Medication is typically used for people who want to cure depression, but isn’t always needed or helpful.  A bit of anecdotal evidence:  A friend of mine in college claimed to have depression as a result of a chemical imbalance.  He went to the doctor, who tested him for said imbalance and found nothing of note.  However since my friend clearly had symptoms, he was prescribed prozac (or a similar medication) to help him regulate his moods.

It didn’t work.  Why?  Because he didn’t have clinical depression.  He was simply in a rut, unable to be happy with his accomplishments or attempt to break out of his pre-determined path.

So it’s a good step to take a look at yourself before you really go off the deep end by taking drugs that mess with your biochemistry.  Are you really, truly depressed?  Or are you just looking for an “easy” way to make your life into something else?For most people I think it’s the latter.  I say this because, at various points in my late teens and early 20s, I claimed to have “depression.”  Turns out, in hindsight, I was just lazy and unmotivated.  What I needed wasn’t drugs, but the will to get up every morning, work out, eat right, do my work and then party the night away.  Instead I just self-medicated with cigarettes and alcohol, finding brief moments of happiness in between all the ennui.  If I could do it over again, I absolutely would.

However, this isn’t to say that “depression” doesn’t exist.  For many people, there are legitimate chemical imbalances that need to be addressed with medication.  These are people who can’t be permanently helped by a change in routine, exercise and diet, but need chemical treatment.

Sadly, even with chemicals, depression isn’t one-hundred percent curable.  Science can not yet cure depression.  However it is managable, and managing your depression is the first step towards living a life where you’re in command, rather than having a disease be in command of you.

Let’s start simply:  Your cholesterol ratio is the ratio of your total cholesterol to your High-density Cholesterol (HDL).  Your total cholesterol level is determined by adding your Low-density Cholesterol (LDL) and your high-density cholesterol.  Low-density cholesterol is frequently called your “bad” cholesterol, while your high-density cholesterol is frequently called your “good” cholesterol.

The American Heart Association (americanheart.org) uses the following as its barometer:

AHA Recommendation

We recommend using the absolute numbers for total blood cholesterol and HDL cholesterol levels. They’re more useful to physicians than the cholesterol ratio in determining the appropriate treatment for patients.

Some physicians and cholesterol technicians use the ratio of total cholesterol to HDL cholesterol in place of the total blood cholesterol. The ratio is obtained by dividing the HDL cholesterol level into the total cholesterol. For example, if a person has a total cholesterol of 200 mg/dL and an HDL cholesterol level of 50 mg/dL, the ratio would be 4:1. The goal is to keep the ratio below 5:1; the optimum ratio is 3.5:1.”So now that you know how your cholesterol ratio is determined, the question then becomes how do you get your ratio down to that 3.5:1 ratio?  It is not an easy process, but barring genetic predisposition, it is a straightforward one.

Step 1: Change your diet.  Eliminate fatty foods like red meat and dairy.  That means no more steaks, pizza or hot dogs.  You can treat yourself once every couple of weeks or so, but get used to having boneless, skinless chicken breast or fish for dinner.  Have fresh fruit for dessert.  And eat as much green, leafy vegetables as possible – spinach, kale, broccol, various lettuces.

Step 2: Eliminate processed foods.  Get rid of anything in your house that has High Fructose Corn Syrup or Trans Fats.  No questions asked, just get rid of them.

Step 3: Exercise!  You need to exercise at least four times as week for at least twenty-five minutes.  Make it part of your morning routine, because exercise is the only thing proven to raise HDL outside of prescription medication.

Most women should begin regular breast cancer screening around age 45.  The hormonal changes associated with menopause greatly increase breast cancer risk.  Women over age 45 who have not started regular screening should speak to their doctor immediately about how to get started.

Some women with special risk factors will need to start breast cancer screening much earlier.  The most severe risk factor is previous incidence of breast cancer.  Other risk factors include family history of breast cancer, being overweight or obese, having your first child at an older age (older than 35), and having your first menstruation at an early age (before age 12).  Women who think they may be at increased risk of developing breast cancer should consult with their doctors about deciding when to begin breast cancer screening.Different tests are used to screen for breast cancer.  The most well-known is the mammogram.  A mammogram is simply an x-ray of the breast.  Doctors recommend regular annual mammograms for post-menopausal women and those who are at high risk.  The mammogram is less effective for younger women, who tend to have more dense breast tissue.  The success of the mammogram in detecting breast cancer may also depend on the size of the tumor.

