Free Republic

The investigation into Italy’s cable car disaster that killed 14 people will focus on why the lead cable snapped and why the emergency brake didn’t engage and prevent the cabin from careening back down the mountain until it pulled off the support line and crashed... Transport Minister Enrico Giovannini visited the site Monday and announced a commission of inquiry to investigate the “technical and organizational causes” of the disaster, while prosecutors will focus on any criminal blame. The transport ministry said a preliminary check of the cable line’s safety and maintenance record show that the whole lift structure underwent a...

FORMER Vice President Mike Pence underwent surgery to have a pacemaker implanted on Wednesday after experiencing "symptoms with a slow heart rate" over the last two weeks. The 61-year-old underwent the procedure at a Virginia hospital yesterday and is now recovering, his office said in a statement.

A New Jersey gym owner is riffing on Krispy Kreme’s popular offer of free donuts for vaccinated customers — by handing out free memberships to people who don’t get vaccinated. Ian Smith, co-owner of The Atilis Gym, located in Bellmawr, NJ, tweeted out the provocative offer earlier this week, kicking up a storm of controversy in the process. "In light of @krispykreme giving free donuts for receiving the CVD shot, here at @TheAtilisGym we are giving out free memberships to all who don’t get vaccinated. We believe in health – the real way – exercise, good diet, plenty of Vitamin...

Eighties pop is the best musical genre for reducing blood pressure, due to its 'positive nostalgia', researchers have found. Turkish researchers hooked up 1,540 volunteers aged between 18 and 65 to blood pressure and heart rate monitors and played them a variety of music on Spotify. Music from the hit TV series It's a Sin, which is heavy with tunes from the likes of Eighties legends Wham!, Pet Shop Boys and Duran Duran, were more effective at reducing blood pressure – an indicator of low anxiety – than 10 other genres. Other genres effective at decreasing blood pressure were Noughties...

Stress hormones and immune cells called neutrophils may awaken dormant cancer cells and cause tumors to regrow -- even after treatment -- according to a study published Wednesday by Science Translational Medicine. The findings may explain why cancers can return long after seemingly being cured with chemotherapy or surgery, the researchers said. In addition, targeting stress hormones with U.S. Food and Drug Administration-approved beta-blockers, typically used to treat irregular heartbeats, potentially could help prevent tumors from returning, they said. "Tumor recurrence may be facilitated by common stress," study co-author Dr. Dmitry Gabrilovich told UPI.

SARASOTA, Fla. (WWSB) - This year’s election season has been very intense and has taken a mental toll on many. According to the American Psychological Association, 68% of Americans say that the 2020 presidential election has added significant stress to their life. The APA says this is a large increase from the 2016 presidential election, only 52% said the same thing. Dr. Chippy Ajithan, the Mindful Cardiologist, says when you feel yourself becoming stressed, you can do breathing exercises to help. “The breathing technique does it takes our sympathetic nervous system ...our brains are spinning. It brings it down and...

Doctors and dentists are reporting more cases of cracked teeth and insomnia as the coronavirus pandemic takes a toll on the nation’s stress levels. PepsiCo’s latest drink Driftwell is pitching itself as a way to combat the problem. Pepsi employees came up with an idea for a beverage to help consumers de-stress and relax before bed as part of an internal competition started last year by CEO Ramon Laguarta. The concept won, and the food and beverage giant went to work to make it a reality. Emily Silver, vice president of innovation and capabilities at Pepsi’s North American beverages unit,...

It’s not just the loss of jobs, the end of school for children or the nonstop panic the mainstream is stirring up in an effort to knock out President Trump. The COVID-19 panic is having even more profound effects on the American society. “The number of people looking for divorces was 34 percent higher from March through June compared to 2019, according to new data collected Legal Templates, a company that provides legal documents,” Fox News reported. The combination of stress, unemployment, financial strain, death of loved ones, illness, homeschooling children, mental illnesses, and more has put a significant strain...

Cleveland Clinic cardiologists have seen a notable increase in cases of broken-heart syndrome during the coronavirus pandemic, indicating the psychological and emotional stress of the crisis is adversely affecting physical health. Broken-heart syndrome, the colloquial name for stress cardiomyopathy, causes dysfunction or failure in the heart muscle. Patients experience symptoms similar to a heart attack, but usually do not have acutely blocked coronary arteries. Doctors commonly attribute it to psychological, social or emotional stress. None of the patients with stress cardiomyopathy that the Clinic observed during the pandemic tested positive for COVID-19. This led researchers to conclude that stress is...

