Scott Anderson, Ph.D.

For years I focused on flexibility - now I work more on strength and endurance. Glacial. I don’t think there’s any other term that better describes my recent 8+ mile run. As I slogged along, I couldn’t help but feel self-conscious as runner after runner flew past me. While no walkers passed me, I must confess that it took me a l-o-n-g time to pass the various walkers that I encountered on my loop around the University of Wisconsin campus. Perhaps you’re wondering why I’m writing about such an unnoteworthy run? While this run probably appeared anything but noteworthy to bystanders, for me this run was a sort of redemption. Running a longer distance was a milestone in rebuilding the resilience my body had lost over the past decade or so. You see, for many years I focused on opening my body, and as a result, I became very flexible. Because I have the blessing/curse of joint laxity, my hips and shoulders became very, very flexible. While the stretching that built this flexib

At risk of appearing like a Radio Lab groupie, I’d like to recommend another episode from my favorite radio show. This episode is called DIY , and it’s about people who take matters into their own hands to get the results they’re looking for. While the first part about brain stimulators made me pretty squeamish (no thanks – I’ll pass on running electrical current through my brain), the second part filled my heart with gladness. The second part of the Radio Lab episode DIY was about the Suskind family, who found a most creative means to connect with their autistic son, Owen. As many of you know, I’ve long been fascinated by autism, and I found the Suskinds’ creative approach to reaching their son to be a triumph of the human spirit. In this Radio Lab episode, we hear from all the members of the Suskind family. In hearing from the various family members, I was reminded of the vastness that’s embedded within the people that are easy to consider lost or inaccessible. I

Thinking about the back-brain (circa 1990) Imagery has become one of my favorite elements of yoga practice and teaching. While I used to consider creating mental images to be the province of make-believe , I now appreciate the potential for imagery to harness and direct the power of the mind. One of the earliest images that I found engaging was that of front-brain and back-brain. At a retreat I attended many years ago, the renowned teacher taught us that the front of the brain was the seat of fretting and worrying, and that the back of the brain was the home of primal skills such as sensing, feeling and intuiting. Throughout this retreat, the teacher asked us to relax our front brain and to rely more deeply on the ancient wisdom of our back-brain. I found this imagery to be almost immediately soothing, and spent the next few years focusing on reconnecting with my primal back-brain. It wasn’t until many years later that I learned that there is more to the brain than front

As many of you know, I'm a big fan of Robert Sapolsky's book, Why Zebras Don't Get Ulcers.  For those interested in the body and its interface with the mind, I think this book should be required reading! Sapolsky writes in a light and congenial way. If he were to write a book about chainsaw sculpting, I'd likely enjoy Why Carvers Don't have Every Digit, too. Sapolsky has a rare and refreshing capacity to distill difficult topics to their understandable essence. When I heard that Sapolsky was speaking on Radio Lab , I was doubly enthused.  As much as I enjoy Why Zebras Don't Get Ulcers,  I'm just as fond of Radio Lab. I've become enchanted by their consistently interesting subject matter, as well as their creative (off the charts!) utilization of sound. Radio Lab introduced me to the multidimensional experience of talk radio. Today's Radio Lab show was about stress, and included some of Sapolsky's fascinating findings. I sincerely hope you