The present findings suggest a new technique to target specific fear memories and prevent the return of fear after extinction training. Using two recovery assays, we demonstrated that extinction conducted during the reconsolidation window of an old fear memory prevented the spontaneous recovery or the reinstatement of fear responses, an effect that was maintained a year later. Moreover, this manipulation selectively affected only the reactivated conditioned
stimulus while leaving fear memory to the other non-reactivated conditioned stimulus intact.

It has been suggested that the adaptive function of reconsolidation is to allow old memories to be updated each time they are retrieved. In other words, our memory reflects our last retrieval of it rather than an exact account of the original event.

Daniela Schiller, Associate Professor, Mount Sinai Hospital on groundbreaking research on memory , and whether we might enable us to block highly traumatic memories.

Here is a good article on this same subject published in New Yorker by Daniela Schiller:  http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2014/05/19/partial-recall

"The retrieval of previously formed memory triggers the lability of that memory for a short time and its reconsolidation."

Updating memories is critical for adaptive behaviors, but the rules and mechanisms governing that
process are still not well defined. During a limited time window, the reactivation of consolidated
aversive memories triggers memory lability and induces a plasticity-dependent reconsolidation
process in the lateral amygdala (LA). However, whether new information is necessary for
initiating reconsolidation is not known. Here we show that changing the temporal relationship
between the conditioned (CS) and unconditioned (US) stimulus during reactivation is sufficient to
trigger synaptic plasticity and reconsolidation of an aversive memory in the LA. These findings
demonstrate that time is a core part of the CS-US association, and that new information must be
presented during reactivation in order to trigger LA-dependent reconsolidation processes. In sum,
this study provides new basic knowledge about the precise rules governing memory
reconsolidation of aversive memories that might be used to treat traumatic memories.

Joseph E. LeDoux, PhD, is an neuroscientist whose research is primarily focused on the biological underpinnings of emotion and memory, especially brain mechanisms related to fear and anxiety.

Antonio Damasio, M.D. is a Professor of Neuroscience at the University of Southern California and an Adjunct Professor at the Salk Institute Dr. Damasio is the author of several books.

An emotion consists of a very well orchestrated set of alterations in the body. Its purpose is to make life more survivable by taking care of a danger or taking advantage of an opportunity.

Question: What is happening in our brain when we feel an emotion?Antonio Damasio:  Feeling of an emotion is a process that is distinct from having the emotion in the first place.  So it helps to understand what is an emotion, what is a feeling, we need to understand what is an emotion.  And the emotion is the execution of a very complex program of actions.  Some actions that are actually movements, like movement that you can do, change your face for example, in fear, or movements that are internal, that happen in your heart or in your gut, and movements that are actually not muscular movements, but rather, releases of molecules.  Say, for example, in the endocrine system into the blood stream, but it's movement and action in the broad sense of the term.And an emotion consists of a very well orchestrated set of alterations in the body that has, as a general purpose, making life more survivable by taking care of a danger, of taking care of an opportunity, either/or, or something in between.  And it's something that is set in our genome and that we all have with a certain programmed nature that is modified by our experience so individually we have variations on the pattern.  But in essence, your emotion of joy and mine are going to be extremely similar.  We may express them physically slightly differently, and it's of course graded depending on the circumstance, but the essence of the process is going to be the same, unless one of us is not quite well put together and is missing something, otherwise it's going to be the same.And it's going to be the same across even other species.  You know, there's a, you know, we may smile and the dog may wag the tail, but in essence, we have a set program and those programs are similar across individuals in the species.Then the feeling is actually a portrayal of what is going on in the organs when you are having an emotion.  So it's really the next thing that happens.  If you have just an emotion, you would not necessarily feel it.  To feel an emotion, you need to represent in the brain in structures that are actually different from the structures that lead to the emotion, what is going on in the organs when you're having the emotion.  So, you can define it very simply as the process of perceiving what is going on in the organs when you are in the throws of an emotion, and that is achieved by a collection of structures, some of which are in the brain stem, and some of which are in the cerebral cortex, namely the insular cortex, which I like to mention not because I think it's the most important, it's not.  I actually don't think it's the number one structure controlling our feelings, but I like to mention because it's something that people didn't really know about and many years ago, which probably now are going close to 20 years ago, I thought that the insular would be an important platform for feelings, that's where I started.  And it was a hypothesis and it turns out that the hypothesis is perfectly correct.  And 10 years ago, we had the first experiments that showed that it was indeed so, and since then, countless studies have shown that when you're having feelings of an emotion or feelings of a variety of other things, the insular is active, but it doesn't mean that it's the only thing that is active and there are other structures that are very important as well.

The 5Rhythms – Flowing Staccato Chaos Lyrical Stillness ™ – are states of Being. They are a map to everywhere we want to go, on all planes of consciousness – inner and outer, forward and back, physical, emotional and intellectual. They are markers on the way back to a real self, a vulnerable, wild passionate, instinctive self.

In Flowing, we physically practice the art of being fluid in our bodies. Flowing is the pipeline to our inner truth, the impulse to follow the flow of one’s own energy, to be true to oneself—listening and attending to our needs, receptive to our inner and outer worlds. When we open up to the flow of our physical beings, all other pathways open. It is one of the most beautiful and fascinating ways of dancing—to be in, to be around, and to watch. Men and women that embody the Rhythm of Flowing are supple, flexible, surrendered and trust their feet to lead them where they are meant to go.

