Winning and Losing

In case you hadn’t heard the NFL’s 60th Super Bowl was last night.  It is quite the spectacle with flyovers and halftime performances and of course a football game.

We here in New England were hopeful that our New England Patriots would prevail but it wasn’t to be.  The Seattle Seahawks won their third Super Bowl of the team’s beginning.

This has us thinking today about winning and losing.  You run into these two opposites all through your life.

You win some, you lose some as the old adage goes.

When you win at something it’s a great feeling, isn’t it?  You can be on top of the world depending on what it is.

There are big wins and little wins and at times the little wins can be more rewarding.

On the flip side, when you lose it can really take you down.  You might think about what you could have done differently.  

Maybe you should have prepared better or thought things through and come up with another plan.  Again, there are big losses and little losses.

Both big and little can feel that same sometimes.

Life is full of ups and downs,  managing them is the part that can get tricky.  Hopefully the small wins and losses don’t overwhelm.

The big ones, especially the losses can get you to think a lot and can start some people into a depression.

It feels like we all need to keep breathing and try to manage the good and bad as best we can.  Friends and family can be helpful and professionals are available if things begin to overwhelm.

Private Home Health Care wishes that each of you are filled with wins and that when the losses come you are able to feel supported to manage them successfully.  A new day always dawns.

Happy Birthday!

During this month of Black History we celebrate the birth of Rosa Parks. 

Rosa (McCauley) Parks was born in Tuskegee, Alabama on February 4, 1913.  She lived a long life passing away at age 92 on October 24, 2005.

Having grown up in the South, Rosa experienced racism in many different ways.  

When she married at 19, her husband was a civil rights activist.  She also became a member of the NAACP which had been operating since 1909.

She is often called the “mother of the civil rights movement”  after her first act of refusing to give up her seat on the bus to a white man in 1955.

She was fined but refused to pay.  The Montgomery chapter president, ED Nixon offered to help her fight the conviction.  The goal was to generate outrage nationwide.

The Montgomery bus boycott was the centerpiece led by Dr. Martin Luther King.  The boycott lasted 381 and started protests all over the country.

In November of 1956, the US Supreme Court pronounced that the Montgomery segregated buses were unconstitutional and that buses must be integrated.

Rosa and her stance were the beginning of this decision and helped spark a national civil rights movement.

Private Home Health Care celebrates the birthday of this strong black woman who said no on a bus in Alabama to bring about change.

Rheumatoid Arthritis

Rheumatoid arthritis is a very difficult form of arthritis.  

Osteoarthritis causes damage to your joints from overuse.  Rheumatoid is when your immune system attacks your bodies’ tissues by mistake.

It causes pain, swelling and inflammation like regular arthritis but it can do additional damage.  It can damage your heart and blood vessels as well.

In the US, arthritis appears in about 18.9% of the population.  Of that population about 1% have rheumatoid arthritis.

That is a smaller amount but if you are one of the 1% you have a lot to manage.  It is considered an autoimmune condition.

An autoimmune condition can be more challenging because the symptoms can be unpredictable and therefore hard to manage.

There is currently no cure for rheumatoid arthritis.  Early diagnosis and treatment is key to helping manage and alleviate symptoms.  

There are times when you can go into remission which is always the goal.  It is very important to be monitored by a medical professional.

Options for managing the condition:

Advil, motrin and aleve.  NSAIDs which are anti-inflammatory medications without a prescription.

Steroids – corticosteroid medicines like prednisone.  You cannot stay on this indefinitely but it could ease pain and hopefully put you in remission.

DMARDs – to slow progression.  

Conventional: Drug names include Trexall, Arava, Plaquenil, Azulfidine.

Biologic: Humira, Orencia, Simponi

Targeted Synthetic: Olumiant, Xeljanz, Rinvoq  (when the others have not worked)

Private Home Health Care understands how difficult a diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis can be. Keeping a positive outlook and managing symptoms go hand in hand.

