WDS E-Zine - The Problem-Solving Edition
A Weisbrod Digest Of Seminar  Publication
Written & Published by Carl Weisbrod
Vol. 6 No. 33 ~ ISSN 1537-2820 ~ August 2006
Under Construction
This is issue #33 of the Problem-Solving issue of the WDS E-Zine series -- aka: Formulas

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www.wdslibrary.com

 section ~ ~ ~ TOPICS ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
 I.  An Editorial by Dr. Carl Weisbrod
II. A free topic list of insider's information
III. AskCarl's FAQs & Two-Value Tricks
IV.  Is Diet & Cigarette Information all BS?
IVa. The Roots & Fruits Miracle Diet
V.  Health in a Handbasket
VI.  Jokes 'n FunStuff    {:^D
VII.  Medical Journal Review
VIII. Exercise--Huff & Puff  vs Grunt & Groan
IX.  Rip-off of the Week
X.  The WDS Bedtime Story (an allegory)
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I.  An Editorial by Dr. Carl Weisbrod (p)
If you've read my stuff or listened to my podcasts, you might know that I believe there is a formula for the solution for most behavioral problems.

A while back, I received this emailed challenge: This fellow said: "Well Carl, if there are such wonderful formulas, why not give everybody these formulas so we can all be problem free."

The touch of sarcasm didn't get by me, but my challengers often say that if what I say is true, why do we even have problems, it there are such obvious solutions?

It's kinda like software problems with your computer. There is often a step-by-step formula to fix a software glitch, but sometimes the step-by-steps aren't so easy to find.

On the other hand, many solution formulas are readily available, but because the solution formula is only a third of the process necessary  to eliminate a problem, so here is the problem with that.

The first third is the identification of the problem itself. There usually needs to be a diagnosis. The second third is the solution formula itself, and the final third is the implantation of the formula.

The first two thirds are more or less mechanical... It's the third step is where the difficulty often arises.

Some solutions to some problems required a serious, sometimes gut-wrenching effort put into the implantation phase, and there are often powerful mechanisms that Freud called Defense Mechanisms blocking the solutions. So just having the solution formula frequently is not enough. But without some model for the solution, things can look pretty bleak.

Some of folks are so rigid that (to begin with) they won't even listen to a formula... or refuse to even consider the formula if they do hear it.

A therapist must become a super-sales person to break thrrough such defenses—and many of us don't have the personality to be good at selling concepts.

Much of my life has been dedicated to searching for problem-solving formulas. Some formulas come as easily as picking up a book on the subject.

Usually getting in the way of finding such formulas is a huge body of misinformation resulting from profit-motive greed, a stubborn bureaucracy... of course there's always some good old fashioned stupidity.

Sometimes problems are so awash in propaganda they must be teased from peer-reviewed research, trusted authorities, and field experience—often trial & error within a clinical setting is necessary. Another approach is referred to as Reverse Engineering when is a topic for another editorial.
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II. A Free Topic List of Insider's Information (p)
~ Links and References ~

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 III. AskCarl's FAQs & Two-Value Tricks (p)
Question:
AskCarl:
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IIIa Two-Value Tricks (p)
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The eBook, Obnoxious Two-Value Tricks is offered free and can be found at this link.
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IV. Diet & Cigarette Information--All BS? (p)
Diet information has gone from poor to terrible over the past few years. I've talked about it in this ezine series since 1997. Many really sharp physicians and  nutritionists have talked about this problem for years, but it seems to have fallen on deaf ears.

The same is true with cigarette smoking elimination methods.

Most of the information you hear, see, or read, is produced and paid for by huge corporations that are responsible to their stockholders not the consumer.

So, if you need to know something about smoking or weight control, be sure to find information sources that are not driven by a profit motive.
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V. Health In A HandBasket! (p)
On December 20th, the White House Chief of Staff said that the The Federal Drug Safety Agency (FDA) is doing a "spectacular job" of protecting the public.

Statements such as this do nothing more than fortify my mistrust of anything that comes from the Bush administration.

