Changes that you can make to improve your health - recent research

Turn off the lights at night – A study in The Lancet found that people who were exposed to the most light between 12:30 AM and 6 AM were more likely to develop diabetes than those who remained in darkness during that timeframe.  It looks like it is healthier to keep the room dark at night.

Eating more fruits and vegetable may help you sleep better – Researchers from Finland looked at the relationship between how long people slept and fruit and vegetable consumption.  People who ate fewer fruits and vegetables either slept less or slept too much. (Medical News Today, June 6, 2024)  This gives us another reason to eat our fruits and vegetables.  It is especially something to consider if you are having trouble sleeping.

Drinking coffee may lower health risks from being sedentary – Researchers in China found that people who drink coffee live longer than people who do not drink coffee.  For people who were inactive and sat more than 8 hours a day, those who drank coffee lived longer. (A note on coffee – it has an antioxidant effect which can boost health.  However for some people it can have some downsides like jitteriness and gut issues.  You should work with your health care provider to find out if it may or may not be beneficial for your health). (Medical News Today, June 25,2024)

Having gratitude is healthy – A study of 49,000 older people in the nursing profession found that grateful people had lower rates of early death.  Grateful people have also been found to have better cholesterol, better immune system function, less inflammation, less cardiovascular disease risk and less depression.  This is something we can all do to improve our health.  Think of three thing for which you are grateful each day and write them in a journal or offer a prayer of thanksgiving.

Equine Therapy - How I got started

Donny and me

I was one of the horse crazy little girls. I painted horses, I collected horse statues, I pretended that I was a horse, I wrote down the names of the horses I owned in my imaginary stables, and I read every horse book written for children and some that were not. I did everything I could to try to ride or be around horses. 

 “One of the earliest religious disappointments in a young girl’s life devolves aroung her answered prayer for a horse.”  Unknown

 As life went on, I put my horse dreams aside. I was busy with nursing school, working and then graduate school in Psychiatric Mental Health Nursing.

I enjoyed my work as a nurse but was finding it more and more stressful.  When I started working full time as an AIDS clinician I found things to be extremely difficult.  I loved my work and my patients but I was finding the work emotionally exhausting.  This was in the early days of the AIDS epidemic when there were not good treatments and so many patients died.  There was much stigma back then, many nurses and other providers would not care for patients and I found that I was always fighting to get patients the care that they needed.  I needed to find a way to manage my own mental health.  Traditional therapy didn’t seem to help. I had reiki treatments which helped but were emotionally exhausting.  I saw an ad (for a car, I think) that said “It’s better to realize your dreams than have them analyzed.”   I decided to pursue my dream of riding and horses.  And the journey began.....

Horses have saved my life and allowed me to work for so many years as a nurse and as a nursing professor. It has been quite a journey and I have learned so much about myself and about the healing power of horses. I have reached a time in my life when I want to share this with others.

Benefits of Compassion

Photo - Dave Lowe

Learning compassion has been found to lead to happiness. There is scientific evidence that compassion decreases stress, lessens pain, helps the immune system, increases cooperation and saves healthcare costs.

Compassion training involves getting into state of quiet concentration and extending caring feelings to other human beings. Self compassion involves extending caring feelings for ourselves as we would care for others. With self-compassion, we treat ourselves the way we would treat a friend who is having a hard time.

Compassion is more than understanding pain and suffering, it is the aspiration to alleviate suffering. It is wanting to help. It is taking action. It is saying “I know that this is a tough time for you. I want you to know that I am here with you.” It is extending feelings of caring.

Mindful Self-Compassion involves self-kindness, common humanity and mindfulness.

• Self-kindness - Instead of attacking ourselves for mistakes, we offer ourselves warmth and unconditional acceptance.

• Common Humanity - It is important to understand that we are all works in progress. Everyone fails, makes mistakes and experiences hardship. We are not alone in suffering or pain.

• Mindfulness - Being aware of the present experience and allowing yourself to be open to your thoughts, feelings and sensations.

Try this:

Take some deep, slow breaths. As you inhale, breathe in compassion for yourself. As you exhale, breathe out compassion for others.

Think:

Think about a time that a friend was struggling or had made a mistake. How did you respond to them. Now think about a time when you have been struggling or had made a mistake. How did you respond to yourself? Did you treat yourself differently? Could you be a better friend to yourself?

Think “How can I help?”

Tips for Time Management

Tips for Time Management

Use a planner – Write down appointments, classes, meeting due dates, etc in a planner.  You can use a notebook style planner or a computer system.  Do what works for you.  It helps to be able to see the both big picture and what you have to do for each day.

Break it Up – Large tasks can be overwhelming to face.  One of the best ways to succeed is to break large tasks into smaller manageable pieces which are much easier to start.  Build in accountability by putting the parts of the project or task on your calendar and give yourself deadlines.

