December 2019 Health Wellness and Nutrition Supplement

DECEMBER 2019 HEALTH WELLNESS & NUTRITION SUPPLEMENT

Beating the Blahs A Quick Guide to Guarding Your Mental & Emotional Health During the Holidays

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WORDS FROM THE EDITOR

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I admit that I am one of the millions of Americans who does not relish the holiday season. Much of my humbug position for the jingling bells and red-nosed reindeer comes from the financial pressure I’ve watched people put themselves under from Black Friday through early January. More disheartening is the loss of meaning for the season – the birth of Jesus, the Christ, and benign neglect of the dispossessed, lonely, troubled, and suffering. Still, I’ve always gone through the rigamarole of family gatherings over lavish meals, Spades, film watching, and lots of laughter. Those things notwithstanding, this year posed a particularly emotional one, as the loss of two senior family members made the thought of gathering to celebrate nearly unbearable.

For the first time, the absence of loved ones made the importance of the holidays, dull – and the most comforting thought for my immediate family was to retire to our respective homes, pull our duvets over our heads, and shelter in place. Fortunately, some much needed insight and counsel from Matthews Memorial Baptist churchgoers forced me into a lock-step pattern of remembering those who’d transitioned and how they would expect me to carry on. Live well, serve others, and remember those who have passed, fondly.

So, this year, with the absence of my aunt, Henrietta Murry and father, McKinley Clark – both who lived abundant lives until their mid-80s, I took on the services of others by cooking Thanksgiving dinner. Now, those of you who know me understand the risks to both others and myself, which this involved.

Still, my desire not to fail meant planning, prepping, creating, and hosting a full meal – without sending anyone to the emergency room.

Fortunately, all are well, and I have passed the litmus test, giving me ongoing access to the kitchen for cooking purposes. (Yes, I am serious… I had been barred until recently.) This Christmas, we will all serve a local shelter to give and receive the care we need.

While the grieving process is an ongoing one that will make holidays tender for years to come, others, like students already stressed by final exams and research papers unable to travel home for the holidays, elders living away from loved ones, those living in transitional housing or on the streets, and those feeling vulnerable due to financial or social pressures, need the support of the communities around them.

Beating the Blahs, A Quick Guide to Guarding Your Mental & Emotional Health During the Holidays addresses a few of the concerns our readers may feel too vulnerable to discuss with family or friends. Feelings of loneliness during the holidays are increasingly common. Let’s work to serve others in order to heal. Please utilize this supplement as a lock-step to 1) know that what you’re feeling is normal, 2) you are not alone; and 3) support is available and plentiful.

Read, Grow, Enjoy.

Dr. S

www.washingtoninformer.com / DECEMBER 2019 HEALTH WELLNESS & NUTRITION SUPPLEMENT

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College Students Face Many Holiday Stressors

By Lee Ross WI Staff Writer The period between November and January poses an additional amount of stress and emotional strain on college students, who in addition to facing holiday blahs, also juggle completing final exams and research papers before the semester closes. These issues are further exacerbated for students by their distance from home and the reality that they may have to spend the holidays on an empty campus – far from relatives.

Alonzo Bynum, a senior marketing major from Chicago told the Informer, he has learned to get over the isolation and overwhelming stress he faced being stuck outof-town for the holidays, by simply filling his days with as many distractions as possible leading up to Christmas. When campuses all but shutter for holiday break, keeping busy proves vital to being emotionally healthy.

“One year I was snowed out of Chicago and could not get home, and another year I made it home to Chicago and then was unable to get back in time for classes, so I’ve stopped trying,” the American University student said. “I had a few teary moments the first couple of years but came to the realization that I needed to focus on classwork and research, volunteering, and making use of the time.

I still feel the stress, but not the sadness."

Psychologist Juanita McDavid told the Informer that international students and those living far from home may experience isolation and loneliness during winter breaks, in much the way Bynum explained.

‘Students are working through the pressure of new academic and living environments, as well as the added pressure of being happy and jolly for the season; sometimes, this has an overwhelming impact on how they cope,” McDavid said during this year’s Congressional Black Caucus Annual Legislative Conference. “I used to see this at one college in the Midwest a lot, where students gained weight from overeating or became truculent at the thought of traveling home for the holidays because there was too much pressure to succeed, and yet they were lonely for family.”

The latter was the case this year for Trinity University junior Alicia Knight who said her family could not afford to pay for her trip home to Alabama for the holidays. She said the financial burden arose as her younger brother, a freshman enrolled at Grambling State in Louisiana, also wanted to come home.

