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How You Can Start Leading a Happier Life Right Now

Exercise more.

Not only does exercising regularly have the potential to help you lose weight, but it has profoundly positive effects on your psychological health. Exercise releases dopamine, a chemical that plays a role in how you feel pleasure, into your brain. It also has the ability to help us focus, plans, and strive to improve in various aspects of our lives. Even those who don’t see a dramatic change in their physical appearance from regular exercise do tend to have better brain health.

Get more sleep.

Lack of sleep may lead to feeling extremely irritable and short-tempered. Additionally, people who are sleep-deprived have a more difficult time recalling pleasant memories, but recall unpleasant ones just fine.

Move closer to work.

Most of us don’t spend too much time focusing on it, but we spend a lot of time behind the wheel. We drive back and forth to work five days out of the week and we do it twice a day. What’s worse is we never take the time to consider the negative effects surrounding our commutes because the factors involved are always everchanging. For instance, on some days, the traffic may be light and easy-flowing. On other days, what usually takes us thirty minutes takes us an hour and fifteen minutes. Because these instances are often spread out, we never grow accustomed to them. As a result, our attitudes are negatively impacted. When we are stressed or upset about something, that can have a tendency to seep its way over into our work, affecting our job performance. The negativity begins to snowball, eventually resulting in a catastrophic event.

Spend more time with friends and family.

Material possessions may bring you happiness, but oftentimes, that happiness is fleeting, meaning that it is short-lived. Clothing goes out of style, cars age and break down and depreciate in value. It’s our relationships with friends and family that bring us true happiness and feelings of fulfillment.

Go outside.

Studies have shown that prolonged periods of sitting down are bad for our health. In fact, such conditions as obesity, increased blood pressure, high blood sugar, excess body fat around the waist, and abnormal cholesterol levels have been linked to this. Many of us work office jobs that require us to sit at our desks for long periods of time. It’s important to get up and stretch periodically to increase circulation and blood flow in the body. Additionally, being outside for at least twenty minutes when it’s warm versus being stuck inside has proven to increase happiness and overall productivity in the workplace.

Give back to your community.

You might think that spending money on material possessions such as cars, shoes, TVs, or expensive jewelry can bring you satisfaction and happiness. Temporarily, yes, this may be true. But, remember what we were saying about how our relationships with other people is what really brings us happiness? Human beings are social creatures who need human-to-human contact. It’s a necessary thing for both or mental and physical well-being. Acts of service like volunteering at a soup kitchen or participating in a clothing drive for the less fortunate or just being involved with a recreational sports league can bring us immense happiness because we are surrounded by people we care about and people who care about us.

Plan a trip. But, don’t actually take one.

Having a goal, working hard towards achieving that goal, and then finally being successful in accomplishing your goal is incredibly satisfying. Studies have shown that getting a break from work can improve our overall happiness. Have you ever gotten really excited about the prospect of going on an extended vacation? Didn’t you feel really happy about the idea of getting away from the stresses of everyday life? It’s been said that time period of time leading up to vacation creates much more happiness than the period after the vacation is over.

Meditate.

Reserve some time out of your day for meditation and self-reflection. Meditation can help improve focus, clarity and attention span. YouTube has several videos you can follow to practice meditating. Light some candles to create a relaxing ambiance and then get started.

Celebrating the Holidays Safely During COVID-19

October is finally here! And that means holidays are just around the corner. We’re still facing certain challenges due to the novel Coronavirus and, as human beings, naturally, we are social beings. Therefore, we need human contact in our daily lives. In order to accomplish a sense of normalcy back into our lives, there are certain steps we can take to achieve this.

Celebrating holidays through the use of Zoom meetings, FaceTime, and WhatsApp have given us the opportunity to stay connected to the ones we care about. These methods pose little to no risk of person-to-person spread of COVID-19. Still, before gathering with your loved ones, it’s a good idea to be sure you aren’t carrying any symptoms. Additionally, consider the confirmed cases of COVID-19 in your immediate and surrounding areas and make your ultimate decision based upon that. If your area has a considerable amount of confirmed cases, it may be wiser to keep things virtual for now. You may find current statistics in your area here:

https://www.cdc.gov/publichealthgateway/healthdirectories/healthdepartments.html

• Furthermore, consider the areas in which your attendees have been traveling from. If people are traveling from multiple locations, it may pose a higher risk than if people were traveling from a single location.
• You should be aware of the behaviors of your attendees as well. Have they been practicing social distancing and wearing a mask prior to traveling? Maintaining proper hygiene is also essential i.e. washing your hands regularly.
• If you are planning to host a gathering, consider doing so outside. If this is not possible, do everything you can to make sure the area indoors is properly ventilated. If weather permits, consider opening windows to increase circulation of fresh air.
• Give your potential guests time to consider avoiding contact with people outside of their households for a minimum of 14 days before your event.
• During your gathering, still consider maintaining a distance of at least 6 feet between yourself and others.
• Wear a mask around people that do not live with you to reduce the risk of spreading the virus.

