Having a Successful Work/Life Balance Helps Your Health Life is full of various aspects that everyone has to learn how to effectively juggle. From family and relationships to school and your career, many people are torn searching how to successfully balance their work and life. Your career should be important to you. After all, it is a way for you to make money to afford a roof over your head, clothes, and food. However, it should never take your entire focus. Failing to find a balance between work and your personal life can lead to mental and physical health issues. Studies have shown that working long hours and leaving little personal time can actually increase your risk of stroke by 33% and your risk of heart disease by 13%. A small level of stress can be helpful in pushing you to perform your best, but too much is a bad thing. Increased stress levels have been known to weaken your immune system, putting you in danger of a number of illnesses. Here are some tips to help you balance your work and life better: Define Your Work/Life Balance Your work/life balance refers to how much time you devote to your…
Many Women Experience Postpartum Depression After Birth Many people have the assumption that once a mother gives birth to their child, life is all sunshine and rainbows. However, new moms face many challenges in getting used to life with a newborn. Lack of sleep, new responsibilities, and breast pain from nursing can be just a few of the challenges new mothers face. Many don’t understand the emotional pain that follows childbirth. We are not talking about the “baby blues” but rather postpartum depression. Nearly 15% of all new mothers experience postpartum depression (PPD). While this condition can be successfully treated, many still do not understand PPD. What is Postpartum Depression? Postpartum depression is a deeply painful depression that a mother can have once they have a baby. Mothers can experience this any time during the baby’s first year, but more often than not, its effects are felt in the first 3 weeks. Feelings of sadness, hopelessness, guilt, and even anger can plague many mothers. They may not feel like they want to bond with their child or even care for them. PPD does not just affect first-time mothers. Many mothers have experienced this condition even after they had a child…
Self-Love is an Important Part of Maintaining your Health There is no time of the year that is bad to start taking better care of and loving yourself. It is always a good time to begin investing in caring for yourself. Summer offers you more time and opportunities to engage in self-love activities. The days are longer, and the weather is warmer, leading many to feel as though it is time to start working on themselves. You should never feel pressured to work on yourself. Loving yourself should come naturally and be an action which you want to do. For those of you who are interested in loving yourself this summer, here are a few tips to help you out. Don’t Compare Yourself to Others as Much It is almost human nature to compare yourself to your peers. It is not always a bad thing, but too much comparing can leave you feeling inadequate and insecure. Try not to compare how you look or where you are in life to others as much as you have in the past. If you do want to compare yourself to someone, look back at your past self and see how you’ve grown and…
Summer is meant for Fun, Yet Not Everyone Experiences This Summer is finally here. The weather is warmer, and the days are longer. For children, school is officially on vacation. For parents, the season presents plenty of opportunities to take a much-needed family vacation. Summer is supposed to be a time of fun and relaxation. However, there are many who suffer from summer seasonal affective disorder (SAD) that prevents them from enjoying this season. Summer SAD is not a well-known condition, but it affects enough of the population for the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) to declare September as Suicide Prevention Month. There are a high number of suicide attempts at the end of August and beginning of September. Many believe the increased sunlight provides depressed individuals more energy to take their lives. Understanding SAD Seasonal affective disorder (SAD) affects roughly 6% of the U.S. population and is more typically known for causing depression in the winter months when the days get shorter and colder. However, it is less known that about 10% of people who suffer from SAD experience it in the reverse: their depression symptoms occur during the summer instead of the winter. The symptoms between winter…