“He’s younger, he’s not coping well living away from home, and it’s his first year, so they chose to fly him home. If I’m honest, I feel some kind of way about it because he could drive or take a bus, so that we both could come home,” Knight said. “The sadness or loneliness may come, but right now, I’m more angry. Maybe the anger will get me through this because at this point, I don’t know if being around my family would be a positive thing.”

For the break, Knight plans to spend a few days with a classmate’s family in New York, which she said will allow her to have some fun and get a break from both the isolation of the campus and her family.

McDavid said that the taking breaks from both school and family at the close of a semester and re-evaluating the season can be helpful in keeping back the blahs.

“Young people can sometimes walk a tightrope between what they believe they can do and what they believe others expect of them.

There are extreme adjustments to be made leaving home and – oddly enough, coming home during the holidays can make those adjustments more complicated because everyone wants to know about school when all the student wants to do is turn off.” she said. “Many students choose to take excursions with friends from school away from family to avoid the anxiety of home.”

McDavid advised that students who experience accompanying symptoms such as sleep disturbance, poor appetite, difficulty concentrating and fatigue that become disruptive or cause intense subjective distress -- consult with a medical or mental health professional. HS

College students can face a myriad of stressors during the academic year that are exacerbated by the holiday season. / Courtesy photo]

The period between November

and January poses an additional amount of stress and emotional strain on college students, who in addition to facing holiday

blahs, also juggle completing

final exams and research papers

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before the semester closes.

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DECEMBER 2019 HEALTH WELLNESS & NUTRITION SUPPLEMENT / www.washingtoninformer.com

ty to recover emotionally and psychologically from challenges, like experiencing a loss or sickness. It’s our capacity to adapt and move on.

Thriving Under Stress

The holidays can bring a lot of stress. We may struggle to afford gifts, create fun gatherings for friends and family, or get around in wintry weather. But life can throw us a curveball at any time of the year.

Why do some people become overwhelmed in stressful times, while others feel more at ease in them and even find fresh enthusiasm? How can we not just survive the stress, but thrive in it?

ENGAGE THE CHANGE

Here are three beliefs that can help you find and keep your health and happiness during life’s hassles:

Submitted by AmeriHealth Caritas District of ColumbiaSM We all want the resilience to bounce back quickly from difficult times. Even more than that, we’d like to do well while they’re happening. Resilience is our abili-

#BestMe

Rewards Program

• Commitment. You can think of this as your connection. When a crisis comes, you might feel an urge to avoid it. You might want to distract yourself with something else — anything to run from the feeling of stress. Instead, lean into the feeling. How can you become more involved in challenging events? Look for ways to be included, rather than becoming isolated.

• Control. What can you do to help change events for the better?

Focus on how you can be a force of

good for yourself and others, even in little ways. These little efforts to improve things can be enough to keep you from feeling powerless.

And where you can’t change events, you might be able to change how you see them.

• Challenge. Within a crisis hides an opportunity. This belief allows you to see change as a way to learn something new. Thinking back, you can probably remember a time when something that seemed bad at the time led to something good. If you can, simply accept that something good is possible from the current stress.

The challenge of today can lead to something better later on.

These beliefs can help you when you feel strained. They can reduce your sense of being overwhelmed.

They can help you get a handle on any anxiety or depression you might feel. At the same time, they can boost your life satisfaction.

BACK TO BASICS

There’s no right or wrong way to feel about stress. Emotions can be hard to predict during these times, so, if you can, wait to make major life choices when you are feeling less stressed.

STRESS Page HS5

I got a gift card for getting my annual physical. You can too.

You can get a $25 gift card if you: • Are an AmeriHealth Caritas District of Columbia member • Are 12 – 21 years old • Get an annual physical exam

Visit www.amerihealthcaritasdc.com/giftcard to learn more.

Note: A member cannot get more than $50 in incentives each year.

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All images are used under license for illustrative purposes only.

Any individual depicted is a model.

AmeriHealth Caritas District of Columbia complies with applicable federal civil rights laws and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, disability, or sex.

English: ATTENTION: If you speak English, language assistance services, at no cost, are available to you. Call 1-800-408-7511 (TTY/TDD: 202-216-9885 or 1-800-570-1190).

Spanish: ATENCIÓN: si habla español, tiene a su disposición servicios gratuitos de asistencia lingüística. Llame al 1-800-408-7511 (TTY/TDD: 202-216-9885 o 1-800-570-1190).

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STRESS from Page HS4

You can also: • Limit the amount of stressful news you watch or listen to • Create and keep to a routine

• Eat nutritious foods that will give you energy • Avoid drugs and alcohol

• Exercise most days, even if just taking a walk • Get enough sleep Above all, when you’re feeling the heat, be kind to yourself.

