Sneezing from sun or mint flavour
Why do some people sneeze when exposed to sunlight? Anytime I enter the sun I will routinely sneeze three times. I also experience this if I have strong mint gum - is this the same phenomenon or something different? Many of my family members experience the same thing but a lot of people I talk to have never heard of it and ask if I’m allergic to sunlight. It certainly doesn’t feel like an allergy - it’s actually a very satisfying reaction.
The power of different stories and their effects on motivation and behavior
I have always been fascinated by the power of how a story (movie, book, fiction or non-fiction, etc.) can affect a person's motivation, behavior, and state of mind. Similar to the motivation that you get for example after watching a movie character overcome challenges and grow through them; you leave the cinema feeling like a different person, having somehow adopted a fictional character's traits. Or the self-confidence that you feel after reading about a historical figure’s achievements. It's almost like experiencing a slight high without physically ingesting anything. There's a book called "The Alter Ego Effect" by Todd Herman, where he demonstrates how athletes and high performers use an alter ego or a semi-fictional story to “get in the zone” quicker and more consistently, striving for optimal performance. He also mentions a study where certain kids who pretended to be Batman or Wonder Woman worked harder and more calmly to complete a set of challenging tasks than the rest of the kids. Can you please explain the neuroscience behind this effect and if there are any protocols that one can adopt without necessarily feeling like they are pretending to be someone else?
Mind over matter
I'm a 46yr old amateur cyclist. I've been training for 4 years. When racing I can maintain the pace but after 45 minutes I get dropped on a hill or during an attack. My coach says I'm stronger than I think I am. If that's the case should I be training the brain rather than the body to endure the discomfort?
Generalized anxiety and overwhelm
I have generalized anxiety disorder and am on a low dose of Epilum for bipolar which I have been told does affect cognition. I have been struggling with insomnia a bit now due to a lot of anxiety. I am 40 years old and am currently studying vet nursing and I have never studied science before. I have not managed to keep up with the workload despite trying hard. I am now nearing exams and am struggling with high anxiety, overwhelm and with my motivation and ability to study what is most important as I tend to get caught up in the details. I am in trying to increase my exercise now as I stopped working out as much to focus on studying, I have been trying to increase the length of cold showers and have been going outside after I wake up. I would really appreciate any advice for dealing with these issues. Thanks for your podcast and what you are doing to help people.