Couples who say "we" have a better shot at resolving conflicts and marital issues

By Yasmin Anwar, Media Relations 

A new study from the University of California, Berkeley, suggests that spouses who use "we-ness" language are better able to resolve conflicts than those who don't.

UC Berkeley researchers analyzed conversations between 154 middle-aged and older couples about points of disagreement in their marriages and found that those who used pronouns such as "we," "our" and "us" behaved more positively toward one another and showed less physiological stress. Marital issues are more easily resolved with a "we" attitude.

In contrast, couples who emphasized marital issues that arise from their "separateness" by using pronouns such as "I," "me" and "you" were found to be less satisfied in their marriages. This marital approach was especially true for older couples. Their use of separateness pronouns was most strongly linked to unhappy marriages, according to the study.

Moreover, the study found that older couples identified more as "we" than did their middle-aged counterparts, suggesting that facing obstacles and overcoming challenges together over the long haul, including raising families, may give couples a greater sense of shared identity.

"Individuality is a deeply ingrained value in American society, but, at least in the realm of marriage, being part of a 'we' is well worth giving up a bit of 'me,'" said UC Berkeley psychology professor Robert Levenson, a co-author of the study published last semester in the journal Psychology and Aging.

Previous studies have established that the use of "we-ness" or "separateness" language is a strong indicator of marital satisfaction in younger couples. These latest findings, however, take this several steps further by showing how powerful this correlation is in more established couples, linking it to the emotions and physiological responses that occur when spouses either team up or become polarized in the face of disagreements, researchers said.

"The use of 'we' language is a natural outgrowth of a sense of partnership, of being on the same team, and confidence in being able to face problems together," said study co-author Benjamin Seider, a graduate student in psychology at UC Berkeley.

In addition to Seider and Levenson, co-authors of the marital issues study, "We Can Work It Out: Age Differences in Relational Pronouns, Physiology and Behavior in Marital Conflict," are Gilad Hirschberger and Kristin Nelson, who conducted their research while at UC Berkeley's Institute of Personality and Social Research.

American Bird watchers coast to coast are invited to take part in the 13th annual Great Backyard Bird Count, Friday, February 12, through Monday, February 15, 2010.  Participants in the free event will join tens of thousands of volunteers counting birds in their own backyards, local parks or wildlife refuges. 

Each checklist submitted by these "citizen scientists" helps researchers at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology,the National Audubon Society , and Bird Studies Canada learn more about how the birds are doing--and how to protect them. Last year, participants turned in more than 93,600 checklists online, creating the continent's largest instantaneous snapshot of bird populations ever recorded.

Anyone can take part in the Great Backyard Bird Count,
from novice bird watchers to experts.

Participants count birds for as little as 15 minutes (or as long as they wish) on one or more days of the event and report their sightings online at www.birdcount.org. One 2009 participant said, "Thank you for the opportunity to participate in citizen science. I have had my eyes opened to a whole new interest and I love it!"

Winter is such a vulnerable period for birds, so winter bird distributions are likely to be very sensitive to change.

There is only one way--citizen science--to gather data on private lands where people live and GBBC has been doing this across the continent for many years.

GBBC has enormous potential both as an early warning system and in capturing and engaging people in more intensive sampling of birds across the landscape."

Bird populations are always shifting and changing.

For example, 2009 GBBC data highlighted a huge southern invasion of Pine Siskins across much of the eastern United States. Participants counted 279,469 Pine Siskins on 18,528 checklists, as compared to the previous high of 38,977 birds on 4,069 checklists in 2005. Failure of seed crops farther north caused the siskins to move south to find their favorite food.

Bird Count Website

On the www.birdcount.org website, participants can explore real-time maps and charts that show what others are reporting during the count. The site has tips to help identify birds and special materials for educators. Participants may also enter the GBBC photo contest by uploading images taken during the count. Many images will be featured in the GBBC website's photo gallery. All participants are entered in a drawing for prizes that include bird feeders, binoculars, books, CDs, and many other great birding products.

