National Siblings Day

In 1995 Claudia Evart lost both her brother and sister at an early age.  She founded the day because she realized how important siblings are in your life.  She has also founded the Siblings Day Foundation.

Your siblings can have a profound effect on your life, even more so than your parents.  

This came recently from a study of male adult development from data gathered since 1938.  Dr. Richard Waldinger wrote a book called The Good Life.

If you read this book his findings show that  those of us with “good relationships keep us happier, healthier, and help us live longer.”

Other studies shine a light on the positive effects of siblings:

• As an adolescent, your siblings may have validated your beliefs and feelings which helped your self esteem.

• A good sibling relationship can have positive effects on your academic performance.

• If you are in a difficult situation like divorce, low income or parental mental illness a stable older sibling can help you to be well adjusted even in these settings.

• Finally, support and closeness with siblings lead to less loneliness and depression.  These could also help you feel overall satisfied with your life as you age.

Additionally, some other studies have found evidence that lifelong relationships with siblings have an effect on your well-being in a negative way too.  Participants with difficult sibling relationships at ages 18-19 can be more likely to have depression and to use mood-altering drugs by age 50.

Think back to the days of growing up with brothers and sisters.  You surely had fights, large or small but there were likely also times when you played games or shared toys.  Many lifelong lessons were learned.

Private Home Health Care hopes that on this National Siblings Day you will find the time to reach out and tell your siblings how much you care.  As adults, your ties can remain strong and you can get great supports and have fun times with your siblings.

Afternoon Tea

The month of April has a variety of national days.  One of these days is National Afternoon Tea Day.

If you have lived a long time you may remember how afternoon tea was a special event.  

Afternoon tea could be during the week or on weekends.

When you went to an afternoon tea you would have choices of a snack as well as types of tea.  The United Kingdom high society started this tradition so English Breakfast or Earl Gray was usually served.  

As time went on and this spread across the pond, many other teas were offered.  The snacks included but were not limited to finger sandwiches, small cakes, petit four pastries and scones. 

For those living in the Boston area, there were many places where afternoon tea was a standard.  The Ritz Carlton was known for a fabulous “high” tea.  Travel north of Boston and you would find snacks and tea at the Wenham Tea House.

The tea and snacks were helpful when the dinner meals were served later in the evening, 8:00 or 9:00 pm.  You would be able to have tea and snacks and still be hungry for dinner.

Today our lives are very busy and taking time to travel someplace for tea and snacks seems like a luxury.  You stop at Starbucks or another place that offers tea on the go.  

You may have time to stay and work on your computer but free time to eat and snack is hard to fit in.

Making this a national month is an attempt to revive the tradition and to allow us to slow down a bit and be mindful.  Your tea drinking could lead to stress relief and a time to catch up with friends.

Private Home Health Care loves the tradition of afternoon tea.  We also need to try and heed our own words to slow down and take time to sip a nice cup of hot tea and relax!!

National No Housework Day

This Sunday, April 8 is a fun national day and maybe a good day to do something enjoyable.

National No Housework Day is a day to relax, guilt free.  A day for you to forget all about work that needs to be done around your room, your apartment, your condo or your house.

Perhaps you always do this on Sunday but for those of you who don’t make a change.  You could try and get it all done on Saturday or maybe not!

There are so many ways to spend time on this Sunday rather than housework.

You can try and get caught up in a good book.  Curl up in a chair or on your couch.

If you have kids, choose a game to play as a family.

Do you like to play cards?  Gather a group and have some fun and laughs.

Catch up on that television series you have been hoping to watch.

Watch a new movie or revisit an old favorite.

You may need to use will power to ignore dust or dirty floors.  Are they dishes in the sink?  Don’t look.  Tell yourself that it’s only for one day.  

Truthfully, maybe the dishes are only for a day but the rest might be for a week but isn’t it worth it to take a day off?

Private Home Health Care likes to keep a clean house but this Sunday we are going to put our feet up and relax!  

#NationalNoHouseWorkDay

National Walking Day

Yes, it’s early April and once again National Walking Day.

When you walk it is a low maintenance way of keeping your body in shape.  The health benefits range from helping you, keep away heart disease, strengthening your bones and helping with weight control.

The question for you when it comes to walking is “how do you make it more interesting?”  You may have been walking thirty minutes a day for a while now and getting restless or bored.

Here are a few suggestions to take the boredom out of walking.