You can eat an elephant a bite at a time.

Don’t let perfect be the enemy of “good.”   You can waste a great deal of time and energy in search of perfection.  Think about how you are using your time and what things can be “good enough.”   Would a “B” be okay or do you need an “A”?  Could your house be clean enough rather than spotless?  Can you take some meal preparation shortcuts?

Set Priorities – Know what is most important and what is least important.  You will want to allocate most time to the things that are most important.

“Things which matter most must never be at the mercy of things that matter least.”  Goethe

To do list – Write down the things that you need to do. A to-do list helps you stop using mental energy to remember everything that need to be done.  To combine prioritizing with a to-do list, I use the following method.  I do this at the beginning of every week. I list three things that I must accomplish that week.  I then know to focus my attention on those things and make sure that I make time for them.  I list three things that I should accomplish that week and then three things that I could accomplish.  In the “could do” list I include things that may be nice but not absolutely necessary that week.  I also include things that can be easily checked off, such as making an appointment.

Must do

1.

2.

3.

Should do

4.

5.

6.

Could do

7.

8.

9.

Ta Da List

Write a list at the end of the week describing your accomplishments.  It feels great to know that you got some things done and can be very motivating.

Prayer and Memory

Benefits of Prayer

 Another reason to pray – It helps preserve memory

 A study of 1135 people 50 years of age and older was conducted over twelve years.  Findings illustrate the benefits of prayer in preserving memory. People who reported that they pray had better memory scores at the beginning of the study. A very interesting finding was that as the participants aged, memory scores of prayer users increased compared with nonusers of prayer.  Meditation was not found to have a statistically significant effect on changes in memory in later life. This adds to the evidence that religious activities positively influence cognitive function and brain health.

 Lekhak, N. & Zauszniewski, J.A. (2020). Episodic memory in later life: Benefits of prayer and meditation. Journal of Holistic Nursing, 38 (1). 30-40.

Healthy Non-dairy Drinks

I wanted to pass on a couple of my favorite recipes for healthy non-dairy drinks. 

Here’s my favorite for when you are in the mood for something warm. It contains the healthy spices of turmeric, ginger and cinnamon:

Mix one cup of almond milk, ¼ tsp turmeric, ¼ tsp ginger, ¼ tsp cinnamon and 2 tsp honey or raw sugar and heat on the stovetop.  The amounts of the spices do not have to be exact and you can use less honey or sugar if you wish. 

 You can also make this as a cold drink, you just need to stir well.

I love this smoothie:

In a blender mix 2 cups of almond milk (or your choice of non-dairy milk like coconut or rice milk), a handful of frozen blueberries, a banana (can be frozen), a little raw sugar or honey and blend until mixed.  You can add a few ice cubes if you wish.

 Tip:  When I have bananas that are getting too ripe, I peel them and break them in chunks and put them in the freezer to use in smoothies.  Also, Costco has large bags of frozen blueberries that are inexpensive.  I like to put them in yogurt too.

Tea is always good.  I have re-discovered Constant Comment tea.  I love it warm but I have lately been making pitchers of iced tea.  I put three tea-bags in a 2- quart saucepan of water, boil, let cool and put it in a container in the refrigerator so I can have iced tea anytime.  You can add a little sugar if you wish.

Enjoy!

Photo by Nathan Lenz

Stress Management Tips for Nurses, Nursing Students and everyone else

1.    Get enough sleep.  Try not to work or study where you sleep.  Make sure there are no screens or blue lights in your sleeping area.

2.   It’s okay to nap.  A 20 to 30-minute nap is okay and may help with memory (longer than that may affect night time sleep).

3.   Eat well.  Consider using weekends and off days to plan for days that you will be busy.  Cut fruits and vegetables for the week, make soups or salads, make extra portions of meals that you can re-heat at work or on evenings when you are tired.  Have healthy emergency foods (nuts, granola bars, etc.) that you can eat when you are hungry to avoid the danger of junk foods.

4.   Bookend your days.  Get up a little earlier so that you can have a few moments of relaxation before you rush off to school or work.  You may consider reading something inspirational or use a positive affirmation in the morning.  Do the same in the evening before bed.

5.   Exercise daily. Go for a quick run between study times. Take stretch breaks. Take short (or long) walks. Yoga is a great way to provide both exercise and relaxation.

6.   Over-prepare for things and you will feel more confident.

7.   Be early.  Running late is very stressful Get everywhere early and use downtime to imagine being in a relaxing place or to breathe deeply.

8.   Have a signal at work to remind yourself to take a deep breath and relax- like every time you open a door or enter a room or every time that you answer the phone. Every stressor is a reminder to breathe. Rather than getting frustrated when waiting, use that time to imagine a relaxing place or focus on your breathing.

9.   Have a transition from work or school to home life. Go for a walk before you go home or drive to someplace with a relaxing view and meditate for a few minutes