Tag: advice

Lifesaving Advice

We learn lessons every day of our lives. Some of it can be lifesaving.

Here’s advice worth internalizing.

Trust your subconscious to pull these lessons up if and when needed.

(Although I admit it might be a stretch to find a tampon to stick in a wound at the exact same moment you have been hit by a bullet. And disheartening to learn that in a polar bear encounter, you are essentially a dead duck.)

What trivial knowledge might one day save your life?

  • When having a heart attack, you don’t swallow aspirin, you chew it. Then swallow.
  • If someone is stabbed or is punctured by a sharp object. Leave it in. The object is blocking the blood from spilling out.
  • If you ever get shot by a small caliber weapon, one of the best things to use to plug the hole and stop the bleeding is a tampon.
  • If you are choking or having a heart attack get out of your car. You can’t signal anyone if you are unconscious inside the car, but if you are draped over the hood of the car you are sending a distress signal.
  • If you vomit and it looks like coffee grounds, you need to get to a hospital. You’re bleeding somewhere and it’s reaching your stomach. The partially digested blood comes up looking like coffee grounds.
  • If being attacked, never strike in the torso, this is not the movies. Instead, go for the groin, eyes, or ears and then run and scream as fast and loud as you can.
  • If you ever almost drown to the point of throwing up water or passing out, even if you feel 100% fine, get to a hospital. Your lungs can unwittingly self-fill up with fluid over the next few hours.
  • Flammable and inflammable mean the same thing.
  • If you’re ever somewhere really high (e.g. hiking) and you hear crunchy/crinkling noises in the air and/or feel static electricity (like your hair standing up), get out of there immediately, lightning is on it’s way.
  • Use this helpful rhyme if you’re ever facing a bear: If it’s brown, lay down. If it’s black, fight back. If it’s white, good night.
  • They rarely put Barnes and Nobles in bad areas, so if you are lost and need to find a decent area to stop, put “Barnes and Noble” in your GPS.
  • Don’t walk down the stairs with your hands in your pockets.
  • If you are stuck on a train track and have to abandon your vehicle to an oncoming train, run away from the track but also run towards the train itself. If you run in the same direction as the train is traveling, you will be standing where the debris of your former car lands.
  • If you’re at the beach and the ocean suddenly recedes, get to high ground. ASAP
  • If stuck in a riptide, remain calm, and swim parallel to the shore. You’ll still be pulled out some, but it’s better than fighting against the riptide, which is inevitably stronger than you are. Once you’re beyond the riptide, you can swim to shore.
  • When drowning, use your jeans as a life preserver in water by tying the legs together and filling them air.
  • Rohypnol, the date rape drug, has a salty taste to it.
  • When crying for help, try and call out specific people (“You with the red shirt, help me, I’m being mugged) instead of just screaming generally (“Help! I’m being mugged”).

    Most important: You were born with instincts. If you feel something is wrong with a person, place, situation, it probably is. Don’t discount those feelings in your gut that something isn’t going to work out, or there’s something hazardous about the situation. Also, in these situations, don’t be afraid of being rude. Just leave.

Hafiz Suboor, https://darkpsychologyfacts.quora.com/

Unwell

My head is foggy. I feel feverish.

The only thing I can think of saying today is that I need to curl up in a ball and rest. I think that is a legitimate message to put out there.

This is the yoga nidra of blog writing. Those who know, know.

And a mark of self-care. So I am. Heading for my favorite place to curl up and drink tea and do nothing.

Isn’t that exactly the advice U gave me the other day?

This is me. Taking that advice.

After taking a rest, I will have more to say.

Consider this a punctuation post.

A pause in a music score.

And for the same reason.

To catch my breath.

What value would there be in a blog about healing if the author didn’t take her own advice occasionally?

60 Today

Two months sure flew by. Much like life generally as we get older.

Today is the publication of my 60th blog post. I feel there should be cake and candles. And balloons. Or something.

I like honoring commitments to myself. Two months in, I see the value of these posts to keep greasing my internal writing wheels. Topics aren’t hard to come by. I’m pretty outspoken. But as dear old Ma liked to say, “Yes, she is outspoken … but not often and not by many.” Putting an original spin on those topics is the challenge.

In honor of this milestone today, I want to share some great advice I once received about getting older. I have collected many nuggets and some boulders of wisdom as I have wandered around this life. Then I either publish those nuggets or otherwise share them in the hope they will do somebody some good. Just as they once did for me. This post is twice as long a read as normal. Deserves every damn word.

If you have already achieved the status of eminence grise, enjoy. If you aren’t there yet, file this in your “Someday” file. Because – trust me on this – if you’re lucky, one day you will be old. It might be nice to have some guidelines lying around on how to do old well.

Great advice

This excellent list for aging is good advice to follow.

1. It’s time to use the money you saved up. Use it and enjoy it. Don’t just keep it for those who may have no notion of the sacrifices you made to get it. Remember there is nothing more dangerous than a son or daughter-in-law with big ideas for your hard-earned capital. Warning: This is also a bad time for investments, even if it seems wonderful or foolproof. They only bring problems and worries. This is a time for you to enjoy some peace and quiet.

2. Stop worrying about the financial situation of your children and grandchildren, and don’t feel bad spending your money on yourself. You’ve taken care of them for many years, and you’ve taught them what you could. You gave them an education, food, shelter, and support. The responsibility is now theirs to earn their own money.

