Time to De-Stress

“The time to relax is when you don’t have time for it.” – Sydney J. Harris

Welcome to the February 2021 edition of TotalWellbeing, your guide to the 8 dimensions of wellbeing. This month it’s time to take a deep breath and de-stress. No matter how resilient you are, stress and anxiety can have an impact on your life in some way or another. It is important to be able to recognize the signs of stress and take steps to manage it on a day-to-day basis. This can be tricky as often we don’t feel as if we have time to take time for ourselves, but it is critical that we do so to avoid stress, burnout, and the symptoms that come with those including tension headaches, anxiety, insomnia, and other wellbeing issues. See below for some tips on managing stress with exercise as well as an infographic with more stress-related tips to help you unwind.

Please remember that your EAP is here for you to provide a variety of resources to manage stress. You have access to free and confidential counseling, wellness coaching, work/life balance tools, and more! Plus, an online resource library full of proactive self-help tools. Visit PersonalAdvantage for helpful articles, tips, health assessments, stress tests, and more!

To your total wellbeing,

The MINES Team

Managing Stress with Exercise

Stress can make you feel drained, anxious, and even depressed. While there are several ways to manage runaway stress, none is as enjoyable and effective as a regular exercise routine.

We all deal with stress in our lives—due to both minor and major events. Try utilizing some new coping strategies to help you deal with difficult times more effectively.

“Numerous studies have shown exercise provides excellent stress-relieving benefits,” says Cedric Bryant, chief exercise physiologist for the American Council on Exercise. “And let’s face it, we all could do with less stress in our lives.”

How It Works

Exercise causes the brain to release endorphins, opium-like substances that ease pain and produce a sense of comfort and euphoria. It also encourages the nerve cells in the brain to secrete other neurotransmitters, such as serotonin, dopamine, and norepinephrine, which improve mood.

Read more…

Stress/Health Infographic
Click here to view and download the stress infographic from this month’s communication.

Question of the Month

What is one way that you may be able to add a daily habit to manage stress? This could be a quick breathing exercise, a short meditation session, engaging with your favorite stress-relieving hobby, or anything else you use to keep your stress levels in check. What’s stopping you?

This Month’s Focus

Free Webinar:

Calm Down: Meditation and Relaxation Guide

MINESblog:

New to TW? Check out our past Blogs!

Pandemic Fatigue

The Art of Resolutions

Important Links

COVID19 Resource Page

Visit our BLOG

MINES and Associates

Current Training Catalog

Balanced Living Magazine

LinkedIn

MINES Archives

Contact Us

Email MINES

A Healthier Year

Happy New Year and welcome to the January 2021 edition of TotalWellbeing, your guide to the 8 dimensions of wellbeing. Let’s start the year off on the right foot and talk about some resolutions and wellness related goal setting. Resolutions can seem superficial but having real and concrete goals can help you stay focused and motivated. This is why it is important to set goals that are specific and measurable. Don’t aim for the moon! Set goals that you know are in the realm of possibility and then measure your progress. Adjust as you go and if you hit your goal set another; if you fall short readjust and keep going! Use the tips below to help you set your actionable goals and make 2021 a great year for your wellbeing.

As a quick reminder, with MINES you have access to free professional wellness coaching sessions to help you set, track, and reach your wellness goals! Also, your online portal, PersonalAdvantage, has helpful articles, tips, and resources on wellbeing, setting goals, and stress management. Please call or log on today for articles, self-help tools, health assessments, and more.

To your total wellbeing,

The MINES Team

Stay Healthy: Practice Prevention

Medical advances and technology can detect diseases earlier than ever before and save lives but making prevention a part of your everyday life is just as important. Follow these tips to help stay mindful of, and safeguard, your wellbeing.

Maintain a Healthy Weight: Being overweight increases your risk for heart disease, diabetes, cancer, and high blood pressure. To stay at a healthy weight, you need to balance the number of calories you eat with the number you burn off in physical activity. You can reach a healthy weight and stay there by eating right and being physically active.

Exercise Most Days: Physical activity can help prevent heart disease, obesity, high blood pressure, diabetes, some cancers, and mental health problems, such as depression. It’s a good idea to aim for at least moderate activity, such as brisk walking, bike riding, housecleaning, or playing with your children for 30 to 60 minutes most days of the week. Generally, the more active you are, the better you’ll feel today and the healthier you’ll become tomorrow.

