🌱 Field Notes: March 2025 🌱
Meditations for phone addicts, how Ozempic turns the shame volume down, thoughtful end-of-life planning, the cutest owls & more
Hello, dear friends,
Thank goodness that April is around the bend, which also means it’s almost National Poetry Month! Poetry has the power to connect, comfort, and illuminate.
Maybe you’d be interested in finding a few more poets you like?
My lovely friend
— past newspaper teammate, roommate, travel buddy, and fellow word lover — and I have conjured up a project for National Poetry Month. It’s for people with a budding interest in poetry and those who would simply love to be among poetry friends. We are calling it Poetry Buds, and we’ll be sharing 1 poet every day during National Poetry Month.Here’s a glimpse of a few poets we’ll be spotlighting …
David Whyte
Julia Cameron
Amanda Russell
John O’Donohue
Reginald Dwayne Betts
Sign up for Poetry Buds here.
Below is this month’s collection of Field Notes, interesting reads and resources I’ve come across recently. I hope you find something fascinating, soothing, or helpful — or maybe all three.
To our journeys,
Brianne
Our Last Best Act
I’m typing this Field Notes to you from 37,000 feet up on an airplane, flying home from a beloved uncle’s memorial service. The considerations of how our bodies are cared for after we die feel acute.
In this
essay about her father’s and her own end-of-life preparations, Mallory McDuff begins:I hope to be around for a long time,” my father said, “but I’ve written my funeral plan so we’re all prepared.”
This is a beautiful and thought-provoking essay. Read the full post
Ozempic is a Sophisticated Mind/Body Drug
I confess, I am generally skeptical of weight loss drugs and the overall culture push to lose weight or equate weight with health. So I hadn’t been reading much about the buzz over Ozempic. Then I came across
’s explanation of how Ozempic does its work in the brain, which was surprising and fascinating. She does include how it is not for everyone and that the serious risks need to be balanced with the potential benefits. But here’s what I did not understand at all before, as Dr. McBride explains:Ozempic “treats mental health, specifically by targeting the part of the brain where ruminations about food, eating, and body size fester. Ozempic is a sophisticated mind/body medication that helps people turn the volume down on shame and turn the volume up on their sense of agency in areas where they need it the most.”
“My patients for whom I’m prescribing Ozempic (and who are taking it for the appropriate FDA-approved reasons such as type II diabetes and obesity) are not only losing weight and improving their diabetes, they are unlocking the very mechanisms that got them there in the first place.”
Katy Rose Bennett singing “The Stars Called You Home”
An UK folk singer, Katy Rose Bennett shares exquisite songs, often in multi-part harmonies all sung by herself. She set Donna Ashworth’s ‘The Stars Called You Home” poem to music, and it’s just the best thing I’ve heard in a long while. Let your body feel wonderful by listening, too:
Listen to Katy’s gorgeous song on YouTube.
Cautionary Tale: On tears and detatchment
In a recent edition of the terrific newsletter
, Amy shares a harrowing story of her husband (“Baldy”) noticing a strange shadow moving across his eye — which turned out to be a signal that his retina had a tear and was becoming detached. This is medical emergency and requires surgery. Amy generously details what he went through and what to do if you experience something similar. (In Part II, it turns out the surgery didn’t take, so he has to return for a second operation. Nooooo!) All fingers are crossed for a smooth and full recovery, and I’m sending many well wishes for Baldy.(As always, The Tonic is also packed with useful links about Long Covid, ME/CFS, and a million other health-related resources. It never fails that I find something useful.)
Read the full post on retinal detachment plus Amy’s reflections on her 5-year anniversary of Covid.
“Cognitive Shuffling” to help you fall asleep
Do you have trouble falling asleep? Do thoughts churn and churn, keeping you awake, even when your body is exhausted? You might want to try cognitive shuffling, a way of focusing your mind on words that have no connection to another. This mental distraction was developed by Luc P. Beaudoin, a Canadian scientist. Here’s how it works, according to a New York Times article:
You start by taking a random word — “Pluto,” for example. Then think of as many words as you can that begin with the same first letter, like so: “Plane, poodle, play, peaches.” When you run out of “P” words, you can move on to the next letter of your original word, which is “L,” and do the same thing: “Love, light, lemur, linger.” Take a second or so to visualize each word."