Try mixing it up a bit.  If you walk in the street change your environment.  Add some light weights to your walk. Are you walking on a treadmill?  You can vary your terrain or intervals.

Be mindful on your walk.  See if you can hear different sounds.  Listen to your breathing.  Look for different things in your path.

Add a friend.  The time can pass more quickly and differently when you are talking with a friend while you walk.  You might even lose track of time.

Listen to something different on your walk.  Switch up your music or podcast.  Try listening to an audiobook for a change.

Walk with purpose meaning if you have errands to do plan your walk around stores you can visit.  You’ll have a healthy walk and get things done.  A win-win!

Taking a walk is a relaxing and gentle way to add a healthy habit to your life.  

Private Home Health Care hopes that you have found the suggestions helpful.  We enjoy walking, whether on the treadmill inside or walking outside and we hope you do too.

April Fool’s Day

Today is a day for you to be prepared.  There could be pranksters in your path who would like nothing better than to fool you on this first day of April.  It could be a big prank or it could be a small prank. Be on guard!.

You may be the prankster too!  Who are you planning on tricking?

April first is a fun day and it definitely brings happiness and hopefully plenty of smiles.  A teacher friend I know tells her Kindergarteners that she made brownies and then she gives them a brown letter “E.”  

Have you ever wondered how the tricks behind April 1 ever began?  We did too and it turns out it’s still a mystery.  There are some ideas but no one seems to know for certain.

One thought is that it started back in 1852 when the Julian calendar switched over to the Gregorian calendar.  People who were slow to move to the change celebrated the new year from late March to April 1. They were called April Fools. 

It was in Britain when April Fool’s Day really started to take off in the 18th century.  The Scottish people spread the holiday over two days.

On the first day people sent unaware friends on phony errands called “hunting the gowk.”  A gowk is a cuckoo bird the symbol for a fool.

The second day was for pranks.  On Tailie Day, you would see fake tails put on the back of a person or even “kick me” signs.

There may be more mysteries behind the origins of April Fool’s Day but for now Private Home Health Care wants you to be on your “toes” and look out for tricks today!  

We also hope you have some fun moments in your day.  It’s a great way to start off the month! 

Easter Season

For the 2.6 billion Christians in the world, yesterday and the two days are the most important.  Christmas is the only other holiday of such importance. 

As a Christian you celebrate three holy days.  Holy or Maundy Thursday which was yesterday.  This commemorates the Lord’s Last Supper.

Today is Good Friday which commemorates the death of Jesus who Christians believe is the Savior of the World.  

You might wonder why it is called “Good” Friday. It is not good in the traditional sense but rather the redemption and reconciliation that is brought between humanity and God.  It is a sad but very holy day. 

The most holy day of the three days is Easter Sunday when the Savior is resurrected up to Heaven.  For Christians is it this redemption for all that they too will rise after they die.

Private Home Health Care has learned that the worldwide Christian community has been increasing and is expected to continue to increase.  Between 2000 and 2022 Christianity rose 1.18% annually.

As of 2020, Christians made up 31% of world religions.  The Christians include Roman Catholics, Protestants, Orthodox and Anglicans.

You may be surprised to learn who has the largest number of Christians.  The list below is the number of Christians from largest to smallest by continent.

Africa

Asia

Latin America

Oceana (islands scattered mostly in the Pacific Ocean)

Northern America

Europe

Private Home Health Care wishes everyone a very holy Good Friday and a very blessed Easter.

Whole Grains

Do you eat any whole grains?  Whole grains are a delicious option to add to your healthy diet.

There are many whole grains to choose from like, whole oats, whole wheat, whole grain rye, buckwheat, bulgur wheat, millet, whole barley, brown rice and quinoa.  Buckwheat and millet are gluten-free.

You can eat the grains at any time of the day, breakfast, lunch or dinner.  These are easily found at grocery stores and recipes for any of them are available online. 

 If you are a traditionalist or if you just prefer paper, pick up a book for recipes to try.

Whole grains are extremely healthy because they are packed with nutrients.  Whole grains are enriched with nutrients such as protein, fiber, vitamin B.  They also have minerals such as copper, zinc, iron and magnesium.

Additionally, these powerful grains are full of antioxidants.  These mighty molecules fight off the free radicals in your body that can be very harmful.

Don’t you find it amazing that all of these different whole grains are so healthy for your body?