Stop Smoking: More than 440,000 Americans die each year from smoking and smoking-related causes. Smoking causes illnesses such as cancer, heart and lung disease, stroke, and problems during pregnancy.

Take Medicines Correctly: Always be sure you know important information about a medicine before you take it. This will help you get the full benefit of the drug. It also will help you avoid taking too much or too little, which can be dangerous.

Get Your Shots: You can prevent several serious diseases by getting immunized. Check with your health care provider to be sure you’ve had immunization for measles-mumps-rubella, tetanus-diphtheria, whooping cough, and influenza. If you are at risk for hepatitis A, B, or C, you should be immunized against them. People older than 65 should be immunized against pneumococcal pneumonia.

Get Checked and Screened: Checkups and screening tests help find diseases or health problems early, when they’re easier to treat and cure.

Read more here.

Remember, your Employee Assistance Program is here to help if you maintain your wellbeing and manage your feelings around health concerns or any other stressors life throws your way. This includes counseling, self-help tools, wellness coaching, and more. If you need additional information, or to access services, please call MINES and Associates at 1-800-873-7138 today. Also, PersonalAdvantage has a ton of great resources and FREE webinars.

The Art of Resolutions

This time of year everyone is thinking of personal Resolutions or writing about making resolutions. How do you choose what is the best resolution for you? And how do you make sure you follow through with whatever resolution you decide on? And with 2021 starting off amidst COVID, how do you achieve your goals and/or resolutions? There are many ways that you can look for, and choose, your yearly resolutions and there is merit to each way.

S.M.A.R.T. Goals

First, you can set a SMART goal that is specific, measurable, achievable, timely. By having a SMART goal, you are able to track and document your success and you can see where you are struggling. You can also adjust or fine-tune your goal in this model as you need to since you have 5 points of adjustability. What may start as an achievable goal in January may not be achievable in the same way in September.

Wellbeing Focused Goals

You can choose resolutions around one aspect of wellbeing for the whole year or one each month. This means you could make a resolution for the whole year to focus on your financial wellbeing or you could address one of the eight dimensions of wellbeing each month, so you have a well-rounded improvement of your wellbeing.

Child-forward Goals

It is important to remember that whatever resolution or goal you come up with, it is essential for it to be beneficial or enjoyable for you so that you want to stick with it. Whether it is a way for you to smile more, connect to others, create something from nothing, or explore a new activity, resolutions only work when you like what you are getting out of them.

Center Your Focus

Whether you choose to label your goals as resolutions or not, and whatever you choose to pursue in 2021, do so with your whole heart, stay focused, let others know your goals and resolutions so they can support you, and remind yourself that there will be ups and downs. Don’t be too hard on yourself when you fail. Be accepting of what changes need to happen so that you are able to accomplish your goals even if it isn’t to the extent you originally wanted. Focus on what really matters and the rest will fall into place.

MINES is proud to offer wellness training, coaches, and comprehensive wellness tools to help you and your household members reach their wellbeing goals. Feel free to outreach us if you would like a boost to your mental wellbeing or any of the other 8 wellness areas. Call us at 1-800-873-7138 to see how we can help you achieve your goals and resolutions.

Question of the Month

What is one realistic health or wellness goal you want to achieve this year? What can you do to make sure you achieve this goal? How will you measure progress? How will you handle setbacks?

This Month’s Focus

Free Webinar:

What Stress and Diet Have in Common

MINESblog:

New to TW? Check out our past Blogs!

The Art of Resolutions

National Alzheimer’s Awareness Update

Important Links

COVID19 Resource Page

Visit our BLOG

MINES and Associates

Current Training Catalog

Balanced Living Magazine

LinkedIn

MINES Archives

Contact Us

Email MINES

Communicate with Kindness!

“Sometimes it takes only one act of kindness and caring to change a person’s life.” – Jackie Chan

Welcome to the December 2020 edition of TotalWellbeing, your guide to the 8 dimensions of wellbeing. We’re going to end this crazy year with a look at kindness and communicating respectfully with others. Sometimes communication with others is hard, even more so to do with kindness and respect. However, effective communication, especially when respectful/kind, can lead to more effective conversations, less misunderstandings, and better relationships. This is why it is important to understand the way you communicate as well as the communication styles of others. Check out the tips and articles below for advice on both of these important factors.

