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| Upstate New York Adirondack Mountains November 2017 |
I read a CNN (11/09/2023) article by Kristen Rogers, about a UK study published in BMC Medicine that indicates people that don't have connections with their family and friends have a 39% chance of dying earlier than folks that do interact with their family and friends.
It boggles my mind how we ever survived without all the information about what to eat, how to exercise, find friends, survive divorce and so on. I imagine most every subject that can be a study, is a study somewhere from a high school final paper to a PhD dissertation. Oh, and then to be established in one's field, one must be published...more conclusions about what is bad for us or going to shorten our lives.
As for any time of the year, following our doctor's instructions goes above any holiday frollicking, including drinking and food.
As a single parent back in the day, I had a family rule that during the holiday season, December into January, there are to be no arguments. It bit me a few times, but I survived.
With that in mind, holidays are a time to relax, go with the flow, find enjoyment in things, the people we shmooze, spend time with. If being unconnected to friends and family, then maybe you can find other ways to connect.
- Bird Seed (to watch birds)
- Mail homemade cards
- Church
- Christmas Carol Concerts
- Volunteer at a local animal shelter or food shelf
- Book a vacation
- Watch holiday feel good movies (stop if you have nightmares about Santa's sleigh going missing)
- Join an exercise group where nobody knows your name until you tell them
- Take ballroom dance lessons
- Blog
