SNOW is just a four-letter word

25 Jan 2016 Leave a comment

by privatelifeinpublichealth in Uncategorized Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

waffles
      Those four letters that in fact convey the emotions and impact of other popular four letter words, have finally fallen upon those of us who live in the Northeast US. The “atmospheric water vapor frozen into ice crystals and falling in light white flakes or lying on the ground as a white layer,” has inspired many reactions from jubilation to panic. Of course it is in English that snow has four letters. In French snow is les neiges (as in “ou sont les neiges d’antan?”) In Spanish the word is nieve. In Swahili it is theluji. And even if there is only a percentage of the mythical thousands of Inuit words for snow there are purportedly at least 50 ranging from tlapa: powder snow; tlation: small flaked snow; kriplyana: blue snow in the morning; penstla: the idea of snow; taleni: snow angels. I have to say I got a little skeptical myself about the thousands of words when I encountered luantla: snow rolled into a reefer and smoked by wild Inuit youth. (I will leave to you to decide if that is a real word.)

  As the hour of the descent of crystals upon us approached I couldn’t help but wonder about the health effects of snow. I thought about heart attacks of shovelers, car accidents, freezing cold and slip sliding away. There are many inherent dangers in the white flakes falling and lying on the ground. News reports have confirmed several deaths just in New York from this storm: “Two more people have died in New York City Saturday during the mammoth blizzard that tore through the tri-state, bringing the total to five deaths in the area. Gov. Andrew Cuomo confirmed the deaths during a press conference Sunday morning. The five suffered heart attacks while they were shoveling the snow. ‘If you are old like me you want to think twice before you go out there and start shoveling,’” the governor said. (Ummm, old?… Andrew Cuomo is 58.) And emergency departments at hospitals are adrift in people with back injuries. For Andy Cuomo and the rest of you, here are some safe shoveling techniques: Pick the right snow shovel, warm up thoroughly, pace yourself and keep your feet on the ground, i.e., don’t slip. If conditions are really slippery don’t do it. Stop and rest when you need to. Most importantly, lift ergonomically. Whenever possible, push the snow to one side rather than lifting it. When lifting the snow shovel is necessary, make sure to use ergonomic lifting techniques:

  • Always face towards the object you intend to lift – have your shoulders and hips both squarely facing it.
  • Bend at the hips, not the low back, and push the chest out, pointing forward. Then, bend your knees and lift with your leg muscles, keeping your back straight.
  • Keep your loads light and do not lift an object that is too heavy for you.
  • If you must lift a shovel full, grip the shovel with one hand as close to the blade as comfortably possible and the other hand on the handle (handle and arm length will vary the technique).
  • Avoid twisting the back to move the snow to its new location – always pivot your whole body to face the new direction.
  • Keep the heaviest part of the object close to your body at your center of gravity – do not extend your arms to throw the snow.

Walk to the new location to deposit the item rather than reaching or tossing. http://www.spine-health.com/wellness/ergonomics/snow-shoveling-techniques-prevent-low-back-injuries And if you can’t get to the gym, the Huffington Post has these exercises for a healthy work out, just you, your shovel and the snow: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/01/26/shoveling-snow-workout-gifs_n_6548946.html

To prevent car accidents, Mayor Bill deBlasio just said “stay off the roads!” and called a state of emergency in New York City. But as we know some of us have to travel and some people just need to get out. The Daily News offered these safe driving tips.

Don’t get cocky In a severe storm, signs can blow down, traffic lights might be out, or tree limbs could fall. Just because you know the road doesn’t mean you know exactly what’s around the next bend.

All-wheel-drive doesn’t help you Many people assume that having AWD is Mother Nature’s ‘Get out of Jail Free’ card. It’s not, buddy; you still have to brake like the rest of us mere mortals.

SUVs are not immune to snow Sport-utilities and crossovers can do many things, but defying the laws of physics isn’t one of them.

ABS is your friend go ahead, HIT THE BRAKES! Now, did you feel a pulse from the pedal, or hear a ‘thunkathunkathunka’-like sound? That’s good, because you should. My advice is to find an empty parking lot and mash the pedal, to get used to the sound and feel. It’s okay, ABS is here to help, even if it sounds and feels strange.

Turn down the tunes I know you love that new Taylor Swift *song, but turn it off if you’re driving on a mix of snow and ice, you might want to listen to…your tires? (my comment on this: but when you are not driving in snow, listen to Ryan Adam’s cover of 1989…brilliant!)