Also, we want to remind everyone that we are smack dab in the middle of the holiday season which can be anything but peaceful and relaxing. In fact, it is one of the most stressful times of the year. If you or any of your household members are feeling the holiday strain this year, please give us a call and we can help with work/life balance needs, financial concerns, and stress management We are here to help!

As a quick reminder, your online portal, PersonalAdvantage, also has helpful articles, tips, and resources on being kind, dealing with those that are not so kind, and communicating effectively. Please log on today for articles, self-help tools, health assessments, and more.

To your total wellbeing (and Happy Holidays!)

The MINES Team

Keys to Effective Communication

In order to connect with people and help them understand where you’re coming from, you have to do more than just state your point. Communication is complex, and often learning how to communicate effectively requires practice and skill. Fortunately, there are specific things you can do to build your communication toolbox. Follow the suggestions below to learn some of the key techniques and become a more thoughtful and effective communicator.

Create an Atmosphere of Trust

• When speaking in a group, show others that you are a good communicator. Listen openly to each person; this will show people that you won’t embarrass them or twist their words.
• Try to avoid judgment or unnecessary criticism. If you do have to provide criticism, make it constructive.
• Give praise and positive feedback.

Get Your Thoughts Together

• Do research beforehand. Create notes, know the pros and cons of what you are presenting, and do your homework on the subject.
• If necessary, use visual tools or documents that can help your audience understand.
• Be specific, accurate, and honest about the subject.

Adjust to Your Audience

• Consider what the other person already knows.
• If you reach a point where communicating becomes difficult, try to keep communication lines open so everyone can come to a level of understanding.
• Try not to use jargon or terms that are too technical; only use language that your listeners can understand.
• Pick an appropriate place to talk. If the subject is personal, pick a private place.

Invite Feedback

• Ask your listener what he thinks of a subject, how he just interpreted what was said, and how he feels about the issue. Invite feedback, constructive criticism, and ask about the pros and the cons of the idea at stake.

Use Appropriate Tone of Voice and Body Language

• Adjust tone and body language as needed, as these two things can actually influence what the listener hears.
• Note if you sound urgent, hesitant, angry, pleased, calm, or belligerent. Only use tones that are appropriate.
• Check your body language. If you are avoiding eye contact, crossing your arms, fidgeting, or leaning in too close to the listener, you may not be sending an effective message.

Remember, your Employee Assistance Program is here to help if you with any stress around difficult conversations or confrontations. This includes counseling, self-help tools, wellness coaching, and more. If you need additional information, or to access services, please call MINES and Associates at 1-800-873-7138 today. Also, PersonalAdvantage has a ton of great resources and FREE webinars.

There’s a lot more to communicating than just knowing how to string words together and provide straight-forward answers to questions. It’s important to recognize that there are many different ways to communicate and that each way is dependent upon the individual. Whether you’re a manager working with a team or a team member working with your coworkers to reach a goal, here are the different communication styles you might encounter:

The Director

• Looks for direct lines of communication and stays focused on tasks.
• Makes decisions quickly, confidently, and practically.
• Can be dominant in discussions, which may lead to being impatient and insensitive.
• Doesn’t like being questioned, especially if he or she is the one providing directions.
• Doesn’t waste time and sets goals to get things done quickly.

The Team-Player

• Supports others.
• Has an enthusiasm that makes the individual approachable.
• Speaks with animated gestures.
• Is willing to make changes and be creative to reach goals.
• Thinks out loud and involves others in decisions.
• Desires to support others and is sensitive to their needs, making the person vulnerable to criticism.
• Decisions are based on personal wishes, needs, and desires and often lack details and follow-through.

The Contributor

• Tends to support the decisions of others rather than provide his or her own direction.
• Is dependable, relaxed, and supportive.
• Listens carefully to what others have to say and provides genuine responses.
• Can be seen as being too passive or indecisive, because of his or her support of others.
• Doesn’t always share true feelings to keep from creating confrontation with others.

The Thinker

• Is always prepared, ready to analyze, and searching for the details.
• Likes to make lists so that he or she can keep all of the facts out in the open.
• Strives for accuracy when trying to get his or her point across.
• May be too cautious or inflexible when it comes to making decisions.
• Adheres to high standards that others might find critical or insensitive to the needs of the group.
• Likes to ask questions and look for solutions to problems that others have overlooked.

