Balanced Living

July 2006

What’s Your Eye-Q?

July is Eye Injury Prevention Month

Remember all those warnings about taking care of your eyes? "Don't watch the TV without a light on in the room," or "You're going to go blind if you don't rest your eyes." Which were based on fact? Take the following quick quiz to see how eye savvy you are!

True or False:

1. Sitting too close to the television will harm your eyes.
2. Watching television in the dark can damage your eyes.
3. You can harm your eyes if you wear drugstore eyeglasses for reading.
4. The darker the better when it comes to sunglasses.
5. Many people suffer from eyestrain after using computers.
6. Eye exercises are a good way to strengthen your eyes.
7. Safety goggles are necessary only for workers dealing with hazardous machinery.
8. Vision deteriorates rapidly with age.

The answers:

1. False.
2. False. The eye is like a video camera; it adjusts to the light. But watching television in the dark is not without risks: You don't want your kids to trip over something on the floor.
3. False. Doctors say that reading glasses purchased over the counter won't do any harm and may solve your problem -- as long as that problem is simply the inability to read that often accompanies aging. If you have other problems, such as the inability to focus on distant objects, these glasses won't help. The experts advise you to get an eye exam when any vision problem appears.
4. False. Dark glasses without ultraviolet (UV) protection may be dangerous. The pupil dilates to adjust to the lack of light, and this allows the eye to absorb rays that may lead to cataracts.
5. True. But "eyestrain" actually occurs in the muscles that control the eyes. The strain is caused by concentrating intensely and using muscles in the face and neck. Take a break every few minutes. Get your eyes off the screen and roll your head around a bit to stretch the muscles.
6. False. Poor eyesight is most likely hereditary and can't be improved with eye exercises, experts say.
7. False. Many people have lost vision when hit by a nail deflected by a glancing blow from a hammer, for example. You should wear goggles when using a hammer or other household tools, such as drills and jigsaws.
8. False. Vision loss comes on gradually, over a period of years. Often, patients unconsciously compensate with the good eye and don't notice the problem until it becomes critical. Experts suggest that you occasionally test each eye by holding your hand over the other eye.

For more info:
www.aao.org
https://fhahelps.personaladvantage.com/content?cat=10000006&sub=10000189

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Beat the Heat

Hot Tips for a Fit Summer

Maintaining a regular exercise routine is important, even when those lazy days of summer make you want to drop everything and head for a hammock in the shade. You can find the right summer exercise option for you, regardless of your fitness level or heat tolerance, but you should also take precautions to prevent potential problems such as sunburn, dehydration and sports-related injuries.

Don't overdo the sun

Most people believe it's safe to spend hours in the sun as long as they avoid getting sunburned. The truth is prolonged sun exposure can cause skin cancer and accelerate dehydration and fatigue, fitness experts say. To protect yourself, wear a sunscreen with a sun protection factor (SPF) of at least 15. Drink lots of water to stay hydrated, wear loose clothing and pace yourself.

The skin is the largest organ in the body, and sunburn elevates skin temperature. This temperature elevation, combined with the body heat you generate while working out, can lead to discomfort and even illness.

Pay attention

The key to avoiding heat-related illnesses is to be aware of how your body feels and to drink fluids frequently. Don't wait until you feel thirsty to drink fluids. Don't ignore the warning signals of dehydration: feeling lightheaded, tingly, dizzy, short of breath or nauseous or having cramped muscles. Replacing water lost through sweating keeps your body temperature down and hydrates the skin and muscles, allowing you to work out longer and stronger, experts say.

Drink at least one 8-ounce glass of water before exercise and two afterward. Take sips throughout your workout, even if you don't feel thirsty. And though you don't dehydrate as quickly in water, you still need to drink fluids after swimming or participating in other water-based sports or activities.

One of the best ways to prevent heat-related illnesses is to exercise in the early morning or the early evening. Avoid working out between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m., when the sun's rays are strongest.

Have fun

Physical activity can improve your mood, so it's essential to choose an activity you enjoy rather than trying to force yourself to do something that makes you uncomfortable.

If you just can't stand the heat, you can still swim in a lap pool or take a water aerobics class.

