Healthy Options

Host/Producer: Rhonda Feiman
Co-Producer: Petra Hall
Technical Assistance: Joel Mann

Healthy Options: For Well-being & Being Well

This month:
-We ALL will get older; how we deal with this reality is important for each of us to face in a positive, life-affirming manner
-Age-positivity & how to reframe aging
-Why & how do positive views of aging produce healthier outcomes?
-The difference between a “health span” and a “life span”
-Pervasive age-related stereotypes in society, systemic ageism, & internalized, self-perpetuated ageism
-What is internalized ageism & how is it detrimental to all of us as we get older?
-The stigmatization of using the term “memory loss” & how it can be used indiscriminately & incorrectly
-How older people are treated differently than middle-aged & younger people in health care settings, based on perceptions of their age, versus their well-being & vitality.
-Economic disparities & bias that may manifest as we age, in being female and/or a person of color, resulting in a lack of resources and poverty
-Downsides of individual responsibility as we age vs. benefits of collective responsibility in communities
-What can we learn from other countries in relation to addressing the needs & credits of older citizens?
-How older people who want/need to work, & have skills & experience, can aid the employment shortage in Maine
-The Leadership Exchange on Aging as a participatory learning experience for leaders in all fields; 350 have graduated from the program, in Maine (see link, below).

Guest(s):
Jess Mauer, Executive Director of the Maine Council on Aging (MCOA).

FMI:
Maine Council on Aging (MCOA):
mainecouncilonaging.org

Northern New England Geriatric Education Center programs:
www.dartmouth-hitchcock.org/nnegec/programs#GITT-PC

mainecouncilonaging.org/agepositiveme/

Learn about/Join the Tri-State Learning Collaborative on Aging:
www.agefriendly.community

Leadership Exchange on Ageism
mainecouncilonaging.org/leadership-exchange-on-ageism/

About the host:
Rhonda Feiman is a nationally-certified, licensed acupuncturist practicing in Belfast, Maine since 1993. She primarily practices Toyohari Japanese acupuncture, using gentle and powerful non-insertion needle techniques, and also utilizes Chinese acupuncture and herbology. In addition, Rhonda is a practitioner of Qi Gong and an instructor of Tai Chi Chuan in the Yang Family tradition.

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Host/Producer: Rhonda Feiman
Co-Producer: Petra Hall
Technical Assistance: Joel Mann

Healthy Options: For Well-being & Being Well

This month:
1. Experiencing the physiological effects of music & song, and how different aspects of melody & rhythm can resonate with heart rates & the nervous system.
2. Music creating connection & community as well as personal empowerment- even if you were told at any early age you were not a singer.
3. Singing as natural for us as humans, vs. how it has become seen as a business and not as a personal expression to use and share.
4. The power of singing in groups, how it feels to sing with others, and what happens to our emotions as we sing together and experience songs & melodies.
5. Songs can remind us we are not alone, and we are connected to others whether with shared experiences, or with new insights, bringing empathy about others’ lives.
6. How it is used as an outlet to express reactions to injustice, and empowers people who are banding together to work for social change.
7. Effects of various kinds of music on growing plants (“Kids! Try this at home!”).

Guest(s):
Claudia Schmidt, singer-songwriter, folk & jazz musician, & poet, www.claudiaschmidt.com

Claudia Schmidt (with Sally Rogers), sallyrogers.com/concert-booking/sally-and-claudia/

FMI:
Giving Voice Chorus.
www.givingvoicechorus.org
Creating joyful choral communities for people living with dementia.

The Healing Power of Music.
aish.com/the-healing-power-of-music/

Music Care.
www.musiccare.org
Music care is the intentional use of music by anyone to improve health and well-being.

About the host:
Rhonda Feiman is a nationally-certified, licensed acupuncturist practicing in Belfast, Maine since 1993. She primarily practices Toyohari Japanese acupuncture, using gentle and powerful non-insertion needle techniques, and also utilizes Chinese acupuncture and herbology. In addition, Rhonda is a practitioner of Qi Gong and an instructor of Tai Chi Chuan in the Yang Family tradition.

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Host/Producer: Rhonda Feiman
Co-Producer: Petra Hall
Technical Assistance: Joel Mann

Healthy Options: For Well-being & Being Well

This month:
-How music can help with emotional stability.
-The attributes of music therapy in reducing stress.
-The powerful & positive effects of singing in groups.
-Music & memory.
-Therapeutic use of music in addressing cognitive challenges.
-Using music with children with autism.