Question of the Month

Did you recognize what style of communicator you are from the styles above? Did you determine the styles of your coworkers or managers? Once you recognize the differences between how you and others pass along and interpret information, you can begin to see where there are positive and negative relationships between those styles and how to build solutions to any problems that stem from differences in communication styles.

This Month’s Focus

Free Webinar:

How to Have Difficult and Sensitive Conversations

MINESblog:

New to TW? Check out our past Blogs!

National Alzheimer’s Awareness Update

Back to School During the Pandemic

Important Links

COVID19 Resource Page

Visit our BLOG

MINES and Associates

Current Training Catalog

Balanced Living Magazine

LinkedIn

MINES Archives

Contact Us

Email MINES

Find the Joy!

“Let your joy be in your journey—not in some distant goal.” — Tim Cook

Welcome to the November 2020 edition of TotalWellbeing, your guide to the 8 dimensions of wellbeing. This month we will be talking about finding joy and appreciating the little things. With the pandemic, politics, and everything else going on it is easy to dwell on the bad stuff, however it’s important to understand that while we don’t have control over all the negativity, we do have control over how we choose to react and feel about things. To help you control your emotions and find joy every day, try focusing on the positive and let the negative move on. You can’t stop the bad, so it is a waste of your energy to try. Instead pick out the good things in your life and focus on those! See our resources below for more tips and resources on staying positive.

Don’t forget, November is National Alzheimer’s and Dementia Awareness Month and is an extremely important month if you are one of the many caregivers that are currently caring for someone with Alzheimer’s or dementia, or if you have a loved one that is living with dementia. The good news is that there are resources out there to help you as well as promising progress on treatments, diagnostic capabilities, and even a potential cure. Take a look at the latest update from our resident Alzheimer’s/dementia expert JJ Jordan here, and if you or someone you love is either a caregiver or is impacted by Alzheimer’s/dementia in some way, please call MINES today to get connected to caregiver support resources, trainings, and more.

As a quick reminder, your online portal, PersonalAdvantage, also has helpful resources, tips, and resources on happiness, joy, and emotional wellbeing. Please log on today for articles, self-help tools, health assessments, and more.

To your total wellbeing,

The MINES Team

Looking at Happiness as a Choice

Are you a person who can act on tough questions? Questions like: What am I grateful for? What choices do I have? What actions can I take to improve my life? What are my primary strengths? How can I live a more balanced life?

People who can act on these questions likely also describe themselves as happy.

“Happiness is neither a mood nor an emotion. Mood is a biochemical condition, and emotions are transitory feelings,” says Dan Baker, Ph.D., director of the Life Enhancement Program at Canyon Ranch in Tucson, Ariz., and author of What Happy People Know. “Happiness is a way of life, an overriding outlook composed of qualities like love, optimism, courage, and a sense of freedom. It’s not something that changes every time your situation changes.”

Read the full article here.

If you or someone you know would like more advice or coaching around finding joy, increasing work/life balance, managing stress, or anything else related to your happiness and wellbeing, remember that Your Employee Assistance Program is here to help. In addition to free and confidential counseling, you have access to wellness coaching and resources as well. Call us at 1-800-873-7138 to get connected right away. Also, PersonalAdvantage has a ton of great resources and FREE webinars.

