Is Sleep Divorce a Solution for You?

BY TABATHA RENEGAR

“I take thee to be my wedded wife/ husband, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, till death or snoring or insomnia or restless leg syndrome or sleep apnea do us part.”

In which case, a Sleep Divorce might be the best solution. I am not making this up. If you Google “sleep divorce,” you will find the following definition: “A sleep divorce occurs when you or your partner suffer[s] from snoring or sleep apnea and think the only solution is for you to sleep in separate rooms.” According to a survey from Slumber Cloud mattress manufacturers, 12 percent of American couples have “filed” for a sleep divorce, and 30 percent have discussed it. Until recently, I would have scoffed at this idea! And perhaps you are doing the same now. However, as my husband of almost 25 years and I have come to learn, sometimes a solid, good night’s sleep is more valuable than snuggling! In fact, The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends most adults get at least seven hours of sleep per night, and missing out can cause friction between you and your partner, as well as impact your health. A 2016 study found that sleep issues and relationship problems tend to occur simultaneously, and another 2013 study adds that when one partner gets a poor night’s sleep due to the other’s nighttime disturbances, it results in conflict the next day. So, what are the signs that you and your partner should consider a sleep divorce?

Going to Bed Creates Anxiety

Do you find yourself taking care of just “one more” chore or choosing another episode or two of your favorite Netflix series? It could be that you are subconsciously delaying your bedtime. Or maybe you’re purposely going to bed much earlier than your partner in an effort to be asleep before they join you!

Your Ear Plug Collection

If your nightstand has more earplugs than books, because you’re trying to drown out the noise of your partner, it may be time to consider another way to find nocturnal peace.

Inventory Your Medicine Cabinet

The pharmacy aisle is filled with hundreds of temporary fixes for sleepless nights. While pills temporarily put you at ease, they come with a cost. Side effects of common over-thecounter pills and sprays include headaches, vomiting, nosebleeds, dizziness, and drowsy driving, not to mention the toll they take on your pocketbook.

Your Nightly NightCap

Having a glass of wine or a couple of beers acts as a light-switch dimmer in the brain, inducing relaxation and sedation, so it’s no wonder a nightcap helps ease you into sleep. However, long-term reliance on late-night libations can cause increased risks of heart disease and cancer, and at a minimum, prompt daily fatigue.

The Boob Tube Crutch

Adding noise to drown out your partner’s snoring is probably one of the safest ways to help achieve a good night’s rest. However, leaving the TV on is up for debate. Self.com notes that the light and inconsistency in noise could have an adverse effect on the quality of your sleep. Want to give “sleep divorce” a try? Keep one very important fact in mind: it’s not necessarily a permanent situation. You might choose to sleep solo right now because of a newborn or mismatched work schedules, but in a few weeks or months, those needs may change. Instead of going “all in,” take a scheduled approach. Pick two nights a week, like Mondays and Thursdays, to sleep in different rooms. W. Chris Winter, MD, Men’s Health sleep advisor and author of The Sleep Solution, says, “It works because you don’t have to make the decision every night, and it’s kind of fun to have these periods where you’re away and then reunite.”

Luckily for my husband and me, there’s a brand-new mattress in our guest room, so we can use the excuse of needing to make sure it’s comfortable for guests. I think we are going more for a “trial separation” arrangement than a full-on sleep divorce. Extra snuggles are being added throughout the day. Win-win.

Weeks Hardwood

Giving the JOY of a Swing Set to Children in Wheelchairs

BY CAROLYN S. PETERSON

Of the many childhood memories I have, one comes to mind often; the day I was on my first swing set. I remember feeling like I could touch the sky and always wanted to be pushed higher. That love of chasing the clouds only intensified when my parents gave me my own swing set. Life just didn’t get better than that for a six-year-old. I can’t imagine not being able to be on a swing set and feel the wind in my hair and get as close to the clouds as possible, but for children who are in wheelchairs, unless there is a specially designed swing set, this joy that most of us take for granted as children isn’t possible. With the goal of bringing the joy of a swing set to children who are wheelchair users, IFB Solutions, the Kiwanis Club of Clemmons, the Carolina Kiwanis District Foundation, and Scout Troop 964 have joined to purchase and install one of a few of our state’s only swing sets designed to accommodate wheelchair-bound children, located on the playground of Tracy’s Little Red Schoolhouse in WinstonSalem, NC.

