May is World Stroke Month. Many health and heart organizations come together every May to raise awareness about the causes and effects of stroke.
One of their biggest campaigns is FAST, teaching the world to know the symptoms of stroke and how to respond quickly to help save a life.
Face – By asking the person to smile you can tell immediately if one side of the face droops.
Arm – Ask the person to raise both arms. Observe to see if one arm drifts lower than the other.
Speech – Slurred speech is a symptom of stroke. Ask the person to repeat a single sentence.
Time – Call 911-Fast. Time may be the difference between life and death or even partial and full recovery.
HISTORY
National Stroke Awareness Day was proclaimed in 1989 by President George H. W. Bush. It had been observed for many years before the proclamation. The Centers for Disease Control, the American Heart Association, World Stroke Campaign and many other have all participated in bringing education, research, and treatment on a global basis.
National I Want You to be Happy Day on March 3rd encourages us to do something that makes others happy. It also asks us to see others’ happiness from their point of view. Putting a smile on someone’s face tends to put one on ours, too.
Genuine happiness takes effort. While we’re not individually responsible for other’s happiness, we do play a role in spreading joy and good cheer. One way to do that is to see happiness from another person’s perspective. Happiness doesn’t fit a mold. Everything from being a morning person or a night owl, a favorite season and seafood can make or break a person’s general idea of happiness. A person’s overall journey through life gives them a unique outlook on happiness, too.
Being happy may merely be about quality, not quantity.
HOW TO OBSERVE #IWantYouToBeHappyDay
National I Want You to Be Happy Day is quite limitless. Give a flower here. Tell a silly knock-knock joke there. Buy the person’s coffee standing in line behind you. Remind your kids how much you love them. Leave a sticky note for a co-worker telling them to have a spectacular day, a happy day. Draw a happy face in the snow for a stranger to come across later. Give someone a hug.
But no matter what, consider someone else’s happiness from their point of view.
Use #IWantYouToBeHappyDay to post on social media.
National Brain Injury Awareness Month in March alerts us to the causes and aims to eliminate the stigma surrounding brain injuries.
When it comes to brain injuries, not a single injury or person is the same. The month is dedicated to improving awareness of brain injuries. Providing quality support for people with brain injuries and understanding their needs will improve their outcomes for the future. Changing the world’s perspective to understand how brain injuries work is a difficult task.
While anyone can suffer from a brain injury, it’s important to remember that everyone is a person first. They are not their injury. Each person has hopes and dreams, and they are not their injury. Each injury affects a person differently. How we support the person and treat the injury will require understanding and patience.
I suffered a burst brain aneurysm stroke in 2013. I am in the extremely lucky category. After months of recovery I was able to swallow correctly and regain a lot of function. In 2015 I developed a spinal cyst from the aneurysm. Even after spinal surgery I have not regained my ability to stand and walk. While I am competent to handle my affairs I am in the 17% who can do so. A field of vision defect effects the ability to do something as simple as read a sentence, accout number or even price tags.
I am grateful everyday that I have had no further complications and look forward to my future. It’s the main reason I started this blog. I had no idea before this that women like me are so likely experience this. I hope this inspires more to be aware of the risks and inspire those who go through it that it does not have to be the end of an active and fulfilling life.
Prevention
Learning the signs of a concussion and when to seek medical attention can mean the difference between mild and severe injuries. Repeat injuries require additional attention.
Two types of brain injuries are traumatic and non-traumatic. Traumatic brain injuries occur due to motor vehicle accidents, sports or recreational injuries, domestic violence, falls, and other external forces. Causes of Non-traumatic brain injuries begin internally due to disease, poisoning, a hereditary condition, lack of oxygen, stroke, or other internal medical condition.
According to the Department of Defense, one of the keys to recognizing a concussion and getting immediate treatment is identifying these symptoms:
H – headaches or vomiting
E – ears ringing
A – amnesia, altered consciousness, or loss of consciousness
D – double vision and/or dizziness
S – something is wrong, or not quite right
HOW TO OBSERVE #BrainInjuryAwarenessMonth #ChangeYourMind
Learn more about supporting those with brain injuries, prevention, and more. Visit www.biausa.org to learn more. Use #BrainInjuryAwarenessMonth and #ChangeYourMind to share on social media.
The entire month of February is dedicated to the people who love whole buildings devoted to the reading, housing, organizing, categorizing, finding, studying and otherwise loving books. It’every s National Library Lover’s Month!
Check out some of these fantastic Authors and their books. I’ve said for years “Hollywood needs a library card. Guess someone finally heard me. ” They currently have Movies or series based on the books.
There are lots of great authors and books I cannot begin to list them all here. Make sure you bookmark and like our site for more.
Libraries provide so much more than a place for us to enjoy great novels or to discover amazing adventures and untold history. Yes, they help us ace our research papers and provide a quiet space to study, but they do so much more.
For preschoolers, libraries entertain them with theater and hands-on activities exposing them to music, art and their first friendships. Many communities rely on their libraries for meeting space for public forums, socials, fundraisers and classes.
Libraries lend not only books but music and movies. Rotating art displays give local artists exposure to the community. Larger libraries provide preservation services, preserving some of the most treasured books, periodicals and documents for future generations.
Of course, if you’re even a fraction addicted to books as I am you may have to start your own library. Mine is currently occupying six bookshelves with some still boxed. Since I like to reread mine I use them frequently. As I usually read a full novel in about two days I have to carry a small ton from my local library or draw from my own. I wish e-readers had been around when I started.
If you want to pass this gift to others February 14th is also International Book Giving Day.
Continue enjoying your library, but consider volunteering your time, too. If you don’t have a library card, it’s never too late! Visit your library to get one! Use #NationalLibraryLoversDay to share on social media.
National Vision Board Day on the second Saturday in January encourages us to set our goals in a visual way. Get out the sticky notes, markers, and inspiration and start plotting your goals for the new year!
Vision board parties began in 2010 between a group of friends as a way for people to get together in a fun environment to set goals, cast a vision and dream out loud in a tangible way. They then mount on their completed vision boards on their walls where they would see them every day. Seeing their hopes and dreams helps set in motion these visions and ideas to become a reality.
Many actors, musicians, fashion and entertainment-based people have been participating in this since its inception. Vision boards help people remember their goals and concepts on a daily basis.
Host a vision party for your friends, family or co-workers. Set goals for the coming year and put them where you can see them. They will help motivate you to attain your goals. Do you have a vision board from last year? How well did it work? Share the results and get ready for an outstanding vision board for this year, too!
Post photos using #VisionBoardDay on social media.
