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“Elder Index” Measures Widespread Poverty for Older Americans
The newly formed Equity in Aging Collaborative promotes the tool to measure the true cost of living for aging adultsWith U.S. housing prices soaring and annual inflation above 9% — not to mention the widespread economic fallout of a multi-year global pandemic — many individuals are struggling to make ends meet. But as the Elder Index reveals, one group in the United States is facing unique challenges: older adults. Fortunately, a new collaboration of…
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100 Million Americans Are Facing Extreme Heat Warnings This Summer
The elderly are most at-risk for the environmental crisisThe summer of 2022 has proven to be one of the most brutal across the country. Just last week, CNN reported, “One-third of the US population is under heat advisories and excessive heat warnings, and more than 80% of the US population (around 265 million Americans) will see a high above 90 degrees over the…
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“Soul”
A film offering an insightful reminder that everyone’s life has valuePixar’s animated film, “Soul,” is a whimsical story about an ordinary man. Joe Gardner is a middle-school band teacher obsessed by his desire to be a jazz musician. Joe’s sole wish is to play among the greats, “I could die a happy man if I could play a set with Dorothea Williams.” But on the…
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Melatonin Ingestion Soaring Among Children, CDC Reports
Reports of accidental and intentional overdoses are up over 500%A new report from the U.S. Centers of Disease Control and Prevention highlights a worrisome increase in pediatric melatonin ingestion. Between 2012 and 2020, the number of accidental ingestions of the over-the-counter sleep aid reported to the American Association of Poison Control Centers’ National Poison Data System increased 530%, from 8,337 in 2012 to 52,…
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“The Artists’ Grief Deck” Explores Love and Loss
Beautiful artistry offers a means of connection for those who are grievingWhile an abundance of card decks have been designed to divine the future, transmit messages from oracles, or offer inspiration, fewer have been devoted to processing grief. Fortunately, a slew of artists and caregivers have collaborated to create “The Artists’ Grief Deck” — a stack of 60 uniquely designed, colorful cards that enable users to explore…
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Our Monthly Tip: Prepare a Trail Basket for a Grieving Friend
A thoughtful idea for long walks or hikesOur Tip of the Month Preparing a trail basket of treats and supplies for a grieving friend to use on long walks and hikes can encourage the healing process. Walking can be extremely therapeutic. Those who are mourning may want to spend more time alone, and walking/hiking can make this time more productive or spiritual.…
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Black American Life Expectancy Lags Behind Whites
After several years of a narrowing gap in life-expectancy, COVID-19 caused Black American mortality rates to riseThe COVID-19 pandemic widened the once-narrowing gap between white and Black American life expectancy in the U.S. Death and census records show that the Black American life expectancy rose nearly four years from 1990-2019. African Americans lived to about 75 years of age on average while the white American life expectancy held steady at about…
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Sandplay Therapy: Reading the Symbols in the Sand (Interview)
Sandplay therapist Shannon Yockey explains how the modality allows individuals to grieve, heal trauma and prepare for deathIn the spring of 1997, licensed clinical social worker Shannon Yockey was attending a play therapy conference in California when she stumbled into sandplay. Yockey found herself in a small, crowded room, watching a diminutive Catholic nun give a slide presentation on the modality. “It just really captured me,” Yockey said. Twenty-five years later, Yockey…
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Mystery Solved? Origins of the Black Death Explored
New research places early plague strain in Central AsiaFrom 1346 to 1353 the bubonic plague swept Europe and Asia, killing between 25 and 50 million people. It was one of several strains of plague caused by Yersinia pestis, a bacterium spread by rodents carrying infected fleas. The scourge became known as the Black Death due to the black, gangrenous sores it caused in…
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