A little wacky, but perhaps it will work for one of you!
Read more about cognitive shuffling. (NYT gift link)
Meditations for Phone Addicts
So many of us are phone addicts — I reach for my phone far often than I’d like. What can be done? I loved this philosophical and practical examination by
, which begins:“The modern soul finds itself divided. In one hand, we hold a device—a small, glowing rectangle that promises connection, knowledge, and distraction. In the other hand: nothing. And it is this nothing that terrifies us.”
The post offers meditations on six specific common acts, moments when we slip to our phone, such as when we first wake to the day and when we feel the urge to “check in.” If you are a fan of Oliver Burkeman, who wrote 4000 Weeks, you’ll likely enjoy this.
Who's Fallen for a Text, Email, or Phone Scam?
This link falls in the financial health realm, which I don’t touch on much in Odyssey of the Body, but perhaps I should (would you be interested?) — financial health has a huge impact on our overall well-being. Financial scams are multiplying, a sort of a terrible digital virus. I appreciated
’s post in her wonderful that chronicled the scams both she and her mother have encountered, as well as more shocking stories in the comments. This is a worthwhile read for real-life examples of what’s happening out there and what to watch out for in scam emails, texts, and more.Read the full post.
You know that colleague who raises their hand at the end of a meeting to “just ask a few questions”?
I’ve written before about the need to process emotions, to “complete the stress cycle.”
shares how she funnels her frustration into writing. She could run, scream, or vent, but instead, she opens up her notebook. She explains:I cannot even count how many of my scenes that feel urgent and interesting and exciting were written because something happened earlier in the day that bothered me, and I had no socially appropriate way to express it.
And this is significant: I’m never writing about the thing that was actually bothering me. I am simply using that energy to light up some other thing.
In other words, make your frustration work for you. You might not be able to change the world — but you can make art.
Read the full post, which comes with a prompt and more.
The Ugliest Machine Alive Solved My Night Sweats
I appreciate when people share the nitty-gritty of what worked for them, especially when it’s a common, vexing problem. (Even when it’s pricey or unusual, it gives me ideas…)
(of the fabulous ) suffered from terrible night sweats. Finally she found this oddball device called the BedJet 3 Climate Comfort Sleep System. Claire writes:“The gadget is basically a central-air unit under your covers. A shoebox-size hub rests under the bed and plugs into the wall. An air hose connected to the hub attaches to the side of the mattress to blow continuous air above the top sheet. It took minutes to install. When I turned it on with the remote, the hose blew a stream of air, like a vacuum cleaner in reverse, between my covers. The effect, accompanied by a whirring white noise, puffed up my comforter like a mushroom. I thought this would be hard to get used to, but after one night, the pleasure of sleeping without sweat overrode the soft purring of the motor and the gentle air-current feeling. Now I could either sleep naked or wear a full, long-sleeved set of pajamas and never wake up sweaty. It was a miracle.”
Read the full story. (The Strategist)
Just for Fun: Owls in Towels
The cutest thing I’ve seen in a while — photographs of rescue owls wrapped in towels.
Visit more Owls in Towels.
From the Odyssey of the Body Archive:
p.s. Our first Poetry Buds comes out this Tuesday, April 1. If you’d like to be in on it from the start, sign up here:
Thanks for the shout out! I just got back from Mexico and I took my bed jet with me once I learned they use the same outlets as we do in the States.
So much great stuff in here, Brianne. The YouTube song was beautiful and reminded me of a dear elder I lost last year, who was so special to so many. I immediately texted it to five people ⭐️. Thank you for that gift.
The Dostoevsky blog quote: OOF. Hits home.
A long hauler friend of mine was put on Ozempic and talks about how much quieter the “food noise” is in her head. Pretty amazing.
And thank you for including my cautionary tale! (and for the ringing endorsement 😊).