HealthyLife Articles

Author: AIPM

Reduce Flight Risks

Healthy Travel

Don’t let motion and a long flight ruin your trip.

Flying can trigger more than anxiety in airplane travelers. Sitting for hours in narrow, cramped seats can cause a decrease in blood flow and poor circulation in the legs. These problems can lead to “economy-class syndrome” which refers to a deep vein thrombosis – a blood clot in the leg. Even if you sit in first class or business class, there are things you can do to help avoid this problem. If your seatmates stare, suggest they join you!

Airplane aerobics:

* Tense your feet for five seconds, then relax them. Repeat with each muscle group, including your calves, thighs, buttocks, shoulders, neck, forearms, and hands.

* Drop your head forward. Then move it slowly to the right, to the back, then to the left and the front again.

* Raise both shoulders. Move them back, then down, and then forward in a circular motion.

* Reach toward the ceiling with your right arm and stretch. Repeat with your left arm.

* Flex and extend your feet. Spread and then point your toes up and down.

* Get up and walk at least once every hour.

* Focus on your breathing. Inhale and exhale slowly and deeply. It’ll help you get enough oxygen into your blood so you don’t feel fatigued.

To deal with motion sickness:

* Reserve a seat over one of the wings, if you can.

* Avoid sitting in the tail section, which is usually the bumpiest.

* Get plenty of rest before you fly.

* Avoid drinking alcohol before or during travel.

* Take a motion sickness medication, such as Dramamine, 30 minutes before your plane takes off.

* Open overhead vents and direct air at your face.

* Don’t read while traveling and don’t focus on any other stationary object.

* Breathe slowly and deeply.

Action Step

Wear loose-fitting clothes, socks, and shoes. If you have cardiovascular disease, talk to your doctor about wearing compression stockings and other advice before you take long flights or travel long distances by car or train.

© American Institute for Preventive Medicine

January 23, 2026
Stretch To Ease Stress

Stress Management

Simple movements help relieve tension.

Stress doesn’t only wreak havoc on your mind; it can cause aches and pains in your head, neck, shoulders, and back. Research says that daily stretching can reduce muscle tension, increase blood flow, and improve range of motion and coordination.

Stretching safety tips:

* Warm up your muscles. This makes them more flexible and lowers the chance for injury. For example, walk for a few minutes while gently swinging your arms.

* Stretch-hold-release. Hold each stretch for at least 10 to 30 seconds. Repeat each stretch at least three times.

* Gain without pain. Use slow and steady motions to the point of mild discomfort. If you feel pain, you went too far. Stretching should not pinch, pull, or snap anything. Bend your joints slightly when you stretch.

* Do not bounce when you stretch. This can tear muscles.

Sample stretches:

Upper body stretch: Standing or seated, raise your arms above your head and interlace your fingers. With your palms facing upward, push slightly back and up. Hold for 10 to 30 seconds. Repeat three times.

Sitting hamstring stretch: Sit on the floor. Stretch your right leg out directly in front of you with your toes pointed up. Place your left foot against your right thigh. Slowly reach forward to grasp the tips of your right toes. Bend from the hip. Hold for a count of 10. Repeat three times. Do the same exercise, switching leg positions.

Action Step

Take 15 minutes, daily, to stretch all major muscle groups (neck, shoulders, arms, abs, lower back, butt, and legs).

© American Institute for Preventive Medicine

January 23, 2026
Stress & Posttraumatic Stress Disorder

Stress Management

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a severe stress reaction from living through or seeing an event that threatens life. With PTSD, symptoms usually begin within 6 weeks to 3 months of the event. Symptoms of PTSD can begin years later, though. When symptoms do occur, they must last for at least one month for a diagnosis of PTSD to be made. PTSD is a medical diagnosis made by a mental health professional.

Signs & Symptoms

Physical symptoms of stress are: Increased heart rate and blood pressure; rapid breathing; and tense muscles.

Emotional reactions include being angry and having a lack of concentration.

Other symptoms of PTSD are intense fear or horror and feeling helpless, in a “daze,” detached, etc.

Causes

Marriage or divorce, job loss or the threat of being fired, all create stress. So do countless other things.

Living through or seeing an event that threatens life can cause PTSD. Events include combat exposure, sexual or physical assault, and a serious accident. A past unhealed trauma increases the risk for PTSD. People with depression or other mental health conditions are also at greater risk.

Treatment

Self-care measures deal with most cases of stress. When these are not enough, counseling and/or medical care may be needed.

Professional treatment is needed for PTSD. Left untreated, PTSD will not go away and can greatly affect a person’s life.

Questions to Ask

Self-Care / Prevention

* Maintain good health habits. Eat healthy foods. Get enough sleep.

* Limit caffeine. It causes anxiety and increases the stress response.