Other tests for breast cancer screening are gaining favor among radiologists, particularly the ultrasound and MRI (magnetic resonance imaging).  Clinical trials have shown MRI breast scans to be more sensitive than mammogram images.  They can therefore detect smaller tumors which are often hidden on a mammogram image.  Ultrasound screening can also detect very small calcifications which might not show up on a mammogram image.  Ultrasound is also useful for differentiating between solid tumors and fluid-filled cysts.  Although neither ultrasound nor MRI are typically employed for regular, annual breast cancer screening, they can be very useful for women who are at particularly high risk, and also as a supplement to regular mammography.

As medical technology improves, early detection of dangerous tumors continues to improve.  With new advances in breast cancer screening, survival rates continue to increase.  If you are unsure about whether to begin screening or how you should start, don’t hesitate to bring the subject up with your doctor.  Early detection is the only cure we have.

Men, as a group, tend to be practical. Men, as a rule, don’t generally indulge themselves in public displays of revealing emotions, such as crying. On the opposite front, women are ready, on a moment’s notice, to demonstrate their feelings on emotional issues. This makes the poor man uncomfortable. He’s not himself familiar with this state of mind and concludes understanding women is beyond his ken.

The poor, befuddled male may well be an innocent victim. From a man’s point of view understanding women shouldn’t include entertaining the irrational. For example, if a man and women are in a restaurant and the man says something which gets the woman’s ire up, justified or unjustified, the woman’s display of her displeasure may prove so embarrassing to her partner, that he just up and walks. Believe me, this isn’t the way to play it.

Sir, what you need to know is that, to the woman, all that matters is that you’ve somehow insulted her. Unwittingly, you opened the door and created this situation. She’s right and you’re not. The argument will only get worse if you persist in maintaining your correctness. Understanding women requires patience and humility, the virtues of which would be hard to argue, don’t you think? Just think of it as a good deed. Soothe and reassure her and just let it go.

See how it works? No further argument and everyone’s happy. Besides, I’ll tell you a little secret. Your woman will feel indebted to you for your graciousness, you’ll enjoy enhanced esteem in her eyes. She’ll also treat you better in future.I must, in good conscience, warn you that women of lesser character might continue to treat you badly, taking advantage of your newly acquired sterling characteristics. If this is the case, just chalk it up to a lesson in understanding women and move on.

However, these types of women are in the minority. Most women just want you to acknowledge, by your behavior, that women think differently than men. Whether you understand just what all of those differences are, is beside the point – at least to the woman! Reading that book we referred to at the beginning might prove enlightening and a humorous read. You’ll feel better.

Once you’ve got a clue to the secrets of understanding women, you’ll have women flocking to you everywhere you go! Which is the man’s objective, right?

Changing behaviors like this may seem easy to anyone who doesn’t have a tendency to procrastinate. For you, it’s easier said than done. Along with a little self discipline, you need to try to discover why you procrastinate when it comes to this task. You may be surprised to discover how easy changing behaviors like this can be. What you need is motivation and a plan.

Perhaps what you dread most about the weekly shopping is really of your own making! You’re frustrated by the crowded conditions, long waits and the amount of time required to complete it. You know it’s got to be done, but you make excuses until late in the day. If you simply made it your rule to get out early in the morning, you’d save an hour, find everything you needed and not have to put up with the crowds. Hey, now you’ve got the motivation and the plan for changing behavior you’ve practiced for years.

How about changing behavior patterns that are more challenging? Let’s take smoking as a good example. If you’ve smoked for years, you’ve got a number of accumulated habits. First, there’s the addiction to tobacco and all the other nasty things they put into the cigarettes. Any smoker can tell you that there are a number of triggers that tell your mind and body that it’s time to light up. You’re thinking through some problem. In order to better focus and concentrate, a cigarette is required. Someone upset you. You’re nervous. You’re talking on the phone. There seems to be no end to this list of triggers. When you’re talking about changing behavior patterns of this type, it’s not quite so easy.

