The Other Side of the Bed I was a trained nurse, but when my newborn son needed surgery I had to learn what it was like to be a patient. By Cyndi S. Schatzman It was the scariest day of my life. I sat next to the bed listening to the "beeps" of my newborn son’s heartbeat. The ultrasound tech kept very quiet, but I had seen enough echocardiograms as a thoracic ICU nurse... [read more]

Booklet Creator Welcome to Booklet Creator, a Web site that allows you to turn any .PDF file into a booklet. It is really easy to use too! All you need to do is have a .PDF file, a .PDF reader (you can get one here for free) and a printer. Let’s start by clicking on the Instructions link in the top right hand corner. That will give you all the instructions you need to get your .PDF file into a... [read more]

Do You Live a Charmed Life? Mental health, like dandruff, crops up when you least expect it. -Robin Worthington From The Road Less Traveled by M. Scott Peck, M.D.: We know very well why people become mentally ill. What we don't understand is why people survive the traumas of their lives as well as they do... All we can say is that there is a force, the mechanics of which... [read more]

t o d a y 's   j o k e ______________________ A woman walked into the kitchen to find her husband stalking around with a fly-swatter. "What are you doing?" she asked. "Hunting flies" he responded. "Oh! Killing any?" she asked. "Yep, 3 males and 2 females" he replied. Intrigued, she asked "How can you tell?" "3 were on a beer can, 2 were on the phone" he responded  [read more]

Happiness Formula   Is there a formula to being happy? Well, on this Web site, you can discover the Science of Happiness! There is a ton of information here to cover, so I’m going to leave you to discover some of it on your own, but I will share some of my favorite sections with you! There are videos you can watch all along the right hand side of the page. Each one covers a different perspective... [read more]

Reader Tips for Coping with Chronic Pain \n"); document.write("\n"); if ( chkProp("curPage.ImageCaption") ) document.write(" \n"+ curPage.ImageCaption +"n"); document.write("n"); } // section for a sub heading in blue if ( chkProp("curPage.Header") ) document.write(""+ curPage.Header +"br /> "); ]]> Living with chronic pain means... [read more]

SMART Goals and then ... there are SMARTER Goals   SMART goals are indeed smart - BUT Our Lady of Weight Loss’s SMARTER goals are that much the smarter! S – Goals must be SPECIFIC and the more specific the better. State your goal in as exact of terms as possible. M – Your goal should be MEASURABLE. Think about what will be the measurement of your goal. (It’s not always about pounds lost... [read more]

Top Ten Unusual Ways to Give You want to give to charity, but your pockets aren't as full as your heart is. Luckily, giving money isn't the only option. Put away your checkbook and instead, get a haircut, knit a blanket, or get a new pair glasses. Explore these and more unusual ways to give with this top ten list. 1. What Wood You Do? Hurricanes Katrina and Rita were the most intense of... [read more]

Your 'Big Give' \n"); document.write("\n"); if ( chkProp("curPage.ImageCaption") ) document.write(" \n"+ curPage.ImageCaption +"n"); document.write("n"); } // section for a sub heading in blue if ( chkProp("curPage.Header") ) document.write(""+ curPage.Header +"br /> "); ]]> In the new ABC series "Oprah's Big Give," premiering March... [read more]

The Best New Spiritual Diets \n"); document.write("\n"); if ( chkProp("curPage.ImageCaption") ) document.write(" \n"+ curPage.ImageCaption +"n"); document.write("n"); } // section for a sub heading in blue if ( chkProp("curPage.Header") ) document.write(""+ curPage.Header +"br /> "); ]]> 7 new programs to flavor your quest for health... [read more]

DEVELOP A MEMORABLE MEMORY From: YOU: Staying Young Our brains sure do have a way of messing with our minds. One moment, you can be spitting out the names of your entire third-grade class, the batting statistics from the 1974 St. Louis Cardinals, the color dress you wore to the eighth-grade Sadie Hawkins dance, or the entire script from your favorite Seinfeld episode. The next minute, you space... [read more]

Wait--Are You Implying That I Need to Read This Article? Defend yourself against the defensive. By Martha Beck from O, The Oprah Magazine, May 2007   Feature from Oprah.com I want your honest opinion," said my friend Joanna, handing me her unpublished manuscript. "Don't whitewash; tell the truth. Promise!" So I promised—apprehensively. Joanna's very talented,... [read more]

