Sleep Disorders and Relaxation Techniques

Sleep Disorders; this is a informative article using relaxation techniques.
This article is from the Sleep Disorders Center at the University of Maryland Medical Center.
Relaxation techniques often can help people with sleep problems get a good night’s sleep. Several relaxation techniques are listed below; click on any of the links to learn more.
Progressive Relaxation
Toe Tensing
Deep Breathing
Guided Imagery
Quiet Ears
http://www.umm.edu/sleep/relax_tech.html

Wow, a clairvoyant princess!

Wow, a clairvoyant princess!
July 24 2007 at 06:52PM
Oslo - Norwegian Princess Maertha Louise claims she is clairvoyant and intends to share her gifts in a newly created school for students who wish to "get in contact with (their) angels," she said on the school website. On the website, the 35-year-old princess, keen on alternative therapies, explains how she already "as a small child" discovered that she had the gift of decoding the inner feelings of people she met."I learnt how to systematise my impressions and to read other (people's minds), and through the horses I learnt to communicate with the animals on a deeper level," she said."It was while I was taking care of the horses that I got in contact with the angels. I have lately understood the value of this important gift and I wish to share it with other people, maybe with you," she said.
Interesting article posted in The latest in the News"

Additions to my Blog

I have added ClustrMaps, AdSense and Latest in News to my blog with "some help", which is very exciting and fun. I am really enjoying reading other blogs and working on mine.

Take care of your mind and body

Relaxation techniques, such as deep breathing is a great way to take of your mind and body. Try this exercise, you lie down on a flat surface. Place one hand on your stomach above the navel, and the other hand on your chest. Breathe in slowly until the stomach rises a bit and hold your breath for a second. Then, exhale slowly.
Muscle relaxation – in which you tense and relax muscles one by one – this helps reduce anxiety. Some people benefit from yoga or meditation. Studies show that regular exercise is one of the best ways to ward off anxiety and to build a stronger sense of well-being. Also, avoid overindulging in unhealthy foods, and do not abuse alcohol, drugs (both legal and illegal) and stimulants such as caffeine. For more information view this article.
http://healthysteps.health.ivillage.com/everydaylife/waysreduceanxiety.cfm?dst=rss%7CMSNBC_Today_Health

Controlling Blood Glucose Through Biofeedback and Relaxation Therapy

Everyone experiences stress in their lives, for type 2 diabetes stress can prevent them from keeping their blood glucose at a normal level. Better management can reduce the blood glucose levels and reduce the chances of complications from diabetes. Biofeedback-assisted relaxation in type 2 diabetes, by R.A. McGinnis and colleagues. Diabetes Care 28:2145–2149, 2005.

Holistic Nursing

Holistic Nursing offfered at New York College of Health Care Professionals.
Holistic Nursing Programs at New York College teach registered nurses how they can educate, treat, and guide their patients so each patient can attain optimum health and well-being.
Check the web site for info@nycollege.edu

Vacation

Yesterday, I spent the day with my daughter (who just graduated from Nursing school with her BSN) at Discovery Cove, Orlando Florida and swim with the dolphins, what a moving experience. Such beautiful intellegent animals. It was such an interactive and wonderful experience that had spiritual qualities.

Descriptions of CAM

Complementary and Alternative Therapies
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/complementaryandalternativetherapies.html
This is a good site for descriptions and definitions of CAM.

Relaxation Deep Breathing Tape

Here is a good deep breathing relaxation tape.
Counseling and Mental Health Center
University of Texas
Track 01.mp3: Deep Breathing

Excellant Relaxation Video

www.mayoclinic.com/health/relaxation-technique/SR00007
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/relaxation-technique/SR00007

Benson-Henry Institute for Mind Body Medicine

Check out this web site which is right next door and available for all. www.mbmi.org. For more information on mind/body medicine, you may contact Director of Communications Martha Waldron at 617.732.9760 or mwaldron3@partners.org

Broken Bone

I had an interesting Monday June 18th, I tripped and fell getting into the elevator at work and fractured my rib and hit my head. Good news I will recover, but this just reinforced that I work with wonderful people. From everyone who helped me that day to everyone who was concerned about me. Thank you to you all.

