Self Improvement Site
On The Internet! Take the Self Improvement Tour
On The Internet! Take the Self Improvement Tour
Articles from Yolanda Carden | Selfgrowth.com
- Book Excerpt: The Richest of Fare: Seeking Spiritual Security in the Sonoran Desert - by Submitted on May 14, 2004 from Yolanda CardenPrologue In returning and rest you shall be saved; in quietness and in trust shall be your strength. God, Isaiah 30:15 NRSV Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest. Jesus to His Disciples, Mark 6:31 For everything that was written in the past was written to teach ...
Views: 1325(1 vote) - Excerpt: Growing Up Too Fast: The Rimm Report on the Secret World of America's Middle Schoolers - by Submitted on Aug 18, 2005 from Yolanda CardenMagazine Messages There are dozens of teen magazines, but almost all of them are directed toward girls. And although these magazines are theoretically targeted to teens, there's no doubt that they encourage and attract tween readers as well. Four best-selling teen magazines that target girls ...
Views: 1313 - Seven Rules for Writing Historical Fiction - by Submitted on Mar 13, 2006 from Yolanda CardenWe grow up being told to “write” what we “know”, but history is the unknown. You have to learn almost everything about a period and the social customs just to get your characters out of their beds (or off of their skins), and feed them breakfast. Rule #1: Sweat the Small Stuff. The ...
Views: 1298 - Book Excerpt: Evenings at Five - by Submitted on May 04, 2004 from Yolanda CardenChapter One Five o'clock sharp. "Ponctualité est la politesse des rois": Rudy quoting his late father, a factory owner (textiles) in Vienna before the Nazis came. The Pope's phone call, followed by the grinding of the ice, a growling, workmanlike sound, a lot like Rudy's own sound, compliments ...
Views: 1295(1 vote) - Make Water Count - by Submitted on Mar 15, 2006 from Yolanda CardenMillions of us don't feel as good as we should because we don't drink the eight or more glasses of water we need daily. Water is an often overlooked nutrient, one that's involved in practically every bodily process. I know that if I'm dehydrated, I feel really tired. But when I drink water ...
Views: 1294 - Boosting Metabolism - by Submitted on May 29, 2007 from Yolanda CardenClients -- and just about everyone I meet who learns I'm a nutritionist -- ask me this question all the time: How can I boost my metabolism? Metabolism is simply the total of all body processes that burn calories -- your basal metabolic rate plus your activity factor. When it comes to improving ...
Views: 1284 - Excerpt: Spilled Milk: Breastfeeding Adventures and Advice from Less-Than-Perfect Moms - by Submitted on Aug 08, 2005 from Yolanda CardenFight for Your Right to Breastfeed When Ola, a thirty-two-year-old artist from New York City's Washington Heights neighborhood, describes herself as "stubborn," there's a hint of pride in her voice. If she weren't so stubborn, she says, she would've given up on breastfeeding early on. Ola's ...
Views: 1281(1 vote) - Types of Pain - by Submitted on Mar 08, 2006 from Yolanda CardenTypes of Pain It's clear that pain is understood by anyone and that everyone feels it a bit differently. Overall, pain is an unpleasant sensation that occurs in varying degrees of severity and is a consequence of a number of processes. In order to manage pain, doctors discern its intensity and ...
Views: 1280 - Excerpt: The Secret Life of Water - by Submitted on Jan 12, 2006 from Yolanda CardenA Thankful Heart Is the Way to Happiness Why do people go through life looking for happiness? Dogs and cats look for food and comfort, but they certainly don't go to all the trouble that people do in their continual search for happiness. I suppose the reason is that we are the only ones who ...
Views: 1267 - In Search of Real Gardens: A Novelist’s Onsite Research - by Submitted on Mar 22, 2006 from Yolanda Carden“A fairytale is an imaginary garden with real toads in it.” I don’t know the source of this quotation, but I take it as my starting point for this account, because the opposite definition applies to my novels about the Celtic Mary Magdalen. Maeve is an imaginary character, with no claim to ...
Views: 1266 - Victorine’s Art of Seduction - by Submitted on Aug 08, 2007 from Yolanda CardenWe women in the twenty first century are the most accomplished, talented, educated women in history. But are we as charming or mysterious as women we read about from the past? Do we flirt and fascinate? I don’t mean just flirting with men. Do we flirt with old ladies, the butcher behind the ...
Views: 1260 - Daughters of the Revolution - by Submitted on Aug 31, 2006 from Yolanda CardenAmerican girls today are the daughters of the revolution -- the first generation that is reaping the full benefits of the women's movement. Their mothers and grandmothers fought and won the battles that produced the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, giving women the right to vote. They ...