3. Keep a healthy life, without great physical effort. Do moderate exercise (like walking every day), eat well and get your sleep. It’s easy to become sick, and it gets harder to remain healthy. That is why you need to keep yourself in good shape and be aware of your medical and physical needs. Keep in touch with your doctor, do tests even when you’re feeling well. Stay informed.

4. Always buy the best, most beautiful items for your significant other. The key goal is to enjoy your money with your partner. One day one of you will miss the other, and the money will not provide any comfort then, enjoy it together.

5. Don’t stress over the little things. Like paying a little extra on price quotes. You’ve already overcome so much in your life. You have good memories and bad ones, but the important thing is the present. Don’t let the past drag you down and don’t let the future frighten you. Feel good in the now. Small issues will soon be forgotten.

6. Regardless of age, always keep love alive. Love your partner, love life, love your family, love your neighbor and remember: “A man is not old as long as he has intelligence and affection.”

7. Be proud, both inside and out. Don’t stop going to your hair salon or barber, do your nails, go to the dermatologist and the dentist, keep your perfumes and creams well stocked. When you are well-maintained on the outside, it seeps in, making you feel proud and strong.

8. Don’t lose sight of fashion trends for your age, but keep your own sense of style. There’s nothing worse than an older person trying to wear the current fashion among youngsters. You’ve developed your own sense of what looks good on you – keep it and be proud of it. It’s part of who you are.

9. ALWAYS stay up-to-date. Read newspapers, and watch the news. Go online and read what people are saying. Make sure you have an active email account and try to use some of those social networks. You’ll be surprised what old friends you’ll meet. Keeping in touch with what is going on and with the people you know is important at any age.

10. Respect the younger generation and their opinions. They may not have the same ideals as you, but they are the future, and will take the world in their direction. Give advice, not criticism, and try to remind them that yesterday’s wisdom still applies today.

11. Never use the phrase: “In my time.” Your time is now. As long as you’re alive, you are part of this time. You may have been younger, but you are still you now, having fun and enjoying life.

12. Some people embrace their golden years, while others become bitter and surly. Life is too short to waste your days on the latter. Spend your time with positive, cheerful people, it’ll rub off on you and your days will seem that much better. Spending your time with bitter people will make you older and harder to be around. Be better, not bitter.

13. Do not surrender to the temptation of living with your children or grandchildren (if you have a financial choice, that is). Sure, being surrounded by family sounds great, but we all need our privacy. They need theirs and you need yours. If you’ve lost your partner (our deepest condolences), then find a person to move in with you and help out. Even then, do so only if you feel you really need the help or do not want to live alone.

14. Don’t abandon your hobbies. If you don’t have any, make new ones. You can travel, hike, cook, read, dance. You can adopt a cat or a dog, grow a garden, play cards, checkers, chess, dominoes, golf. You can paint, volunteer or just collect certain items. Find something you like and spend some real time having fun with it.

15. Even if you don’t feel like it, try to accept invitations. Baptisms, graduations, birthdays, weddings, conferences. Try to go. Get out of the house, meet people you haven’t seen in a while, experience something new (or something old). But don’t get upset when you’re not invited. Some events are limited by resources, and not everyone can be hosted. The important thing is to leave the house from time to time. Go to museums, go walk through a field. Get out there.

16. Be a conversationalist. Talk less and listen more. Some people go on and on about the past, not caring if their listeners are really interested. That’s a great way of reducing their desire to speak with you. Listen first and answer questions, but don’t go off into long stories unless asked to. Speak in courteous tones and try not to complain or criticize too much unless you really need to. Try to accept situations as they are. Everyone is going through the same things, and people have a low tolerance for hearing complaints. Always find some good things to say as well.

17. Pain and discomfort go hand in hand with getting older. Try not to dwell on them but accept them as a part of the cycle of life we’re all going through. Try to minimize them in your mind. They are not who you are, they are something that life added to you. If they become your entire focus, you lose sight of the person you used to be.

18. If you’ve been offended by someone – forgive them. If you’ve offended someone – apologize. Don’t drag around resentment with you. It only serves to make you sad and bitter. It doesn’t matter who was right. Someone once said: “Holding a grudge is like taking poison and expecting the other person to die.” Don’t take that poison. Forgive, forget, and move on with your life.

19. If you have a strong belief, savor it. But don’t waste your time trying to convince others. They will make their own choices no matter what you tell them, and it will only bring you frustration. Live your faith and set an example. Live true to your beliefs and let that memory sway them.

20. Laugh. Laugh A LOT. Laugh at everything. Remember, you are one of the lucky ones. You managed to have a life, a long one. Many never get to this age, and never get to experience a full life. But you did. So what’s not to laugh about? Find the humor in your situation.

21. Take no notice of what others say about you and even less notice of what they might be thinking. They’ll do it anyway, and you should have pride in yourself and what you’ve achieved. Let them talk and don’t worry. They have no idea about your history, your memories, and the life you’ve lived so far. There’s still much to be written, so get busy writing and don’t waste time thinking about what others might think. Now is the time to be at rest, at peace, and as happy as you can be!

REMEMBER: “Life is too short to drink bad wine and warm beer.”

ED NOTE: My personal thanks to the anonymous writer of this great advice. If it was you, please let me know!