This Week at Boston.com/Monster

Boston Sunday Globe June 24,2007 Careers. Interesting article written by Penelope Trunk, author of Brazen Careerist: The New Rules for Success. The article: Learn, share ideas through blogging. Penelope quotes,"Blogging allows you to create a high-quality network for yourself based, not on the old model of passing out business cards, but on a new model of passing out ideas." This is good way to get feedback to your ideas but it also takes committment to keep it updated and current.

Pain Management, for nurses, mentatl health & hypnotists.

www.eslinger.net Interesting web site

Pain Management 2 day, 18 CECs for RNs, CRNAs, MH, and Hypnotists sponsored by National Guild of Hypnotists August 8-9, 2007 Marlboro, MAPain Management 2 day, 18 CECs for RNs,

Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM), is defined as "a group of diverse medical and health care systems, practices, and products that are not presently considered to be part of conventional medicine....The list of what is considered to be CAM changes continually, as those therapies that are proven to be safe and effective become adopted into conventional health care and as new approaches to health care emerge."*
This guide is intended as an introduction, to direct readers to sources to begin research. See also Library Guide to Health Resources http://library.nyu.edu/research/health/

Are complementary medicine and alternative medicine different from each other?

Yes, they are different.
Complementary medicine is used together with conventional medicine. An example of a complementary therapy is using aromatherapy to help lessen a patient's discomfort following surgery.
Alternative medicine is used in place of conventional medicine. An example of an alternative therapy is using a special diet to treat cancer instead of undergoing surgery, radiation, or chemotherapy that has been recommended by a conventional doctor.
nccam.nih.gov/health/whatiscam/
http://nccam.nih.gov/health/whatiscam/

My goal as a registered nurse is to create an environment that would allow patient's an option to have complementary treatments such as, relaxation, touch, imagery, and hypnotherapy techniques available to them pre and postoperatively. By doing this it would form a partnership with the patient and together be able to participate in their healing process.

This would expand the nursing process by being able to treat the patient as a whole rather that a disease process. Research shows that the combination of relaxation techniques, imagery and hypnotherapy have value to the perioperative patient both in the adult and pediatric population. The Journal of PeriAnesthesia Nursing (2003)p.254-261 looked at the effect of two nursing interventions; guided imagery and music therapy on the postoperative outcomes with laparoscopic surgery patients, this showed the patients who used them had much less pain on discharge than the controlled group.www.aspan.org/publication_tips_for_your_resear.htm

Using Wikipedia, the free encycopedia,www.wikipedia.org is a great website for descriptions and definations of the different types of complementary therapies.

The association of Operating Room Nurses (AORN) article (1997) p. 644-9 "Guided imagery as a coping strategy for perioperative patients." showed with the use guided imagery patients experienced less pre and postoperative anxiety, pain, and required almost 50% less pain medication after their procedure than the controlled group.mailto:group.aornjournal@aorn.org

The pediatric population are excellent subjects for complementary therapies, such as hypnotherapy, and visual imagery for management of their surgical procedures. Children live in a wonderful world of wonderment and imagination which would be a benefit to a health care worker. An article from Nurse Week,(2004) p.1 by Janet Kilgore. "No More Tears" demonstrated that there was a reduction in children's postoperative pain and anxiety with the use of medicine and imagery tools such as videos, audiotapes, relaxation, and imagery techniques pre and postoperative.http://www.nurseweek.com/news/features/04-11/painmgmtprogram.asp

Combination is the key word here to be able to combine complementary therapies and traditional medicine would be a better way to serve our patient population. Not only reducing pain, anxiety we would be empowering ourselves and our patients to participate in their healing process and giving them the tools to develop a sense of well being. Your comments are appreciated as I move forward in my learning process.

Welcome

Welcome to my Blog:
I am a nurse manager of a PACU in a major teaching hospital. I am working on my thesis which is Complementary Therapies for Surgical Patients. For this blog I would like to explore what is the understanding from the general population of the term Complementary Therapy.
Your input is important me and my work. Thank you, Jo-Ann