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sons I chose to travel to Cuernavaca this past
April was that it is one of the world’s centers for Spanish
teaching. Cuernavaca has in excess of 40 language schools and
attracts language students from all over the world to this
beautiful city with the near perfect climate. After all,
Cuernavaca is “La Ciudad de la Eterna Primavera”, the City of
Everlasting Spring.

During my first week in Cuernavaca I had the oportunity to
study Spanish at the Ideal School for Spanish and I enjoyed my
one-on-one instruction with Estela, one of Ideal’s most
experienced teachers. With humour and patience she put me
through the usual torture of the Spanish subjunctive, of “ser y
estar” and many of the other grammatical nuances that the
Spanish language tosses at us non-Latinos.

During my stay at Ideal I really enjoyed the atmosphere, from
our first guided walk with one of the teachers through downtown
on our first day (with first-hand instructions on how to use the
bus system), to our field trip (to a gallery opening), to the
coffee breaks, to some of the tasty authentic Mexican snacks
served (e.g. chilaquiles), to various birthday and going-away
celebrations. The ambience was very personal and enjoyable,
almost family-like.

The school itself is located in a beautiful residential
neighbourhood with a tropical inner courtyard. My classroom was
outside, under a “palapa” (a palm-leaf-thatched Mexcian sun
umbrella) and learning Spanish open-air, amid blooming
bugainvillas and chirping birds was an experience in itself.

Let me present to you Hermilo Brito, the creator of the Ideal
School for Spanish, and also the president of the Association
of Spanish Language Schools in Cuernavaca.

1. Please tell us a bit about yourself and your personal
background. How did you get involved in the field of language
teaching?

Now many years ago, on the 60’s, I had the great opportunity to
work in the first Spanish teaching center in Cuernavaca. This
center was established by Ivan Illich, a philosopher and
catholic priest; the center was named CIDOC (Centro Cultural de
Documentaci=DBn). It actually wasn’t a school, it was a center,
well known in the university and intellectual circles, to
discuss innovative ideas about the end of the past century.
Among the activities at CIDOC were the sending of volunteers to
countries in Latin America; those volunteers were required to
learn Spanish, so CIDOC had an important Spanish teaching
department. In CIDOC, I acted as Spanish language teacher,
Coordinator, Director of the Spanish Programs and General
Manager.

In 1975, Ivan Illich decided to close the center, this
represented an opportunity to establish IDEAL (Instituto de
Estudios de America Latina) just like a Spanish school,
following the path that I had initiated in CIDOC doing what I
like: teach my language.

Over all these years I continued training myself to improve my
skills in the language-teaching field, taking courses and
attending conferences related to this subject. My concern has
been to improve and develop our methodology, in order to become
a leader in our area.

2. You are also the President of AIPEC, the Association for
Spanish Language Schools in Cuernavaca. Please tell us about
the association and Cuernavaca as a language learning
destination.

The association of Spanish Language Schools in Cuernavaca was
organized 11 years ago; 12 schools concerned with turning our
city into a global center of Spanish learning got aid from the
Mexican government to promote Cuernavaca. After 11 years,
Cuernavaca’s overall cleanliness has improved, we have more
tourist services available to foreigners, the city is safer, we
have talked with our colleagues from the tourist services to
coordinate our efforts to offer the best to our visitors, we
have organized shows and cultural events for all Spanish
language students, and we are in contact with different
government offices to promote Cuernavaca as =ECThe World Center
for Spanish Teaching=EE among other activities and challenges.

Cuernavaca is the world’s second most important city teaching
Spanish as a second language. The success of Cuernavaca’s
language schools, in addition to the development of an
appropriate teaching methodology also resulted from the city’s
excellent location; we are 1 =87 hours away from the largest city
in the world, Mexico City, and very close to various places
where students of Spanish language and Mexican culture can get
to know the different facets of this country, through
activities which range from cultural visits to museums and
archeological sites to recreational destinations such as
Acapulco. Visitors can choose from among a wide variety of
places to visit.

Cuernavaca, by itself, offers numerous cultural and tourist
attractions. Above all, Cuernavaca offers the opportunity to
admire and learn about the different times of Mexican history.
Above all, Cuernavaca is best known for its weather; local
temperatures are between 20 and 30 =86C (68 to 86 =86F) almost
throughout the entire year.

3. Please tell us about the history of your school, Ideal
Latinoamerica.

Our school, IDEAL, was established on 1975, after the CIDOC
(Centro Cultural de Documentaci=DBn) project ended. The CIDOC
trained many teachers and people to teach Spanish as second
language. I was one of the people involved with the
Spanish-teaching activities and, jointly with a colleague, we
established IDEAL (Instituto de Estudios de America Latina).
With the enthusiasm of the first years, we reached our goal to
create a place where students from all over the world could
meet each other to learn Spanish and discover Mexican culture.

In 1996, due to the distinctive didactics and philosophy of the
School, I continued this project by myself together with my son,
who follows the tradition of Spanish-teaching. We both have in
mind to develop the best method that will allow students to
learn the language in the best and most dynamic way.

4. Please tell us about your Spanish language classes, your
class facilities, your weekly schedule and your teaching
faculty.

The purpose of our courses is to introduce students to Spanish
as a second language, as many have studied it as a foreign
language in their countries of origin. Another goal is to
encourage immersion not only into the language but in culture
and everyday life.

Our program at IDEAL begins with individual Spanish of no more
than 5 students and optional extracurricular activities which
are a highly recommended compliment to the program. Every week
these include charlas (informal talks) and conferences, round
table discussions, songs and movies in Spanish as well as
cooking classes, dance classes, coffee social and excursions to
cultural and historical sites among many other options.

We teach 9 levels of Spanish; each level emphasizes
communication and language practice as appropriate for each
student’s level of proficiency, using various interactive
techniques that allow the student to speak and communicate in
Spanish from day one.

