Category: Legacy Living

Goal Setting, Healthy Living, Legacy Living

Welcome to CayCare!

Last Minute Gift Ideas

Trying to grab a gift that will make those around you smile? Here are a few last-minute gift ideas you can buy.

  • Smart Lighting – This is a surprisingly quick purchase that will delight. It is easy to set up and only needs google, alexa or an application on your phone to work.
  • Law of Attraction Planner – This simple gift will help those you love find their 2022 and thank you for it.
  • Frame an old photo – Take the meaning of a past memory and give it away as a special gift.

Side Dishes for Christmas

Chili Dip (The Founder of CayCare’s personal and quick recipe)

  • 5 Cans of your favorite chili
  • 8 oz of cream cheese

Heat in crock pot. Serve with corn chips

Christmas Cranberry Cake –

  • 3 Eggs
  • 2 cups Sugar
  • ¾ cup Butter (softened)
  • 1 teaspoon Vanilla
  • 2 cups All-Purpose Flour (see note below for gluten-free alternative)
  • 12 ounces Fresh Cranberries

Heat 350 for 1 hour

Care Management, Goal Setting, Healthy Living, Legacy Living, Self-Care

Aromatherapy – What are the benefits?

Aromatherapy – What does it mean to use aromatherapy as part of self-care? On a basic level there are smells that remind you of things. Your brain registers the memory with a scent. I have a distinct “home” smell. There is a specific smell when I have gone to a spa. When I smell it, I am reminded of relaxation and comfort. Our mind registers the smell information into our brain and helps connect it to certain sensations.
Research has shown that certain essential oils will help certain portions of our brain and body.

Dr Brent Bauer from the Mayo Clinc says,

Research on the effectiveness of aromatherapy — the therapeutic use of essential oils extracted from plants — is limited.

However, some studies have shown that aromatherapy might have health benefits, including:

  • Relief from anxiety and depression
  • Improved quality of life, particularly for people with chronic health conditions
  • Improved sleep

Smaller studies suggest that aromatherapy with lavender oil may help:

  • Reduce pain for people with osteoarthritis of the knee
  • Improve quality of life for people with dementia
  • Reduce pain for people with kidney stones

Essential oils used in aromatherapy are typically extracted from various parts of plants and then distilled.

The highly concentrated oils may be inhaled directly or indirectly or applied to the skin through massage, lotions or bath salts. Some essential oil manufacturers have oils that can be taken internally, but research on the safety and efficacy of this method is extremely limited.

Aromatherapy is thought to work by stimulating smell receptors in the nose, which then send messages through the nervous system to the limbic system — the part of the brain that controls emotions.

Many essential oils have been shown to be safe when used as directed. However, essential oils used in aromatherapy aren’t regulated by the Food and Drug Administration.

Risk of allergies – When oils are applied to the skin, side effects may include allergic reactions, skin irritation and sun sensitivity. In addition, further research is needed to determine how essential oils might affect children and how the oils might affect women who are pregnant or breast-feeding, as well as how the oils might interact with medications and other treatments.

Goal Setting, Healthy Living, Legacy Living, Self-Care, Top Lists

What Exactly is Meditation

Meditate – What exactly does it mean to meditate?

First, let’s explore what it means to meditate. The basic definition – Meditation is a practice of concentrated focus upon a sound, object, visualization, the breath, movement, or attention itself in order to increase awareness of the present moment, reduce stress, promote relaxation, and enhance personal and spiritual growth.

To meditate is to think deeply or focus one’s mind for a period of time, in silence or with the aid of chanting, for religious or spiritual purposes or as a method of relaxation.

Let’s explore the benefits of meditation. A meditation study done by the National Institute of Health shows to improve the following conditions –
1. Stress
2. Anxiety
3. Cardiovascular Health
4. Depression
5. Insomnia
6. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
7. Addiction

American Psychological Association concluded that Transcendental Meditation had relatively strong effects in reducing anxiety, negative emotions, trait anxiety and neuroticism while aiding learning, memory and self-realization.

