A few days ago, I noticed that my right leg is bigger than my left: thighs, knee, calf, top to bottom. The only surprise here is that—having lived in this body for decades—I hadn’t noticed this sooner.
I’m right-handed (along with 85-90% of people worldwide), and I noticed early on that the fingers on my right hand are longer than on the left, and every time I buy shoes, I’m reminded that my right foot is bigger than the left. My right hand and arm are stronger than the left as well. I assumed that these things all go together.
Wrong!
Athletic Unevenness
It turns out that such definite “right-sidedness” is because I am not athletic! According to research, for people who play sports, even right handers have bigger left legs. Whether a layup, a pitch, or throwing a ball, the primary plant leg is going to be the left. According to what I read, amateur to professional, almost every right handed athlete has a stronger left leg. (The same is true of right-handers who do weight-training.)
Just for the heck of it, I asked (step-grandson) Cash about his handedness and thigh size. He’s over 6’5” tall and a great basketball player, although only a high school junior. He’s right-handed and reported that, previously unnoticed, indeed his left leg is bigger, even at the young age of 17.
On the other hand, handedness is usually related to eye dominance. True to expectation, my right eye is dominant. (If you don’t know which is your dominant eye, and want to, consider which eye you tend to use for one-eye tasks such as a viewing through a telescope or aiming a rifle.)
On the third hand, eye dominance is not related to the strength of vision in each eye but rather to the brain’s preference for processing visual information from one eye over the other. In my case, my left eye has better vision.
A yoga-teaching friend of mine noted that slight differences in leg length are common. In the extreme, this is related to scoliosis. But even less extreme cases are reflected in hip flexibility.
Facial Asymmetry
Size, strength, and vision aren’t the only asymmetries in our bodies. Most of us don’t typically consider that our faces aren’t symmetrical, but it’s so. Bilateral features in the face, such as left and right eyes, ears, and lips, often show some asymmetry.
Decades ago, a classic psychology experiment determined that if photographs are manipulated to produce pictures of symmetrical faces made from two left sides or two right sides, people always, and easily, chose one photo as more attractive. Conclusion: people really do have “a better side”!
In general, symmetry is more pleasing than asymmetry. In my face, the most noticeable differences are more hairs in my right eyebrow and deeper wrinkles on the left side. I trust the former is noticeable only to me, but the latter is obvious. I attribute it to sleeping on my left side from as far back as I can remember until I had breast surgery for cancer in 2014.
Body variations in symmetry is often observed in wrists, breasts, testicles, and thighs. I already mentioned my right thigh. My right wrist is bigger, as was my right breast prior to 2014.
Fortunately I am relatively symmetrical, in spite of all the exceptions I’ve admitted to. That is to say, no one looking at me would think “lopsided.”
I say fortunately because research has found multiple factors that are associated with symmetry. It can indicate developmental stability, and also suggest genetic fitness. This can further have an effect on mate attraction and sexual selection! Physical health is also associated with greater symmetry. According to Wikipedia, multiple other factors can be linked to asymmetry, such as intelligence and personality traits.
Asymmetrical bodies are common and usually harmless, often due to genetics, posture, natural aging, and—as noted above—exercise.
Muscle Memory
Years of practice allow most bodies to walk without thinking about the mechanics
Thinking about repetitive movement as it relates to body asymmetry (thigh size and athletic movements, as I already mentioned) led me to think of muscle memory. Muscle memory is moving in a particular way without thinking about it. This type of memory comes from repetition or practice—doing the same task over and over in the same way. Many movements involved with bathing, playing an instrument, eating, driving, dancing, etc., rely on muscle memory.
Along with all this other self-examination, I’ve been considering what I think of as my personal muscle habits. The first thing that came to mind is that on a frequent walk from my house, about 200 steps along, I climb a set of three steps. I happened to notice that, regardless of whether I’m strolling or hurrying, I always ascend the first step with my right foot first. Having noted that, I checked: I always mount stairs right foot first.
Similarly, I always put pants on right leg first. I virtually always put dangle earrings on left ear first, whereas stud earrings are right ear first.
My house is dotted with area rugs, and the fringe is scuffed in the same place on each rug, testimony to an habitual gait—or possibly habitual foot-dragging!
Why write a blog about my lopsided body? Because your body is probably asymmetrical, too. Think about it!
Bottom Line: If you focus on your body, it might surprise you!
I originally posted this blog entry in July 2024, “Better Know Your Body” but so much information deserves a second look!
Everybody has one. But how much do you really know about it?
Skin
Let’s start with your largest and most visible organ: skin. When it comes to skin, we tend to notice attractiveness, color, roughness, and wrinkles. But skin is functional as well as ornamental. It keeps everything on the inside from coming out. In addition, it also helps keep us at the right temperature, helps us with touch and sensation, allows us to move without restriction (not too tight or too loose), heals and regenerates constantly, and much more.
You probably aren’t average, but these “average” data will give you an idea of how you compare.
Skin by the Numbers
If you are average, your skin weighs 6-9 or 7.5-22 pounds, depending on your source. According to the NIH Library of Medicine, skin makes up approximately 1/7 of your body weight.
The entire surface of your skin is replaced every month, which put another way means you have about 1,000 different skins in your life! This skin renewal every 27-28 days involves sloughing off the old.
Your skin constantly sheds dead cells, about 30,000 to 40,000 cells every minute! (That’s nearly 9 lbs. per year. On the low end, other sources say you slough off roughly 1.5 pounds of dead skin a year, equal to about 3 ½ cups of sugar.)
Dead skin comprises about a billion tons of dust in the earth’s atmosphere. Indoors, the oil on dead skin cells helps to remove ozone, leaving the air cleaner!
Some sources estimate that more than half of household dust is actually dead skin, others say 70%, but much depends on number of people, pets, etc.
Passengers
Your skin is home to more than 1,000 species of bacteria.
Your face is host to bugs (demodex folliculorum) too tiny to see. Hairlines, eye sockets, and lashes are favorite hiding places. If they get out of control, they can cause skin problems or eye infections.
About 2,400 germs call the belly button home. The average person has 67 different species of bacteria in their belly button.
Weird Skin
Scar tissue is different from normal skin because it lacks hair and sweat glands.
Some of the nerves in your skin are connected to muscles instead of the brain, sending signals (through the spinal cord) to react more quickly to heat, pain, etc.