When you can be a good friend to yourself, you know that you’re on your side. HS

We all want the resilience to bounce back quickly from difficult times. Even more than that, we’d like to do well while they’re happening. Resilience is our ability to recover emotionally and psychologically from challenges, like experiencing a loss or sickness. It’s our capacity to adapt and move on.

Sources: 1. “Turning Lemons into Lemonade: Hardiness Helps People Turn Stressful Circumstances into Opportunities,” American Psychological Association, https:// www.apa.org/research/action/lemon.

2. “Coping Tips for Traumatic Events and Disasters,” Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, https://www.samhsa.gov/find-help/disaster-distress-helpline/coping-tips.

3. “Understanding and Overcoming Procrastination,” McGraw Center for Learning and Teaching, Princeton University, https://mcgraw.princeton.edu/understanding-and-overcoming-procrastination All images are used under license for illustrative purposes only. Any individual depicted is a model

#BESTME CORNER

How to Get Things Done on Time Have you ever heard someone say they put off doing things because they “work better under pressure”? Or are they a little harder on themselves, and say it’s because they are “lazy”?

It turns out that when we avoid doing things we don’t want to do, it’s not usually for either of these reasons. Putting things off is actually a way we try to protect ourselves from fear. We might fear not doing the job well, fear doing it so well that we are given too much work, fear losing control, or have some other fear. This emotional weight can keep us feeling bogged down. It also doesn’t leave us much wiggle room if something happens that we don’t expect.

How to overcome a dread of doing?

Try these tips to be your #BestMe: • Identify your own reasons for putting things off.

You might have different reasons than someone else does. Finding your reasons may take some thought, but knowing why we really put things off is key to managing our time better.

• Find your motivation.

What can you learn or accomplish in a task that feels good to you?

• Reduce the stress of how you manage your time.

Try to avoid making huge lists of things to do and keeping strict schedules. These can overwhelm you.

Instead, set reasonable goals. Break down big tasks into smaller ones. Pace yourself. Be gentle with yourself.

• Use surroundings that help you.

Try to find an area with few distractions. Set aside blocks of time for the job.

• Reward yourself for finishing.

Give yourself time for something you enjoy after you complete a job.

Find us on Twitter: www.twitter.com/amerihealthdc / Find us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/AmeriHealthCaritasDC

#BestMe

Rewards Program

I got a gift card for getting my prenatal checkup. You can too.

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Note: A member cannot get more than $50 in incentives each year.

ACDC-19433327-1

www.amerihealthcaritasdc.com AmeriHealth Caritas District of Columbia complies with applicable federal civil rights laws and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, disability, or sex.

English: ATTENTION: If you speak English, language assistance services, at no cost, are available to you. Call 1-800-408-7511 (TTY/TDD: 202-216-9885 or 1-800-570-1190).

Spanish: ATENCIÓN: si habla español, tiene a su disposición servicios gratuitos de asistencia lingüística. Llame al 1-800-408-7511 (TTY/TDD: 202-216-9885 o 1-800-570-1190).

Amharic: ማሳሰቢያ፡ አማርኛ መናገር የሚችሉ ከሆነ፣ ከከፍያ ነጻ የሆነ የቋንቋ ድጋፍ አገልግሎት ይቀርብልዎታል፡፡ በስልክ ቁጥር 1-800-408-7511 (TTY/TDD: 202-216-9885 ወይም 1-800-570-1190) ይደውሉ.

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HS-5

DECEMBER 2019 HEALTH WELLNESS & NUTRITION SUPPLEMENT / www.washingtoninformer.com

All images are used under license for illustrative purposes only.

Any individual depicted is a model.

Beating the Holiday Blahs

By Lee Ross WI Staff Writer With the first signs of the holiday season – usually the eve of Thanksgiving – millions of Americans enter a mental and emotional spiral termed the holiday blahs. One survey by the American Psychological Association concluded that while feelings of happiness, love, and gratitude are experienced by many, millions more wrestle with loneliness, stress, grief, and depression.

Feelings of loneliness during the holidays are increasingly common, according to a 2017 AARP survey, which found that roughly one-in-ten (or 31 percent) adults reported having felt lonely during the holiday season in the past five years. Additionally, two-infive (or 41 percent) reported worrying about family members or friends feeling lonely or depressed during the holiday season.

“Depression, grief and loneliness often take a toll on individuals and families – especially when there have been

Lee Ross

By WI Staff Writer

deaths in the family. Especially among Black families, once loved one is buried and gone, the holidays tend to represent a particular type of loss because those who have transitioned are sorely missed,” psychologist Jeremy Roy told the Informer. “The holidays magnify loss, as well, because too often the grieving process is rushed and suddenly during Christmas dinner, when that person’s unique presence is missed, does the loss register.”

