•October 19, 2022•
By Cheri Burcham
Family Life Educator

Have you ever heard someone say, “There’s a lot on my plate,” or “I have too much on my plate?” Chances are you have even said it yourself. This idiom generally means there is too much to do, too much going on, or too much to deal with in a person’s life. In fact, we are all prone to times when we are stressed by the “busyness” of our lives.
This is a great article by Extension Educator Molly Hofer, who addresses how to prioritize activities in our lives to relieve stress. Molly says: So, what is on your plate? In fact, why not grab a paper plate and consider your own “plate of life” for a minute. Take the paper plate and a pen and write down EVERYTHING you do in an ordinary week. Go ahead, try it! While you’re at it, include the things you may not do weekly but take care of often, like take the dog to the vet, pay bills, wash the car, etc.
Once you have finished your plate of life, look at it and contemplate these questions: Read More

•October 19, 2022•
The Medicare open enrollment period began on Saturday, Oct. 15, older adults looking to change their existing Medicare plan can receive free, personalized assistance through the Illinois Department on Aging’s (IDoA) Senior Health Insurance Program (SHIP).
“It is that time of year where people with Medicare will encounter numerous advertisements about the various Medicare health and drugs plans for 2023,” said Illinois SHIP Director Sandy Leith. “Don’t go it alone, let us put your mind at ease when you discuss your options with a certified SHIP counselor and make an educated choice.” Read More

•October 19, 2022•
Joining advocates, residents of nursing homes and other long-term care facilities, facility staff and others across the country, the Illinois Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program (LTCOP) will honor the individual rights of long-term care residents by celebrating Residents’ Rights Month this October. Designated by the National Consumer Voice for Long-Term Care (Consumer Voice), Residents’ Rights Month highlights residents living in all long-term care settings, as well as gives special recognition to the work of the individuals who help assure their dignity, privacy and other basic human rights are maintained. Read More

•October 19, 2022•
By Jim Baumann
NP Guest Writer

Sports columnist/word wizard Jim O’Donnell passed along to me a Washington Post column by Random House copy chief Benjamin Dreyer on what I’ll call poofy words. I found it most interesting.
In it Dreyer writes about his relentless search-and-destroy mission for the word “very,” which is often very unnecessary — just as my use of it in this sentence was.
He also might criticize my use of “most” to describe his column as interesting. It wasn’t the most interesting column I’ve ever read, but “interesting” by itself felt like I’d shortchanged it. Read More

•October 12, 2022•
By Cheri Burcham
Family Life Educator

Many times in this column, I have shared articles about mindfulness and techniques you can use to relieve stress. Extension Educator Emily Schoenfelder recently wrote this article about one of those techniques called progressive muscle relaxation. Emily says: Life can be overwhelming! Sometimes, you just need to take a minute. Next time you get to that point, try this relaxing mindfulness technique to help you rest, relieve tension, or reset your body after stress. Read More