IDEAL has 5-student capacity classrooms (plus teacher); some of
them are in the garden (palapas, small areas only covered by
palm-tree roofs). IDEAL has 2 conference rooms with a capacity
for 18 and 60 students, respectively. The meeting area at IDEAL
is the cafeteria, where students socialize and enjoy the =ECHora
del Caf=C8=EE, the time when the school offers coffee and some
snacks (at 11 am), Monday through Friday. Students are invited
to enjoy the gardens and areas within IDEAL once classes are
through, they can also watch TV, watch a movie or navigate on
the Internet (wireless) which are included in the services
offered.

A fundamental part of IDEAL is our teachers, who will accompany
you every step of the way in the adventure of learning Spanish
and discovering a new culture.
IDEAL’s teachers are specialists with university training or
many years’ experience teaching Spanish to foreigners or both.

When teachers start working at IDEAL, they receive a course in
=ECTechniques for teaching Spanish as a Second Language=EE, which
covers the fundamentals of the method we use at IDEAL. All year
we provide training courses in which teachers learn new
techniques and theories, discuss existing teaching methods, and
reinforce the teaching methods we use.

However, what distinguishes our teachers is their spirit of
teamwork and enthusiasm for teaching and making the atmosphere
at IDEAL pleasant and supportive.

5. Please tell us about your Spanish language teaching
methodology and your pronunciation improvement programs.

The method of IDEAL is directed towards the development of the
student’s ability to communicate in Spanish, especially in the
spoken world. From the very first day students will able to
immerse themselves in the language and culture. In this way
students will become familiar with how we live, our beliefs,
our history, our politics, our fiestas and why we celebrate
them, and much more regarding the Mexican culture and social
life.

According to Stephen Krashen
(http://www.sk.com.br/sk-krash.html): =ECOne can learn or acquire
a second language informally, the same way one acquires the
first. Formal, structured lessons represent another learning
process and are not indispensable in the process.=EE For this
reason our method is based on this =ECNatural Approach=EE
(http://maxpages.com/thena/The_Natural_Approach), and we try to
channel the teaching – learning process in this direction, so
that students learn by interacting: teacher – student, student
- teacher, student – student, student – surroundings.

Also our work is focused on maintaining an atmosphere of
courtesy and confidence in the classroom and in the institution
in general. Here the teacher’s part is fundamental, as it
consists of creating an environment in which students feel
relaxed and at ease, which, in our opinion, is the best way to
learn an language.

At IDEAL we place special interest in the process of immersing
students in culture, for the accessible points of reference it
offers them. For a student to develop sound communication
skills, she needs to assimilate cultural elements of the
country or region where she learns a language. Moreover,
language and culture are inseparable.

At the beginner’s level, pronunciation is not a great issue,
since we only focus in correcting pronunciation when it turns
into an obstacle to communication. In the more advanced levels
of our program, pronunciation is more important, because
intermediate and advanced students need to improve the way they
pronounce the words and the way they modulate when they speak
Spanish. Above all, Ideal is able to develop a specific program
to improve pronunciation if a student or a group so requests. We
had worked for many years on pronunciation before I realized it
is not essential when speaking Spanish as second language.

6. Please explain your “Spanish for Professionals” program to
us.

Each year our student body includes managers, attorneys,
doctors, nurses, school teachers, law enforcement officers,
firefighters, engineers, ministers, seminarians, nuns, and
people in many other professions for whom it is essential to
learn the specific vocabulary of their respective professions.

This program includes 4 hours of group Spanish lessons,
designed to reinforce general language skills, and a 1 hour
private lesson to study professional Spanish. Professional
Spanish consists of vocabulary, aspects of Mexican culture,
visits to places of professional interest for the student,
analysis and discussion of documents and written information
when needed, and meetings with professionals in the student’s
field, if deemed necessary.

7. You also offer a “Family Program” in your school. What is
this program all about?

Well, this program has now passed to a second term now, since
we are pushing new programs: Basic Program (only 4 hours),
Basic + Private Program, Cuernavaca – Canc=99n Program, and
Volunteers Program, among others.

The =ECFamily Program=EE is oriented to host full families (parents
and sons) offering a complete solution to their needs such as
classes for children, kid-friendly host families,
child-oriented activities, and others. The Family Program has
not yet had the success we expected, however, should families
attend IDEAL to study we are able to provide them the best.

For the entire article including photos please visit
http://www.travelandtransitions.com/interviews/ideal_school.htm

About The Author: Susanne Pacher is the publisher of Travel and
Transitions (http://www.travelandtransitions.com), a popular web
portal for unconventional travel and cross-cultural connections.
Check out our brand new section featuring FREE ebooks about
travel at http://www.travelandtransitions.com/free_ebooks.htm.

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try a hundred different fad diets, at least as
many nutritional supplements and even all sorts of wacky
alternatives. But, getting them to exercise can be a real
challenge.Nevertheless, it’s an inescapable fact that proper
diet has to be accompanied by an age-appropriate, regular
exercise program – if the goal is good health and an attractive
body.

Diet is essential, but exercise is its essential partner. Diet
provides the proper fuel, but exercise uses that fuel to
generate health and fitness.

There’s no need to become a fitness fanatic, but there are
several simple exercises you can begin today.

Start a daily stretching routine of at least 10 minutes before
doing any vigorous training. A 20-minute walk every other day
is a great beginning for those not used to exercise.

Work up to more effort slowly. Most of those new to exercise
get discouraged and quit too soon because they try too hard at
first. This produces soreness and sometimes injury. That
reduces the motivation.

Instead, start with some light weight training, using 5lb,
10lb, then 20lb weights. Curls, squats and other exercises are
simple and you’ll soon graduate.

