Segilola Salami's Blog, page 19
August 3, 2019
Sunday Snippet: Skyseeker Princess (Si’Empra: The Storyteller and the Webcleaner Book 1) by Miriam Verbeek
Today’s Sunday Snippet is from Paranormal and urban fantasy Skyseeker Princess (Si’Empra: The Storyteller and the Webcleaner Book 1) by Miriam Verbeek. It was independently published by the author on the 3rd of May 2017 and has 369 pages. It is currently available as trade pub (POD) (ISBN 9780648024507), e-pub (ISBN 9780648024514) and kindle (ISBN and 978064024521). It is also available as an audiobook.
Synopsis of Skyseeker Princess (Si’Empra: The Storyteller and the Webcleaner Book 1) by Miriam Verbeek
Ellen, a young highborn woman searches for her identity in the face of betrayal and abuse by those she had come to trust. She’s feisty and talented and, with a little help from friends, gets up when knocked down, though she struggles silently to bury the deep emotional scars. Ellen’s been trained to look to the welfare of others and she’s drawn into adventures that have her trying to rescue people and, Robin Hood-like, hoodwinking the rich to feed the poor.
The book is set in contemporary times but the Antarctic island setting has a special history, with the first ancient settlers driven underground for protection against the weather and accepting the help of island guardians. Later settlers, to which Ellen belongs, have come to an accommodation with these underground people but, at the beginning of the book, this accommodation has broken down, with increasingly tragic consequences.
Much of Ellen’s dilemma is accepting the task of reuniting the disparate societies. This first book of the Si’Empra series is Ellen’s introduction to the consequences of raising expectations and making promises that should never be made.
Chapter 17: The Guild Masters
Message: “I am Lian Ellen. Daughter of the half-caste Constance and Ülrügh Briani of the ruling house of Skyseekers.” She did not know which words of power the virigin would repeat so she chose her words carefully, not wishing the virigin to distract from her speech until she wanted it to. “My grandfather was the Ülrügh Devi who, angered by the intransigence of the Guild Masters and then with the Cryptals for denying warmth to the city of Si’Em, invaded the Cryptal tunnels and engaged in the wholesale slaughter of Cryptals and Crystalmakers. I am the mistress of the glasaur Rosa, gifted to me by the Cryptals. In bestowing the glasaur to me, the Cryptals importuned me to help Crystalmakers and Skyseekers alike. It has come to my attention that Crystalmakers will face a winter of hunger. I have come to offer my assistance to broker a deal which will provide Crystalmakers with the provisions they need. For this I need the crystal and cloth that you, Guild Masters, have the power to provide. I stand before you ready to be of service.”
She made sure her facial features remained impassive but authoritative as she observed the confusion her words caused the Guild Masters: almost as one they had started when she revealed Ülrügh Devi’s motivation to engage in The Destruction; their jaws had dropped at the mention of the glasaur; they had looked sideways at one another when she revealed the implicit pact she had made with the Cryptals; and they now stared at her.
Thil released her arm.
“Glasaurs no longer exist,” the Guild Master of Memory stated, breaking the silence in a reedy, ancient voice.
Ellen fixed her gaze on the speaker, waited until she was sure the Guild Master had nothing more to say, and returned: “You are wrong, Guild Master of Memory. Glasaurs are creatures fashioned by Cryptals and can be created at any time by the Cryptals.”
“There has been no glasaur for centuries – millennia!”
To this, Ellen needed to say nothing.
The Guild Master surged to her feet, bringing up her arm and pointing. “Your tongue speaks the falsehoods of Skyseekers! What plot is this that the Scourge of Si’Empra now brings to our world? Your plot is to destroy us entirely!”
The Scourge of Si’Empra. Ellen wondered who that might be: Redel? Skyseekers in general? She watched as the old woman turned to her fellow Guild Masters. “She will destroy us entirely. We must hold her and destroy her.”
The other Guild Masters were clearly taken aback by their colleague’s outburst but, perhaps to show solidarity, they hastened to their feet and confronted Ellen with stern looks.
“There are indeed a number of factors that we must consider,” the Guild Master of Crystal said. He waved a hand dismissively in Ellen’s direction, directing a command to Thil.
“Leave us now …”
“Leave, leave, leave,” echoed the virigin, interrupting him. Joosthin shot it a venomous glance. “We will call you when …”
“Call, call, call.”
Joosthin’s lips closed into a thin line. Colour flooded his face.
And you should blush, Ellen thought. Fancy you, Guild Master of Crystal of all people, forgetting how to use a virigin to emphasise rather than interrupt your directives.
Before Thil could touch her, she turned on her heel and indicated with a slight nod that she was ready to follow him.
He led her to a small room not far from the entrance to the main chamber. He did not come in with her but held the curtain aside and dropped it closed as soon as she entered, plunging the small room into darkness. Ellen groped her way to a seat. “Well,” she murmured to herself. “That was short and sweet. I had wanted to make an impression but it seems like I may have overdone the impression bit. Do they really not know about Rosa? Is there such a divide between Webcleaners and other Crystalmakers? Well, at least that’s interesting to discover.”
She swung her backpack off, rummaged around for her torch and wound it vigorously to charge the battery. She shone the torch around the room. Unlike the grand chamber, the walls here were relatively bare. She felt around in her pack again, looking for a purse in which she kept a stock of lozenges and other sweets. Even though the mylin in the chambers was faint, it was beginning to irritate her throat. She remembered Elthán’s warnings about overdosing on mylin and wrapped a scarf around her mouth and nose.