The color of human skin is determined by the level of pigment melanin that the body produces. Those with small amounts of melanin have light skin while those with large amounts have dark skin.
Genital skin is darker than other skin: nipples, anus, and genitals are more sensitive to sex hormones acting on melanocytes. The contrast increases during puberty and pregnancy.
Your blood makes up about eight percent of your body weight.
Laid end to end, an adult’s blood vessels are between 9,000 and 19,000 kilometers long! This includes veins, arteries, and communicating little capillaries that move between both.
Your heart beats around 100000 times a day, 36500000 times a year and over a billion times if you live beyond 30.
Inside your bones are tiny tubes filled with blood vessels called osteons. They are to bones what rings are to trees. The percentage of large osteons increases with age.
When you’re too hot—or you lose your cool—your nerves send signals to open millions of glands, allowing sweat to flow. It pools by your armpits, palms, feet, head, and private parts.
Earwax is actually a type of sweat! A recessive gene can cause earwax to be dry and flaky rather than viscous and sticky.
Germs love to swim, so they thrive in sweat. Sweat on its own doesn’t smell bad. It’s the bacteria that mix with it.
What we eat directly affects urine and feces. For example, you might notice red or pink after bingeing on beets. Or changes in your urine after eating asparagus. (Note: although asparagus affects the chemistry of everyone’s urine, some people are able to smell it and others aren’t—whether their own or someone else’s.)
Your brain is the fattiest organ in the body, approximately 60% by dry weight. It needs essential fatty acids to perform adequately.
The brain uses over a quarter of the oxygen used by the human body.
Your brain is sometimes more active when you’re asleep than when you’re awake. Humans have a stage of sleep that features rapid eye movement (REM). REM sleep makes up around 25% of total sleep time and is often when you have your most vivid dreams.
Everyone is familiar with forgetting, but additionally, our brain re-writes memories each time we think of them, slowly altering or twisting them over time.
Muscles
The word “muscle” comes from Latin term meaning “little mouse“, which is what Ancient Romans thought flexed bicep muscles resembled.
Your heart is the only muscle that doesn’t get tired.
Gluteus maximus is the Latin name for the largest muscle in your body, your behind. You have two of them, one for each cheek. These powerful muscles serve as a cushion when you sit down, but when flexed tight, they keep you upright.
Few muscles are as hard-working as the tongue. By day, it twists to form the sounds you speak and pushes around the food you eat. While you sleep, your tongue moves saliva down your throat.
The strongest muscle in the human body is the jaw (masseter). A healthy jaw can close teeth with a force of up to 200 pounds, according to the Library of Congress.
Eyes
Your eyes can get sunburned. The symptoms include headache, eye pain and redness, tearing, blurred vision, twitching, and feeling gritty. Sunglasses can prevent sunburn, and symptoms typically resolve themselves after 48 hours.
Your eye is your fastest muscle. The orbicularis oculi is capable of contracting in less than 1/100th of a second.
Infants blink only once or twice a minute while adults average around 10.
Women blink 19 times per minute compared to 11 per minute for men. This may relate to estrogen levels, which can make the cornea more elastic, changing how light waves travel through the eye.
You blink more when talking and less when you are reading. This is why you get tired when reading.
Only two percent of the population have green eyes. The largest concentration of green-eyed peoples is in Ireland, Scotland, and Northern Europe. All races (Asian, African, Caucasian, Pacific Islanders, Arabic, Hispanic, and the indigenous peoples of the Americas) can have green eyes.
All babies are born with blue or brown eyes. Green eyes can take between six months and three years to appear in children.
By three months, our eyes are the same size that they will ever be as the corneas have reached their full width. Human eyes grow rapidly in the womb and for the first three months after birth.
GI Tract
Your sense of smell is around 10000 times more sensitive than your sense of taste.
On average, your intestines are 25 feet long from end to end. Your small intestine is over 20 feet. And while your large intestine is wider around, it’s only about 5 feet in length.
Your intestines are always moving, a continuous wavy motion called peristalsis. Or when vomiting, reverse-peristalsis.
Stomach acid can melt metal—at least certain metals, such as zinc. Digestive juices in the gut contain hydrochloric acid. They rank just below battery acid on the pH scale.
Your Asymmetrical Body
The two sides of your face are not alike. If you take a photo of your face and divide it down the middle, then replicate each half, the faces look different enough for people to judge one face better looking than the other!
Almost everyone is stronger and more dexterous on one side of their body than the other. Research indicates somewhere between 85% and 90% of the population is right-handed; almost everyone else favors their left hand. Only about 1% of the population is naturally ambidextrous, but it is possible to train one’s non-dominant side to greater strength and ability.
Body Bits and Pieces
All humans share about 99.9% of our DNA with other humans. For comparison, we share 98% with pigs, and 60% with bananas! (thednatests.com)
The extra skin on your elbow, known scientifically as olecranal skin or colloquially at the weenus, is basically nature’s Silly Puddy because there are fewer sensory neurons located there. That means you can keep kneading it all day long, and as hard as you want.
Adult lungs have a surface area of around 70 square meters!
Human teeth are almost as hard as opal. Diamonds have a hardness of 10; teeth are at 5.
You are about 1cm taller in the morning when you first get up than when you go to bed. This is because during the day the soft cartilage between your bones gets squashed and compressed.
Some penises “grow” more than 4 centimeters when aroused. I found nothing about any relationship between this and any aspect of sexual functioning.
Vaginas range from 2.7 to 3.1 inches. The depth while aroused ranges from 4.3 to 4.7 inches.
Men are more sensitive to caffeine; women are more sensitive to alcohol.
Your fingernails grow three times faster than toenails, explained by the hands having more blood pumping through them. The fingernails on your dominant hand grow faster. In colder weather, nails grow more slowly.
During pregnancy, one’s sense of smell improves dramatically, possibly the body’s attempt to avoid exposing the fetus to danger.
A human’s scent also changes during pregnancy. Other humans can’t usually detect it, but pets might!
Our bodies give one nostril a break while the other is active – we just don’t know we do it. We naturally tend to alternate breathing from one nostril then the other, which helps keep the air we breathe moist so as not to irritate our lungs.