Guest(s):
Heather Ellsworth, Board-certified Music Therapist & Neurologic Music Therapist, musician, singer and composer. midcoastmusictherapy.com

FMI:
Maine Music Therapy website (where people can search their specific Maine county for a music therapist): www.mainemusictherapy.com

About the host:
Rhonda Feiman is a nationally-certified, licensed acupuncturist practicing in Belfast, Maine since 1993. She primarily practices Toyohari Japanese acupuncture, using gentle and powerful non-insertion needle techniques, and also utilizes Chinese acupuncture and herbology. In addition, Rhonda is a practitioner of Qi Gong and an instructor of Tai Chi Chuan in the Yang Family tradition.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Host/Producer: Rhonda Feiman
Co-Producer: Petra Hall
Technical Assistance: Joel Mann

Healthy Options: For Well-being & Being Well

This month:
-The different ticks appearing in Maine, and the tick diseases being found now.
-The vital importance of keeping tick OFF of us!
-Poppy-seed size of ticks right now, as nymphs in May, and sesame seed size as adults, and raisin-sized when engorged
-Tick-borne pathogens & their afflictions: Anaplasmosis, Babeosis, Lyme (Borellia), Alpha Gal, Erhlichia, Rocky Mt. Spotted Fever, Relapsing Fever (& Powassan Virus, which can cause severe to fatal illness in just 15 minutes after a bite)
-The importance of clinical diagnosis, vs. relying solely on the imperfections in analyzing test results, and the significance of a LYME disease rash- which does not present in every tick bite
-How to check for ticks in a timely fashion, so an embedded tick has less time to transfer disease from its bite; we do not know how the length of time required for a tick to transmit infection
-How to remove a tick safely & what is a risky tick bite (tick broken off, tick on for several hours/days, tick being “annoyed” and spitting bacteria etc. back into the wound from its salivary gland)
-Sending ticks for identification as to the type of tick & possible disease carried
-What is a PCR test, and what it can show (or not), the issues of interpreting antibody tests, and when to test for Lyme & co-infections
-What treatments are commonly used, and the challenges of diagnosing tick-borne illness
-How to protect yourself (and your pets) from ticks when being outdoors (high percentage of tick bites recorded, from your own backyard, yardwork, gardening, clearing brush).
-Permithrin-treated clothing and effective repellents used on the skin for tick protection
-How to make your backyard less habitable for ticks, and migrating birds can carry ticks & spread them onto our property; best to not use bird feeders from April through October

Guest(s):
Dr. Beatrice Szantyr, Internist and Pediatrician who lectures on Lyme disease and related tick-borne disorders in Maine and nationally, to both professional and community groups. She is an active member of the Maine CDC Vector Borne Disease Work Group, and a member of the International Lyme and Associated Diseases Society.  Dr. Szantyr also had served on the 2022 Federal Tick-Borne Disease Working Group, Access to Care and Education Subcommittee.

FMI:
EPA info on effective repellents
www.epa.gov/insect-repellents?
EPA info on repellent-treated clothing
www.epa.gov/insect-repellents/repellent-treated-clothing?

University of Maine Tick Lab?- Protect Yourself from ticks & tick-borne diseases
(Identify a tick for free; $20 to ID diseases the tick may contain)
extension.umaine.edu/ticks/
Tick testing Amherst MA. (tests for more diseases):
www.tickreport.com

Maine Tracking Network- Tickborne Diseases
Improving public health with better information:
data.mainepublichealth.gov/tracking/home

Columbia University Lyme and Tick-Borne Diseases Research Center
www.columbia-lyme.org/

Powered by patients. Home of Lyme Times and My Lyme Data:
www.lymedisease.org/

TickEncounter  The University of Rhode Island?Tick-borne Disease prevention Education
web.uri.edu/tickencounter/

This article is brief enough for a patient to bring to a doctor’s visit for them to consider:
The Management of Ixodes scapularis Bites in the Upper Midwest
wmjonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/110/2/78.pdf

PARTICULARLY FOR HEALTHCARE PROVIDERS (& FMI for clients):
LymeCME- Free, Evidence-based, AAFP-Accredited Courses Physicians Can Trust
www.lymecme.info/

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Previous HEALTHY OPTIONS PROGRAMS on ticks & Lyme can also be found at:

archives.weru.org/healthy-options/2024/05/healthy-options-5-1-24-lyme-disease-other-tick-borne-illness-update-for-2024/
archives.weru.org/healthy-options/2023/05/healthy-options-5-3-23-lyme-disease-tick-borne-illness-and-how-to-be-tick-conscious-to-protect-ourselves/
archives.weru.org/healthy-options/2022/10/healthy-options-10-5-22-the-ticks-are-still-here-what-you-need-to-know/
archives.weru.org/healthy-options/2022/05/healthy-options-5-4-22-yearly-update-on-ticks-lyme-and-tick-borne-illnesses/
archives.weru.org/healthy-options/2021/05/healthy-options-5-5-21-ticks-those-blood-sucking-parasites/
archives.weru.org/healthy-options/2020/06/healthy-options-6-3-20-ticks-and-tick-borne-illnesses/