***
If you enjoyed reading this snippet, please consider supporting the author by purchasing your own copy of Skyseeker Princess (Si’Empra: The Storyteller and the Webcleaner Book 1) by Miriam Verbeek via your favourite book retailer or using my Amazon Affiliate links below
If you have found this blog post useful, you can subscribe to Segilola Salami's blog via email by visiting http://www.segilolasalami.co.uk/blog/. You can also follow Segilola Salami on Twitter https://twitter.com/iyayetunde1
The post Sunday Snippet: Skyseeker Princess (Si’Empra: The Storyteller and the Webcleaner Book 1) by Miriam Verbeek appeared first on Segilola Salami. Segilola Salami teaches a course on grief resolution https://www.segilolasalami.co.uk/memb...
July 29, 2019
Lisa Cybaniak: How to overcome limitations | Podcast Interview
Lisa Cybaniak is today’s guest on The Segilola Salami Show podcast. Lisa shares with us snippets from her life from being abused sexually as a child to becoming a qualified NLP practitioner. She shares tips to help us overcome limitations and live a life we deserve. I assure you, you need to click play now to listen to this most intriguing conversation with Lisa Cybaniak.
The opening tune on this podcast was sponsored by singer song writer Angela Predhomme and it is from her single HIDDEN WINGS. You can listen to the full track on her website, on Apple Music or on Spotify.
If you enjoy listening to this podcast, please consider supporting it
About Lisa Cybaniak
Lisa is a Qualified NLP Practitioner, Motivational Speaker, & Author who empowers women to overcome their limitations, to build the life they deserve. Driven to shed the stigma of being abused by breaking her silence, Lisa uses her experiences of recovery from 10 years of child abuse to help others overcome their obstacles, redefining their mindset and life. Her focus is on teaching the power of understanding the core beliefs we have about ourselves, causing ground breaking transformation.
You can find out more about Lisa Cybaniak on her website by clicking here.
About The Segilola Salami Show
The Segilola Salami show is hosted by Segilola Salami who is also an author, freelance writer and blogger. Please click here to see the full list of books written by Segilola Salami.
The show is set in a virtual cafe and is about books and publishing. The aim of the show is to be both educative and informative but in an entertaining way. Guests from all works of life come on the show to talk about the books they have read or written and how books motivated or inspired them. Listeners of the show get to discover new authors and new books as well as learn something new.
The show is published weekly on Tuesdays at 9 am GMT London. Please click here to subscribe to be notified when a new episode is released.
If you would like to appear as a guest on the next episode of the podcast, please click here to book your slot.
Please leave a review on Apple Podcasts (iTunes) by clicking here!
If you are an author, blogger or book lover, please subscribe to my authors and bloggers mailing list to find out about new self-published books that need reviews. I send out monthly newsletters with details of authors and their books that need honest feedback.
The podcast jingle used in this episode was provided by Chris Lament.
Please download a copy of Yetunde: An Ode To My Mother by Segilola Salami on Amazon
***
I would love to know your thoughts on today’s episode “Lisa Cybaniak: How to overcome limitations”. Please leave a comment below.
If you have found this blog post useful, you can subscribe to Segilola Salami's blog via email by visiting http://www.segilolasalami.co.uk/blog/. You can also follow Segilola Salami on Twitter https://twitter.com/iyayetunde1
The post Lisa Cybaniak: How to overcome limitations | Podcast Interview appeared first on Segilola Salami. Segilola Salami teaches a course on grief resolution https://www.segilolasalami.co.uk/memb... RSS feed&utm_medium=Online&utm_campaign=grief course
Lisa Cybaniak: How to overcome limitations
Lisa Cybaniak is today’s guest on The Segilola Salami Show podcast. Lisa shares with us snippets from her life from being abused sexually as a child to becoming a qualified NLP practitioner. She shares tips to help us overcome limitations and live a life we deserve. I assure you, you need to click play now to listen to this most intriguing conversation with Lisa Cybaniak.
The opening tune on this podcast was sponsored by singer song writer Angela Predhomme and it is from her single HIDDEN WINGS. You can listen to the full track on her website, on Apple Music or on Spotify.
If you enjoy listening to this podcast, please consider supporting it
About Lisa Cybaniak
Lisa is a Qualified NLP Practitioner, Motivational Speaker, & Author who empowers women to overcome their limitations, to build the life they deserve. Driven to shed the stigma of being abused by breaking her silence, Lisa uses her experiences of recovery from 10 years of child abuse to help others overcome their obstacles, redefining their mindset and life. Her focus is on teaching the power of understanding the core beliefs we have about ourselves, causing ground breaking transformation.
You can find out more about Lisa Cybaniak on her website by clicking here.
About The Segilola Salami Show
The Segilola Salami show is hosted by Segilola Salami who is also an author, freelance writer and blogger. Please click here to see the full list of books written by Segilola Salami.
The show is set in a virtual cafe and is about books and publishing. The aim of the show is to be both educative and informative but in an entertaining way. Guests from all works of life come on the show to talk about the books they have read or written and how books motivated or inspired them. Listeners of the show get to discover new authors and new books as well as learn something new.
The show is published weekly on Tuesdays at 9 am GMT London. Please click here to subscribe to be notified when a new episode is released.
If you would like to appear as a guest on the next episode of the podcast, please click here to book your slot.
Please leave a review on Apple Podcasts (iTunes) by clicking here!
If you are an author, blogger or book lover, please subscribe to my authors and bloggers mailing list to find out about new self-published books that need reviews. I send out monthly newsletters with details of authors and their books that need honest feedback.
The podcast jingle used in this episode was provided by Chris Lament.
Please download a copy of Yetunde: An Ode To My Mother by Segilola Salami on Amazon
***
I would love to know your thoughts on today’s episode “Lisa Cybaniak: How to overcome limitations”. Please leave a comment below.