Steer into a slide – yes, it works Let’s say you turn right, and suddenly the back of your car starts to slide left…so turn in the DIRECTION OF THOSE REAR WHEELS. A slide means your tires have given up; they’ve basically walked out on the job because you’ve asked too much from them.

Get in touch with your inner Boy Scout Pack some extra gear if you’re going to be doing a lot of winter driving. A portable cell phone charger, flash-light, bottled water and snack bars, maybe a road flare or glow-stick…all are good things to have in case you get stuck somewhere

Invest in some snow tires You don’t go jogging in high heels, so why would you drive your car or truck on the wrong kind of wheels?

Be smooth baby, real smooth Don’t punch the gas. Don’t jam on the brakes. Don’t twirl the steering wheel. Keep things slow, smooth, and steady.

 (These are just some highlights. If you want to read the whole article go to :   http://www.nydailynews.com/autos/street-smarts/10-winter-driving-safety-tips-battle-blizzard-article-1.2503544

So we know that snowstorms can be dangerous, but there are also benefits to snow and cold. Agriculturally, one major benefit for our food sources of a good snow cover is that snow functions as an excellent insulator of the soil. Without snow, very cold temperatures can freeze the soil deeper and deeper. This could lead to damage of root systems of trees and shrubs. The insulation effect of snow also helps protect perennials, bulbs, ground covers, and strawberry plantings from alternating freezing and thawing cycles. Without snow, milder temperatures and the sun could warm the soil surface, leading to damage from soil heaving, which can break roots and dry out plant parts. Snow also helps conserve soil moisture over the winter. Snow and freezing temperatures also kill many surface bacteria and viruses, that begin to thrive and happily mutate when the weather is just damp and above freezing.  

Going into some deep biology for those of you who enjoy a little ontogeny recapitulates phylogeny with your cocoa, read on….

The process works like this: Cold air activates a receptor in the worms known as the TRPA1 channel, which is found in nerve and fat cells. This initiates a chain of biochemical signals that ultimately activates a gene known as DAF-16/FOXO, which has been associated with longevity in worms. Since mammals share much of the same genetic programs, it raises the possibility that exposure to cold could also affect longevity in humans. (Environmental Temperature Differentially Modulates C. elegans Longevity through a Thermosensitive TRP Channel.” DOI: dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.celrep.2015.04.066 ) So get cold, live longer.  

(A quick segue from worms to yummy food)  

One of the benefits of a snowstorm is the opportunity for some guilty pleasure eating. Everyone knows to stock up on healthy foods before a storm. I live alone and yet, Friday morning I went to my local Stop and Shop and bought a roasting chicken, high protein Naked smoothies, a bag of potatoes, onions, carrots, spring salad mix, a package of grass fed beef (why? Because meat just seemed appropriate in a snowstorm.) But I also bought everything I needed to make waffles, including blueberries and maple syrup. In addition to extra calories for shoveling (justifying the maple syrup) my psyche required comfort foods. Comfort foods are one of the great joys of snowstorms

So on to snowstorm mental health. There is the stress of all that snow is going to interfere with our daily routines. Will we be able to get to work? Will the power go out and I’ll lose my internet connection? Will the kids have a snow day? Check out this ad for Channel 7 Eye Witness News produced by PromoHouse: http://www.promohouse.tv/project/snow-day/   There is also the emotional stress of not having snow days. In this great video Snow rhymes with and is a substitution for the famous Adele “Hello.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YnIRfvFLiWQ

But the key to staying emotionally well during a snowstorm is simple: accept what you can’t change. An article in Psychology Today (January 23, 2016) states: In his poem, The Snowfall Is So Silent, Miguel de Unamuno intuitively pinpoints the primary scientific reason that snow can create a sense of serenity. He writes, “The snowfall is so silent, so slow, bit by bit, with delicacy it settles down on the earth and covers over the fields. The silent snow comes down white and weightless; snowfall makes no noise, falls as forgetting falls, flake after flake.” There is research indicating that positive mental health and stress reduction are supported by three things: exercise, mindfulness and nature. http://time.com/4063368/stress-relief-meditation/                                    

