BRIEFS
Self-kindness Boosts Healing Being kind to yourself improves both mental and physical health, according to a recent study in the journal Clinical Psychological Science. Researchers at the University of Exeter and the University of Oxford assigned 135 study participants to various groups that focused on self-compassion exercises, negative thoughts, neutral thoughts or excited thoughts. They found an increase in selfcompassion and less self-criticism after selfcompassion exercises and focusing on feeling positive excitement. The people practicing self-compassion exercises, however, also showed signs of a psycho-physiological response, such as a reduced heart rate. The study suggests that self-kindness alters physiological responses in the body associated with stress. Positive thoughts replace negative thoughts, which can change a person’s vulnerability to depression and other mental health problems. The author says that by switching off our threat response, we boost our immune systems and give ourselves the best chance of healing. It’s possible to train our minds just like we train our bodies.
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Hello to Our New Trustees Glenn Gorlitsky, MD, is the son of a decorated WWII sergeant who was injured in the war and worked the rest of his life at the Veteran’s Administration caring for disabled vets. Dr. Gorlitsky was exposed to his father’s patients at an early age and worked in a prosthetic shop making limbs for them. The experience made an indelible impression on him and inspired him to become a physician. Dr. Gorlitsky was the first person in his family to attend college, earning a New York State Regent scholarship to SUNY at Stony Brook where he received a federal grant to study photosynthesis. As valedictorian of the School of Biological Sciences, he was awarded a full academic scholarship to attend Yale University Medical School. At Yale, he published a research project on reproductive physiology that is still referenced today. He graduated with honors and joined UCLA’s clinical faculty, where he remained for many years. In 1979 he joined Saint John’s. Two years earlier Dr. Gorlitsky married his wife, Kendra, who attended medical school at USC. She is a professor of medicine at USC and serves as medical director of the Program for Torture Victims, an internationally recognized organization caring for people tortured in their home countries. The Gorlitskys have three children: Leryn, Brienne and Garett. Brian Webber is the chief executive officer and co-founder of American Discovery Capital (ADC), a merchant banking firm based in Los Angeles that operates a lower-middle market buyout fund and a global advisory business providing merger and acquisition and capital raising services. Before co-founding ADC, Webber was partner at Moelis & Company (MC). He completed numerous mergers and acquisitions and a number of successful merchant banking transactions. Prior to joining MC, Webber was global head of technology investment banking at UBS Investment Bank. He joined UBS from Donaldson Lufkin & Jenrette (DLJ) in 2001, following its sale to Credit Suisse, where he co-founded the firm’s technology group. Webber graduated with an MBA from Harvard Business School in 1993 and magna cum laude with a bachelors degree from the University of Utah in 1989. He and his wife, Megan, have been married for 21 years and have three children. He is a founding supporter of “Know the Glow,” a charity started by Megan Webber that provides awareness and support to help cure childhood blindness. Webber is an Eagle Scout and board member of the Western Los Angeles Boy Scouts of America Council and the Emerald Bay Development Board. SAINT JOHN'S MAGAZINE
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