With Thanksgiving behind us, how did you do with your holiday eating behaviors?  Did you need your stretchy pants?  Did you make room for any fruits or vegetables?  Was your whole plate covered in gravy?  If you didn’t do as well as you wanted, here are 10 tips you can try out at upcoming holiday gatherings.

1. Use a smaller plate.  This will trick your brain into thinking you are eating more than you actually are.
2. Drink water. This will help you stay hydrated and feel full longer.
3. Make sure are not extremely hungry before getting to the “big meal.”  Being overly hungry before the meal could lead to overeating.
4. Load half your plate with healthy fruits and vegetables.  This will allow you to get some healthy calories and nutrients.
5. Think ahead about what foods will be available during the meal and plan what you are going to eat.  This will help cut down on impulse eating as you follow through with your plan.
6. To reduce the temptation to snack, stay out of the kitchen or away from areas where food is being prepared.
7. After your first plate of food, wait 20-30 minutes before going back for more. This will allow your mind to understand how full you are.
8. Exercise and be active throughout your day.  This will help burn more calories.
9. Give yourself permission to not finish and\or throw away extra food on your plate (or your child’s plate).  This will help limit extra calories that you are tempted to consume.
10. Moderation is key!  If there are a lot of foods you want to try, focus on putting a smaller portion of each item on your plate.

Hopefully these tips will allow you to cut down on extra calories, improve the quality of time spent with friends and family, and feel successful in a challenging environment!

Happy Holidays!

Post by Mike Lockard

If we have experienced any loss throughout the year, this time of year makes it feel like the loss comes back more intensely.  Thinking about the past holidays we spent with the loved one, the things they have missed since they have passed the many traditions that will seem different now with their loss and so on.  Everyone grieves at their own pace, so don’t let anyone tell you “you should be over it by now.”  Also keep in mind the first year of grief is the hardest part and as time goes by, it will get easier.

Financial stressors can also be related to this time of year, where we feel obligated to buy everyone a certain amount of presents or presents with the same monetary value.  Certain families draw names out of a hat so one person is only buying a gift for one individual instead of everyone buying for everyone.   There is no harm in telling family you just cannot do that this year.  There is no point in stressing yourself out financially buying gifts for others when that is at the cost of being able to pay your bills or having food in the home.  The Holidays were meant to be a giving time of year and it doesn’t necessarily have to do with gifts, it can also be giving of emotion and time.  Spend time with your loved ones, that will go the extra mile than the gift or gifts you buy them.

For others, it will be stressful because it is colder, not as much sun, lots of snow, stuck in the house because of the temperature/weather; and we fall into a seasonal depression during this time. The above mentioned does not help the seasonal depression any, rather makes it worse.  If you know that you experience seasonal depression, take a few minutes to make a list of things you can do to help you feel better.

Self-care is always important.  Some people say I cannot focus on myself because I have to be there for my family.  I understand that completely, but self-care does not equate to selfishness.  Self-care means you take the time for yourself a few minutes a day or once a week, to do something that makes you feel better.  I always use the example of a water pitcher in my sessions, where we are the pitcher and when we take care of others and their needs we are pouring from the pitcher, but what happens when the pitcher becomes empty?  Instead of taking a few minutes to fill up the pitcher for ourselves, we tend to keep pouring, waiting for that last drop or two to come out.  If you have something in your pitcher then that will allow you to give to others, but if you don’t it will make it much more difficult to take care of the loved ones around you.  If you are not okay emotionally, physically, and mentally, then how are you going to be there to take care of your loved ones?

This holiday season and winter of 2014-2015, take a few minutes to be nice to yourself.  If you are struggling with any of the above problems or need help getting through your trying moments, please call a HealthNet location near you to make an appointment with a Behavioral Health Therapist.

Post by Bhumi Bhavsar

Generosity can be seen in many ways:

• Donating last year’s coat to a homeless shelter
• Dropping some spare change into the Salvation Army bell ringer’s red bucket
• Purchasing a toy for the Toys for Tots program

HealthNet has seen seen an outpouring of generosity over the last couple weeks. Groups have come together to donate coats, hats, gloves and blankets to our Homeless Initiative Program, and social workers at our Community Health Centers are getting ready to distribute toys to children in need thanks to organizations like Toys for Tots and Mattel’s Toy Donation Program.

But what happens when the new year begins and people get back to their daily lives?

HealthNet’s social workers work tirelessly throughout the year to ensure that thousands of families and children are having their basic needs met.

These needs include referrals to area programs to help with heating assistance, bus passes to get to their health care appointments, and guidance on where to find job training and educational services. Our social workers also work with families to help provide school uniforms, properly fitting shoes and even a gift for parents to give their child on his or her birthday.

During the holiday season there seems to be an abundance of organizations helping families provide toys to their children for Christmas but what happens when June comes along and a child is without a birthday gift or the basic needs of life?

With your help, HealthNet’s social workers can continue to provide these services year round.

Please consider donating $25 to help purchase a birthday gift and basic care items for a child who would otherwise go without. Give a gift that keeps giving year-round! 

Our blogs this month focus on getting back to the basics during the often chaotic and stressful holiday season.

As a behavioral health therapist, I often hear my patients say that the holidays just don’t seem to be what they “should.”  Instead of instant holiday bliss as shown in magical holiday movies, people often report feeling frustrated, disappointed, and unfulfilled.  How does this happen?  And what can we do to live well… even during the holidays?

It seems that the first step is letting go of the romanticized idea that just because it is the holiday season, all will be right with the world.  If one is struggling emotionally before the holiday season, it is unlikely to disappear because November or December rolls around.  This seems like a silly, simple idea, but I think it has some merit.  Instead of pressuring ourselves into a forced happiness, let us give ourselves some grace in understanding that the holidays can be difficult.

Remembering the loss of loved ones, strained family relationships, and financial stress can all contribute to lack of yuletide bliss.  Give yourself permission to be human– that is, to feel and grieve if you need to.  It seems that we often convince ourselves that we have to be robotic elves with painted smiles during the holidays.  What a tall order to live up to!

One the other hand, let’s not forget the power of genuine gratitude and positive thinking.  Though it is important to acknowledge our humanness and let ourselves feel, it’s also important to be intentional about focusing our thoughts on those things in our lives for which we are authentically thankful.  Finding those nuggets in our lives that are positive in the midst of frustration and darkness can change how we think about ourselves and the world and, in turn, influence our emotional experience.  In fact, studies have shown that those who exercise regular, intentional expressions of gratitude report higher levels of happiness, have fewer health complaints, exercise more, sleep better, express more goodwill toward others, and even have better marriages!

How do you make this happen?  Try a daily gratitude journal.  Each morning when you wake or each night before you go to bed, write down three things in your life that you are truly thankful for.  Also, be intentional each day about expressing to others what you appreciate about them as well as telling yourself one thing you’ve done well or a positive quality about yourself.

My hope is that we are all able let ourselves be human during the holidays and recognize the wonderful things in our lives for which we are genuinely grateful.

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What’s ONE thing you’re thankful for this holiday season? Tell us!