Unit 3 Reflection

In the final part of this unit we learned about the respiratory system. One of the main jobs of the circulatory system is to get oxygen to the tissues and carbon dioxide away from the tissues; the respiratory system is the system that brings the oxygen into the body and carbon dioxide out of the body. The air flow coming in goes through the nose or mouth and down the pharynx (throat). The epiglottis covers the trachea when we swallow to protect our airways, but in this inhale it is open. The air goes over the larynx and vocal chords, the area that produces sound, and down the trachea. The trachea then branches off into 2 bronchi then into bronchiole branches and finally aveoli. The aveoli have very thin membranes and are surrounded with capillaries. This is the junction between the circulatory system adn the respiratory system. Now is is up to the circulatory system to pump the freshly oxygenated blood to the rest of the body. The diaphragm is the muscle below the lungs driving the breathing process.  An inhale is when the muscle actively moves down, but an inhale is passive. This is why when people die they have that final "death breath," the sigh before they die; they are relaxing into death. There are various respiratory diseases and disorders. There are ones where the respiratory system becomes inflames, such as sinusitis (sinus), bronchitis(bronchioles), pleurisy (pleura), Emphysema (aveoli). The enlarged structures cannot preform their task adn therefore cause a bodily response. Then there is infection such as pneumonia, tuberculosis, URI, LRI, and influenza. Lung cancer has a tumor in the lungs and asthma makes the bronchial walls spasm. Cystic fibrosis is when the mucus in the lungs is over produced.
This unit I stayed more on top of my notebook and did my relate and reviews as the notes were finished. I would like to write out the concepts on the study guide to help me study. My previous knowledge of horse anatomy has helped me through this unit. I know that when a horse cuts an artery it will be bright red and bleed with a pulse, but when they cut a vein it is dark red and bleeds steadily. I have tried to implement the better understanding I have of cholesterol and heart disease to my eating habits. I have been conscience of eating lower amounts of bad fats and not over carb-suming. This should help lower the LDL levels in my blood and eating good food choices should help raise the HDL levels overall resulting in me lowering cholesterol. The respiratory system I know has a large impact on working out. I had a chest x-ray last year and now I understand that they were looking for any irregularities in my lungs that could be signs of problems. I use deep breathing when I start to panic to calm myself down. This engages my parasympathetic nervous system and makes me feel calmer. Something I would like to work on for the next unit is connecting the new information I learn to what I know about the other systems and my health. I have begun to do this with the deep breathing and prior knowledge of horses' circulatory systems. This will help me lead a life with healthier decisions and improve my overall health.
Last unit's goal of making real life connections I think I have grown in. This unit I really thought about the circulatory and respiratory problems my family and I have and tried to understand what is really happening. I hope to continue relating the units to my life. As for my goal of healthily managing stress, I am still working on that. There are various mental hurdles I must overcome before I can truly have stress without sacrificing a part of my health.