Balance Your Health

Divorce Harmful To Middle Aged Women's Health

Divorce or widowhood leave a lasting scar on the health of middle aged and older people, especially women says a recent study. Remarriage may repair some of the damage done but those who remain single are less healthy than those who remarry.

The reports that married couples are healthier than single people were published several years ago. This new study, about what happens when the marriage breaks up, shows that there is a lot more stress that takes place than originally considered. This study looked at chronic conditions, mobility limitations, self rated health and depression symptoms during middle age. The research found that when marriage is disrupted with divorce or death, it has a long impact negatively affecting all four areas.

Participants in the study, published in the September 2009 issue of the Journal of Health and Social Behavior, were at least age 50. One of the conclusions was that the health conditions that resulted after a marriage ended were worse than if the woman had been single her entire life.

What I found particularly interesting was that the study results motivated the question: when a middle aged woman is treated for high cholesterol or high blood pressure with medication, should the whole person be treated or just the obvious symptoms? The thinking is that it may be the loss of the marriage that is resulting in this condition due to the extremely high level of stress. Apparently, a toxic relation is toxic to a woman's whole health.

No such findings could be related to men. For men a problematic marriage may cause some emotional issues but not physical concerns. Obviously women are more affected by relationship issues than men and attach more importance to the emotions within relationships then men do. I am guessing that is why women have so many girlfriends - for support.

Your thoughts?

To your success at a well balance life.

Ruthan Brodsky

Depression Is A Diesease

Symptoms of depression are more than signs of sadness. The fact is depression is as much a biological disease as arthritis or having high cholesterol. What you may not realize is that taking care of your mental health has a huge impact on your physical well-being. For instance, depression may worsen chronic conditions like heart disease and high blood pressure.

Major depression is caused by a biochemical imbalance in the brain that can take place without any special trauma. Episodes of depression usually sneak up over time and gradually become worse over a period of time. At some time patients are sad all the time which may be very different from their more normal.

The good news is that there are treatments for depression. It usually is an anti-depressant medication often accompanied with counseling or psychotherapy.

If you think you may be depressed, don’t accept it as a normal part of aging. It is best to visit your doctor to discuss treatment or to ask for a referral to a psychiatrist.

If you are already on an anti-depressant medication and find you're having side effects from the meds, don't stop taking the anti-depressant. Call you doctor instead and see what options he has.

And don't use your medication after the expiration date. After the expiration date, the full potency of the drug is not guaranteed. A medication rarely responds after the expiration date all of which means you may not be getting the full effect of the dose. That may be dangerous for you and your treatment.

To your well balance health.

Ruthan Brodsky

5 Reasons To Try Yoga

oga is a 5,000 year-old practice that has many instructional approaches in yoga techniques and many different schools that train different yoga styles. Although the instructional approaches to yoga may vary and the postures and their sequence may vary, the ultimate goal for yoga is to unite the body and spirit. Here are five reasons why you should try yoga.

Tips to Reduce Your Anxiety

I had no idea that so many Americans have problems with short-term anxiety. In any given year about 18 percent of us have an anxiety disorder which is a medical condition that results in people always being afraid or worried over a period of time. This figure is from the National Institute of Mental Health.

I'm not sure whether this is good news or bad news but you don't need an anxiety disorder to feel anxious.

Most people are anxious at least occasionally, especially when they're facing an important event such as a job interview, presenting to a prospective client, betting on a golf game, or meeting the parents of your son's girlfriend. The problem is that anxiety is linked closely with stress and can cause problems for the way you think.

The good news is that research has identified strategies that can reduce normal anxiety especially those that don't last very long. The problems arise when the anxiety is persistent and intense and interferes with your lifestyle. That's when you need to look for professional help.

In the meantime try facing your worries. When you face your concerns and decide what action to take, you have a feeling of control over your anxiety. Set aside certain times each day when you permit yourself to problem solve. There will be times when you find out you are not in control of your problem and there's nothing you can do about it. Just realizing that will help reduce your stress.

Opposite  to that , and keeping in mind that one size doesn't fit all, try to block out your problems when you're not actively involved in solving them. Switch mental focus or go for a ride on your bike. If your anxiety keeps rising, concentrate on your breathing and count out 10 deep, slow breaths.

Sharing your worries with good friends and family who are supportive is another good way to reduce anxiety. It's also a good way to boost your confidence

These tips should help you reduce your anxiety and lower your stress. If you still have trouble finding relief contact your primary doctor. It may be that you're reacting poorly to a medication or you're not getting enough sleep. Anxiety that persists more than a couple of weeks, interferes with your life, and you now have physical symptoms from the anxiety, it is probably a very good idea for you to have an assessment and treatment by a mental health professional.

It is difficult to even think about balancing your heath when your mind is anxius and unable to move.  Learn what you need to do to reduce anxiety so that you can enjoy living and have a full life.