Whole grain breads, pastas and popcorn are all super healthy additions to a diet.  If you swap out wheat bread for white bread and chickpea or whole wheat pasta for white pasta you will increase your nutrients.

Another option is for you to have a meatless meal and incorporate a whole grain into that meal.  Soups are also a great way to add grains to your diet.

Private Home Health Care understands the benefits of adding whole grains to our diet.  Be adventurous if you haven’t tried whole grains and make your diet a bit healthier.

National Physicians Week

This last week in March is designated as National Physicians Week.

The week was organized to honor the physicians in the United States and their dedication to their patients.  

Private Home Health Care works with many physicians and appreciates the care they provide to patients.

You hopefully see your physician at least once a year for an annual check up.  If you have other medical issues that need to be monitored you may see specialists more often.

These doctors have very busy schedules on any given day.  When you go they try their best to listen to you, talk with you and give you good guidance. 

You can find doctors in many different settings.  You could visit them in a hospital setting or in an office setting.  There is usually staff you interact with prior to the doctor’s visit like someone to check you in and a nurse to take vitals and get you set up.

Patient visits are a major part of a doctor’s responsibility but there is also quite a bit of paperwork that doctors are also responsible for in their day-to-day operations.  We don’t often think about that side of their work.

Currently as of 2023, there are over 900,000 physicians in the United States.  This includes general practitioners as well as specialists.  

The United States population is approximately 336,202,796 so the number of physicians.  In 2019 the nation’s groups of age 65 and older grew by one-third.  This can be challenging for the number of physicians available. 

This coming week you can hopefully show your support for your physician or medical professional.  One idea shared is to give them a red carnation but whatever you can do would be appreciated.

Wellderly Week – Final Edition

Wellderly week closes tomorrow but it’s really the beginning.  A new beginning so that you have fun and joy in your senior days.

We started with talking about avoiding social isolation and loneliness.  Next, was how your physical activity could add strength and wellness.

Today, you will hear about a healthy diet and scheduling doctor’s appointments.

You have heard about the value of eating a healthy diet when you were younger.  Well, for you as a senior it is just as important.  Having a diet with fruits, vegetables, grains and lean proteins is the best way to eat for maximum health.

Good foods for your body have many benefits. You can boost your immunity, support your muscles and help with your balance.

Additionally, it can lower your risk for health issues like heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes and stroke.  

Your old and true recipes might not have the healthiest ingredients.  One solution is to see if you can find alternative ingredients to make it more healthy.  Ask a friend or family member to help.

If you love desserts try switching out the sugar to a natural stevia or monk fruit sugar.  You will barely know the difference.  

Along with eating a healthier diet, it’s also important to keep in touch with your doctor or medical professional.  

You should have regular appointments and in addition, you should contact your doctor if you feel any changes in your body.

Do you need help getting to appointments or managing your medications?  Reach out to a family member or close friend to help.  Don’t get overwhelmed when help is a phone call away.

Private Home Health Care wants our elders to feel vibrant and fulfilled.  We believe that when your retirement is the time for you to do what you enjoy.  

A new hobby or a new interest, avoiding isolation, being physically active and eating healthy are all ways to help you feel happy and fulfilled in your “golden” years.

Wellderly Week – Part 2

Yesterday we talked about keeping yourself from becoming socially isolated or lonely.

Today we ask, are you retired, elderly or do you know someone elderly?  How physically active are you or how physically active is the person who is your friend or family member?

It turns out that physical activity is something to promote for everyone, including the elderly.

Think about the benefits you’ll reap if you are able to be active.  Your stress and anxiety level improves and along with your balance.  You could sleep better and if you have depression, that could decrease.

If you are older it is recommended that each week you spend at least 150 minutes of exercise.  This should be a form of moderate amount of aerobic exercise and two days of muscle strengthening.

You can do things like light weights, walking, gardening or even stretching.  The time isn’t too much really.  It works out to be 21 minutes/7 days a week or about 30 minutes/5 days a week.

Do whatever works for your age and pace.

Hopefully you can easily add activity into your life.  At home, you could join a friend for a walk or to do yoga.  If you are in a facility usually there are many options available, like a gym or directed exercise activities.

No special clothing is needed, just something comfortable.  You also don’t need to spend lots of money.  Walking doesn’t cost a thing!

Private Home Health Care has a treadmill in our office.  Physical activity is important no matter how old you are and we know it!  We hope you can add or keep physical activity in your life.