15 Crazy Facts About The Siachen Glacier That Will Make You Love Our Soldiers Even More

Minus 45 degrees Celsius is not a joke.

Even when you are equipped with the best snow gear and clothes in the world. The human body simply refuses to work normally in these conditions where your body literally screams for oxygen.

But even if human bodies refuse to work normally in these harsh conditions, our soldiers with their human bodies do not. They toil on, day after day, guarding the highest battlefield with the will to protect it from the enemy.

It is more than just a hard task. You have to really think about the hardships they face every day to realize the sacrifices they make every day, even if they do not lose their lives.

1. There is no telling when the next resupply helicopter might come

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Because the weather is very unpredictable and the pilots risk their lives even in the clearest of days by going to such a high altitude.

2. On bad days, there is zero visibility.

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And zero means zero. You cannot even see the hand held up right in front of your eyes. This is the reason soldiers tie each other with ropes so that no one loses sight of the comrade in such blizzards.

3. And it lasts for months – literally for more than 30 consecutive days

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And when it lasts for an extended period of time, resupply becomes impossible and the soldiers have to make their present supplies last until the storm clears – which could be days or weeks, who knows.

4. There are no beds for the soldiers to sleep on

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Beds take up a lot of space. So the soldiers just store the supplies and use them as beds.

5. It takes 3 hours to heat up a bucket of water for a wash

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They cannot have proper baths because the water will simply not remain warm long enough. They give themselves a good wash, that’s all.

And we complain if our geyser doesn’t work for one day.

6. You have to poop out in the open, and there is no saying if you might return or not

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The Army has started providing soldiers with bio-toilets now, but not all bases have them. Soldiers walk in deep snow and defecate in the open.

Their biggest danger is a crevasse that is hidden under a thin layer of snow which can bury them almost instantly.

7. Isolation can drive people mad, and hence, they keep busy

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The psychological effects are as bad as physical effects. On bad days, they have nothing but themselves to spend their time with. Books and makeshift games and the monotony of maintaining operational logs keeps them sane and busy.

8. Soldiers get to call home once a week for just two minutes

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They are allowed one call a week for just two minutes via a satellite phone.

There have been cases where some soldiers give up their quota of two minutes to another soldier, just because he misses his loved ones more.

9. Memory loss, speech blurring, frost bites, lung infections

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Just a normal day at the office for our brave soldiers.

10. 869 soldiers and officers have died as for 2015

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Bullets are the last thing soldiers have to fear here.

11. Leading killer of them? Blood clots.

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One-third of all the causes of deaths was because of blood clots.

The chances of a human body to develop blood clots is 100 times higher in Siachen than on sea level.

12. Each soldier carries 30 kilos of load at all times

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This includes patrolling long distances every day.

13. Your sweat literally freezes and crackles between your skin and clothes

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Because it is so cold, nothing stays liquid, even under 7 layers of protective clothing.

14. It takes soldiers 2-3 hours to relieve themselves and they take laxatives too

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Even normal and healthy persons have it difficult to get regular bowel movements.

Each session that should normally last 10-15 minutes lasts for 3-4 hours, after taking a lot of laxatives.

Every day.

15. You can get a sunburn and a frostbite at the same times

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The cold is harsh, and so is the sun. If soldiers stand outside in the sun for long, they get frostbites and sunburns at the same time.

Humans should break in these conditions, but somehow our valiant soldiers soldier on.

Why?

Because they have somehow trained their bodies that they have become superhumans?

Maybe.

But their ruggedness is beyond the physical. It is the will to protect our borders with all their strength – mental and physical, and love for their motherland.

Superbrain Yoga: 3 Minutes That Maximize Brain Power

A baby is born into the world with around 100 billion brain cells (neurons), give or take a few million. The brain is so important to the human species that four weeks after conception, an embryo produces half a million neurons every minute. In fully developed humans, a complex system of 300 million neurons connects the brain’s right and left sides, but they are so minuscule that 30,000 of them can fit on a pinhead.

To make the most of one’s brain, it needs to be exercised and nurtured, just like every other muscle of the human body. Synapses – points of the brain connections – have to be created and conserved for the brain to stay alert and healthy throughout adulthood. How can a parent ensure their child’s development is constantly improving during school? What could a parent of a learning disabled child do to help them develop?

One option is Superbrain Yoga. This simple squat exercise offers benefits not just for young students, but also adults seeking brain wellness into their senior years and patients with Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD), Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Down Syndrome, Alzheimer’s, or other development challenges and cognitive delays seeking normalcy and cures.

The Science Behind Superbrain Yoga

Based on the research of Dr. Joie P. Jones of the Dept. of Radiological Sciences at the University of California, the exercise works using the body’s energy centres which absorb, digest, and distribute energy to different parts of the body. These primary energy centres are actually major acupuncture points. Acupressure energy points for the brain, eyes, forehead, mouth, ovaries, parotid, temples, and testes congregate around the area of the ear affected by pressure from the exercise. In addition, the finger pads used in the exercise stimulate neuropathways into the brain by activating acupuncture points on the earlobes. According to Dr. Jones, after doing the exercise, an EEG scan shows the right and left hemispheres of the brain have synchronized.