To your success at a well balance life.

Ruthan Brodsky

Repairing Your Depression to Improve Your General Health

Your body knows when you are depressed. Depression has a way of shouting that it is taking charge. Your job is to stop it in its tracks and to get all the help you need to make sure that depression stays out of the picture.

Especially during these tough economic times it is not unusual to experience anger, stress, frustration and anxiety. On the other had, long-term feels of hopelessness and sadness are not normal. Those are signs of clinical depression and you need medical help.

Your mind and your body are connected much more than most of us realize. Researchers report that untreated depression that lasts more than two weeks can increase a person's risk of becoming ill. Untreated depression can also make worse a current illness. It appears that people who are depressed are more likely to be ill, and people who are ill are more likely to be depressed. Another good reason to repair your depression.

We know that when someone is severely depressed there are emotional symptoms which can interfere with daily function. For instance, if you stay hidden under the covers in bed all day you are not going to be very productive. You are also more likely to become obese. The numbers show that depressed people were twice as likely to have more fat around their middles and have higher levels of the stress hormone cortisol which is linked to abdominal obesity and higher risk for heart disease and diabetes. Repairing your depression may lower those elevated cortisol levels and get you towards a healthy direction.

If you experience any of these symptoms for more than two weeks it is time to talk to your doctor:

• Persistent feelings of sadness, guilt, hopelessness
• Unusual fatigue, lack of energy
• Restlessness
• Sleep and appetite disturbances
• Unable to concentrate
• Dwelling on thoughts of dying.

Your doctor will be able to point you in the right direction for effective treatment. The sooner you get help the better, for you and your family.

One of the things I have done to avoid being depressed is to shut off the TV and not listen to the news, especially the finanical news. Another one of my cures is to do something physical such as going for a walk or running up and down the stairs 5 times. It works.

I welcome your suggestions for no cost cures. Scroll down to comments and share your ideas with us.

 

To your success at healthy mind and body connections.

 

Ruthan Brodsky

Optimism: Positive Thinking Does Impact Your Health

Have you ever noticed those people – or that one person in the office – who is always smiling, has a sunny personality, and it's not a fake? No matter what happens her glass is always half full. Not only does she seem to be enjoying life more than the people surrounding her but there's a good chance she's also leading a healthier life.

Researchers at Mayo Clinic reviewed the records of people who completed a personality inventory back in the 1960's and found that pessimists, as compared with optimists, had an increased risk of death 30 years later. In fact, the more pessimistic the person the greater the risk. What's more in a follow-up study, optimistic people had higher levels of functioning in all areas.

It seems that optimists tend to experience less stress than pessimists or even realists. Because they believe in themselves and their abilities, they expect good things to happen. They see negative events as minor setbacks to be easily overcome, and view positive events as proof that more good things are coming. Because they believe in themselves, they tend to take more risks and create more positive events in their lives.

The good news is that even though you may not think of yourself as an optimistic person, you can learn to become one. You actually can teach yourself to think more positively.

Tips for becoming an optimist

Watch out for negative self-talk. Stop when you catch yourself thinking you won't enjoy an event or do well on a project. Identify the positive aspects of the situation.

Put things in perspective. Try to find the adventure in your journey. Ask yourself if you wouldn't be bored without the bumps in the road.

Manage and solve the problems you can control. Forget about those you can't control. Remember, there is nothing you can do about the weather so quit complaining.

Surround yourself with positive, upbeat people.

Find joy in your work by finding some aspect that is personally fulfilling. Identifying the good in what you do will bring more happiness to your life.

At the end of the day, write down three positive things that happened and why you think those good things happen.

Obviously, optimism motivates us to take control of our lives as opposed to depressed people who seem to lose control and retain the attitude of the hopelessness of the situation. The bottom line: even though the exact nature of the relationship between optimism and good health is still not well defined, positive thinking helps. That's good enough for me!

Do you have any tips for staying positive?  Share them with us.  Scroll down to COMMENTS and type your tips in the blank window.

If you are looking for more ways to stay positive as you hit middle age and beyond, subscsribe to the blog Upside of Aging.

To your good health

Ruthan Brodsky 

No Electrical Power Encourages Some Balance

I’m writing this post from Kinko’s. We have no power.

We’re one of the 210,000 people in Michigan who got hit by a storm this Sunday.

It wasn’t so much the rain – it was the wind - clocked at 80 miles. Even though there may have been only 30 seconds of those gusts that was enough!

We lost a 50-year old pine tree over two stories high – completely uprooted – and an even taller one will be taken down because it’s listing about 35 degrees and headed for the house. Then we lost a major limb from a crab apple tree. That was the front yard.

Lots of smaller limbs from a couple of large maple trees. Nature certainly has its own way of pruning.

I understand a couple of people died in Michigan from this severe storm. It was that bad.

