Family and Consumer Sciences

Live Smart Ohio

Ohio State University Extension

Gather Your Gratitude webinar series

  Below are recordings of wellness webinars presented by the Live Healthy Live Well team from the Gather Your Gratitude webinar series presented in Autumn 2023. Gather Your Gratitude Series – Webinar 1 – Attitude of Gratitude Gather Your Gratitude Series – Webinar 2 – Gratitude Makes Cent$ Gather Your Gratitude – Webinar 3 – […]

Winter Slump to Winter Wake Up

Winter Wake Up steps As human beings, we all experience emotions such as sadness or grief. There are days when we feel down and other days when we feel on top of the world. It is important to note that there are differences between feeling the emotions of sadness or grief and experiencing the Winter […]

WRITTEN BY: Patrice Powers-Barker, OSU Extension, Lucas County, Family and Consumer Sciences Educator

REVIEWED BY: Misty Harmon, OSU Extension, Perry County, Family and Consumer Sciences

PHOTO CREDITS:

  • Pixabay

SOURCES:

  • Beat the Winter Blues: Shedding Light on Seasonal Sadness (2013). NIH News in Health. https://newsinhealth.nih.gov/2013/01/beat-winter-blues
  • Carter, S. (2014). Beating the Winter Blues. Ohio State University Extension, Live Healthy Live Well. https://livehealthyosu.com/2014/02/19/beating-the-winter-blues/
  • Harmon, M. (2021). It’s Fall Y’all and the Struggle is Real. Ohio State University Extension, Live Healthy Live Well. https://livehealthyosu.com/2021/09/28/its-fall-yall-and-the-struggle-is-real/
  • Melrose S. (2015). Seasonal Affective Disorder: An Overview of Assessment and Treatment Approaches. Depression research and treatment, 2015, 178564. https://doi.org/10.1155/2015/178564
  • Seasonal Affective Disorder. (2017) Family Doctor. https://familydoctor.org/condition/seasonal-affective-disorder/
  • Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) and Winter Blues. Penn State Behrend. (2023). https://behrend.psu.edu/student-life/student-services/personal-counseling/student-resources/seasonal-affective-disorder
  • Seasonal affective disorder: More than the winter blues. (2023). American Psychological Association. https://www.apa.org/topics/depression/seasonal-affective-disorder
  • Seasonal Affective Disorder Treatment: Choosing a Light Therapy Box. Mayo Clinic. (2023). https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/seasonal-affective-disorder/in-depth/seasonal-affective-disorder-treatment/art-20048298

Life is a Journey. So is a Labyrinth.

A labyrinth might look like a maze from a distance, but closer inspection reveals that a labyrinth has a specific pattern and no dead ends. Unlike a maze that makes you concentrate and retrace your steps, the labyrinth is not a game or puzzle to figure out. Although labyrinths can follow different designs, the most […]

WRITTEN BY: Patrice Powers-Barker, OSU Extension, Lucas County, Family and Consumer Sciences Educator

REVIEWED BY: Amy Stone, OSU Extension Lucas County, Agriculture and Natural Resources and Megan Arnold, PhD, OSU Extension Lucas and Wood Counties, Area Leader

PHOTO CREDITS:

  • Patrice Powers-Barker
  • Printable labyrinth from https://www.worldlabyrinthday.org/resources/finger-labyrinths

SOURCES:

  • Butcher HK. A Unitary Caring Theory Perspective of Labyrinth Walking Research. Nursing Science Quarterly. 2023;36(2):116-125. doi:10.1177/08943184221150258
  • Daffodil Labyrinth. (2013). University of Connecticut. https://news.extension.uconn.edu/2013/05/03/daffodil-labyrinth/
  • Directions to Make a Labyrinth. (2023). The Labyrinth Society. https://labyrinthsociety.org/make-a-labyrinth
  • Finger Labyrinths. World Labyrinth Day. https://www.worldlabyrinthday.org/resources/finger-labyrinths
  • Gersbach J. (2008). Labyrinths Find Their Way onto Hospital Grounds as Paths to Healing. The Permanente journal, 12(4), 77–80. https://doi.org/10.7812/TPP/08-045
  • Griffith, Janith (2002). Labyrinths: A pathway to reflection and contemplation. In: Clinical Journal of Oncology Nursing, 6:5, Sept/Oct, pp295-296.
  • Labyrinth and Iris collection, (2022). UT – The State Botanical Gardens of Tennessee. https://utgardens.tennessee.edu/labyrinth-and-iris-collection/
  • Lizier, D. S., Silva-Filho, R., Umada, J., Melo, R., & Neves, A. C. (2018). Effects of Reflective Labyrinth Walking Assessed Using a Questionnaire. Medicines (Basel, Switzerland), 5(4), 111. https://doi.org/10.3390/medicines5040111
  • Lois B. Small and Gladys B. Hamilton Labyrinth Garden. (2023). Ohio State University https://chadwickarboretum.osu.edu/our-gardens/lane-avenue-gardens/labyrinth-garden
  • McGee, J. S., Katzenmeyer, C., McElroy, M., Boddie, S. C., Meraz, R., McElroy, & Wood, S. (2022). Collective labyrinth walking leads to connections and insights for contemplative activism in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic and other social concerns. Manuscript in Preparation.
  • New to the Labyrinth? (2022) Veriditas. https://www.veriditas.org/New-to-the-Labyrinth.
  • World-Wide Labyrinth Locator. (2023). Locate at local labyrinth: https://labyrinthlocator.com/home

