February 23, 2012

Stress Relief: How to Handle Life’s Nasty Curveballs

July 25, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Stress. Just hearing the word causes one’s blood pressure to rise. According to the American Institute of Stress, it’s the #1 health problem in the country. Yet, for some reason, we tend to let it rule our lives. But why should we let this nasty hang around?

Think about it. If you had a friend who continuously increased your heart rate, had you feeling anxious and caused you many sleepless nights, you would give them the boot, right? So why on earth do we let stress hang around when it does all of those things?  Often there are solutions to our stress like a paycheck advance when money is tight, or tips to reduce your stress at work.  This is the guide to manage all of life’s many issues.

Erasing Stress

 Stress has become the nasty little friend that we can’t seem to get rid of. If you are a woman, you are three times more likely to report experiencing stress than your man.

What can you do if you want to say goodbye to stress? Well, unless you shut yourself off from the modern world, not much. There are, however, different ways you can deal with the stress that pops up in your life.

Home Sweet Stress

 Stress in the home is a big trigger for many people. Depending on your lifestyle, there are many things which can be triggers such as

  • screaming children,
  • fighting parents,
  • noisy neighbors, and
  • no privacy

to only name a few.

Dealing with stress in the home can be tricky. Although situations can be short term, some can last longer, especially if a situation such as divorce or illness is introduced. Although caring for your family is probably your number #1 priority, it is important to take time out for yourself.

It could be anything, from a few minutes to an entire day. Catch up with a friend, read a book, or meditate. Do whatever your heart desires, and maybe later down the track your heart won’t palpitate from all the stress!

Working Is a Health Hazard

 According to The National Institute for Occupational Safety

  • 40% of workers surveyed reported that their job was very or extremely stressful
  • 25% of workers surveyed viewed their jobs as the number one stressor in their lives
  • 26% of workers surveyed said they were “often or very often burned out or stressed by their work”

For many, work related stress is created from being a ‘yes’ person. These are the lovely people who take on any task shoved at them. The only problem for them is that, even though this may look favorable to bosses, the added and unnecessary workload creates pressure and, ultimately, stress. If this sounds like you, then it’s time you start saying no.

Although doing anything and everything asked of you may do your career good, what good is a career if you don’t have your health? Pace yourself and only take on as much as you can handle and that is within your job description.

Stress Is a Part of Life

 Stress is a significant contributor to illness and disease. Trauma experienced at a young age can continue to cause problems  throughout a person’s life. The stress of such traumatic incidents as abuse, an accident, or even a major illness such as Leukemia can continue to have ramifications into adulthood.

Counseling can help keep stress from childhood trauma under control. It can be through a professional therapy session or just a casual chat with a family member or friend. Bottling emotions up inside will only feed the stress monster, so share the load and it will lighten a little. If you’re feeling stressed and don’t have anyone to talk to, write it down in a journal.

Take Some Advice from Country Folk

 Scientists have recently found that those living in cities experience higher levels of stress than those who live in the country. Sounds contradictory, doesn’t it? Of those who participated in the study, it was found that those who lived in cities have weaker coping mechanisms for stressful situations than those who did not live in cities.

Surely those who live in bustling cities would be more adapted to stressful situations because they would be surrounded by them every day. According to the scientists, not so! A country reprieve allows the mind and body to recuperate and gather its thoughts, so to speak. If you live in a city, the chaos does not allow you to do this.

If you live in a bustling city, take a day trip on the weekend to escape the rat race for a few hours. If you live near a coastline, visit a beach. If not, find a quiet park to enjoy some time with family or friends, or just to meditate!

Money Can’t Buy You Love…

 But it can buy you stress! Many people list finances as a major stressor in their lives. Whether it be too little or too much (yes that’s right, some people stress because they have too much money), the financial burden can be agonizing. In the current economic environment, some of the leading causes of stress include:

  • job loss,
  • mortgage foreclosure,
  • debt and
  • bankruptcy

If you suddenly find yourself in a stressful financial situation, ways of bringing in some extra cash include:

  • having a clean out and a yard sale
  • selling home made goods to neighbors
  • doing odd jobs for people, such as lawn mowing or dog walking
  • renting out a spare room or car space
  • getting a payday advance

The Body Remembers

 Old habits die hard. For many, when a stressful situation emerges, they run for comfort food. This will only end up making the situation (and your health) worse. If you are feeling stressed, skip the cookies and go for a walk, a run, or turn up the music and dance around your bedroom.