Roy said that entire families have fallen apart after the loss of an elder who unified the family and made the holiday season enjoyable.

Others, like Arlinda Grady, who grew up in foster care said the holidays represent a time when not having family makes her feel like a third-wheel or outsider among friends who welcome her into their homes.

“I count it all a blessing to have co-workers invite me join their families, but it kind of makes me feel like I am always intruding… like an outsider watching someone else’s family scenes,” Grady told the

Too often those who do not have families or close friends feel isolated and depressed during the holidays. / Courtesy photo

Informer. “It is a time when I avoid social media and watching television where all I see are families enjoying meals and laughing.”

So how does one go about guarding their emotions

during the holiday season?

Grady volunteers to feed the homeless or deliver food to seniors without a care system.

“I found that my loneliness wasn’t singular; others were also suffering the same feelings

of isolation and depression. I decided to be the family that others need – so that in turn, they could be the family I need. Now, holidays make me feel overwhelming joy.”

HS

Tips to Beating the Holiday Blahs

Don’t Go It Alone The tendency is to isolate ourselves and seek the shelter of television and snack foods to beat back loneliness and depression; however, the best way to deal with loneliness is to call on friends to have small outings to the mall, to parks, or for coffee. By enjoying the company of friends, we place less focus of what we’re missing and more on what we’ve got.

Talk It Out We often believe that in the middle of celebrations, we don’t want to “bring others down” by sharing that we are lonely, depressed, or grieving. It is imperative that when we have these feelings, we let others that we trust know. For those who feel vulnerable telling friends their personal information, hotlines operate yearround, but go into overdrive to offer a helpful ear during the holidays. Use them.

Focus on You Holiday blahs can cause many to overindulge in food, alcohol, and idleness.

To avoid the complications of overindulging, work to get proper exercise, sleep, and hydration (water) during this period. For those who may also be experiencing anxiety, practice meditation or deep breathing exercises to calm yourself.

Be the Blessing You Need Like Grady, volunteering your time to help others takes the focus off of what you are missing and redirects it into the things you are still capable of doing for others. Holidays are often called the season of giving, because there is always a way for you to help someone else and ease the pain associated with loneliness, grief, and depression.

Give Yourself a Break Too often we are hyper-critical with ourselves and believe that our feelings are unjustified. Grief, depression, and loneliness are all parts of the normal human condition and each takes time to work through. In cases of grief, the holidays will most likely remain a time when loss is remembered – but can eventually become a time when family remember fondly and share stories of those missing members. The key is giving yourself time to grieve – however long that may be – and working to avoid isolating yourself from those who still love and need you. HS 3 Maneuvering the blahs means speaking up and getting out. / Courtesy

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America’s beverage companies are working together to bring you more choices with less sugar and smaller portion sizes. And we’re adding new signs to encourage you to consider these choices.

See what else we’re doing at BALANCEUS.ORG.

SUPPORTING YOUR EFFORTS TO FIND BALANCE

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Secret Foods to Lower Blood Pressure

By Elaine Magee, MPH, RD Albertsons Companies Wellness Corporate Dietitian and the author of 25 books, including “Tell Me What to Eat if I Suffer from Heart Disease”

creased pressure, which can lead to injury of the artery walls, atherosclerosis and coronary heart disease.

Shockingly less than one-third of people with high blood pressure have it

About 73 million U.S. adults are walking around with high blood pressure or hypertension.

It’s called “the silent killer” because there are absolutely no signs that you have it. When you have high blood pressure your heart has to pump harder and the arteries are under in-

under control and uncontrolled blood pressure significantly increases the risk of heart attack and stroke. The good news is new research reported a 10 mm Hg reduction of systolic blood pressure reduced the risk of major cardiovascular disease events, stroke, and heart failure by 2028%. Experts agree

that maintaining a healthy weight, staying active and not smoking are three of your best bets for managing blood pressure. But what you eat (or don’t eat) can also improve blood pressure. Most of us know that limiting sodium and salt to less than 2400 milligrams a day is recommended, but here are a few of the more secret food-related tips.

The Tale of Two Minerals: Potassium and Sodium Americans tend to get too little potassium and too much sodium in their diet. While a high intake of sodium raises hypertension risk, people who meet the daily requirement for the electrolyte potassium, reduce their risk of cardiovascular disease and its risk factors.

Get more potassium every day by including a daily dose of dark green leafy veggies. Other potassium heavy hitters in the vegetable category include artichokes, Brussel sprouts, sweet potatoes and potatoes with skin. In the fruit category look to bananas, oranges/orange juice, papayas, cherries, kiwi, tomatoes, avocado, and cantaloupe/watermelon for potassium.