Again, you need to discover why you practice the behavior and what’s stopping you from changing behavior patterns so that you can quit. The reason this behavior is so difficult to address is because it involves an addiction, several mental games you play with yourself and a truckload of excuses. Here, you definitely need a well thought out plan. Make a list of everything you enjoy about smoking. You may find the list is quite short! Make another list of things you believe harmful about smoking. Don’t just parrot what the doctor has told you. Do you find yourself winded climbing a flight of stairs? Do you put off more necessary expenses in order to buy tobacco? BTW, we all know lung cancer is a real threat for the smoker.

Once you’ve got the pros and cons down on paper, make a list of alternatives to exercise when you want a smoke. Changing behavior patterns is much about changing habitual patterns. When you’re thinking through a problem, take a short walk instead of lighting up. Wrap up your cigarette pack in paper, with a rubber band around it. This will at least give you pause, reminding you of what you want to accomplish. Keep a picture of what lung cancer looks like in your desk drawer. When you get the urge to light up, take a peek at this picture. Changing behavior patterns is a matter of substituting one habit for another and a well considered plan.

Though some joke and say caring for the elderly is much like caring for a baby, that is usually not the case. Some do develop conditions like dementia or have debilitating strokes that render them unable to communicate their needs and wants, or unable to think about much of anything. In that sense, elder care can be somewhat like caring for a baby, but many older people have full capacity for thought and speech. It is their bodies that fail them. If you find that you are soon going to be caring for the elderly in your home, you have quite an endeavor in front of you. Hopefully, you have talked it all out with your spouse and your children so everyone knows what is going on and what will happen. You may find some help and advice from local organizations that deal with elder care. You may need special beds and have to make special changes to your home. Research can help you understand what you will need to do and even what type of demands this is going to put on you and your life.

Some choose caring for the elderly as a career. It takes a special type of person to do this, as it can be very sad to care for those who are nearing the end of their lives. It is doubly sad when some do not have family to be by their side as they go. Many want to work with caring for the elderly as a career, but they find that they just can’t handle the emotions that go with it. Others find a satisfaction is doing all they can to ensure the end of someone’s life is as fulfilling and comfortable as possible.

The school setting that I teach in is quite diverse. The main focus we have with our students is respect. Respect yourself, respect other students and respect each other’s differences. I believe that in order to respect others you need to understand them and they’re believes. I spend a great deal of time talking about the various cultures that are prevalent in our school. This month we are concentrating on African American history. I involve the students in the lesson plans. Three students are going to present the African American history of their particular families. The neat thing is that these students did not know the full story until they began working on the project. They are learning things about their great grandparents that they never knew before. All students are involved in each segment that we do. Those students that are not African Americans will report on a more general topic having to do with African American history. The purpose is not only to have a better understanding of each other’s past and culture, but to realize that most cultures have common elements. The Native American students and the Hispanic students will realize that some of the celebrations they practice within their culture are done for similar reasons. I do not correlate the different months or topics with national observances. January is the national African American history month. I do not do it then because some of the importance gets over shadowed by the media coverage of national events at the time. The students report to me that they are enjoying learning about each other and understanding each other better. As an educator I need to say that I am optimistic for the future of our country because I see young people doing great things.

1.Being objective is a primary goal. For example, let’s say you’re buying a car. You find one that seems to be exactly what you want. It’s a beautiful, sporty model in just the color you desire. The seller presents maintenance records and you decide to take it on the spot, without a mechanical inspection. This is an impulsive purchase, based on your desire to have the car. What do you do when the car’s transmission falls out a week later?

2.This brings us to our second point of better decision making processes. Leave your emotions at the door when trying to make a decision. Basing your decisions on emotional input does not usually bring the best result. Had you left a good faith deposit for our car purchase noted above, and brought in a mechanic, you might have been emotionally disappointed, but you’d have saved a lot of money.

3.When you’re trying to arrive at a sound decision, it’s a good idea to make a list of the objectives of the ideal solution. Let’s say you need to downsize your budget. Without a list of what you hope to achieve, you may rashly decide to cancel a credit card, instead of examining other areas of your budget that might be better candidates for cancellation. Here’s what a better decision making process would have revealed. Canceling your satellite service and your weekly dinner out might just provide the money you need. The credit card can be used for emergencies. Now what? You can always reinstate your satellite service and resume the Friday dinners out, but it may not be so easy to get another credit card.4.Examine the pros and cons of each potential solution. In the case of the budget trimming exercise, you want to work out a number of possible solutions. Each will have trade-offs, good and bad. Write them down and give each some thought. Which is most practical? Which serves your purpose best?