Eating as Spiritual Practice From "If the Buddha Came to Dinner: How to Nourish Your Body and Awaken Your Spirit" by Halé Sofia Schatz with Shira Shaiman: In my experience, I have found the discipline of nourishing our bodies to be an amazingly effective vehicle for spiritual development and transformation. How can food and feeding ourselves be a spiritual practice? Food is one of our primary... [read more]

Study: Intercessory Prayer Has No Major Effect on Recovery By Adelle M. Banks Religion News Service   A major study of Christian intercessory prayer for cardiac patients has found no significant effect on reducing complications but patients who knew they were receiving the prayer had a slightly higher rate of complications. The study comes after at least five previous studies that found... [read more]

The Language of Healing How to use intuition to help relieve pain. By Dr. Judith Orloff   In our society we're too often separated from harmony with the natural world and ourselves. Healing is something we do when we get sick, not a way of life. Determining your stance on how you handle illness is pivotal, whether you get sick or not. Why? Because it crystallizes your priorities-not... [read more]

What Religion Can Do for Your Health Why practices like prayer and attending church can have a powerful effect on our mental and physical well-being. Interview by Lisa Schneider   Dr. Harold G. Koenig is co-director of the Center for Spirituality, Theology, and Health at Duke University Medical Center, where he also serves on the faculty as Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral... [read more]

Does It Pay to Pray for Healing? Sickness and death aren't God's will. God is fighting them and will overcome them--but until then, should we pray for healing? Tony Campolo   A widowed mother of six had breast cancer. In the months preceding her death, the members of her church held weekly prayer meetings, begging God to heal her. Twice, all night prayer vigils were held on her behalf,... [read more]

'You Could Do More' Ever feel like you don't have the strength to continue? Meet a man who'll inspire you to go the extra mile. By Bob Perks There's so much to be learned from those who have lost so much. We find strength in seeing how someone wins their battle against cancer. We applaud those labeled handicapped who, against all odds, not only run the race but win it... [read more]

Wrapped in Love   Each friend represents a world in us, a world possibly not born until they arrive, and it is only by this meeting that a new world is born. -Anaïs Nin From "Knitting into the Mystery," by Susan S. Jorgensen and Susan S. Izard: What is it you receive when you receive a shawl? You receive a garment that proclaims peace - peace over you, peace under you,... [read more]

Seven Ways to Restart Your Day \n"); document.write("\n"); if ( chkProp("curPage.ImageCaption") ) document.write(" \n"+ curPage.ImageCaption +"n"); document.write("n"); } // section for a sub heading in blue if ( chkProp("curPage.Header") ) document.write(""+ curPage.Header +"br /> "); ]]> Feature from Oprah.com You've just woken... [read more]

When Does a Blessing Become a Blessing? We have no more right to consume happiness without producing it than to consume wealth without producing it. -George Bernard Shaw From "Healing Words for the Body, Mind and Spirit," by Caren Golman: Last winter, I visited Verne Edwards for the first time in more than twenty-five years. Although occasional letters, cards, phone... [read more]

Steeped in Cherished Memories Even though my beloved aunt's memory was disappearing because of Alzheimer's, she never forgot the power of a cup of tea. By Eileen Valinoti Not long ago, I went to visit my elderly Aunt Mary who lives in a nursing home. Alzheimer's disease had taken its toll. As I sat beside her, my aunt stared vacantly into space, her once vibrant features... [read more]

For a Change, Do Nothing Why it's important to become comfortable with who we are rather than who we think we should be. By Daniel Gottlieb Max, a sixty-year-old tailor, follows a routine that hasn't changed in forty-five years. Every day, he puts on the same threadbare clothes and sets off for his shop. Along the way, he stops in at the synagogue to pray. After working... [read more]

I often feel much older than 26, so when I stumbled across this quiz, I was anxious to know what my real age translated to when you add in all the factors of lifestyle and medical information. This quiz takes information about your lifestyle, activities, health and habits to give you your real age, according to how you live and not by when your birth date is. The quiz is very easy to take. To get... [read more]

Fancier Jeeran Comments Jeeran.com is quickly becoming one of Jordan’s favorite Web sites and one of the things that makes it so popular is the comment feature. Adding a comment to a friend’s profile is like leaving a little sticky note for them to read. They can then send you a comment back as well. Sounds like a fun way to communicate, doesn't it?! Comments are made of simple text, but they can... [read more]