Views: 1251 - Book Excerpt: The Post-Adoption Blues: Overcoming the Unforeseen Challenges of Adoption - by Submitted on Jul 16, 2004 from Yolanda CardenYour Expectations About the Emotional Needs of Your Child "My child will like me, attach to me, and learn to love me." There are many books that address the dynamics of the child's attachment and bonding, but few have explored how the lack of a child's attachment and bonding create feelings ...
Views: 1248 - How to be in the Right Place at the Right Time: How I Got Published - by Submitted on Dec 30, 2005 from Yolanda Carden“Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.” --Thomas Edison Once my first novel was published, I was astounded at the number of people who asked me for advice. I want to be helpful. Many people helped me along my way, so I give my advice with ...
Views: 1246 - Book Excerpt - Core Performance: The Revolutionary Workout Program to Transform Your Body and Your Life - by Submitted on Feb 13, 2004 from Yolanda CardenThe Foundation: Building Your Pillar of Strength We have a tendency to think of movement as starting from the limbs. If we reach out to grab something or step forward, we think of those motions as originating with the end result -- we've reached out; therefore, we've used our arms. We've ...
Views: 1244(1 vote) - 6 Steps to Manage Cancer Pain - by Submitted on Apr 10, 2006 from Yolanda CardenOnce your pain management team is in place, you can work together to create a plan that anticipates every level of pain and institutes measures for alleviating it. Remember, the key to effective pain management is early intervention -- and that starts with you. You need to inform your team when ...
Views: 1243 - Recipe for First Draft: ¼ cup structure, ¾ cup imagination - by Submitted on Jul 10, 2006 from Yolanda CardenImagination is more important than knowledge. Albert Einstein I’ll tell you something that you already know: writing is work. It is work that requires structure and rules: subjects, verbs, semi-colons, question marks, diagrammed sentences, outline plots, character dossiers, synopses and query ...
Views: 1232 - Book Excerpt - The Family CFO: The Couple's Business Plan For Love and Money - by Submitted on Feb 26, 2004 from Yolanda CardenYour R&D Efforts "How Should We Plan For Retirement?" When it comes to imagining our retirement, most of us are in uncharted territory. People in their twenties and thirties today will live longer than any generation in history. If they retire around age sixty-five they'll need to keep ...
Views: 1222(1 vote) - Book Excerpt: Helping Children with Autism Learn - by Submitted on Jun 21, 2004 from Yolanda CardenImitation as the Gateway to Early Learning Why Is Imitation Important? Imitation is a very crucial conduit through which the one- to four-year-old child normally takes in a tremendous amount of information. Throughout that period of development when language has not yet been established as an ...
Views: 1222 - Excerpt: Lean Mom, Fit Family: The 6-Week Plan for a Slimmer You and a Healthier Family - by Submitted on Jul 15, 2005 from Yolanda CardenYou Are What You Drink It may seem as if it will be an uphill battle to get your family to switch from heavily advertised sodas, energy drinks, and sugary juice drinks to healthier beverages such as water and milk. Believe me, though, it's a battle worth fighting. The high intake of these ...
Views: 1220 - Love - by Submitted on Aug 16, 2006 from Yolanda CardenLove He may not look like it, but that Elmo's a love machine. When parents tell me, "My child lives for Elmo," I tell them that Elmo lives because of their child's love for him. I don't just mean that Elmo is alive in their child's imagination, though that is certainly a part of it. That child ...
Views: 1216 - Be Your Own Press Secretary - by Submitted on Feb 01, 2007 from Yolanda CardenWouldn’t the world be a better place if we each had our own presidential press secretary to answer tough questions and “spin” our message all day long against any and all adversaries? (It would be great for us perhaps, but I’m not sure I want to live in a world where everyone is “spinning” ...
Views: 1215 - Climb to Health - by Submitted on Feb 09, 2006 from Yolanda CardenStair-climbing is the best-kept secret in exercise for health. It is a great way to add CME points during the course of daily life, and it will help improve your leg strength and balance as well as your heart and waistline. By way of example, let me tell you the story of Lewis Ripps. Lew is a ...
Views: 1199 - Excerpt: Home Enlightenment - by Submitted on Sep 27, 2005 from Yolanda CardenWater as a Spiritual Element Water is the central source of our beings. It is part of every cell and fiber in us; it is our very essence. Could water be the common denominator that weaves us all (earth, animal, human, and plant) together as one? Is it the ultimate connector? It's awesome and ...
Views: 1196 - I Wanna Go Home! When Your Child is in the Hospital - by Submitted on Jul 19, 2007 from Yolanda CardenWhen a child is admitted to the hospital, pediatricians have the same concerns that families have: make sure the child stays safe, comfortable, and as emotionally secure as possible. In my childcare book The Portable Pediatrician, I talk about the emotional meaning of hospitalization for ...
