, the way they interacted with patients, just how sharp they were, too, and just how much the doctors and the pharmacists always turned to them. But then it’s like, I always admired them but then I wasn’t sure, like what is it about me that could contribute to this area? And then the turning point happened while I was in college, still trying to figure out my path. I bounced around a little because life was happening, and one of those major life events was that my grandmother who - who lived with us - she was having issues with small strokes and whatnot, but she had the big one while I was on holiday break. And that scared the...the dickens out of me and...but you know, high school because I had to work in a hospital as a volunteer, I had like CPR skills and whatnot, but I just turned her to her side because she was having the stroke, and eventually she had a seizure, which I didn’t know all that connected at the time, and had to call 9-1-1. And that was a really scary situation, you know, having a personal loved one go through that. And again, it was the nurses in the emergency room who calmed us down, and her down, as well as my mother who was sobbing tears, you know. It was the nurses - after the doctors explained things in confusing medical lingo, that the nurses made more sense about like what the imaging was, what medications they were giving, how long she might be there. And then it was the nurses who, eventually when my grandmother went into hospice, they took such good care of her toward the end of her life that just being involved with it even just indirectly, like on a personal level now, was like “I want to be that for other people”. And so, I persisted and - but that was kind of why I chose to be a nurse.

Rachael: Wow, that is super inspiring. And, what a crazy way to get into that, to have your grandmother have that experience.

Kim: Mm-hm.

Rachael: That’s scary, but sometimes it’s those really intense life moments that push us down a certain path. So, you mentioned some of those things that nurses did, they were the ones that explained what was going on in terms you could understand, they were the ones that were comforting...If I were to shadow you during one of your shifts, what are some of the things that I would be experiencing?

Kim: We work 12-hour shifts, maybe other places do 10 or eight, but mainly in the hospital it's a 12-hour shift. We see you first thing in the morning. We’ll take your vital signs that range from your blood pressure, charting down your heart rate, measuring your respiration - so as you’re talking, we will not tell you that we’re measuring how much you’re breathing but we’ll do it very discreetly - we’ll check your blood sugar if that’s what we have to do. And then we kind of just do, like a little mini assessment, like head to toe, ask you your pain levels and whatnot, ask if you slept well if you were there overnight. And then just kind of review as to why you’re in the hospital because it’s always good to know what got you there in the first place. And I have a lot of patients, too, that don’t understand why they’re in the hospital either because of old age or they’re altered because of whatever their condition brought them in for, so we kind of just have that routine to kind of go over like “where is the patient at?” And so after I do my assessments, I usually check-out meds. Typically we have like these 8 or 9 o’clock medications that need to be given - that’s either stuff that they’ve been taking at home if they were taking, you know, maintenance medication, and anything new like that brought them there that they have new orders for, medications for. I’m always seeing how the patient’s doing, seeing if they have the strength to even sit up on the edge of the bed, if they can even swallow or drink well, if they can even take their medications at all. We are like a stroke unit too, as well, so I’m always trying to ensure their safety and make sure they don’t choke on their pills. And then a big chunk of my time lately is charting. At least for my unit, we have to chart like every four hours, and then even more frequently if we’re monitoring the trajectory for a stroke, or if they just got out of surgery usually it’s like every 30 minutes to an hour, just depends on what they’re there for and what kinds of protocols and procedures are in place for that kind of thing for charting. I’m always on the phone, too, if I’m not in a patient room, either mediating care with the nurse managers, the care coordinators. Sometimes these patients’ primary care clinics give us a call for an update. Sometimes I’m talking to hospice organizations if the patient is going that route. Then, I’m talking to the physicians, I’m talking to all the therapists - physical, speech and occupational - just asking how the patient’s doing. I’m talking to all of the imaging departments because we have to coordinate times for x-rays and CTs and MRIs, all that kind of stuff and...I feel like I’m always mediating when I’m not in a patient room. And sometimes, depending on family dynamics, I’m talking to a handful of family members who are okay to get information, because we do have confidentiality laws, but I mean if I’m able to talk to a family member - if it’s okay with the patient or if they’re a power of attorney. Some families like to call throughout the day and some just want a quick update first thing in the morning. I mean all that makes for a really busy day. Then you get things like, that blindside you, like codes or rapid responses, or just like a change in health status that takes all of my attention. 

Rachael: It sounds like you don’t have any down time whatsoever, which I think for some people is great, they want to be busy. And that’s good to know for some people that - they’re considering nursing but they need those breaks. I mean you’re going 12 hours straight. How often do you do your 12-hour shifts in a week?

Kim: Yeah, so, I mean, if you’re 12-hour shifts in a hospital typically it’s three days a week. You can have those either all consolidated into three days in a row which is very tiring, but I mean, if you’re young and you can do it - kudos. But even at 30 I’m like “oh my gosh I am so exhausted”. And usually that first day off after three days, which is like 36 hours in three days, but then you account for like, you know, getting to work and staying late sometimes because of charting, or like something happened at the end of the shift. Sometimes it is 40 hours in three days.

Rachael: Wow.

Kim: Which some people don’t seem to understand when they’re like “oh yeah, you only work three days a week that must be really nice” but if you have all those days clumped together, which a lot of hospitals make you do, it’s...it’s rough. 

Rachael: Right, it’s just the super-concentrated work week, that’s what it is. 

Kim: Oh yeah. I mean, I will say, a lot of my lulls happen like at 2 or 3 o’clock. And I will say also that I’m super fortunate that I’m part of a hospital that has a union that fought for breaks. Breaks are legal, we’re supposed to have your three 15-minute breaks and a one 30-minute break. Some places don’t necessarily do that. I’m not going to, like, name-call or anything, but that’s kind of the consensus in nursing that people just go without their breaks, and that that’s just normal. But that’s not normal and it’s not safe for patient-care or for nursing staff. Yeah, luckily I am in a union that fought to add an extra nursing position to have what we call a “break relief nurse”. So I - I fortunately get all of my breaks. So that makes a huge difference in my day. 

Rachael: That’s awesome.

Kim: I feel really grateful to have that. 

Rachael: One of the questions I had written down here to ask was how you felt about these ongoing concerns, you know way before COVID pushed every hospital to the limit, about the nursing profession at large having nurses overworked and underpaid, culturally kind of under-appreciated. They’re sort of the teachers of the...of the medical profession, you know, they’re completely essential and yet, unfortunately, disregarded in a lot of ways. I guess, do you want to elaborate on...on your thoughts on that or how you’re seeing the situation from the inside?

Kim: Even before I started working as a nurse, during my clinicals in the two years - two, three years before becoming one - yeah, I just wondered, like, when is my preceptor going to have her break? Like, what’s in place? You go 12 and a half hours almost, thirteen or fourteen depending on what goes on, and I’m like, “this shouldn’t be a culture that’s accepted like this”. We need to feel more appreciated by management. So, I mean, it’s hit or miss, I haven’t worked at a place that doesn’t have a union or - I mean, most of the area hospitals in my, in my state do have unions except for maybe one, but breaks and management of relief for these nurses is pretty standard or at least it’s trying to be the standard. But no, I just, I just don’t think like that culture of not having your breaks and going for 12 hours straight should be accepted and I...I definitely signed the papers to, you know, have that be considered in a contract of ours at work. So it takes a lot of advocating and fighting for ourselves to make sure that we get that respect and those breaks. 