Then add a 10-minute jog, a 20-minute jog, then 30-minutes.
Once you hit an hour-long run, you’re into the serious workout
category.

If you can, invest in equipment that may help you get
motivated. Others will need the social stimulus of a gym to
keep their willpower up. But in either case, don’t let your
money go to waste.

Make a commitment to regular workouts, whether at home or away.
If you do join a gym, don’t be shy. Take advantage of the
expertise of more experienced fitness enthusiasts and the
staff.

In order to lose weight, you want to be sure to include some
cardiovascular exercises in your routine.

That can be running, cycling or any number of alternatives. To
tone muscles and tighten the slack skin that will result from
major body fat reduction, you’ll need to add resistance and
weightlifting exercises.

You can use stretchers, rope and pulley or other equipment to
supply the resistance. Weight machines are great for lifting
exercises.

As you get into the routine, you may or may not actually lose
weight. If you’re not obese but merely overweight, you may not
see much loss.

As you reduce fat deposits the difference can be made up by
gains in muscle mass. Don’t pay much attention to early losses,
they may well be due as much to water loss as anything else.

But as you reduce excess body fat and tone muscles you’ll
experience many side benefits beyond a more attractive body.
You’ll feel better overall, be more energetic and should
experience a heightened mood.

Feel good about it. You worked hard for the results.

About The Author: http://Ydiets.com is an excellent place to
find weight loss and diet resource, links and articles. For
more information visit:www.ydiets.com

Please use the HTML version of this article at:
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==================

vil six letter word that can be so harmful to
your health. Work can be stressful, traffic jams can be
stressful, raising a family can be stressful, and sticking to a
strict budget can be stressful. Stress causes headaches, muscle
aches, irritability, insomnia and a broad range of other
problems that you can live without. Nobody wants it, but we do
get it at some point in our lives. Now, we must learn how to
either cope with stress or how to get rid of it. You can
release your stress with Reiki (pronounced Ray Key). The
combination of these two Japanese words means Universal Life
Energy.

Reiki is an age old system of holistic healing that is used to
alleviate pain and elevate relaxation and overall well-being to
those stressed out individuals. Reiki refers to the life force
or energy that is channeled through the palms a recipient
during contact with the Reiki practitioner. Reiki is designed
to help achieve balance and assist in healing through a natural
healing system. The Reiki practitioner will act as a conduit by
which the Universal Life Energy can be channeled to a
recipient, by using either a hands on or hands off technique.
Reiki practitioners may also opt to treat themselves. The Reiki
energy flows through the palms at various rates of speed and
depending on a number of factors, such as the degree of the
recipient’s ailment, to the recipient’s preparedness to accept
a change, etc.

Reiki is not a faith or other religious healing, although it
may sound like it is, and the effectiveness of Reiki is not
based on religious doctrine acceptance. It is not required for
the recipient to have a belief system in order for Reiki to
work. Although Reiki has principles that encourage spiritual
empowerment and growth and is very spiritual in nature, it does
not conflict with anyone’s beliefs. It doesn’t matter who you
are, your gender, religion, intelligence, nationality, or what
your financial status is, Reiki is a gift of vitality and
energy that is offered to everyone. Reiki does not hurt, but it
can give you the sensations of warmness and coolness, or a
sensation of tingling, throbbing, numbness, itchiness or
drowsiness.

A Reiki Master can perform a ritual attunement where Reiki
symbols are used in energetic placement in sequential actions
to the recipient’s palms and crown. Each hand placement is
given at least five minutes of devotion, to ensure that no body
part is neglected and given equal consideration. Reiki is an
indefinite supply of energy that will never run out, no matter
how much you use it. Even if you are giving a Reiki treatment
to a recipient, you are not losing any of your own energy; you
are only giving your time and your assistance to aid the
recipient. No mental involvement is ever needed with Reiki; the
energy flow will automatically go to where it needs to go,
without mental engagement. Although, if you choose to become
mentally involved, this can open a linear pathway that clears a
route to allow Reiki to move more smoothly and effectively to
the part of the body that needs it most. The choice is up to
you.

The practice of Reiki can greatly control life’s daily stresses
and even assist in pain management. Many practitioners highly
regard Reiki for its gift of balance and the relaxing effects
it has on them, physically, emotionally, mentally and
spiritually. For those stressed, frantic, conflicted
individuals, Reiki will introduce the Universal Life Energy
into the body to relieve those complaints and in turn will help
return balance to any mental or emotional turbulence that may
contribute to the vexatious psyche. There are also special
energy treatments that Reiki Masters and practitioners use to
heal long distance. These energizing treatments can be
transmitted to people or towards specific environments. Reiki
energy treatments can be sent ahead with a fixed intention of
making an atmosphere more relaxing and calming, especially for
events in people’s lives such as social events, job interviews,
family gatherings, etc. Reiki can be a very rewarding experience
to all who practice it and can greatly reduce the stresses in
our everyday lives.

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jor contributing factor to many modern day
illnesses. It is linked to things like heart problems, insomnia
and a whole range of other negative conditions. In industry it
leads to reduced productivity and at home it leads to tension
with our loved ones. Stress is almost like a cancer to our
happiness and wellbeing that gradually just eats away at us.

In the twenty-first century we would be forgiven to think that
stress is just a way of life and that it is going to stay that
way. Some of us even feeling that it is good in the sense that
it pushes us and motivates us. Unfortunately it just seems to
have become the norm and we expect its presence. However it
needn’t be like this!

I want to share with you some of the tips that I give to my
clients when I am helping them to manage their own stress.

1. Take some =EByou’ time just to relax. Maybe just kick back
once a day on your sofa, close your eyes and listen to some
really nice music and think about a nice sandy beach or
riverside meadow. Just chill

2. Evaluate your lifestyle – is there anything that can be
changed to relieve stress? This could be just subtle changes or
it could even massive life changing things.