If you have found this blog post useful, you can subscribe to Segilola Salami's blog via email by visiting http://www.segilolasalami.co.uk/blog/. You can also follow Segilola Salami on Twitter https://twitter.com/iyayetunde1
The post Lisa Cybaniak: How to overcome limitations appeared first on Segilola Salami. You can follow Segilola Salami on Twitter https://twitter.com/iyayetunde1. Download a FREE copy of one of Segilola's books on Amazon http://amzn.to/2H0xKHu
July 27, 2019
Character Interview: Life v/s The End: Life’s a gift Live it by Tanumita Das Ray
Today’s character interview is from the Coming Of Age Fiction Life v/s The End: Life’s a gift Live it by Tanumita Das Ray. It is a 136 page book independently published and is available as a paperback (ISBN-13: 978-1070606286) and Kindle eBook (ASIN: B07T2VWZ5W). Both formats were published 16/06/19.
Synopsis of Life v/s The End: Life’s a gift Live it by Tanumita Das Ray
What would you do if all of a sudden life crashes before your eyes? Would you try to put a full-stop to your life or live it by facing all odds? What would you choose: Life or The End?“Life v/s The End” is the story of Sunaina. She is an aspiring doctor. She has an extraordinary academic record and has a perfect family. She meets the love of her life and her love-life blossoms just like a fairy tale. She feels she is the most fortunate girl in the world. Was she really the lucky girl or was fate planning to teach her the true meaning and purpose of life the hard way?Life is a gift. Ending your life is never an option. This book unfolds the story of how a school girl transforms into a responsible lady and unravels the true meaning of life and relationship, reinventing herself in the process.
About the character interview
Name of character to be interviewed: Sunaina Roy
Why was this character chosen?: Sunaina is the lead character of the story and the story is narrated through her point of view. The story revolves around her life right from being a teenager to a responsible lady. The reader meets Sunaina at the most crucial point of her life from where he/she begins knowing her but, can understand her completely only when her past is revealed to them. Her character evolves with each turn of events that occur in her life ultimately leading to a message that is provided to the readers at the end.
The interview
Who is Sunaina?
Answer: Sunaina is the main protagonist of the novel who narrates the story of her life right from her school life when she aspires to become a doctor to when she turns up to become a successful doctor. Her journey involves hard work, patience, support from her family on one hand as well as romance, heartbreak and depression on the other. She has a strong family to support her in every phase of her life. She is a bright student and is loved by everyone.
What is so special about the character Sunaina?
Answer: She is a simple girl-next-door raised in a middle-class Indian family. The readers can instantly identify themselves with her character. She is the class topper and the school monitor. She falls in love in her high school and is true to her love. She is the best daughter to her parents. She fulfils her ambition of becoming a doctor. Nevertheless, her journey of life isn’t smooth, she has to face several hurdles and at one point of life she even fails in her struggle of life.
How is her character transformed with the course of the story?
Answer: From being a carefree school girl, her character is transformed to a successful doctor, then to a responsible daughter and finally to a strong lady who knows the right value of emotions and responsibilities in life after battling with acute depression.
Who all are related to the main character in Life v/s The End?
Answer: Sunaina’s mom and dad are an integral part of her life. They have been her support system throughout. Her friends in school and college also form a part of the story when her life revolves around Aditya. Aditya is her true love. She has dedicated her life to him. She can’t even think of her life without Aditya. Was she right or was it only an illusion; that’s something the readers need to find out.
What impact does the character have on its readers?
Answer: The readers are taken through the journey of her life where she faces the ups and downs of life, sometimes courageously, sometimes accepting defeat. Depression is very common nowadays. Mental health is as important as maintaining our physical health. The readers are forced to think if it is simply easy to end one’s life after facing failure or should we face life accepting all odds and moving ahead stronger. Does our life only belong to us or should we understand the broader meaning of life and treat life with respect? The story also reveals the strength of the bond between a child and her parents. Basically, it makes us realize the true value of life.
***
If you enjoyed reading this character interview, please consider supporting the author by purchasing a copy of Life v/s The End: Life’s a gift Live it by Tanumita Das Ray via your favourite book retailer or using my Amazon affiliate links below
If you have found this blog post useful, you can subscribe to Segilola Salami's blog via email by visiting http://www.segilolasalami.co.uk/blog/. You can also follow Segilola Salami on Twitter https://twitter.com/iyayetunde1
The post Character Interview: Life v/s The End: Life’s a gift Live it by Tanumita Das Ray appeared first on Segilola Salami. You can follow Segilola Salami on Twitter https://twitter.com/iyayetunde1. Download a FREE copy of one of Segilola's books on Amazon http://amzn.to/2H0xKHu
July 24, 2019
Why We Want What Others Have by Loretta Breuning
Today’s post Why We Want What Others Have is a guest post written by author Loretta Breuning. This is a follow on to her recent appearance on my podcast The Segilola Salami Show. Loretta teaches people about the brain chemicals that make us feel good: dopamine, serotonin, and oxytocin. She focuses on how we can get more of them in healthy ways, and why it’s hard. She has written many books on the subject after a long career as college professor.
Why We Want What Others Have by Loretta Breuning
The mammal brain is designed to observe what others get and seek it
Source: 145207369 / Shutterstock
Mammals are social animals. They learn by watching others. When they see others get a reward, it triggers their reward circuits. Dopamine is released and it feels good! Dopamine is the brain’s signal that a reward is possible and worth investing effort in. We humans have inherited brain structures that release dopamine when we see others get a reward.
I’m not saying you should want what others have. I’m saying you do, and when you know how you create this urge, you have power over it. Unfortunately, people do the opposite much of the time. They blame society for their urges and end up feeling powerless. You can control your natural feelings about what others have when you know how your brain produces them. Here is a simple guide.