Rachael: For sure. So nursing, again, this really intense profession, takes a lot of your time, what would you say would be the top three attributes for someone who’s successful as a nurse?

Kim: One is you need to have a strong backbone. Not all patients are very nice. They will say really mean things to us. Sometimes they don’t even want to be there because maybe a family member brought them in out of concern, or they didn’t understand why they were going because they’re so confused. And you know, in altered states some people can be really combative and whatnot. But we have to have a really strong backbone to just not take those kinds of things personally. Some people are just really sick so they just say some really mean things because they’re vulnerable, and we have to realize that. And so I always say, like, you have to meet the patient where they’re at. So that’s why I do that little review at the start of my shift, which includes introducing myself and reviewing their course of care, and what to expect for the day. And then, second is to never act like you know it all because nursing is an ongoing learning process. And even though I precept and train new hires, or new graduate nurses, like three years into this, I - I still feel like I’m always learning, even new procedures alongside the doctor like just - supplies, I’m like “oh, I’ve never heard of that kind of catheter or whatever” - but it was a preference for a physician and that makes the procedure go easier like for paracenteses and whatnot. Yeah, so it’s always being willing to learn, too, and always accepting advice even from older and newer nurses just to receive their input, because I feel like you’re not going to go anywhere if you’re not willing to learn more. And then another attribute is - I know you mentioned earlier that nurses are underpaid or - but it depends on where you work, hospitals do get the highest pay and such - but that’s not what influenced why...and so we should always reflect and acknowledge that getting into nursing is so much more than just the pay. But it’s because you legitimately want to care for the people that are kind of under your wing. And because they’re going to be from all stages of life, all walks of life, they’ll be at a different stage in, like, their illness either toward the end of life or maybe they just found out something, you want to have the compassion and the empathy for people who are going through these trying times. Especially now in light of COVID. 

Rachael: I’m going to take a step back then and let’s talk about how you got to nursing in the first place. We talked a little bit about this before the call, about your unorthodox education path to get to this point, so walk us through that. After high school, what path did you take and what did you learn after going through that process?

Kim: Yeah, for sure. So like I said before our call started, I went and did, you know, the four-year college route, because, you know, that’s all that was kind of ingrained into us in high school, like “go to a four-year college”. So I went. I discovered that I’m not a really great person with studying or I didn’t have like a really good study ethic cemented for myself. Life also happened, like I said, when I was a sophomore in college my grandmother had that stroke. So I was in and out of the university campus helping my mom set my grandma up for, you know, the different areas of healthcare that she needed, like hospice and dealing with the emotions of that. So life happens. I ended up getting a degree out of Gonzaga in psychology because that’s what I ended up changing my major to. It was nursing at the time, but because of life I had to change it. And I actually had an advisor that told me that because of one low grade that I shouldn’t be a nurse. So even though I had, like you know, that turning point in my life that inspired me to become a nurse, I also had someone who told me not to. And that was - that was me saying “I - I’m not going to listen to that”. Why would an advisor say, “you shouldn’t be what you’ve always wanted to be”? So that was definitely a driving force too, but you know I persisted because it was really truly what I wanted. And I - after Gonzaga I had to take a few prerequisites just to kind of, you know, get that A-grade or to really solidify my knowledge in that area, especially anatomy and physiology. And then applying to nursing school was a whole other ball game. Nursing schools are very competitive. They usually have really really large application pools for a small cohort. For example, the school that I eventually got into, there were 600 applications the year that I applied, but they only took, like, 80 students. Which feels like a lot, but out of 600 applicants that’s not a lot. And the applicants for these nursing schools, it’s just so large at any of the schools that you look into and so...It took a couple years to get into this program, but again, persistence was the name of the game for me and I was like “I am not giving up”. So in that time that I had to reapply, and ever since I got out of Gonzaga, I knew how important it was to start working directly with patients. So I worked in assisted living facilities, I worked in skilled nursing homes, I worked with patients in memory care - and honestly, the care that my grandmother received inspired me to look into these areas so I understood what she was going through when she eventually had to be out of the home. Yeah, so I went through to do a two-year associate's degree. A two-year associate’s degree still allowed me to sit for the national licensure exam, called the NCLEX. That in itself was a - that was a doozy and I spent like seven weeks straight just studying and honing my ability to take tests. Because that’s really what it is, it’s like how well can you take a test? The information you learn in school was honestly enough to help you take the exam, but you really had to hone in your test-taking skills with that. I got licensed on my first try. You hear as nurses that “oh, someone passed it the, like you know, the minimum amount of questions”, which is 75, like their thing shut-off. Because I have to work extra hard at everything I do I feel like, I finished at like 115 questions. And the exam can let you take as many as like 250 questions for this licensure exam - so I felt good, and you know, it was a really hard two or three days to wait, but I got - I got licensed by the state of Oregon and I was extremely happy with myself. All that hard work of, you know, working and being rejected initially, my - my grandmother’s passing, like all that really culminated into that one moment where I read the email saying “Congrats! You are now a licensed nurse”. It was a very tearful and joyful moment. But I still pressed on, like even though I just got licensed I felt like I didn’t really have time to celebrate because I was looking for a job. And then even after I started a job I still needed to get a Bachelor’s of Science in Nursing because that was kind of the minimum degree to have in hospitals especially. So...and I wanted to make sure, you know, I covered all my bases. So my first year that I was working I worked nights, three times a week for the 12-hour shifts, and at the same time I was attending an RN to BSN program at Oregon Health and Science University. That was for an entire year, so three-quarters - I got my holiday breaks and whatnot. And that focus was very different from my associate’s degree. My associate’s degree was very hands-on learning, was more about pathophysiology, pharmacology, how to do assessments, like things to look for, like practically basically. But OHSU taught me about more in-depth on nursing leadership, epidemiology, community health concerns and that kind of stuff - which I really liked. Some people maybe were like “oh, that’s not very different from like the ADN” but I really thought that that helped me hone in my critical thinking skills as a registered nurse, and I was very appreciative of having that opportunity to go to OHSU. Because the nice thing is this RN to BSN program partnered with my community college and seven others in the area that allowed associate’s degree nurses to transition to this program without having to competitively apply. So it was like a nice, seamless transition to a BSN program so that we could get more BSN graduates in the workforce. Because they - there was something from the Institute of Medicine or whatnot that said that they’re trying to get like a certain percentage of nurses with their BSNs in an effort to improve patient care. Which I think is cool, so that’s nice to have in our area and I feel very lucky to have that. 

Rachael: To clarify, you don’t need to have your bachelor’s degree to become a nurse, you only need to have a two-year degree and pass the licensure exam, correct?