Summer Safety

Summer is here! It’s the season for enjoying nature, family, delicious summer foods, and outdoor activities! While we’re having summer fun, we still need to be mindful of safety. Stay safe and prepare for these activities. Food Safety Grilled and picnic foods are some of the best things about summer. To keep your loved ones […]

WRITTEN BY: Caitlin Mathews-Smith, OSU Extension, Guernsey County, Family and Consumer Sciences

REVIEWED BY: Amanda Bohlen, OSU Extension, Washington County, Family and Consumer Sciences

PHOTO CREDITS:

  • Pixabay

REFERENCES:

  • 10 Open Water Safety Tips. National Drowning Prevention Alliance (NDPA). https://ndpa.org/10-open-water-safety-tips/
  • Summer Safety Tips. American Red Cross. https://www.redcross.org/get-help/how-to-prepare-for-emergencies/types-of-emergencies/summer-safety.html#:~:text=Summer%20is%20a%20great%20time,vegetables%2C%20cheeses%2C%20and%20desserts.
  • (2023, April 18). Sun Safety. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/cancer/skin/basic_info/sun-safety.htm
  • Zoonotic Disease Program-Ohio Department of Health. https://odh.ohio.gov/know-our-programs/zoonotic-disease-program

Insurance for Hidden Financial Obstacles.

Title: Insurance for Hidden Financial Obstacles. Earlier this year a former high school classmate, a couple of years behind me, and his son were killed in a motor vehicle accident. The emotional impact on those families involved must have been devastating. My thoughts went to a woman that lost her spouse and her son, children […]

WRITTEN BY: Ken Stewart, Family and Consumer Sciences Educator, Ohio State Univesity Extension, Monroe County

REVIEWED BY: Courtney Warman, State Specialist, Healthy Finances

PHOTO CREDITS:

  • Stock Photo

SOURCES:

  • Andrew Hurst, January 2021, Value Penguin Most Americans Can Be Fully Insured for 20% of Income
  • Consumer Glossary (naic.org)
  • 8 Types of Insurance You Can't Go Without - Ramsey (ramseysolutions.com)
  • What is Insurance? | Principles of Insurance | Types & Benefits (byjus.com)

REFERENCES:

  • https://byjus.com/govt-exams/principles-of-insurance/#:~:text=To%20ensure%20the%20proper%20functioning%20of%20an%20insurance,Indemnity%205%20Subrogation%206%20Contribution%207%20Loss%20Minimization

Perennial Optimist

Years ago, when my children were young, they picked out a gift for me. It was a t-shirt that had a picture of flowers and the words, “Perennial Optimist.” They didn’t know what perennial optimist meant, they just thought I would like the flowers on it. Perennials are the plants that come back in the […]

WRITTEN BY: Patrice Powers-Barker, OSU Extension, Lucas County, Family and Consumer Sciences Educator

REVIEWED BY: Misty Harmon, OSU Extension, Perry County, Family and Consumer Sciences

PHOTO CREDITS:

  • pixabay

SOURCES:

  • Degges-White, S. (2022). Ditch toxic positivity for tragic optimism. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/lifetime-connections/202205/ditch-toxic-positivity-tragic-optimism
  • Harmon, M. (2023). Hope is a strategy. Live Healthy Live Well. Ohio State University. https://livehealthyosu.com/2023/02/02/hope-is-a-strategy/
  • Kaufman, S. B. (2021). The Opposite of Toxic Positivity. The Atlantic. https://www.theatlantic.com/family/archive/2021/08/tragic-optimism-opposite-toxic-positivity/619786/
  • Know the life cycles of plants — annuals, biennials and perennials. Oregon State University Extension. https://extension.oregonstate.edu/gardening/techniques/know-life-cycles-plants-annuals-biennials-perennials
  • Leung, Mega. (2019). Tragic optimism: an integrative meaning-centered approach to trauma treatment. Counselling Psychology Quarterly. 32. 1-19. 10.1080/09515070.2019.1633497. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/334043933_Tragic_optimism_an_integrative_meaning-centred_approach_to_trauma_treatment
  • Powers-Barker, P. (2021). What’s Wrong with Positivity? Live Healthy Live Well Blog, Ohio State University Extension. https://livehealthyosu.com/2021/04/08/whats-wrong-with-positivity/
  • Princing, M. (2021). What you need to know about toxic positivity. Right as Rain. University of Washington Medicine. https://rightasrain.uwmedicine.org/mind/well-being/toxic-positivity
  • The Life of Victor Frankl, The Victor E. Frankl Institute of America. https://viktorfranklamerica.com/viktor-frankl-bio/

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