About the host:
Rhonda Feiman is a nationally-certified, licensed acupuncturist practicing in Belfast, Maine since 1993. She primarily practices Toyohari Japanese acupuncture, using gentle and powerful non-insertion needle techniques, and also utilizes Chinese acupuncture and herbology. In addition, Rhonda is a practitioner of Qi Gong and an instructor of Tai Chi Chuan in the Yang Family tradition.

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Host/Producer: Rhonda Feiman
Co-Producer: Petra Hall
Technical Assistance: Joel Mann

Healthy Options: For Well-being & Being Well

This month:

Using the Trauma Resiliency Model to stay resilient and centered during this exceeding stressful time

The differences between fight, flight, & freeze as reactions to stress
“Toxic stress”,“tolerable stress”, & “positive stress”, and what may be helpful- or harmful- to us

How can we regulate our nervous system in reaction to stress & trauma?
What are some techniques to deal with stress, be resilient, and stay/become centered? What are some specific strategies to use when you are scared or agitated?

How being aware of sensation (body awareness), helps in handling and reducing trauma, and how you can help yourself return to a feeling of well-being when you are out of balance & feeling beset by stress

Personal, societal, and political stress and the challenge (and imperative) to stay centered & be resilient

What is the iChill app and how can it help in times of unease & stress?
What are Tracking, Resourcing, Grounding & Gesturing, and how are they used in the iChill app to help with managing stress?

Guest(s):
Elaine Miller-Karas, MSW, LCSW, trauma therapist, co-founder & former executive director of the Trauma Resource Institute, a non-profit dedicated to promoting resilience and trauma-informed care, worldwide.
Elaine Miller-Karas is the author of “Building Resiliency to Trauma, the Trauma and Community Resiliency Models®”, and the host of the podcast, “Resiliency Within”. She has led projects to help communities in the recovering process from mass shootings, and leads the Ukraine Humanitarian Resiliency Program which provides support to teachers & children amidst the country’s conflict. She is currently working in Los Angeles with survivors of the recent wildfires.

FMI:
Trauma Resiliency Institute
www.traumaresourceinstitute.com
iChill is a free app from the App store, or try it online, at
ichillapp.com
Psychology Today- Article by Elaine Miller-Karas
Dialogue, Dignity, and Democracy Personal Perspective: We can nurture our humanity in the face of inhumanity Psychology Today 2/25/25
www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/building-resiliency-to-trauma/202502/dialogue-dignity-and-democracy
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Previous HEALTHY OPTIONS programs on the work of the Trauma Resource Institute:
Restoring & enhancing resiliency & balance after shock and trauma
archives.weru.org/healthy-options/2023/11/healthy-options-11-1-23-restoring-and-enhancing-resiliency-and-balance-after-shock-and-trauma/
Building Resiliency to Trauma
archives.weru.org/healthy-options/2021/03/healthy-options-3-3-21-building-resiliency-to-trauma/
archives.weru.org/healthy-options/2017/10/healthy-options-10417/
archives.weru.org/healthy-options/2014/09/healthy-options-932014/
archives.weru.org/healthy-options/2010/12/healthy-options-12110/
archives.weru.org/healthy-options/2009/9/healthy-options-90209/

About the host:
Rhonda Feiman is a nationally-certified, licensed acupuncturist practicing in Belfast, Maine since 1993. She primarily practices Toyohari Japanese acupuncture, using gentle and powerful non-insertion needle techniques, and also utilizes Chinese acupuncture and herbology. In addition, Rhonda is a practitioner of Qi Gong and an instructor of Tai Chi Chuan in the Yang Family tradition.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Host/Producer: Rhonda Feiman
Co-Producer: Petra Hall
Technical Assistance: Joel Mann

Healthy Options: For Well-being & Being Well

This month:

The serious implications of the loss of funding for medical/health research & the curtailment of health data available for the public.
The importance of “doing good science” as a research scientist, & the scientific method as it pertains to medical research.
Current & historical perspectives on vaccination vs. herd immunity.
Is herd immunity relevant/effective for any/all infestious diseases?
The role of bioethics & vaccines, & risk-benefit analysis.
The importance of the “Yuck Factor.”
Are there songs that can help us understand & appreciate science?