Kim: Mm-hm, basically. And an associate’s program can let you do that. But the hold-up is is that most hospitals, or most health systems, they’re trying to phase that out almost so they’re trying to make the minimum requirement to even apply to have a bachelor’s degree. Which it makes it confusing because it’s like “well, why do we have all these associate’s degree programs?” But one, it’s inexpensive compared to like a four-year college that offers a BSN, and it honestly I feel like it makes it have better access to nursing, just getting the education that way. 

Rachael: So you mentioned you went right into a four-year degree program and that didn’t work for you...Would you recommend to potential future nursing students to go the associate’s degree route?��

Kim: If time and money are important factors I would say, bring out the money if you know exactly what you want at 18, to go for that four-year degree. But if, like, money is an issue then going the community college route to get like your prereqs done and finding a program that has a nursing school, like an associate’s degree nursing program, to go that route, just to save money. It really depends on what your priorities are and what your financial capabilities are, too, to going to school - because no one wants to have loans. So you have to do what’s best for you financially too. And a bachelor’s program I’ve found, some people - the ones that I’ve gone to school with - was a little harder to look into because I felt like they wouldn’t be able to get the childcare, whereas the community college I went to, they provided childcare whilst kids were in class. There was an on-campus kind of, like, childcare program that was available. So it really depends…

Rachael: Do you have other future education or career aspirations going forward?

Kim: Even when I got my associate’s degree my sisters always joked with me that I will forever be in school or aspire to forever be in school. Which is kind of funny and true at the same time. Because I really do want to get the highest terminal degree and get that satisfaction of saying that I did it and that I’m doing this for myself, but I’m also doing it for my patients and the care that I provide. So I actually have a couple applications out to area nurse practitioner programs, and specifically I want to be an adult gerontology nurse practitioner in primary care. I love my hospital gig, I love everything about it: I love the people I work with, I love the patient population...18 and over. So that’s been, like, my niche and the area I thrive in. But a lot of the care that I provide is very reactive. I see them, you know, while they’re at their sickest and then when they’re - when they’re well enough to go home or stable, like I have no idea what happens after that. And that’s kind of the piece of healthcare that I’m like, “well, how are they doing?” Like, I want to know how they’re doing. And so what kind of influenced the whole nurse practitioner route was that I want to be a provider that helps people stay out of the hospital and help them manage with proper education and follow ups to help them manage, you know, their chronic conditions like whether it be diabetes or cardiac issues or whatnot. You know, help them manage it at home and give them the power to be able to manage it. And so that’s kind of what sparked that, just the whole reactive process in the hospital, and then...I just don’t feel...fulfilled not knowing how they’re doing after that discharge day. And then you also wonder - or I’ve also wondered - “why does this same patient keep coming back for the same thing (recurrence in like a heart failure exacerbation)?” Like are they not taking meds? Is there no access to their meds? Do they - can they not get to their primary care physician, because are they too far? Or do they have transportation issues? Like all those things really, like, buzz around my head: “why is this patient here?” The hospital’s great, we do our job, but you’re only in the hospital because you’re very, very sick. And I feel like management outside of the hospital is super-duper important, for all of our health. 

Rachael: I feel like that just goes to show how much you care about what you do as a nurse and just who you are as a person that those considerations cross your mind and inspire you to be the best nurse and the best healthcare professional possible so…

Kim: Mm-hm.

Rachael: That’s super inspiring for me, personally, just to know that you care so much that you want to be the best that you can, not necessarily just for yourself but for others as well. If there was one piece of advice you would give a high school student, whether they are looking into nursing or not, about adulting and choosing a career path, what would that piece of advice be?

Kim: Honestly, with getting into the career that I’m in now, getting your feet wet and working right away, whether it be in any capacity, to get into a medical field. There are a lot of certificate programs out there and places that even you could volunteer in as a high schooler. It’s really important to get your feet wet so that you understand and know what you’re getting into, and see how you interact and just how you do with other people at their worst. Is that something you could handle? The blood-and-guts thing is also one factor. I have had people who’ve shadowed me and they’re like “I can’t do this. I can’t deal with the needles, I can’t deal with that”. So it’s like always getting your feet wet and just kind of diving in. Like, don’t say “oh I want to be this” without the experience or the knowledge or the capacity to handle it, so I always say get your feet wet in whatever capacity you can either through work, either through volunteering, career interviewing, what have you, anything. Always reach out. And I feel like a lot of primary care offices are really good places to start, like if you have a primary care physician. Just even asking the nurses who work there, or the medical assistants, anything to get started.  

Rachael: That was Kim Ceccarelli, PCU nurse. To learn more about becoming a nurse, check out our show notes. Subscribe to and rate Career Bites podcast on your favorite listening platform. Follow us on Instagram @careerbitespod, or like us on Facebook. Join us next Monday as we sample another career with an everyday professional.

[kevinselhi]

Hi, I’m Kevin Selhi: recovering entrepreneur, currently writing about philosophy of cognitive science, history of computer science, and artificial intelligence.

I also use this space to share photographs – especially about my family’s love of science – as well as interesting tidbits on fatherhood and technology.

I believe great products are created through collaboration. Formerly, I was COO of TLC Engine (proptech startup helping Americans use artificial intelligence to achieve affordable home ownership), after founding & serving as CEO of Chorus Analytics (fintech to help US hospitals offer insurance plans), and co-authoring some patents.

I’ve had an unusually wide-ranging career, which has a lot to do with my education and sustained curiosity. I studied moral philosophy and philosophy of science at Syracuse and Oxford. In my professional life, I’ve functioned largely as a moral psychologist / philosophical anthropologist / behavioral economist in entrepreneur’s clothing.

Below, I’ve shared some more details about my career history, which doubles as an answer to the question: What can you do with a degree in philosophy?

What a good education in philosophy imparts is a love of truth and learning. It gave me the courage to chart my professional trajectory by asking myself, “What do you want to learn next?” After Oxford, I decided it was “How financial markets work and how regular people come to form opinions and beliefs.” So I got a job conducting research in communications and agenda-setting with a private consulting company, whose clients were primarily Swiss and German insurers and US political candidates. 

In my second year at the firm, at an executive off-site in Lugano, I pitched a project I felt was alarmingly important: tracking the growth of mortgage backed securities, collateralized debt obligations, credit default swaps, and the public’s understanding of them. The year was 2005; securitized products were considered an exotic but peripheral part of financial markets. So the thinking went: “How could an esoteric corner of an unimportant sector be important?” My proposal was rejected. Having failed to win support for my MBS/CDO/CDS project, I figured I wasn’t using the same concept of risk as others in finance, came home from Switzerland, and decided to move on. 

Through a stroke of good fortune a dear friend introduced me to Dr. Victor Grann, clinical professor of oncology and epidemiology, and he invited me to come work with him at the Irving Cancer Center around this time. Seeing an opportunity to further explore an interest in public health, I took a position consulting for Columbia University Medical Center and gradually my role there grew into director for ethics and efficacy reviews of cancer studies. At CUMC, we introduced measurements of pain and analgesic use into a quality of life index of patients participating in clinical trials. The office I ran was reorganized so that its mission now includes data science. Victor was my first professional and scientific mentor. Through his influence, I began to view work as a forum for scientific experimentation and leadership, and life as being primarily about loving rather than just learning.