The Three Amigo Minerals: Potassium, Magnesium, and Calcium We’ve just been reminded about the power of potassium, but potassium is also one of three minerals that are vital for improving blood pressure. And as luck or mother-nature would have it, at least two and sometimes all three are found together in foods. The big star in this list is dark green leafy veggies (which boasts all three minerals), other foods on this list include low fat dairy, nuts (almonds, peanuts, soy nuts, pistachios, sunflower seeds, etc.), beans and peas (esSECRET FOODS Page HS9

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SECRET FOOD from Page HS8

pecially edamame/soybeans), seafood (especially shellfish and clams), and whole grains (especially oats and quinoa).

Let the DASH Diet Inspire You The DASH eating plan, which features many of the foods we already noted in the first two tips, has lowered blood pressure similar to what is commonly achieved with medications. Along with a lower sodium intake, this tested eating plan encourages daily 8-10 servings of vegetables and whole fruit, 2-3 servings of low-fat dairy, whole grains over processed grains, nuts, seeds and beans (2-3 tablespoons), and no more than 6 ounces of lean meat, poultry or fish.

gin olive oil adds 30-plus plant compounds, many of which have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory action in the body.

Dark Chocolate & Cocoa Helps Crush High Blood Pressure Dark chocolate and unsweetened cocoa are loaded with antioxidants and improve blood pressure, blood lipids, and arterial flexibility and vascular health.

The dose suggested to be helpful (and associated with lowering the risk of heart attack) is .33-ounce dark chocolate or 1.5 tablespoons of cocoa powder at least 3-4 times a week.

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Dark chocolate and unsweetened cocoa are loaded with antioxidants and improve blood pressure, blood lipids, and arterial flexibility and vascular health.

Include Extra Virgin Olive Oil in your Daily Diet New research continues to suggest that there may be blood pressure-lowering benefits to including extra-virgin olive oil in your daily diet.

Along with the more favorable monounsaturated fats, extra vir-

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Home at HSC, There’s No Place Like It

By Carolina Friser-Frederiksen

Home at HSC. Those are the first words residents see when they enter the doors of the area’s first pediatric and young adult long-term care residence - The HSC Skilled Nursing Facility (SNF). The SNF is housed within The HSC Pediatric Center, a pediatric specialty hospital in Washington, DC, which for over 135 years has provided services for children from infancy through age 21. The HSC Pediatric Center provides easy access to a range of family-centered medical and therapy services to meet the care needs for children who are leaving a traditional hospital and aren’t quite ready to be cared for at home.

The HSC Pediatric Center is where Christine Mesa, a Registered Nurse, has spent the majority of her career caring for the most vulnerable young people.

The patients at The HSC Pediatric Center often require more specialized care, rehabilitative services and support for their complex and chronic conditions. Nurse Mesa thus was the perfect person to join the new HSC Skilled Nursing Facility as

the Director of Nursing when it opened in August 2019.

At The HSC SNF, residents up to the age of 21 who are unable to live at home due to their medical condition (such as being technology-dependent or uninterrupted care is needed) can feel at home in a residential setting that offers continuous 24/7 nursing and medical care. Common examples of our residents’ conditions may include heart anomalies, chronic lung disease, digestive disorders, conditions associated with prematurity, seizure disorders, longterm parenteral nutrition (TPN), among other chronic disorders.

Ms. Christine, as HSC patients and residents lovingly call her, started her journey into nursing when she volunteered in high school as a Candy Striper. She was proud to wear her red and white striped uniform, and used her gentle presence and smile to calm and assure patients and their families. Ms. Christine realized that being away from home and familiar settings created fear.

Her biggest contribution was to do what she could to help her patients feel that no matter where they were, they were cared for as if they were at home.

Home is much more than just a place where one lives. For a child, it’s where their room is filled with their favorite toys, posters, and pictures. It’s where they feel safe and enjoy spending time with their family and friends. So, at The HSC SNF, nurses, doctors and therapists happily recreate this sense of “home”. Ms. Christine shared, “Not only is care and treatment personalized and family-centered, we also individualize our resident’s space. One of our current residents has her family photos and stuffed animals displayed in her semi-private room.”

While caring for residents at The HSC SNF, staff also become family. Most recently, Ms. Christine remembers a moment during a ceremony to open The HSC SNF. A resident’s mother was asked to provide a few words to guests. In the audience were government officials, hospital executives, community partners, and staff. The mom became overwhelmed with emotion and found it difficult to deliver her prepared speech, nervously looking down at the paper, but finding her voice failing her. Ms. Christine knew how important this moment was to her and

when she saw her angst, knew she needed to join her by her side.

