Why Doctors Need to Talk to Women About Stress

As women take on more responsibility in the workplace while continuing as the primary caregiver for their children and in many cases, their aging parents as well, stress levels in women are on the rise. In fact, according to the American Psychological Association (APA), almost half of all women (49 percent) surveyed said their stress has increased over the past five years, compared to four in 10 (39 percent) men.

And even though stress is linked with chronic disease, most Americans feel that healthcare providers are not taking enough time to address stress issues during office visits. According to the 2012 APA survey “Stress in America: Missing the Healthcare Connection,” 32 percent of the 2020 Americans surveyed felt that it was extremely important to talk with their health care providers about stress management. Yet 53 percent said that these conversations never happened.

Is Marriage a Path to Happiness?

It’s a debate that goes on endlessly—are marriages less or more happy than they were in the past? And what contributes to a happy marriage?

According to a new study by Eli Finkel and his fellow psychological researchers, reported in a recent article in the NY Times, the findings are as confusing as a Midwestern weather forecast. While the average marriage is less happy than the average marriage in the past, there are some marriages that are even more happy than ever before. It’s a bit of a divide between the loved and the loved not.

No More Teacher Burnout

Recently I’ve been wishing I could thank my favorite elementary school teacher, Mrs. Hartman, for inspiring me to become a writer. A white-haired, dignified woman with tons of energy and enthusiasm, she knew precisely how to cultivate creativity in her students and keep them orderly and focused at the same time. She brought a near-religious zeal to her teaching of seventh grade language arts, permanently embedding in my mind the rules of grammar that I refer to every day as a writer. And I can still remember the laughter as we read our creative writing aloud to each other each week in her class, fueling my love of sharing stories.

Alas, the Mrs. Hartmans of the world are becoming hard to find. Not because there aren’t dedicated and talented teachers—there are plenty of those—but because few teachers are able to stay in the profession long enough to become seasoned veterans. Half of new teachers bow out after just five years on the job, says the National Commission on Teaching and America’s Future. This is especially a problem in urban schools, where an even higher turnover rate results in a higher percentage of under-qualified teachers. And the yearly cost to constantly replace teachers nationwide is a staggering $5.8 billion.

Educating Girls in Uganda

Uganda, like most countries in Africa, has experienced drought, famine, war, political instability, human rights violations, an AIDS epidemic, and extreme poverty. Providing higher education for Ugandan girls is especially critical, as research has shown that when young girls and women are educated, they are able to care better for their children and lead their families out of poverty.

The evidence is so striking that it can be boiled down to one sentence: If you want to change the world, invest in the education of girls.

The Personal Journey of Acharn Yai, Buddhist Nun

(Part two of a two-part series)

Acharn Yai is not a typical Buddhist nun. For one thing, she drives a car, uses a cell phone, and is committed to employing the best of modern technology to help the school thrive, even creating her own videos for fundraising.

Helping At-Risk Girls in Thailand Succeed

(Part one of a two-part series)

They come from all over Thailand, speaking many different dialects. Some are orphans, some from families destroyed by divorce. Others, members of the hill tribes huddled at Thailand’s northern borders, suffer from extreme destitution. Some have been abandoned to the streets. Often their parents are young and ill-equipped for raising a child. One young mother dropped off her preschool girls because her new boyfriend didn’t want them around.

Happiness, Pleasure and Meaning

If someone asked me, “What’s more important to you, being happy or finding meaning in life?” I’d have trouble answering. Like some kind of trick question in a fairytale, I’m thinking, Why not have both?

This question came up after I read a NY Times Opinionator piece citing a new study that showed today’s generation of young people born after 1980, called millennials or Generation Y, are so altruistic that they are choosing professions that bring meaning to life—rather than seeking personal happiness or more money.

The Easiest New Year’s Resolution of All

Fresh beginnings, a fresh new you—that is the promise of the New Year. But then there’s the pesky problem of actually keeping those New Year’s resolutions (lose weight, go to bed earlier, drink less coffee, etc..). When we have the best of intentions, and these are all good things to do for ourselves, why is it so difficult to make them stick?

Perhaps we need to look at the word “resolve” in a new way. A real resolution comes from deep inside. Resolve itself is a kind of connection with one’s own inner Being. If resolve comes from the inside, it will have a much greater chance of success.

Balancing Our Inner Gender Roles

Last summer I had the opportunity to hear Pearl Means, the wife of the Indian activist and artist Russell Means, speak at an event sponsored by the Global Mother Divine Organization in Fairfield, Iowa. Pearl, who is carrying on the legacy her husband started, believes that matriarchy is the main difference between indigenous cultures and modern cultures.

She says that historically it is the women elders who are most respected in her Lakota nation. Even today, she says, “they are the last to speak, and when they speak, everyone else listens,” she says.

Beautiful Just the Way You Are

Anyone who has been an adolescent girl knows the kind of crazy and negative thought patterns that can circulate through the brain when a girl thinks of her own body. […]