Have a Heart this month, and all year long.
February can feel so long to those who are isolated due to harsh weather conditions and short days when outdoor activities and socialization is limited. Social connection, even via phone or Zoom, can help combat social isolation and boost spirits. Connection with others, and maintaining strong friendships, helps reduce anxiety and increases the ability to cope with stress more effectively.
Caring about others makes life more meaningful. Offering another person compassion and support, in turn makes you a stronger, happier, and better person. Having someone outside of your family to connect with, to discuss things with, or to share an activity, gives a sense of meaning and belonging, and also provides emotional support. One study suggested that while family support helped with resilience, friendship predicted greater resilience later in life. You don’t need to be best friends, it just helps to have regular connection with someone, be it a neighbor, a phone pal, a Zoom group, or a walking group. If anything, the pandemic has taught us how we need community and has also provided for better ways to connect when we cannot socialize in person.
If you are in need of someone to talk to, LifePath has a program called Phone Pals where our trained volunteers provide companionship and social interaction via weekly phone calls.
If you are stuck indoors, there are many things you can do to pass the time, such as exercising, learning a new skill, cooking a new recipe, bird watching, bird bingo (create a card of local birds and mark the ones you identify through your window), or arts and crafts. If you are in need of someone to talk to, LifePath has a program called Phone Pals where our trained volunteers provide companionship and social interaction via weekly phone calls. Volunteers and older individuals connect by phone or video chat, depending on the comfort and preferences of the elder. We work to make matches based on people’s interests and preferences. Our volunteers are caring community members seeking to support others during challenging times. Most matches talk weekly and calls range from 10–30 minutes.
For those of you who like to venture outdoors, take the time to wave and talk with a neighbor who doesn’t get out much. Often, a regular activity such as this can mean so much, yet take little effort or time. It doesn’t need to be a long conversation or a get-together, it could be as simple as a check-in. Sending a text or a picture each day can lead to wonderful interactions and keep you connected with others, which over time builds community. For those you can no longer meet with in person, schedule a regular phone call and mark it on your calendar. “Tea with Ted,” or “Drinks with Diana,” can be a special way to make time for connection and ongoing conversations. I even know of friends who watch movies together while each in their own home, connecting by video or phone to comment back and forth and enjoy each other’s company.
In the heart of winter, the shortest month is also American Heart Month. The American Heart Association asks us to take this month to focus on our cardiovascular health to help reduce and control hypertension (high blood pressure). This is important because the heart is a muscle that pumps blood through our bodies to keep us warm, nourished, and alive.
One recommendation to help prevent high blood pressure is to eat a healthy diet and keep yourself at a healthy weight. LifePath offers a live video conference called Healthy Eating for Successful Aging which teaches the “My Plate” guidelines, nutrition basics, label reading, meal planning, goal setting, and problem solving for adults hoping to improve their nutrition in order to lose/gain weight, lower cholesterol, manage blood sugar levels, or live well with any chronic condition. It takes place on seven Fridays from 9:30 a.m.-12:00 p.m., from February 4 to March 18.
Other recommendations are to be physically active, not smoke, limit alcohol, and to get enough sleep. These can be hard to do all by yourself, but by connecting with others to work together on these recommendations, you can support each other, and cheer each other on.
The heart is also where we say we feel our emotions, our joy, our sorrow, and our fear. In February, while we are being reminded to take care of our hearts physically, we should also remember to take care of our metaphorical hearts—the ones that swell with pride, race with excitement, break with sadness, and skip a beat with love—by reaching out to others and making connections. Share the love: reach out to someone this month and help warm their spirits and their heart, and they will do the same for you.