I also understand, from the news and from the stories Josh was telling us about the jobs he and his crew just left, hundreds of trees had fallen on homes. That was his job: getting trees out of bedrooms and garages and off of cars.

He claims to have had about an hour and a half of sleep from Sunday to Monday – it was about 4 pm. He’s doing all this talking while operating a very large size chain saw cutting up the tree so the crew can toss it in this machine that makes wood chips. All I could think of is he shouldn’t be using that saw with just 2 hours of sleep in 24 hours.

We don’t have a generator but I think this storm finally convinced my spouse, we need one. The two of us are walking around the house with a special flashlight attached to a head band; you know the kind of lights you use for camping or maybe if you’re panning for gold in some dark cave.

Live wires are on the streets which are blocked off. The trees blocking the streets have been moved to the side. And they’re promising power by Thursday.

In the meantime, I had to take a breather – from the Internet, from business (my office phone only works with electricity), and charge my cell phone while driving- short distances, of course. Everything takes twice as long to finish. I’m amazed at how much we do by habit because without power old habits don’t count. Life has taken a new approach.

The good news: more than half of the traffic lights aren’t working. People are very polite when streets become a 4-way stop, even for the major 4 lane roads. Amazing! We can make it work when it’s needed.

Time to put some balanced thinking back in my life.

To your successful balanced life.

Regards,

Ruthan

www.balanceyourhealth.com

www.upsideofaging.com

www.theagingofanorexia.com

Stress Reduction Revisited

Ruthan Brodsky

There is a plethora (love that word!) of information about stress and how bad it is for us – rising blood pressure, linked to depression and mood disorders, linked to asthma and immune suppression and even to increased levels of cholesterol.

Nothing good.

On Monday’s post, I described how I use journaling – especially in the evening – to relieve myself of some stress. Rather than let my thinking run wild and work myself up into a frazzle, I start writing.

Several more remedies for avoiding stress by changing your way of thinking were listed in the March, 2008 issue of Mind Mood & Memory published by Massachusetts General Hospital.

The first was dealing with Negativity. Always expecting the worst and never even considering the positive aspect of an event will lead to stress. Remedy: Think of negative events as a temporary setback and look for positive outcomes in the future.

A second was dealing with negative self-talk. We are so good at having unrealistic expectations of ourselves and limiting our own successes. Remedy: Omit ‘should’ and ‘must’ in your vocabulary. Be your own coach and emphasize your strengths.

A third was helplessness. Resigning yourself that you can’t do anything about a problem is going to cause more stress. Remedy: Prepare yourself ahead of time for a stressful event. I actually got smart this past week – it snowed and I gave myself twice the time to get where I was going. Easy! I had time left over to be socialable.

A fourth was catastrophizing or giving everything a negative outlook before an event ever happens. Remedy: When you catch yourself labeling future events as negative, remind yourself you’re not a fortune teller and all might end well.

These are all about self talk and good self talk is not easy to accomplish. But, like anything else, with enough practice, you can become more positive and find life a little less stressful.

We all could use some help on reducing stress in our lives and balancing our lives. If you have a stress reducing formula that works for you, let us know. Scroll down to comments and tell us what you do. Then Click on submit.

Warm regards,

Ruthan

Journaling Reduces Stress

Ruthan Brodsky

I am very stressed.

My first hint was last night. We arrived home from Chicago – short 3-day trip – yesterday afternoon which gave me time to go through the messages and mail. (I always prefer coming home Saturday so I have Sunday to get my act together.)

I went to bed early – 9:45 pm and got out of bed 10:10 pm. My mind was racing. Nothing earth shaking – a new client I’m supposed to meet with on Monday, a project for a current client that I spoke to while I was in Chicago, time for postings on blogs, rescheduling the book club so that it meets here tomorrow evening because the gal who was supposed to be the host couldn’t – at the last minute., blah, blah, blah. Just a bunch of stuff.

How to Combat Worry

Wanted to give more input about ways to handle worry.

In the book, "Women Who Worry Too Much:  How to Stop Worry & Anxiety from Ruing Relationships, Work & Fund," author Holly Hazlett-Stevens describes strategies to deal with it. She recommends 5 steps to take each time you catch yourself worrying:

1. Get specific.  Identify exactly what you're saying to yourself.
2. Generate alternatives. Brainstorm other outcomes.
3. Lood at the evidence.  Examine the likelihood of each possibility.
4. Suppose the worst did happen. Follow your worry to conclusion.
5. Explore new perspectives.  Summarize to create a more balanced perspective.

Don't forget to post your combat strategies.

Warm regards

Ruthan Brodsky

In the upper left hand corner of this blog is an email subscription form. Sign up by giving us your email address. It's a secure service and your email is safe with us.That way you won't have to come searching for this blog; you'll get updates delivered into your inbox.