An old-timey example
Source: Loretta Breuning
The famous explorer Captain Cook saved lives by manipulating the mammalian urges of his crew. He wanted his men to eat Vitamin C to protect them from scurvy on long ocean voyages. Sailors often died of scurvy in the 1700s, and it’s an especially horrible death. The cause was unknown, but Cook observed that no one got scurvy on German ships that served sauerkraut daily. Cook provided sauerkraut, but his sailors refused to eat it.
So Captain Cook put platters of it on the officers’ table. Then he permitted the sailors to help themselves from the officers’ platters. Soon, everyone wanted it, and Cook’s voyages were the first to wipe out the horrible disease of Vitamin C deficiency.
You want what others have. You hate to admit it, but when you see others take pleasure in something, you want it too. Not material things necessarily. It might be respect and attention. It might be skill, or the love of a special someone. Whatever it is, strong feelings are released when you see others having it. Your rational verbal cortex has trouble explaining these strong feelings because they are not produced by your cortex. They’re produced by your mammalian limbic system. Let’s zoom in and see how it works.
Monkey see, monkey do
Before language evolved, animals learned to meet their needs by watching others meet their need.
Research shows that the brain doesn’t mirror everything it sees. Mirror neurons are activated when a primate sees another individual get a reward or risk pain. The primate brain evolved to meet its needs and avoid harm by observing the way others meet their needs and avoid harm.
For example, a baby monkey sees its mother reach for fruit and put it in her mouth. So the little monkey grasps food and puts it in his mouth. There’s no conscious awareness that the food relieves hunger. The child simple reaches for rewards that others reach for thanks to mirror neurons.
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Research on mirror neurons shows that they activate when we observe another person get a survival-relevant consequence– either pleasure or pain. Repeated observation wires a young brain to seek the pleasures it sees in others and avoid the pain encountered by others.
Mirror neurons have more power than you might imagine. A young monkey is never given solid food. It will starve to death unless it learns to find its own food before mother’s milk is gone. Yet every little monkey figures it out, without the help of language and curriculum development experts. A little monkey learns because mirror neurons activate reward feelings and threat feelings. The dopamine of reward and the cortisol of threat are like paving on their neuralpathways. They wire the young brain to repeat behaviors that get rewards and avoid behaviors that bring pain.
The primate brain is not born hard-wired with survival skills. It wires itself from experience. Without conscious intent, it wires itself to seek what others seek.
Mate-Choice Copying in the Animal World
Animals are interested in mating partners that are seen with others. Researchers have documented mate-choice copying in a wide range of species. This phenomenon is eerily reminiscent of human life, especially in high school.
The facts of life are hard to accept. We like to believe that the state of nature is pure and altruistic, and our society is to blame for the frustrations of social comparison. Alas, we have inherited a brain that learns from others. We can manage our brain better when we accept it. When you deny your true impulses, you verbal brain fills in the blanks with fancy theories, but you still end up frustrated. Your verbal brain is skilled at blaming others for your frustration, but the bad feelings linger. It can even motivate bad choices.
The Pitfalls of Social Comparison
Here’s an example that’s far away yet curiously familiar. In Captain Cook’s day, blood-letting was a common treatment for disease. If you had money, you hired a doctor to come and bleed you. (George Washington died this way, as did Catherine the Great.) If you didn’t have money, you urgently looked for a way to pay for this treatment. Today, many dubious treatments are available, and people urgently want “access” to these treatment because others are getting them.
When you offer cupcakes to children, they easily get frustrated over the cupcake another child has chosen. That cupcake suddenly seems more valuable. When I was a mom, I tried to make all the cupcakes look the same to prevent such tussles. Now that I understand the mammal brain, I don’t think I did the right thing. I should have been teaching kids to manage this impulse in the long-run instead of just buying peace in the short-run.
I should have taught them to distinguish between sauerkraut and blood-letting for themselves.
Self-acceptance
The mammalian facts of life are hard to accept. Indeed, they have become taboo. We are told that animals are altruistic and “our society” is the root of social comparison. This leads to the belief that fighting “our society” is the path to mental health.
What would happen if you took off the system-blaming goggles and looked directly at your deeper impulses? Then you would have the power to monitor your thought loops and choose a new thought when necessary.
This is hard to do because you have to acknowledge the self-interested focus of your mammal brain. Self-interest has been condemned in today’s world. We are taught to deny our self-interested impulses, and find more socially-acceptable explanations for our feelings. We can easily see the self-interested impulses in others, of course. Frustration results. We could relieve this frustration by being honest with ourselves.
I am not saying we should be selfish. I’m saying we are selfish, and those who deny it are promoting their self-interest by denying it. When you are honest about the core impulses of your operating system, you can control them more easily. When you deny your own impulses, you lose control over them. You believe you are controlled by external forces so you overlook your internal power. I have written extensively on how to do this, both in this blog (here, here and here), and in my book, I, Mammal: How to Make Peace With the Animal Urge for Social Power.
***
If you enjoyed reading today’s post Why We Want What Others Have by Loretta Breuning, please leave a comment below. I would like to know your thoughts on Loretta wrote. Please share this post with everyone in your network too. You can find out more about Loretta on her website by clicking here.
If you would like to purchase a copy of Loretta’s book I, Mammal: How to Make Peace With the Animal Urge for Social Power, please consider doing so using my Amazon affiliate link
If you have found this blog post useful, you can subscribe to Segilola Salami's blog via email by visiting http://www.segilolasalami.co.uk/blog/. You can also follow Segilola Salami on Twitter https://twitter.com/iyayetunde1
The post Why We Want What Others Have by Loretta Breuning appeared first on Segilola Salami. You can follow Segilola Salami on Twitter https://twitter.com/iyayetunde1. Download a FREE copy of one of Segilola's books on Amazon http://amzn.to/2H0xKHu
July 22, 2019
Loretta Breuning: Meet Your Happy Chemicals: Dopamine, serotonin, oxytocin and endorphin | Podcast Interview
Loretta Breuning is today’s guest on The Segilola Salami Show podcast. Loretta shares with us how she went from being a Professor of Management to studying brain chemistry and creating resources that help people build power over their mammalian brain chemistry.. I assure you, you need to click play now to listen to this most intriguing conversation with Loretta Breuning.