Views: 1191 - Setting as a Character - by Submitted on May 18, 2007 from Yolanda Carden“Everything happens somewhere” -- Pieter Haag Where does your book take place? Of course, on one level, it takes place in the hearts, minds, and imaginations of your characters. On another level, it might take place in Omaha. Or Venus. Nicolson Baker once set an entire novel (I ...
Views: 1187 - Listen to the Deep Know: The Urge for a Writer's Life - by Submitted on Jan 11, 2006 from Yolanda CardenI know the moment I realized who I was supposed to spend my life with. It was a Sunday in August 1987. He was a friend who shared my penchants for B-movies, Monty Python, and the band Rush. We were driving back to my house after spending the afternoon at a nearby park. I looked at him at some ...
Views: 1182 - Better Ways to Cope with Stress: Your Way Out of the Toxic Triangle - by Submitted on Jan 12, 2006 from Yolanda CardenDepressive symptoms, unhealthy eating habits, and heavy drinking unite to create a space that is so poisonous for women that I have called it the toxic triangle. Eating, Drinking, Overthinking will help you understand your own relationship to the toxic triangle. It is not just for women who have ...
Views: 1181 - Exercising Smarter - by Submitted on Jan 10, 2007 from Yolanda CardenThe best health and weight-loss exercise regimen includes all three methods: fat burning, cardio conditioning, and muscle building. Fat-Burning Activity Low-intensity activity should be done as much as possible for as long as possible. We recommend at least thirty minutes or more each day. If ...
Views: 1173 - Once upon a time…Reflections on storytelling - by Submitted on Mar 04, 2005 from Yolanda CardenWe are the storytellers: our days begin with “once upon a time” and end with “tell me a story”. We are descended from the folks who sat around the fires at night, describing the hunt for those who stayed behind. Today, the storyteller’s role has evolved to tell us which laundry detergent to use ...
Views: 1150(1 vote) - Excerpt: Making a Good Brain Great - by Submitted on Oct 07, 2005 from Yolanda Carden1 YOUR BRAIN IS INVOLVED IN EVERYTHING YOU DO The great sins of the world take place in the brain: but it is in the brain that everything takes place . . . It is in the brain that the poppy is red, that the apple is odorous, that the skylark sings, (and that we love and hate each other). ...
Views: 1145 - Book Excerpt: Sacred Selfishness: A Guide to Living a Life of Substance - by Submitted on May 07, 2004 from Yolanda CardenSlaying Dragons When I was a boy reading the stories of "The Knights of the Round Table" and other adventure tales of knights, ladies, and evildoers, my friends and I were inspired and spent many afternoons playing heroes and villains. In the woods of our backyards we went on many daring ...
Views: 1144 - Getting Back on the Career Track - by Submitted on May 24, 2007 from Yolanda CardenWould you like to return to the work world but are concerned about how to find an opportunity that will allow you to fulfill your family or other non-work obligations, nervous about how to “market yourself” to potential employers, or unsure about what type of work you want to do? We know how you ...
Views: 1133 - Why Write? - by Submitted on Jul 12, 2007 from Yolanda CardenWhen someone asks why write? My answer -- writing is like making love. When they ask how to write? Same answer. For each writer the act of writing is as individual as his/her own personality. I write because I have to. I have to because I want to. I want to because I love it. When I was a ...
Views: 1122 - Spice Up Your Treadmill Workout - by Submitted on Apr 25, 2007 from Yolanda CardenLike many folks, I do my cardio on a treadmill. But because the pounding of running makes my back hurt and tightens my hips, I created this 30-minute treadmill routine. Now, I'm passing it on to you. Some of the moves can be tricky at first, but that's a good thing, especially if your current ...
Views: 1119 - Book Excerpt: No Opportunity Wasted - by Submitted on Nov 01, 2004 from Yolanda CardenRediscover Your Childhood: Possibilities When it comes to childish possibilities, there are almost too many to choose from. If you're looking for some little starters -- things that are easy to do and will begin to get you in the right frame of mind -- flying a kite is an old standby. The same ...
Views: 1116 - Excerpt: Dateworthy: Get the Relationship You Want - by Submitted on Oct 14, 2004 from Yolanda CardenChapter 12 Great Dates You know what I love about dating shows? The producers, in an effort to make good TV, rack their brains to come up with really fun and interesting ways for a couple to interact. Forget just meeting for coffee or a meal. They have them learn how to polka. Go to a ...
Views: 1115 - From Partner to Father - The Importance of Expectations Management - by Submitted on Mar 10, 2004 from Yolanda CardenHave you ever wondered what an expectant Dad usually hears from his male friends? “Buddy, once this baby is born, you can forget about sex for the next six months.” If I were about to become a father, probably a little unsure about my new role, this advice would not be particularly ...
