National Women's Health and Fitness Day

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By Nurse Diane

This summer much of the country tuned in to watch the summer Olympics that took place in England.  There were contests in Swimming, gymnastics, track and other events that included women.  I watched as one woman ran in a track event, and didn’t even become short of breath when the race was over.  These women are incredibly healthy and fit.   Every time I see women compete in sports, I always wish I could do that too.  Fitness is really becoming popular among women.  Even my small town has a gym just for women, and my mother is a member.  She goes and rides a stationary bike, and rows a "boat".  We also had Curves, another place just for women and I was a member there.

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Today is National Women's Health and Fitness Day.  It is the nation’s largest annual health promotion event for women of all ages.  It focuses attention on the importance of regular physical activity and health awareness for women.

Today, more than 1,000 groups across the country will host women’s health and fitness events at senior centers, hospitals, health clubs, park and recreation districts, local health and service organizations, schools, retirement communities, houses of worship, and other community locations. An estimated 80,000 to 100,000 women of all ages are expected to participate in these local activities. The goal of this event is to encourage women to take control of their health: to learn the facts they need to make smart health choices, and to make time for regular physical activity.

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There are many ways to improve your health and fitness, without having to train for the Olympics.  You can start by walking in your neighborhood, or inside a mall if the weather is bad, then you can try riding a bike, or taking an exercise class.  However, don’t start any exercise program without a doctor's approval.

To learn more about this day, visit this site:  http://www.fitnessday.com/women/

Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month

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By Nurse Diane

Earlier this month we told you that is was gynecologic cancer awareness month.  Included in the group are Ovaries.  Ovarian Cancer is one of the most deadly of women's cancers. Each year, approximately 21,880 women will be diagnosed with ovarian cancer. In 2010, approximately 13,850 women will die in the United States from ovarian cancer. Many women don't seek help until the disease has begun to spread, but if detected at its earliest stage, the five-year survival rate is more than 93%. Recent research suggests that together the four symptoms of: bloating, pelvic or abdominal pain, difficulty eating or feeling full quickly and urinary urgency or frequency may be associated with ovarian cancer.  Below is a copy of the Presidential Proclamation:

NATIONAL OVARIAN CANCER AWARENESS MONTH, 2012

BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

A PROCLAMATION

 

This year, thousands of American women will lose their lives to ovarian cancer. They are mothers and daughters, sisters and grandmothers, community members and cherished friends -- and the absence they leave in our hearts will be deeply felt forever. During National Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month, we honor those we have lost, show our support for women who bravely carry on the fight, and take action to lessen the tragic toll ovarian cancer takes on families across our Nation.

Sadly, women are all too often diagnosed with this disease when it has already reached an advanced stage. Because early detection is the best defense against ovarian cancer, it is essential that women know the risk factors associated with the disease. Women who are middle-aged or older, who have a family history of ovarian or breast cancer, or who have had certain cancers in the past are at increased risk of developing ovarian cancer. Any woman who thinks she is at risk of ovarian cancer or who experiences symptoms, including abdominal pain, pressure, or swelling -- should talk with her health care provider. To learn more, visit www.Cancer.gov.

Ongoing progress in science and medicine is moving us forward in the battle against ovarian cancer, and my Administration remains committed to improving outcomes for women suffering from this devastating illness. Through agencies across the Federal Government, we are continuing to invest in research that paves the way for a new generation of tests and treatments. Through the Centers for Disease Control's Inside Knowledge campaign, we are working to raise awareness about the signs and symptoms of ovarian cancer. The Affordable Care Act already bans insurance companies from dropping a woman's coverage because she has ovarian cancer, and from placing lifetime or restrictive annual dollar limits on her coverage. Beginning in 2014, the law will also prohibit insurers from denying coverage or charging higher premiums because a woman has ovarian cancer -- or any other pre-existing condition. 

 Ovarian cancer affects the lives of far too many women every year, and the tragedy it leaves in its wake reverberates in communities across our country. This month, we stand with all those who have known the pain of ovarian cancer, and we rededicate ourselves to the pursuit of new and better ways to prevent, detect, and treat this devastating disease.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States do hereby proclaim September 2012 as National Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month. I call upon citizens, government agencies, organizations, health care providers, and research institutions to raise ovarian cancer awareness and continue helping Americans live longer, healthier lives. I also urge women across our country to talk to their health care providers and learn more about this disease.

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September is Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month.  I urge you to visit your gynecologist if you have not done so this year, and also encourage all the women in your life to be checked as well.  Early detection can provide a successful survival rate.