5.A better decision making process requires that you do all of the research necessary to gather the facts you need. If one solution seems appealing, see if you have any doubts, due to missing information. All questions should be answered before you arrive at a decision. Don’t jump to conclusions.

6.Once you feel you’ve thoroughly examined all of the possible solutions, weigh the consequences in the whole scheme of that decision. Brainstorm, making a concerted effort to find adverse consequences of your decision of choice. If you can’t think of a thing to scotch this decision, you’re as prepared as you can be.

The road to better decision making is as simple as this formula. Use it as a guideline. You’ll be happier with most of your decisions in the future.

I talked with a woman recently who said that, before she goes to work, she goes for a swim at a community pool for her daily exercise. She brings both her cell phone and blackberry – just in case! “I just can’t stand to be out of touch! It’s important that I be always accessible!” To protect her gadgetry from chlorinated water, before plunging in to the pool, she slips them in plastic zipper bags.

Not wanting to be contentious, I said nothing. Silently, I wondered what might happen if a kid ran by. Two visuals popped up. One was a crunching sound as the kid’s foot landed squarely on the instrument. The other had the kid slipping, pushing the gadget in to the pool. She’d laid the bags about four inches from the edge of the pool. I wondered how she would ever hear her gadgets crying out to be noticed. Might someone steal them? The addictive behavior aspect struck me immediately, because she didn’t leave them locked in her car. Because they were useless while she was swimming her laps, this meant that she wanted to have access the very moment she exited the pool.

Sure, there are some people who, due to the nature or importance of their work, are required to be available. However, that teen over there, walking between classes, texting as she goes, probably isn’t one of them.

Addictive behavior with electronic gadgets is so widespread, that some states have legislated use of, for example, cell phones. So many people were talking on cell phones as they drove down the freeways, there was a notable increase in traffic accidents.

One expert likens gadgetry addiction to alcohol addiction, pointing out that just as the alcoholic is unable to moderate their use, the gadget addict is in the same mindset.

If you find yourself unable to go anywhere without your electronic friends, understand that this is addictive behavior. You should take steps to rein in your obsession. Here are a few suggestions to help you get a handle on the problem.If it’s Saturday and you’re going to the gym for your weekly workout, leave your electronics at home. If you need to make a call, there are phone booths – remember them? On Friday night, your work week is over. Every little thing is all wrapped up and you know your boss isn’t going to be calling you at 10pm on a work issue. Remove the battery from your electronic pal and stick it in a drawer.

Another signature of electronic addictive behavior is the gal who checks every 30 seconds to see if she’s missed something. Just as with the smoker trying to quit, wean yourself slowly away from this habit. Check every fifteen minutes. See if you can make it to half an hour.

Here’s another helpful thought to ponder. All addictive behaviors have the element of a master-slave relationship. Now just who is going to be the boss here?

The abuser generally wants to control and dominate in the abused.  Usually, it takes place over a series of weeks or months. Slowly, the abuser will try to take more and more control over the life of his victim. He may make her check in frequently, come home early, or stop leaving the house to go out with friends altogether. He may become jealous and suspect that she is cheating on him, or keeping some other sort of secret.

Usually in abusive relationships, the abuse increases as the controlling behavior increases. The more jealous and controlling the abuser feels, the more he will feel justified in hurting the target of his abuse. This can range from hurtful words to outright physical violence, and sometimes even leads to death. An abusive relationship isn’t something that you can talk your way out of either. Physical and emotional abuse is deadly serious business.The worst thing about abusive relationships is that they can be so dangerous to end. Sometimes, the abuser will simply say hurtful, terrible things to the abused she breaks up with him, but other times it gets much worse. Abusers can threaten, attack, and even kill their victims when the victims tries to end it. Getting a restraining order and police protection can help, but it doesn’t always do the trick. Sometimes, people have been killed by an ex-boyfriend who was not even supposed to be within 30 feet of them. Finding your way out of an abusive relationship can be one of the hardest things you can do.

Fortunately, there are more resources for victims of abuse than ever before. If you are in a bad relationship that you think is abusive, there are a number of things you can do. You can go down to your local battered women’s shelter, talk to the police, get a legal representative, or even do some research online about relationship abuse. It still won’t be easy, but there are people out there who can help.