Bad habits we have developed as children to deal with stress follow us into our adult lives. The more you reinforce these bad habits, the stronger they become. Taking the first step to healthier stress management is hard, but every step gets easier.

The more steps you take, the more your body will remember to think of activity instead of food in a stressful situation. Your health (and your waistline) will thank you later!

CONCLUSION:

If all else fails, laugh at yourself! Laughter and the act of smiling increases the production of endorphins in the brain. They’re what will get you feeling good when you’re feeling stressed.

Watch a funny movie or just joke around with your friends. It will not only help to relieve all of your stress, it will improve your health and make you feel better. And anyway, If you can’t laugh at yourself, who can you laugh at?

Filed Under: Mental Health Guidance, Tips & Tricks

Helping Children Cope With Doctor’s Visits

June 16, 2011 By Leave a Comment
House / Playing Doctor 

Image by lior shapira via Flickr

Doctor’s visits can be hard for adults so just imagine how difficult it can be for children. The buildings are often large and cold in spite of efforts to the contrary and with all the sick people sitting around, children may wonder if the place causes illnesses. A routine visit can be overwhelming but there are some ways to help them cope.

Read a children’s book about doctors

Many times we take for granted that children know what doctors do and some parents may believe it is not necessary for a child to know. Imagine if you were going to a strange man in a white jacket who wanted to look down your throat and you had no idea why! Reading a book about what doctors do can make them more comfortable with the idea.

Explain the visit beforehand

Preparing a child the day before will help a child deal with negative emotions and give them time to ask questions. Dragging a child into an unusual place without preparation can cause anxiety.Giving them an explanation of what will happen can cause them to feel more at ease and even look forward to the experience.

Play doctor

Children learn and process things through play time. Dress up as a doctor and walk your child through some of the activities they will experience. Look into their eyes, ears, throat and create fun by making up silly request like “do jumping jacks” Allow the child to be the doctor and be a willing patient, by the time the actual visit comes around they will feel secure and more willing to participate.

 

Filed Under: Tips & Tricks Tagged With: , ,

Helping a child cope with sick siblings

June 13, 2011 By Leave a Comment
Sibling Shot 

Image by eryn.brianna via Flickr

It is hard enough for parents to deal with children that suffer with illnesses but when additional children are also part of the equation, the stress and concerns can be unbearable. Sadness, fear, jealousy,worry, guilt are just some of the emotions children endure when their siblings are ill. Already burdened parents may not even consider the stress the other children are under or they may feel guilty themselves for the pressures on the family.

Help children cope by providing a listening ear

A child that is healthy physically may be struggling emotionally. Ask how they are feeling and allow them to express themselves without being angry or judgemental. If you routinely get the answer “fine” or “o.k.” with no elaboration, have them write down what they are most scared of, excited about or worried about. Giving them a prompt may get the ball rolling.

Have a special time for the healthy child

Children with siblings that are ill often feel neglected and then feel guilty because of it. Having a time set aside for the well child to do something fun or spend quality time with mom or dad can go a long way in maintaining important relationships and showing the child that they are still important.

Let them help

Adults are not the only ones who have feelings of helplessness. Show a sibling that they are needed by teaching them simple tasks to help their brother or sister, this will create family unity and prevent feelings of isolation. Do not force a child to participate using threats or guilt but do give them the opportunity to be involved.

Filed Under: Tips & Tricks Tagged With: , ,

Don’t Let Your Family Go without Health Insurance

May 15, 2011 By Leave a Comment

The cost of health care rises every day, and so does the cost of insurance. Many families feel they cannot afford insurance because their budget is already strained, and they justify this saying that they are generally healthy and hardly ever have to see a doctor. It is fine for individuals to make decisions like this for themselves, but it is a problem when children do not have medical coverage and therefore their parents resist taking their children to a doctor when they become sick.

One trip to the emergency room can cost upwards of $10,000 without insurance. This should be one justification for why health insurance is something nobody should be without. Plus, an extended hospital stay can easily reach the six and seven figure digits, which would be impossible for someone without insurance to pay.

Insurance, however, does more than pay the bills. It gives people peace of mind knowing they will be able to receive the medical care they need during an emergency. It is literally a matter of life or death in some cases. If you are without medical coverage, you really should buy health insurance, even though you are going to have to rework your budget to accommodate for the expense. It could end up being the best thing you have ever purchased in your life.

If you think the costs really are too high for health insurance, there are usually government programs that can help out. You just have to do some research and see what is available in your area. Health insurance programs for children are usually inexpensive and easy to find through the government.