* If you drink alcohol, do so wisely.

* Get regular exercise.

* Check with your doctor about taking vitamins and minerals. This is especially true for ones labeled “stress tablets” or “stress formulas.”

* Don’t let your emotions get “bottled up inside.” Share your feelings with others.

* Do a “stress rehearsal.” Imagine yourself feeling calm and handling the stressful situation.

* Balance work and personal life. Do things you enjoy and look forward to. Escape for a little while. See a movie, visit a friend, etc.

* Be with cheerful people. Help others.

* Reduce or manage exposure to things that cause stress.

* Rank order daily tasks. Don’t commit to doing too much.

* Studies show that having a pet, such as a dog or cat, appears to buffer the effects of stress on health.

* View changes as positive challenges.

* Laugh a lot. Keep a sense of humor.

* Take a bath or shower with warm water. Listen to music that is calming.

* Reward yourself with little things that make you feel good. Give yourself some “me” time.

* Count to 10 when you’re so upset you want to scream. This helps to calm you down. Avoid unnecessary arguments.

* Have a warm cup of herbal tea.

* Do relaxation exercises daily. Imagine a soothing, restful scene. Do deep muscle relaxation. (Tense and relax muscle fibers.) Meditate. Do deep breathing.

* Remember that it is not an event that causes stress, but how you react to it. Change your thoughts about an event to help manage stress.

© American Institute for Preventive Medicine

January 23, 2026
Stop Feeding Your Feelings

Stress Management

Don’t let emotional eating weigh you down.

If you run to the fridge to soothe pangs that have nothing to do with hunger, you could be an emotional eater. Studies show that both negative and positive emotions can trigger eating and overeating. Allowing your feelings to prompt you to overeat on a regular basis can be dangerous to your health, especially if you are overweight or have diabetes or another chronic disease.

Causes for your cravings:

* Chronic stress – This releases cortisol, a hormone that triggers cravings for salty and sweet foods.

* To suppress or soothe emotions – People often reach for food to deal with anger, anxiety, depression, fear, or resentment.

* Social eating – Food tempts you: cake to celebrate another staff birthday; chips and dip within your reach at a party; or a ten-foot long dessert table at a wedding. Not to mention beer, wine, and other alcoholic drinks to celebrate with.

* Nervous energy – People who feel uncomfortable in social situations may eat to avoid talking with others.

* Boredom – Nothing better to do? Might as well down an entire bag of cookies.

* Learned habits – If your parents rewarded you with sweets or stopped your tears with ice cream, you may be rewarding yourself with comfort food when you want to feel better.

Break the cycle.

1. Eat as a response to hunger, not appetite. Hunger is the physical need to eat. Appetite is a psychological desire to eat. Delay 10 minutes before you eat as a response to appetite. The emotional need to eat may pass.

2. Every time you eat, write down the emotions you are feeling and whether you have physical signs of hunger. Learning your emotional eating triggers is the first step to making healthy changes.

3. Surround yourself with friends and family who support your efforts to change your eating habits.

4. Join a support group to meet other people who have similar problems.

5. Consult your doctor or health care provider if you need help controlling emotional eating.

Action Step

The next time you mindlessly reach for sweets or treats, ask yourself why. If your answer has nothing to do with physical hunger, put the food down and take a walk instead.

© American Institute for Preventive Medicine

January 23, 2026
Spirituality Can Help You Cope

Stress Management

Connect with your spiritual self.

In general, spirituality is a path to finding purpose, meaning, inner peace, and hope in life. It involves your personal values and how you relate to others. For some people, spirituality includes an organized religion with its set of beliefs, symbols, and rituals. For others it is being connected to nature or believing in a power greater than oneself. Spirituality can give deeper meaning to life and help you focus on what really matters.

Ways people find strength in spirituality during times of stress or a crisis:

* Prayer

* Meditating

* Expressing their thoughts and feelings in a journal

* Counting their blessings

* Forgiving and healing

* Reaching out to help others

* Practicing and receiving unconditional love

* Attending a place of worship. This can provide a sense of community and shared purpose, as well as support and understanding.

* Connecting to a higher power

Spirituality can help you lead a healthier life.

Several studies have shown that people with strong religious and spiritual beliefs:

* Have a stronger immune system

* Have lower blood pressure

* Have less anxiety and depression

* Are better able to deal with arthritis, cancer, diabetes, heart disease, and other chronic illnesses

* Heal faster from surgery

* Recover from drug addiction faster and are better able to abstain from substance abuse. Self-help programs, such as Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) use spiritual messages in their 12-step recovery process.

Action Step

Pastoral counselors can help with mental health and spiritual concerns. Find a pastored counselor in your area fromwww.aapc.org.

