Mental Health & the Elderly

May is Mental Health Awareness Month. While mental health concerns affect up to 1 in 5 Americans, it is often overlooked in our elderly population. It is estimated that 20% of people aged 55 years or older experience mental health concerns. The most common conditions include anxiety, severe cognitive impairment, and mood disorders such as depression. Often these concerns are disregarded as old age or frailty, however, this is not a normal part of aging and is a treatable medical condition. It's important...

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Geriatric Medicine: Giving a Quality of Life for the Elderly by Dr. Veena Panthangi, MD

I'm thrilled to introduce you to this week's guest columnist - Dr. Veena Panthangi, MD. Dr. Panthangi is a family medicine physician with Ascension Michigan in St. Clair Shores, where she provides comprehensive care for her patients and also provides a chronic pain clinic for elderly patients. This week, Dr. Panthangi shares insights into geriatric medicine - with a particular focus on caring for the entire person. We think you'll benefit from her perspective and experience. Enjoy!  - Terri Geriatric Medicine: Giving...

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Feeling the Stress? Don’t Let it Get to You! Tips for Effectively Managing Life’s Ups and Downs

It's not just tax season: April is National Stress Awareness Month! All kidding aside, stress can be good (a new job or house) or bad (financial strain, illness) but the key is to recognize how you are responding to your stressors and manage them. While that may seem simple enough, it's imperative to deal with your stress before it can negatively impact your health. As I've written before, it is well known that prolonged stress can contribute to heart disease, hypertension, a weakened immune system, and is...

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You’re Retired. Now What? Guest Contributor Peggy Hayes of The Helm

You're Retired. Now What? By: Peggy Hayes Executive Director, The Helm at the Boll Life Center So you’ve reached that stage in life where the R-word is beginning to sneak in. Should I retire? When? What will I do? It takes planning to retire successfully. Obviously, financial considerations are first and foremost in the decision to retire. Beyond that, you need to look at what you will do in retirement to keep your days full and purposeful. The Helm can help with that!...

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Making the Connection: The Mind-Body Experience

What is the mind-body connection? And how can improving your mind-body connection enhance your quality of life and combat chronic illness? Studies have found that your thoughts, feelings, beliefs, and attitudes can positively or negatively affect your health. This is not a new concept. The correlation between mind and body and treating the body as a "whole" has been around for years. While modern medicine has benefited us through advances in surgeries, medications, and trauma care, we must not forget...

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Food for Thought May Not Be Food at All

As I wrote in last week's column, March is National Nutrition Month. In discussing nutrition, I emphasized that it is more than what you eat - it's also how you treat your body, mind, and spirit.  In that theme, I'd like to introduce a new (to some of you) concept: Primary vs. Secondary food. When you think of "food," you likely think of what you put in your mouth - breakfast, lunch, and dinner. However, The Institute for Integrative Nutrition actually considers the food you eat your...

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Green Eggs and Ham? “You do not like them, so you say! Try them! Try them! And you may!

As you can see from the subject of our post, we're channeling the legacy of the immortal Dr. Seuss on his birthday and as we kick off March, which also happens to be National Nutrition Month! This serves as an excellent opportunity to remind us of the importance of a balanced diet and lifestyle. In February, we identified ways a healthy diet could improve heart health. However, good nutrition is also essential in preventing and healing most chronic illnesses. Maintaining a well-balanced diet is critical...

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Take Heart: Exercise and Your Health

After a long day of work, family, and personal commitments, exercise may be the last thing on your mind – not to mention a challenging activity to muster motivation for! However, you’ll benefit across the board by adding exercise to your ever-growing “to-do” list. Very few lifestyle choices are as impactful as physical activity and, despite popular belief, exercise doesn't necessarily require a significant time commitment or intensity. Both moderate and intense exercise can drastically improve your overall health. According to...

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Time to Rest and Recharge: The Impact of Stress on Your Heart

As we continue through Heart Health month, I'd like to do a deeper dive into stress management and how it can affect your heart. When discussing heart health, we tend to focus on food and fitness – however, there are other major players in the health game when it comes to your heart: stress and sleep. There is growing evidence that stress can contribute to heart disease. Sometimes it’s difficult to recognize the impact daily stress has on our lives – we become accustomed...

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7 Joint Friendly Workouts

As we age our bone loss often accelerates, causing a change on our bone density and mobility. What once was a nice run around the neighborhood is now a more painful and slower jog. If you are feeling less flexible and have sore joints after workouts – fear not. You can still stay active while putting less pressure on your joints.  These seven activities can help you stay active, without as much pain. Swimming. Swimming is a great low-impact and...

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