The mom asked her to speak, entrusting her words to her. Ms. Christine recounts, “I wanted to make sure she knew I was there for her, we’re always here for her.”

As Ms. Christine reminisces on her 25 years of work at HSC, she smiles and is reminded of her favorite quote from Maya Angelou, “At the end of the day people won't remember what you said or did, they will remember how you made them feel.” She went on

to say, “And isn’t this just what home and family are? You won’t remember the specifics of what was said or when it was done, but you will always remember what home and family feel like.” HS

The First Pediatric & Young Adult Skilled Nursing Facility in the Area is Open!

The HSC Pediatric Center Skilled Nursing Facility (SNF) is a long-term care facility that provides comprehensive medical, therapeutic and nursing care for medically complex children from birth through age 21. Our team of specialists is dedicated to providing family-centered care for all residents in a supportive environment.

1731 Bunker Hill Road NE, Washington, DC 20017 To learn more, visit HSChealth.org SkilledNursingFacility_PrintAd_120519.indd 1

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@HSCHealthCare The HSC Health Care System 12/5/19 9:24 AM

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Holiday Season Safety For You And Your Kids

By Children’s National Hospital Winter holidays are a time for families and friends to get together.

But the gatherings could put children and families at a greater risk for preventable injury and fire. Here are some holiday season safety tips.

General Safety • Make sure guests are aware of children’s abilities – they may not have seen them lately. For example, the baby maybe pulling up or starting to walk and can reach things that were previously out of reach.

• Avoid using candles with flames. Keep matches and lighters up high or locked up.

• Make sure your smoke detector is working – have a carbon monoxide detector if you have gas appliances.

• Guests should secure all their medications – no purses on the floor, etc.

Cooking Safety • Stay in the kitchen when cooking on the stove top.

• Cook with handles turned inward.

• Keep sharp kitchen tools out of reach.

• Keep children away from the stove, preferably out of the kitchen or in a highchair or behind a gate.

• Stay home when cooking with the oven.

Safe Home Decorations • Use flame resistant or retardant decorations.

• Take care lights are used properly – indoor for indoor.

• Turn lights out when going to bed.

• Keep candles away from decorations and curtains. If you’re using candles with flames extinguish them when you leave the room.

Safe Holiday Entertaining • Keep hot food in the center of the table, and cover or place lids on hot drinks.

• Be mindful of your guests’ allergies or health issues.

• Share your home’s escape plan with your guests.

• Assign someone to watch the small children during gatherings or celebrations.

Most of all, remember to have a wonderful time with family and friends! HS

The staff at Children’s National Hospital wish you and yours a healthy and happy new year. Our Primary Care offices have expanded and are accepting new patients in Columbia Heights, Shaw Metro and Shepherd Park! Call 888-884-BEAR for an appointment today.

For more information on keeping your kids happy and healthy, visit RiseandShine.ChildrensNational.org, where you can get advice straight from the experts at Children’s National.

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DECEMBER 2019 HEALTH WELLNESS & NUTRITION SUPPLEMENT / www.washingtoninformer.com

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Noteworthy & Important Works on Beating Seasonal Blahs

By Lee Ross Special to the Informer

The quickest way to ward off seasonal blahs is recognizing that you’re not alone. Here is a small sampling of the many great texts available through libraries, booksellers, and digital downloads on working through holiday anxiety, depression, grief, and loneliness.

Surviving the Holidays Without You: Navigating Grief During Special Seasons

By Gary Roe Multiple award-winning author, speaker, and grief specialist Gary Roe is a compassionate and trusted voice in grief recovery who has been bringing comfort, hope, encouragement, and healing to wounded hearts for more than 30 years. Surviving the Holidays Without You has helped thousands of grievers not only maintain their sanity, but turn days that they once dreaded into positive, healing times. Written with heartfelt compassion, this easy-to-read, practical book has been dubbed by many as a "Holiday Survival Kit." Texts include: Why holiday grief, Christmas Grief, and Special Day Sadness Are So Challenging, How to Handle Grief Triggers, Emotional Bursts, and Rollercoaster Emotions; and How to Face Feeling Emotional, Lonely, Misunderstood, and Overwhelmed.