Keep all areas around food and drinks clean. At this time, there is no evidence to suggest that handling food contributes to the transmission of the virus. And although it’s always a good idea to keep surfaces disinfected, this is not considered one of the main ways in which the virus is transmitted. Maintaining proper hygiene is important and is something we should all strive for, regardless of having a social event or not.

• Everyone should be washing their hands regularly with hot water and soap for a minimum of 20 seconds. If it is not possible to wash your hands, using a hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol should suffice.
• Consider wearing a mask when preparing food for yourself and others.
• If you’re serving any food, consider designating one person as distributer of food to avoid multiple hands touching utensils or food.
• Avoid any situation that would allow for self-serving of food or drink i.e. a punch bowl or a bowl filled with potato chips.
• If you are using any kind of reusable items, be sure to disinfect them first before using them again.

We hope that everyone continues to stay safe during these uncertain times.

The Do’s and Don’ts of Bonfire Safety

Bonfires are a fun, popular way to enjoy the outdoors with friends and family on those cooler days and nights. It’s important to remain educated about bonfire safety. What are some of the Do’s and Don’ts of bonfire safety? Let’s explore…

Do’s

• In order to have a fun, safe experience with bonfires, you’ll want to make sure that your set-up is a far enough distance away from any structure. Use enough wood to build a substantial fire that everyone can gather around, but keep in mind that it must be small enough to be controlled. Always keep water or an extinguisher close by.
• It’s not safe to start a fire of any kind on dry land. Make sure that any area surrounding the fire are nice and damp.
• Keep a water source nearby.
• Choose a location that is away from trees, bushes, and structures.
• Don’t build your fire near dead grass, any dry leaves, branches, or bark.
• Keep children a safe distance away from the fire at all times (this includes our furry friends!)
• Only use dry, untreated wood for your fire. Wood that is covered with paint may be dangerous because paint can have flammable chemicals in it. This can be dangerous.
• Have the appropriate tools available to adjust burning wood as needed.

Don’ts

• Never start a fire with lighter fluid, gasoline, or kerosene.
• Never throw anything into a bonfire. Roasting marshmellows is different because they are usually attached to a stick or a long pole, so you’re able to roast them while maintaining a safe distance from the flames.
• Fumes from aluminum are toxic, so be sure to keep soda cans a beer cans away from the fire at all times.
• Moist wood like cedar and pine have the potential to create dangerous situations like sparks. Do not use them.
• If your wood bends, but doesn’t break, this means it is too wet to use for the fire. Plus, wet wood can cause irritating smoke that can bother your eyes.
• Never leave the fire location until it is properly and sufficiently put out. In order to know when it’s safe to leave the location, place your hand about a foot away from the embers. If you can still feel heat, it’s still too hot to leave. To put out of the fire, add more water and dirt.

It’s important to note that consuming alcohol has contributed to over 60% of burns suffered at campfires, beaches, and bonfires. Always have a sober adult present to act as overwatch.

As temperatures drop, the idea of a bonfire is most certainly an attractive one. Being surrounded by family and our closest friends is definitely something we want to be able to do. At the end of the day, we all want to have an enjoyable, memorable experience. Practicing these Do’s and Don’ts will help you do just that.

How to Prepare for a Hurricane

Your ability to anticipate an upcoming hurricane is extremely important and is something that you should prepare for. How well you prepare could be the difference between staying afloat, leading a pathway to eventual recovery, and financial ruin.

Preparing the outside of your home is essential to minimizing any potential damage caused by the hurricane. If a hurricane is in your area, you should do the following:

• Trim you trees or remove trees that appear sickly or diseased. They are less likely to be able to withstand high wind speeds.
• Store all of your outdoor furniture in a dry, enclosed space.
• Use permanent shutters to protect your windows.
• Have a substantial supply of plywood and nails on hand, so you’re able to board up your home if you need to. If you wait until the last minute to do this, you may be subject to inflated prices. As more and more people run to the store for these supplies, a shortage may occur. As a result, prices will go up.
• Have you talked to your insurance agent about flood insurance? Typical homeowners insurance policies exclude flooding caused by a hurricane.
• Have an emergency communication plan in place. If you’re ever separated from other members of your family, they will be able to get in contact with you.

It’s a good idea to put together a survival kit in case of emergencies. The following items should be in your survival kit:

• Water
• Non-perishable food
• Medications for yourself, your family, and your pets
• A portable radio
• Flashlights
• Spare batteries
• Battery chargers for your cell phones
• Any other chargers for other electronic devices you may own i.e. an Apple Watch, laptop

Hurricane Watch

During a Hurricane Watch, you should do the following:

• You should make sure your car’s fuel tank is full in case an evacuation order for your area is given.
• If you own a boat, use rope or a chain to secure it to a trailer.
• Use tie downs to anchor your trailer to the ground or to your house.
• Any valuable items like jewelry or personal papers should be stored in a waterproof container.Hurricanes can be extremely dangerous. It’s important to take the proper precautions to ensure the safety of yourself and others.