2. 
ROPES Academy is currently being taught to
inmates in two jails in Utah.

This is the second session in a series of ten.

ROPES was created to help participants view
conflict and life from a different perspective
and enhance engagement skills.

This course includes skill-based training and
focuses on finding solutions to conflictentrenched thinking processes.

3. THOUGHTS, WORDS, ACTIONS

4. THOUGHTS STIMULATE
EMOTIONS WHICH THEN RESULT IN
ATTITUDES AND FINALLY PRODUCE
BEHAVIOR.
Therefore, toxic thoughts > toxic
emotions > toxic words > toxic
attitudes> toxic behavior.

5. What’s in a thought

When you think, chemicals course
through your body in a complex
electrochemical feedback loop.
At any one moment, your brain is performing about
400 billion actions, of which you are only conscious of
around 2,000.
Works Cited
Leaf, C. D. (2008). Who Switched Off My Brain? Dallas: Switch on Your Brain USA Inc.

6. WHAT’S IN A THOUGHT

Certain thoughts and goals make us feel good by creating
feel-good chemicals in our body

However, after an initial surge the feel-good chemicals
dissipate

It’s often during these “down” times that we will behave in
ways that will bring the surge of good-feeling chemicals
back. Sometimes these behaviors that started as a good
thing can become a bad thing with serious consequences.

Can you think of any?

Works Cited
Graziono Breuning, Loretta, PhD. Meet Your Happy Chemicals. System Integrity Press , 2012

7. WHAT’S IN A THOUGHT
FOUR
HAPPY
CHEMICAL
S
2012 L. Breuning
Dopamine
The joy of finding what you seek
Endorphin
The oblivion that masks pain
Oxytocin
The safety of social bonds
Serotonin
The security of social dominance
Used for ROPES with permission of author

8. HAPPY
SURVIVAL
MOTIVES
2012 L. Breuning
Dopamine
Motivation to get what you need even if it takes a
long time
Endorphin
Motivation to ignore pain so you can escape from
harm when you’re injured
Oxytocin
Motivation to trust others and find safety in
companionship
Serotonin
Motivation to get respect (thereby expands your
mating opportunities and protects your offspring)
Used for ROPES with permission of author

10. What does the research say about
negative thinking?
87% of illnesses can be
attributed to our thought life.
13% to diet, genetics, and
environment.
Studies conclusively
link more chronic diseases
to an epidemic of toxic
emotions as a result of negative
thinking.
Works Cited
Leaf, C. D. (2008). Who Switched Off My Brain? Dallas: Switch on Your Brain USA Inc.

11. Emotions that release a torrent of
chemicals that can do the most damage
are:
Unforgiveness
Anxiety
Anger
Frustration
Rage
Fear
Resentment
Grief
Depression
Guilt
Worry
Works Cited
Leaf, C. D. (2008). Who Switched Off My Brain? Dallas:
Switch on Your Brain USA Inc.

12. Toxic emotions can cause:
Works Cited
Leaf, C. D. (2008). Who Switched Off My Brain? Dallas: Switch on Your Brain USA Inc.
Migraines
Hypertension
Strokes
Cancer
Skin problems
Diabetes
Infections
Allergies
Just to name a few.

13. What’s in a thought

Medical science has directly linked
emotions, such as depression, to an
increased risk of cancer and heart disease.

Studies also point to a direct correlation
between anxiety, fear, and:
heart palpitations
irritable bowel syndrome
tension headaches
heart problems
Works Cited
Leaf, C. D. (2008). Who Switched Off My Brain? Dallas: Switch on Your Brain USA Inc.

14. What’s in a thought

There is no doubt that WHAT and HOW
you think affect your emotional and
physical state.

YOUR MIND AND BODY ARE
INTEGRALLY CONNECECTED!

15. The Physiology of Emotions
Every time we build a memory we have
an emotional
reaction (chemicals),
no matter how small. All this
is stored in the tiny little
amygdala.
Works Cited
Leaf, C. D. (2008). Who Switched Off My Brain? Dallas: Switch on Your Brain USA Inc.

16. 
Our emotions are literally cellular signals
(chemicals) that translate information into
physical reality.
Works Cited
Leaf, C. D. (2008). Who Switched Off My Brain? Dallas: Switch on Your Brain USA Inc

17. 
The point is:

18. THOUGHTS THAT
SABATOGE:

I must do well.

You must treat me well.

