As the days grow shorter, colder, and post-holiday letdown creeps in, many of us experience a dip in energy and mood. It’s not unusual to experience fatigue, sadness, difficulty concentrating, and a disruption in sleep during the winter.  But why does this happen?

This is the “winter blues,” a common response to reduced sunlight and cold weather.  The good news?  Winter blues are often easily managed with lifestyle adjustments.

For others, winter blues turns into a type of depression called seasonal affective disorder (SAD) if the sadness interferes with daily fu…

Some folks enjoy the wintertime, but I am not one of those people.

I dread the shorter days and longer nights. I despise cold bathroom floors, freezing toilet seats, and the need to wear a bunch of layers just to walk to the mailbox. And I don’t like the fact that I usually can’t shake the sniffles. In the wintertime, my skin is always dry. And don’t talk to me about driving in snow or paying exorbitant prices for heating oil!

Science tells me I’m not alone. Seasonal affective disorder (SAD) is a type of depression that occurs in winter, when daylight hours ar…

Care management, like that provided by Friends Life Care, is critical to maintaining a senior’s well-being.

Additionally, a senior’s ability to handle their personal affairs, including managing their bills and accounts, is critical for them to successfully age in place. It is important to identify someone to fulfill this responsibility.  It can be a family member or paid service. Regardless, assistance with paying bills (daily money management) goes hand in hand with care management when it comes to aging in place.
What is Daily Money Management?
Daily money manag…

When the Friends Life Care Mental Health Committee began earlier this year, one of the initial topics the team aimed to explore was the mental health impact of caregiving, especially concerning family caregivers.  

Care coordinators routinely engage with members who are currently fulfilling the role of family caregivers or have done so in the past. These coordinators have firsthand experience witnessing the stress, burnout, and mental health challenges that affect these caregivers. 

The Mental Health Committee expressed a particular interest in providing support to …

What happens to us as we age may be mostly out of our own control, yet how we respond to the process of aging can make a tremendous difference! How we think and move have a direct impact on how we feel and function in our daily lives.

We can choose to thrive as we get older, guided by some simple insights about how our mindset impacts us. Taking simple steps about the language we use can help flourish in our later years.
We Are Connected Beings
We always do what we think, because our cognitive system is connected to our muscular system. In the early 1900’s F.M. Alexa…