Guest(s): 
Dr. Miryam Wahrman, biomedical researcher, bioethicist, biochemist, and director of a research laboratory in microbiology at William Patterson University, where she is a professor of biology.
Dr. Wahrman discusses the importance of scientific process in medical research & our health, the impacts of curtailing studies on infectious disease and other serious illness, and the current challenges we face as important health information becomes restricted- and misinformation & disinformation is rampant.
She is the author of the book, The Hand Book: Surviving in a Germ-Filled World, which explores hand-washing & hygiene, cross infections, and simple ways to stay healthy & reduce/prevent the spread of disease.

Previous interviews with Dr. Wahrman:
archives.weru.org/healthy-options/2020/11/healthy-options-11-4-20-current-scientific-thinking-about-covid-19-health-strategies/
archives.weru.org/healthy-options/2020/03/healthy-options-3-4-20-interview-with-dr-miryam-wahrman-author-of-the-hand-book-surviving-in-the-germ-filled-world/
archives.weru.org/healthy-options/2019/02/healthy-options-2-6-19/

FMI:
DNA testing information on YouTube: Inadequate advice can mislead and harm the public
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/jgc4.1375

Escherichia coli on the internet: The power of YouTube to educate and influence consumer behavior regarding pathogenic bacteria
www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S246804511930001X

Glove Changing When Handling Money: Observational and Microbiological Analysis
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26463082

About the host:
Rhonda Feiman is a nationally-certified, licensed acupuncturist practicing in Belfast, Maine since 1993. She primarily practices Toyohari Japanese acupuncture, using gentle and powerful non-insertion needle techniques, and also utilizes Chinese acupuncture and herbology. In addition, Rhonda is a practitioner of Qi Gong and an instructor of Tai Chi Chuan in the Yang Family tradition.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Host/Producer: Rhonda Feiman
Co-Producer: Petra Hall
Technical Assistance: Joel Mann

Healthy Options: For Well-being & Being Well

This month:

1. The origin & principles of the Feldenkrais Method.
2. Exploration of how its practice has been shown to improve movement, posture, balance & coordination.
3. How it may help to reduce pain, and improve range of motion & flexibility- and how Deborah Darr utilized Feldenkrais in her own recovery after a serious injury.
4. Listeners can experience a shortened Feldenkrais session led by Deborah Darr during the last third of the interview.

Guest(s): 
Deborah Darr, Feldenkrais instructor, physical therapist, & dancer.

FMI:
Feldenkraisproject.com
movementandcreativity.com/tiffanysankary

About the host:
Rhonda Feiman is a nationally-certified, licensed acupuncturist practicing in Belfast, Maine since 1993. She primarily practices Toyohari Japanese acupuncture, using gentle and powerful non-insertion needle techniques, and also utilizes Chinese acupuncture and herbology. In addition, Rhonda is a practitioner of Qi Gong and an instructor of Tai Chi Chuan in the Yang Family tradition.

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Host/Producer: Rhonda Feiman
Co-Producer: Petra Hall
Technical Assistance: Joel Mann & Amy Browne

Healthy Options: For Well-being & Being Well

This month:

What is Nonviolent Communication (NVC) and how can it help us be better listeners and engage our feelings of empathy for others?Some practical ways to be able to manage difficult conversations with people who have different viewpoints.
How to communicate with others with whom we disagree, even as our own nervous system is under stress or challenge when encountering different view points.
How to acknowledge and handle the pressures of social and political challenge in our lives with NVC practice.

Guest(s): 
Peggy Smith, co-founder of the Maine Non-Violent Communication Network, & certified trainer with the International Center for Non-Violent Communication. A student of Mindfulness since 1991, she was ordained as a teacher by Zen Master & peace activist Thich Nhat Hanh, and incorporates Mindfulness practice in the teaching of Non-Violent Communication.

FMI:
www.opencommunication.org/about.html
www.cnvc.org
www.empathyforeveryone.org
www.clarityservices.us/events

Previous interview with Peggy Smith:
archives.weru.org/healthy-options/2022/11/healthy-options-11-2-22-non-violent-communication/

About the host:
Rhonda Feiman is a nationally-certified, licensed acupuncturist practicing in Belfast, Maine since 1993. She primarily practices Toyohari Japanese acupuncture, using gentle and powerful non-insertion needle techniques, and also utilizes Chinese acupuncture and herbology. In addition, Rhonda is a practitioner of Qi Gong and an instructor of Tai Chi Chuan in the Yang Family tradition.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download