Grips of technology (e.g., TVs, radios, and computers), as some people have for research purposes, you would find that your body falls into a natural rhythm.

The body has an internal clock that runs on a 24- to 25-hour day. If you were to lock yourself away from all the natural elements (sunlight, temperature fluctuations, etc.) and the grips of technology (e.g., TVs, radios, and computers), as some people have for research purposes, you would find that your body falls into a natural rhythm.

This natural rhythm is called an infradian rhythm- based on a 24+ hour day, and to a large extent, this rhythm is based on and is strongly influenced by the elements of the natural world: the earth’s rotation, the gravitational pull, the earth’s axis and several other influences we are probably not even aware of.

There are other types of rhythms that influence our body as well: circadian rhythms (24-hour cycles), such as rapid eye movement cycles and stomach contractions caused by hunger; and ultradian rhythms (repeated throughout a 24-hour cycle), such as menstrual periods and re blood cell formation.

It has been said that as we continue to embrace the achievements of high technology and separate ourselves even further from the reaches of nature, we throw off our body’s rhythms. When these rhythms are thrown off for too long, we begin to see various organs that are dependent on the regularity of these rhythms go into a state of dysfunction.

A rushed life (e.g., college life) is not structured with a particular order for body rhythms. You can eat dinner one day at 6:00 p.m. and the next day at 9:30 p.m. We won’t even talk about sleep! Perhaps at a young age your body can rebound from these cyclical misgivings. More likely than not though, regular disruptions in the body’s rhythms will manifest quickly in various way, like irritability, fatigue, lack of hunger, restless sleep, and insomnia.

ACTIVITY #1

1. What is your general sense of your body’s rhythms?

2. Do you keep a regular schedule with regards to eating, sleeping, exercise? Or does the time you do these vary from day to day.

3. How closely are you connected to nature? Do you spend time outdoors each day? Do you find yourself more tired and irritable as we shift from summer to autumn? Do you find yourself more positive and energetic when we shift from winter to spring?

4. Are you a day person? Night person? Does the heat drain you or energize you? How do you tolerate cold? Do you prefer to work outdoors or inside? How sensitive are you to the effects of noise? Do you prefer to work with people? Alone? Do you like a lot of interruptions or prefer to work straight through with no interruptions?

5. Do you feel any adverse health effects due to your schedule? What might you do to improve your day-to-day activities to make them more in line with your natural circadian rhythm?