A snowstorm can give us all three if we just let it. Shoveling snow, walking in the snow, skiing (if you are so inclined) give us the exercise. The silence of snowfall gives us the quiet of our environment and our minds. And the snow in the air, drifting from the sky falling around us and enveloping us surrounds us with the natural phenomenon of the crystallized vapor.  Tytti Pasanen, from the University of Tampere, Finland, observed in her research studies on stress that “spending time on wooded trails or in other natural outdoor environments—any place away from man-built stuff like streets or buildings—appears to trigger an immediate drop in stress.” Magically, even in the middle of a city, the noise of cars, subways and buses is hushed, lights are dimmed by the airborne crystals, the buildings and roads and even piles of garbage soften and disappear. My friend Elise just called me from New York City and she told me that the streets are empty of cars due to the state of emergency, and people are walking down the streets and avenues, happy and relaxed in the quiet and peace of the nature of snow.

On Saturday, as the snow started in the morning and descended all day and into the night, I went out three times and shoveled my walkway and twenty-five steps up to the street and my driveway. The snow was fluffy and it was delightful to be out in my little terraced yard with views of the Hudson River. I have learned to truly love shoveling snow. Having worked at a hospital for 11 years where there are no snow days, I decided that I could either be angry about having to shovel my driveway, take a shower and drive very carefully to the Bronx, or I could love it. As we learned from Viktor Frankl, in the end (and along the way) the only thing we have complete control over is our own attitude. And so I embraced my shovel, the cold on my face, the spray of flakes as they flew through the air, and the ache of my muscles. When I went out to shovel Saturday afternoon, I actually lay on my back and watched the millions of fluffy crystals dance down onto my face, a few caught in my eyelashes. At night the flakes reflected the lights like tiny mirrors in the darkness. And today as I finished off the last 7 or 8 inches under the brilliant blue sky, I heard the honking of geese against the quiet of the snow. I looked up and marveled at their chevron across the blue. On another day of noisy rushing and busy thoughts, I might have missed them. But in the midst of the exercise and nature I also had the perfect moment of mindfulness, of inner peace and joy, like the revelation in Mary Oliver’s poem, The Wild Geese.* 

Meanwhile the wild geese, high in the clean blue air,

Are heading home again.

Whoever you are, no matter how lonely,

The world offers itself to your imagination,

Calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting –

Over and over announcing your place

In the family of things  

 

This was a gift of the snow, the quiet snow.

 

*shared with our class at Yoga House by our generous and kind teacher, Eileen McCabe

A White Woman of a Certain Age Driving a Volvo

19 Dec 2014 1 Comment

by privatelifeinpublichealth in Uncategorized Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

My hands gripped the steering wheel, my eyes focused on the dark roadway ahead, I concentrated on the exact pressure my foot needed to exert to maintain my speed at the 35 mile an hour limit. My heart was pounding and I had to consciously breathe in and out, steady and slow. It was close to midnight on my way home from a friend’s house in northern New Jersey. As I had driven along the Harrington Park side of the reservoir, a car had pulled out from a side street behind me. The driver had been following me, about two car lengths behind my car, for approximately 5 miles. Yes, clearly I was being followed for what reason I didn’t know, especially since the car was police patrol car, and the driver was a police officer.

It had been an evening of pre-Christmas fun with my tennis buddies. We met in Bergenfield, New Jersey at my friends’ house at 5:00 PM, and two designated drivers drove us to Heidelberg restaurant on the upper eastside for totally gluttonous indulgence of schweine haxe, veal chops, and sauerbraten (good but never to compare with my mother’s.) Big 16 ounce glasses of weissbier. Then a decision to skip the strudel and drive down to Rocco’s in the West Village for cannoli, tiramisu, cheesecake, espressos and cappuccinos. We went back uptown for a lovely drive past the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree. Truly a night of friendship, laughter, over eating, and holiday cheer. Back in Bergenfield we all kissed and hugged, and wished each other “Merry Christmas!”

And so I began my drive home, a trip of 13 miles northeast, to Piermont, New York. I was listening to late night NPR, enjoying the thoughts of the friends I had been with, thinking about Christmas plans, singing along with “The Messiah.” When the police car pulled out of the side street, I was certainly a little more aware of my driving, checked the speed limit sign on the side of the road and held a steady 25 mph, which I must say is very slow, but why take a chance? I continued to sing along, but with a little less gusto on the “And he shall glorify!”

