Today’s post is about the reading process. With being in school for psychology, I’ve noticed a massive difference between the content (apparently, but let me continue). Fashion design and the human brain are two entirely different things, not that either is more important to the other. No one’s life was in my hands when I was sewing, but I still had to read much text. So I wanted to share this concept that was taught in my English course.

So let’s begin, according to the text, the reading process begins by following these steps:

1. First read the story or once, all the way through.
2. Next, highlight or write down critical elements: words, phrases, or images that are repeated; any elements that seem out of place or unnecessary. ( I usually skip this step, because I will never highlight or give time to information that I do not need to reference later, but I included this step because it may help someone)
3. Next, make notes in the margins of any ideas that occur to you about any questions or the definitions of the words you did not then look them up ( this step is significant for me because if I do not know what a word means, I cant continue, but I have a few peers that never do this step).
4. Lastly, read the story a second time and make a note of anything else that occurs to you.

Start a Blog in a Few Steps

Today’s post is about starting a blog and how I did it.
You should first choose a blogging platform, a name you will use for the domain, and lastly a hosting option.

Tumblr, Wordpress, and Blogger have templates you can use and customize as you like.

You're obviously going to need content, do research and find something interesting to write about.

Use photographs to tell a story, either your own or stock photography websites.

Changes As We Get Older

Today I wanted to write about changes that come about with age.  Let’s first begin with the  Demographics of Aging:

Americans are getting older and living longer
life expectancy varies by gender and race
excess cost growth with increasing population aging
Unfortunately, we all will get older, and as we do, the risks for some issues get higher as well, and that brings me to the next section

The Leading Causes of Death in Older Adults are:

• Heart Diseases
• Malignant Neoplasms
• Cerebrovascular diseases
• COPD
• Alzheimer's
• Diabetes

As we get older, there are cardiovascular changes that occur in our bodies. We often get increased blood pressure, slower heart recovery rate, and a diminished response to stress. Respiratory changes also occur, with an increased residual volume, a decrease in muscle strength, vital capacity, and endurance. There is also a decreased gas exchange, which diffuses capacity.

The Integumentary System changes that occur are a decreased intestinal fluid, muscle tone, sensory reception and glandular activity. There is a diminished secretion of natural oils and perspiration. The Reproductive System Changes in  Females is narrowing of the vagina, decreased elasticity, decreased vaginal secretions and slower sexual response. In males, the changes in the reproductive system are testes that are no longer firm, decreased sperm production and slower sexual response.

Musculature System Changes include loss of bone density, loss of muscle strength, and degenerated joint cartilage.

Listed below are some more changes that occur as we get older:

1. detrusor instability (urge incontinence)
2. urethral dysfunction (stress urinary incontinence)
3. decreased sense of thirst,  smell, and taste
4. decreased salivation
5. difficulty swallowing food
6. reduced cerebral circulation (faint, loses balance)
7. cant focus on close objects
8. inability to tolerate glare
9. difficulty adjusting to light intensity changes
10. high-frequency hearing difficulty
11. Presbycusis which is the decreased ability to hear high-pitched tones that naturally begins in midlife as result of irreversible inner ear change

Sources:

1. https://medlineplus.gov/magazine/issues/winter07/articles/winter07pg10-13.html
2. https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-art-and-science-aging-well/201705/how-does-our-body-change-we-age-part-1
3. https://www.webmd.com/healthy-aging/tc/healthy-aging-normal-aging#1
4. https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/healthy-aging/in-depth/aging/art-20046070

How old is old?

An elderly person is over the age of sixty-five. It is unfortunate, but aging is an unavoidable, steady progressive process that we all ultimately will go through. There is a branch called gerontology, which is the study of the aging process. Those who work in Geriatrics emphasis on health and disease of the elderly. There are also subfields of gerontology, which comprise geriatrics, social gerontology, gerontological rehab and more.

There are diverse stages when it comes to aging, and they are

Antepartum
Neonate
Infancy
Toddler
Child
Adolescence
Young Adult
Middle Age
Older Adult
Old Age
There are also sub-categories for the elderly such as

Young Old: Age: 65-74
Middle Old: 74-84
Old-Old: 85+

Sources:

• https://opentextbc.ca/introductiontosociology/chapter/chapter13-aging-and-the-elderly
• http://www.gecac.org/programs-and-services/elderly-and-aging
• http://www.aging-parents-and-elder-care.com

The Sandwich Generation at 21: Club Sandwich

I am a part of the “sandwich generation.” The  “sandwich generation” is a group of people who care for aging parents while supporting their children.

The Pew Research Center states that one of each eight Americans who are between the age of  40 to 60 is raising a child and also caring for a parent

Some more stats (via the US Census Bureau)

• 7-10 million adults care for their relatives from a long distance.
• Americans who are 65 years old or older will double by the year 2030, to over 70 million.
• There are diverse variations, and they are listed below, but I wanted first to say that I am part of the club sandwich. I am 30 years old, taking care of two small children and my 93-year-old grandmother.

Kinds of sandwiches:

• Traditional sandwich generation refers to those sandwiched between aging parents who need care as well as helping their children.
• Club Sandwich refers to those in their 50’s or 60’s sandwiched between aging parents, adult children, and grandchildren. On the opposite end; it is where I fall in the mix, and it can also refer to those in their 30s and 40s, who have young children, aging parents, as well as grandparents.
• Open faced sandwich refers to anyone who is involved in the elder care.
• Sandwich generation was originally coined by Dorothy Miller and Elaine Brody in the year 1981 when they began their research.

It is some pretty thought-provoking stuff to look into if you are interested.