And if you're getting bored with your usual exercise routine, look for a new activity. In order to improve, you need to challenge your mind and your muscles by changing how you use them.

Set realistic goals

One of the great things about a sunny summer day or a week at the beach is the sense of freedom it can give you -- as though you're capable of anything.

But though the weather has changed, your overall conditioning hasn't. The biggest mistake people make when exercising in hot weather is to do too much too soon. If you're not physically prepared for an activity and push yourself too hard, you can end up with pulled muscles or heat-related illness.

For more info:
https://fhahelps.personaladvantage.com/dieting
https://fhahelps.personaladvantage.com/fitness

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Home Search 101

What to Consider When Searching for the Perfect Home

It's a good idea to start your home-search process on your own, particularly if you haven't yet chosen an agent. Just going to open houses for a week or two or surfing the Internet will help you get a sense of the local market. It can also refine your sense of how much house you can afford, potentially expand your horizons regarding livable neighborhoods and wise you up to what all the advertising hype really means -- or disguises.

How to Access Listings of Houses for Sale

Somewhere out there is a seller who wants to sell his or her home as badly as you want to buy one. This means you can count on homes being advertised in at least a few places. Here are the best ways to look for up-to-date information on homes for sale:

• Read the local newspaper, especially the Sunday edition. Check the classified sections of various newspapers. If you're focused on a particular neighborhood, find out whether that neighborhood has a community newspaper with real estate listings. Many newspapers also post their classified sections online.
• Drive through the neighborhoods that interest you. You may spot "For Sale" signs of homes whose listings you overlooked. You may see "FSBOs" -- that is, homes for sale by owner, without the help of a real estate agent. FSBOs are not always advertised widely. Another way to make sure you don't miss any FSBOs is to check websites dedicated to them, such as www.owners.com.
• Use the Internet. The Web has become an important resource for homebuyers, complete with color photos and even the occasional virtual tour. Many websites draw from the same resource, namely a database of home listings known as the multiple listing service (MLS). Each site's presentation and ease of use is different though, so you'll want to check around for the site you like best. On most sites you can search home listings based on criteria such as location, price, and number of bedrooms.

When you see a home that interests you, either make an appointment to see it or check whether an open house has been scheduled.

Decide What You Want Most in a House

After you've begun surveying the territory, and perhaps experienced a reality check regarding what you can afford, create your personalized "ideal house profile." Simply write down possible home features according to three categories:

• Features that you can't live without, such as a good school district, no difficult stairs to climb or space to grow vegetables.
• Features that you hope for in a house, but that aren't crucial to your decision, such as a fireplace, a separate laundry room and walking distance to a coffee shop.
• Features that are "absolute no ways," meaning that you know you'll forever be sorry if you buy a house that has them: These tend to be location problems, such as at the top of a hill, in a flood zone, in a lousy school district, or in a high-crime or noise area.

Carry your ideal house profile with you whenever you visit a house. To be even more organized, turn your profile into a checklist of the three categories of features, and fill one out every time you visit a house.

For more info:
https://fhahelps.personaladvantage.com/buying_refinancing_a_house

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Understanding PTSD

What is PTSD?

PTSD is not a new disorder. There are written accounts of similar symptoms that go back to ancient times, and there is clear documentation in the historical medical literature starting with the Civil War, when a PTSD-like disorder was known as "Da Costa's Syndrome." There are particularly good descriptions of post-traumatic stress symptoms in the medical literature on combat veterans of World War II and on Holocaust survivors.

Careful research and documentation of PTSD began in earnest after the Vietnam War. The National Vietnam Veterans Readjustment Study estimated in 1988 that the prevalence of PTSD in that group was 15.2% at that time and that 30% had experienced the disorder at some point since returning from Vietnam.

PTSD has subsequently been observed in all veteran populations that have been studied, including World War II, Korean conflict and Persian Gulf populations, and in United Nations peacekeeping forces deployed to other war zones around the world. There are remarkably similar findings of PTSD in military veterans in other countries. For example, Australian Vietnam veterans experience many of the same symptoms that American Vietnam veterans experience.

