According to the trusty random number selector, the winner of this useful ‘Relieving Your Holiday Stress’ CD by practicing psychologist Ronald G. Nathan, Ph.D is…

Audrey
Congratulations Audrey. You should be receiving an email shortly with directions on how and where to provide your mailing address.
By the way, I have a sure fire why to avoid stress these holidays.
Hibernate.
Okay, so that might not work for most people.
But remember, when you are getting stressed, the best thing to do is take time out for yourself. Try to relax, treat yourself to a massage or manicure, take a long walk somewhere …read more

By now it’s darn likely you’ve heard of this new exercise pill. You know, the one that essentially tricks your bod into thinking it’s worked out when it hasn’t.
Now, in my dream world, this seems like just the ticket. After all, who has time to keep up with a regular exercise regime, right? And isn’t the whole point of modern medicine to make life better for all? And wouldn’t skipping exercise in lieu of a pill make everyone happy?
Um, maybe not.
The more I thought about this, the worse of an idea it became to me. Would there be any …read more

Image details: Satin-Lined Gray Coffin served by picapp.com
The Japanese – an efficient, healthful group of people. People rooted in culture. People who cherish their elders. People who keel over from being overworked.
Say what?
Yes, it’s true. While America is sometimes looked at as slovenly and over-privileged, our Japanese pals are working so hard, they’re launching themselves into the grave. This has become such an epidemic, in fact, that it even has a name: karoshi.
For example, there was a poor fellow, a 45-year-old chief engineer for Toyota, who worked an additional 114 hours of overtime per month (overtime!). That’s equivalent to about …read more

Image details: Thinkstock Single Image Set served by picapp.com
The lovely ladies at Alzheimer’s Notes inform us that today is National Siesta Day. Coincidentally, it’s also my birthday. Excuse me while I take that as a sign that I should be spending my Big Day snoozing.
Actually, that’s not such a bad idea. Along with the host of reasons the Siesta Awareness site gives us to nap, here’s another: Napping at least 3 days a week leaves you 37% less likely to keel over from heart disease than someone who never naps. This from a study of over 23,000 people! …read more

Image details: Messy desk served by picapp.com
Some of the best news I’ve heard since drinking beer, wine, and hot cocoa, eating steak, and getting more sleep became practically medically necessary: Messy desks are da bomb! And yes, I just said “da bomb” in public. That’s how excited I am.
Though my desk borders on “catastrophic” rather than “messy”, I am encouraged by new research from Professor Eric Abrahamson, Ph. D., from the Columbia University Business School, which claims that most people work faster (and more efficiently!) when there is a bit of mess around. I wonder what he means by “bit …read more

What does love do for you, other than make you googly-eyed and smiley? Plenty.
Image details: Love spelt in silver letters served by picapp.com
As I prepare to celebrate my 10th wedding anniversary tomorrow, I was thrilled to come across a small article listing 4 fabulous “side-effects” to being in a loving relationship.
1) Lower stress hormones
2) More physical activity (of all kinds, ahem)
3) Less likely to smoke
4) Decrease in blood pressure
Wow! Seems not only does love affect your emotional heart, it’s great for your physical ticker as well.
Sounds like I have lots to celebrate! Grab your honey and celebrate being in …read more

Light a candle to reduce stress? Indeed.
Image details: Thinkstock Single Image Set served by picapp.com
According to the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York City, stoking up a vanilla-scented candle can reduce anxiety by 63%. That’s a ton!
While vanilla was the scent of choice in this instance, researchers acknowledge that scent is handled by the same area of the brain as memory, so smelling any aroma that brings back good feelings for you can have the same effect.
So if relaxation, calmness and optimism are on your To-Do list today, grab your Bic and light that wick.
This has been your Happy …read more

Finally, sleeping after no sleep for three years – most new parents expect that their sleep will be disturbed, at least during the first few months after having a baby. But imagine ‘no sleep for three years’. That’s the case for the Lamb family of St.Petersburg, Florida.
 Their son Rhett suffers from chiari malformation , a structural defect that puts pressure on the brain stem which controls vital functions such as sleep, speech, circulation, and breathing. But thanks to experimental surgery designed to relieve this pressure, Rhett (and his parents) are now sleeping…
Unable to Forget – although most of us would …read more

Image details: Creatas Images Single Image Set served by picapp.com
Spring is in the air for many of us, and usually that means allergies, yard work and the weeds that cause a lot of allergies and yard work.
But the next time you see a stray dandelion pop up in your yard, don’t be so quick to dig it up. Instead, admire it for it’s stress-busting abilities.
Here’s the scoop: The leaves of a dandelion are packed with calming B vitamins and lethicin, which lessen stress and anxiety by balancing chemicals in your brain. Dandelions also boost levels of the happy chemical, seratonin.
Now, …read more

Just the news you wanted to hear to start your week, right? Sorry, but it’s true. Stress can, in fact, cause your hair to gray.
Why? Stress hormones like cortisol can mess with melanocytes (simply, hair cells). Suddenly, the cells have trouble surviving and/or producing the pigment that keeps your hair its original color. Hence, those pigments disappear and out pops a gray (or white) hair.
Naturally, controlling stress is a good defense in this type of situation, but that might not always be possible. Eating foods rich in the amino acids lysine and arginine can help provide a drop in …read more