1. Believe in yourself – A sense of inadequacy can prevent you from achieving your goals, but self-confidence can lead to self-realization and achievement. Make a list of all your good points if you have lost confidence in your ability to succeed. Reaffirming your assets will help you overcome your doubts.
2. Use your mind to restore your energy – How you think has a profound effect on how you feel physically. If your mind tells you you’re tired, your body will accept it as fact and be fatigued. You can maintain your energy level indefinitely if your mind is intensely interested in what you are doing.
3. Create your own happiness – You have two choices when you get up in the morning: to be happy or unhappy. Choose to be happy by telling yourself that life is good, things are going well, you can handle all your problems and you’re grateful for all you have and will have.
4. Expect the best, not the worst – You release a force in your mind that promotes positive results when you expect the best.
5. Don’t believe in defeat – Make your mind more positive by eliminating negative expressions in thought and speech. Statements such as “I can’t do that” and “I’m afraid I’ll fail” clutter your mind and condition it to expect negative results. Speak and think positively about every situation.
6. Break the worry habit – Several times a day, use your imagination to empty your mind of anxiety and fear. Picture all your worries flowing out of you, just as water empties from a sink when the stopper is removed. When all your worries are gone, fill your mind with faith, hope, courage, and positive expectations. In time, you’ll find yourself worrying less.
7. Practicing silence is also effective – Sit in a quiet place for 15 minutes. Don’t read, write or speak. Think peaceful thoughts, meditate, or pray.
8. Replace irritation, anger, and hate – Deal with hurtful situations or misunderstandings immediately. Seek out the person involved and strive to resolve your differences. To cool an angry response, reverse your body’s natural reactions by unclenching your fists and lowering your voice.
9. Maintain a positive, optimistic attitude – Instead of letting life’s difficulties get you down, keep your mind open and responsive to new ideas, exercise initiative and resourcefulness when dealing with challenges, and use your creativity and good judgment when solving problems.

Remember, your Employee Assistance Program is here to help you reach your positive thinking goals. This includes counseling, self-help tools, wellness coaching, and more. If you need additional information, or to access services, please call MINES and Associates at 1-800-873-7138 today.

Question of the Month

What is one activity that you used to do for fun or find joy in that you no longer get to do? Why are you unable to enjoy this activity any longer? What is stopping you from building time back into your life for this hobby/activity?

This Month’s Focus

Free Webinar:

Reclaim Your Joy

MINESblog:

New to TW? Check out our past Blogs!

National Alzheimer’s Awareness Update

Back to School During the Pandemic

Important Links

COVID19 Resource Page

Visit our BLOG

MINES and Associates

Current Training Catalog

Balanced Living Magazine

LinkedIn

MINES Archives

Contact Us

Email MINES

Smart Saving

“Never spend your money before you have it.” – Thomas Jefferson

Welcome to the October 2020 edition of TotalWellbeing, your guide to the 8 dimensions of wellbeing. This month we will be looking at smart saving and ways to manage your money. This is an important topic to pretty much everyone and with current economic uncertainty, it is as crucial as ever to save money and plan for the unexpected. Check out the resources below for savings options, pros and cons of various ways to save, and 10 money resolutions you can make right now to help secure your financial wellbeing.

Also, October is National Substance Abuse Awareness Month. A recent study from Mental Health American showed that while the number of adults and youths struggling with substance abuse and addiction has dropped, still nearly 8% of Americans have some sort of substance abuse issue. That is still over 26 million people that are struggling. If you know someone that is dealing with substance abuse, you are in need of resources yourself, or would just like to talk to an expert about concerns or resources that may be available, please call MINES today.

As a quick reminder, your online portal, PersonalAdvantage, also has helpful resources and tips and resources on financial issues as well as substance abuse. Please log on today for articles, self-help tools, health assessments, and more.

To your total wellbeing,

The MINES Team

Safe Money: Weighing Savings Options in a Low-Interest Rate Environment

Keeping money in an account whose interest rate hovers below 1% may not hold much appeal in a world where return on investment is king and memories of much higher rates linger. But even amid the current prolonged period of exceedingly low-interest rates, there are compelling reasons for consumers to keep cash in a vehicle such as a savings account, money market account, or certificate of deposit (CD).

Which savings environment is right for you? Here is a look at some of the options:

Online high-yield savings account. Today the savings accounts with the highest rates — sometimes 1% or perhaps a tick above — are often found online. “Online savings accounts end up being the best solution in many cases,” says O’Kurley. However, be aware that these accounts come with moving parts. Some carry attractive initial rates that quickly revert to less attractive lower rates. Others couple a relatively high-interest rate with a higher minimum balance. Given these distinctions, it pays to spend some time comparison-shopping, with www.bankrate.com a good place to start.

Savings account from a brick-and-mortar bank. People who prefer to do their banking offline, person-to-person, may prefer to open a savings account at a local bank. They’ll likely earn a lower interest rate as a result.