Every new cell is reproduced from the template of our DNA. Therefore, it’s not surprising that this DNA template gets worn away and errors occur as we age. But the aging body is beyond the scope here!
Bottom Line: Know your body well as a path to taking good care of it!
Blood is so important that it has escaped the confines of the body and pops up everywhere, in symbolism, metaphors, and superstitions.
Fallacies About Blood
In many ancient cultures, where blood was seen as the essence of life—sacrificing blood (animal or human)—was believed to sustain the gods, the land, or the community. In ancient paganism, such sacrifices were offered to gods like Moloch, Aztec deities, or the Greek Fates to ensure fertility, harvests, or protection.
It was once believed that blood was the same as life, and as such, drinking blood was the equivalent of a transfusion today.
Ma’at weighing the heart of the deceased against the Feather of Truth, determining a soul’s guilt or innocence in the Egyptian Book of the Dead
Cannibalism, as a tribal rite, was based on a similar belief, that the blood of another was his life and soul. The practice of drinking the blood of the bravest foes was to acquire their courage, cunning, and other distinctive traits.
Royalty and the super rich literally had blue blood. This was based on the fact that those who did not labor in the sun, and therefore weren’t tan, had veins that showed more prominently blue. (Indeed, some creatures have blue blood—e.g., horseshoe crabs—but humans aren’t among them.) Historically, Royal Blood meant that royalty were of divine or pure lineage, untouched by commoners. Bloodlines determined inheritance, legitimacy, and power.
Transfusion bag
People of different races have different blood, and transfusions across ethnic groups are dangerous if not deadly.
A baby gets blood from the mother. In fact, the fetus creates its own blood entirely, in utero.
Bloodletting
Bloodletting in the 1860s
As far back as the Ancient Egyptians, doctors have attempted to treat patients by adjusting fluids inside the body. In particular, medical theories held that sweating and bloodletting were effective treatments for everything from headaches to gout. Hippocrates believed menstruation was a spontaneous form of bloodletting. Talmudic, Ayurvedic, Chinese, and Islamic medical texts all contain detailed instructions of the practice.
Galen created very specific charts of the best locations to cut or place leeches to achieve specific health benefits, encouraging patients to take their “cure” into their own hands! Cutting the vein in the right hand might cure liver problems, while cutting the vein in the left hand could cure spleen trouble.
Diagram of where to bleed for specific health concerns
He also believed that the heart created blood and sent it to the organs and extremities, where it was used up. Having too much would cause it to stagnate, leading to illness. For centuries, doctors throughout Europe and the Middle East thought it purged toxins, balanced bodily chemistry, and boosted immunity.
Bloodletting remained a common medical practice through the 19th Century. Textbooks from 1923 still recommended treating patients with strategic bleeding.
It still shows up in our language. “Bloodletting” is now a euphemism for simmering tensions in a community erupting into violence.
Bloody Language
A subject so entwined with human history and sensibilities is bound to show up in our language.
Blood in Metaphors
Blood feud: People of one bloodline/clan are born enemies of another.
In cold blood: To do something cruel or violent deliberately and without emotion.
Hematohidrosis, a rare medical condition, causes a patient to sweat actual blood.
Blood, sweat, and tears: A lot of effort and hard work, often involving suffering.
Blood runs cold: To feel a sudden shock or horror.
Flesh and blood: Someone’s family or relatives; also used to describe human limitations or weaknesses.
Blood boils: To become extremely angry.
Bad blood: Strong feelings of hatred or anger between people.
New blood: New people joining a group or organization, bringing fresh ideas.
Roman gladiators from a Third Century mosaic
Blood sport: A sport involving the hunting or killing of animals, or a violent competition.
Blood money: Money earned through dishonest or violent means; also refers to money paid to a killer as compensation for a murder.
Bloodcurdling: Extremely frightening or shocking.
Blood brother: A very close friend; historically, mingling a few drops of blood from two people in a cup of wine and both drinking it sealed the bond. More recently, two people nick their thumbs or wrist veins and press them together to seal the bond. (“Brothers” could also be women, though this was much less common.)
Lady Macbeth by Gabriel von Max
Blood on one’s hands (e.g., Lady Macbeth’s famous line, “Out, damned spot!”) symbolizes moral stain or unresolved guilt.
Bloodstained: Covered or marked with blood, often implying violence or guilt.
In one’s blood: innate, as of a skill or quality. The same as “XXX runs in the family.”
Blood is thicker than water: Family relationships are stronger than other relationships.
In some initiation rites (e.g., fraternities, secret societies, or rites of passage), blood may symbolize commitment, loyalty, or rebirth into a new social or spiritual state.
Bloody Proverbs
Blood is inherited and virtue is acquired.
None so keen at the hunting of wolves as the dog with wolf blood.
Who grudges his blood to a blade had better earn his living behind the plow.
You cannot get blood from a stone/turnip
Good blood will never lie.
Men’s skins have many colors, but human blood is always red.
Like blood, like means, and like age, make the happiest marriage.
Marrying in the blood is never good.
Noble and common blood is of the same color.
If blood is spilt on you before breakfast, you will shed blood before nightfall.
The human body contains about 5 liters (1.3 gallons) of blood, which circulates through the body 3 times every minute on average! It transports oxygen, nutrients, and hormones, fights infections, regulates body temperature, and removes waste products.
Bottom Line: Blood is so important that it’s everywhere!
We’re all aware, at some level, of racism and sexism. Everyone lucky enough to live to be old will probably become aware of ageism. Many fewer are attuned to ableism. The world wasn’t built for people with disabilities, and because of that, the world we live in is inherently “ableist.”
“Ableism is the discrimination of and social prejudice against people with disabilities based on the belief that typical abilities are superior. At its heart, ableism is rooted in the assumption that disabled people require ‘fixing’ and defines people by their disability. Like racism and sexism, ableism classifies entire groups of people as ‘less than,’ and includes harmful stereotypes, misconceptions, and generalizations of people with disabilities.”
All -isms are based on stereotypes. Stereotyping is when, based on one characteristic, we assume a whole constellation of characteristics, traits, abilities, or behaviors. While it can sometimes feel like a mental shortcut to quickly understand the world, it often leads to inaccuracies, misunderstandings, and unfair judgments.
Effects of Stereotyping
THE American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) provides legal assistance for people seeking civil liberties protections.