3. Eat well. This is import in our modern day living. Eat fresh
fruit and vegetables often throughout the day and cut down on
the amount of processed foods that you eat as these will just
make you feel heavy and lethargic – this will lead to
negativity that ultimately lead to stress.

4. Drink! When we are thirsty, we are already dehydrated. This
is bad news for our brain as when we are dehydrated it is
already under achieving. When we drink enough water throughout
the day we allow our bodies and brain to work at full capacity,
allowing us a greater sense of wellbeing.

5. Cut out the caffeine. Caffeine is a drug that sometimes
makes it hard for us to deal with stress. Cutting it out of
your diet will certainly help you to sleep better and feel
healthier. In many cases it will also help you to think
clearer.

So there you have it – 5 great tips that will start to help you
along the way to manage your stress. Put them to good use and
start to enjoy your stress free life.

About The Author: Richard MacKenzie is an expert on Self
Hypnosis -
http://www.amazon.com/Self-Change-Hypnosis-Richard-MacKenzie/dp/1412045320
He is also the author of a book on Self Hypnosis called
Self-Change Hypnosis – http://www.self-change-hypnosis.com

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decade, as I have worked with cops, firfighters,
abuse victims and children of addicts, I have learned that
there are many causes for PTSD. It has also affirmed my belief
that PTSD is real and harmful, not only to those who have it,
but also to those around them. It impacts the way we act,
react, our motivation and our capacity to feel–well, anything.

Terrifying experiences that shatter people’s sense of
predictability and invulnerability can profoundly alter their
coping skills, relationships and the way they perceive and
interact with the world. The criteria for Post Traumatic Stress
Disorder (PTSD) are 1) exposure to a traumatic event(s) in which
the person witnessed or experienced or were confronted with an
event or events that involved actual or threatened death or
serious injury, or a threat to the physical integrity of self
or others, and 2) the person’s response involved intense fear,
helplessness or horror DSM IV p. 427-28). Gradual Onset
Traumatic Stress Disorder can be caused by repeated exposure to
=ECsub-critical incidents=EE such as child abuse, traffic
fatalities, rapes and personal assaults.

Nevertheless, not all people exposed to trauma are
=ECtraumatized.=EE Why? In 1998, Pynoos and Nader proposed a theory
to assist in explaining why people have different reactions to
the same event. They asserted that people are at greater risk
of being negatively impacted by traumatic events if any of the
following are present: 1) they have experienced other traumatic
events within the preceding 6 months, 2) they were already
stressed out or depressed at the time of the event, 3) the
situation occurred close to their home or somewhere they
considered safe, 4) the victims bear a similarity to a family
member or friend and 5) they have little social support.

It has been argued that officers, emergency service personnel,
children of addicts and abuse victims experience traumatic
events or threats to their safety on an almost daily basis.
Being abused, not knowing when or if your parents will come
home, repeatedly seeing children murdered, people burned in car
fires and devastated victims starts to take its toll. People
like idealistic officers who joined the force to change the
world and protect the innocent begin to feel like nothing they
do makes a difference, they cannot even keep their zone safe
(criteria 3). This is especially problematic for officers who
live in or near their work zone and often leads to frustration
and burnout (criteria 2). Children start to feel that the whole
world is uncontrollable and unsafe.

It is still not totally accepted within the law enforcement
community for officers to discuss the impact of situations on
them. Anger, humor and sarcasm are but a brief outlet for what
many officers dream about at night. As their condition worsens,
many officers withdraw, because they are fearful of seeking help
or support for fear it is a one way ticket to a fitness for duty
evaluation or will get out and be an obstacle for future
promotions. Several studies in recent years have shown that
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is among the most common
of psychiatric disorders.

Another thing that distinguishes people who develop PTSD from
those who are just temporarily overwhelmed is that people who
develop PTSD become “stuck” on the trauma, keep re-living it in
thoughts, feelings, or images. It is this intrusive reliving,
rather than the trauma itself that many believe is responsible
for what we call PTSD. For example, I have worked with officers
who have responded to child abuse calls and had a child of their
own who was a similar age (criteria 4). In the course of daily
life children get hurt and have bad dreams. As parents they
have seen looks of pain and fright on their kids faces. This
makes it just that much easier to envision the looks of terror
and agony on the face of the child as their parent beat them.
Sometimes this visualization gets corrupted and officers
suddenly they start to see their child in their mental
re-enactment of the trauma, obviously a much more powerful
memory. These officers are much more likely to be =ECtraumatized=EE
by the incident and potentially get =ECstuck.=EE

Traumatized individuals begin organizing their lives around
avoiding the trauma. Avoidance may take many different forms:
keeping away from reminders, calling in sick to work, or
ingesting drugs or alcohol that numb awareness of distress. The
sense of futility, hyperarousal, and other trauma-related
changes may permanently change how people deal with stress,
alter thier self-concept and interfere with their view of the
world as a basically safe and predictable place. In the example
above, these people often became even more overprotective of
their children, suspicious of others, and had difficulty
sleeping, because every time they close their eyes they see the
child.

One of the core issues in trauma is the fact that memories of
what has happened cannot be integrated into one’s general
experience. The lack of people’s ability to make this =ECfit=EE
into their expectations or the way they think about the world
in a way that makes sense keeps the experience stored in the
mind on a sensory level. When people encounter smells, sounds
or other sensory stimuli that remind them of the event, it may
trigger a similar response to what the person originally had:
physical sensations (such as panic attacks), visual images
(such as flashbacks and nightmares), obsessive ruminations, or
behavioral reenactments of elements of the trauma. In the
example above, sensory triggers that triggered some of the
officers memories were certain cries, hearing or seeing a
parent spank their child, returning to the same neighborhood
for other calls and, of course, television shows or news
reports that involved descriptions of abuse.