Canadian Bird Studies Birdcount

In 2010, Bird Studies Canada (BSC) joins the GBBC as the program's Canadian partner. "Bird Studies Canada is delighted to be the Canadian partner for this extremely valuable program," said George Finney, President of BSC. "Participating in the GBBC is an excellent way for Canadians to reconnect with their love of nature and birds."

For more information about the GBBC, visit the website at www.birdcount.org. 

CAREGIVING IN AMERICA is a monthly magazine published by Minnesota publisher Kay Sauck, premiered in December 2009 to address the needs and concerns of the 50 million caregivers of family and friends. 

The magazine and website, www.CaregivingInAmerica.com, will draw on a stable of experts in health and aging and two organizations devoted to caregiver support: the Rosalynn Carter Institute for Caregiving and the Aging with Dignity organization.

The Human Engineering Research Laboratories (HERL) has been recognized as a VA Center of Excellence for Wheelchairs and Associated Rehabilitation Engineering.

As a Research Center of Excellence, HERL will receive one million dollars each year for a five-year cycle of funding before having to submit an application for competitive renewal. This is the third time HERL has received this award.

This Center for wheelchair technology focuses on the design, development and evaluation of new technologies to improve the mobility of physically-impaired individuals. In its short history, HERL has become an important contributor in the fields of wheelchair design, seating systems, transportation systems and novel approaches to the delivery of assistive technology.

VA Rehabilitation Research and Development Service (RR&D) Centers focus on research in high-priority areas relevant to the rehabilitation needs of Veterans, providing cutting-edge solutions to the issues of chronic impairment. VA RR&D Centers serve as a resource primarily for Veterans but also for the rehabilitation community at large. These Centers are expected to:

• Successfully leverage core support funding through nationally competed and scientifically reviewed funding vehicles;
• Mentor and support young investigators, both clinician and non-clinician scientists, through pre- and post-doctoral programs and recruit them into VA;
• Nurture strong interactive relationships with clinical service providers engaged in rehabilitation, long-term management of impairment and overall quality of life issues;
• Facilitate effective information dissemination for a broad spectrum of audiences; and
• Foster the integration of research findings into clinical practice.

Since 1994, HERL has sought solutions to problems that exist for Veterans and individuals who use wheelchairs and other forms of assistive technology, such as prosthetics, walkers, etc. Today, the program includes nine laboratories staffed by more than 50 individuals--including an expert team of bioengineers, exercise physiologists, roboticists, epidemiologists, rehabilitation counselors, and physical and occupational therapists--who are all enthusiastic about helping Veterans with disabilities. The laboratories occupy more than 15,000 square feet with the latest state-of-the-art research instruments and machines.

QoLT  is a National Science Foundation Engineering Research Center

QoLT is an effective platform for industry/practitioner/academic researcher interaction and for engaging the general public in technology research.

The technologies that the QoLT ERC develops will enable older adults and people with disabilities to more independently perform activities of daily living and give them opportunity to participate in society longer and more fully.

Having more people gainfully employed and reducing the need for or delaying the onset of institutionalization will have an even more profound impact on the national economy. QoLT will transform and eventually subsume the present assistive technology industry, one that is fragmented and composed primarily of very small companies serving a small market, into a space with a large consumer base including the soon-to-retire Baby Boomers.

Through a holistic, human-centered design approach, the QoLT Center works with real people in the real world to ensure our technologies are sustainable, acceptable, and support a person's place in their community as well as society at large. Our long-term goals are to:

• Increase employability and productivity across the life span
• Expand the range of environments in which people will be independently and safely mobile, increasing community participation
• Expand the number of people and number of years that they can live independently at home

Quality of Life Technology Center
5000 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15213
(412) 268-5543
http://www.cmu.edu/qolt/index.html

The Green House nursing care center for seniors is a relatively new concept in "home-like" care for seniors requiring nursing care. Traditional nursing homes are based on a medical model. The Green House projects are based on a home model -- with a smaller, more homelike building with private space and shared community facilities.