At the first main intersection, Livingston Street and Broadway I could have gone straight but decided to make a right turn and head east to Piermont Road. I pulled into the right lane and waited for the light to turn green, since it is a no right on red light. The police car pulled up next to me in the left lane indicating that he (yes, I could see that it was a male cop at the wheel,) would be going straight up Livingston. When the light changed I made my right and suddenly the police car pulled out of the left lane and followed me. I do believe making a right turn out of a left lane is against the law, but hey, he’s a cop. But then I realized, he was really following me. Driving along Livingston I became very aware of my driving, really aware. But then I noticed we were approaching a police station. Oh silly me, he’s just going back to the station. No, on past the station he continued to follow me, maintaining that just about two car lengths between my taillights and his headlights. At the intersection of Broadway and Piermont Road, I moved into the left lane to turn north; the speed limit changed to 35 MPH. Carefully looking both ways at the stop sign I made the left, and then out of the right lane, he turned left too, just about two car lengths behind me.

And this is when my hands started really gripping the steering wheel, I had stopped singing, and had pushed the volume button off, I was aware, very aware of my driving, my speed, the way I rounded each curve, exactly where I was in relation to the center line, the side line, and very aware that there were no other cars. Yes, it was after midnight on a Sunday night, but there were no other cars either in the oncoming lane or behind me, just the steady headlights two car lengths behind me.

I felt scared, trapped, pursued, and mostly I felt like I was being set up. This cop was just waiting for me to slightly veer over a line, to roll through a stop sign, accelerate just beyond the speed limit. I watched the headlights in my rear view mirror and envisioned that at any moment the blue and red strobe would kick on. And then I thought about the beer I drank. Sixteen cold golden ounces between about 6:00 PM and 8:00 PM, intermingled with sauerbraten, potato dumplings, red cabbage, lots of brown bread, and then the Rocco’s tiramisu and cappuccino. Never had I felt the least bit impaired beyond a slight buzz during dinner and that was more than 4 hours ago, and yet I had no idea of what my blood alcohol might be. Never being a careless drinker and driver, never having even gotten a speeding ticket, I had never calculated any of this.

So I could feel a panic setting in as I drove along quiet, dark, lovely wooded Piermont Road. Clearly, I was getting the pump of adrenalin associated with a stressful situation. The internal chemical reaction that has been with us since the dawn of human time to protect us with the fight or flight response.

Adrenalin: A hormone secreted by the adrenal medulla upon stimulation of the central nervous system in response to stress, as anger or fear, acting to increase heart rate, blood pressure, cardiac output, and carbohydrate metabolism. Fosters protective actions of fight or flight.

Yes, I was definitely getting an adrenalin rush.

Fight or Flight: Involving or relating to an involuntary response to stress in which the hormone adrenaline is secreted into the blood stream in readiness for physical action, such as fighting or running away.

Here are the specifics of how this works and the behaviors it causes from a site called Changing Minds:

When we perceive a significant threat to us, then our bodies get ready either for a fight to the death or a desperate flight from certain defeat by a clearly superior adversary.

Physical changes

Fight or flight effects include:

  • Our senses sharpening. Pupils dilate (open out) so we can see more clearly, even in darkness. Our hairs stand on end, making us more sensitive to our environment (and also making us appear larger, hopefully intimidating our opponent).
  • The cardio-vascular system leaping into action, with the heart pump rate going from one up to five gallons per minutes and our arteries constricting to maximize pressure around the system whilst the veins open out to ease return of blood to the heart.
  • The respiratory system joining in as the lungs, throat and nostrils open up and breathing speeding up to get more air in the system so the increased blood flow can be re-oxygenated. The blood carries oxygen to the muscles, allowing them to work harder. Deeper breathing also helps us to scream more loudly!
  • Fat from fatty cells and glucose from the liver being metabolized to create instant energy.
  • Blood vessels to the kidney and digestive system being constricted, effectively shutting down systems that are not essential. A part of this effect is reduction of saliva in the mouth. The bowels and bladder may also open out to reduce the need for other internal actions (this might also dissuade our attackers!).
  • Blood vessels to the skin being constricted reducing any potential blood loss. Sweat glands also open, providing an external cooling liquid to our over-worked system. (this makes the skin look pale and clammy).
  • Endorphins, which are the body’s natural pain killers, are released (when you are fighting, you do not want be bothered with pain–-that can be put off until later.)
  • The natural judgment system is also turned down and more primitive responses take over–this is a time for action rather than deep thought.