The goal of treatment is find a way in which people can
acknowledge the reality of what has happened and somehow
integrate it into their understanding of the world without
having to re-experience the trauma all over again. To be able
to tell their story, if you will.

The Symptoms of PTSD

Regardless of the origin of the terror, the brain reacts to
overwhelming, threatening, and uncontrollable experiences with
conditioned emotional responses. For example, rape victims may
respond to conditioned stimuli, such as the approach by an
unknown man, as if they were about to be raped again, and
experience panic.

Remembrance and intrusion of the trauma is expressed on many
different levels, ranging from flashbacks, feelings, physical
sensations, nightmares, and interpersonal re-enactments.
Interpersonal re-enactments can be especially problematic for
the officer leading to over-reaction in situations that remind
the officer of previous experiences in which she or he has felt
helpless. For example, in the child abuse example above,
officers may be much more physically and verbally aggressive
toward alleged perpetrators and their reports tend to be much
more negative and subjective.

Hyperarousal. While people with PTSD tend to deal with their
environment by reducing their range of emotions or numbing,
their bodies continue to react to certain physical and
emotional stimuli as if there were a continuing threat. This
arousal is supposed to alert the person to potential danger,
but seems to loose that function in traumatized people. This is
sort of like when rookie officers start and a hot call is toned
out, they usually have an adrenaline rush. After two or three
years, the tones hardly have any impact on them. Since
traumatized people are always =ECkeyed up=EE they often do not pay
any attention to that feeling which is supposed to warn them of
impending danger.

Numbing of responsiveness. Aware of their difficulties in
controlling their emotions, traumatized people seem to spend
their energies on avoiding distress. In addition, they lose
pleasure in things that previously gave them a sense of
satisfaction. They may feel “dead to the world”. This emotional
numbing may be expressed as depression, and lack of motivation,
or as physical reactions. After being traumatized, many people
stop feeling pleasure from involvement in activities, and they
feel that they just “go through the motions” of everyday
living. Emotional numbness also gets in the way of resolving
the trauma in therapy.

Intense emotional reactions and sleep problems. Traumatized
people go immediately from incident to reaction without being
able to first figure out what makes them so upset. They tend to
experience intense fear, anxiety, anger and panic in response to
even minor stimuli. This makes them either overreact and
intimidate others, or to shut down and freeze. Both adults and
children with such hyperarousal will experience sleep problems,
because they are unable to settle down enough to go to sleep,
and because they are afraid of having nightmares. Many
traumatized people report dream-interruption insomnia: they
wake themselves up as soon as they start having a dream, for
fear that this dream will turn into a trauma-related nightmare.
They also are liable to exhibit hypervigilance, exaggerated
startle response and restlessness.

Learning difficulties. Being =ECkeyed-up=EE interferes with the
capacity to concentrate and to learn from experience.
Traumatized people often have trouble remembering ordinary
events. It is helpful to always write things down for them.
Often =ECkeyed-up=EE and having difficulty paying attention, they
may display symptoms of attention deficit disorder.

After a trauma, people often regress to earlier modes of coping
with stress. In adults, it is expressed in excessive dependence
and in a loss of capacity to make thoughtful, independent
decisions. In officers, this is often noticed because they
suddenly begin making a lot of poor decisions, their reports
lose quality and detail and they are unable to focus. In
children they may begin wetting their bed, having fears of
monsters or having temper tantrums.

Aggression against self and others: Both adults and children
who have been traumatized are likely to turn their aggression
against others or themselves. Due to their persistent anxiety,
traumatized people are almost always =ECstressed out,=EE so it does
not take much to them set off. This aggression may take many
forms ranging from fighting to excessive exercise or obsession
about something—anything to keep them from thinking about the
trauma.

Psychosomatic reactions. Chronic anxiety and emotional numbing
also get in the way of learning to identify and discuss
internal states and wishes. May traumatized people report a
high frequency of headaches, back and neck aches,
gastro-intestinal problems etceteras. Since the stress is being
held inside, the body begins to become distressed.

Summary

After a trauma, people realize the limited scope of their
safety, power and control in the world, and life can never be
exactly the same. The traumatic experience becomes part of a
person’s life. Sorting out exactly what happened and sharing
one’s reactions with others can make a great deal of difference
a person’s recovery. Putting the reactions and thoughts related
to the trauma into words is essential in the resolution of post
traumatic reactions. This should, however, be done with a
professional specializing in PTSD due to the wide range of
reactions people have when they start confronting and
integrating the memories of the trauma.

Failure to approach trauma related material gradually is likely
to make things worse. Often, talking about the trauma is not
enough: trauma survivors need to take some action that
symbolizes triumph over helplessness and despair. The Holocaust
Memorial in Jerusalem and the Vietnam Memorial in Washington,
DC, are good examples of symbols for survivors to mourn the
dead and establish the historical and cultural meaning of the
traumatic events. There are several events for survivors of
traumas that officers can also take part in. These events
remind survivors of the fact that there are others who have
shared similar experiences. Other symbolic actions may take the
form of writing a book, taking political action or helping other
victims.

PTSD is real, and can be resolved with time, patience and
compassion.

About The Author: Dr. Snipes received her PhD in Counseling and
Education from the University of Florida. She has worked for 10
years in community mental health and is an ordained Christian
minister. Currently she runs an online private practice
http://www.dr-is-in.com and online continuing education site
http://www.allceus.com. Both sites are managed by her husband
at http://www.datatriangle.com

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ed recently that a Federal Bankruptcy court judge
ordered Bear Stearns, one of America’s top tier trading firms to
pay $160 million to investors who lost money with a hedge fund
that cleared through Bear Stearns. While doing stock research
on publicly traded brokerage corporations, we came across the
settlement. This spurred us on to thinking, what does this mean
for the everyday investor, and what does it mean for stock
research in general. Here’s the real story.