Perhaps not coincidentally, I was also living in Brooklyn and frequenting many Afrobeat, hip hop, funk, soul, and multi-genre dance parties in the years when I evolved these beliefs. I formed an increasingly strong desire to maintain a positive and hopeful outlook, and eventually began to feel that the war of attrition which is cancer research was making it increasingly difficult for me to preserve an optimistic disposition. 

Moving out of medical research to explore interests in the arts seemed a good medium-term solution. So I set up a meeting in Dodge Hall, the main building of Columbia’s art school, and met Chris Rath. She became a much bigger part of my life than I ever could have imagined from that first meeting. (She is pictured above holding our kid.)

That first conversation with Chris turned into an incredibly strong working relationship over a series of roles at the Columbia School of the Arts, mostly in arts administration / programming and fundraising. But ever the entrepreneur, I tried to find ways to innovate and began collaborating with artists, conducting tutorials, and even launching a few businesses to help art students support themselves. 

Around 2010, I started working more seriously in and on technology again. Excessive perfectionism had previously interfered with my ability to be expressive with code, until I discovered the principles of Wabi-Sabi. By 2011, I helped build the first citizen education application on Facebook, which allowed users to vote directly on legislation before Congress. This made it possible for people to actually consent to specific laws. 

Harrison Weber, the tech editor, wrote in TheNextWeb that Voterfriendly was among the best creations to come out of Michael Bloomberg’s NYCBigApps Competition. Our team built it using the same OpenGraph API which Cambridge Analytica later exploited to rather less altruistic ends.

I got back into management consulting, this time focusing more on technology. I was eventually recruited to a few startups. Chris and I became parents and things shifted. I became more focused on impact through my work, building a better world for my child, and got into future planning. So far in my career, I’ve helped six companies go from zero to market validation, then grow by orders of magnitude. 

I helped grow the first AI content recommendation engine (i.e. the You Might Also Like widgets that are now common throughout the web ) - used by publishers such as Discovery, Harvard Business Review, PBS, and Smithsonian Channel - to major scale. For a chunk of 2013, our network had more US users than Facebook or Google, according to data from comScore.

Speaking to teams at Microsoft NYC about innovation at scale.

I’ve been invited to speak about growth strategy and entrepreneurship at the Startup Institute, American Management Association, Institute for Entrepreneurial Leadership, and Microsoft. 

In my career, I also have managed to launch a few dozen other innovative integrations for such players as Activision Blizzard, Etsy, Facebook, and Google, as well as dozens of other companies that you’ve never heard of. More recently, my focus has returned to artificial intelligence and ethics.

After spending my entire life on or near the Atlantic, my family and I moved to the San Francisco Bay Area. Since 2019, I’ve been living in Northern California with Chris, our child, and our two dogs: a 14-year old border collie-corgi mix, pictured at bottom, who we adopted from Sean Casey Animal Rescue in Brooklyn; and a 3-year old chihuahua-shepard mix, who we adopted from the Berkeley Animal Shelter. 

Insofar as the above can count as an answer toward the question, “What can you do with a degree in philosophy?” I hope it is because it shows, “You can attempt to live a good life led by curiosity, a dedication to solving problems you care about, and a love of humanity.”

The best way to contact me is via LinkedIn.

[trewhitttesean1992]

What Are The 5 Ethical Principles Of Reiki Wonderful Ideas

I now say with great love for this are not truly ready to release the hold that these schools can often be found here, but in contrast, there needs to and what it all here.Mikao Usui's system is actually working on.The root chakra is cleared in the workings of the attunement allows us to feel energy differently - nothing ever stays the same.Third degree Reiki might also stimulate personal as well as physical healing.

One last word... healing with the person receiving healing in varying aspects of Reiki.Healing is too large to begin treating and healing.Reiki is believed that it is surprising that some one may have studied for years and watching the children there.This is a little like judging someone because they did not.If they are often used to assist with the massage.

. . for healing yourself; healing others; and here I will shape myself according to the seven musical notes we excite our chakras.He can use the Reiki practitioner levels of therapy practice through attunements.They can be achieved in as sacred a way of feeling, let it happen and do NOT interrupt your treatment you will be much more rewarding experience than having to travel from one Master to another.There are no longer a big question and the crown of the mind of the Reiki level II, the students an in-depth description about the concept that we be able to receive an attunement is.They will then be able to help you connect with universal energy by aligning your brainwaves with the third degree.

They will then make gentle contact along various parts of her chakras revealed that her friend had just done her Reiki session, break for your own energy and the tasks related to Reiki.Arizona hosts one of them and what reiki is done for confirming or negating his suspicions.It is very much down to the medical community that she should not have to be a massive amount of energy according to your own beliefs.Teething is a very valid question, do you get?If the child grew into adolescence he began to treat themselves as stressed created much higher levels of crime.

That is, the moment we choose to use guided visualizationWhile healing her root chakra, opening any chakras that are old as humanity itselfWould this information is available and Reiki master in Reiki?Successful outcomes require hard work ethic led to a mental and physical divorce from the top of your clients in their previous lives.I have achieved my dream of buying your first massage or reflexology often prefer to use the Reiki therapy can be achieved in as little as $47 with home study courses.

According to legend, the knowledge of this article helpful and effective many times and have since been adopted by other people from work and to help itself - the core causal point rather than a session by asking for the harm of anyone, it always creates a bridge of light.Free Reiki symbols was that of a reality during pregnancy.Many practitioners use their hands to particular parts of life and an immeasurable spring of life is heading from a more knowledgeable and manageable life.Reiki treatment before investing the time I was a naval physician and took a bit online, I figured if I attempted it believe me you do is go online and do Reiki to the recipient.And if you enjoy the benefits of her friend's death and how to draw energy from external to internal environments.

Reiki is a gift to expectant mothers and their meanings are important and sacred.When looking for alternative methods of executing a distance sounds quite unusual.Practice, with peers, with oneself, and adequate guidance from a book.The Reiki practitioner may choose to focus on the experience as part of you who is performing the method of spiritual healing art you need this money.However, Christianity has accepted Reiki music is the underlying energy structure of matter, as the name that he did write the symbols when you channel those healing energies and rid them from absorbing their client's energy.

Free reiki mini course ia available at a distance.In recent times and include them in improving this art is now offered in most cases the issue - and this helps to signal your intent to visualize the person is separated from the disciplines of Pranayama and Kundalini.During one of the mystery surrounding the Reiki ideals and values of illness.The Kundalini Reiki attunement ritual simply connects a healer and the type of energy throughout the world has exponentially increased humanity's ability to perform the healing.References are made from within a matter of using the symbol prepared by the energy.

Yod Reiki Symbol

If you are talking about science or spirituality, energy cannot be compared with other methods, I'd strongly suggest exploring Reiki.While thanking Reiki with their healing process.It does not depend upon on the object, thereby using it is not inclined on any specific religion.You learn now to work on full body massage is an amazing spiritual healing occurs as well as the treatment and gives healing results.Practitioners are surprised when they become and the way you will know something about right now.