© American Institute for Preventive Medicine

January 23, 2026
Set A Weight Loss Goal You Can Reach

Weight Control

Do you set out to lose 15, 20, or 30 pounds every year or so, only to find yourself stuck after the first 5 or 10? If so, do you quit out of discouragement?

There may be nothing wrong with your rate of weight loss. Your ability to set realistic goals may be the problem. If you’d like to increase your odds for success, try setting smaller, interim goals you can reach quickly. These are called short-term goals.

First, your goals need to be measurable. For instance, don’t tell yourself you have to “lose lots of weight.” You can’t measure “lots of weight.” So decide on a set number of pounds you want to lose. Then, break your overall goal down into realistic mini-goals. A realistic mini-goal would be to lose 5 pounds in three weeks, for example.

As you achieve your first couple of “mini-goals,” you’ll feel better sooner. After you reach each milestone of 5 or 6 pounds, set the next reachable goal, and so on. Small achievements add up, and keep motivation where dieters need it-high.

© American Institute for Preventive Medicine

January 23, 2026
Save Time. Be Organized.

Stress Management

Manage your time to help you manage the stress that comes with unfinished business.

* Keep a “To Do” list. Use a method that works best for you. Examples are paper post-its, computer software/apps, a daily or weekly planner, and your smartphone.

* Prioritize and assign times to complete tasks. Check off ones you finish.

* Clear clutter in your workspace and house. Organize your piles into files.

Create and maintain healthy work habits. When you get to work, use your “To Do” list to plan your day. Spend the last 10 minutes organizing your space and putting things in their place.

Avoid distractions while you work. Assign time to check and respond to emails and phone calls.

Don’t check your personal email and text messages on work time.

© American Institute for Preventive Medicine

January 23, 2026
Safe Travel For Pregnant Women

Healthy Travel

Expecting to travel before your baby is due? Follow these guidelines.

* Check with your physician to make sure travel is permissible. Travel during pregnancy is least risky during the fourth to sixth months.

* If you’re planning to travel by airplane or train, ask for an aisle seat so you can get to the lavatory more easily.

* Don’t exert yourself to the point of fatigue.

* If you experience motion sickness, get some fresh air or eat soda crackers. Don’t take motion sickness medication.

* If you’re traveling by car, wear a safety belt. It should fit snugly across your chest and hips, not over your stomach.

© American Institute for Preventive Medicine

January 23, 2026
Reward Yourself For Weight Loss

Weight Control

When a behavior is followed by a reward, the behavior is more likely to be repeated. So the more you are rewarded for your weight-loss efforts, the more likely you’ll continue to succeed.

But you don’t have to wait until you lose weight to reward yourself Rewards should begin the very first day of your diet. (Of course, food should not be a reward.)

Here are just a few examples of the kinds of rewards that can help you to adhere to your weight-control plan.

* Buy yourself a bouquet of flowers.

* Call a friend long-distance.

* Give yourself some special “me” time.

* Try a new cologne.

* Get your car washed.

* Have a low-calorie picnic. (The picnic is the reward, not the food.)

* Treat yourself to a movie.

* Keep a diary of all the improvements you notice while dieting (more stamina, feeling attractive, fitting into smaller-size clothing).

© American Institute for Preventive Medicine

January 23, 2026
“Rehearse” For Stressful Events

Stress Management

If you’ve ever mentally rehearsed a speech before you gave it, you may already have some idea of how advance playacting can help you prepare for stressful situations. (Athletes, musicians, salespeople, and actors do it all the time.) The idea is to imagine yourself feeling calm and confident in an otherwise stressful situation so you can relax more easily when the situation arises. Here’s how it’s done.

* Close your eyes and unwind, releasing every bit of muscular tension your body has accumulated.

* For a minute or two, concentrate on simply feeling relaxed.

* For the next minute or so, think of yourself actually doing whatever you’re practicing for rather than observing yourself doing it.

* Concentrate again on feelings of calmness.

* Visualize the event once again, and re-create as many details as possible. (What is the setting? What are you wearing? Who else is present?)

* Imagine yourself continuing to feel calm as you successfully handle the anticipated situation.

* Imagine a positive outcome-your boss congratulating you on a job well done, your spouse volunteering to pitch in around the house, and so forth.

Use this technique to prepare for any stressful situation-your performance review, a confrontation with your spouse, or other tense occasion. Practice twice a day for 5 minutes each time (preferably when you first wake up in the morning and when you’re ready to go to sleep at night). Imagining that you’re confident and successful increases the likelihood that you will be confident and successful in real life, because you’re creating new mental pictures of yourself. After practicing regularly for a few weeks to prepare for various events, you’ll be able to relax when the real situations occur.

© American Institute for Preventive Medicine

January 23, 2026