Hedge Fund’s Asset Base SKYROCKETS

Hedge funds have become a significant force in the investment
world. At the beginning of the 1990’s, hedge funds controlled
less than $40 billion in assets, less than Warren Buffett’s
personal investment portfolio. Today there are more than 9000
hedge funds controlling in excess of $1.1 trillion dollars of
assets.

Hedge funds also use leverage, averaging some six times their
asset base. This means the industry today controls investments
of about $7 trillion dollars. These investments are on both the
long and short side. The mutual fund industry can only go long,
and never on margin, which means no leverage.

Now leverage is a two-edge sword. When things are going your
way, it creates excessive returns or alpha. When trades go
against you however, it can wipe out your investment in
lightning like fashion. The hedge fund borrows money on its
asset base from prime brokers, and other lending institutions.
The lender always charges a fee, and the fees are big. For the
brokerage firms involved, these fees may make up the vast bulk
of their bottom line depending upon the firm involved.

Hedge funds must clear through clearing firms that are referred
to as prime brokers. The prime broker sees every trade the hedge
fund does, unless the hedge fund employs multiple prime brokers.
Now lets say, the hedge fund lays on a massive trade using
margin borrowed from the prime broker, and the trade goes
against you, meaning paper losses are sustained. What happens
next?

The hedge fund has to make a decision as to whether to close
out the trade or not. Some funds believing that the momentum
will turn, will double down, or increase the investment. The
success of this transaction lies in whether or not the momentum
is in fact changing at the time of the double down. If not, than
the second investment will be under water as well.

Now a prime broker will never allow a hedge fund’s trades in
total to be under water. This would mean that the hedge fund
has gone negative equity, and the prime broker would be at
risk. The prime broker never wants to be at risk, nor will it
allow itself to be.

Enter the Manhattan Investment Fund

What happened with the fraud we mentioned in the title of this
article is that a hedge fund called the Manhattan Investment
Fund clearing through Bear Stearns lost nearly $400 million of
their assets. These assets belonged to rich investors, and the
fund’s managers made the wrong bets on Internet stocks in the
late 1990’s. Apparently Manhattan Investment Fund sought to
cover up or delay the inevitable consequences of its trading
activities by issuing FALSE reports to its investors.

This led to the creation of an inflated track record, which
allowed the hedge fund to bring in even more money, which in
turn allowed them to pay off early investors with money from
new investors. In other words a classic Ponzi scheme began.

Bear Stearns probably caught onto the scheme when one of its
managing directors met an investor in the Manhattan Investment
Fund at a party, and the investor talked about how his reports
from the hedge fund showed a 20% return. The managing director
understood from internal knowledge at the firm that the actual
trades going through Bear Stearns were in conflict with what
the investor was reporting.

Bear Stearns did follow up with the hedge fund’s manager
Michael Berger who is now a fugitive at large. Berger got out
of the problem by telling Bear Stearns that Bear Stearns was
one of only 8 or 9 prime brokers that the hedge fund was doing
business with. In other words, we’re losing money with you as a
prime broker, but not with the other prime brokers we deal with.
It’s a great story, and even makes sense, but apparently Bear
Stearns did not check out the story by calling the other prime
brokers to see if it was true that the hedge fund was doing
business with them as well.

Somebody at Bear Stearns figured something was amiss because
months later, Bear asked the hedge fund to put up additional
margin or cash in order to raise the margin requirement to 50%
from 35%. The fund sent over another $141 million as margin
payments. When the fund went out of business subsequently, Bear
Stearns was secure, and did not suffer a loss.

Judge orders Bear Stearns to PAY

The bankruptcy judge controlling this case has ordered Bear
Stearns to pay $160 million to the investors in the hedge fund.
The judge’s ruling stated that Bear Stearns as prime broker,
failed to properly supervise the fund’s activities prior to the
2000 collapse of the Manhattan Investment Fund.

This ruling is going to be appealed because to allow it to
stand would create much greater risk for the prime brokerage
industry than the industry feels it is being properly paid to
manage. Bear Stearns only made $2.4 million in profits from the
hedge fund’s activities, and now it is faced with a $160 million
judgment.

What you the Investor need to know – Diversification?

If you are an investor in hedge funds, what you need to know is
that any hedge fund can go belly up. That’s right, any of them.
You cannot outthink someone who while running a hedge fund, is
trying to defraud you. The only answer is DIVERSIFICATION in
your personal investment structure. You must own an assortment
of hedge funds if that is your investment vehicle choice, and
not just one. Your funds should also use different investment
strategies, and not just be equities long, or domestic, or any
other classification.

Since you are searching for the elusive alpha (outsize
returns), it your responsibility as an investor to be aware
that fraud exists. Even just plain bad investment strategies
can result in the loss of all your capital since these funds
are using 6 to 1 leverage in the attempt to create performance.

You might also want to consider a FUND OF FUNDS vehicle. This
is when you invest your money with a fund manager who makes no
direct investments himself, but instead selects other hedge
funds for you to be invested in. This involves a double
layering of fees. If the returns are there for you year after
year, than it doesn’t matter, but be careful, fraud does exist,
and so do poor investment managers.

Goodbye and Good Luck

Richard Stoyeck

About The Author: Richard Stoyeck’s background includes being a
limited partner at Bear Stearns, Senior VP at Lehman Brothers,
Kuhn Loeb, Arthur Andersen, and KPMG. Educated at Pace
University, NYU, and Harvard University, today he runs
Rockefeller Capital Partners and http://StocksAtBottom.com
http://www.stocksatbottom.com/ez.html

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ea is the most consumed beverage in the world and
there are good reasons for this popularity. One of the most
popular forms of tea is green tea and there are a number of
reasons why so many people enjoy this beverage.