The opening tune on this podcast was sponsored by singer song writer Angela Predhomme and it is from her single HIDDEN WINGS. You can listen to the full track on her website, on Apple Music or on Spotify.
If you enjoy listening to this podcast, please consider supporting it
About Loretta Breuning
Dr. Loretta Breuning is Founder of the Inner Mammal Institute and author of Habits of a Happy Brain: Retrain your brain to boost your serotonin, dopamine, oxytocin and endorphin. As Professor of Management at California State University, and as a parent, Loretta lost faith in prevailing theories of human motivation. Then she studied the brain chemistry we’ve inherited from earlier mammals, and everything made sense. So she founded the Inner Mammal Institute and began creating resources that help people build power over their mammalian brain chemistry.
5 things to take away from this episode
Loretta Breuning would like the listeners of this episode of The Segilola Salami Show to take away the following:
1) The brain chemicals that make you feel good (dopamine, serotonin, oxytocin, endorphin) are inherited from earlier mammals.
2) They’re designed to promote survival, not to make you feel good. They turn on when you see a way to meet a survival need. Then they turn off and you have to do more to get more.
3) Your happy chemicals are controlled by neural pathways built from past experience, which is why we all expect to feel good in ways that worked for us in youth.
4) Nothing is wrong with you. Your happy chemicals are not designed to flow all the time for no reason.
5) Fortunately, you can build new neural pathways to turn on your happy chemicals in new ways. Take small steps toward new rewards and repeat. You will blaze a new trail though your jungle of neurons.
About The Segilola Salami Show
The Segilola Salami show is hosted by Segilola Salami who is also an author, freelance writer and blogger. Please click here to see the full list of books written by Segilola Salami.
The show is set in a virtual cafe and is about books and publishing. The aim of the show is to be both educative and informative but in an entertaining way. Guests from all works of life come on the show to talk about the books they have read or written and how books motivated or inspired them. Listeners of the show get to discover new authors and new books as well as learn something new.
The show is published weekly on Tuesdays at 9 am GMT London. Please click here to subscribe to be notified when a new episode is released.
If you would like to appear as a guest on the next episode of the podcast, please click here to book your slot.
Please leave a review on Apple Podcasts (iTunes) by clicking here!
If you are an author, blogger or book lover, please subscribe to my authors and bloggers mailing list to find out about new self-published books that need reviews. I send out monthly newsletters with details of authors and their books that need honest feedback.
The podcast jingle used in this episode was provided by Chris Lament.
Please download a FREE copy of Yetunde: An Ode To My Mother by Segilola Salami on Amazon
***
I would love to know your thoughts on today’s episode “Loretta Breuning: Meet Your Happy Chemicals: Dopamine, serotonin, oxytocin and endorphin”. Please leave a comment below.
If you have found this blog post useful, you can subscribe to Segilola Salami's blog via email by visiting http://www.segilolasalami.co.uk/blog/. You can also follow Segilola Salami on Twitter https://twitter.com/iyayetunde1
The post Loretta Breuning: Meet Your Happy Chemicals: Dopamine, serotonin, oxytocin and endorphin | Podcast Interview appeared first on Segilola Salami. Segilola Salami teaches a course on grief resolution https://www.segilolasalami.co.uk/memb... RSS feed&utm_medium=Online&utm_campaign=grief course
Loretta Breuning: Meet Your Happy Chemicals: Dopamine, serotonin, oxytocin and endorphin
Loretta Breuning is today’s guest on The Segilola Salami Show podcast. Loretta shares with us how she went from being a Professor of Management to studying brain chemistry and creating resources that help people build power over their mammalian brain chemistry.. I assure you, you need to click play now to listen to this most intriguing conversation with Loretta Breuning.
The opening tune on this podcast was sponsored by singer song writer Angela Predhomme and it is from her single HIDDEN WINGS. You can listen to the full track on her website, on Apple Music or on Spotify.
If you enjoy listening to this podcast, please consider supporting it
About Loretta Breuning
Dr. Loretta Breuning is Founder of the Inner Mammal Institute and author of Habits of a Happy Brain: Retrain your brain to boost your serotonin, dopamine, oxytocin and endorphin. As Professor of Management at California State University, and as a parent, Loretta lost faith in prevailing theories of human motivation. Then she studied the brain chemistry we’ve inherited from earlier mammals, and everything made sense. So she founded the Inner Mammal Institute and began creating resources that help people build power over their mammalian brain chemistry.
5 things to take away from this episode
Loretta Breuning would like the listeners of this episode of The Segilola Salami Show to take away the following:
1) The brain chemicals that make you feel good (dopamine, serotonin, oxytocin, endorphin) are inherited from earlier mammals.
2) They’re designed to promote survival, not to make you feel good. They turn on when you see a way to meet a survival need. Then they turn off and you have to do more to get more.
3) Your happy chemicals are controlled by neural pathways built from past experience, which is why we all expect to feel good in ways that worked for us in youth.
4) Nothing is wrong with you. Your happy chemicals are not designed to flow all the time for no reason.
5) Fortunately, you can build new neural pathways to turn on your happy chemicals in new ways. Take small steps toward new rewards and repeat. You will blaze a new trail though your jungle of neurons.
About The Segilola Salami Show
The Segilola Salami show is hosted by Segilola Salami who is also an author, freelance writer and blogger. Please click here to see the full list of books written by Segilola Salami.