For example, there is the  FDA's belated warning about Celebrex which increases risk of heart attack and stroke.
>click< to continue at top-right column
 Continued from lower left column
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VI.  Jokes 'n FunStuff    {:^D (p)

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VII. Medical Journal Review (p)
(#32) Since 1980, the number of obese adults in the United States has nearly doubled.

Although a number of researchers are looking for effective treatments for obesity, there is still no real cure for this life-threatening condition. There are, however, a number of promising studies.

I'll be watching research that focus on three hormones: PYY, ghrelin, and Cortisol. PYY and ghrelin are recently discovered hormones that could lead to effective treatments for obesity.

Obesity is believed to be primarily a genetic disorder of appetite control. The area of the brain called the hypothalamus controls a person's sensations of hunger and fullness. When a person eats, hormones are released that send signals to the brain to regulate appetite.

There are current studies that are examining the impact of hormones  linked to obesity. For example, a release of a hormone called PYY is known to reduce hunger. This hormone, or a drug that models it, could be used to treat severe obesity. Ghrelin is another hormone that has been shown to affect hunger. Low levels of ghrelin have been correlated with overweight.

Cortisol is a hormone normally produced by the adrenal gland. It is also produced by the liver from an inactive substance called cortisone, and converted to cortisol by an enzyme. Research has shown that cortisol increases fat tissue primarily within the abdominal area, which has been linked to high blood pressure, high cholesterol and diabetes.
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 VIII. Exercise--Huff & Puff  vs Grunt & Groan (p)
(#32)I'm going to do an encore article for this topic. Here's the reverence: Hour/day rule from Q&A [6-01P#2//P#2-III]
  III. AskCarl's FAQs

QUESTION: Please help me lose weight. I can't go on any crazy diets because I have diabetes. I have arthritis so I'm limited in the amount of exercise I can do, but my doctor says if I loose some of this weight, it would help a lot. Can you help me?  Giving-Up in Pittsburgh

AskCarl: Hi G-U. Please don't give up!  Gee, we're talking about your health and happiness. You CAN be successful, but you need a serious time investment, and the willingness to revise your thinking about the basics of nutrition and exercise physiology. Here's a good starting point.

This is a tip that has worked for a lot of folks.  Most people overwhelm themselves with "must-dos" and negative thoughts...until "avoidance" feels like the better alternative. 

To avoid this, follow the "Hour-A-Day" rule. Set aside one hour each and every day at exactly the same time--7 days a week, 365 days a year.  Plan on having "this hour" something you do for the rest of your life!

Invent a name for your hour; something like: "G-Us Looking-Great Program." 

During that hour do anything that comes to mind about weight control.  For example: read a book about dieting or exercise; go for a walk; meditate; surf the net for weight loss info, etc.  It doesn't matter what you do as long as it meets the criteria below:

There are three rigid rules for your hour.  What you do during it must...
(1) ...generally come under the heading of weight control...
(2) ...be something you enjoy...
(3) ...be done each and every day at exactly the same
        time without fail.

Humans are obsessive and the productivity of your hour's activities will get better and better--and, more important, in 21 days that "hour-of-time-set-aside" will become a habit. 

It's important to NEVER allow any self-incrimination stuff (or anything that is unpleasant) during that hour--but have no rules other than those above.
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IX.  Rip-off of the Week (p)
(#32) MS-NBC ran a story on the morning show that reported the latest research on the restricted carbohydrate diet craze. It was a "gold-standard" clinical study taking place over a five year period. There were several thousand participants.


NBC got their information from a major medical journal and it represented a  near consensus of probably 99.9% of all recognized nutritional authorities.

By the time NBC had finished with the story, the information was given a spin that could only cause confusion.

This type of reporting is ubiquitous. I know it's necessary for NBC must keep their sponsor's happy, but without ethics, they would do a public service to avoid health-related studies altogether.

So I'm giving MS-NBC my "Rip-Off of the Week" award.
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X. The WDS BedTime Story - An Allegory(p)
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ The End ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
And with that, this Problem-Solving E-Zine (#33) is now done.
Carl Weisbrod
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