PTSD is not only a problem for veterans, however. Although there are unique cultural and gender-based aspects of the disorder, it occurs in men and women, adults and children, Western and non-Western cultural groups and all socioeconomic strata. A national study of American civilians conducted in 1995 estimated that the lifetime prevalence of PTSD was 5% in men and 10% in women.

Treatment for PTSD

The most successful treatments of PTSD are cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) and medication. Excellent results have been obtained with some CBT combinations of exposure therapy and cognitive restructuring, especially with female victims of childhood or adult sexual trauma. Sertraline (Zoloft) and paroxetine (Paxil) are selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI) that are the first medications to have received FDA approval as indicated treatments for PTSD. Success has also been reported with Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), although rigorous scientific data are lacking and it is unclear whether this approach is as effective as CBT.

Perhaps the best therapeutic option for mildly to moderately affected PTSD patients is group therapy. In such a setting, the PTSD patient can discuss traumatic memories, PTSD symptoms and functional deficits with others who have had similar experiences. This approach has been most successful with war veterans, rape/incest victims and natural disaster survivors. It is important that therapeutic goals be realistic because, in some cases, PTSD is a chronic and severely debilitating psychiatric disorder that is refractory to current available treatments. The hope remains, however, that our growing knowledge about PTSD will enable us to design interventions that are more effective for all patients afflicted with this disorder.

There is great interest in rapid interventions for acutely traumatized individuals, especially with respect to civilian disasters, military deployments and emergency personnel (medical personnel, police and firefighters). This has become a major policy and public health issue since the massive traumatization caused by the September 11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center.

Currently, there is controversy about which interventions work best during the immediate aftermath of a trauma. Research on critical incident stress debriefing (CISD), an intervention used widely, has brought disappointing results with respect to its efficacy to attenuate post-traumatic distress or to forestall the later development of PTSD. Promising results have been shown with brief cognitive-behavioral therapy.

For more info:
https://fhahelps.personaladvantage.com/post-traumatic_stress_disorder

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Planning for Retirement

How to Check Your Social Security

The Social Security Administration (SSA) keeps a running computer account of your earnings record and work credits, tracking both through your Social Security number. The administration mails out this information annually on Social Security statements to everyone age 40 (who is not already receiving Social Security benefits). The Social Security statement gives you an estimate of the benefits you'll receive at retirement age, which can play an important role in your financial planning.

How to Get a Copy of Your Social Security Statement

If you are age 40 or over and have not received your statement, or if you want to check your statement before you're 40, you can request a copy by following the instructions on the SSA website at www.ssa.gov. If you would prefer to make the request in writing, you may fill out a simple form, SSA 7004, called a Request for Social Security Statement, available at your local Social Security office or by calling 800-772-1213.

Check the Social Security Administration's Math

It is always wise for you to check the SSA's work. Don't be surprised if you uncover an error. Some government-watchers estimate that the SSA makes mistakes on at least 3% of the total official earnings records it keeps. When you check your record, make sure that the Social Security number noted on your earnings statement is your own, and make sure the earned income amounts listed on the agency's records mesh with your own records of earnings as listed on your income tax forms or pay stubs.

How to Correct an Error on Your Social Security Statement

If you have evidence of your covered earnings in the year or years for which you think Social Security has made an error, call Social Security's helpline at 800-772-1213. This is the line that takes all kinds of Social Security questions, and it is often swamped, so be patient. It is best to call early in the morning or late in the afternoon, late in the week or late in the month. Have all your documents handy when you speak with a representative.

If you would rather speak with someone in person, call your local Social Security office and make an appointment to see someone there, or drop into the office during regular business hours. If you drop in, be prepared to wait, perhaps as long as an hour or two, before you get to see a representative. Bring with you two copies of your benefits statement and the evidence that supports your claim of higher income. That way, you can leave one copy with the Social Security worker. Write down the name of the person with whom you speak so that you can reach the same person when you follow up.

The process to correct errors is slow. It may take several months to have the changes made in your record. After Social Security confirms that it has corrected your record, request another benefits statement to make sure the correct information made it to your file.

For more information:
https://fhahelps.personaladvantage.com/estate_and_retirement_planning