The world must be easy.
Demanding an unrealistic
performance from yourself and
others puts your mind and body in
stress mode and thus has negative
effects on your health.
Works Cited
Leaf, C. D. (2008). Who Switched Off My Brain? Dallas: Switch on Your Brain USA Inc

19. How do I know if this applies to me?
Ask yourself the following questions:







How many “should-haves, could-have, or would-haves”
have you uttered today?
How many “if onlys” were part of our inner vocab today?
How many times have you replayed a conversation or
situation in your head that pained you?
How many scenarios have you created of the
unpredictable future?
How much time do you spend speculating about the
past?
Are you forming a personal identity around a problem or disease?
Do you ever make comments like “nothing ever goes right for me,”
“everything I touch fails,” or “I always mess up”
Works Cited
Leaf, C. D. (2008). Who Switched Off My Brain? Dallas: Switch on Your Brain USA Inc

20. Making a change

Consciously decide to change the way you
think. One way we can do this is to create a
new narrative about our self and our life.

Consciously controlling your thoughts is not
just the first step in this process; it is the main
step.

Ideas to consider to change stinking thinking…

21. 1. CHANGE YOUR WORDS
“The words you speak are electromagnetic life forces that
come from a thought inside your brain and are influenced by
your five senses.”
“They contain power and work hand in hand with your
thought life, influencing the world around you and the
circumstances of your life.
Speak
positively – To yourself and others!
Works Cited
Leaf, C. D. (2008). Who Switched Off My Brain? Dallas: Switch on Your Brain USA Inc

23. word

The words we speak feed into our brain, reinforcing the
memory they came from. So..

When you make a negative statement, you release
negative chemicals.
Works Cited
Leaf, C. D. (2008). Who Switched Off My Brain? Dallas: Switch on Your Brain USA Inc

24. 
Negative chemicals lead to negative memories that grow
stronger, eventually becoming a negative attitude.

“Talking out loud enhances your ability to think by
stimulating the corpus collusum (our thinker) to function
on a much higher level” (p. 112).
Works Cited
Leaf, C. D. (2008). Who Switched Off My Brain? Dallas: Switch on Your Brain USA Inc

26. 2. THINK ABOUT WHAT
YOU’RE THINKING ABOUT!
1. Begin to notice if your thoughts are mostly
POSITIVE
or
NEGATIVE
2. Ditch unrealistic thinking…
I must do well
People must treat me well
Life must be easy
3. Make a conscious decision to accept or
reject a thought.

27. WHAT’S IN A THOUGHT
REVIEW:
We
experience both positive and negative thoughts and
emotions.
We
can curtail some of the negative emotions by
learning to think positively
There
are 3 common thoughts that sabotage us. Can
you remember what they are?
What
is one thing you can begin to do today to stop
negative thinking?

28. SIMPLE SOLUTION
One simple solution to begin changing our
attitudes and thought processes includes
adopting an attitude of….

29. APPRECIATION
TOP 10
Appreciation asks for nothing - gives
everything.
2. It is the antidote (solution) to fear.
3. FACT: It’s physiologically impossible
to be appreciative and fearful at the
same time.
1.
Baker, D. P. (2003).
01/29/14
29

30. APPRECIATION – TOP 10
4.
It is a prerequisite to happiness.
5. During appreciation your brain, heart, and
endocrine system work together and heal in
harmony.
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30

31. APPRECIATION – TOP 10
6.
Our language shapes our perception of reality
(social constructivism).
7.
Positive emotions increase problem-solving and
mental focus.
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31

32. APPRECIATION – TOP 10
8. Appreciation (even more
than positive thoughts) is an
unparalleled force for healing
the mind and body.
9. Positive attitudes, actions,
and connections influence
long-term change.
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32

33. APPRECIATION - #10
10. Truest form of appreciation is GIVING to
someone else (aka – altruism).
 Altruism is appreciation in action. It creates
oxytocin (we’ll study this more in later sessions)
 Studies show happy people are altruistic.
 The experience of giving takes you outside
yourself and pulls you away from your own:
Problems
Fears
Self-involvement
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33

34. Altruism – Cont’d

Altruism (giving) bonds you with other people.

It empowers you to love others even when they
don’t love you.
Anyone (most people, in fact) can hate a hater!

When you give to someone else, you are the one
who feels best. Giving is getting.

Next week we’ll begin class by stating one thing
we appreciate.
01/29/14
34

35. WHO AM I?
I AM THE
FACE OF
ALTRUISM
01/29/14
35

36. Wha
t do
app
reci you
ate
toda
y?

37. THE END
I HEART
RESOLUTION
www.iheartresolution.com
01/29/14
37

38. WORKS CITED

Baker, D. P. (2003). What Happy People
Know. New York: St. Martin's Press.

Graziano Breuning, L. P. (2012). Meet
Your Happy Chemicals. System Integrity
Press.

Leaf, C. D. (2008). Who Switched Off
My Brain? Dallas: Switch on Your
Brain USA Inc