Certificate of deposit. Gone are the days when interest rates for short-term three-month or six-month CDs consistently and substantially exceeded those of traditional savings accounts. These days, securing a higher interest rate with a CD often means committing to keeping money in the account longer-term — for one, three, or even five years. Thus CDs limit flexibility, as the extra return they provide can be quickly erased by penalties for early withdrawal. The trade-off — sacrificing accessibility to that cash simply to earn a little extra money in interest — often isn’t worth it, O’Kurley says. “CDs are what they have always been: FDIC-insured accounts you get from a brick-and-mortar bank. But you’ll give up liquidity to get one.” Parking money in a CD for several years also comes with interest rate risk. Should interest rates rise, a lower rate would still apply to the money inside the CD, precluding the CD owner from earning a higher rate on that money. People who are willing to live with that risk while sacrificing a measure of liquidity with a CD can comparison-shop at www.bankrate.com.

Checking account. While most checking accounts are FDIC-insured and some pay interest, not only do their interest rates rarely match those of savings accounts (particularly online savings accounts), they also may come with a range of restrictions and requirements, including minimum initial deposits, transactions fees, and other costs that can add up quickly. For those reasons, checking accounts typically are better suited to house money you intend to spend, not save.

Money market account. As with CDs, money market accounts no longer hold much of an interest rate edge over savings accounts, which is why O’Kurley says he rarely recommends them to clients. While they could regain that edge when interest rates bounce higher, there’s no telling when that may happen. Still, because most money market accounts are FDIC-insured, as modest as their interest rates are, they remain a viable, if lower-yielding, option for stowing “safe money.”

Read the full article here.

If you or someone you know would like more advice or coaching around financial matters including budgeting, saving, and debt management, remember that Your Employee Assistance Program is here to help. In addition to free and confidential counseling, you have access to financial coaching and resources as well. Call us at 1-800-873-7138 to get connected right away. Also, PersonalAdvantage has a ton of great resources and FREE webinars.

1. Get (or recommit to following) a financial plan. If you have big goals, like buying a home or retiring on your own terms, having a financial plan puts you in a much better position to attain them.
2. Establish (or rededicate yourself to following) a household savings and spending plan. Having a firm grasp of what you take in and what you spend each month is key to controlling your own financial destiny.
3. Save (or save more) for retirement. The numbers are daunting: members of Generations X and Y likely will need a nest egg of $2 million to $3 million to live comfortably during retirement.
4. Save (or save more) for a child’s education. With college tuition costs continuing to skyrocket, it’s never too early for parents (and grandparents) to create (or increase their funding of) a college savings plan, such as a tax-favored 529 plan.
5. Establish (or add to) an emergency fund. Prepare yourself for life’s unexpected twists — job loss, a health crisis — with a savings account in which you set aside funds to cover the financial burden of unforeseen events.
6. Get insurance to better protect assets and loved ones. A relatively modest investment in an insurance policy can afford you and your loved ones much-needed protection in the case of disability, death and other circumstances that can financially decimate a family.
7. Rely less on credit cards in order to reduce debt. A high level of debt can wreak havoc on a person’s finances.
8. Make (or update) beneficiary designations. You want the money you’ve put into assets such as life insurance policies, retirement accounts and annuity contracts to land in the right hands when you die.
9. Talk to a tax adviser about ways to lessen the tax burden. One hour spent with an accountant or tax expert can yield significant savings on your tax tab.
10. Take stock of your investment portfolio. A diversified investment portfolio is a must for protecting your nest egg.

Read More

Remember, your Employee Assistance Program is here to help you reach financial goals. This includes financial counseling, self-help tools and calculators, and free 30-minute consults on financial matters. If you need additional information, or to access services, please call MINES and Associates at 1-800-873-7138 today.

Question of the Month

Think of any reoccurring expenses that may be putting a strain on your finances. Perhaps subscriptions you no longer use, or streaming services that can be consolidated. What can you do to reduce or eliminate these expenses from your financial routine?

This Month’s Focus

Free Webinar:

Saving for the Future

MINESblog:

New to TW? Check out our past Blogs!

Are There Potentially Positive Outcomes from COVID-19?

