After the murder of her son, Khaaliq, Dorothy took both her personal and professional experiences as a grief and loss counselor to guide others towards healing. She founded Mothers in Charge, an organization against violence in Philadelphia.
The Annals of Internal Medicine just published the results of a new trial that provides evidence that storytelling is not only an enjoyable pastime, but shows promise as way to decrease high blood pressure. And for at least one group of patients, listening to personal narratives worked as effectively as additional medications. The researchers studied 300 African-American patients who lived in urban areas, had hypertension, and viewed videos every three months of other patients telling their personal stories. This is a story with a happy ending!
The type of health care that members of the Southeast Asian community and other immigrant groups receive in this country may be strongly impacted by cultural differences. Some of these differences are social or based on Eastern beliefs, and others come from a lack of knowledge of Western medicine. Jingduan Yang, MD practices Integrative Medicine at Philadelphia’s Jefferson University, and talks about this issue in this video.
Cami Walker who has multiple sclerosis was told by a health educator to give gifts to friends and family for 29 days as a way to deal with her pain and sadness. An interesting prescription! The gifts were simple -- making supportive phone calls or saving a piece of chocolate cake for her husband. And the effects were life-changing! Her new book, 29 Gifts: How a Month of Giving Can Change Your Life, is about how giving to others can improve health, increase happiness, and create meaning and purpose. Read more.
A new book about loss is reassuring. In The Other Side of Sadness: What the New Science of Bereavement Tells Us About Life After Loss, George A. Bonanno, a Columbia University clinical psychologist, acknowledges the acute sorrow felt after a death, but points out how resilient most people are. Those experiencing loss fluctuate between pain and happier emotions, seek comfort, maintain their equilibrium and find renewed meaning and pleasure in life.
Why do women who spend time "dishing" with friends seem more content and in good spirits? A research study at the University of Michigan has identified a likely reason: feeling emotionally close to a friend increases levels of the hormone progesterone that helps to boost well-being and reduce anxiety. So, hanging out with friends is not wasting time... it's increasing your happiness and lifespan.
