Be Prepared - Not Scared!

Come and learn what to expect and how to 

keep your family safe when an earthquake hits.  

Maralin Hoff, known as the "Earthquake Lady", 

is a community Outreach Specialist with Be Ready Utah.

She is highly sought after and has expert, 

practical advice on earthquake preparedness.  

Her presentation is Friday, September 18 at 7:00 p.m. 

in the Stake Center Cultural Hall.  

Everyone is welcome to attend!

Photo by: activerain.com

Seven Tips to a Good Night's Sleep

To learn more: Seven Tips to a Good Night's Sleep

Health Benefits of Good Sleep

Mark Basil is the CEO of a health and wellness company in Utah and regularly lectures on the benefits of good sleep. Here, he shares with us how a good night’s rest contributes to your overall emotional and physical well-being.

We all know that it is very important for our physical and spiritual selves to get enough sleep. However, Americans are the worst in the world at getting enough sleep. The National Sleep Foundation, which provides the recommendations for sleep, says that adults need 7–9 hours per night, but preferably 8–9 hours. There are many, many reasons we need enough sleep, but I will highlight just a few here.

In order to break a bad habit or an addiction, your brain has to be plastic—easy to change and adopt new behaviors. Without adequate sleep, our brain loses its plasticity, which means it is very difficult, nearly impossible, to break an addiction without adequate sleep. Without enough rest at night, we tend to make poor decisions and can make the same mistakes over and over again. We’re stuck in a rut and can’t get out.

Without enough sleep, we tend to overestimate rewards and underestimate consequences. This can lead to things like overeating because we are overestimating how good the food will taste and underestimating the long-term consequences of added weight gain. In more severe circumstances, someone can take their own life because they are overestimating the perceived reward of being out of emotional pain and underestimating the long-term consequences of added grief and harm.

The first part of our brain that shrinks when we don’t get adequate sleep is the prefrontal cortex. It is the front part of the brain associated with decision-making and emotional maturity. When this part of the brain shrinks, we might keep our math skills, but our relationships and rational thinking will suffer.

Also, when we don’t get enough sleep, our body doesn’t replenish many of its key hormones. Two of these are serotonin and dopamine. These are the “happiness hormones.” Many emotional issues that we deal with as a society have to do with a lack of serotonin and dopamine. A lesser amount of these hormones can contribute to anxiety, depression, ADD, ADHD, OCD, Parkinson’s disease, tremors, restless leg syndrome, a decrease in libido, and even dementia. In fact, over 30 percent of all cases of anxiety are preceded by having a lack of sleep.

To learn more: Health Benefits of Good Sleep

Be Strong, Be Healthy, Be Smart

"Just as some individuals struggle with physical health, others struggle with emotional health. Life can be difficult, and sometimes we may have feelings of anxiety, depression, or lack of self-esteem. But remember that for both physical and emotional health, exercise and hard work help to maintain a positive perspective. Taking care of your body also blesses your mind and helps you to remember that you are a child of God and can be confident and happy. Our emotional, physical, and spiritual sides are all linked together."

-- Elder Adrian Ochoa

To learn more: Be Strong, Be Healthy, Be Smart

How Our Physical Health Affects Our Emotional Well-Being

A Happy Body Contributes to a Happy Spirit

We’ve all heard the old adage “If you don’t have your health, you don’t have anything.” In other words, when you’re comfortable and content in your body, it’s easier to focus on life and living. Our physical health is closely connected to our emotional well-being. Contracting a simple cold is often enough to help us appreciate the gift of daily health. A wise and truthful Catalan proverb states, “From the bitterness of disease, man learns the sweetness of health.”

Small Victories

Sometimes we feel stuck in our bodies. We know we don’t feel as well as we could. We struggle to make changes and despair at our inconsistencies. These feelings can be overcome by starting small. Remember, “a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step” (Lao Tzu). By focusing 95 percent of your attention on the steps and 5 percent on the destination, you’ll avoid being overwhelmed, experience the sweetness of success, and enjoy the journey.