Back to School During the Pandemic

Important Links

COVID19 Resource Page

Visit our BLOG

MINES and Associates

Current Training Catalog

Balanced Living Magazine

LinkedIn

MINES Archives

Contact Us

Email MINES

Healthy Sleep Habits

“Sleep is the golden chain that ties health and our bodies together.” ― Thomas Dekker

Welcome to the September 2020 edition of TotalWellbeing, your guide to the 8 dimensions of wellbeing. Healthy sleep habits are the topic that we will be exploring this month. With everything going on including the ongoing pandemic to kids going back to school, it would be understandable if many of us are not sleeping as well as we’d like. While it can be tough to calm a racing mind, especially at night, there are steps you can take to help set yourself up for a good night’s rest. One of the most important things you can do is set up a consistent bedtime routine. This routine should be a relaxing ritual away from distractions and electronic screens that signals to your body that it is time for sleep. Make sure to start your bedtime routine at the same time every night, yes even weekends, to ensure your sleep patterns are as regular as possible.

Check out the information below for more tips and articles on healthy sleep habits for both yourself and your kids. Don’t forget that through your Employee Assistance Program you also have access to 4 professional wellness coaching sessions per year. These can be used to work with a personal wellness coach to work on work/life balance goals including getting enough rest. Call today to get started!

As a quick reminder, your online portal, PersonalAdvantage, also has helpful resources and tips and resources on getting rest, mindfulness, stress reduction, and much more to help you feel your best.

To your total wellbeing,

The MINES Team

How You Can Get a Better Night’s Sleep

Despite common belief, aging doesn’t cause sleep problems, and seniors don’t need less sleep as they grow older. Most older people sleep poorly, or not long enough, because of ailments associated with aging, such as arthritis, physical disabilities, respiratory problems and depression. Lack of exercise, heart disease, anxiety, stress and menopause also can disrupt sleep, and many medications seniors take can cause insomnia. Sleep and aging experts agree that one’s daytime activities and sleep environment are critical to getting a good night’s sleep.

Try the following remedies if you have trouble sleeping:

• Stick to a regular sleep schedule. Try to go to bed and get up at the same time every day.
• Ask your doctor if any of your medications could be disturbing your sleep.
• Stay active. Maintain a moderate level of daily activity and do gentle exercise.
• Spend some time outdoors during daylight hours. Sunlight can help set your biological clock.
• Pay attention to what you eat and drink in the evening. Consuming foods and drinks that contain caffeine, such as coffee, tea or cola can interfere with nighttime sleep.
• Avoid alcoholic beverages in the evening. They can make you fall asleep faster, but they cause early morning awakenings and fitful sleep.
• Don’t smoke. Smokers are more likely to have trouble sleeping than nonsmokers.
• Make sure your bedroom is dark, quiet and cool.
• Replace your mattress if it’s lumpy, sagging or worn out. A comfortable mattress that offers good support can help you fall asleep and stay asleep.
• Ask a doctor for help if your partner snores or has an illness that disturbs your sleep.

Read the full article here.

If you or someone you know has trouble sleeping, remember that Your Employee Assistance Program is here to help. In addition to free and confidential counseling you have access to professional wellness coaching as well. Your coach can help you tackle bad sleep habits and other wellness goals in your life that may be contributing to a less than stellar night’s rest. Call us at 1-800-873-7138 to get connected right away. Also, PersonalAdvantage has a ton of great resources and FREE webinars.

Make sure your child gets the rest he or she needs, establish a consistent evening routine. Help your child wind down from the day by allowing at least a half hour of quiet time before bedtime; shut off the television, radio and computer during this time. Don’t put a TV in your child’s bedroom. Spend quiet time with young children before they fall asleep but establish firm limits about the amount of time — usually 10 to 30 minutes. Keep the following items in mind:

• Be firm and consistent about bedtime.
• Set aside quiet time before sleep.
• Eliminate or limit caffeine in your child’s diet.
• Limit television, radio, computers and video games just before bedtime.
• Avoid large meals close to bedtime. A small snack is fine.
• See that your child gets plenty of exercise.
• Keep the bedroom temperature at or near 65 degrees.

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Remember, your Employee Assistance Program is here to help you set and attain wellness goals with personal wellness coaching. This includes making better sleep habits among many more wellness topics. If you need additional information, or to access services, please call MINES and Associates at 1-800-873-7138 today.

Question of the Month

Do you make sleep a priority, or is sleep more of an afterthought? What can you do to better prioritize sleep as an integral part of your wellbeing routine?

This Month’s Focus

Free Webinar:

Fixing Our Broken Sleep

MINESblog:

New to TW? Check out our past Blogs!

Are There Potentially Positive Outcomes from COVID-19?

Back to School During the Pandemic

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