Bias and Prejudice: Stereotypes can reinforce harmful biases, leading to discrimination or exclusion. Overgeneralization: It ignoring individual differences. Self-Fulfilling Prophecies: People may unconsciously act in ways that confirm a stereotype, perpetuating the cycle. Loss of Individuality: It reduces people to a single label, ignoring their unique identities, experiences, and complexities.
Common Areas Where Stereotyping Occurs
The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) is a legal advocacy organization promoting civil rights in the US.
Gender: Assuming women are “naturally” better at caregiving or men are “naturally” better at leadership. Race/Ethnicity: Linking certain behaviors or traits to an entire racial or ethnic group. Professions: Believing all engineers are socially awkward or all artists are “starving.” Age: Assuming older adults are “out of touch” or teenagers are “irresponsible.” Cultures: Assuming everyone from a specific country behaves the same way.
Ableism
Returning to focus on ableism, consider the following examples from the source cited above:
Presenting a disability as either tragic or inspirational in news stories, movies, and other popular forms of media
Choosing an inaccessible venue for a meeting or event, thus excluding some participants
Using someone else’s mobility device as a hand or foot rest
Institutionalizing adults and children with disabilities
Failing to incorporate accessibility into building design plans. This applies to disabilities but also such things as gender-neutral bathrooms.
Buildings without braille on signs, elevator buttons, etc.
Selectively enforcing dress codes
Restricting workplace benefits, such as family leave or health insurance, to opposite-sex couples
Creating inaccessible websites
Entrenching existing prejudices into computer algorithms and coding
The assumption that people with disabilities want or need to be ‘fixed’
Requiring hairstyles that are difficult or impossible to maintain with certain hair textures
Using disability as a punchline, or mocking people with disabilities
Conducting research without consideration of differences based on gender, race, abilities, etc. This is especially important in medical research and the creation of public policy.
The lynchings of Blacks in earlier decades and eugenics movement of the early 1900s
Disproportionate number of guilty verdicts and harsher sentences based on race or ethnicity.
The mass murder of disabled people in Nazi Germany
Hiring preferences based on the assumption that women will become pregnant and leave the workforce
Wage gaps based on sex, race, ethnicity
“Die-Ins” during Black Lives Matter protests drew attention to racialized police violence in the US.
Micro-Aggressions and “Isms”
Micro-aggressions are everyday verbal or behavioral expressions that communicate a negative slight or insult in relation to someone’s gender identity, race, sex, disability, etc. It seems to me that non-conscious put downs of -isms are more common—and more socially acceptable—than others these days.
“That’s so lame.”
Dumb blonde jokes.
“That’s so retarded.”
“That guy is crazy.”
“You’re so brave to wear that!”
“You’re acting so bi-polar today.”
Schools defaulting to communicate with a female parent, regardless of a family’s arrangements.
“Should you really be eating that?”
“Must be that time of the month.”
“You’re so gay.”
“Are you off your meds?”
“It’s like the blind leading the blind.”
“It’s fine to be gay, but why do they have to shove it in my face?”
“My ideas fell on deaf ears.”
Putting hands on someone to guide them to where you want them.
“You throw like a girl.”
“You look great for your age!”
“But which one of you is the woman?”
“That’s so psycho.”
“I’m super OCD about how I clean my apartment.”
Offering to help old people. Sometimes this is appreciated, putting a bag in the overhead bin, for example. But often it comes across as assuming incompetence.
“You’re so well-spoken!”
“A real man would…”
“I’ll pray for you?”
Addressing an elderly person as young man or young lady.
“Of course he’s paid more; he has a family to support!”
“I don’t even think of you as disabled/black/a woman.”
“I’m not saying she deserved it, but did you see what she was wearing?”
“I love old people; they’re so adorable!”
“This sort of thing comes naturally to your people, right?”
“Big boys don’t cry.”
Touching someone’s hair.
“You’re such a spaz.”
Witnessing or overhearing any of the above without speaking up.
How to Avoid Stereotyping
The Stonewall Riots kicked off the gay liberation movement in the US, eventually leading to major legal protections and growing social acceptance of LGBTQ+ people.
Challenge Assumptions: Ask yourself why you hold a particular belief about a group. Seek Diverse Perspectives: Engage with people from different backgrounds to broaden your understanding. Focus on Individuality: Recognize that everyone is unique and shouldn’t be reduced to a stereotype. Educate Yourself: Learn about the lived experiences of others rather than relying on stereotypes. Practice Empathy: Put yourself in someone else’s shoes to understand their perspective.
Bottom Line: -Isms and stereotyping can harm mental health, self-esteem, and social cohesion. Stereotyping can often leads to systemic -isms like racism, sexism, ageism, and other forms of discrimination. Breaking free from stereotypes is essential for creating a fairer, more inclusive world.
First there are the dailies. Only 31 days in the month, yet there are 486 (!) daily holidays and observances. If you are reading this blog the day it is posted (May 12), 224 of these opportunities have already passed you by for 2026. You are probably aware of Cinco de Mayo and Mother’s Day, maybe even celebrated them. But (probably) missed opportunities include
And soooo many more. Of course, there’s always next year. It pays to plan ahead (perhaps plant something soft in anticipation of Naked Gardening Day 2027).
All isn’t lost, though. There are 10 opportunities to celebrate just today (May 12) including National Nutty Fudge Day and Limerick Day. My long-time favorite limerick was composed at St Lawrence University during a graduation ceremony—every year there was some faculty challenge during that event—by a member of the Physics Department, Peter Oesper.
There was a young lady named Ruth Who made love in a telephone booth. Her father, dismayed, Cried, “Ruth, you’ve been laid!” “No, stood up if you must know the truth,”
Peter Oesper
Try your hand at a limerick and share?
Celebratory Weeks in May
Of curse weekly celebrations and observances abound in May—130, in fact. A couple of things to note about the weekly listings: 1) several of the earliest ones actually started in April; and 2) some are not a full week, just too long to be a daily.