The bottom line is that exploring meditation has many well-being benefits. Where do you actually start? We have how-to meditate cards going around for self-care week 2. Here are the simple tips now.

One article reads, put simply, meditation is a tool for stress relief, Fletcher says, adding that by relieving stress, you’re setting yourself up to be able to perform at the top of your game. “I believe we meditate to get good at life, not to get good at meditation,” she says. Many people have the misconception that meditation is about focusing on the present, but Fletcher actually considers that to be mindfulness (which we’ll get into later). Meditation, on the other hand, is about getting rid of all of the stress the body has stored from the past.

To join the self-care movement and earn prizes fill out the form in this QR Code or follow the link Join the Self-Care Movement to Win

Register HERE to Win and Join the Self-Care Movement

Healthy Living, Legacy Living, local outings, Top Lists, Uncategorized

Do the Self-Care Dance!

Let’s face it. Dancing is something we talk about doing, but leave for others. Did you know that little release isn’t just good to help you relax but it is good for your muscles after having sat a while? In fact, we would even suggest it is good for a little giggle that will occur from a short jig.

It doesn’t have to be ballroom level. We are talking a quick move to a song in your head or actually coming from the radio. The benefit if you share your jig with others can be contagious. *But that is entirely up to you.

Some songs that may help your jig come out more effectively can include (but trust me any old tune will do)

  • @dance.tut on Instagram has some fun tutorials for all ages.
  • Macarena
  • KyleYouMadeThat (Yung Baby Tate) (This content may have profanities)
  • Beggin’
  • Bring Me to Life (by Evanescence)
  • Dance Monkey (Tones and I)
  • Hot N Cold (Katy Perry)
  • Immortals (Fall Out Boy)
  • Just Like Heaven (The Cure)

Let’s see those dance moves. Post your short videos on our Facebook and/or Instagram. We want to see you movin’. All ages welcome!

@caycareplacement

Goal Setting, Legacy Living, Top Lists, Uncategorized

6 Pillars of Brain Health

The 6 Pillars of Brain Health

  • Physical Exercise– People who exercise regularly have a lower risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease. Spend up to 30 minutes a day to improve your cardiovascular health. Activities such as walking, jogging, or riding your bike outside are fantastic ways to improve your health.
  • Food and Nutrition– As we grow older, we are exposed to oxidation from lifestyle and the environment. Oxidation damages brain cells. Eating foods rich in antioxidants can fend off the oxidation effects in the brain. Eating green also has brain health benefits. Bad fats such as trans fats, along with other sugar-loaded, processed foods can debilitate your brain’s function. As they say, you are what you eat.
  • Medical Health– Diseases such as hypertension, diabetes, obesity, depression and anxiety, head trauma, higher cholesterol, and smoking all increase the risk of dementia. Remember to check-in with your doctor and take medications as prescribed! It is important to not ignore emotional and mental health, since the risk of mental illness increases if ignored.
  • Sleep and Relaxation– A good night’s sleep energizes you, improves your mood/immune system, and may reduce buildup of beta-amyloid plaque, an abnormal protein. Practices like meditation can help improve your brain health and sleep habits. See our Sleep Awareness blog post for more information on how sleep can affect you.
  • Mental Fitness– Mental exercise is just as critical as physical exercise. Doing brain exercises can improve your brain’s function and promote new brain cell growth, which is great against developing dementia. With games like Sudoku, My Brain Trainer, and Brain Age 2, brain exercises are easy to practice whenever available. Doing organic exercises are also a great tool, including doing math in your head, keeping a journal, and learning a musical instrument. The more your brain is put to the test, the more active it is!(6)
  • Social Interaction– Having an active social life can protect you against memory loss. Studies have shown that people who communicate with others are memory boosters – they have the slowest rate of memory decline. It is also able to lower blood pressure and can improve life expectancy.

Author

Brain Health Awareness: Take Care of Your Brain! (rapidwristbands.com)