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Life Might Not Be A Bowl of Cherries...
But It Might Be Better With One

Some of us know what the weather is going to do long before the news channel tells us. We know because we're having more trouble helping Mom or Dad in and out of the car, out of bed, or just opening their medication bottles. We know because we're having more trouble helping them ourselves.

Known as the "sandwich generation," we're providing care for elderly parents and care for growing children. We're wrestling with our own issues as we get older but we're completely focused on the issues of others.

Especially after a long dark winter without enough hours in the day to exercise or to find the "right" things to eat, it's important to start thinking about the things that can help bring about positive change.

Suppose you've put on some weight this winter and you already have arthritis. Consider this: when it comes to managing pain and inflammation, managing your eating habits can help! Not many people realize that processed foods, hydrogenated and trans fats, refined starches and sugars, as well as large amounts of red meat are significant culprits. Dairy products can cause joint and muscle pain as can, surprisingly, nightshade vegetables such as tomatoes, potatoes, and peppers. Many people are also sensitive to gluten, a protein found in wheat, barley, and rye, which can also cause inflammation.

By changing your habits, you can alleviate multiple, chronic symptoms. Eating more vegetables and fruits; supplementing your diet with anti-inflammatory foods and spices such as apples, berries, black currants, cherries, flax seed, rosemary, sage, salmon, tuna, and walnuts can really help.

It's hard to manage the care of others, but it's only harder if you aren't caring for yourself first. If life is too chaotic to make what you might consider dramatic changes, start by making the small ones first.

Make it a habit to pick up a small bag of cherries or a carton of berries and enjoy them! If you eat a lot of red meat, take a day or two off from it during the week. Take a short walk in the morning or during a break in your day -- just around the block. Get up and stretch during the day. Visit a bookstore, get a book you heard was great, and try to get just 10 minutes of reading in before you get out of bed in the morning or before you shut off the light at night. Promise yourself that you will get 8 hours of sleep.

Setting small goals and making incremental changes can gradually lead to real change in your life that matters.