April Fools Day!

Did you know that April is the NATIONAL STRESS AWARENESS MONTH? The Society for Vascular Surgery did a report stating that if you laugh more you will live longer and be healthier. With health care reform reaching its second birthday in March you can take advantage of the great insurance benefits that are at your finger tips! Remember that if you are in a “healthcare reform compliant” plan your wellness each year is a benefit that you do not have to pay for!

With April Fools Day being famous for jokes and pranks be sure to review your policy with your insurance agent so that you aren’t the one fooled in case you have an unexpected illness or accident! Here are a few things you can do to keep your health in tip-top shape.

1. Laugh! When you laugh it will have wonderful effects on your blood pressure. Laughing releases the endorphins that causes us to “feel good.” If you feel good your blood pressure will go down.
2. Learn to handle your stress! If you can’t solve a problem, don’t stress out about it. Solve the little things and set some realistic goals for yourself so that you are not over-stressed!
3. Eat foods that eliminate your stress! With our daily schedule that is  fast & furious, eat snacks or foods that help us reduce our stress. Almonds, dark chocolate & oranges all help to eliminate stress. Almonds are loaded with vitamin E which boosts your immunity. Dark Chocolate helps boost serotonin levels which plays a key role in reducing our stress and Oranges delivers vitamin C which is now credited with reducing the physical & psychological effects of stress on the body.
4. Stretch, walk and meditate! If you don’t stretch you can’t walk and if you can’t walk then you do not have the energy to meditate. That’s right meditating takes energy. We need to deep breath and that deep breathing will help bring us the stress relief that we need.
5. Laugh! Here is a link so that you can laugh along with some of the greatest comedians ever. Laurel & Hardy in “The Emperor.” There is a scene where Laurel & Hardy are waiting for Laurels wife to come to the restaurant when Stan Laurel begins to laugh and cannot stop. Pretty soon Oliver Hardy is laughing along with him. I promise if you watch this clip on you-tube you will laugh your troubles away!
6. http://youtu.be/KLPIMHfbKr4

Remember that with this April Fools day you can have all the fun your want, go ahead, be a kid again…but be safe and know your health insurance coverage, have an accident plan in place and be sure to call your insurance agent and say hello. They will be glad that you called and so will you!