Living Well While Surviving Cancer
Live Life EVERY DAY!!
How to chill out. 🙂
Being able to relax should be an essential part of our quest to be as healthy as possible. With this in mind, we turn to the AAA for several appropriate podcast links:
To read more from Sarah Hopkins’ tips for AAA, click the image.
Source of lots of resources on fighting cancer.
Merck has an excellent Web site called MerckEngage that deals with cancer.
Here are some helpful links:
Click the image to read a lot more from MerckEngage.
Treasure every moment. Be inspired by “Time in a Bottle.”
As we have shown before, music can be inspiring. And we can reflect on the lyrics.
One of my favorite musical artists of the early 1970s was Jim Croce. His best-selling song (and number one hit) was “Bad, Bad Leroy Brown.”
But, unfortunately, Croce died at age 30 from a plane crash. He was just entering his prime. And he left a wife and a very young son.
Today, I dedicate another popular Croce song to my wife Linda — “Time in a Bottle.” Here are Croce’s lyrics:
But there never seems to be enough time
To do the things you want to do
Once you find them
I’ve looked around enough to know
That you’re the one I want to go
Through time with.
Set a goal and go for it. You can do it.
It was my honor to assist David Fox in publishing a free book of poetry. This is another excellent example of what we can do regardless of our limitations. As Nike says, “Just Do It!”
David is a true inspiration. Despite being born with Cerebral Palsy and having suffered from mental illness in his 20’s, David has written poems for children and adults for over 20 years. His poetry has appeared in Bell’s Letters, Ceremony, Great South Bay Magazine, Humoresque, The Oak, Opossum Holler Tarot, Performance Poet’s Association Literary Review, Poetic Expressions, Poets’ Roundtable, Reflections, SMILE, Tale Spinners (Canada), Visions, Wanton Words, Whispers of Poetry and Write On!! Poetry Magazette. He is still a participant at UCP Long Island.
Click the image to access his book. Note: A free, simple login is required. 🙂
Being kind benefits YOU.
Kindness not only benefits the recipient. It also is beneficial to the provider. Including health-wise.
Consider this podcast from Knowledge@Wharton:
Can kindness, love, and a strong sense of community actually make you healthier and happier? Research says that it does. A 1978 study looking at the link between high cholesterol and heart health in rabbits determined that kindness made the difference between a healthy heart and a heart attack.
Kelli Harding, a professor of psychiatry at Columbia University Medical Center, revisits that research and other ground-breaking discoveries in her new book, The Rabbit Effect: Live Longer, Happier, and Healthier with the Groundbreaking Science of Kindness. She joined the Knowledge@Wharton radio show on Sirius XM to talk about the intangible factors behind good health and how a little kindness can go a long way.
Please don’t ignore your eyes!
As our title asks: Do YOU Get Regular Eye Exams? Or do YOU neglect your eyes? Please be sure to treat your eyes properly!!! 🙂
Recently, Sarah DiGiulio wrote about this topic for Sharecare. Here are some highlights:
“Roughly 11 million Americans older than 12-years old need vision correction, but glasses or contacts are just one reason to see an eye doctor. Comprehensive eye exams are essential for the early detection of health issues that can affect your vision.”
“As you age, your risk for diseases that can affect your sight, like glaucoma and macular degeneration, increases. During a comprehensive, dilated eye exam, doctors specializing in the eyes and vision, called ophthalmologists, or licensed health care professionals, known as optometrists, can not only pick up eye diseases that could lead to blindness or other complications, but also detect certain underlying health issues that can affect your eyes—even before you develop symptoms or realize that something is going on.”
“Nonetheless,survey data suggest they’re underutilized. A 2016 Harris Poll, commissioned by the American Academy of Ophthalmology, found that 64 percent of U.S. adults reported having at least one vision problem, such as blurry vision, double vision, or difficulty seeing at night. Yet, only 13 percent of these people reported seeing an eye doctor about it.”
“The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also reports that up to 45 percent of adults in the United States haven’t had a dilated eye exam within the last two years. And only about half of the estimated 61 million adults at high risk for vision loss visited an eye doctor during the past year. (Keep in mind, there are free or low-cost options available, particularly for older people and those at higher risk for eye diseases.)”
Click the image to read a lot more.
Advice about always being tired.
Last year, we looked at how to Increase Your Energy When You’re Too Tired to Workout. Now, we examine being tired all the time. This is something that I regularly face. How about you?
As Ana Lopez writes for Sharecare:
“Do you often feel exhausted with more than your run-of-the-mill fatigue? Hypothyroidism, an underactive thyroid, may be to blame. We talked to endocrinologist Parveen K Verma, DO, FACE, of Our Lady of Lourdes Medical Center in Camden, New Jersey, to learn more about hypothyroidism and how it’s treated.”
What is hypothyroidism? Dr. Verma: “It is a problem with the thyroid gland, a gland in the base of your neck that controls metabolism. It can be caused by an infection and may be a transient problem … that gets better without treatment. It may also be the result of an autoimmune disease, where the thyroid doesn’t make enough thyroid hormone.”
What are symptoms of hypothyroidism? Dr. Verma: “Typical symptoms include fatigue, weight gain, decreased energy, depression, dry skin and hair, and constipation. A lot of people just feel like everything has closed down. For women, they may have fertility issues or abnormal menstrual cycles.”
When should I see my healthcare provider? Dr. Verma: “If common things that cause fatigue (not getting enough sleep, nutritional issues, multitasking) have been ruled out and you don’t feel better after a few weeks, then you should seek a medical evaluation. An initial workup may include a discussion about sleep habits, nutrition, work schedule, personal stressors, and blood work that looks for things like anemia or other metabolic problems, such as hypothyroidism.”
How is hypothyroidism treated? Dr. Verma: “The typical treatment is to use a form of thyroid hormone called levothyroxine. There are some other formulations that are considered more natural, such as Armour Thyroid. To decide which would be an appropriate choice for you, discuss your options with your primary care doctor or endocrinologist.”
To read a lot more, click the image.
