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MAY 2020

In This Issue

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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.

"Thank you to one of your health home aides. She has the gifted hands of an angel."

"Thank you all for the excellent care of my husband. Your caring, love and support is much appreciated."

Amazon Smile. You shop. Amazon Gives.

If you love to shop Amazon, consider using
Amazonsmile.org
and designating Hospice of the Valleys as your charity of choice. Amazonsmile offers all that Amazon does, and Hospice of the Valleys will benefit at no cost to you!

Some Good News!

By: Dr. Lynn Euzenas
Director of Spiritual Care & Bereavement Services

Dr. Lynn Euzenas - Hospice of the ValleysHow about some good news? People are feeling more and more antsy, wanting to break free of the restirants of pandemic lock-downs and physical distancing. Today, the New York Times told the marvelous story of how an elderly German and Danish couple didn't let that get in the way of something more important: their love. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/22/world/europe/cornavirus-denmark-germany-border.html

Patrick Kingsley tells theri story, beginning at the Mollehusej Border Corssing between Germany and Denmark: "She drives from the Danish side, in her Toyota Yaris. He cycles from the German side, on his electric bike. She brings the coffee and the table, he the chairs and the schnapps. Then they sit down on either side of the border a yard or two apart. And that is how two octogenarian lovers have kept their romance alive despite the closure of the border that falls between his home in the very north of Germany and her home in the very south of Denmark."

Every day since the border was closed, Kasten Tuchsen Hansen, an 89 year-old retired farmer, and Inga Rasmussen, an 85-year-old former caterer, have met at the border crossing to chat, joke, and drink, "while maintaining a modicum of social distance." "We're here because of love," said Mr. Hansen. "Love is the best thing in the world." Their romance began in a "slightly less sentimental fashion" two years ago. Mr. Hansen bought a huge bouquet of flowers and was going to call, unannounced, on another Danish widow. In Denmark, he stopped at a strawberry stand, saw Inga, and impulsively invited her for dinner in Germany. He gave her the flowers, abandoning his original intentions. Their relationship flourished with daily visists and meals shared. When the border was closed On March 13, due to the pandemic, Kingsley reports "they hatched a plan."

"On a quiet lane that winds through the flat farmland between their two homes, the plice blocked the road with a flimsy plastic barrier halfway between the homes. Inga and Tuschen have met there for a picnic every afternoon since the shutdown, usually at 3 p.m. They avoid contact per pandemic precautions, Tuschen notes "the worst thing is we can't embrace each other. We can't kiss," but they bring each other a present daily. The Danish police have threatened to fine them if they stray over the border. Danish mayor Henrik Frandsen noticed the couple's routine and posted a photo of them on Facebook. They have now become minor celebrities, their meeting place somewhat of a pilgrimage site. The mayor said, "I think it brings people some hope, a bit of light in the darkness...these elderly people who've found a way out."

Human resilience is a marvelous thing! Don't underestimate what good you are capable in challenging times. May you find new ways to love today!

Dr. Lynn

How to Combat Covid-19 Cabin Fever

Dr. Leslee B. Cochrane,
Executive Medical Director

Dr. Leslee Cochrane - Hospice of the ValleysI am quite sure that by now you may be experiencing symptoms of what some have referred to as "Covid-19 Cabin Fever." The Merriam Webster Dictionary defines cabin fever as "extreme irritability and restlessness from living in isolation or a confined indoor area for a prolonged time." Even worse than the effects of isolation on families who are affected by the current stay-at-home order is the increased social isolation and loneliness experienced by many of the elderly who live in assisted living facilities that are currently on lock-down and who are not allowed to have visitors.

You don't have to be a doctor to know that social isolation and loneliness can have negative effects on our health; but research shows that the impact may be greater than yo would think. For example, a 2019 study led by Kassandra Alcaraz, PhD, MPH who worked for the American Cancer Society analyzed data from more than 580,000 adults and discovered social isolation increased the risk of early death by 60-100% among various patient populations. Although there has been significant progress in combating the Covid-19 virus, the California Department of Public Health has not yet announced when the current stay-at-home orders will be lifted and so we need to have a strategy to help mitigate the negative effects caused by social isolation.

For those of you who have loved ones who live in assisted living facilities where they are currently on lock down I would encourage you to create some new routines that help decrease their sense of isolation. For example, you might set up a regular daily time to call each day and check in with your lvoed one. We have enjoyed using Skype for family chats as it enables us to both see and talk in real time. There are several other easy to use phone apps such as Face Time and Zoom that help to make video chats fun and easy.

For those of you in isolation at home with your family, here are some tips from the Cleveland Clinics April Online Newsletter on how to beat the boredom of Covid-19 Cabin Fever:

Have a picnic: Take your family, pack up some favorite food and spread a blanket in your yard - or on the living room floor.

Learn a new skill: Sign up for an online art class, learn to speak Mandarin, try baking French macarons or teach yourself a chord on the guitar you bought seven years ago and never learned to play.

Schedule a happy hour: Plan a regular time to video chat with your friends or family members.

Write letters: Texts are practically essential during self-isolation, but it's fun to channel your inner Victorian. Dust off your fanciest stationery and write a longhand letter to someone you love. Bonus points if you actually remember how to write in cursive. (Encouraging your kids to write letters can help them practice penmanship and stay connected to their friends).

Make plans: Start dreaming up the things you'll do with friends and family, and the amazing places you'll go (even if it's just to the park across town), once things start returning to normalcy. "You probably won't be going on vacation next month, but someday this will end - and eventually, this cabin fever will become a distant memory."

We are in the middle of a once in a century pandemic and so we really don't have anything to compare the current pandemic to but we Americans have been through many difficult situations in the past and we have always emerged stronger. I would like to leave you with some timeless words of encouragement taken from a speech given by Abraham Lincoln who knew a thing or two about hardship:

"This too shall pass."

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