When done correctly, the Superbrain Yoga exercise helps the energy trapped in the lower energy centres move up through the physical body’s other major centres. As the energy travels upwards, it passes through the practitioner’s heart centre and fills it with feelings of calm and inner peace. When the energy moves up further into the throat and beyond, the practitioner’s intelligence and creativity are improved. Other benefits include regulation of the sex drive, which is especially important for teenagers.

We are a culture accustomed to exercising to get fit, but with the power of the Supebrain Yoga squat we can now become brighter in the process! Prolonged practice of the Superbrain Yoga makes the practitioner, in general, smarter and more psychologically balanced.

How To Energize & Activate The Brain

To ensure you achieve maximum benefits:

1. Face East. For the elderly, face North.

2. Remove any jewelry and connect your tongue to the roof of your mouth. Leave it there throughout the exercise.

3. Take your left hand, cross your upper body to take hold of your right earlobe with thumb and forefinger. Make sure that the thumb is in front.

4. Now take your right hand across your upper body to take hold of your left earlobe. Again, make sure that the thumb is in front. At this point you’re pressing both earlobes simultaneously. Make sure your left arm is close to your chest and inside your right arm.

5. Inhale through your nose and slowly squat down to the ground.

6. Hold your breath and exhale as you start making your way back up to a standing position.

7. Repeat this squatting action 14 times. Remember to keep holding your earlobes and to keep your tongue touching the roof of your mouth throughout the entire exercise.

When To Expect The Results

To maximize the benefits of this practice, make it a fun daily habit with your child when getting ready for school or even after school when they need a re-charge. For teenagers, the best way is to lead by example and also make the first 30 days a together practice (proven by first-hand experience). You will start to see results in the first three months of daily repetition, and in seven months your child will improve their cognitive abilities (and average in school) by 20 – 35%, but by that time what once was just an exercise will become a great habit you’ll want to keep all your life – one that will ensure your next generations grow up healthy and smart. 

The One Thing You Should Be Doing For A Bloat-Free Belly

• .I’m a self-proclaimed whole food junkie, and have been eating this way for years. You'd think my eating habits would ensure that I felt 100% all the time, but despite my diet, I often found myself bloated on seemingly random days

For a long time, I thought certain foods might be irritating my gut, so I tried eliminating several suspects with no luck. I even tried various prep methods — mostly raw, mostly cooked, soaked nuts — but no matter what I did or eliminated, I continued having uncomfortable days of bloating.

Recently, I did a 14-day purification program and was feeling great the few couple days. But, on day four, my stomach was bloated and uncomfortable again. So I thought hard about what I'd done differently on that day. Then I remembered the container of raw carrots, celery and radishes I'd taken to work with me and how I'd eaten them while bouncing around the office doing several different tasks.

Then it dawned on me: I had only chewed each bite of food a few times before swallowing. I was so busy doing other work that not only was I not taking the time to enjoy the food, I wasn’t chewing it well either. I’ve known about the importance of chewing food many, many times before swallowing and eating with mindfulness for a long time. But I didn’t realize how often I was doing just the opposite.

Considering how much our food needs to be broken down for good digestion, it’s no wonder my stomach was feeling bloated. Can you imagine the work my digestive system was going through trying to break down big pieces of carrot and celery? From that day on, I shifted my habits just a bit and have been happily bloat-free ever since.

Here are my new happy-belly habits:

1. Focus on eating.

Ideally, we’d all have a lot of time to sit and enjoy every meal, mindfully participating in each bite. Unfortunately, this isn't realistic for most people. But 30 seconds is possible. Stop what you’re doing and chew your food well before moving on.

2. Chew, chew, chew, then chew a few more times.

I haven’t been counting how many times I chew, but I try to remember the more chewing I do, the less stress I put on my gut. Less stress means less bloating. Less bloating means a happier, healthier me.

3. Take smaller bites.

I realized that when I’m on the move while eating or not being mindful, I take bites that are too big, leading to swallowing food before it's chewed really well to avoid having a full mouth. Take smaller bites so there’s enough room to chew things up well.

4. Avoid super hot and super cold foods.

Similar to taking smaller bites, eating foods that are comfortable in temperature will make chewing easier. When foods are super hot or super cold, we tend to chew as little as possible before swallowing them. When things are a pleasant temperature, you won’t mind chewing a few extra times before swallowing.

For me, it goes without saying that a real food diet with minimal processed foods is a big part of healing the body and minimizing stress. But if you’re someone who loves their veggies and values real food but still gets a big, bloated belly too often, try shifting into the habit of chewing a few more times and being mindful while you eat. You’re only a few habit shifts away from a bloat-free belly.

Blessed moon sighting of Rajab al Mubarrak Mubarrak to all.
All roads lead to Ajmer Sharif as 1st of Rajab marks the beginning of the blessed
Sheb e Aros / Urs Mubarrak of
Hazrat Khawaja Moinudeen Hasan Chishty(ra) Known as Khawaja Gharib Nawaz(ra) until the 9th of Rajab al Mubarrak. Celebration of Love, Life , Faith and Serving Humanity at the blessed Sufi courtyard of Dargah Ajmer Sharif - India. Come one Come all and get immerse in the blessed ocean of Unconditional Love.
Bas ek hi Awaz ya Gharib Nawaz.