In This Issue
About Birth
C-section not best option for
breech birth
About Children
Grandma's Rule
Our Charis Family
Corinne Henderson
Charis Cuisine
Grammy Ethel’s Delicious Cranberry Relish
Letters to the Editor
Comments From Our Readers
Tidbits
from Ebony
Through the Plastic Covered Window
To
enjoy past newsletters, visit the archives:
Newsletter Archives
Update
Our address
Charis Childbirth, Inc.
P.O. Box 6900
North Port, FL 34290
It's
been a year since Charis headquarters moved to
Florida. If you use our old Virginia Beach address, your mail will
not reach us as the post office is no longer forwarding mail.
Be sure to mail your yearly membership fees to the Florida address!
Look us up
Charis and our
Midwifery Scholarship Fund
Mark Your Calendars
Childbirth
Preparation Classes
Virginia Beach, Virginia
Presented by:
Christi Jones (CCE, CD) and Aimee Roberts (CCE, CD)
Weekend Intensive Childbirth Class:
Friday, February 19th 6:30 - 9:30 pm
Saturday, February 20th 9:00 am - 3:30 pm
Lunch
Included
Cost for weekend session: $150.00
To reserve your space, email us at:
info@birthinsightva.com
phone: (757)270-0437 or (757)575-9363
Attention Aspiring
Midwives!
You will love the flexible, thorough,
distance academics course offered through Charis Childbirth!
Check
it out!
Want to serve childbearing families as a Certified Doula or
Childbirth Educator?
Become trained and certified through Charis Childbirth!
Take a look
at our unique certification process!
If you seek a school that offers the convenience of
self-paced distance learning, personal mentors for each student, a
commitment to the highest excellence in education, a family-like
network of students and birth professionals, and education from a
Christian perspective, Charis may be just the right fit for you!
For more information
Visit the Charis Web site
for course description and outline.
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For
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sharp minds to learn, opportunities for lots of hands-on learning
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Our
Director's Heart
Overwhelmed and
Stressed???
Tips for
Maintaining Wellness
during the Holidays
I am
reminded of the Christmas song lyrics, “It’s the most wonderful time
of the year.” But, so many people do not really experience the
desired wonder and peace of the holiday season because they are
overwhelmed! Christmas parties, traveling, desserts, cold
weather, family traditions, shopping, visits from friends and
family, and the stressful list goes on and on. How can a person fit
their wellness goals into that equation?
It’s no wonder people become depressed and sick during the holidays.
When will there be time for exercise? How can one keep the stress at
a healthy level? Is it even possible to eat well over the holidays?
Where is the sunshine we need so desperately? Will we be able to
afford buying presents this year without going into debt? Can anyone
keep up the hectic pace of the holidays with their good health
intact?
With a solid commitment to wellness and some creativity, the
holidays can be both happy and healthy. The following are some
things to remember when coaching our clients who may be struggling
with how to maintain their wellness throughout the Christmas season.
Keep it simple. In our home, we do like to decorate and enjoy
traditions; but we have chosen to keep it simple and fun, rather
than going overboard and creating stress. If something feels
overwhelming for any member of the family, we don’t do it. Stress
assaults the immune system and it is just not worth compromising a
family member’s ability to fight sickness.
Learn to decline invitations to events you have neither the time
nor energy to attend. For us, this means choosing not to attend
my husband’s office party this December. We are only attending
parties with our closest, most intimate friends. Too many things to
do means not enough rest and added stress, both of which will lead
us further from our wellness goals rather than toward them.
Offer to prepare healthy recipes to take to events so that
there is an alternative to the unhealthy holiday treats that are
sure to be in abundance at holiday parties. Some simple options
would be a fruit platter, a mixture of raw nuts and seeds with dried
cranberries, a raw vegetable plate with homemade dip such as hummus,
or a beautiful red and green salad. I have found that the healthy
food I bring ends up being a big hit with everyone else and I have
contributed to their wellness success in addition to my own.
Take advantage of sunny days. Most of the northern hemisphere
is cold during the holidays. The lower temperatures drive people
indoors and away from the sunshine. Even down here in southwest
Florida, we still have to make a conscious effort to spend time
outdoors during the cooler months. (Floridians think it is cold when
it gets below 70 degrees.) Make it a point to keep your blinds and
curtains open so that as much sunshine as possible will enter your
home. Go for a brisk walk in the sunshine during the warmest part of
the day whenever possible. Sunshine is extremely important for our
immune system and our overall outlook on life.
Be reasonable about gift-giving. I absolutely love giving
gifts. The problem for us is that we do not have the money to buy
the kind of gifts I would like to give to everyone. Each year, we
look at our budget and decide how much we are able to spend on
gifts, for whom we will be purchasing gifts, and then make up a
realistic gift list before we ever go out shopping. This makes
shopping less stressful. When we have time, we like to make
something special for our friends and family. This year, we
collected pretty shells on the beach all year long and are making
beautiful Christmas ornaments out of our shells. Financial struggles
are major stressors during the holidays. It helps to make it a point
to live within our means and focus on the heart of love behind the
giving rather than the monetary value of the gift. After all, that
is what is most important anyway.
Don’t try to live up to others’ expectations (or what we
perceive those expectations to be). It is so important to be true to
our own values and resist living to meet the perceived expectations
of other people. Living life as we are meant to live it is
refreshing and fulfilling. Anything else leaves us with stress and
regrets.
Slow down and enjoy those you love. Some of my fondest
childhood memories are of times spent with family and friends during
the holidays. They aren’t memories of gifts received or of elaborate
events, but rather of being together with people who love me. We did
a lot of laughing and talking while listening to Christmas music and
sipping hot apple cider by the fire. These days, the pace of life is
so much more hectic than when I was a child and it seems that each
year brings the possibility of even more stress than the year
before. Todd and I work to resist the urge to move at that fast pace
and choose to slow down and simply enjoy having fun, intimate time
with those we love. According to the Bible, laughter is good for the
body-- and that fits in with everyone’s wellness goals!
Remember the reason we celebrate to begin with! It is all
about Jesus Christ. Presents, trees, parties, and lights are just
ways we celebrate. Too often we spend so much time and energy on how
we celebrate that we forget why we are celebrating. How very sad our
Father God must be when we lose sight of His Son during the
holidays. As we purpose to keep Christ at the center of it all,
Christmas becomes simply wonderful!
With these things in mind, we can ask the right questions to guide
our clients toward decisions that will help them truly experience
this holiday season as “the most wonderful time of the year”.
Here’s to a happy, healthy holiday season!
~Kristin Schuchmann
Executive Director, Charis Childbirth
Contact Us
Charis Childbirth
P.O. Box 6900
North Port, FL 34290
www.charischildbirth.org
Kristin Schuchmann ~
Executive Director
Cell (941)441-6410
http://happyhealthyliving.wordpress.com/
Susan Oshel ~ Director of Midwifery Studies
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