The show is set in a virtual cafe and is about books and publishing. The aim of the show is to be both educative and informative but in an entertaining way. Guests from all works of life come on the show to talk about the books they have read or written and how books motivated or inspired them. Listeners of the show get to discover new authors and new books as well as learn something new.
The show is published weekly on Tuesdays at 9 am GMT London. Please click here to subscribe to be notified when a new episode is released.
If you would like to appear as a guest on the next episode of the podcast, please click here to book your slot.
Please leave a review on Apple Podcasts (iTunes) by clicking here!
If you are an author, blogger or book lover, please subscribe to my authors and bloggers mailing list to find out about new self-published books that need reviews. I send out monthly newsletters with details of authors and their books that need honest feedback.
The podcast jingle used in this episode was provided by Chris Lament.
Please download a FREE copy of Yetunde: An Ode To My Mother by Segilola Salami on Amazon
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I would love to know your thoughts on today’s episode “Loretta Breuning: Meet Your Happy Chemicals: Dopamine, serotonin, oxytocin and endorphin”. Please leave a comment below.
If you have found this blog post useful, you can subscribe to Segilola Salami's blog via email by visiting http://www.segilolasalami.co.uk/blog/. You can also follow Segilola Salami on Twitter https://twitter.com/iyayetunde1
The post Loretta Breuning: Meet Your Happy Chemicals: Dopamine, serotonin, oxytocin and endorphin appeared first on Segilola Salami. You can follow Segilola Salami on Twitter https://twitter.com/iyayetunde1. Download a FREE copy of one of Segilola's books on Amazon http://amzn.to/2H0xKHu
July 20, 2019
Sunday Snippets: Money Matters by Karen Ford
Today’s Sunday Snippet is from the financial book Money Matters by Karen Ford. It is currently available as a Paperback (ISBN 978-0999541524) and a Kindle ebook (ISBN 978-0999541524). Both formats were published 6/1/2018 by KBF Management Company.
Synopsis of Money Matters by Karen Ford
This book will guide you to getting free from debt and taking practical steps to build wealth with a solid financial future. The teaching is sound and biblically based. You will find her tips easy to follow, the principles she shares easy to apply and immediately experience positive results. Approachable and pragmatic, this message will expand your faith as it increases your ability to walk in generosity.
The snippet is from chapter 5: Help I’m overhwhelmed
Message: People want to get rid of the stress, and one of the ways to do this is to get your finances under control.
The reason they aren’t under control is because they’re out of control.
If you won’t control your money, your money will be out of control!
So, how do we do this? How do we get our money under control?
We must look to change in these 3 areas:
MIND- MOUTH- MAKE
MIND
Let’s begin with the mind!
For as he thinks in his heart, so is he
This means that whatever we are thinking on is what we are!
WHAT?
Yes, it’s imperative that we take notice of what we are thinking.
What we think is what we become!
This verse is telling us to “shun the mold.” We aren’t to be conformed to this world. We must renew our mind.
The word “conformed” means to conform to the same pattern, to fashion or to shape.” It means “to mold.” We aren’t to allow ourselves to be squeezed into the world’s mold.
When we allow ourselves to be shaped, fashioned into the world’s mold, we begin to think like the world, act like the world, and be like the world.
We are to “shape our mind.” This verse tells us to “be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” The word transform is the Greek word ‘metamorphoo’ where we get the word metamorphosis. This describes a complete transformation, just like a caterpillar is transformed into a butterfly. See, the caterpillar “becomes” the butterfly through this process.
We are changed when we renew our minds.
We become something different.
God desires us to be prosperous!
When our mind is changed and brought under the power of God, our soul can be brought under control.
Now some may be thinking, “But I am not being truthful when I am behind on my bills and can’t pay them, yet I say I can pay them.”
Begin thinking thoughts “ I am able to pay all my bills each month because I can.”
Stop saying, “I am in debt, I’m in debt up to my eyeballs.”
Whatever you think on, you will move towards.
Let me say that again.
Whatever you think on, you will move towards.
Begin saying, “I am debt free!”
If you think, I can’t pay my bills, you will move towards that.
Wouldn’t it be better to think and speak that you are able to pay all your bills?
Say this, “I am out of debt, and all my needs are met and I have abundance and never lack.”
Say that over and over again and you will begin to believe it.
As a man thinks in his heart so is he.
Whatever you think on is what you will become.
Whatever you think on is what you will move towards.
Someone once said, expectation is the atmosphere for miracles.
Think about David and Goliath. David was a youngest of his brothers but expected that he was going to take that giant Goliath down. In fact, he said it before he saw it happen.
David thought it and said what was going to happen and then it did. He still had to take action and move towards Goliath. He still had to aim and throw the stone at Goliath, but he said it before it happened.
What are you thinking about in the area of your finances? Begin to speak it out. What will you begin to speak over your finances? What action will you take to create what you speak?
We not only need to think with our minds, we must speak with our mouths.
MOUTH
Words are powerful!
Death and life are in the power of the tongue.
We see in both of these verses that words will produce what we say!
I think of a large ship that is going out to sea, and what will turn that ship is the small rudder. Something so small can move such a large object.
Your finances may not be going in the right direction. You may even be in debt so far that you don’t see a way out. One powerful way to help turn your finances around is to speak words that will help turn you in the right direction.
Now with the ship, although the rudder is turning the direction, there are still workers manning the vessel. We must continue to work, and pay our bills, and manage our money in a greater way, while we are speaking words to turn our financial situation around.
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If you enjoyed reading this snippet or found it beneficial, please consider buying your own copy of the book Money Matters by Karen Ford via your favourite book retailer or from Amazon using my affiliate links below
You can also read another snippet of Money Matters by Karen Ford on my blog by clicking here.