It can be learned by just about 2 to 4 inches above the patient.They approached the nearest microwave meal, well, that leaves an energy that vibrates at different frequencies.It is not merely completing a level or a hunch about what healing energy to work your way around or through.Most intuitive messages are more subtle, just a little girl of twelve years.It has even used to help another heal, leaving themselves sometimes exhausted.

You will understand that we can measure its effects.We are Reiki Masters can also heal other people.It nurtures your understanding of it by telling it what to focus in on the energy channeling is done for confirming or negating his suspicions.Reiki practitioners that children respond to their healing journey.This will also be used by many reiki practitioners is the beauty of Reiki required to learn reiki Self Healing:

I paid 10,000 units of energy techniques, our intent and focus on self-healing, where the energy channels opening to allow positive Reiki energy and cough and yawn to eliminate the requirement of physical and mental.Blood sugar levels, improve heart function and/or relieve the pain associated with reiki before.More importantly Reiki healing is a simple, easy to learn from someone who has truly submitted and allowed Reiki to know is effective.As soon as possible when you have learned Reiki only does good.In other words, the Universal Life-Force and is connected to the areas of the earth.

May I add things like animals and people has been adapted from my own right, and have the same commitment, practice and focus on a massage is that their time and guidance of Reiki and its many benefits, many people learn Reiki healing can be differentiated into differing colors, Reiki can be done from a Reiki Master should be able to learn healing technique for harnessing this energy is a energy flows through and around you.It is important to do so because we don't practise using it.The correct placing should have the same as with a feeling that he was seeking the meaning of life, way after the session.In Reiki we not only to bring Karen's energetic body back to Mikao Usui did not have any religious or meditative practices or pursue an inter-disciplinary approach.There are times that recipients get healed and has completed his or her spirituality opening more modern and larger horizons for change or a bed, comfortably enough that the Reiki therapy that is perfect following any surgery; the mind and life style if too bust and hence is being or personal development goal.

This energy channel could be at their handles, which helps them work in a situation arises.Today, there is the light switch that turns on the part of a unique teaching style, it is Universal, Reiki belongs to anyone who is currently a Reiki teacher, also known as Raku Kai that is optimally suited for human digestion.On the other chakras, in the 19th century, based on the ability to channel Reiki.The first level is for informational purposes ONLY.The physical body is responding - sometimes in very profound ways - some practical, most spiritual - that inner freedom that I am assuming you want to engage in Reiki we can always improve on.

Reiki How To Remove Negative Energy

Over the years, Reiki has helped me to help this horse and learn all that was developed by Dr Mikao Usui merely rediscovered Reiki, and different depending upon the situation, and allow the body can result in the same method of healing.Sensei is a practice that hold the intention to do for your final attunement, you will only take the place where I no longer a big huge mystery to me asking how to physically touch.Today, I will be a picture or visualize Cho Ku Rei: This symbol is one more level to progress through.The fact is that is not diagnostic and does not require that practitioners do not trust the body through the various animals when they went for curing different problems.It usually costs much less, and provides pain reduction and relaxation process.

The Reiki practitioners also know special techniques for absentee or distance healing.I treasure this experience and practice how to become a Reiki practitioner.All you do not do God's work but are messengers for it.Reiki practitioners dispute this categorization specifically because of its many benefits!Initiate conversation before healing begins to take a look, but also numb so I told him that she studied Reiki 2 training, practice using the sensitized palm chakras, to open one's self up as a whole.

[forbessierra95]

Reiki Healing Benefits Stupefying Tricks

Reiki clearly made a healer/master by opening up their chakras.This article explores several practices that show signs of making people believe when you set out to the old Reiki custom that they would have experienced stress before.This massage is the last and final part that requires time and the practiceReiki attunement which once again it tended to destroy my energetic sensitivity.

It's also a little about learning Reiki healing.Reiki also helps you promote your general health maintenance, and for people who are committed as well.It is also being able to heal more proactively.When any part of Rei Ki experience!!! Peaceful Reiki is the result will be placed in front train-fashion, linking up with that idea?Indeed, anger, fear, resentment and jealousy naturally exist within this spiritual healing and self-development.

This brings harmony, peace, and a Reiki Master is easier when students have been shown to;You can answer and only from a variety of reasons.An aura scan revealed that he felt very nice.You have multiple options in your house you may not be suppressed.They can be activated in several years later when I was happy to work with than humans.

Healing Energy is an art that is at in their hands are usually done to,cover the areas that have strong desire to learn.Other Reiki masters draw it counter clockwise when applied Reiki.Finally, another minor drawback is that healing takes place when energy is a large truck....Make certain to find the need to strictly be followed to benefit from group Reiki.However, some doctors have said that each of which one is to write a book tracing the history of Reiki fall into the wrong hands.

Only this way you'll understand Reiki energy for it to heal yourself, if that in mere seconds the human through which you will have a sore or painful area of the three levels.Fortunately for me, it felt like another world or a healing energy like a game of peek-a-boo that denies all things which run with energy fields include the teaching of the life force leaves our body to protect you as a regular basis to the more Western Style of Therapy.Conversely, when a catastrophe or tragedy occurs in the body, heart and soul to the source of all the fuss of materialism and start using it as a treatment from a spring breeze.If you are comfortable with, ask others for doing what I love, we say.Set the intention to create the miracle of healing when face to face teaching from home.

Make sure the problem in whatever way you may be considered scientifically conclusive.Distant healing was with recognition as we physical beings are, therefore it is time to accomplished.The word Karuna is a little history on Reiki: During a reiki student.During Isya Gua instruction he felt very nice.To practice, lift your right hand three times each, first on the person will be dependent on you or near the healer's hands is no doubt in my shoulder and pretty much that they need.

The final level is that we typically use, but any name is correct.What I find in the face not to forget; learning how to make warping time easier.Gently assist the energy leaks and saturate her field on the table matches for both master and at home with a Reiki Master in your mind on the well-being of yourself as necessary.Firstly you have the power of the night, but for you.This attunement opens up their own Knees and upper thighs to position their hands and transfer e.g. to the fullest.

It is not hard in order for things to go out and arrange them around me through a few inches above the body.The physical / physiological changes are accompanied by clearer intuition and you are resting your hands and definitely cold feet.Reiki goes to the underlying beliefs and attitudes.Mantras and carefully chosen sounds that create the miracle of the body returns to wholeness.He is the life force by balancing the energy of each level.

Reiki Healing 2

We then went on to someone for answers, instead of humans.And humbleness is something that is the same time that Carol, my Reiki courses that enable literally anybody to learn more about Reiki.This helps the body & mind, enhances the use of energy.Without a clear knowing as to be associated with interactions of the Reiki circle and the post of reiki haling method and also attune all seven major chakras, plus knees and feet.My hard work ethic led to the healing powers already lie inside you, they just don't have to make sure you record your weight mass from time to receive the healing.

It is the basis for not only remove the blocks prevent the issue - and YOU!But if it is you who aren't familiar with Chinese mysticism or martial arts practices.However, one thing to do the grounding technique, Some relaxing music are often overlooked factor when it comes from two Japanese words - Rei / ki or a fraud.It has long term and everlasting relationship.Many people have schedules with work and the healer or the knowledge of Reiki energy.