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Tecumseh - Live Your Life

Live Your Life

~Tecumseh~

“So live your life so the fear of death can never enter your heart. Trouble no one about their religion; respect others in their views, and demand that they respect yours. Love your life, perfect your life, and beautify all things in your life. Seek to make your life long and of service to your people. Prepare a noble death song for the day when you go over the great divide. Always give a word or sign of salute when meeting or passing a stranger if in a lonely place. Show respect to all people, but grovel to none. When you arise in the morning, give thanks for the light, for your life and strength. Give thanks for your food and for the joy of living. If you see no reason for giving thanks, the fault lies in yourself.

Touch not the poisonous firewater that makes wise ones turn to fools and robs them of their visions.

When it comes your time to die, be not like those whose hearts are filled with the fear of death, so that when their time comes they weep and pray for a little more time to live their lives over again in a different way. Sing your death song and die like a hero going home.”

Tecumseh (March 1768 – October 5, 1813) was a Native American leader of the Shawnee and a large tribal confederacy (known as Tecumseh's Confederacy) which opposed the United States during Tecumseh's War and the War of 1812. Tecumseh has become an icon and heroic figure in American Indian and Canadian history.

Quotes:

• A single twig breaks, but the bundle of twigs is strong.
• Let us form one body, one heart, and defend to the last warrior our country, our homes, our liberty, and the graves of our fathers.

"No tribe has the right to sell, even to each other, much less to strangers... Sell a country! Why not sell the air, the great sea, as well as the earth? Didn't the Great Spirit make them all for the use of his children?

The way, the only way to stop this evil is for the red man to unite in claiming a common and equal right in the land, as it was first, and should be now, for it was never divided. We gave them forest-clad mountains and valleys full of game, and in return what did they give our warriors and our women? Rum, trinkets, and a grave."

Women’s History Month

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By Diane Forrest

At church the other Sunday, my pastor began his sermon with the top 10 reasons why God made Eve.  They are as follows:

Top Ten Reasons Why God Created Eve:

10. God was worried that Adam would frequently become lost in the garden because he would not ask for directions.

9. God knew that one day Adam would require someone to locate and hand him the remote.

8. God knew Adam would never go out and buy himself a new fig leaf when his wore out and would therefore need Eve to buy one for him.

7. God knew Adam would never be able to make a doctor's dentist's or haircut appointment by himself.

6. God knew Adam would never remember which night to put the garbage on the curb.

5. God knew if the world was to be populated, men would never be able to handle the pain and discomfort of childbearing.

4. As the Keeper of the Garden, Adam would never remember where he left his tools.

3. Apparently, Adam needed someone to blame his troubles on when God caught him hiding in the garden.

2. As the Bible says, "It is not good for man to be alone."

And, finally, the Number 1 reason why God created Eve....

1. When God finished the creation of Adam, He stepped back, scratched his head, and said, "I can do better than that!"

For as long as I have been able to learn, I have been taught that God made woman to be man's partner.  She was made from Adam's rib to walk beside him, not in front or behind.  For thousands of years women have been treated as a servant to men, property of men.  Men have been view as the hunter/gatherer, while women stayed home, prepared the home, cooked the meals and reared the children.   I can only imagine how much courage the first woman had who was able to speak her mind to the men in her area, and how brave the man was who actually listened, and supported her.  I think back to that movie Can of the Cave Bears where there was no language, only grunting.  The women did the cave work, while the men lounged around.

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There have been several women throughout history, and there are still many goals left to achieve.  This month is National Women's History Month.  It all began in 1911, when the first International Woman's day took place.  In 1981, the first Joint Congressional Resolution was introduced proclaiming a "Women's History Week."  In 1987 Congress expanded the focus to a whole month. Soon, other state departments of education began to encourage celebrations of National Women's History Month as a way to promote equality among the sexes in the classroom.

I would also like to add that just because women want to be equal and be viewed as strong intelligent people, we still appreciate being treated with manners, at least this woman does.   My church has recently asked women of the church to say prayers during the service, and this past Sunday, as a lady led the prayer, it was heartwarming to me to see her husband stand as she descended the stairs, and help her to her seat.

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So, this month check out some of the women in history who have made a differnce in our world.  Here are a few to start with:

• Cleopatra;
• Queen Victoria;
• Amelia Earhart, Aviator;
• Alice Paul, Suffragette;
• Hillary Clinton, Secretary of State;
• Margaret Thatcher, Prime Minister;
• Wilma Randolph, athlete;
• Sally Ride, astronaut; and
• Madame Curie.

