In today’s challenging economy, it’s not unusual to know someone who’s facing tough times. I can think of at least three friends across the country who have either lost jobs due to downsizing or who are struggling with financial challenges.
When you add in financial worries to daily stress and family responsibilities, the potential for poor mental and physical health is even greater. For families, especially, it’s important to find strategies and activities that will help relieve stress before it leads to health problems.
According to Dr. Jon Crook, a licensed family therapist, there are key ways families can tackle financially challenging times:
Be Proactive: Start by acknowledging your financial situation clearly and truthfully to yourself. Do not dramatize, but do not minimize.
Identify What is Essential for Your Family: Be sure you define the “nice to haves” and “must haves.”
Identify Actions You Can Take: Focus on the things you can control, such as discretionary spending and your attitude.
Maintain a Healthy Lifestyle: Find activities that can help reduce stress and increase family interaction, like eating at home, hosting a family movie night, taking family hikes or playing board games.
Volunteer with Your Family: By learning about others’ struggles and seeing their gratitude, you help your family focus on the abundance of their lives and the importance of generosity and thankfulness in difficult times.
Don’t Be Afraid to Ask for Help
Most importantly, there’s no shame in seeking help. Reach out to family and friends, local support groups and churches. Additionally, companies like LifeSynch offer confidential 24-hour crisis counseling services to help their members deal with mounting anxiety and stress. A service like this might be offered through your company’s employee assistance program (EAP) at no cost to you. Financial information is also available through free work/life services offered through many employers.
Read the Full Article
Read the full article by Dr. Crook, who serves as clinical director for LifeSynch’s employee assistance program (EAP). LifeSynch is a Humana subsidiary providing behavioral healthcare for 10 million members.
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DISCLAIMER ALERT: The ideas expressed in this post came out of my own head, were researched by my own eyes and were expressed by my own hands. They are not intended to serve as medical advice in any way, shape or form. And they do not reflect the views of Humana Inc. or any of its subsidiaries. I take full responsibility if you think this post is awesome or not awesome.
In case it’s been awhile since you’ve taken a glance at the clock, Thanksgiving is close. We’re right around the corner from the holiday that brings more food to the tables, and more weight to our bellies, than just about any other. Recent studies have shown that 51 percent of annual weight gain for the average American comes between just before Thanksgiving and just after New Year’s. Surprising? Nah, not really…not at all.
That said, here’s one truth to cling to as tightly as Saran-Wrap over your pies: It Doesn’t Have To Be That Way. You don’t have to put on tons of unnecessary weight over the holiday season. You don’t have to stuff yourself like the turkey you slide into that oven. You can beat it, and it is easier than you think. Here are some pretty simple little ideas from Health.com to keep in your mind as visions of sugarplums dance in your heads this holiday season:
- Downsize Your Sweets - “You just got a two-pound tin of toffee? Put some in the freezer, store four or five pieces for yourself in the cabinet, and give the rest of away.”
- Use A Plate - “Don’t nibble while standing up at a party or decorating the tree. Sit down at a table with your plate so you can focus on your food and keep track of what you’re eating.”
- Mind Your Bites - “Slow down and savor the food’s smell and texture. Many people find they don’t have to eat so much with this approach.”
- Practice Partying - “A lot of people restrict what they eat before the holidays and then overeat when they hit the scrumptious buffet. Instead, eat mindfully for about a week before the holiday bash so you won’t feel deprived and go on a binge.”
Just keep those four simple ideas in your mind when you walk head first into a holiday party filled with bad sweaters and sugary fatty food and you can walk out unscathed. Another helpful tip that I have always lived by: Before you go to any party, of any kind, eat an apple and drink a full glass of cold water. Doing this helps keep your stomach tricked into thinking it needs nothing. That way you can get through the party without stuffing yourself like the turkey you just cooked.
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DISCLAIMER ALERT: The ideas expressed in this post came out of my own head, were researched by my own eyes and were expressed by my own hands. They are not intended to serve as medical advice in any way, shape or form. And they do not reflect the views of Humana Inc. or any of its subsidiaries. I take full responsibility if you think this post is awesome or not awesome.
I have to confess I’m a bit of a magazine fiend and have subscriptions to several financial, technology, and world news publications. I was reading Kiplinger last night and came across an article that got my attention. I’m planning on getting an updated prescription for my glasses in the next month or so and plan to use some of my HSA cash, so the title Glasses for Less than $50 Dollars got my attention.
The title made me smirk and I immediately had a vision of that hyper ShamWow guy yelling “Why pay more?” in my head. I’ve always gone to one of the local stores and had my prescription filled but I thought I’d read on. The article was actually pretty interesting and recommended two sites to check out for discounted glasses frames in several styles etc…
I couldn’t resist and went out to EyeBuyDirect.com and looked at the selection. There are a lot of choices out there and I looked at all sorts of frames. While I was playing around on the site I found a really cool tool called EyeTry that you should check out. You can upload a picture of yourself to the site then select a frame and paste it on your face which can be pretty entertaining.
I’m kind of old school and not sure how I feel about ordering glasses without physically checking out the frames before buying but I’m tempted to try it out for a pair of sunglasses and see how things turn out. I’m going to check out some of the sites in the article and see what happens.
If you’re interested in finding out more the link above does a good job explaining how to get a good fit and the pros and cons of the process. The Eye Buy Direct site also has a pretty detailed screen to help you decode what all the pluses and minuses mean on your script. If anyone has bought their glasses online I’d be interested in finding out what you thought about your experience.
Photo by: Evil Erin
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DISCLAIMER ALERT: The ideas expressed in this post came out of my own head, were researched by my own eyes and were expressed by my own hands. They are not intended to serve as medical advice in any way, shape or form. And they do not reflect the views of Humana Inc. or any of its subsidiaries. I take full responsibility if you think this post is awesome or not awesome.