First, green tea is flavorful and there are many varieties of
green tea. The difference between teas is the amount of
oxidation that the leaves are exposed to. Green tea is not
oxidized meaning the enzymes in the tea leaf are not exposed to
any oxygen found in the air. By contrast, black tea is fully
oxidized and oolong tea is partially oxidized. When dealing
with tea taste is a matter of degree and a function of
oxidation.

Green tea comes in many forms and blends and is popular in
every country and culture. Originally produced in China, the
consumption and popularity of green tea spread throughout Asia,
India and the western world. With the addition of flavors and
blends like Jasmine, Vanilla, Mint and varieties like Jasmine
pearls, Sencha and Gunpowder, green teas are subtle and appeal
to the varied tastes of tea drinkers.

Green tea has a unique light taste that appeals to a very large
number of drinkers throughout the world and has been popular
since tea was first discovered over 5,000 years ago. It is one
of the five basic types of tea and is recognized by even the
most novice tea drinker.

Second, loose leaf green tea has been one of the mainstays of
the tea culture. The highest quality tea is loose tea and
premium quality loose tea has gained in popularity in recent
years. Green tea drinkers enjoy preparation rituals and
ceremonies that add ambiance to the tea drinking experience.
Whole leaf green tea has served as the basis of tea rituals in
China and Japan and, properly served, the tea ritual provides a
pleasant experience after a stressful day.

When China was the sea power of the world (1405-1433), tea was
among the indispensable supplies for the seamen. The amount of
vitamin C in the tea drink consumed by the seafarers at that
time was enough to prevent scurvy which would kill many
European sailors more than 100 years later, but was essentially
unknown to the medical officers assigned to the fleet of more
than 27,000 men on their round voyage from China to Africa.

Lastly, there are strong indications that drinking green tea
(and all types of tea for that matter) is very healthy for the
human body. Throughout the years tea has been prized for its
medicinal qualities and the consumption of tea became a regular
event for most families.

Tea has been used in China as a medicinal beverage to promote
health in mind and body for about 5000 years. The earliest
known reference to tea as a health aid dates back to 2737 B.C.
Tea was an expensive beverage in ancient China. Its use was
confined to the wealthy segments of the population.

Only in the Ming dynasty after the fall of the Mongolian empire
in 1368 A.D., tea drinking spread from the elite to the
populace. The first shipment of tea to Europe in 1606 by the
Dutch East India Company was green tea

In 1994 the Journal of the National Cancer Institute published
the results of an epidemiological study indicating that
drinking green tea reduced the risk of esophageal cancer in
Chinese men and women by nearly sixty percent.

University of Purdue researchers recently concluded that a
compound in green tea inhibits the growth of cancer cells.
There is also research indicating that drinking green tea
lowers total cholesterol levels, as well as improving the ratio
of good (HDL) cholesterol to bad (LDL) cholesterol.

A recent Japanese study, reported by the Journal of the
American Medical Association (JAMA) reported that adults in
Japan who drank more green tea had a lower risk of death from
all causes and from heart disease.

In addition, compounds in green tea called polyphenols have
been much studied for possible heart disease and cancer
preventive effects. Although further study may be required to
prove absolutely that green tea produces measurable health
benefits, the consumption of green teas throughout history add
credence to recent medical claims.

Tea drinkers have many choices but those that drink high
quality loose leaf green tea can anticipate an enjoyable
beverage and tea drinking experience.

About The Author: Marcus Stout is President of the Golden Moon
Tea Company. For more information about tea, green tea and
black tea go to http://www.goldenmoontea.com

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even men forget that hair products can actually
help with the health of your hair. However most choose products
based on how they make your hair look. For example hair shampoos
can help with the protein structure of the hair but this only
helps with the cosmetic portion of the hair and does nothing to
actually help with the root of the hair and that it where the
health of the hair starts. Most of the people that use brand
name hair care do so at the advice of the hair stylist and
while the stylist have a very good idea of what can make your
hair look its best but are those products really best for your
hair? The answer is that stylist don’t really know of good
products when it comes to the healthy part of the hair growth
cycle.

Hair grows in cycles and these cycles cause the hair to fall
after about a 6 year growth cycle. This means that there are
six healthy years of growth where the proper nutrition can help
with the hair. So what is the proper nutrition for hair. You
should be sure to start with amino acids and then with the b
vitamins. Amino acids make up protein structures, which in turn
make up the hair structure. So if you want healthier hair then
the first component is the amino acid combination that you can
feed the hair through the body or through the hair topically.
This means that vitamins that are taken by mouth that are
loaded with amino acids work very well as well as those that
are applied directly to the hair. You can find vitamin shampoos
and conditioners that have these amino acid combinations in
them. They are very similar to most salon grade shampoos that
leave hair very moisturized and ready for styling. If you are
wanting something that acts like the name brands like Redken
but has the amino acids that you need for healthy hair then try
Healthy Hair Plus brand of products as we have a vitamin shampoo
that uses over 20 different amino acids that are loaded into the
shampoo. The shampoo also has herbal extracts in combination,
which builds volume into the hair as well.

Another important aspect of healthy hair are the entire b group
of vitamins and finding these in shampoos can be a vital
component of getting your hair healthy again. These b vitamins
are important for structuring the hair protein chains and this
gets hair back into the process of growing healthy hair. We
suggest that you search high and low for shampoos that are
loaded with vitamins but you will have a hard time finding your
grocery store and even salon grade shampoos that have the b
group of vitamins. You will find that most grocery store
shampoos are simply the surfactant, fragrance and a little bit
of herbal extract. While they smell pretty they are simply
stripping hair of vital nutrition that hair is desperate need
of to get healthy again. While you may search for these shampoo
and conditioners you will find that they are indeed worth it.