Good Grief: A Companion for Every Loss

By Granger E. Westberg For more than fifty years Good Grief has helped millions of readers, including NFL players and a former first lady, find comfort and rediscover hope after loss. This classic text includes a foreword by Dr. Timothy Johnson, a leading communicator of medical health care information. An afterword by the author's daughters tells how the book came to be. Good Grief identifies ten stages of grief--shock, emotion, depression, physical distress, panic, guilt, anger, resistance, hope, and acceptance--but, recognizing that grief is complex and deeply personal, defines no "right" way to grieve. Good Grief offers valuable insights on the emotional and physical responses persons may experience during the natural process of grieving. Reflection questions help readers explore their own experience with each stage.

A Decembered Grief: Living with Loss While Others are Celebrating

By Harold Ivan Smith Vincent van Gogh's last words resonate with many grievers this holiday season: 'La tristesse durea--the sadness will never go away. 'No, it will not go away. But it will change. Grief can be overwhelming, and it is especially intense during the holidays--those weeks that have always been spent in preparation and anticipation with a loved one who has been lost. While the world seems to be moving forward and celebrating life, grievers face a season of darkness and loss. For you--or as gift for someone you know who is grieving--Harold Ivan Smith guides the reader beyond the darkness with illustrations and insights that emphasize God's ability to transform the holidays into a time of grace and healing.

Lead Me Home: An African American's Guide Through the Grief Journey

By Carleen Brice When a loved one dies, we embark on a journey that is marked by anguish, confusion, fear, and loneliness. For African Americans, the grief journeys often includes more complicated and painful emotions: frustration with the knowledge that black men and women have a greater chance of dying from major common diseases than their white counterparts; anger at the frequency of drug- and violence-related deaths; and the collective grief of a community that has buried too many of its young people.

Carleen Brice gently guides readers through the strange terrain of grief to the promise of home-a place where we have not only survived our losses but are wiser and stronger because of them. She shares her personal story of loss and recovery, as well as the stories of others, so that you will know you are not alone.

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Fighting Holiday Financial Blahs

By Lee Ross WI Staff Writer One of the trickiest things to avoid when thinking of holiday blahs, is how our spending creates a minefield of unhappiness.

Whether it’s spending to meet the ever-growing demands of our children or the belief that purchases make us good people, the resulting stress and bills usher in the type of blahs and bills that keep on giving! Here are few tips to pushing back those holiday financial blahs.

Stick To A List – Like Glue Have you ever purchased gifts for everyone in the office, house, or club – and walked out after a gathering with a single item or empty-handed? Too often the financial blahs of the holidays are brought on by overextending ourselves. Consider giving cards to everyone – but gifts to only a few, select individuals. Also, if there are more than two people in a given household, practice giving a single household gift from which everyone in the house benefits, like a streaming subscription.

Give What You Do Have Several years ago, a colleague who constantly bragged of over-shopping suddenly lost his job. With a monthly budget spent on luxury items – including watches, silk ties, and fragrances – in the thousands, he reached the end of the year depressed that he would not be able to dazzle Christmas parties as he had in the past. To break the blahs, he selected items he believed would serve as great gifts for others and gave them to friends that year.

Consider wrapping new or unused clothing, books, or other items from your own home and giving them as gifts to others.

Coupons For Your Time At a recent dinner party, I noticed that most of the diners who were together sat with their mobile phone in hand, chatting, texting or live-streaming portions of the meal, rather than engaging with each other. The greatest and most enduring gift of all, I surmised, was the gift of uninterrupted time with another person.

Consider giving handmade gift coupons to friends and family

for a bit of one-on-one time with you to chat, have coffee, or take a spin through a local museum.

Not only is it a practical and free gift, but it also builds lasting memories.

and promotions – including Buy One, Get One Free (BOGO) and buy now-pay later enticements will abound. Avoid this at all costs by remembering how

quickly the items you purchased last year went into the basement, sock drawer, back of the closet, attic, garage, or garbage.

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Balance Holiday Spending Consolidated Credit, a credit counseling and debt relief agency, found that the average American family can expect to spend approximately $970 this year on Christmas gifts – even though a large percentage may be cash-strapped and forced to use credit cards to meet the wants of those around them. Holiday spending includes decorations, Christmas trees, (including increased an electric bill for outside lighting half the night), as well as the meals and gifts of the season. Consider cutting back on the decorations, going potluck for meals, and eliminating some gifts.

Resist Impulse & Last-Minute Purchases In the days leading up to Christma and New Year’s Day, advertisers will do their best to part you and your money. Every manner of “last minute" sales

Sometimes the greatest barriers to holiday cheer come from financial stress. (Courtesy photo)

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Compiled by Lee Ross WI Staff Writer The Access HelpLine at 1(888)7WE-HELP or 1-888-7934357 is the easiest way to get connected to services provided by the Department of Behavioral Health and its certified behavioral health care providers. This 24-hour, seven-day-a-week telephone line is staffed by behavioral health professionals who can refer a caller to immediate help or ongoing care.