Staffing is also different. Each project is based on 24/7 care, but the duties have shifted from highly specialized care to more family-like care provided by a core team, and supplemented with appropriate medical teams from outside.

Clinical Support Team

The clinical support team is comprised of a Medical Director, Director of Nursing, nurses, therapists, social workers, dietician, and activities coordinator to provide skilled care for the residents as required in the care plan. The Shahbazim are certified nursing assistants with additional Green House training) by developing close relationships with the elders, provide the Clinical Support Team with valuable information to assist in developing the care plan.

Licensed nurses are available to and responsible for clinical care in Green House homes on a 24-hour basis. If the nurse is not in the home and is needed, is available to the Shahbazim and elders via pager and other communication technologies. The Shahbaz

The Shahbaz (plural: Shahbazim) is a universal worker who provides personal care, meal planning and preparation, light housekeeping, and laundry for 7-10 elders. Shahbazim core training as Certified Nursing Assistants receive about 120 additional hours of specialized training to cover The Green House philosophy of care, person-directed care for persons with demenia, household operations, building self-managed work teams, policies and procedures for their project, communication skills, culinary training, safe food handling, and certification in first aid and CPR.

The Guide

The Green House Guide serves as coach and supervisor the the Shahbazim, and is responsible for the overall operations and quality of services in the home. The Guide may be responsible for more than one home, depending on the size of the community.

The Sage

The Green House Sage is a resident elder who acts as a coach or mentor, assists facilitating the development and continued growth of the self-managed work team and to serve as a trusted advisor to the Shahbazim. This is a volunteer position.

Extended Nursing Care Residents

Residents in the Green House are encouraged to participate in shared home activities such as cooking, self care and cleaning, as well as hobby activities and participation in the surrounding community.

Family

Family participation is encouraged and welcomed in The Green House home, from sharing meals to participating in activities and volunteering time and services to help their loved one decorate personal space. Well-behaved family pets are also welcome visitors!

Only projects accepted through the application process and developed in cooperation with The Green House Project team are authorized to provide long-term care services under the licenses service mark: THE GREEN HOUSE®.

A five year pilot project ending in 2010 is reaching its goal of 50 projects across the country. Check the website for locations in your region. These nursing care facilities are often developed by nonprofit groups, churches and even municipalities.

Data from a new Mayo Clinic (http://mayoclinic.edu) study suggest that dietary therapy using flaxseed can decrease hot flashes in postmenopausal women who do not take estrogen.

A hot flash is often described as a flush of intense warmth across much of the body that may be accompanied by sweating, reddening of the skin, or, occasionally, cold shivers. Hot flashes occur in varying frequency and duration, even during sleep, and often cause or accompany sleep deprivation, anxiety and irritability.

Although until recently hormone replacement therapy was the most commonly prescribed treatment for hot flashes, unwanted side effects have led to the search for nonhormonal solutions. Several effective nonhormonal drug therapies have been identified, but they are not always effective, and not all women can use them because of side effects. These limitations have led researchers to explore non-drug agents. They have studied a variety of herbal and dietary supplements in randomized, placebo-controlled trials, including vitamin E, black cohosh and soy, but none has shown to produce any significant reduction in frequency or severity of hot flashes.

Participants were asked questions that the researchers translated into a hot flash score -- a combined measure of frequency and severity. The frequency of hot flashes decreased 50 percent over six weeks, and the overall hot flash score decreased an average 57 percent for the women who completed the trial. Participants also reported improvements in mood, joint or muscle pain, chills and sweating; which significantly improved their health-related quality of life.

"We are quite pleased with the improvements noted by these women in their quality of life," says Dr. Pruthi. "Not only does flaxseed seem to alleviate hot flashes, but it appears to have overall health and psychological benefits as well."

