Healthy Eating Habits for the Christmas Season
As you enjoy the festivities of the Christmas season, it is important to be mindful of your eating habits. Here are a couple tips that offer guidance as you navigate this Christmas season:
(1) Eat and drink slowly, taking in only a few food items at a time. As your stomach takes its time to digest, it will also take its time in communicating to your brain that it’s full.
(2) If you plan to attend a party or gathering and you are asked to bring a dish, offer to bring a fruit or vegetable tray.
(3) Alternate glasses of water with glasses of wine or beer or scotch… This way you help to avoid alcohol induced calories and reduce your chance of getting drunk.
Ph.D., C.Psych
Like President Obama, Nelson Mandela also occasioned my first public political act. I marched, in one, my first and only, Free Mandela marches in New York City in the late 1980’s when I was in graduate school studying to be a clinical psychologist. Since then I have come to admire Mr. Mandela even more than when I marched on that day. In many ways, Mr. Mandela’s life can teach us about the true spirit of the Christmas season. His equanimity and magnanimity, and his resilience and persistence are qualities that all of us should study and replicate. In the face of his multiple trials and tribulations, he never gave up or gave in, and when he was finally freed from the fetters that kept him away from his beloved people, he offered not hate and revenge, but hope and reconciliation.
There are many people around us in our everyday life who exemplify Mr. Mandela’s aforementioned qualities, and we should try to always highlight and appreciate them. But Mr. Mandela was the best public exemplar of Grace under fire. A grace that resonated throughout his life, and a grace that I hope will continue to influence our children, our clergy, our opinion makers, our leaders, and ourselves.
As a Clinical Psychologist, I saw Mr. Mandela as a truly successful psychologically functional human being. Mr. Mandela was able to overcome apartheid, persecution, imprisonment, and isolation and still have the ability to love and forgive. Did he accomplish everything that he set out to do. No, but he tried. He embraced HIV/AIDs treatment when many leaders, especially African leaders, remained in the homophobic dark ages. Mr. Mandela’s life in prison and his subsequent public life is the epitome of that fully functional human being. So please don’t cry too hard for Nelson Mandela, he lived a full life, and he was at peace. Cry for us, because we have lost a one in a million life, a life to emulate, and a life that was a wonder to behold.
Online Shopping is Most Often Cheaper
One of the best aspects of online shipping is discounted prices and deals. With everything from free shipping to store discounts for using PayPal or signing up as a new customer, online discounts are everywhere you look. So if you’re operating on a budget, online shopping may be the best way to go to leave a couple extra bucks in your pocket for other activities…
According to CreditCards.com, in 2012, Americans were burdened with debt and the average American household with at least one credit card had almost $16,000 in credit-card debt. The average credit card interest rate is usually in the mid to high teens. For this reason, and the sometimes inevitable need for a credit card, it is important for you to differentiate between good and bad debt. Borrowing to fund higher education always makes good sense and would be considered good debt. Credit card debt on the other hand would be considered bad debt. Because it’s so easy to swipe, we often ignore the fact that we might be purchasing something we really can’t afford. What happens is we end up paying a lot more than we would have if we had just used cash or said simply said no. When dealing with credit cards, remember not to use credit cards for non-essential or luxury purchases and learn to say no when cash is not available. If getting that extra cash is challenging, try using coupons and taking advantage of sales. This will help you to either have some extra cash for other necessary expenses or help you to save toward something you really want. Also, use unexpected money from gifts or tax refunds to pay down your credit card debt. A tax refund or an unexpected bonus does not mean more money for shopping. Use it responsibly. Now the trick is not to eliminate fun and entertainment from your budget or lifestyle. Instead, put aside some cash each month for these items so you can pay the bill in full. If there’s something you really want, but it’s costly, save for it over a period of time, either weeks or months, before swiping your credit card so that you are able to pay the entire balance when it’s due and avoid any high interest charges. Some people spend thousands of dollars without giving much thought to what they’re purchasing. A comprehensive budget can help you determine where you’re overspending and what you need to cut back on.
When it comes to monthly payments, always make your payments on time. Not only may late payments result in late fees but they may also have a negative effect on your credit. If you have difficulty remembering when payments are due, set up automatic payments. If you have more than one credit card, after you make the minimum payments on all your cards, pay a little more toward the credit card with the highest interest rate. Once the high-interest credit card is completely paid off, do the same for the credit card with the next highest interest rate. Continue to do this until you’ve completely paid off your debt. A little more each month can help eliminate your debt a lot sooner than you may think. Although this might be difficult at first, you’ll save money over the long run. By just making minimum payments, you’ll just about cover the interest you owe and it could take years for you to completely pay off that balance.
Eliminate temptation and if self control is an issue, you can avoid over-spending by limiting yourself to one credit card and using it for emergencies only. This will still help you build your credit but also keep your debt at a minimum. Try using cash for all other purchases and continue to do this until you’ve not only made it a habit but until you have complete control over your spending.People are often reluctant to seek help on how to manage their personal debt so they try to ignore the problem. However, the longer they wait, the more the debt adds up. It’s important to always manage your spending, reduce what you owe and tackle it by getting assistance when you need it. The sooner you pay off your debt, the sooner you could have more money available to save for the retirement you envision or for fun things like a much needed vacation. Most importantly, you could enjoy more peace of mind when you no longer have to worry about how to make ends meet.
Next Steps:
1. Create a spending and budget plan with realistic and sensible goals. It’s always easier to stick to your budget if you have clear, attainable goals.
2. Assess your current financial situation and make adjustments wherever necessary.
3. Seek help. If you have more debt than you can handle, there are professionals that may be able to assist and guide you to better manage your finances.
http://money.cnn.com/magazines/moneymag/money101/lesson9/
https://www.mygreatlakes.org/borrower/knowledgeCenter/guidance/articles/successful_budgeting.html
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