When Good People Come Together, Good Things Happen

It was through the networking of good people that the special swing set project came to be. “Local Lewisville, NC, resident, Joel Schanker, volunteers at IFB Solutions and is also a member of the Kiwanis Club of Clemmons. Through his work with IFB Solutions, Joel met Chris Flynt, Director of Programs and Community Vision Centers. Chris also is responsible for the S.E.E. (Student Enrichment Experience) program, which includes Tracy’s Little Red School House, a place where blind and visually impaired kids learn skills to be as independent as possible in a sighted world. “We have four participants in our S.E.E. program who are wheelchair-bound, so it was evident the positive addition of the swing set would be to Tracy’s Little Red School House. In our S.E.E. program, we have a member of Scout Troop 964, so things fell into place with the troop being involved, too,” said Chris Flynt, Director of Programs and Community Low-Vision Centers with IFB Solutions. It’s one thing to have a good idea, but getting people behind the idea is another, especially during a pandemic. Joel Schanker, IFB Solutions volunteer and member of the Kiwanis Club of Clemmons, was involved with this project from the beginning. “What was interesting about this project to me was that it took eighteen months to complete, because our two vendors fell through. Finally, we used Swingset Mall, then we had the pandemic and school closings to deal with. But all involved stayed with it all, focused on giving children in wheelchairs the joy of a swing set. The funding, a little over $3,500, came from the Kiwanis Club of Clemmons and the Carolinas District Kiwanis Foundation. Members of the Kiwanis Club of Clemmons committed close to 50 hours of work throughout the acquisition and installation. Troop 964 joined us to assemble the swing set. This was a complete community effort, and seeing the swing set in use for the first time reminded us of what the project was truly about,” Joel commented.

Reaching for the Sky

The swing set is for registered S.E.E. children that want to feel the wind in their hair, reaching the sky a little at a time. Chris Flynt stated, “In addition to my role with IFB Solutions, I am also a member of the Kiwanis Club of Clemmons, so this was an extra-special project. Within the S.E.E. programs, we have four kids that are wheelchair users. They have use of the swing set during business hours and programming activities. Because the use of the swing set requires some assistance when loading the wheelchair, we ask that use of it be reserved, so there is a staff member at the area to help.” It is often the little things in life that are taken for granted, and many go a lifetime before they realize that. Fortunately, the volunteers involved in this worthwhile project knew the joy of a swing set and have brought it to kids who may never have been able to experience it. For more information on Tracy’s Little Red School House or the swing set for wheelchair-bound children, contact Kim Flanagan at kflanagan@ifbsolutions.org or call 336-245-5669.

The Unknown History of the

CODE TALKERS

BY MEGAN TAYLOR

August 14th is the date of many historic events. It is the day when Winston Churchill and Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Atlantic Charter in 1941, the whiffle ball was invented in 1953, and the U.S. Embassy reopened in Havana, Cuba in 2015. The fourteenth of August also holds another historic meaning by being known as National Navajo Code Talkers’ Day. The Navajo code talkers were a group of Navajo Native American men employed by the Marines to create a complex and secret language to help with phrasing military words and tactics. The group would soon become known as the “inventors of the unbreakable code.” Today, they are mainly remembered for their contributions in World War II, but still little is known about their history. The Navajo code talkers were born out of a need by the U.S. military during World Wars I and II. The military discovered they needed a quick and protected way to communicate to others in the military and keep their messages hidden from enemies. The Choctaw code talkers in World War I paved the way for the Navajo code talkers in World War II. During World War I, the Germans had broken every American code used up until the introduction into combat of the 142nd Infantry Regiment, 36th Division of the U.S. Army National Guard. The regiment included a company of Native Americans, particularly Choctaw Indians and members of the Cheyenne, Comanche, Cherokee, Osage, and Yankton Sioux tribes. Twenty-six different languages and dialects were spoken by the various tribes. Soon, the languages were used by 18 Choctaw soldiers to transmit messages to others. These messages were about troop movements and tactical plans and were unbreakable by German code breakers, leading to the group being renamed “code talkers.” About 20 years later, the Marines and Army brought back the code talkers to help with communications in the European and Pacific theaters during World War II. Philip Johnston was a World War I veteran and son of a missionary working with the Navajo tribes. Johnston based his recommendation on the code talkers’ experience in World War I and the complexity of the Navajo language. In 1942, 29 Navajo soldiers started boot camp and then moved to Camp Pendleton in California to develop the Navajo code, dictionary, and words for military terms. After training, a code talker was sent to the Pacific theater to work with the Marines. Throughout the war, the Navajo code talkers were praised for their precise skills and ability within the military. However, their work remained classified, leaving little room open for public recognition until 1968, when the work was declassified. In 1982, President Reagan gave the code talkers a Certificate of Recognition and named August 14th Navajo Code Talkers’ Day. Then, again, in 2000, President Clinton awarded the Congressional Gold Medal to the original World War II Navajo code talkers. Further honors came in 2001, 2002, 2008, and 2017. To this day, the dedication and commitment of the Navajo code talkers is celebrated and their story continues to be shared with future generations.

FUN FACTS:

• Many Native American languages had never been written down until the code talkers. • The Navajo language is complex and unidentifiable to anyone without any familiarity with it. There is no alphabet or symbols within the language. • The code talkers took part in many important events and battles, including

D-Day, the Battle of the Bulge, and the liberation of Paris. Major Howard

Connor once stated, “Were it not for the Navajos, the Marines would never have taken Iwo Jima.” At the beginning of the battle of Iwo Jima, six code talkers worked for the first two days straight without a break. The six sent out over 800 messages without any errors. • While basing their codes on their native languages, the group also developed words for military terms that never existed in their own language. For example, “colonel” became “silver eagle,” “fighter plane” became

“hummingbird,” and “pyrotechnic” became “fancy fire.” • In addition to the Pacific Theater in

World War II, code talkers served in

North Africa and Europe. After the end of World War II, some Native Americans continued to serve as code talkers during the Korean and Vietnam wars.