50 Years of Medicare, MediCal

A letter from the medical director from Santa Clara valley Medical Center where I work.  He is talking about the 50 year anniversaries of medicare and MediCal in California.  The theme is "Better Health  for All."

Halloween Safety Tips from Kids.gov

Kids.gov has a few suggestions for a safe Halloween:
1. Look up local trick-or-treating rules.  Plot out a map.
2. Stick reflective tape on dark costumes.  No one wants an accident to ruin Halloween.  Face paint rather than a mask for clearer vision.
3. Pick a perfect pumpkin for carving.  Pumpkin should be firm with a level bottom.
4. Use glow-sticks or low-powered flash lights.  This is for inside the jack-o-lantern as well as for seeing as you trick-or-treat.
5. Screen candy before your kids eat.  This suggests throwing out anything that has been opened as well as home made goods unless you know the maker.
They also suggest a light snack before eating candy.  For those with allergies glow sticks or small toys make other options.

Habits that Can Make You Fat

this is from an article by Everyday Health.  I hadn't considered some of these things.
1. Late Night Television Watching: Of course with television comes snacking and this habit can lead to a couple pounds a month.  After dinner munchies should be limited to health food, vegetables, frozen fruit, sir-popped popcorn etc.
2. Traveling for Work:  Sometimes this is beyond your control.  Traveling leads to unhealthy snacking.  Most travel is by car, so keeping a cooler with healthy snacks is important.  Choosing healthy foods when eating out is also important.  A six-inch sub on whole grain bread with lots of vegetables is better then hamburger eating.
3. A Cardio Obsession: This one doesn't seem right, but they say too much cardio burns muscle rather than fat.  You should have interval training, a minute cardio and then slower and then back and forth.  You should also not forget weight training, no more than every other day.
4. Blasting the Air Conditioner:  Never thought of this, but when you are cool you eat more.  Also you don't have to work as much to be comfortable.
5. A Jam-packed Fridge:  What?  The idea here is with a full fridge you forget what is in the vegetable crisper, it then goes bad and you throw it out.  Fruits that need processing should be washed and processed when they are brought in, and then placed in containers at eye level.  Counter fruits should be left in plain site.
6. A Daily Diet-soda Habit:  I have never had this problem, but drink too many sugared drinks, especially for diabetes.  For some reason, those who drink artificial sweetener drinks have a higher BMI than those who drink sugary drinks.  The theory is artificial sweeteners wet off you sweet tooth which results in eating other sugars.
7. Constantly Multi-tasking:  When we are busy and doing many things, the thing that is left out is healthy eating.  there is just no time to prepare healthy foods.

Safety Seminar 2016

I too the opportunity to attend the Safety Seminar presented by Santa Clara County to its employees.  It was at the Santa Clara Convention Center.   I attended break out sessions on surviving an active shooter situation, and on taking care of yourself.  The big theme for me was taking time to breathe.  The keynote speaker talked about breathing, the breakout speaker, and the booth by County Wise included information on breathing.
The other theme was "coming home."  Being aware of your environment, and setting limits as needed, so as to come home in the evening.  This includes trusting your instincts.  Many at active shooter situations do not believe what they are seeing, and so stay around to become a victim.  The point is to get away as quickly as you can; to be aware of alternative exits, to come home at the end of the day.

awards ceremony

**Sitting on the Bench: Thoughts on Suicide Awareness and Prevention

This is an important video for all to watch, those who may be having thoughts of suicide, to those who may be able to reach out to someone who has such thoughts.

Reflection Begins with Observation, Listening and Curioisity

Reflection in the process of stepping back and thinking about what you are doing.  It is useful in Behavioral Health Services, as we can all do better and be more effective.  Questions or statements that help open up a self reflection, or a supervisory reflection include:
I'm wondering...
I'm curious...
I'm Interested to know...
I notice...
Let's pause and think-what comes up next?
What does that mean for you?
What has been your experience with...
What are some of the things _____ behavior might mean?
I wonder what your feels are about _____
WHat's it like to...
I notice as you're talking your affect has ______ what does that mean?
What was the experience like during..., after...?
If you were there now what would you want to do different? the same? How would it feel?
What are my feelings?
What are my biases?
What might the silence, the discomfort, the _____ mean?
What is "my stuff" that is interfering?

The Forgotten Addiction: Gambling

 Sometime we forget gambling is an addiction that can have dire consequences.  It can lead to depression, guilt debt and shame.  It can also have negative health consequences due to too much smoking and increased obesity, poor sleep, poor eating and not exercising.