How to protect your brain from stress | Niki Korteweg | TEDxAmsterdamWomen

How to protect your brain from stress | Niki Korteweg | TEDxAmsterdamWomen

NOTE FROM TED: Please do not look to this talk for medical advice. While some viewers might find advice provided in this talk to be helpful as a complementary approach, several claims around brain size and lifestyle are not corroborated by sufficient scientific evidence. TEDx events are independently organized by volunteers. The guidelines we give organizers are described in more detail here: http://storage.ted.com/tedx/manuals/tedx_content_guidelines.pdf

Chronic stress is devastating for your brain. It ruins your memory, your attention and concentration and your emotional resilience. The brain areas that help execute these functions literally deteriorate.

Luckily, brain science has revealed many ways to prevent or counteract this. In her talk Niki Korteweg shares the four most important things you can do to keep your brain healthy and working at its very best.

Niki Korteweg is a Dutch science journalist with a PhD in neurobiology, and she has been writing about health and brain science for almost 20 years. Ironically, after experiencing a burnout about 10 years ago, her own brain started to let her down. It was the start of a quest in the scientific literature to discover what actually helps to guard our brain against stress and make it work better than ever. As a science journalist at NRC Handelsblad with a PhD in neurobiology, Niki is very knowledgeable about brain research, medical science, and psychology. She is a versatile journalist: she writes features, interviews, news articles, and books, gives lectures and teaches about science writing. After experiencing burnout in 2010, Niki published the book ‘Een beter brein’ (A better brain) in 2017. In this book, she discusses the fast-moving developments in neuroscience and all the ways in which we can use those insights to take good care of our brains. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx

50 Comments

  1. As someone who suffers from chronic stress, I can’t thank Planet Ayurveda enough for their Stress Support capsules. They’ve helped me find a sense of calm and balance in my life."

  2. At times, DOING NOTHING helps a lot. I practice this technique, whenever possible, be it 5mins or anything plus or minus, just sit (or even stand but NOT in sleep position as it quickly induces sleep) and do nothing. No observation of breath, no body scanning.. nothing. Just let your mind wander, as time goes by you can feel the gravity of thoughts are not as bothering as it was before. For me it takes a min of 20mins for the thoughts to calm down.

    Our brain (or mind I don’t know) really needs some quality rest. A rest like a baby or toddler gets. Our brain has got natural capacity to heal itself or in other words to organize its compartments and all it needs is some idle time.

  3. Continuous stress leads to Vata imbalance. In such case, Planet Ayurveda’s purely herbal formulation ‘Stress Support’ is the best way to tackle stress along with good diet and lifestyle as covered in the video.

  4. Planet Ayurveda’s Vikramprash is incredible for reducing anxiety. I feel so much more calm and peaceful.

  5. When you have stress so hard to relieve, you feel as if you have a boss with the following conflicts/traits:

    -The boss insists you work for 140 hours a week for more than a few years without any days-off. Otherwise, he threatens to kill you for sure!
    -Whoever overhears the threat calls the cops, and the cops try shooting him, but every bullet bounces off of him and back at the cops because the boss has 200% armor for flesh and therefore takes no physical damage whatsoever (and therefore also destroys sharp weapons and stingers of stinging insects and even breaks hard, heavy objects and any wild animal’s teeth and claws). He immediately destroys handcuffs for the same reason.
    -Then the cops and neighbors try scaring the boss, but nothing scares him because fury is literally his only emotion!
    -When trying to outrun him, he always runs faster unless he gets tired and therefore needs sleep, but he only sleeps for at most 2 hours in every 24-hour period and is a seriously light sleeper, so even the quietest noise ever can wake him, and it takes him too long to get back to sleep!

  6. You welcome see my course for better…
    For better future of the world!
    Improve yourself and spread this word
    For greater good today – forever…

  7. I’ve noticed a huge improvement in my mood and ability to handle stressful situations with Help of Stress Support Capsules.

  8. Some people don’t have time to work out or go to the damn gym cause we have to work,pay bills and have family members to take care of also don’t have time to meditate or even sleep eight damn hours cause of our daily work schedule. Some of us just live and eat whatever is put on the table. The truth here is u just have to be present and just be yourself 😊

  9. 1. Be physically active – "grow" factor
    2. Sleep well – 8 hours
    3. Food – fish, fruits and vegetables, healthy fats (oil, nuts)
    4. Meditation – daily

  10. ماشاالله همیشه موفق باشید خانم محترم عالی خیلی خوب بود خانم محترم

  11. Brahmi cap of planet ayurveda , It helps to provide the relief in the symptoms associated with stress like anxiety, loneliness, insomnia, sleep for too long, negative feelings and loss of concentration etc.

  12. 00:10 Improving memory and concentration at work
    01:14 Chronic stress is devastating for your brain
    02:21 The hippocampus is the center of memory and is sensitive to stress.
    03:39 Working out stimulates brain growth factors
    04:46 Sleep is crucial for brain function
    06:02 Benefits of Mediterranean diet
    07:14 Meditation improves focus and attention
    08:21 Meditation helps build brain resilience
    Crafted by Merlin AI. 7218D

  13. Just amazing and simple tips to keep the brain in top working condition.👌🤞✌️ Hope everyone watches this video to get help for toxic free, stress free healthy brain 🧠 ❤

  14. Your stress was so simple !! Just 2 kids and husband ! Why this video at all !! Do u know how it’s stressful when something really bad happens! U r techniques won’t work

  15. *5 minute meditation is a good start, but it doesn’t help you that much,,, you will have to do 15-20 minute meditation for 4-6 weeks to notice large differences in your mood*

  16. Thank you for posting this video.
    I don’t eat any type seafood
    Is there any substitute for fish ?

    Thank you and best wishes from Australia.

  17. 1. Exercise must include running/jogging
    2. Minimum 8 hrs sleep/ healthy sleep
    3. Eat healthy/ fruits/ veg and no wine/ liquor
    4. Meditation for atleast 5 minutes a day

  18. Nobody understands it clearly, these things only work when you don’t feel helplessly stuck in stressful environment which limit your expression!

  19. She gives the nice explanation video and to see this video it feels like enthusiastic and so happy to create watch more videos eagerly in tedtalks

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