grow older better

Author: Lynn Dorman, Ph.D.

  • Learning The Hard Way – Again

    hibernating

     

    Are you a winter hibernator?

    I am – and it is not a good thing for our bodies.

     

    [Maybe bears can do it –I can’t.]

    In the winter, I tend to just take walks and do some stretching to keep my hamstrings flexible – but otherwise I kind of become someone who sits too much – and as we know, that is not good for a body.

    As we get older, it seems we need to keep all parts in flexible working order and to do that, we cannot hibernate!

    downward dog poseI re-learned this recently when I started back into doing yoga! 

    I had lost a real lot of my flexibility – and could not easily [or even] do much of what was so easy before I hibernated!!

     

     

     

     

    The obvious moral of the story is that we all need to do a variety of exercising to stay flexible – and as we age, it seems we cannot take off for a long period of time without it having a major impact.

    OUCH!

     

    Comments? Thoughts? Thank you…..

     

     

  • Do You Do X Or Have Y? Then We Have A Pill For You!

     money and meds - big pharma

    I am getting very tired of the ads on TV that make you think that normal bodily functions are now ailments that need pills…

     

     

     

    Personally:

    • I urinate a lot.
    • I have always urinated a lot.
    • I will always urinate a lot

    Do I think it’s a problem? Of course not.

    It’s my body and it’s the way my body functions.

    Would I take a pill because somebody thinks this is a problem?  Of course not.

    There is an ad about urination with the woman helping her daughter  try on a wedding gown and it seems like the daughter is miffed with the mother – and the mother is embarrassed – why?

    Because the mother has to go to the bathroom instead of giving her undivided attention to her daughter! 

    Well Duh!  Doesn’t that now grown up child know about her mother’s frequent urination?

    My kid did – and it was a family a joke.

    In fact, it’s been a joke with my friends and everyone as car back as I can remember.

    I was always known as the friend, in New York City, who knew where all the bathrooms were – c’mon I mean that’s an honor.

    When camping, I could always find the outhouses in campgrounds – in the dark too.

    And I have no problems peeing behind bushes, etc. when hiking, skiing, or whatever I am doing.

    If that daughter and that mother were having a problem now, when the daughter is an adult, I do wonder about the parent-child relationship and the fact that this was never discussed.

    The next ad that sent me screaming at the television set was one where the question was raised “do you have a lot of tissues in your pocket?”

    Again – duh! Of course I do! Noses run! That’s what noses do!

    But – guess what? You need a pill.

    Why would I want to take a pill to stop my nose from running or to stop urinating and when those are normal activities?

    And why on earth would I want to take a pill when they tell me about all the possible side effects the pill will create?

    Sadly, all these pills are designed only to make gobs of money for the pharmaceutical companies.

    And – if you get sick from the pill that stops up your nose or stops you from peeing?

    Well – guess what? We have pills for that too!

    Thoughts?  Comments? Thank you!

     

  • Tiredness – Thy Name Is Puppy

    Tova the puppyWhy is a new puppy so tiring?

    Let me count the ways 

    Mostly she sleeps all night now but I am still tired every day.

    Why? When she is awake she either wants me to play with her, or she has to go out , or she runs around the house and I have to follow her to make sure she doesn’t pee or poop where she’s not supposed to.

    She is learning to run to the door or make noises when she does have to go out – but she has enough “mistakes” that I have to keep an eye on her.

    Also,  I have to watch her outside to because of where I live [on the water.]

    I’ve blocked off a lot of the deck with large containers of plants to make sure she can’t go to parts of the deck I can’t easily see from inside. But even so, there are ways that she could slip off because the decks are a bit slippery right now and as she’s a puppy – she doesn’t have that much control over her body. When she runs she can’t always stop on that proverbial dime.

    Soon Tova will be more adult sized [with good manners] and I’ll look back on these days nostalgically [but a lot less tired.]

    And maybe I’ll get the work projects done that need doing?

    Comments? Thanks. 

  • Happy New Year; Happy New Puppy

    Tova meets the outdoor plants

    As a start to my new year –

    I have a new puppy!

     

    So happy new year to all of you and a hope-it’s-not-a-very-tiring new year to me 

    It’s been almost 22 years since I had a new puppy.

    That’s when my son was 13 and it was a birthday present for him so I not only had him to help me take care of a dog I also had another older dog who acted as a mentor. 

    This is a new thing for me.

    • I am 22 years older
    • With a new puppy
    • in Portland [it rains a lot]
    • In a floating home 

    I won’t bore you with puppy pictures and puppy tales all the time-  but I will occasionally post things about how having a new puppy is both a good idea for someone who is aging and also some of the pitfalls – like it’s hard to do some things and this will be a constant until we mesh schedules [which will happen soon as she is so smart]

    Meet Tova!! My 2 month old yellow lab…..


  • Grapefruit Juice and Your Medications

    Do you drink grapefruit juice? 

    Do you take medications?


    If you answer yes to both – please read this whole article to see if your medications are among those that interact with grapefruit juice.

    For some medications:

    Taking one tablet with a glass of grapefruit juice is like taking 20 tablets with a glass of water," Bailey said. "This is unintentional overdosing. So it's not surprising that these levels go from what we call therapeutic to toxic.

    And if you have friends or family members who love their grapefruit and/or grapefruit juice – please let them know about this article.

     

    Thoughts? Comments? Thank you!