The Access Helpline can activate mobile crisis teams to respond to adults and children who are experiencing a psychiatric or emotional crisis and are unable or unwilling to travel to receive behavioral health services.

Getting Necessary Support

Maryland's Helpline is available 24/7 to provide support, guidance, and assistance. Please call 211 and select option 1, text your zip code 898-211, or visit 211MD.org For help in Northern Virginia: Emergency - 703-573-5679 Detox - 703-502-7000 (24/7) or to find a Virginia Mental Health Service provider, or to inquire about accessing CSB non-emergency services, call CSB Entry and Referral Services (available Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.) –

703-383-8500, TTY 711. Youth and adults can also come in person, without prior appointment, to Entry & Referral Services at the CSB's Merrifield Center Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. to be screened for services. [Learn what happens during an assessment.]

Specialists at the National Alliance on Mental Illness can refer people to services a person might not know about for treatment and community support. The free hotline runs from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. ET Monday through Friday at 800-950-6264 and by email at info@nami.org. It's unclear if the hotline would be unavailable on holidays.

Emergency services available 24/7 A 24/7 toll-free number is 1-800273-8255. Known as the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, it connects people to local crisis centers and has national backup centers to answer calls.

Another 24/7 free service, Crisis Text Line, connects people with a real-life crisis counselor to help in the moment. Text HOME to 741741 from anywhere in the U.S. for support.

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New Better Sleep Council Research Helps Americans Navigate the Holiday Blues

WI Staff Report / The Better Sleep Council

While the holidays are a very social time of year, they can also be a very lonely time for many people.

The Better Sleep Council (BSC), the consumer education arm of the International Sleep Products Association (ISPA), released its latest research findings from The State of America’s Sleep study. These findings can help Americans identify how isolation and sleep may further impact their holiday pressures.

This new wave of research analyzed the relationship between quality of sleep and loneliness. For instance, over half of those who are isolated are more likely to be female (55 percent), compared to over half of men who are not isolated (53 percent). When looking at the different generations, people between the ages of 18 and 34 were the most isolated group and were more likely to sleep poorly, compared to their older counterparts.

The top three findings from the research were that the worst sleepers tend to have difficult interpersonal relationships, have financial challenges or are heavy social media users. These

individuals may struggle with holiday gatherings with family and friends: The holidays are a time of year where family and friends get together, but high expectations – such as having the perfect gifts, trees or decorations – may be stressful and overwhelming for some. Additionally, not having anyone around to celebrate with during the joyous time of year may make people feel isolated and lonely.

Based on the BSC’s research: Adults who agree (completely or somewhat) that they wish they had more friends represent almost half of poor sleepers (46 percent).

Poor sleepers are nearly twice as likely (1.77 times) to have difficulty in social situations. Additionally, those who are isolated are more likely (37 percent) to be single (never married), compared to those who are not isolated (27 percent).

Struggling with holiday budgets: The National Retail Federation found that consumers spent $1,007 on average for items such as gifts, decorations and candy, as well as other purchases for their family and themselves during last year’s holiday season – and that didn’t even include spending for holiday travel. The holidays may pos-

sibly bring up financial concerns from unreasonable spending on gifts or from not having the means to pay for certain gifts, which may trigger stress.

According to the BSC’s study: Those who are isolated agree (somewhat or completely) that for the most part they live paycheck to paycheck (55 percent), compared to those who are not isolated (44 percent).

Those who are isolated agree (somewhat or completely) that they generally have enough money to pay only for necessities (54 percent), compared to those not isolated (42 percent).

Seasonal social media usage: It’s easy to use social media to check in on family and friends, especially if they live far away and you’re unable to visit them. It might even be so easy to get caught up in their posts about family gatherings and parties with significant others that it leads to excessive social media usage throughout the day – even before bed. The research found that those who are isolated are more likely to check social media before bed (39 percent), compared to those not isolated (27 percent). Going on social media right before bed is more likely to negatively impact quality of sleep.

“We all know that the holiday season is supposed to be 'the most wonderful time of the year,' but it actually could be one of the loneliest times of the year for many people,” said Mary Helen Rogers, vice president of marketing and communications for the Better Sleep Council. “Not only do these people feel isolated, but they’re

also having trouble getting back to sleep and are frequently waking up tired in the morning. Holiday pressures are often to blame. If we can provide these people with tips on how to improve their sleep habits as we approach the holidays, then hopefully we can help them feel less isolated.”

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The relationship between quality of sleep and loneliness – especially during the holidays – has unlocked a new wave of research into depression, loneliness, and anxiety. (Courtesy photo)

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