Here are some examples of celebrations for people who don’t want to feel pushed by a one-day limit. Of course—for you, dear reader—some must await next year. These include the 27 weekly observances that are always the first full week in May. And among others
If even a week is too constraining—or just doesn’t have enough time to do it properly—go for one of the 118 Monthly Holidays and Observances. Trust me, there is something here for everyone! Just a few far-flung examples:
My Ph.D. is in Experimental Social Psychology. Though I was not a clinician, an article in the print edition of a recent Wall Street Journal grabbed my attention: Where Have All the Male Therapists Gone? (Published online as What Will Happen When All the Male Therapists are Gone? [March 12, 2026]) “… in the mid-1960s, the ratio of men to women in the field was 80 to 20. Today, that ratio has flipped.” (Going forward, any citation from that article will be marked **.) This is a great article, and I suggest you read it if you can.
“The main consequence of the feminization of psychology is the topics that are worked on,” says [Martin] Seligman. “From the 1960s through the 1980s, it was aggression, conflict and trauma, but not love, meaning, friendship or cooperation.” **
The psychology of women emerged as a distinct field and gained momentum during the rise of the feminist movement. Feminists challenged these biases, leading to research focused on women’s experiences, gender roles, identity, and the social and cultural factors affecting women’s mental health.
Though this change to less violent and more humane research has much to recommend it, Seligman sees less research on therapy and issues for boys and men as a downside. ** While I applaud psychology for—finally—recognizing the distinct experiences and needs of women, the current imbalance is equally regrettable. The male psyche is becoming less the norm than an aberration. According to Mark Kiselica, “They are greatly influenced by models that look at how boys and men are flawed rather than about boys and men are different.” ** It truly is a a reversal of psychology researchers’ bias.
Issues of bias aside, there is strong evidence that men are struggling today. In 2023, suicide rates for men were approximately four times higher than for women. Overall, men account for about 77% of suicides, while women make up about 23%, showing a stark gender difference in suicide mortality.
Roughly 15% of U.S. men aged 21-25 reported a major depressive episode in 2024. “It’s estimated that roughly 1 in 5 men suffer from some form of mental illness—a share that has increased from 13.6% in 2008.” **
Men are significantly less likely than women to seek therapy due to societal expectations, stigma, and perceptions that mental health issues are not “manly.” This may be changing—albeit slowly. “In 2024, 17.3% of men sought some form of counseling up from 8.7% in 2002.” **
But, truly, how important is the dearth of male therapists?
True, men who work in male-dominated fields are more likely to prefer a male therapist who “speaks the same language.” Nevertheless, only 40% of men expressed a gender preference for their therapist, and of those half preferred a woman. **
Clinicians agree that a well-trained therapist can work effectively with both male and female clients. Furthermore, research has found no differences between male and female therapists in their effectiveness or client outcomes.**
The United States currently faces a significant shortage of therapists and mental health professionals relative to the demand for mental health services. Several factors may be contributing to this need.
Growing Mental Health Awareness Increasing awareness and reduced stigma around mental health have led more people to seek therapy and counseling.
High Demand vs. Supply Gap Many regions, especially rural and underserved urban areas, have insufficient numbers of therapists, leading to long wait times and limited access.
Rising Mental Health Challenges The prevalence of anxiety, depression, PTSD, and other disorders has increased, partly exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic and social stressors.
Workforce Shortages The mental health workforce is aging, with many professionals nearing retirement and fewer new therapists entering the field than needed.
Insurance and Cost Barriers Even where therapists exist, cost and insurance coverage can limit access, making the demand for affordable, accessible therapy even more pressing.
Bottom Line: Expanding the mental health workforce with more therapists can improve access, reduce wait times, and support better mental health outcomes.
Vivian means “likes bright and vivid colors.” And I do, including red, which was my mother’s favorite color. I doubt she was alone here, but in the United States, the top six colors nationally are blue, black, gray, pink, white and green. Why didn’t red make the list?
Perhaps it’s because, in the U.S., the color has so many negative associations. Red is used almost universally in stop signs, alarms, and warnings. It signals alertness and caution, often linked to fire, blood, and emergency.
Stop signs
Traffic lights
Fire Trucks
No entry
Flammable liquid
Biohazard
Warning signs are commonly red because it is associated with danger, is highly visible, and stands out against most backgrounds, ensuring it can be seen from a distance even in poor conditions like fog or smoke. Many poisonous animals have red markings. In humans, exposure to red increases heart rate, raises blood pressure, and heightens alertness.
Symbolism One Step Removed
Seeing red. It means being very angry, mad, furious, irate, or enraged. Some synonyms for this phrase include losing your temper, exploding, erupting, losing patience, becoming enraged, or flying into a rage.
What about the bullfighter’s red cape, encouraging the bull to attack? Bulls are actually color-blind, but I’d be pretty mad too if someone was shaking a cape in my face and trying to stab me!
Then there is red faced. Depending on context, it could mean embarrassment or anger, but neither is pleasant.
Red lined: deleted.
Being in the red = financial deficit.
But this color is rich with symbolism across cultures, emotions, and contexts. It symbolizes a range of powerful concepts including love, passion, energy, vitality.
Seeing Red Emotions
Energy and Vitality
It symbolizes life force, strength, and physical energy. Its vibrancy grabs attention and can stimulate excitement or action.
Passion and Love
Red is associated with love, desire, and romance. It’s the color of hearts, roses, and Valentine’s Day.
Power and Courage
Mounties on Parade
Think red-blooded. Also, historically, red has symbolized power, leadership, and bravery. Warriors and royalty often wore red to signify status and valor.
The color can also evoke feelings of anger, aggression, or intensity, reflecting the heat of strong emotions.
Seeing Red Around the World
In Hinduism, red is associated with Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth and embodiment of beauty.
Indian Culture
In Indian culture, red symbolizes love, passion, power, fertility, prosperity, and marital bliss, often used in weddings, festivals, and religious ceremonies. Brides often wear red saris, representing love, prosperity, and new beginnings. Red is also used in religious ceremonies and festivals like Holi.
Chinese Culture
In Chinese culture, red is a symbol of good fortune, prosperity, happiness, and celebration, especially during festivals like Lunar New Year. It’s therefore prominent in weddings, festivals, and decorations, believed to ward off evil spirits.
American Traditions
Red is associated with Christmas (red berries, Santa’s suit) symbolizing warmth and festivity. Many opera houses have red seats to convey a sense of opulence. A red carpet also signifies especially formal occasions.
Red Square
Russian Beauty
The ancient Russian word for red and beauty are the same. Even today, Moscow’s Red Square (Красная площадь) would be more accurately translated as Beautiful Square.