If you have found this blog post useful, you can subscribe to Segilola Salami's blog via email by visiting http://www.segilolasalami.co.uk/blog/. You can also follow Segilola Salami on Twitter https://twitter.com/iyayetunde1
The post Sunday Snippets: Money Matters by Karen Ford appeared first on Segilola Salami. You can follow Segilola Salami on Twitter https://twitter.com/iyayetunde1. Download a FREE copy of one of Segilola's books on Amazon http://amzn.to/2H0xKHu
July 17, 2019
Why Is Sleep Important … For You and Your Child?
Today’s blog post is a guest post written by sleep consultant Tonja Bizor. She shares her professional opinion on the topic “Why Is Sleep Important” following her recent appearance on my podcast The Segilola Salami Show.
Introduction to Why Is Sleep Important
The mysteries of sleep are still unsolved. Why do we need sleep? What does it do for our body? Why do we need so much of it? Why is sleep so dang important for you and your child? Let’s discover together some reasons why we need sleep and although sleep can be a puzzle to figure out, it’s so important in our day to day lives.
Sleep is vital for your child
The mysteries of sleep are still unsolved. Why do we sleep? What does it do for our body? Why do we need so much of it? How much do we really need? Scientists are still trying to figure out the reason that we sleep and why it takes up a large portion of our day. What we know so far from sleep research is that sleep is adaptive and restorative. Sleep helps our bodies (and mind) restore, rejuvenate and reenergize. Sleep may have evolved as a protective adaptation. Sleep plays a vital role in good health and well-being through all aspects of our lives. Good, quality sleep can help to improve physical health, mental health, quality of life and safety.
Let’s take a look at what researchers know about the benefits of sleep for adults and children:
For adults:
• learning and memory- divided into three functions (acquisition, consolidation and recall). Consolidation is the only one of the three that occurs during sleep. It is an important aspect of learning, in that it will store the memory in the brain.
• mood- we all can relate to being irritable or fussy when we don’t get sufficient sleep. Researchers suggest that sleep deprivation negatively affects mood.
• health- 7-9 hours of sleep regularly can lower rates of obesity, high blood pressure and other health deficiencies. Sleep can increase a feeling of life satisfaction, such as a better sex life and positive work experience.
For children, quality sleep:
• produces growth hormones
• builds immune system
• work on the storage, retention and organization of memory
• increase blood supply to the muscles • restore energy • reduces crying spells during the day
• build and repair tissue
• grow mentally and physically
How do you get sleep for your child?
As a sleep expert, parents ask about baby sleep myths and ask how is it possible to help a baby sleep. There are several behavioral techniques that have been researched and found to be effective for children and adults. It’s important to note that there are sleep need requirements based on age from infancy into senior adulthood. These sleep needs are broken down on the National Sleep Foundation’s webpage. These sleep needs can be used to incorporate a sleep schedule for your child. Children thrive on routines and it will aid in development of healthy sleep hygiene. So, how do I get my baby to sleep better?
1. Babies need to learn to fall asleep independently without any external props. What is a sleep prop? Anything that your child absolutely needs to fall asleep. For example, feeding/rocking/holding until your baby falls asleep. Please note that this is flexible with newborns.
2. Early bedtimes are great for everyone! If you had a baby for more than a day, you know that they are early risers. Babies generally wake up between 5-7am, so bedtime needs to be somewhere between 6-8pm. The goal is to develop a 12 hour day and 12 hour night. So if baby goes to sleep at 7pm, then wake up should be around 7am.
3. Bedtime and nap routines are really important. Routines are monumental in helping a child learn to predict what is to come. It helps them to learn what is expected of them. Bedtime routines are approximately 30 minutes and nap routines are 5-10 minutes at length.
4. Consistency is key to getting your child’s sleep on a healthier track. Try to do the same routine, the same way, the same time of night and the same place. Keeping things consistent allows the child to understand and learn how to put themselves to sleep. It also helps the child avoid confusion when things are done the same way. So there’s no question that sleep, while it remains mysterious, is definitely an essential part of a healthy, happy lifestyle.
Although you’ve created a bundle of joy and the myth is that babies don’t sleep well, it’s important to note that babies can sleep well. Sleep is an intricate part of a babies growth and development in the first year. Don’t allow others to impose the idea that your baby will not sleep well because that just isn’t true! If your baby is not sleeping well, address it. It’s not a luxury, it’s not selfish, it’s not unrealistic, it’s necessary!
About the author
Tonja Bizor is a Certified Child Sleep Consultant and Public Speaker who helps parents teach their children healthy sleep habits. She specializes in getting children aged 3 months to 3 years old to sleep 12 hour, uninterrupted nights. She’s helped over 100 families move from sleep deprived to sleep filled nights. Tonja offers group seminars and private, one-on-one coaching with families, where she’ll develop individualized customized sleep plans for parents to follow.
Tonja completed her Masters degree in Psychology with emphasis in Clinical/Counseling. She studied under Dana Obleman and achieved her coaching Certification with the Sleep Sense Program. Tonja was a guest on Talk of Alabama on ABC and she’s been featured in numerous magazines and websites such as Romper, Military Spouse Fest, Birmingham Parent Magazine and Dr. Laura.