Modern effects

Unfortunately, we are historically too close to the original value of this primitive response for our systems to have evolved to a more appropriate use of it, and many of life’s stresses trigger this response. The surprises and shocks of modern living leave us in a permanent state of arousal that takes its toll on our bodies, as described by Hans Selye’s General Adaptation Syndrome.

Freezing

A third alternative response which often comes before fight or flight is freezing. This is often used by prey as they seek not to be noticed by predators and is typified by the rabbit paralyzed by the headlights of an oncoming car.

Humans also will pause at signs of danger. By freezing, you also cut down on noise and visual change and so may hear or see things around you more clearly.

Freezing gives you time to assess the situation and, if necessary you may then take further action, including fighting or backing away.

And…

Shielding

Another automatic, unthinking reaction when faced with a sudden threat is to go into a ‘shield’ mode, for example cowering down and protecting the head by throwing arms over it. Turning away to use the back as a shield is also common.

When with a child or another person, the protection instinct may cause you to throw your body around them, pulling them in and literally becoming a ‘human shield’.

Sacrifice

Beyond shielding or perhaps as an extension of it, we will even sacrifice ourselves to help others, for example where a soldier ‘takes the bullet’ for a colleague.

When people are praised for being heroes, a common response is to say that they ‘didn’t think about it’. In other words, it was an automatic reaction to help others, even at the potential cost of one’s own life. This willingness to sacrifice is an essential element of humanity and society, even if we never have to take this action.

If you get wound up yourself, stop. Get out. Use any excuse to go somewhere and calm down.

 

Flight or fight to the death. That’s what our medulla has been programmed for in our survival and the survival of those we love and care for, even complete strangers.

But let me take you back from primitive humanity to that night in my car as my heart started pounding, my hands were getting sweaty on the wheel and I had to work hard to keep my breath steady. And my sudden realization: If the red and blue lights began to strobe behind me and I had to pull over, fight or flight were the last things I would ever want to do when confronted by a police officer. Even “getting out, using any excuse to go somewhere and calm down” was not going to work. The response that has protected us as humans since prehistory was exactly what not to do. Read any of the recent news reports. Michael Brown, Eric Gardner, compelling statistics of police violence specifically targeted against black men. Fight or Flight in these circumstances is deadly.

I am a white woman of a certain age, driving a Volvo, adhering to the speed limit, with an extremely clean driving record. Why was I chosen to be followed? What was my profile? What is anyone’s “profile”?

This is not a rant against police. My own Piermont cops came to my aid when I was locked out of my house and on another occasion carried me from my driveway down 20 steps after my ankle surgery. I have worked with many police officers and detectives in victims’ services, and they are dedicated to risking their own lives to protect others. I also know that when stressed, their fight kicks in; fleeing is not an option.

Marc H. Morial, President and CEO of the National Urban League wrote in the Huffington Post:

That is why we march — because Eric Garner, Michael Brown, Akai Gurley, Tamir Rice, John Crawford and others did not deserve to die; because Marlene Pinnock did not deserve to be viciously beaten and Levar Jones did not deserve to be shot for complying with a trooper’s request; because the excessive use of force — deadly force — by law enforcement against unarmed African Americans has no place in the land of the free and the home of the brave; because police should not fear the communities they have sworn to protect and communities should not fear those who serve to protect them; and because we — as a nation — must and can be better.

I never did have to contend with my fight or flight response that night. About 6 miles after the patrol car started following me, as I drove at 35 miles an hour on Piermont Road and I passed the big green “Welcome to New York, the Empire State” sign, the headlights suddenly disappeared as the officer at the wheel pulled a U-turn and drove back south. My heart rate calmed as I rounded the bend into Piermont and drove up my steep windy road home. But still I wondered why I had been followed. I continue to wonder about how we can all do better. I can’t pretend I know what it is like to be routinely profiled, followed, questioned, threatened, but I do know what a state of constant fight or flight does to a person’s nervous system, to the nervous system of a community, to a nation; a permanent state of arousal that takes its toll on our bodies, minds, hearts and souls, and costs lives when fight or flight is a death sentence. It’s in the research, it’s in the news every day. We must and can do better.

For me this was an isolated incident, but then I am a white woman of a certain age, driving a Volvo, adhering to the speed limit, with an extremely clean driving record.