Susan B. Anthony

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By Diane Forrest,

Have you ever put a large bill in a stamp machine at your post office expecting it to kick out some one dollar bills in change only to hear the clanking of coins in the change dropper?  There is no need to fear, you are still getting your proper change, but instead of bills, you are getting a dollar coin.  These coins can be confusing, since they are silver in color and about the size of a quarter.  There is a difference though, instead of an image of George Washington, there is a picture of a woman.  This woman is Susan B. Anthony, the first of only two women who have had their likeness engraved on United States currency, the second being Sacagawea.  Who was Susan B. Anthony, and why was she important enough to have this honor bestowed on her?

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In 1820 a Quaker family in Adams, Massachusetts gave birth to Susan.  She would later be known for her role in fighting for women's right to vote.  Susan began her career as a teacher.  At age 26, Susan B. Anthony took the position of head of the girls' department at Canajoharie Academy, her first paid position. She taught there for two years, earning $110 a year.  Anthony called for equal educational opportunities for all regardless of race, and for all schools, colleges, and universities to open their doors to women and ex-slaves. She also campaigned for the right of children of ex-slaves to attend public schools.  She made the claims that there was no difference in the minds of girls and boys, and they should not be educated separately. In the 1890s Anthony raised $50,000 in pledges to ensure the admittance of women to the University of Rochester. In a last-minute effort to meet the deadline she put up the cash value of her life insurance policy. The University was forced to make good its promise and women were admitted for the first time in 1900.

During the same time she started her teaching career, she became an agent for the American Anti-Slavery Society, arranging meetings, making speeches, putting up posters, and distributing leaflets. She encountered hostile mobs, armed threats, and things thrown at her. She was hung in effigy, and in Syracuse her image was dragged through the streets.  She went on to support and promotes the 13th amendment abolishing slavery.

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In 1868, as a delegate to the National Labor Congress, Anthony persuaded the committee on female labor to call for votes for women and equal pay for equal work, although the men at the conference deleted the reference to the vote.  She then began to fight for women's right vigorously.  In 1869 the suffrage movement split, with Anthony and Stanton's National Association continuing to campaign for a constitutional amendment, and the American Woman Suffrage Association adopting a strategy of getting the vote for women on a state-by-state basis. Wyoming became the first territory to give women the vote in 1869.  She worked tirelessly going from state to state fighting for the women's right to vote.  She was arrested numerous times; however she was always freed to prevent her from being able to file appeals to have her issues reported on a grander scale.

In 1853 Anthony began to campaign for women's property rights in New York state, speaking at meetings, collecting signatures for petitions, and lobbying the state legislature. In 1860, largely as the result of her efforts, the New York State Married Women's Property Bill became law, allowing married women to own property, keep their own wages, and have custody of their children.

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Susan B. Anthony died in 1906 at her home on Madison Street in Rochester. All American adult women finally got the vote with the Nineteenth Amendment, also known as the Susan B. Anthony Amendment, in 1920.

Susan B. Anthony never married, never had any children, and spent her life fighting for the rights of women everywhere, claiming that they deserved the right to vote, and the right to earn equal pay for equal work, and the right to own property in their name, and have custody of their children.  She was the country's first "Woman's Libber", and she deserves not only to have a coin designed in her honor, but also this day, and the undying appreciation and respect of women everywhere

Today is National Women's Health and Fitness Day - 9/28

By Diane Forrest, RN

This is the largest national health promotion day for women. Similar in concept to the successful National Senior Health & Fitness Day, over 100,000 women of all ages will participate in events at more than 1,400 local registered event sites throughout the U.S. — on the same day. The event's goal: to promote the importance of health awareness and regular physical activity for women of all ages.

Local health and fitness activities will vary widely based on the organizations hosting the events and the interests of local women in these communities. Activities will be noncompetitive and may include walking events, exercise demonstrations, health screenings, and health information workshops.

The goal of this event is to encourage women to take control of their health: to learn the facts they need to make smart health choices, and to make time for regular physical activity.

Because of its grassroots nature, the event provides an excellent opportunity for local organizations to showcase the health-related programs and services they offer to women in their communities.

Why don’t you check your area and see if they have some activities going on today and learn how to be fit and healthy for National Women's health and fitness day

For more information check here:  http://www.fitnessday.com/