African Traditions
In many African cultures, red beads or cloths symbolize life, health, and vitality, but can also represent danger or mourning depending on the context. The Ndembu in Central Africa associate red with life and health, so warriors and sick people wear red paint.
Seeing Red In Art
Red’s symbolism is woven through art, literature, and cultural traditions, carrying meanings that evoke deep emotions and ideas in viewers, readers, and participants—often reflecting the above.
Emotion and Drama
Artists use red to convey intense feelings—love, anger, passion, or violence. For example, in Renaissance paintings, red robes often signify power or sanctity (like in depictions of Christ or saints). Medieval painters often depicted martyrs in red clothing.
Focus and Contrast
Red draws the viewer’s eye, creating focal points or dramatic contrasts. Think of Henri Matisse’s bold use of red to energize his compositions.
The Lute, Henri Matisse (1943)
Symbol of Life and Death
Red can represent blood, vitality, or sacrifice. In Mexican Día de los Muertos art, red flowers symbolize the life force amid remembrance of death.
In Literature
Love and Desire
Red often symbolizes passionate love or temptation. Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet uses red imagery to underscore the intensity and tragedy of young love.
The Scarlet Letter, Hugues Merle (1681)
Violence and Danger
Red can signal bloodshed or conflict. In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, the scarlet “A” is a mark of sin and shame but also of identity and resilience.
Rebellion and Revolution
Red is also linked to upheaval and change, as seen in George Orwell’s Animal Farm, where the red flag symbolizes revolution and political power.
Red’s symbolism is a powerful reminder of life’s intensity—from love and celebration to warning and sacrifice. It’s a color that speaks to human experience across time and place.
Sustainable Perspective on Red Symbolism
A more recent interpretation is that red’s connection to blood and fire reminds us of life’s fragility and the importance of protecting natural resources. It can inspire urgent action toward climate and social justice, symbolizing both warning and passionate commitment.
Bottom Line: The effect of red is—totally?—dependent on context and culture.
They say that waking up Is hard to do. And I know, I know that it’s true!
I love being in bed—even if all I’m doing there is sleeping! I love snuggling down, feeling comfy. I can sleep soundly for ten hours or more, given the opportunity. I get up when I have to.
In high school, that meant 5:30 a.m., to be picked up at 6:00 by the parents of three elementary school children, to get them up, dressed and fed, walk them to and from school, and babysit them till the parents got home from work about 5:00 p.m.
And so it went from then through every subsequent job: roll out in time to get to work. During my seven years in college (B.S., M.S., Ph.D.), replace “work” with “class.”
Today, I sleep later, and stay up later. I still get up when I have a specific time-critical commitment. And I still struggle with waking up.
Waking Up with Help
Apparently, I’m not alone here. Sleep specialists say that some level of sleep inertia is normal. It’s just that for some of us, that level is very high! And for them, there are options—some of them pretty harsh. A March 6 article in The Wall Street Journal described several that I (for one) consider extreme.
Modern Assistance
Pavlok Shock Clock is a wrist-watch-like device that delivers an electric shock to the wearer. The wearer sets the intensity to hurt but not cause damage: for example, a setting of 75% is 300 volts. It sells for about $160.
Clocky, created about twenty years ago, is a wheeled alarm that hops off a table and beeps as it zooms around the room.
Nuj, an app on which the user sets a task to prove s/he is up. If the task isn’t performed within minutes, a financial penalty, also set by the user, is levied. All the money collected goes to charity.
Alarmy, another app for which the user chooses a “mission” that must be accomplished before the alarm will shut off. At this writing, it costs $7.49 per month.
Sonic Bomb, sounds off at 113 decibels (think rock concert loud) and flashes red lights. It comes with a vibrating puck for under the pillow or mattress to shake the sleeper awake.
A gentler alternative might be an alarm clock that slowly turns up bedroom lights, mimicking a sunrise. Or one that brews a cup of coffee at your bedside!
Historical Help
Once upon a time, people lived without mechanical alarm clocks or phone apps. To wake up earlier than circadian rhythms dictated, people relied on the noise of animals, deliberately drinking lots of water before bed, or time-keeping bells at nearby religious buildings.
A “knocker-upper” shooting pellets at second story windows to wake people
People used a variety of mechanical methods to try waking up on time when their bodies just wanted to sleep. Some lit a candle that dropped metal pieces with a clatter when they’d been burning for a certain amount of time. Others set a slow trickle of water to trip a pressure alarm and ring a gong. A stick of slowly burning incense, held between the toes, would wake even the soundest sleeper when the burning embers hit skin.
But according to the Wall Street Journal article, the demand for alarm clocks took off in the late 1800s, with names like “the Rattler, the Slumber Stopper, and the Tornado.” With the shift to urban settings and factory work, more people needed to be up earlier and at more precise times. Many factories hired a “knocker-upper” to walk through the streets and rouse employees for their shifts.
In the 1930s, the Westclox Factory introduced the Siesta, with an early version of a snooze option: it alarmed and ten minutes later alarmed again louder. My cellphone alarm offers a snooze option that, when chosen, will sound again eight and a half minutes later—which is soooo easy to repeat, making it increasingly difficult to meet whatever commitment made me set an alarm in the first place!
Waking Up Without Help
According to sleep experts, we really shouldn’t need to resort to extreme measures. Mariana Figueiro, PhD, at Mount Sinai, offers advice beginning with why you should consider avoiding the snooze button on your alarm and why raising the shades is critical.
According to Figueiro, the key is to keep a regular schedule. Getting up and going to bed at the same time every day, including weekends, trains your body to know when it’s time to wake up. (This makes the shifts to and from Daylight Savings Time particularly difficult!) And get up right away—without hitting the snooze button. You never sleep as well after your alarm goes off. It’s better to set the alarm for the time you really need to get up.
Habits for Waking Up Easily
Experts seem to agree on the importance of regular sleep habits. The quality of sleep is also important. Activities I’ve come across for getting good sleep include the following:
Meditate
Eat lots of protein
Take breaks from screen time
Exercise
Let natural light in
Get lots of natural light first thing in the morning (or bright, indoor lights)
Relax before going to bed with music or a physical book (not an e-book)
Avoid caffeine (coffee, chocolate) later in the day
Late night alcohol does not contribute to good sleep
Sleeping as Long as Possible
As a sleep lover who gets up at the last possible minute when I absolutely have to, here are some things that help me sleep as long as possible before I have to meet some commitment:
Organize what I’m going to wear the next day the night before, including jewelry. (I’m a jewelry junkie!)
