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Hospice Honors
Press Enterprise - TOP Work Places - 2014 - 2022
We Honor Veterans

March 2023

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Notes From Friends

Hospice of the Valleys serves hundreds of patients each and every year. We honor them by sharing their stores. They remind us every day of the meaning and purpose in our work and that human connection is at the heart of the hospice experience. The following are notes Hospice of the Valleys has received from the families of patients that we have been privileged to provide hospice care.

"My thanks to all of you for the wonderful care you have provided my sister. The sanity you have brought to a very sad time is priceless. The work you do is so important to those you care for, as well as the family members of the patients. Thank you."

"I very much loved the Butterfly Release and the HOpe Through Healing pamphlets that I often shared with a friend who also suffered a loss. I will forever appreciate everything HOV did for my mother and me. Thank you!"

Social Work Breaks Barriers
K9 Veterans Day
Poker Tournament

Dealing with Disappointment

Mike Patton,
Bereavement Counselor/Spiritual Care

I grew up watching the TV comedy series, "Hee Haw." I've often quoted a chorus I remember well, "gloom, despair, and agony on me; deep dark depression, excessive misery. If it weren't for bad luck, I'd have no luck at all, gloom, despair, and agony on me." It was a catchy tune sung by four depressed hillbillies who were down on their luck... an obvious exaggeration of their disappointments!

I wish I could turn all my disappointments into comedy sketches and just laugh them off but that that is unrealistic. So, I offer these thoughts for dealing with disappointment:

Share your disappointment with someone you trust. I like to think there is truth in the idiom, "a joy shared is twice the joy, and a sorrow shared is half the sorrow." Disappointment often feels like sorrow and a trusted friend can make a huge difference in the weight of that burden. Trust is the key to using this tool as disappointments are carried in your heart. A trusted friend knows this and received your disappointment with gentle kindness.

Study your disappointment for something to learn from and grow by. I remember being so disappointed with myself when, in my undergraduate studies as a pre-dentistry major, I hated my zoology and chemistry courses. The disappointment was so deep that I dropped out of college mid-semester. Looking back, I have often laughed at my impatience with working with my hands in small spaces - even crashing my fist down onto a model car that I couldn't get a part into. It would not be funny if that was someone's mouth that got the brunt of my frustration!

While the lesson took some time to learn, I was being led into a career far more suited to my skill-set. During this time my faith became the most important subject on my mind. My trusted person was a cousin who met with me after I had returned to college with an undeclared major. When he asked me what I was going to do now that I wasn't going to be a dentist, I said, "I don't know, I guess business or something." He said, "I see you much more as a people-person than a paper-person. I challenge you to go into ministry."

Disappointments will always find us... that is just life. In my experience disappointments have led to some amazing discoveries someone else has helped me find. There is great joy in being that someone else for the disappointed!

Health Benefits of Long-term Loving Relationships

Dr. Leslee B. Cochrane,
Executive Medical Director

This past week, we made our annual "spring forward" into Daylight Savings Time! Although I enjoy the extra hour of sunlight at the end of the day; my tired body does not enjoy "springing" out of bed an hour earlier in the morning. Although most people adjust to the time change smoothly, not getting enough sleep will take a tool on your health. According to Johns Hopkins sleep researcher, Patrick Finan, Ph. D., sleep deprivation has been associated with numerous adverse health outcomes including[i]:

  • 50% greater risk of obesity in those who get less than 5 hours sleep
  • 48% increased risk for heart disease
  • 36% increased risk for colorectal cancer
  • 33% increased risk for dementia
  • 3 times greater risk for diabetes
  • 3 times more likely to catch a cold
  • 6,000 fatal motor vehicle deaths per year due to drowsy drivers

Inadequate sleep has also been identified as a risk factor in stroke and heart attacks; with patients who get less than 6 hours of sleep per night being twice as likely to experience a heart attack or stroke as those receiving 7-9 hours of sleep per day.

According to the US Department of Health and Human Services, how much sleep you need depend on your age[ii]:

  • Newborns need to sleep between 14 and 17 hours a day
  • School-aged children need 9 to 12 hours of sleep each night
  • Teens need 8 to 10 hours of sleep each night
  • Adults need at least 7 hours of sleep each night

Over the past several years, research has demonstrated numerous positive health benefits to good quality sleep including a few that I have listed below:

  • Improves immune function with decreased sickness from colds and flu
  • Improves the regulation of appetite control and enhances weight loss
  • Lowers the risk for serious health problems such as heart disease and diabetes, and reduces stress and depression
  • Improves performance in school and at work
  • Decreases accidents and injuries

Although it is not clear whether or not daytime naps provide the same benefits provided by a good night's sleep, numerous studies have shown that day time naps can improve learning and memory. Some sleep experts feel that the ideal nap is between 20 - 30 minutes; but naps as short as 6 minutes have shown positive improvement in memory enhancement. IN case the idea of taking a nap makes you feel guilty, I would like to point out that several famous historical figures took regular naps including Aristotle, Leonardo Da Vinci, Thomas Edison, Winston Churchill and Albert Einstein. My parting advice to you would be if you can't beat them, join them.

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  • Top Work Places 2014-2021 Award
  • Hospice Honors Elite
  • Hospice of the Valleys - Celebrating over 40 years
  • We Honor Veterans
  • Community Health Accreditation Partner Seal
  • Hospice Care
  • Introduction to Hospice
  • Choosing Hospice
  • Paying for Hospice
  • Hospice Of The Valleys Service Areas
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  • Testimonials & Videos
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