JNJ on Twitter

• Tnx to all the great student nurses at MU, Blessing, and Graham. So much fun laughing with you over last couple of weeks! #
• is going to AORN Congress next week in Denver. If you're going to be there, let her know so she can connect with you! #

Do Your Jokes Stink?

We would be beyond remiss if we went through Colon Cancer Awareness month without mentioning Fart-Fart.com ! Let’s face it: after you’ve worked the gastro-intestinal gig for a while, you’ll start hearing the same fart jokes over and over and over again. Mix it up with some of the great jokes from this site — and don’t miss the fart research! (Yes, really!)

And if you download a fart ring tone to covertly install on your least favorite doc’s phone…well, that’s simply not the type of thing we’d advocate. Laugh at like crazy, sure. Advocate, no. :-)

Get A Life by Loretta LaRoche

We live in a society that has somehow come to feel that sleep is a waste of time. It’s not uncommon to hear people brag about how little sleep they need in order to function. Is this really something to be proud of, though?

I wonder why we’re so invested in convincing ourselves that surfing the internet, returning test messages, or watching our big-screen TVs is more important than resting?

Sleep deprivation creates a stress response that induces the release of cortisol, which has been found to increase abdominal fat. It also compromises memory (so now you’ve got a lot done, but you can’t remember what you did). Too much cortisol is not a good thing!

In ancient times, it was the body’s trigger to store fat in response to the famine that might follow an attack by a behemoth or saber-toothed tiger.

Scientists have also found that a lack of adequate sleep (even after as little as two nights increases the levels of the hunger hormone ghrelin by 28 percent, which seems to fuel our desire for carbohydrate-rich foods, such as cake, candy, ice-cream, pasta, and bread. In addition, insufficient sleep reduces our production of leptin—a protein hormone that suppresses appetite. So that’s a double whammy!

Surveys estimate that 63% of American adults don’t get the recommended eight hours of sleep each night. Many of us just don’t have a good sense of how much sleep we really need, but Eve Van Cauter a University of Chicago sleep researcher recommends that most adults need an average of seven to nine hours of sleep.

I wish people would heed this advice—-not only for their own well-being, but for mine and everyone else! I’m sick and tired of being around people who are always complaining about how tired they are. It seems to have become somewhat of a contest now too. The more tired you are the more validation you get, because the perception is that you are so busy, so you have no time to rest.

However, the bottom line is that productivity, health and happiness are predicated on feeling rested. So take a nap, go to bed early, but take time to sleep, and guess what, you might not be so tired.

Loretta LaRoche writes the Get A Life Column for the Patriot Ledger.

JNJ Twitter Updates for 2010-03-04

• Tnx to all the great student nurses at MU, Blessing, and Graham. So much fun laughing with you over last couple of weeks! #

JNJ on Twitter

• Clones are people two. #

FCAN

This week’s resource comes from Debra Joy Hart , a dear friend of the JNJ team. She wrote to us about FCAN, and here’s what she said:

Near and dear to my heart is FCAN. I have been with this organization since 1996. I volunteered as ” Daisy the Clown.” and, 14 years later, I am still with them.

Every spring and summer and sometimes in between, FCAN puts on Red Ribbon Trails, a camp just for Illinois families infected and/or affected with HIV/AIDS. The families and individuals that come to this camp are some of the most courageous people I have ever been privileged to be with. Whether I am quietly holding the hand of a small child, clowning adult humor with a parent or camped out with the volunteers, my heart sings in all these situations.

My relationship to FCAN folks extends outside of camp. One of the parents of a child that died of AIDS asked me to come as “Daisy” to the visitation and speak at the church service. Showing up to the funeral home in a clown costume was one of the hardest things I have ever done. Extended family and friends greeted me in the hallways of the funeral home. “Daisy, we are so glad you are here!” I looked around and my clown eyes welled up with tears as I saw albums and framed photos of camp, this child and I.