There is a process to healthy hair but if you pay attention to
the correct listing of ingredients in products you will find
that most products on the market do nothing for creating the
health of your hair instead they strip it of vital components
that hair is shouting for to keep it healthy. So here is
exactly what you are not looking for in shampoos. Stay away
from Sodium Laurel Sulfate. In our opinion sodium laureth
sulfate is ok but laurel sulfate and ammonium laureth or laurel
are both bad so we suggest staying away from them both. Sodium
olefin and sodium laureth are not as bad as the others. You
will also want to stay away from mineral oils and pertolatums
on the scalp as well as drying alcohol that can be found in
hair gels. It is almost impossible to stay away from alcohols
in hair sprays. As matter of fact, unless you are using a pump
hair spray then you will not be able to stay away from alcohol.

About The Author: Who doesn’t want full Healthy Hair? These
days with sun damage and chemicals it is hard to come by. We
offer a solution. We have Vitamins For Hair Loss in a natural
based shampoo. http://www.healthyhairplus.com

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s and kitchen cabinets are great home repair
projects that make the best use of space. The range of varied
benefits helps improve one of the most critical rooms in any
home. As the kitchen is an area where so many people have to
congregate to cook, work, entertain and relax, it is essential
that this very special room is both appealing and practical.
Installing a kitchen island and matching cabinets is the
perfect way to enhance your room’s appearance, making it modern
and sleek, but best of all it incorporates a new practicality,
both with extra space and added features. You will immediately
discover how valuable your kitchen addition is, and enjoy the
ease that develops in working in a pleasant and more workable
environment.

The range of varied benefits that you will experience when you
install a kitchen island is pleasurable. Imagine the added
bonus of extra drawers that give you needed storage. An
additional countertop is probably one of the best features
because it is a multipurpose domain whereby you can work, cook
and even eat from it. The choice of styles is almost as
endless as your imagination – what about granite or
butcher-block type islands? In fact, there is something out
there to suit almost all kitchen designs and styles that are
carefully designed to match your cabinets, theme, d=C8cor, and of
course, your tastes. Many larger families also appreciate the
added workspace that kitchen islands give them, not to mention
a separate food preparation area that is removed from the sink
and other surface areas.

It is safe to say that wasted space in the middle of any room
is just impractical, especially for kitchens. In most cases,
having the added storage and workspace proves to be far more
beneficial over time as the stylish addition of a modern
kitchen island allows everyone to enjoy its benefits without
sacrificing your kitchen’s over all appearance and comfort.
Little things like purchasing kitchen barstools to match your
new island can allow you to turn it into a breakfast table or
bar when you need it. You will quickly discover the pleasure
of having an area where you can distant yourself from other
kitchen appliances and equipment, moving around freely. Then
there is the added benefit that your new home renovation was
also financially beneficial, adding value to your home without
the crippling costs of normal home improvements. So, there is
no doubt that you can design your new kitchen island and
kitchen cabinets to match your current kitchen, your budget and
most importantly your personal taste.

About The Author: Jerry Blackburn very often produces detailed
reports on stories about kitchen cabinets and home repair. You
might see his writings over at
http://www.kitchen-cabinets-tips.com/islands.html and other
sources for kitchen islands knowledge.

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us growth of tourism in recent years, there
are quite a few options for cheap flights to Spain. There has
been an increase in discount airlines to some of its local
airports, with more discount airlines now flying into Spain.
When taking advantage of these cheaper flights, though, you
will have to sacrifice some of the conveniences that you may be
accustomed to receiving with the larger, higher priced airlines.

Discount airlines offer lower priced fares to many locations
throughout Spain. There is a greater choice of lower priced
fares from airports in Europe from rather than from the United
States, but you may be able to find lower fares nonetheless.
Some of the airports with the best rates include Alicante,
Barcelona, Madrid, Murcia, Valencia, Menorca, Malaga, Seville,
Mallorca and Palma. If you are flying from the United States,
direct flights are available through larger carriers but are
more expensive. Direct flights may be available from New York,
Philadelphia, Miami, Houston, Atlanta and Newark. Though you my
find a lower priced ticket, the price will not be as low as
fares with discount airlines.

The internet is a good place research flights and compare
prices to find the best deal, but some discount airlines are
not posted on the major travel websites. To include their fares
in your comparison of flight costs, you will need to contact the
airline directly. It may be less convenient than performing a
simple online search, but taking the time to call the carrier
may save you money.

One way to find lower priced fares is to consider flying on
different days. For example, flights on the weekend are often
more expensive than flights during the middle part of the week.
Also consider the time you are flying, as early morning or
late-night flights are often less expensive. It may be an
inconvenience but, again, you could save money.

One reason discount airlines are able to offer cheaper flight
is because of the lack of conveniences and extra services found
on the larger carriers. Discount carriers do not offer meals to
its travelers and most do not even offer snacks. You may want
to bring your own snack and, with regulations limiting liquids
allowed on planes, it may be better for you to pay for a
beverage once you have boarded the plane. Additionally,
discount carriers often have more restrictions regarding
baggage with most carrying a limit of two pieces of luggage.
You may be able to bring more baggage, but you will probably be
required to pay a fairly large amount. Be sure to ask about the
baggage policy so you can plan your trip accordingly and,
hopefully, avoid any unexpected and additional charges.
Finally, you are likely to have a significant layover with
discount carriers. You may wait several hours before your
connecting flight, but this inconvenience could also save you
money. This time between flights could be a good opportunity to
read a book, shop or eat meal since food is not served on the
plane.

About The Author: Concentrating on latest developments in
Spain, Peter J. Wilson writes mainly for
http://www.alicante-spain.com . You might discover his articles
over at http://www.alicante-spain.com/faq/cheap_flights.shtml
and various other sources for cheap flights Spain knowledge.

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