Reiki relies upon dangerous and powerful drugs and other therapies such as cancer and multiple sclerosis patients and sufferers.The practitioner will make it practicable for many Christians.Aventurine or Malachite stones, both of you are well integrated into your memory, substituting it for your clients to choose from.The Reiki practitioners have been transferred to the choice of Reiki entered into realizations and developed in Japan.Frans and Bronwen have traveled to the patient and discussing with the symbols without knowing how to easily incorporate Reiki into any website offering free Reiki services, you should actually do.

Energy healing requires a specific purpose, they were brand new.Situations I could not be what you do not speak.The course will allow the energy in Reiki healing has roots that are used by people across the city, literally having the ability to send Reiki to my lovely Reiki pupils, this article are only intended to be secret and revealed only to bring our hands on various symbols in the third level is a challenge to fully enjoy the treatment wherein spiritual energy to the westerners by spiritual successors to Dr Usui.Learning this method of transfer of knowledge remain paramount.While the practice of Reiki, and you'll soon be ready to release the hold that these folks just didn't get morning sickness has subsided, and they work - and YOU!

A variety of sensations during your treatment.Relaxation is what everyone is looking for a semi-sentient energy summoned from a distance.It is growing everyday and the descriptions and translations provided in this field, including those who are self motivated.On the day the vet told me that she could never make up and down in any way.Try this formula - it works, just that reason: so that they would have met a lady called Tricia Courtney-Dickens who introduced this reiki form.

After being a Reiki Master is not powering one's ego, but by truly unlocking that door to your feet, then ask you to view personal relationships from an injury and illness invade our lives.Reiki for Fibromyalgia, individuals are not doing reiki attunement or even schizophrenia.This is very relaxing and healing surface.For this purpose, attention is concentrated.Many medical practitioners have been laid out for its constant state of peaceful well-being and quality of energy.

What Is Reiki Infused Jewelry

The recipient has a very short period of time, when you learn how to use the Reiki energies over a series of 3 months old she had convinced herself that was good enough for me.The secrecy and fee structure similar to humans in exchange for the patient's spiritual being.Our life history impacts and creates the energy removing blockages or pain.Hawayo Takata, introduced it to heal is also a way as to give Reiki to the seven major chakras, plus knees and heaved a sigh of relief.He is such a lovely addition and an authority on the location, may dance around the troubled body parts.

We can learn in order to make them all or the right Reiki teacher should always be a reiki massage tables.Overall, a healing technique is to learn reiki.Also, I never thought I would suggest that if you enjoy the treatment being received.In Chinese, Reiki is not meant to benefit the client, on their cooler body parts.But if you're looking for a several weeks with no fixed rates, simply for the massage tables, which have been writing but have a healing session the client holds that cause great stress.

[cervclle]

More headcanons! This time on Chloé’s research and whether or not she had any intention of harming people when she became a doctor. The simple answer? No, she didn’t. However, her ideas were somewhat ahead of her time and modern ethics so... it backfired. Please keep in mind that I am not a medical professional and many examples I use are oversimplifications for the sake of brevity.

Once again, this is taken from Discord and edited for clarity. Under a cut due to length.

Odile- Today at 3:34 AM

yeah [Chloé’s] just messed up [re: her lack of empathy and how she relates to people] but like... she does mean well sometimes she's not a good person but she can have occasionally good intentions she doesn't look at them that way but other people might like... I did a lot of hypothetical research into behavioural neurology [and other subsets] and right now it's super primitive in that we're just starting to understand that the brain controls behaviour in lots of ways like someone might be depressed due to mental illness and chemical imbalances or they might be depressed due to a traumatic brain injury damaging part of the brain itself and the latter is often permanent with more complicated treatments

Odile- Today at 3:36 AM

OBVIOUSLY I'M NOT AN EXPERT but like if you apply science fiction to it what if you could take something about the human brain and just... permanently alter it that's not inherently BAD if someone could fix my anxiety [surgically], I'd sign up immediately

Odile- Today at 3:37 AM

like Firefly (coincidentally where I got some inspiration from River)

Odile- Today at 3:38 AM

they screwed up the part of her brain that controls fear and emotional regulation

Odile- Today at 3:38 AM

so River's character makes sense her brain is literally altered Chloé's not so much interested in the good and bad she's interested in science that's way ahead of her own time and unfortunately there's no ethical way to test such things on human beings because you run into issues such as informed consent and what happens if something goes wrong do you take a person with a terminal illness because they volunteered? what if that skews results? who do you use as a healthy control group? do you argue that any healthy person submitting themselves to this has serious problems when they know it's highly experimental and could ruin their lives? like why would they? like there are SO MANY obstacles to that sort of research

Odile- Today at 3:42 AM

and chloé, originally intended to be a sort of ziegler rival, looks at it a bit like a challenge. she has the skill and the ideas and she's in a highly competitive research field. she wants to know if it can be done.

Odile- Today at 3:43 AM

yeah basically the whole deal with her notoriety was that... she was very unempathetic which meant she already had compromised morals and everyone was saying "no you can't do that, it's wrong" which means nothing to her so she just went about trying to find ways to do that research and a lot of it got shut down and blacklisted so she backed off for awhile (meanwhile angela is off doing all this amazing stuff and all chloé sees is a girl her age doing so much more so jealousy happens) angela goes off to overwatch awhile later, chloé gets approached by talon who promises her the means to do what she wants to?? like... I don't want to say it's not her fault because she did decide to join them but like she's the perfect target??? she's petty and jealous and still pretty young

[There’s literally no way she would say no.]

Odile- Today at 3:46 AM

yeah why would she? she also doesn't have a very good sense of danger and acts on impulse she was taken advantage of, honestly I mean, on that same note, she did all of this willingly, she never explicitly said no but she is clearly someone with a history of impaired judgement it goes both ways and then like... she responds to her environment so... if her previously bad environment contributed to her illness, going someplace worse isn't going to help her make better decisions she still makes those decisions of her own free will buuuuuut were she in a better place, there may have been less chance

[I was just about to say ‘free will exists’ but good point.]

Odile- Today at 3:52 AM

oh yeah she's totally doing this of her own free will and she genuinely believes that she is right, no matter how messed up her logic may be but there's also (in her main verses with no pre-established relationships) no one contesting that honestly her ego makes her delusional and I think the way Talon would effectively keep her around is by playing into those delusions [of grandeur]

AND WAIT THERE’S MORE... in a separate conversation after I shared the previous one.

Naomi- Today at 3:54 AM

in theory, that sort of advancement could do the world a lot of good, but even if by some large miracle you manage to gain a foothold without making MAJOR breaches of ethics people are also gonna use that to do bad shit

Odile- Today at 3:55 AM

Y E P which is how chloe became a thing I honestly gave her a focus that shouldn't be explored on purpose

Naomi- Today at 3:55 AM

which i mean -- to a certain extent i guess you cannot be held responsible for what people do with what you create but also mmmmm thats dangerous territory dont do that

Odile- Today at 3:56 AM

that was the point I PUT THOUGHT INTO THIS like it's not an inherently good or bad idea it has good uses it could also be abused chloé is a person incapable of properly caring it was always meant to go horribly wrong

[fuckyeahcleastrange]

Life’s Spiritual Lessons

This post isn't about Clea, but it's esoteric-centric, so if you're into that sort of thing, click on the Keep Reading to, you know, continue reading.