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Awareness Day is an opportunity to draw attention to PTSD, raise awareness for the treatments available to those affected, and recommit to supporting Americans who are burdened by this disorder.Post-traumatic stress disorder results from having experienced or witnessed a terrifying event.  The most common traumas associated with PTSD are sexual and interpersonal violence, being involved in a car accident, witnessing serious injury or the death of another person, or being in combat.  Those experiencing PTSD often struggle to control their emotions and may have unexpected outbursts, often straining supportive personal relationships and causing them to...

As a small business owner providing a discretionary home-improvement service I am hyper-focused on how corona could absolutely decimate small businesses, from landscaping to retail to restaraunts and so much more. My observations, (I'm located in Central Ohio), are as follows. First, I am entering what is typically my busiest time of year. As soon as 2 weeks ago business was looking record strong for the coming year. Appointments and sold jobs were almost double what they were same time last year. Then last week everything went from rush to trickle. So far, somehow, I've managed to actually still get...

Like most people, you probably deal with your fair share of workplace annoyances. From the meeting that gets rescheduled yet again to managing your overflowing inbox or navigating the tricky world of team dynamics, your stress levels may spike multiple times throughout a single day. How are some people able to stay calm and productive in response to challenges while others are easily rattled? To find answers, let's look to those who have mastered the art of composure under pressure: The U.S. Navy SEALs. In fact, neural scans show that some SEALs have a remarkable ability to remain calm in...

If the prospect of climate change makes you stressed, anxious or depressed, you aren’t alone. With reports of some children becoming terrified by climate change and the protest group Extinction Rebellion holding “grief-tending workshops”, there is an increasing awareness of so-called eco-anxiety. The phenomenon is significant enough that psychotherapists met in London on Saturday to discuss how best to manage the dread and fear people are experiencing over our impact on the planet. “Eco-anxiety is a term that’s used a lot, but it’s misguided if it’s not used in the right way,” said Sarah Niblock of the UK Council for...

A former Hezbollah leader was found dead in his apartment outside of Beirut Sunday, Lebanese media outlets reported. Sheikh Ali Hatoum, who was a senior member of the Iranian-backed Shia terrorist organization before his departure from the group two years ago, was found dead in his home in Bourj el-Barajneh, a suburb of Beirut. Citing unnamed sources, Lebanon24 reported that there was “no security action related to the killing of the [Hezbollah]” official, noting that Hatoum was no longer affiliated with the terror group. No cause of death has been reported thus far, and local officials are expected to make...

As an heiress to the Disney fortune, anything Abigail Disney says about the brand beloved by millions worldwide garners attention. And she’s calling out Walt Disney Co. CEO Bob Iger for his nearly $66 million yearly salary, saying he isn’t doing enough to rectify the huge gap between his own earnings and that of other Disney workers. “Bob needs to understand he's an employee, just the same as the people scrubbing gum off the sidewalk are employees,” Disney said during an interview with the Yahoo News show Through Her Eyes. “And they're entitled to all the same dignity and human...

Harrington, who is probably best known for his role as Jon Snow, reportedly checked into the luxury facility in Connecticut called Privé-Swiss several weeks ago ahead of the show’s finale on May 19...The actor broke down in tears when he learned his character on the show would in the end kill his love Daenerys Targaryen.

snip Rosmann, an Iowa farmer, is a psychologist and one of the nation’s leading farmer behavioral health experts. He often answers phone calls from those in crisis. And for 40 years, he has worked to understand why farmers take their lives at such alarming rates – currently, higher rates than any other occupation in the United States. snip Last year, a study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found that people working in agriculture – including farmers, farm laborers, ranchers, fishers, and lumber harvesters – take their lives at a rate higher than any other occupation. The...

You're stressed out. I'm stressed out. We're all stressed out. It's official: New Jersey is the most stressed out state in the U.S. (at least according to a recent report by Zippia). Garden State? More like The Agita State. Is it our long work hours? Having to sit in traffic on Route 1 (probably)? Are there just too many people in this state and we're all driving each other insane?

It’s past five o’clock on a Friday night and you are reading this article as a break from a mountain of work that needs to get done before Monday. You think, well, this is adulting, but at least there is good takeout! But are most Americans pulling all-nighters after graduating college or sitting in traffic for hours a day to get to their jobs? Actually, are many Americans struggling to even find a job?

Stress management technique, recommended in all the latest psychological journals. The funny thing is that it really does work and will make you smile: 1. Picture yourself lying on your belly on a warm rock that hangs out over a crystal clear stream. 2. Picture yourself with both your hands dangling in the cool running water. 3. Birds are sweetly singing in the cool mountain air. 4. No one knows your secret place. 5. You are in total seclusion from that hectic place called the World. 6. The soothing sound of a gentle waterfall fills the air with a cascade...