Learn to enjoy cold coffee.
Have power bars on hand so breakfast prep is optional—or marry a spouse who will make breakfast for you on your schedule!
Minimize grooming time by omitting whatever won’t be noticed and schedule more time-consuming bits (like shampooing) for days without scheduled commitments.
I have chiro—a chiropractic manipulation—every four weeks, and have done so for years. On my way to my most recent appointment, I decided to write a blog about “bone doctors.” But after talking with my practitioner, I decided to focus on only one bone doctor specialty, chiropractic medicine.
By most estimations, DCs (Doctors of Chiropractic) treat over 35 million Americans annually—adults, children, even infants.
I get a monthly adjustment because of pain in my back and shoulders. (Because of the hours I hunch over a laptop, perhaps.) Chiropractic treatment is used to treat a a lot more than my type of issues, of course, including headaches, whiplash, strains and sprains, sports injuries, arthritis, and more.
Who Sees a Chiropractor?
In general, people experiencing chronic pain or musculoskeletal issues are most likely to seek the services of a chiropractor. Some sources say that’s adults aged 31 to 64, while others put the ages between 45 and 64. Among younger patients, the majority are between 12 and 17. Well over half of chiropractic patients are female, sixty percent to be exact.
My chiropractor said that he sees more people who work in the financial sector than day laborers such as ditch diggers. Go figure.
Another sector that relies on chiropractors is athletics. All 32 NFL teams have their own chiropractor(s) to boost performance, maintain wellness, and treat musculoskeletal strain and injury. Many professional dance companies include a chiropractor among the medical staff.
Chiropractic is especially popular among people seeking natural solutions for pain, injury recovery, sports performance, and preventive wellness—especially those looking to avoid surgery or medication.
Chiropractic History
Hippocrates, who is often called the Father of Modern Medicine, as far back as 450 BCE, wrote, “Look Well To The Spine For The Cause Of Disease.”
Hippocrates also said that the function of the skeleton and the spine is to form the shape of the body and keep us upright.
Edwin Smith Papyrus
However, joint manipulation predated Hippocrates. The oldest known medical text, the Edwin Smith papyrus of 1552 BCE mentions joint manipulation. The text describes the Ancient Egyptian treatment of bone-related injuries.
The term “chiropractic” derives from two Greek words: cheir which means hand, and praktos which means done, thus “Done by Hand.”
Early Chiropractors
Daniel David Palmer
Nevertheless, according to every source I found, chiropractors trace their roots to 1895, when Daniel David Palmer (the father of chiropractic!) helped Harvey Lillard by accidentally performing what is now known as a chiropractic adjustment.
I find the story of Palmer’s first patient pretty interesting. Unusual for that time, Harvey Lillard, an African American man, owned a cleaning company. By chance, his company serviced the building where Palmer was practicing magnetic healing.
The two were chatting one day, and Palmer noticed that Lillard had a vertebrae that was out of place. Lillard told Palmer that, about seventeen years prior, while picking up a wagon wheel he heard a pop in his neck and immediately lost his hearing.
Harvey Lillard
Palmer examined Lillard’s neck and found what is now referred to as a subluxation, a vertebrae that is out of place. Palmer deduced that this was the cause of Harvey’s deafness, and thought he could fix the issue by moving that vertebra back into position. Immediately, Harvey said he could hear the “racket on the streets.” Word spread about the “cure,” and before long people were coming to Palmer from all over the place.
Lillard’s daughter remembers a different story of his treatment. According to her account, Palmer slapped her father on the back while laughing at a joke. A few days later, her father’s hearing improved. This inspired Palmer to investigate spinal manipulations as a method of treating illnesses.
According to Palmer’s own testimony, he wrote The Chiropractor’s Adjuster by means of spiritist messages from deceased physician Dr. Jim Atkinson. In fact, Palmer saw his new medical treatment as quasi-religious in nature, arguing against anyone who would “interfere with the religious duty of chiropractors, a privilege already conferred upon them. It now becomes us as chiropractors to assert our religious rights.”
Daniel David Palmer’s School
Two years later, Palmer started the first school of chiropractic, the Palmer School and Cure. This first school is still active today (renamed to Palmer College of Chiropractic), a leader in chiropractic education.
Bartlett Joshua Palmer
And talk about nepotism! Daniel David Palmer passed his interest in chiropractic to his son, DCBartlett Joshua (B.J.) Palmer. B.J. Palmer, known as “The Developer”, took chiropractic to the next level. He inherited his father’s practice and eventually took over the renamed Palmer College, where he added science, philosophy, and technique to the art of spinal adjustment. Under B.J.’s leadership, chiropractic care spread internationally and was positioned as a unique and vitalistic healthcare profession.
Unlike his father’s position that chiropractic medicine was a nearly religious calling, B.J. Palmer saw the school as a commercial operation. He said it was, “…a business, not a professional basis. We manufacture chiropractors. We teach them the idea and then we show them how to sell it.”
B.J. also introduced x-rays to chiropractic diagnostics in 1910—a controversial yet revolutionary decision at the time. He built a chiropractic research clinic and purchased a local radio station (WOC) to provide nationwide broadcasts promoting health. In fact, Palmer hired rookie reporter Ronald Reagan, in his first broadcast job, to read sports for WOC.
A Neurocalometer, to help chiropractors make adjustments
His emphasis on the “above-down, inside-out” healing philosophy laid the foundation for the modern chiropractic worldview.
B.J.’s son, DC David D. Palmer also became involved. The fourth generation of Palmers, David’s daughters, are still active in the school today, and have all served the college or sat on its board of trustees.
The Palmer College now has campuses in Florida and California and offers cutting-edge training in everything from spinal biomechanics to functional neurology.
One of the foundational philosophies of chiropractic is Innate Intelligence—the idea that the body has a natural ability to heal itself when the nervous system is functioning without interference. Subluxations, or spinal misalignments, can block this natural healing ability.
This concept was central to D.D. and B.J. Palmer’s chiropractic philosophy and continues to guide many practitioners today. When the spine is aligned and the nervous system is clear, the body’s innate wisdom can restore balance and function.