Dr. Pruthi's team chose to research flaxseed because it is a phytoestrogen (plant-based estrogen source). Flaxseed contains lignans and omega-3 fatty acids. Lignans are antioxidants with weak estrogen-emulating characteristics, and have some anti-cancer effects. Flaxseed also appears to have anti-estrogen properties and has been shown in some recent research trials to decrease breast cancer risk. The researchers hypothesized that patients taking flaxseed might gain some relief for hot flashes.

This pilot trial was designed to determine the effectiveness of flaxseed in alleviating hot flashes and identify possible side effects. Dr. Pruthi cautions that the results are preliminary and taking flaxseed may not give relief to every woman suffering hot flashes.

The 29 participants in Mayo's clinical trial were women with bothersome hot flashes who did not want to take estrogen because of a perceived increased risk of breast cancer.

The findings from the pilot study are published in the summer 2007 issue of the Journal of the Society for Integrative Oncology.

Sandhya Pruthi, M.D., (http://mayoresearch.mayo.edu/mayo/research/staff/pruthi_s.cfm) Mayo Clinic breast health (http://cancercenter.mayo.edu/) specialist and the study's primary investigator.

Other Mayo Clinic researchers included Charles Loprinzi, M.D.; Susan Thompson; Paul Novotny; Debra Barton, Ph.D.; Lisa Kottschade; Angelina Tan; and Jeff Sloan, Ph.D. The flaxseed study was supported in part by the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation.

For more information on clinical trials available at Mayo Clinic, please visit http://clinicaltrials.mayo.edu.

The FloH Club is Florence Henderson's tech-support hot line designed for older adults who want to become comfortable using the Internet and electronic devices such as smart phones -- but aren't exactly sure how.

Florence Henderson, made famous as the Brady Bunch mom, was motivated to start a tech-support service for aging adults after facing the fact that she didn't know how to use the power of her cellphone, other than to make a phone call.

Now, as a proficient grandmother who uses text-messenger, Skype and Facebook, this proficient grandmother and communicator wants to help others learn to do the same.

Her company, The FloH Club, set up a partnership with an online computer-support company, Support.com, to staff the hot line. It is open seven days a week, 8 a.m to 2 a.m. Eastern time.

Members can call with any type of technical issue, from dealing with frozen screens and sputtering systems to configuring a new printer, figuring out e-mail mysteries and even backing up a hard drive.

Memberships to the FloH Club run $25 per month or $250 for a year. In addition, the service offers one-time, dedicated training sessions for $50 covering a number of topics, including learning how to download pictures from a digital camera and setting up a Facebook account.

Currently, the service is only available for Windows-based operating systems. But if the demand is there, the FloH Club will expand to Mac operating systems. 

"Now you can stay connected with your family," Henderson said. "And you don't have to feel embarrassed or stupid about asking for help."

Sounds like  the motherly advice Mrs Brady would hand out to learners of all ages!

Leaning in to see things closer, and larger is a common human learning strategy. But when you do a lot of leaning to look at your computer, your neck muscles feel it ... and this results in muscle strain.

This new computer solution zooms in when you lean... just a bit ... so your muscles don't have to work as hard as they do without such a handy tool.

The Green House Project is a radically new and innovative approach to long-term, skilled nursing care.

Caring for our seniors, our parents, aunts, uncles and neighbors weighs heavily on our society. While medical breakthroughs extend the years of life, social breakthroughs have been sparse to make those years meaningful and fruitful...and affordable for our loved ones. The Green House Project offers a model and hope. Here are details about this new concept in skilled nursing home care that can be applied to a wide variety of cooperative living arrangements for seniors.

Green House Homes for Skilled Nursing Care

Green House® homes are residences for 6 to 10 elders who require skilled nursing care and want to live a rich life. They are a radical departure from traditional skilled nursing homes and assisted living facilities, altering size, design, and organization to create a warm community. Their innovative architecture and services offer privacy, autonomy, support, enjoyment and a place to call home. Green House® homes are developed and operated by long-term care organizations in partnership with The Green House Project and NCB Capital Impact.

Read the details about this model for senior living and nursing care.