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Health Gov

A Funny Thing Happened – Insider Insights of Skilled Nursing Care

First-time author, married father of four, and retired UPS truck driver becomes a Certified Nurse Assistant (CNA). Then he begins working in a dementia care facility where he says, “I fit right in.”
How did Chuck Schoenfeld find himself working in a small northern Wisconsin health care facility?
In this humorous account Chuck shares remarkable insights of skilled nursing care as an insider.
It all began when he slipped and fell on the kitchen floor while visiting his mother. She had just washed the kitchen floor of her apartment with Crisco Oil. It was then that Chuck and his wife, Maggie, persuaded her to move in with them.
As his mother’s health declined further, they moved her into a dementia unit a block away from the Schoenfeld home.
He visited her often and also spent time with other residents. This military veteran and UPS driver was so moved by what he experienced with the residents, he changed careers at age 56 to become a CNA.
For the next six-plus years, Schoenfeld made the hard work fun. He described one day as a collage of One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, Mission Impossible, and Rocky. He learned to redirect Mabel when her piercing screams for the police made him hope they would arrive after she used her walker as a weapon.
Schoenfeld writes humbly, honestly, and vividly, admitting “one of the greatest obstacles [he] had to overcome [were his] own insecurities.” For one, he could never quite get through helping residents with their “personal cares,” such as toileting. However, he was called upon to do the other hard work like calming combative residents. He writes about nursing assistants who work hard and long hours, often working overtime to make ends meet. He adds that they duck, dodge, sometimes take direct hits, and still continue working–a testament to how much they care.
The residents “opened my heart and jumped in.”- Charles Schoenfeld
Some of the residents he writes about:
Little Lila in her late nineties had no visitors but was “lovingly feisty.”
Silly antics with former school teacher Frieda who knew better despite Chuck’s request for her to copy a sentence he had written, “I leave my entire estate to Chuck.”
Helping depressed Susan agree to take her pills only after he took time to gain her trust and become her friend.
He took the high road when dealing with the residents–even feeling defensive while in public, for example, when people stared while he waited with a resident to see the doctor. He notes, If you do “your best to keep people safe and offer them friendship, you’ve given them all you can, which is really all they are asking for.”
Author Charles Schoenfeld speaks of Alzheimer’s as taking away everything from residents “until there is nothing left to give.”
He adds, “My nature is to look for the light side of a worst-possible situation.”
During the author’s nearly seven years of service, you’ll read about the “Secret Club,” CNA drama, compassionate moments, and even deer hunting.
This book is a testament to the Schoenfeld’s nature and a tribute to the residents whose lives he made better with compassion and fun antics.
Inspiring reading for nursing home management and staff. A must read for families faced with moving a loved one into a nursing home.…

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Healthy Nutrition

Handy Advice For Making Snoring A Thing Of The Past.

Snoring is something that a lot of people are sensitive about and never converse over. Because of this, it can be difficult to learn exactly how you can eliminate snoring while sleeping. If you are someone that suffers from snoring, this article is perfect for you.

In order to keep yourself from snoring, stay hydrated. In a person that is dehydrated, the nasal passage secretions are thicker, which means they have the ability to block the airways and increase snoring. To minimize the risk of snoring, you should try to drink at least 10 cups of hydrating liquid (anything non-caffeinated, ideally water) in the course of the day.

Avoid the use of illegal drugs. They can cause you to snore, let alone the other health hazards they create. Marijuana can affect you the same way legal prescription medications do; it relaxes you. Street drugs and pain killers have same effect. You might like the relaxed feeling when you are still awake, but once you fall asleep, you will snore.

If you snore, you should avoid drinking alcohol. In addition to refraining from alcohol use, sleeping pills, tranquilizers, and antihistamines should also be avoided before bedtime. Such drugs are muscle relaxers. While they have their uses, they also tend to affect your breathing passages, and make snoring more likely and severe.

Side sleeping is a great way to prevent snoring. Sleeping on your back makes it more likely that you will snore. However, sleeping on the stomach is not recommended as it can put stress on your neck. For these reasons, being bilateral is the optimal position for sleeping.

Some doctors believe that building up the muscles in your upper throat can end snoring problems. One physician suggests that because singing builds muscles implicated in snoring, the act of singing will reduce snoring over time. These stronger muscles will keep your airway open, stopping your snoring and allowing you a good night’s sleep.

Avoid taking anything before bed if you have a snoring problem. Sedatives, muscle relaxants, and alcohol will all have an extreme loosening effect on your throat muscles. When these muscles go slack, your breathing passage gets obstructed, restricting your airflow and very often encouraging more snoring. Water is the best choice for hydrating yourself before bed.

Have a couple of spoonfuls of honey before heading off to bed each night. Though the reason for its effectiveness is elusive, many people argue that honey can greatly limit snoring. However, honey as always been a very useful ingredient in a lot of home remedies.

The home remedy “tennis ball cure” is something many supposedly former snorers swear by. By placing a tennis ball under your shirt on your back, you can implement this method to reduce snoring. This will prevent you from sleeping on your back; if you try, you’ll soon roll over to get more comfortable. Eventually, you’ll become accustomed to lying on your side while sleeping, at which point you can discontinue using the tennis ball.

As you saw from the beginning, many people don’t discuss their snoring. Now that you know what you can do about your own snoring, you can bravely discuss it with others who might benefit from the information as well.…