Link to author website: https://tonjabsleepconsulting.com/blog/
So, if you’re struggling with your child’s sleep, there are a couple of different ways she can help: an individual consultation (in-person or over the telephone) or a group seminar. Both include a customized, step-by-step plan to solve your child’s sleep problems by Tonja, your baby sleep consultant expert. The best way to decide which of these options is right for you is to call Tonja for a FREE 15-minute telephone consultation. That will give you both a chance to discuss your child’s specific situation and come up with some ideas for a solution. For your free 15-minute consultation (or to book an appointment), you can email tonja@tonjabsleepconsulting.com
If you have found this blog post useful, you can subscribe to Segilola Salami's blog via email by visiting http://www.segilolasalami.co.uk/blog/. You can also follow Segilola Salami on Twitter https://twitter.com/iyayetunde1
The post Why Is Sleep Important … For You and Your Child? appeared first on Segilola Salami. You can follow Segilola Salami on Twitter https://twitter.com/iyayetunde1. Download a FREE copy of one of Segilola's books on Amazon http://amzn.to/2H0xKHu
July 15, 2019
Tonja Bizor: How To Get Your Child To Sleep Through The Night
Tonja Bizor is today’s guest on The Segilola Salami Show podcast. Tonja shares with us how her middle child not sleeping through the night led her to hiring her first sleep consultant and how that led to her consequently becoming a sleep consultant. She wanted to help other parents so that they didn’t have to endure the sleep deprivation that she experienced. I assure you, you need to click play now to listen to this most intriguing conversation with Tonja Bizor.
The opening tune on this podcast was sponsored by singer song writer Angela Predhomme and it is from her single HIDDEN WINGS. You can listen to the full track on her website, on Apple Music or on Spotify.
If you enjoy listening to this podcast, please consider supporting it
About Tonja Bizor
As a mother of three children, one who had sleep issues, I understand the emotional strain and stress that a child not sleeping through the night can have on a family. I recently discovered the need for children to sleep through the night in order to be well-adjusted individuals. My sleep philosophy stems from research and training that I will incorporate while helping you teach your child good sleep hygiene.
I offer my families a peace of mind, relief that sleepless nights will soon turn into bountiful sleep for everyone in the family! I develop customized sleep plans while getting to know you and your child’s personality and developmental milestones. I am with you every step of the way as you give your child the gift of sleep.
As a Certified Sleep Sense
Consultant, I’ve undergone a comprehensive training and mentoring program, which has given me the very best tools and knowledge available to help you get your little one sleeping through the night!
Books for sleep training
The books Tonja recommended on the show to help parents whose children are not sleeping through the night are:
BOOK 1 Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child by Marc Weissbluth, M.D. It is available as a Kindle ebook, audiobook, paperback and MP3 CD.
This valuable sourcebook contains the latest research on:
• the best course of action for sleep problems: prevention and treatment
• common mistakes parents make trying to get their children to sleep
• different sleep needs for different temperaments
• stopping the crybaby syndrome, nightmares, bedwetting, and more
• ways to get your baby to fall asleep according to her internal clock—naturally
• handling nap-resistant kids and when to start sleep-training
• why both night sleep and day sleep are important
• obstacles for working moms and children with sleep issues
• the father’s role in comforting children
• how early sleep troubles can lead to later problems
• the benefits and drawbacks of allowing kids to sleep in the family bed
Rest is vital to your child’s health, growth, and development. Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child outlines proven strategies that ensure good, healthy sleep for every age.
Please consider buying a copy using my Amazon affiliate link
BOOK 2 The Secrets of A Baby Whisperer by Tracy Hogg with Melinda Belau. It is available as a Kindle ebook, audiobook, paperback, hardcover and audio CD.
In this groundbreaking book, the author shares simple, accessible programs in which you will learn:
• E.A.S.Y.–how to get baby to eat, play, and sleep on a schedule that will make every member of the household’s life easier and happier.
• S.L.O.W.–how to interpret what your baby is trying to tell you (so you don’t try to feed him when he really wants a nap).
• How to identify which type of baby yours is–Angel, Textbook, Touchy, Spirited, or Grumpy–and then learn the best way to interact with that type.
• Tracy’s Three Day Magic–how to change any and all bad habits (yours and the baby’s) in just three days.
At the heart of Tracy’s simple but profound message: treat the baby as you would like to be treated yourself. Reassuring, down-to-earth, and often flying in the face of conventional wisdom, Secrets of the Baby Whisperer promises parents not only a healthier, happier baby but a more relaxed and happy household as well.
Please consider buying a copy using my Amazon affiliate link
About The Segilola Salami Show
The Segilola Salami show is hosted by Segilola Salami who is also an author, freelance writer and blogger. Please click here to see the full list of books written by Segilola Salami.
The show is set in a virtual cafe and is about books and publishing. The aim of the show is to be both educative and informative but in an entertaining way. Guests from all works of life come on the show to talk about the books they have read or written and how books motivated or inspired them. Listeners of the show get to discover new authors and new books as well as learn something new.
The show is published weekly on Tuesdays at 9 am GMT London. Please click here to subscribe to be notified when a new episode is released.
If you would like to appear as a guest on the next episode of the podcast, please click here to book your slot.
Please leave a review on Apple Podcasts (iTunes) by clicking here!
If you are an author, blogger or book lover, please subscribe to my authors and bloggers mailing list to find out about new self-published books that need reviews. I send out monthly newsletters with details of authors and their books that need honest feedback.
Please download a FREE copy of Yetunde: An Ode To My Mother by Segilola Salami on Amazon
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I would love to know your thoughts on today’s episode “Tonja Bizor: How To Get Your Child To Sleep Through The Night”. Please leave a comment below.
If you have found this blog post useful, you can subscribe to Segilola Salami's blog via email by visiting http://www.segilolasalami.co.uk/blog/. You can also follow Segilola Salami on Twitter https://twitter.com/iyayetunde1
The post Tonja Bizor: How To Get Your Child To Sleep Through The Night appeared first on Segilola Salami. You can follow Segilola Salami on Twitter https://twitter.com/iyayetunde1. Download a FREE copy of one of Segilola's books on Amazon http://amzn.to/2H0xKHu
