MOM’S VOICE CAN CALM FRAYED NERVES

11:00 a.m. – Your boss calls you to his cabin; and yells at you for not having completed the report he asked you to.

12:00 noon – Your lunch comes in late and it’s half cooked. You lose your cool, but there isn’t much you can do, because you’re already running late.

4:00 p.m. – Your boyfriend/girlfriend calls up. He/she picks up a fight with you for some silly reason.

It’s an established fact – You’re having a bad day. Well, make that HORRID!!!

Try calling your mom at such a time. It might help!!!

According to a study by the researchers at the University of Wisconsin, a mom’s voice can calm frayed nerves.

How was the research conducted?

The researchers chose around 61 girls and their moms to take part in the experiment. The aim was to check if a voice could have the same or similar effect as physical hugs and kisses. The girls chosen were in the age group of 7 to 12. They were instructed to solve some math problems in front of a panel of judges. These sorts of activities are bound to get a child’s heart racing.

The researchers measured the levels of two powerful hormones; viz. oxytocin (bonding or love hormone as it is called) and cortisol, in the children before their performances began.

Co-author of the study, Seth Pollak, said that ‘earlier studies had proven that oxytocin was released when there was a certain amount of physical contact involved’. The researchers were curious to know the outcome would be if only contact through the phone was initiated. Would it be possible to prove that a mom’s voice can calm frayed nerves?

What happened?

When the girls finished their presentations, they were sent to one of the three rooms that had been prepared for them.

In room one, the mothers of some girls were waiting; and they got to reassure their kids in person. Most mothers were seen telling their kids ‘I’m sure you did fine. You always do so well’.

In room two, the girls were made to talk to their mothers on the phone. They got a verbal showdown on the lines of the physical contact that the girls in room one received.

The girls from room three were taken to watch the heart-warming film ‘March of the Penguins’.

The findings –

When researchers measured the hormone levels later, the oxytocin levels had risen in the girls who had been in physical contact with their mothers. Surprisingly, though, the girls who had spoken to their mothers on the phone also showed an increased level of oxytocin in their system.

The girls who had watched the movie saw no increase in oxytocin. However, cortisol levels (hormone that is released when you’re anxious or tense) continued to be elevated even an hour after the performance had ended.

Reasoning –

Earlier literature on the topic had been based on studies conducted on rodents. This was what caused the lack of evidence on non-physical bonding.

The reason that they chose preteens was that these kids fell into an age-group wherein they were still connected to their mothers. As a person grows up, the relationship between their mothers and them becomes more strained and complicated.

Pollak has ensured that, in the future, he and his team will conduct comprehensive research to see the findings on these complicated relationship sets.

Had you ever thought that your mom’s voice can calm frayed nerves with the zap of a magic wand? I guess it proves that some relationships need some rethinking.

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