Filed Under: Tips & Tricks Tagged With: , ,

Dealing With Your Health Care Provider’s Negligence

May 11, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Just an example, of course: maybe you live in Chicago or something like that. The point, though, is — no matter where you live — to get the issues presented in court, because this is your health we’re talking about. Specifically with the number one reason for medical malpractice sitting on the horizon — substance abuse — justice is paramount and completely within your rights. No fears — when the wrong has been committed, no matter how much the cost for the court, a lawyer can be, you’ll come out on top.

Medical malpractice isn’t something to take lightly. Take action. Don’t just move on, because you never know how many other patients out there suffer needlessly because of a doctor’s negligence

 

Filed Under: Tips & Tricks Tagged With: , ,

Should breastfeeding be encouraged among Western Women?

March 28, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Breast cancer rates in Western countries are dramatically up and despite the myriad breast awareness programs, breast mammograms and periodic self evaluations by western women, breast cancer occurence shows no sign of abating.

According to American Cancer Society, almost one in eight women in Western countries, especially North America will be victims of breast cancer during their life times.

One of the reasons why breast cancer rates have been so high is that the level of clinical evaluations and statistical oversight has been more thorough and pervasive over the last 3 decades compared to early 20th century when such pervasive monitoring and statistical oversight was not the norm.

Billions of dollars in money, millions of man hours by experts around the world have still no conclusive answer as to what life style factors and choices can permanently guard against breast cancer occurence, however, there has been some evidence that early pregnancy between 18-27 years of age, a generous regimen of breast feeding for at least one year for each baby, and a healthy diet low in red meat and high in green leafy vegetables and citrus fruits does help women protect themselves against the cancer to some extent.

There has been no conclusive evidence for or against hormone based contraceptives in terms of culpability in driving the breast cancer rates higher, but a detailed and timely conversation with ones health counselor is necessary to find out which contraceptive pills contain the least amount of estrogen and progesterone so that until the debate is over, women can err on the side of caution by taking either progesterone only mini-pill or the lowest dose combined oral pill which meets their requirements. Breastfeeding does lead to a natural contraceptive like outcome in women. Therefore breastfeeding combined with rhythm method based contraception might be an attractive susbst

A healthy and regular excercise routine combined with plenty of breastfeeding might go a long way towards stimulating the breast tissue and strengthening the immune system, and this might help prevent breast cancer in particular and other cancers in general.

Filed Under: Tips & Tricks Tagged With: , ,

What vaccination strategy and techniques should be adopted for Avian Flu?

March 16, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Many experts believe that it is only a matter of time before Avian flu becomes communicable from human and human on a mass scale and causes havoc around the world.

During World War I tens of millions of young men and women died from the H1N1 Spanish flu virus, primarily in Europe. The enormous death toll and ruination of Europe occured at a time when there was no air travel, and aea travel was also quite restricted. Compared to that era, today the air travel is much more prevalent and hundreds of millions of people travel around the world as tourists, visitors, businessmen, students or traffickers and smugglers.

As a result the potential for Avian Flu to spread across the globe in a very short period of time is enormous and governmental and non-governmental organizations around the world are pondering what strategy should be best for combating the outbreak of human to human spread of bird flu.

It can take weeks and perhaps months to make hundreds of millions of flu shots, not quick enough to prevent as many as 1 Billion deaths around the world, and even then there is no guarantee that the flu shots will be quickly and safely transported.

Current Technology which involves intramuscular injection of flu vaccine is time consuming, needs trained professionals who can administer the shot without infecting the tissue or injuring the recipient especially children, requires large amount of dose per shot and is costly.

On the other hand intradermal flu shots developed by Sanofi Aventis is less consuming, does not need trained professionals to administer the non-invasive shot, is kid friendly and requires 1/5th to 1/10th the volume needed for intramuscular injection. Rapidly transporting 1/5th to 1/10th the volume is far more feasible and logistically easier when Billions of lives are at stake. Intradermal Flu shots is the right strategy for controlling Avian Flu pandemic.

Filed Under: Tips & Tricks Tagged With: , ,

Will Intradermal Flu vaccine supercede Intramuscular Flu Vaccine?

March 7, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Flu shots have typically been administered intramuscularly for decades in people of all ages. However modern immunological research has shown that delivering the vaccine intramuscularly is a far more invasive method and more than 90% of the vaccine is lost in the muscle and fatty matter under the skin and less than 10% is actually responsible for interacting with the immune system and conferring memory against seasonal flu.