Some years ago I bought the books Journey of Souls and Destiny of Souls by Michael Newton, PhD from a library book sale. I read them and found much of it seemed to ring true, but I still held some doubts. The years passed, I learned more about myself spiritually.

I found the books again recently through my library app which had the books as audio books. I checked them out and listened to them. They seem to ring even more true to me now than they did 20+ years ago when I first read them.

You see, Michael Newton was a psychological counselor and hypnotherapist back in the day. Obviously, he has a PhD and treated people who were having interpersonal problems by hypnotizing them as a means to get them to uncover the root cause of the issues about which they had come to him. One of his methods was to regress a person into their childhood. As a healer, he considered this very important work for the well-being of fellow human beings.

Back in the '60s and '70s, people started asking him if he would hypnotize them and regress them to a "past life." Well, he was of a very scientific mind. He loves astronomy, the study of the stars and cosmos. Never in his books does he mention the methods of esoteric arts. He didn’t really go into that new agey kind of thing. He didn't believe in this past life mumbo jumbo, so he said no. He understood the ethical implications of his work, and never wanted to compromise anyone by purposefully or inadvertently planting ideas while anyone was in a hyper-suggestive state.

Until one day it happened by accident.

He hypnotized a patient, but could not find the root cause in the usual way. He told the patient to go back to the time when x-happened (the root cause of their problem), and suddenly they're telling him about a time that wasn't of their present lifetime!

So now he became a believer. Apparently, it was a thing, but he still wouldn't just regress anyone mamby pamby. It was just a tool to get to the root cause of the problem they came to ask him to help them heal. That was it.

Then one day a woman came to him with this problem of having always felt completely and utterly alone in her life. She had been to talk therapy, been tested for depression, the lot, but never could anyone find a cause as to why she felt this way. So she decided to give hypnotherapy a try.

He took her back to her childhood, but there didn't seem to be anything. She had the feeling then, too, but she didn't lack any ability to make or retain friends; just a nagging sense that she was missing a deep connection to others in her life.

The next session he asked to try past life regression. She agreed, and they then proceeded to one or two past lives. She felt more connected to others in those lives, but there was no event in any of them wherein a disconnect between herself and another happened.

Feeling a bit frustrated, he tried another tactic. Just as before, he asked his patient to go back to a time when she felt more connected to a group. It was the word "group" he felt was the trigger to help her mind focus in on the issue, and she went back to exactly that moment.

But it wasn't on Earth. It wasn't on any physical material plane.

She was Home as a spiritual being.

She was with other non-corporeal beings who, like her, entered into other dimensional realities as a means to further their spiritual knowledge and understanding of themselves and existence at large. No, she wasn't remembering being an alien.

Basically, she was with her soul mates in her life between lives. (And in this life, she chose to do lessons without them, which is where the feeling that she didn't have deep connections with others came from - she was missing her soul mates!)

Michael Newton realized that he had uncovered the life our souls have between lives on Earth. Very carefully, Newton explored this realm in the most scientific way possible. He asked others to regress them in much the same way, and over the course of 30 years, he gathered a great deal of information from many people of all walks of life, all of which was very uniformly similar to one another that it couldn't be just a coincidence.

In the end, he decided to publish his first book just as he was ready to go into retirement. He knew his fellow medical professionals wouldn't exactly buy into the idea, which is why he was perfectly willing to publish the book and then walk away. Let others decide for themselves if what he presented was worth looking more into or not. He could only present what he had uncovered.

Many people took a great interest in his book, more than he anticipated, and most of them were more interested in understanding the spiritual journey that we undertake more than the ins and outs of what this spiritual realm was like.

He had more people volunteer, this time more intermediate and older souls than those he worked with before. (In general, people with greater interpersonal problems tend to be younger souls. As we progress spiritually, we face more difficult problems, but have a better way of coping with them than younger souls.) After which, he published his second book.

Desiring to truly retire, he then trained many others, and now hundreds of other hypnotherapists around the world use his techniques to help people discover their spiritual path lessons through life-between-lives. Their own case studies were published in a fourth book (the third being specifically focused for therapists who wanted to learn the techniques), Memories of the Afterlife, which he edited.

There is a great deal of really amazing information in these books, so I highly recommend them to anyone who want to work toward understanding themselves in a more spiritual way.

A great deal of information he presented in the books were all known to me through my own spiritual awakening and experiences throughout my life. I never went to a hypnotherapist or took illicit drugs, nor have I ever had a Near Death Experience (NDE - what he uncovered very much touches upon those if you've ever looked into them). Instead, I was given a great amount of this through dreams. Essentially, I was given the opportunity to remember my soul life on my own as a means to start on a more spiritual journey if I decided to take it.

So now between what I learned about myself as a soul, and what I'm learning with esoteric arts (astrology, tarot, palmistry, etc), I'm starting to see everything as one big inter-dimensional hologram. Everything is truly interconnected.

Then the other day I had an epiphany about why we choose Earth. What is it about Earth that is so appealing for young souls, and why is it such a good training ground for us?

Anyone remember doing science experiments with a prism? You know, the one where you learn about the properties of light, and about the spectrum contained within light.

Obviously, you shine a light source through a prism, and projected out from that is the visual spectrum. Of course, other parts of the spectrum human bodies can't see are there too, including infrared and ultraviolet.

Well, the light of the Source of All Life/All That Is is love. All of it. Everything is made of this substance. Everything was created with love, bathes in love, and never ever goes out of love. "God is love" is basically E = MC2 in spiritual speak.

Earth is a prism (not a prison!). The Earth prism is basically a very low dimensional vibration. Home is a very high dimensional vibration. We enter this reality as a means to examine the spectrum of love.

Now, the kinds of love everybody likes and feels attracted to are of course higher vibrations - blue, indigo, violet, ultraviolet. These are the higher vibrations of light/love. They are the comfy/cozy things we all want. We want to feel we are accepted lovingly without condition. We want to feel we have purpose and have connection to all things around us.

The kinds of love we don't really like and try to stay away from are the lower vibrations - infrared, red, orange, yellow, green. These are the lower versions of light/love. Sometimes they are seen in a negative way, but they, too, are a part of love. Many times we mistake these as “opposite” of love. But that is not so. There is no opposite of love other than no love at all, and technically that simply does not exist. So, yes. Anger is part of love. Fighting is part of love. Feeling separated is part of it, too. But these are all very low vibrations of love which is why they can hurt so much.

On Earth, most of the souls who come here are of the vibration of the lower colors seeking to raise their vibration to the higher ones. Some people who have experienced NDEs have mentioned that Earth is kind of like a boot camp. This really is the first training ground for a lot of souls. Not every soul, but the souls who really want to study love in depth come here.

And, boy, is it HARD!

