Aging Well with Marjorie supports the best possible decision-making by individuals for physical health matters such as housing options and aging in place, changing bad habits to good, stretching dollars, enjoying food, and maintaining good posture and balance.
The footing for our new house was very well done, and the foundation frost wall went in without a hitch. It was my husband whose old soccer injury to his knee flared up that knocked him off his own fo...
10 October, 2017Re: Nova Scotia’s recent budget: I can live with the tiny increase in health care, provided we change to a client-centred system to better meet health needs across the population. Client-centred...
01 October, 2017I recently had the pleasure of working with Dalhousie University nursing students in their final year. They taught me a thing or two about the flu and flu vaccine based on their search of the literatu...
08 November, 2016Nordic pole walking brings so many benefits it’s no wonder that so many people are taking it up. It’s gaining popularity with people of all ages. ...
16 August, 2016Our community was shocked and saddened when a 15-year-old boy drowned recently. This has prompted me to re-launch a previous blog. I was astonished to learn that drowning people don’t shout or wave th...
09 August, 2016Do you hold positive or negative views about aging? Is it better to be realistic about physical losses, or approach aging with an optimistic viewpoint? Here’s what a group of researchers from Germany,...
19 July, 2016A friend recently asked“What kinds of supports are there for housing adaptations?”. Here are some ideas and resources that may help you, too....
12 July, 2016Seniors’ income in Canada has been rising since 1980 with our system of after-tax benefits. So why do we still have seniors living in poverty?...
04 July, 2016It’s all too easy to overdo things in the warm days of summer, but you can prevent heat stroke by staying hydrated and avoiding vigorous exercise in hot, humid weather. It also helps to wear hats and ...
29 June, 2016I try really hard to be faithful in my exercising, but I’m not always regular. How about you? What are your strategies for staying on track?...
21 June, 2016I don’t know about you, but I find it challenging some days to eat all the vegetables I ought to. I “strive for five” a day, and yet I sometimes fall short. Luckily, garden vegetables seem to make it ...
31 May, 2016Homesharing is about two or more people living together, and it can include all ages, incomes, and abilities. Each person has their own bedroom (furnished or unfurnished), and they share common spaces...
16 May, 2016How often do you pooh? Three times a day to three times a week is considered normal. Feces from a healthy bowel movement should be 1 to 2 inches across, smooth and brown, and in one piece about 18 inc...
23 April, 2016Cognitive-Behaviour Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-I) seems promising for helping people get a good sleep at night. You can learn and use CBT-I on yourself, as detailed by Judith R. Davidson, author of Sin...
22 March, 2016I was stunned to learn just how much more sugar there is in processed foods compared to unprocessed, and how little is recommended for consumption. Women should have no more than 6 tsp. (24 g) per day...
14 February, 2016I had such fun recently, trying out recreational folk dance. It really is true that dancing is one of those rare activities that contributes to physical, mental, and social wellbeing all at the same t...
08 February, 2016I thought I was pretty creative – reusing an old ironing board pad as heat-proof liner to make 3 pairs of pot holders – until I ran across some websites positively overflowing with examples of reusing...
28 December, 2015Do you have fun and pleasure in your life? Something you look forward to? Gets rid of stress? Gives you joy and focus? Gets your mind off your troubles? If you do, you probably have a hobby! A very bu...
02 December, 2015Feeling stiff? I love my morning stretches, to help loosen up overnight stiffness. Getting my spine unbent, standing with legs apart and arms stretched high, moving the head and neck around, loosening...
21 October, 2015Your attitude to one or more periods of wakefulness in the night can make all the difference between a restful night and a miserable night. Wakefulness at night is a facet of aging that can provide ti...
06 October, 2015Gardening is a super activity for strength, endurance, and flexibility – assuming you enjoy doing it. If you’ve never gardened and want to start, I say go for it. On the other hand, you may find you w...
08 September, 2015If you had told me a year ago I’d be eating kale this year, I’m not sure I would have believed you. But kale is tickling my taste buds now, and I wonder why it took me so long to get started. Yes, I k...
01 September, 2015Buttock muscles are more important than abdominals for ease of standing – assuming yours are strong enough. Strong legs, ankles, and feet also play a role. With so much sitting nowadays, any length of...
29 July, 201552 bones, 66 joints, and over 100 muscles, tendons, and ligaments. Strong and flexible feet and ankles are essential for balance and stability, yet how little attention we tend to pay to them....
02 July, 2015Trouble falling asleep? Hard to stay asleep? Common causes are anxiety and worry (the “ruffled mind” quotation above by Charlotte Brontë), aging, illness and medication, snoring, and sleep apnea. As w...
15 June, 2015Whether you stand or sit to use a computer, and whether you use a desktop or laptop, keeping your head level and chin tucked in can be particularly challenging for people who wear bifocals....
19 May, 2015I can’t think of a worse design than laptops for creating poor posture, aching shoulders, neck and back, sore wrists and fingers, and eye strain, but there are solutions. Using a laptop for an hour or...
14 May, 2015If sitting is so bad for us, how can we easily and reasonably incorporate more standing and walking? For starters, stand at least a little while each day when using a computer. To try it out, stack up...
10 May, 2015What’s there to eat if you can’t get out to the grocery store? The Basic Shelf Cookbook from the Canadian Public Health Association is a practical guide to nutritious, simple meals. It’s also us...
06 May, 2015Do you still put on your shoes and boots standing up, or have you noticed yourself sitting down to do this? What about getting dressed in the morning – on your feet, or sitting down? These are subtle ...
27 April, 2015Dogs have many things to teach us, if only we follow their example. Never pass up the opportunity to go for a joyride. Allow the experience of fresh air and the wind in your face to be pure ecstacy. W...
10 March, 2015Having considered a variety of features about location and where to live, your next step is to identify housing solutions. You ought to assume that you will eventually have physical and possibly cogni...
20 January, 2015Inertia is often the biggest barrier to creating suitable housing for ourselves for the long term. The time to act is now, because more and more of us are going to live a very long time. Acting now in...
12 January, 2015I was starting to get a bit bored with swimming lengths for exercise, until I ran across Greg Whyte’s book * at the local public library. Oh, sure, I knew swimming is good for body and mind. Physicall...
05 December, 2014
You or your loved one goes out first thing on a cold morning to shovel snow. Next thing you know, you or your dearest lies collapsed on the ground, felled by a heart attack or stroke. Now let’s back u...
05 December, 2014It seems to be fairly common to see alerts about contacting your physician or checking your health status before starting an exercise program or a new physical activity. On a practical level, what doe...
05 December, 2014