Brussel Sprouts

Saturday is all about brussel sprouts.  You know there is a national day for many things and it turns out that tomorrow is National Brussel Sprouts Day.

You may be someone who hasn’t ever had a brussel sprout.  You might often feel that it’s not your favorite vegetable.

Let’s see if we can convince you to try them and better yet, add them to your list of vegetables that you often eat.  They are a powerhouse of goodness.

Helps to control blood sugar levels

Brussel sprouts are very high in fiber which helps to break down carbohydrates and slows digestion which keeps glucose from spiking.

Full of antioxidants

This vegetable is full of antioxidants to help protect your cells from nasty free radicals.

Supports gut health

The fiber not only helps with blood sugar but it aids your digestive tract too.

Facilitates iron absorption

Brussel sprouts pack a punch in Vitamin C.  Vitamin C helps with absorbing plant-derived iron, not so easy for your body to absorb.

Aids with Blood Clotting

Your body needs Vitamin K for blood clotting and brussel sprouts are a rich source of Vitamin K.

These are just a few of the benefits of adding brussel sprouts to your diet. How can you prepare them after you buy them at the grocery store?

• Roast them in the oven.  Add spices or olive oil and salt.
• Steam them on the stovetop.  Serve them as a side dish.
• Grill them.  Be sure to steam them a bit first to keep their texture.
• Stir-fry them.  Check how to prep them for this.

Private Home Health Care adds brussel sprouts to our grocery list often.  We love all the nutrients and the delicious flavors!

Carnations

Thursday is National Carnation Day.  This got us to wondering more about this seemingly common flower that appears in so many bouquets.

We learned that there are three kinds of carnations:  large flowered, dwarf-flowered and spray or miniature versions.

We also learned that you can grow them in your garden with more success in certain zones of the country.

Carnations are a perennial flower so plant once and they will come back.  These flowers are deer-resistant too but watch out for those rabbits.

Rabbits like to nibble on the leaves.

The botanical name for carnations is Dianthus caryophyllus.  Greek texts mentioned them so it appears that they’ve been around for thousands of years.

The Greek translation of “dianthus” is divine flower and maybe the reason that in the Christian religion they are seen as Mary’s tears.

The natural flower colors of carnations are white, red and pink but they are also available in other colors with a little dye.

You may have heard the tale of President McKinley and his love of carnations.  He was the 25th President and every day he would wear a carnation in his lapel.

He also had carnations displayed all over the White House.  He even had them in his Cabinet Room.  He considered the flower as his lucky charm.

After his assassination a rumor was started that on that day he had handed the carnation in his lapel to a little girl.  Legend has it that his luck ran out on that day.

Private Home Health Care has never tried to grow carnations but this summer we might give it a try.  A vaseful of those lovely colors would brighten up a room.

Snow

Wow!  If you were looking for snow you got your wish.

We were warned about mother nature’s amazing storm that was heading across the country from the South to the Midwest to New England and it arrived.

Many states were hit with sleet and ice which is always a dangerous situation.  Businesses closed, power lost and airline flights cancelled.

It is not often that life comes to a standstill but that’s what happened over these past few days.

For us here in New England we were left with between 13 and 22 inches of snow depending on your location.

Boston and along the coast hit the jackpot with around 22 inches.  That’s a lot of snow!

The good news is that the snow is light and fluffy.  The bad news is while light and fluffy is good the amount of snow is hard to deal with.

Sometimes the best comes out in people during these times.  

A home owner had shoveled then ran out of steam and gone back inside.  Two neighbor’s kids, fifth and first grade came over to help on their own.

The owners headed back out to shovel some more and then a Dad came to snow blow the end of the driveway and front walkway.

It took a small village but with acts of kindness the job got done.  Kindness ruled the day.

Private Home Health Care hopes that everyone stays safe and weathers the days ahead as life gets back to normal.

“Just Do It” Day

When you hear the phrase, “Just Do It” you think of shoes and the Nike Corporation. They began that motto back in 1988!

