Expansion Update!

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~Expansion photos submitted by project photographer Denise~

Team Wellness Advisory Board: How to Sleep Well!

Submitted by Dr. Dennis O'Grady

SHAPING YOUR SLEEP ATTITUDE "WHAT IF…" worrying directly pressures your mind to stay awake to stave off harm, and keep the other shoe from dropping. Inspirational soul-liners abound in "A Time to Sleep". Freely use any of these healthy mental sleep sedatives—or new sleep attitudes—the next time you feel tortured by a lack of sleep: Sleeping well is a skill. We need peace to sleep. Treat your body with love and respect. Take it out for a walk once in awhile. The idea is to fill your mind so completely with peace that anxiety has no room to roost. Begin to focus immediately on your peaceful thoughts when you come into the room where you sleep. When you cannot sleep, it is an indication that worry is in control. Be sympathetic to yourself at this time. It will not help to try to force yourself to sleep. Do you find you like yourself when you sleep well and hate yourself when you sleep poorly? "I must stay alert so nothing bad happens!" and "Not sleeping is a sign of how much I care!" are sleep-deprivers. Losing too much sleep can make a person feel dead. Do you believe that if you just spend enough sleepless nights analyzing problems in your head, solutions will miraculously appear? You are improving your sleep attitude every night. Try substituting a devotion for a potion. Stop wishing it away (sleeplessness) for one night. Are you carrying an old attitude into a new environment? Some people feel guilty for taking a nap…I'm talking about maxi-shame for a mini-siesta. It's not your fault you cannot sleep. Praise is tying the balloon after you blow it up. It completes the process. Otherwise your work can come undone. Also, ask yourself if you are starting to get caught up in the thought that the faster you go, the more you get done. This is not always true. A tough time is a time that is tough for you. You really can't work any faster than one night at a time, so relax and enjoy this night at this time!

Team Fitness Gurus: Customized Balance Workshop

In partnership with

Sinclair Community College

for Lifelong Learning

Team Lovely Ladies: Luncheon Club!

Team Houck: Matthew Explores His Environment!

Matthew is having his snack in his favorite toy...a box! Explore your environment with the eyes of a child and you will discover what is peaceful and what is not...

Team Spiritual Wellness: Genuine Prayer

Submitted by Sister Kateri Theriault Mission Integration

Genuine Prayer Ongoing conversation with God opens us towards others without force, resentment, or the expectation of reward, while being attentive and responsive to others carries us right back to God. At the final judgment many will be shocked to learn that every facet of their lives had become prayer. — from The Little Way of Lent

March 2011 Employee Wellness Moments

Employee Wellness Moments

Physical	Environment
Calibrate your scales	Check your air filters
Check your outdoor exercise equipment for safety	Look for fall and winter debris in windows and doorways
Look for days that are scheduled to be warm enough to go outside	Clean up your outdoor walking paths
Design your Spring workout schedule	Begin to put away winter tools and supplies
Add one more exercise buddy to your list	Spring clean your work space
Social	Spiritual
Help someone change their clocks to daylight savings time	March is National Spiritual Care Month
Share an Irish blessing with someone	Renew your personal religious celebrations
Plan a St. Patrick’s day party	Refresh your mediation spaces
Celebrate March Equinox together	Invite a new member into your prayer circle
YoYo and skills toy challenge week March 23rd make it an office event	Connect with your mentors
Nutritional	Occupational
American Chocolate Week starts March 20th	March 4th is National Employee Appreciation Day!
Plan your Spring herb garden together	As a team decide on the material for your department’s next training session
March is national berries and cherries month!	Plan your Vital Life Community events together
Put aside one unhealthy snack for a week	Check to see if your CEUs and certifications are current
Make a healthy food grab station	Check your summer sunscreen supplies
Intellectual	Emotional
March is International Ideas Month!	List your optimistic thoughts and ideas
Invent something as a team	List what gives you zest for life
Scan new industry catalogs for capital projects together	Meditate on your triumphs
Together support a high school student during test time	List what gives you relief during difficult times
Help a resident study for the spelling bee	Talk to a trusted friend or mentor about the above findings

The employeee wellness moments listed above are low cost/no cost activities that you and your employees can mix or match with previously submitted monthly wellness moment ideas. These ideals can be used to create wellness moments that focus on the eight dimensions of wellness to enhance your Vital Life Community!