I know what I should do.

I should try to write the worst poem possible.

I know that part of my writer's block is tied into the idea that I am writing really bad poetry. So I should meet this head-on and deliberately try to write badly. Maybe then I can move onto something a bit better.

*sigh* Being serious about poetry writing can be annoying sometimes.

Here comes menopause, right down menopause lane

U.S. Study Links Depression to Early Menopause

Women with a lifetime history of depression run a risk of entering the first stages of menopause years earlier than usual, researchers said Monday, putting them at risk sooner in life for osteoporosis and other health problems.

[...] Bernard Harlow, chief author of the study, said in an interview it is possible depression itself has a direct impact on the production of hormones, a phenomenon that has already been documented in women suffering from post-traumatic stress syndrome.

[...] "Previous research has focused on the relationship between mood changes after menopause, but few studies have determined the impact of a history of major depression on an early transition to menopause," he said.

"We observed a 20 percent increase in risk of entering perimenopause sooner among women with a lifetime history of depression," he added in a statement released by the hospital.

Perimenopause typically begins during the fourth decade of life, when women begin to experience changes in their usual menstrual cycle and may also begin to see early menopausal symptoms such as hot flashes and sweats.

Transition to menopause around age 50 is considered normal, but some women in the study were experiencing perimenopause in their late 30s, the authors said.

[...] Harlow said that in addition to osteoporosis and diminished sexual function, an earlier transition to perimenopause may be associated with a decline in cognitive function and increased risk of heart disease.

Emotions logical?

How the brain processes emotions

Scientists have discovered how the brain processes emotionally charged information.
They have found that the left side of the brain alone appears to take responsibility for decoding the literal meaning of emotional messages.

But it seems that the brain's right hemisphere plays a role in assessing the tone in which the message is delivered - a concept known technically as prosody.

The findings are based on measuring how fast blood flows to the tissues of the brain.

[...] The researchers asked 36 participants, hooked up to ultrasound monitors, to identify the emotion conveyed in dozens of pre-recorded sentences.

The volunteers were asked either to focus on the actual meaning of the words, or on the emotion conveyed by how they were spoken.

Each sentences had just one of four basic emotional meanings (happy, sad, angry or afraid) or was neutral.

Actors spoke the sentences with either an emotional or neutral tone.

[...] The researchers found that when participants were asked to focus on the meaning of what was said blood flow velocity went up significantly on the left side of the brain.

But when attention was shifted to how it was said velocity also went up markedly on the right side of the brain.

However, it did not go down on the left - suggesting that both sides of the brain play a role in helping to label the emotions.