Views: 1115(1 vote) - Saying No to Demands - by Submitted on May 08, 2007 from Yolanda CardenBelow are some specific key words or phrases you can use in saying No to the other's demand in a way that flows naturally from your Yes, your power, and your respect. Remember that your tone and underlying intent need to be congruent with your words if they are to have the right impact. "No" or ...
Views: 1113 - 10 Easy Back-to-School Tips to Help Children (and Parents!) Eat Smarter This Fall - by Submitted on Aug 30, 2005 from Yolanda CardenChildhood obesity is at an all-time high in America, while the overall nutritional value of school lunches continues to plummet. With only weeks left before children and teenagers go back to school, how can parents help to control their children's weight and diet? How can a family dinner be a ...
Views: 1100 - Aboard the African Star - by Submitted on May 14, 2007 from Yolanda CardenAfter working on the book for more than a decade, Haley was stuck -- and desperate I just love to get out in the ocean. You are really out there, thinking in ways you haven't thought before. The best writing I ever possibly could do was after The Digest helped me go to Africa and Europe, and I ...
Views: 1096 - Recipe for Getting Your Book Published: Baste it Now and Again . . . Then Let it Bake for Twelve Years! - by Submitted on Nov 08, 2005 from Yolanda CardenI was never much of a reader until one day, in the early eighties, I picked up a copy of Helter Skelter, by Vincent Bugliosi and Curt Gentry. This is an often used adage, but I couldn’t put it down. The author’s attention to detail fascinated me. After that, I was hooked on novels depicting ...
Views: 1096 - The Mystery of Character - by Submitted on Nov 07, 2006 from Yolanda CardenThe second most asked question of any writer after: Where do you get your ideas from? is: How do you think up your characters? The answer to the first question is that they just pop out of my diseased brain. The answer to the second is more complicated, but linked to the first. I am a great ...
Views: 1087 - Edging Into Exercise - by Submitted on Jan 19, 2007 from Yolanda CardenOne of my all-time favorite clients was a professional baseball player I’ll call Dan, who was making the transition from athletics to civilian life. Dan was an impressive specimen in every way: smart, funny, energetic, and incredibly fit. At the time he consulted me, I was doing a lot of my ...
Views: 1085 - Creating Positive Change -- There Is No Beginning Too Small - by Submitted on Aug 14, 2006 from Yolanda CardenHave you ever had the feeling while reading a newspaper, listening to a lecture, or sitting around a dinner table talking with friends about current events, that “Something ought to be done about that”? Or perhaps you have felt appalled by an injustice of some sad event and thought, “What is to ...
Views: 1078 - Rules of Thumb for Choosing a Baby Name - by Submitted on Feb 18, 2005 from Yolanda CardenFrom Aaliyah to Zvi, the range of name choices is dazzling. If you're a sleepless parent-to-be, it can look like a vast landscape with no roadmap. To make sure you keep your bearings, here are some basic principles for understanding names -- and finding that one perfect name that speaks to your ...
Views: 1059 - Book Excerpt: Medical Tests That Can Save Your Life - by Submitted on Jul 20, 2004 from Yolanda CardenPSA Tests For Prostate Cancer Prostate specific antigen (PSA) was discovered in 1979. It is a protein produced by the cells that line the inside of the prostate. Prostate cancer changes the cellular barriers that normally keep PSA within the ductal system of the prostate, causing PSA to be ...
Views: 1054(1 vote) - Book Excerpt: Medical Tests That Can Save Your Life - by Submitted on Aug 18, 2004 from Yolanda CardenCA-125 and TVU Tests For Ovarian Cancer The carcinogenic antigen (CA) 125 blood test measures levels of a protein that is normally confined within a cell. If, however, cell walls are inflamed or damaged, the protein may be released into the bloodstream. Ovarian cancer cells may produce an ...
Views: 1052 - Einstein Never Used Flash cards - by Submitted on Aug 19, 2004 from Yolanda CardenBringing the Lessons Home How can we help children blossom socially and emotionally? Read on for some specific tips. Look for opportunities to discuss other people's feelings. By explaining how other people would feel if a particular act occurred, you teach your child to take the perspective ...
Views: 1044 - Ten Tips For A Safe Hospital Stay - by Submitted on Apr 03, 2007 from Yolanda CardenWe’re going through a sticky patch in hospital care. Patients and their loved ones often feel that there are too many doctors (and you rarely see the same one twice) and too few nurses (and it’s hard to get their attention). Worse: it’s hard to figure out just who is in charge -- or whether ...
Views: 1040