Sources:

http://www.pewsocialtrends.org/2013/01/30/the-sandwich-generation

http://www.sandwichgeneration.com

A Review: Burt's Bees Radiance Night Cream

I’ve been using Burt's Bees Radiance Night Cream every night for two months, and although I don’t notice that I look younger (because I look really young), my skin was really soft throughout the day. It smells really good, and all you need is a little bit because it goes a long way.

If you’re a caregiver like me, we are tired ALL THE TIME, but my face felt soft, not tired or dull. The cream was kind of oily at first, but it was absorbed, and within ten minutes the greasy feeling wasn’t there anymore.

If you’re looking for something to keep your skin looking ravishing while you’re sneaking in a nap, maybe this will work for you.

This isn’t a sponsored post, just a product that I liked and I wanted to write about.

Quick Facts to Pass The Time

1. You burn more calories sleeping than you do watching television
2. While digging, an Armadillo can hold its breath for up to six minutes
3. When snakes are born with two heads, they fight each other for food
4. When Nylons first went on sale in the United States in 1940, four million pairs were sold in only a few days
5. In a lifetime, an average human produces 10,000 gallons of saliva
6. In a five card poker game there are 2,598,960 possible hands
7. In a day, an elephant can drink 80 gallons of water
8. In 2002, the most popular boat name in the U.S. was Liberty
9. There are approximately 75,000,000 horses in the world
10. There are 50% more males that are left handed compared to females
11. The youngest pope was 11 years old
12. The sun shrinks five feet every hour
13. The sun is approximately 75% hydrogen, 25% helium by mass
14. Every three minutes a woman is diagnosed with breast cancer
15. Every second, two Barbie dolls are sold somewhere in the world

Tools for Fashion Design Students

While in fashion school, we as students had toolkits that we would bring to classes. The tools I often had were:

• Fabric
• Dress From
• Pins
• Tape Measure
• Scissors for paper and fabric
• Pattern paper

What is Cancer?

Cancer is known as a condition, which is caused by the uncontrolled division of cells. As humans, we have tumor suppressor genes which actually prevent cancer by slowing down the growth of cells or stopping the growth altogether.

In a normal human body, cells divide at a certain rate in order to place old dying cells, while maintaining homeostasis. When there is a change in DNA, and the tumor suppressor gene is defective, cells begin to grow and divide uncontrollably (Mader, 2007).

When cancer cells divide, they require food and water, and even attracts blood vessels, when cells grow and divide uncontrollably the cancer cells begin to compete with normal somatic cells (Dollinger, 2002).

Resources:

• Dollinger, M., & Dollinger, M. (2002). Everyone's guide to cancer therapy: how cancer is diagnosed, treated, and managed day to day. Kansas City, MO: Andrews McMeel Pub.
• Mader, C. (2007). The Biology of Cancer. The Yale Journal of Biology and Medicine, 80(2), 91.

A Review: Burt's Bees Body Butter

I use a lot of lotions, oils and body butter, but Burts Bees Body Butter is one of my favorites. My grandmother has really dry skin, while I have normal skin.  I use lotions every day, so I classify them all as moisturizers.

Although its thick, it's not greasy, and it continues to moisturize throughout the day. A little bit goes a long way. I like the scent; it’s the all natural scent that I am used to. I’ve been using all natural products for years, I’m used to the pleasant smell, its natural.

I'm a caregiver (duh), and just because I work at home, it doesn’t mean I don’t follow protocol when it comes to disinfecting, cleaning and of course washing my hands many times throughout the day. I think because I've been using this and other lotions my hands remain in pretty good condition.

I just wanted to put it out there that this brand it's reputable, and if you're looking for anything for yourself or your parents, check this one out.

This is not a sponsored post.

What happens if you smoke while pregnant?

Smoking is considered to be one of the most preventable risk factors that relate to complications during pregnancy and the delivery of a baby (Rasmussen, Heitmann, Tønnesen, 2013).
Five hundred thousand infants who are exposed to tobacco are born every year. More women smoke tobacco than any other illicit drugs.
Smoking tobacco is a drug that is used continuously throughout the day, so prenatal tobacco exposure is imminent (Respass, 2011). Tobacco contains many chemically active compounds which are dangerous for anyone who smokes it, such as formaldehyde, acetone, methyl, methane, and many others that are potentially harmful.

A woman who smokes while pregnant is in less danger of harm than her unborn child. The unborn child is exposed to harmful chemicals while in utero while still developing (Abbott, 2012).

Benefits and Risks of Using The Internet

There are risks of using the internet which include dangers of internet addiction, privacy risks, and online crime such as sex crimes, and fraud. Although there are risks of using the internet there are also great benefits of the internet such as online education & remote occupations, and finding entertainment.

Adolescents use the internet more than any other age group and are considered an important part of many adolescents’ day to day lives. Now it’s known that ninety-one percent of adolescents in the United States report occasional or daily Internet use (Gross, 2004).

References:
Gross, E. (2004). Adolescent Internet use: What we expect, what teens report. Applied Developmental Psychology, 25, 633-649.

 

How Adults Deal with Grief and Loss

Adults deal with grief different than children. Children do not have many domestic activities such has to keep a house together, working or paying bills. Children can cope on their own time, while adults have to grief and deal with keeping a house together.

Adults who are dealing with grief may be confused, sad, and afraid to ask for help. When death occurs the individuals who are grieving because of it may be overwhelmed with emotions. Emotions an individual may deal with are denial, disbelief, confusion, shock, sadness, guilt, despair or even anger.

These emotions are normal, something like a significant loss will bring up feelings that one may have never felt before. Death is not the only reason an adult may grieve; there are other reasons such as putting a child up for adoption. The parents may feel the same symptoms that a person would feel after the death of a loved one (Coping with Loss: Bereavement and Grief, 2015).