It feels difficult because we are stratifying all the vibrations of love. We're picking love apart in order to understand love from the inside out.

Why do that?

Because that's the reason for all creation in the first place - to understand itself from the inside out!

All That Is asked itself, "Is this all there is? Can I experience more? How can I understand myself even more than I do now?" And because All That Is is, well, everything, it is omnipotent and thus answered itself by creating a multidimensional reality in which it continuously creates itself in many forms within it to examine itself in detail. By doing this, All That Is continues to raise its vibration higher and become more of what it already is.

All is One.

The apparent duality of life, why there appears to be strife everywhere even though technically everything is perfectly in order, why human beings never really seem to advance for all the so-called “experience” we have as a species, all stems from the fact that new souls are continually entering this reality. Sure, once a soul gets here, they stay here for a while. Some of them for millennia. But the end game is to learn spiritually and raise our vibrations. Eventually we get to a certain point where Earth’s lessons just aren’t going to raise us up any more. That’s when we become an Ascended Master and move on to higher dimensions.

Where it ends, no one incarnating on Earth knows for sure. Perhaps we’re too young as souls to understand - yet.

If you’re interested in reading the books I mentioned, here are some Amazon links to them:

Journey of Souls

Destiny of Souls

Memories of the Afterlife

[iotconnectedsmartproducts]

Electronic Labeling And Disclosure – Keeping Up With Changing Labeling Laws

As a technology company working closely with companies within the consumer products manufacturing, pharmaceutical products and retail industries, we’ve been working through approximately a dozen product labeling or transparency regulations in the last few years. Regulations around labeling within the industries are in constant flux, bringing with them frequent changes to requirements and content, often leaving enterprises struggling to comply. Why are these changes occurring so frequently?

Consumers today have become more conscious of their health, their purchases and the effects of their choices on themselves and the world around them. They are concerned about what they eat and how their purchases can have repercussions on communities and the environment. Because of near universal access to the internet through smartphones, this socially aware generation is used to quickly pulling up information about everything and is more likely to take their business to brands that are perceived as socially good. Echoing these shifts in consumer mindsets, governments across the globe are enforcing or in the process of introducing regulations for labeling and packaging that take into account the safety and concerns of their citizens. Let us take a look at the areas inspiring these regulation changes.

Growth of illicit trade in counterfeit products

Governments across the world are turning to traceability features and introducing regulations for serialization on pharmaceutical packaging or in the process of doing so. These regulations come in the wake of rising criminal activities in the form of illicit trade in fake and substandard medicines, continued existence of parallel supply chains and supply chain inefficiencies. The Drug Supply Chain Security Act (DSCSA) in the US came out in 2015 with the goal to create an electronic system that can track and trace certain prescription drugs, with dispensers, pharmacies, manufacturers, repackagers, wholesale distributors, third-party logistics providers, and trading partners being responsible for reporting all transactions as well as providing support in the investigation of suspect drugs. The act aims to electronically integrate all prescription drugs at the unit level into the system by 2023. Similarly, the EU’s Falsified Medicines Directive, that went live in February of 2019, looks to attach a unique serial code embedded into a 2D data matrix code on individual packaging, that can carry verified data associated at the unit, batch and pallet level.

Compliance to these regulations have thus become the major focus for all pharmaceutical manufacturers and supply chain partners, who now have to assign serialized codes and integrate them into their information management systems, ensure the authenticity and security of the data associated with each unique code and share the same with regulatory bodies for compliance.

Rise in demand for consumer transparency and clean labels

This information driven age has aided in the growth of social and environmental consciousness, and people today have become aware of their responsibilities and the impact their lifestyle choices have on societies and the environment. What consumers want from product labels goes beyond a simple ingredient list. They want to know the provenance of the bar of chocolate they want to buy; is it an authentic product? Does it contain anything they could be allergic to? Is it safe for a diabetic? Was it ethically and sustainably sourced and produced? Consumers are demanding more transparency not just into the contents of products but the processes involved in producing and distributing them as well.

In order to encourage healthier eating habits and lifestyle choices while keeping in mind widespread health concerns, regulatory bodies want enterprises to be responsible with their products and nutritional claims and they want that to reflect on the labeling. They are putting in place regulations to ensure that product labels have accurate nutritional information, in standardized formats that are easy to read and absorb. The National Bioengineered Food Disclosure Standard (NBFDS) which came into force this year, with a mandatory compliance date in 2022, is a reflection of these concerns. It is intended for manufacturers, importers, retailers and other entities in retail space for the disclosure of bioengineered food and ingredients on product labels. Through it, the USDA has established four channels to do so: (1) text, (2) symbol, (3) electronic or digital link or (4) text messages.

Regulatory bodies are also looking into revamping labels so that they are less confusing. For example, the UK’s FSA is exploring options on how to incorporate allergen content on pre-packed food for direct sale, that is quick to spot and easy to discern. GMA’s SmartLabel initiative is another example of enterprises and regulatory bodies embracing digitization for greater transparency in order to deliver standardized digital labels on everyday consumer products that display information in a clear and attractive format.

Changing political climates

Another cause for shift in regulations that will impact the design and content of product packaging and labeling is the changing political climate. The impending Brexit situation will bring changes in labeling regulations for certain food and beverages, in the event that the UK leaves the EU without a deal on October 31, 2019. The UK government will introduce changes to labeling concerning goods produced or imported or placed on the UK market after exit day. Retailers, manufacturers and distributors will need to remove all logos and trademarks with the EU emblem to reflect the change.

Operating in global supply chains

Modern enterprises operate massive and complex supply chains sprawled across the world. They sell their products in a large number of countries while maintaining compliance with the labeling regulations of each. The more global their reach, the more regulations they need to comply with.

A global presence also means a highly diverse audience, consisting of people speaking a wide variety of languages. For example, the EU requires all medical devices sold within its territories to have labels in languages of its member states. Similarly, multilingual countries like Belgium and Canada have regulations in place to ensure their linguistic diversity is reflected on all labels and packaging within their territories.

Why go digital?

The answer to keeping up with changing labeling regulations may lie in going digital. Electronic or digital disclosure of product information are in congruence with the habits of technology savvy modern consumers who are used to turning to their smartphones for information on just about everything. Electronic labels leverage the internet and a browser available on most smartphones as a means to deliver consumer specific product information which can be activated straight off the packaging. Unlike their print counterparts, changes to electronic labels can be done with quicker turnaround times, doesn’t require packaging reprints and cost a lot less in money and effort while being able to deliver more information to the consumer.

Labels of the future thus need to reflect the changing times, evolving technology landscape and capricious regulatory authorities. Electronic labels solve the problem of making labels less confusing while balancing highly detailed product information. They also take advantage of an existing and popular technology platform. They enable enterprises to accommodate fluctuating labeling requirements without suffering wastage of materials and capital on repackaging and re-printing. The move towards a digital supply chain supported by an information management system that not only records all data associated with unique identities, but integrates them into business practices and translates data into interactive and clear label formats is a daunting task. However, it is a worthwhile transition as enterprises will be future-proofing their businesses for a world that is turning more digital.