In Staccato we physically practice the power of masculine energy. It is percussive and strong and promotes connection with the rest of the world. Staccato is the gateway to the heart. It shows us how to step out into the world connected to our feet and our feelings. This rhythm is the ruler of our linear world, the ruler of the warrior part of us, the part of us that shows up as truth and clarity. It is the part of us that stands up for what we care about, who we love, and what we love. Staccato is the fierce teacher of boundaries. And it is the protector and ambassador of our fluid being. Visually, a man or woman fully embodied in the Rhythm of Staccato is defined, clear, connected and not fearful of the transparent expression of their heart. Whether dancing Staccato alone, in partnership, or in groups—it is always a powerful experience.

In Chaos we physically practice the art of fully releasing our bodies - we let go of the head, spine, hips and feet and move faster than we can think. Chaos breaks us free of our illusions and throws us headfirst into the beat. It takes us on the journey from “I can’t” to “I will”. The simple practices of Chaos immediately bring us back to our bodies, to the moment. This rhythm liberates us from all ideas about who we are and gives us a real experience of being total, free, intuitive and creative. Chaos is the gateway to the big mind. Dancing Chaos is the practice of going into the unknown, not fearing what’s on the other side. Visually we look like a big, hot, giant, sweaty mess overflowing with cathartic energy. This is our big dance, our break out dance, our break through dance.

In Lyrical we practice the art of coming out of Chaos. It is the physical, energetic, emotional and spiritual dancing rebirth. The practice of Lyrical teaches us how to break out of destructive patterns and surrender into the depths of the fluid, creative repetitions of our soulful self, bubbling up from the deepest parts of ourselves, to the integrity and dignity that we often forget is within us. Lyrical is expansive and connects us to our humanity, timeless rhythms, repetitions, patterns and cycles. Lyrical is more of a state of being than a Rhythm, as it can be a crystal clear expression of any of the Rhythms in their lightness. We become light in our feet, like birds flying in the air—but make no mistake, in Lyrical we are grounded and fully empowered.

Being Still and doing Nothing are totally different. Stillness moves, both within and all around us. The dance is our vehicle, our destination is the Rhythm of Stillness; our challenge is to be a vessel that keeps moving and changing. Physically, in the dance of Stillness, we move in slow motion—like highly unpredictable meditative Tai Chi masters. Shapes from the past, the present and the future come through us—shapes of the Feminine and the Masculine and the magic dance they do together. Moving in Stillness and being still in motion fuses the accumulation of our bodies’ life experiences into our true wisdom. Eventually we dissolve into sitting meditation, where all the other Rhythms of our journey converge in the vital resonance of Stillness. Each time we dance into Stillness, we practice the art of making humble and mindful endings interpreted by our higher connected self. This carries through to all of our endings in life—the end of this dance, this day, this relationship, or this life cycle. Good endings mean taking responsibility for the whole journey, distilling wisdom from our experience so that we may begin the next wave or cycle clean and not carrying the past with us.

http://www.5rhythms.com/

Why do we crave love so much, even to the point that we would die for it? To learn more about our very real, very physical need for romantic love, Helen Fisher and her research team took MRIs of people in love — and people who had just been dumped.

Anthropologist Helen Fisher studies gender differences and the evolution of human emotions. She's best known as an expert on romantic love, and her beautifully penned books — including Anatomy of Love and Why We Love — lay bare the mysteries of our most treasured emotion. 

Helen Fisher's courageous investigations of romantic love -- its evolution, its biochemical foundations and its vital importance to human society -- are informing and transforming the way we understand ourselves. Fisher describes love as a universal human drive (stronger than the sex drive; stronger than thirst or hunger; stronger perhaps than the will to live), and her many areas of inquiry shed light on timeless human mysteries, like why we choose one partner over another.

Almost unique among scientists, Fisher explores the science of love without losing a sense of romance: Her work frequently invokes poetry, literature and art -- along with scientific findings -- helping us appreciate our love affair with love itself. In her research, and in books such as Anatomy of Love, Why We Love, and her latest work Why Him? Why Her?: How to Find and Keep Lasting Love, Fisher looks at questions with real impact on modern life. Her latest research raises serious concerns about the widespread, long-term use of antidepressants, which may undermine our natural process of attachment by tampering with hormone levels in the brain.

Social media is dominating most of our attention throughout the day. Yet, is it truly changing our face-to-face relationships? Dr. Dan Siegel, clinical professor of psychiatry at the UCLA School of Medicine reveals how social media is actually physically rewiring our brains.

Dance has been used therapeutically for thousands of years. It has been used as a healing ritual in the influence of fertility, birth, sickness, and death since early human history. Over the period from 1840 to 1930, a new philosophy of dance developed in Europe and the United States, defined by the idea that movement could have an effect on the mover vis-a-vis that dance was not simply an expressive art. The actual establishment of dance as a therapy and as a profession occurred in the 1950s, beginning with future American Dance Therapy Association founder Marian Chance.

The theory of dance movement therapy (DMT) is based mainly upon the belief that body and mind interact. Both conscious and unconscious movement of the person, based on the dualist mind body premise, affects total functioning, and also reflects the individual’s personality. Therefore, the therapist-client relationship is partly based on non-verbal cues such as body language. Movement is believed to have a symbolic function and as such can aid in understanding the self. Movement improvisation allows the client to experiment with new ways of being and DMT provides a manner or channel in which the client can consciously understand early relationships with negative stimuli through non-verbal mediation by the therapist.