Several pharmaceutical manufacturers such as Sanofi Aventis in collaboration with leading vaccine research labs around the world have demonstrated that flu shots if given intra-dermally, which means right under the skin, instead of deep inside muscle is a much more efficient way to confer the same degree of immunity as the muscle injections.

It has been known that epidermis and dermis, the two layers of skin are extremely rich in immune cells such as dendritic cells which are crucial for harnessing the power of the flu shot. As a result a needle only 1/10th the length of regular intramuscular needle is needed for intradermal injection, making this procedure much safer, less invasive and more friendly to kids as well as adults.

The intradermal injection goes only 1.5 mm deep inside the skin versus 15 to 20 mm deep for the intramuscular injection. The dose volume required for conferring immunity is at least 1/5th that of intramuscular injection. Intramuscular flu shots typically come in 0.5 ml volume, whereas intradermal injection sold under the brand name Fluzone in Europe comes in a compact 0.1 ml volume.

Intradermal injections also require only 1/5th to 1/10th of the dosage administered via intramuscular route. Americans should strongly appeal to State and Federal representatives to bring intradermal flu shots to US market.

Filed Under: Tips & Tricks Tagged With: , ,

Can one Child Policy help Africa overcome HIV epidemic?

March 3, 2011 By Leave a Comment

Among all the continents in the World, Africa has the highest birth rate, highest infant mortality rate, and highest maternal mortality rate and this demographic catastrophe shows no sign of abating.

Billions of dollars in Western money and expertise has been funneled in combating the scourge of AIDS as a result of HIV infections. In some countries in Africa such as South Africa, Cameron and Congo, as much as one tenth of the entire adult population is infected with HIV.

One of the reasons why efforts to rapidly curtail HIV have failed so miserably is because development aid has not focused on basic social issues such as elementary education, rudimentary health awareness, girl child and women’s education and the need to inculcate a one child policy among Africans.

Over last 60 years the population of Africa has grown by 500% from 200 million to 1.1 Billion and ever since the HIV virus was discovered in 1970s, tens of millions of new cases have been identified. Any HIV and AIDS awareness program no matter how well designed or well funded is likely to fail until Africa brings about a total turnaround from its current high fertility rate to something manageable such as that in Korea or Japan.

In next 30 years Africa’s population will expand from current 1.1 Billion to more than 2 Billion and as a result there will be an intense struggle for water, food and other development resources. HIV rates and other infectious disease rates are likely to remain very high until the current fertility rates of more than 5 children per woman are not managed and brought to a level such as that in developed and prosperous North-East Asia.

In order for one child policy to become a success, an educational revolution geared towards women and men on women’s health is necessary if the scourge of HIV is be dealt once and forever.

Filed Under: Tips & Tricks Tagged With: , ,

Tips on Staying Healthy During Pregnancy

March 1, 2011 By Leave a Comment

You’re fairly healthy person, and you are careful with the amount of exercise you get and the foods that you eat. Staying healthy throughout your pregnancy week by week should be a breeze, right? Not necessarily. The changes your body goes through during pregnancy can affect both your diet and your exercise routine.

Nutrition

Food cravings, eating for two, and battling nausea are enough to throw anyone’s diet off kilter. Go for regular checkups with your doctor or midwife to monitor your own health and the baby’s development. Consult with the professional to determine the best diet for your situation and pregnancy side-effects. Share the news with your family so they can help you with your health. Taking vitamins is particularly important during a pregnancy, especially if you are struggling to keep food down. A professional can recommend foods that will work with your body for optimal health.

Fatigue

Most women who’ve been through pregnancy will comment on the extreme fatigue experienced. This is particularly difficult to deal with when you work outside your house and don’t have time to lie down and take breaks. Grabbing caffeine can break down your immune system and disrupt your sleep cycles. Try eating foods that are rich in protein and iron such as leafy green vegetables and pasta. As you fight fatigue, try to maintain your exercise routine to help boost your energy.

Exercise

It’s not always easy getting up to exercise when you are exhausted or when you are feeling ill. However, exercise is a critical element to your health and well-being, especially when you are pregnant. Consider joining a prenatal fitness class if you need inspiration. If you are on bed rest, consult with a professional to find ways to keep your body in the best condition possible.

Keeping healthy during pregnancy is a challenge, but it’s possible. Do the best you can to stay healthy for your own well-being as well as for your baby’s.

Filed Under: Tips & Tricks Tagged With: , ,
« Older Posts