It resonates in many ways these days!  The national day of “Just Do It” is set for tomorrow.  Any ideas why?

It’s really all about procrastination.  I bet you know all about that.  Some of us are experts at it.

Procrastination, the act of postponing, delaying or putting off an activity or task.

Does that sound familiar at all?

On Saturday, it’s a brand new day to get something done that you have been procrastinating on.

It could be something as simple as washing a sweater that’s been hanging around or defrosting a refrigerator or freezer.

Maybe you owe someone a note or phone call.  Tomorrow is the day to finally get it done.

Professionals have a few tips to help with your procrastination:

• Break tasks into smaller chunks to make the task less overwhelming.
• Avoid anything that would be distracting.
• Tackle the worst task first.
• Give yourself a reward or treat.  Frequency and number are your choice.
• Don’t make big decisions.  Go to the gym one day, then think about future visits later.

We here at Private Home Health Care like to think positively.  We believe that you have the strength to think about one thing you’d like to complete over the weekend and then just do it and get it done!

Good luck!

Grandmothers

Today Private Home Health Care is thinking about grandmothers and how lucky for all of you who have had the love of a grandmother.

From a grandmother’s perspective, you can spend time and perhaps even spoil your grandchildren which was not what you did with your children.

You have life long experience and can share a different perspective.  You might find teachable moments as well.

When grandchildren are young, sleepovers, trips to the movies or out to eat make memories.  

Time is limited so as a grandmother if you get tired, you can always turn them back over to their parents.

With two sets of grandmothers you can get two different experiences.  

We have warm memories of a grandmother who knit, baked and took us out to Friendly’s.  A sleepover was so much fun too.

Another grandmother wasn’t a sewer but she showered love and attention in her own way and we knew we were well loved.

For the grandmothers out there, you were treated to laughter, questions and maybe playing with toys and maybe even some running around.

Grandchildren can keep you active, help your cognitive skills and overall make you happy.

Older grandchildren may drift away for a while but usually never too far for too long. 

Private Home Health Care appreciates the love and support that grandmothers give us.  Hail to all of you grandmothers today.

Dr. Martin Luther King Day

Private Home Health Care honors Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. on this day.

On April 4, it will be sixty years since the death of Dr. King but his memory and message lives on today.

Dr. King worked for equality using peaceful protesting without violence.  This was his legacy and it can still be applied in today’s world.

Today our country is at odds but we look to Martin Luther King and his vision of a better world for all to help us.

Peaceful protesting is part of the DNA of our American culture.  Following Dr. King’s lead and protesting without violence is the best answer to disagreements.

Our country has traveled down a long road and there is much more equality today than back in 1968 but let’s continue his work.

We are happy to celebrate and honor Dr. Martin Luther King today.

Arthritis and Physical Therapy

A Boston University study estimates that there are as many as 91 million people in the United States that are dealing with some form of arthritis.

Arthritis, a chronic problem of stiffening, swelling and pain of your joints.  Some people are more prone to arthritis than others and you know if you have it.

The pain worsens with age and it can be difficult to do daily tasks.

Physical therapy is one way that those suffering with arthritis can get help.  You can get pain relief, an increase in your mobility and improve what you can do.

Physical therapists are available in all communities.  Your doctor can recommend one or two that you can visit.

Wouldn’t it be nice to be able to handle some of the tasks that have become difficult?

Your first session would be an evaluation and a discussion of your pain.  This helps the therapist come up with the best plan to help you.

As the sessions progress, you usually get a set of exercises to do on your own.  

In the case of arthritis the exercises would help strengthen the muscles around the joints so that you can gain mobility and hopefully less pain.

The therapy that is best for you will be unique to your needs.  You could have multiple sessions and the opportunity to share your experiences with your therapist.

Your primary care physician would be your first contact.  They will recommend the best physical therapists for your needs.  Shop around it you don’t feel it is the right fit.

Private Home Health Care has seen improvements and a delay in symptoms after people have had some physical therapy. Reach out to your doctor for guidance.

Photo by Matthias Zomer