The volunteers and collaborators have become some of my best friends and confidants. These are the people that help make me laugh, give me a shoulder to cry on and most of all… show me daily hope and courage. This organization has made my life rich beyond belief. If so moved, please consider donating to them, in order to help this organization keep giving to others! FCAN – 53 W Jackson Blvd, Suite 304, Chicago, IL 60604 phone: 312-786-9255 and fax: 312-786-9203. FCAN’s website is www.familiesandchildrensnetwork.org

If you are interested in volunteering for FCAN, you can find out more about it here.

Get A Life by Loretta LaRoche

In all the reams of literature written on stress, there is nothing that addresses clothing or personal grooming aids as being stressful. Yet I’m sure many of you have fallen victim to buying fashions, products, or gadgets to enhance your looks that ended up being an incredibly frustrating experience.

I now have a list of items that I consider to border on cruelty: Jeans that are supposed to be for a petite woman that are made for toddlers. A petite mature woman has hips, an ample waist and a butt that has seen some time on this planet. Yes I’m short, but I’m not petite! I don’t want to stuff myself into a piece of clothing that looks and feels like a denim wet suit.

How about panty hose? Oh yes, there are much cooler versions then there were when I was growing up. But still, you have to really medicate yourself before you pull them on. The size chart was developed by pathological liars. If I got the size they recommended for my height and weight I might not get them above my knees. I once got a pair stuck around my upper thighs and had to cut them off.  If you buy a larger size so that your body won’t be squeezed to death, they bag around the knees making you look like an old elephant.

How about hair gels that get so stiff you need a chisel to remove them, lipstick that sticks on everything except your lips, mascara that won’t come off unless you detach your eyelashes, and zippers that love to eat the material surrounding them.

Also on my list are bras that make your breasts look like bananas or have under wires that leave track marks, underpants that stop circulation, manufacturers that make clothing labels  with  manipulative sizing that says 1, 2, 3 or 3.5. Give me a break! When did we start thinking we had to fool people into believing they were thin?

I know that I’m not the only one that has issues with all of the above, yet somehow many of us become mesmerized into thinking we should ignore how we feel in lieu of how we think we should look. I might have bought into that when I was younger, but age has brought me the wisdom to know that comfort is much more satisfying then wearing the “Emperors’ New Clothes”.

Loretta LaRoche writes the Get A Life Column for the Patriot Ledger.

Now I Know How A Muppet Feels!

March is Colon Cancer Awareness Month, and if ever there was a cause we can get behind, this is it! When early detection and treatment can have such a significant impact on patient outcomes, we’re all about spreading the word.

Let’s not kid ourselves.  Having  a colonscopy is not on most people’s Absolute Favorite Things To Do Ever list.  There’s a lot of fear and misunderstanding out there about exactly what the procedure involves, compounding by the embarrassment people feel when talking about sensitive areas.

As health care providers, we can use humor to help patients overcome that fear.  Providing education doesn’t have to be boring — in fact, a little laugh can help the patient retain information.  We remember what we laugh about. Read more

JNJ Twitter Updates for 2010-02-26

• Clones are people two. #

JNJ on Twitter

• 404 Moment: when med records/chart can't be located during doc's rounds (From HTTP 404 error "Not Found") #
• FF# @NurseTogether, @BlueSky107, @socialEspeaking, @LorettaLaRoche, @DonnaCardillo, @LeAnnThieman, @franlondon, #
• More FF# @PattyWooten, @NurseTalk, @DrRobertHolden, @realpatchadams, @ronculberson #
• Asked pt family member "R U closest relative?" response "Oh no, I live all the way in Pennsylvania!" (don't have 2 make this up!) #
• Woman's abd pain turns out to be foot long surgical instrument–oops! How'd we overlook that?! http://ow.ly/19sAU #
• Kudos to the students at Graham Hosp School of Nursing (the last diploma school in IL). You guys rock! #
• Apparently there was a flight that took off on time from O'Hare last night–mine! Too bad I wasn't on it. Long night… trying to get home. #

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