You can feel better in your body each day by focusing on the little things. Even tiny successes boost mood and confidence—which naturally contributes to emotional well-being. Change isn’t easy. Mark Twain captured the humor in the challenge when he said, “The only way to keep your health is to eat what you don’t want, drink what you don’t like, and do what you’d rather not.” Humor aside, Twain fails to cite the joyful benefits that accompany self-discipline. Over time, exercise does begin to feel good, eating healthily becomes a preference, and an afternoon catnap can become a saving grace.

Balance

A soul experiences more happiness in a balanced body—a body that eats healthy, gets exercise, receives rest when it’s tired, and is recharged regularly with meditation or prayer. If you’re lacking in any or all of these areas, you can now see with more clarity what your personal journey will look like—but remember that the destination gets 5 percent of your attention—only because you have to know where you’re going. Give the rest of your attention and energy to the first step.

Your first step could be similar to any of the following: fitting one more hour of sleep somewhere in your daily 24, taking the stairs instead of the elevator, giving yourself permission to sit quietly and be alone with your thoughts for 15 minutes today, trading sweets for fruit, or drinking water instead of your usual beverage. Your first step could be anything that helps you feel more in control. Before taking a second step, take time to perfect the first one. Before you know it, you’ll look up from the steps you’ve taken and discover you’ve made exceptional progress on your journey to better health and being happy in your body.

To learn more: How Our Physical Health Affects Our Emotional Well-Being

3 Reasons Mormons Consider Physical Health Part of Their Belief System

To understand why Mormons consider physical health part of their belief system, it’s important to understand a little about what the scriptures refer to as God’s “great plan of happiness.” In its simplest form, the plan can be divided into three parts. During the first part, known as premortal life, we lived with our Father in Heaven as His spirit children. During the second part, called mortality, we came to earth and received a physical body. At some point during the third part, which follows physical death, we will be resurrected and live forever with our physical bodies through the Atonement and Resurrection of Jesus Christ. Because a physical body is part of the plan, physical health matters. Watch as Mormons share their beliefs about the importance of physical health in their lives.

Here are three reasons why Mormons consider physical health spiritually important.

Physical Health Shows Gratitude for a Gift

A body is a miraculous gift and responsibility from God. The Apostle Paul taught that the body is a temple for our spirit (see 1 Corinthians 6:19). One of the greatest challenges of mortality is learning to use, care for, and appreciate the gift of our physical bodies. When we maintain good physical health, we show that we value the precious gift we have been given.

Physical Health Brings Strength

More than 150 years ago, the Lord revealed a set of guidelines, known as the Word of Wisdom, for the proper care of our physical bodies. In addition to abstaining from coffee, tea, tobacco, alcohol, and other harmful and addictive substances, we are also encouraged to eat healthy foods, get enough rest, and be physically active. These commandments come with a promise of both physical and spiritual strength. Physical strength is a natural consequence of a healthy lifestyle. But as we lead a healthy lifestyle, free of substances and practices that dull our senses, we can come closer to God. Elijah taught that the Lord speaks to us with a still, small voice (see 1 Kings 19:11–12), and we are better able to hear Him when our minds and bodies are clean and healthy.

Physical Health Brings Happiness

You don’t have to look far to find articles and experts linking exercise to happiness. For example, one article reminds us that exercise releases “happy” chemicals in our brains, reduces stress and anxiety, boosts confidence and energy, and helps us sleep better. Like most people, Mormons want to be happy, so they embrace the counsel to improve physical health with exercise.

To learn more: 3 Reasons Mormons Consider Physical Health Part of Their Belief System

Exercising the Soul

Our souls are the union of our bodies and our spirits (see D&C 88:15). They are integrally entwined, and one cannot thrive while the other is neglected. While each of us is given a different degree of physical health in this life, it is our Heavenly Father’s plan for all of us to work to improve what we have received. Both our bodies and our spirits must be nourished and exercised to be healthy and to help us reach our full potential.
--Marie E. Owens

To learn more: Exercising the Soul