Chiropractors were once jailed for practicing medicine without a license. In the early 1900s, chiropractic was not recognized as a licensed health profession in most U.S. states because they didn’t prescribe drugs or perform surgery. In 1906, D. D. Palmer spent 17 days in jail rather than pay a fine for practicing medicine without a license in Iowa. He considered classifying chiropractic as a religion to avoid the new Iowa medical licensing law.
Dr. Herbert Ross Reaver was arrested over 70 times in Ohio between the 1930s and 1950s simply for practicing chiropractic. Dr. Reaver and other activists fought for legal recognition of chiropractic, eventually leading to licensure in all 50 states and in over 90 countries.
After decades of lobbying and advocacy, Louisiana became the final U.S. state to license chiropractic in 1974, officially recognizing chiropractic as a legitimate healthcare profession.
Even so there was still an aura of less-than clinging to chiropractors. In the 1960s, the American Medical Association (AMA) historically labeled chiropractic as “quackery.” In fact, in 1963, the AMA formed a “Committee on Quackery” with the goal of discrediting and eliminating chiropractic.
Chiropractors were barred from hospital privileges, referrals, and insurance reimbursements, and were ridiculed publicly.
However, chiropractors fought back! In 1987, a historic legal case—Wilk v. AMA— found that the AMA had unlawfully conspired to undermine the chiropractic profession. This landmark decision helped establish chiropractic as a legitimate, independent healthcare practice.
Today, chiropractors often work alongside MDs, DOs, and physical therapists as part of integrative health teams.
Chiropractors Today
Palmer Center for Chiropractic Research
Doctors of Chiropractic (DCs) go through a minimum of 4,200 hours of classroom, lab and clinical internships during their 4-year doctoral graduate school program, including lab and clinical work. Internships must be completed during a doctoral program, within four years. These standards are set by the National Board of Chiropractic Examiners. Individual states often have their own rules and regulations.
Chiropractic is recognized and regulated by law in over 49 countries. And in the United States, DCs are licensed in all 50 states!
The VA passed legislation allowing chiropractic treatment in VA medical facilities back in 1999. Today, 70 VA hospitals offer chiropractic treatments for rehabilitation and prosthetic services.
Chiropractic treatments are extremely safe. In fact, out of hundreds of thousands of patients, less than 50 known injuries have been recorded—making it safer than treatments by primary care doctors.
Who Benefits?
Each day, over one million adjustments take place across the globe. That’s a whole lot of relief!
Chiropractors are the top rated medical professionals for treating lower back pain. Over three-quarters of chiropractic patients—77 percent, to be exact—feel that the treatment they received was very effective.
Analysis from a large chiropractic network dataset shows that 80.24% of patients who receive chiropractic care typically see significant improvement in their condition within one month of starting treatment.
Injured workers are a whopping 28 times less likely to need surgery if they go to a chiropractor first, rather than a doctor.
Chiropractors can provide relief to pregnant women. In fact, some chiropractors have undergone special training and focus on helping women cope with the strains and stresses that growing a baby puts on the body. (If only I’d known this decades ago!) Misalignments in the pelvis can reduce the amount of space the baby has in the womb and can also cause complications with delivery. Aside from that, chiropractic treatment can help reduce nausea, relieve back and neck pain, and even reduce the chances of having to deliver by C-section.
Modern chiropractors combine traditional hands-on techniques with high-tech tools, such as digital x-rays, thermal scans, EMG scans, and postural analysis software to provide safe, effective care. Research continues to validate chiropractic’s effectiveness for conditions like low back pain, neck pain, headaches, sciatica, and joint dysfunction.
Treatment for low back pain initiated by a DC costs up to 20 percent less than when started by a medical doctor. Patients save about $83.5 million a year by going to a chiropractor instead of an MD for chronic back pain. In addition, chiropractic care lowers pharmaceutical costs by as much as 58%.
An injured worker is 28 times less likely to have spinal surgery if the first point of contact is a DC rather than a surgeon.
Chiropractic care relies upon conservative natural treatments. Although chiropractors do not prescribe drugs or perform surgery, they work with other healthcare professionals to provide comprehensive care.
In addition, chiropractors offer soft tissue therapy, rehabilitation exercises, and lifestyle and nutritional counseling.
Bottom Line: Chiropractors are extensively trained to provide safe, effective care focused on musculoskeletal health and holistic wellness.
I recently started using Gorilla Glue brand super glue on my perennially split thumbnail. Dissatisfied with the results of nail glues, I thought, “Why not?”
Of course, gluing the thumbnail of my dominant hand meant I couldn’t treat it as I would the food processor handle or jewelry repair, but worth a try.
To my disappointment, Gorilla Glue doesn’t hold much longer than nail glue under these circumstances. On the other hand, it doesn’t dry shiny and is thus less noticeable, so it’s now my preferred choice.
Super Glue History
I know a gazillion bits of random info, for example that Post-It notes were created to be a bookmark that could stick and re-stick without damage. Another such bit of information was that super glue was created during the Viet Nam War for closing wounds. As it turns out, I was right about Post-Its but wrong about super glue.
Dr. Harry Coover Jr.
Super glue, or cyanoacrylate adhesive, was discovered in 1942 by Dr. Harry Coover Jr while searching for clear plastic materials for gun sights during WWII; it was a failure because it stuck to everything it touched, including the equipment, test materials, and fingers.
In 1958, while working as an Eastman Kodak researcher, Coover (along with Fred Joyner) recognized its commercial potential and began marketing it to consumers as “Super Glue,” a name that became synonymous with fast-acting adhesives. It’s incredibly useful in industrial and home use for bonding a huge array of materials including plastic, metal, wood, ceramics, and skin.
So how did the Vietnam War get into my brain scramble? During the Vietnam War, spray-form super glue was used as a temporary fix to seal wounds and stabilize injured soldiers before further treatment. At that time, it did not yet have FDA approval for medical use.
Super Glue Uses
I don’t know how many other people use cyanoacrylate adhesive on human nails, but uses abound—some more, some less expected. Here are a few of mine.
If you do an online search, you’ll find many lists of uses, from forensic to veterinary. The adhesive market is competitive and diverse, with brands catering to different applications and industries. If you have a particular need—say, to glue plastic—you can find recommendations.
