Staying Connected During a Time of Isolation

Health and Wellness, Staff Perspectives

This past weekend, my husband and I sat on the couch as we watched a documentary on Netflix. A scene showed a room full of people at a party, all shaking hands and embracing. I turned to him and said, “Remember when we used to be able to shake hands with people?” We both gave a half-hearted laugh, even though neither of us thought it was very funny. While this past year has been extremely difficult, it seems that most of us are feeling the impact of social isolation even more now that the holiday season has arrived. This is …

Nutrition, Diet Technician

Nutrition: making small changes for a big impact

Health and Wellness, Programs and Services

Antonietta Alfano is a Diet Technician working with individuals who live in our residential homes. She coaches both Arc of Monroe staff and residents on healthy eating while working closely with each person she supports on nutritional needs. To assist staff at each house, Antonietta will check receipts as needed to ensure healthy eating and recommends foods to purchase as needed for the individual’s diets as well as the rest of the home. To help people she supports, she provides pictures of the foods that are recommended on their plates and work with them one-on-one to make healthier choices. Antonietta …

Who is supporting you while you support others?

Health and Wellness

Many of us are drawn by the need to support other people. But are we caring for ourselves? Burnout and fatigue leave us exhausted. Coffee and energy drinks leave us with a mid-day slump. So what can we do to help recharge our batteries and fill up our cup? Self Care… can help you get you battle the burnout and fatigue. is about more than a spa day or shopping trip. can be defined as any deliberate action you take to support your mental, physical, and emotional health. includes getting enough sleep and fueling your body with healthy foods. includes …

Why is trauma informed care important?

Health and Wellness

Why is trauma informed care important? Being trauma-informed means understanding how trauma affects a person and knowing how to respond to someone who has experienced it. This includes trauma that affects the people we support, our co-workers and managers, and ourselves. People all experience and cope with trauma and stress differently. When people cope using wishful thinking, or hoping that things will get better without actually making an action plan, they can experience emotional exhaustion, compassion fatigue, burnout, and dissatisfaction in their work. According to research done in 2009 by Devereux, Hastings, Noone, Firth, & Totsika utilizing coping skills that …

Nature’s Pharmacy

Health and Wellness

Health Tips Nature’s Pharmacy Nature provides us with so many wonderful things, but how often do we think about the foods that Nature gives us and what they do for us?  There are actually so many clues that tell us how these foods (especially when eaten in raw form) help different parts of our body! Look at this carrot slice!  It literally looks just like the human eye!  We all know that carrots are great for our eye sight by increasing blood flow to the eye!!!         Your heart has four chambers – the left and right …

Trauma informed care

Health and Wellness

We are a trauma informed agency Until recently trauma informed care did not focus on people with developmental disabilities but that is rapidly changing. The Arc of Monroe is taking a leadership position on this initiative and we are part of a collaborative team across the county. This model of care is very much in alignment with our core values. Did you know? People with Developmental Disabilities are 4X more likely to be exposed to trauma than those without disabilities Studies indicate that up 80% of women with disabilities may have been sexually assaulted at some point in their lives …

Mental Health Awareness

Mental Health: Myths and Misconceptions

Health and Wellness

If you find the below article useful please consider making a donation so we can create more.   A Google search of the term “mental health” yields about 1,120,000,000 results. The most common search terms associated with “mental health” include “awareness month”, “awareness”, “statistics”, “definition”, “quotes”, “facts”, “association”, “disorders”, and “issues”. Simply put, mental health is defined as “a person’s condition with regard to their psychological and emotional well-being”. While there is clearly an abundance of data both online and in print surrounding mental health, there continue to be misconceptions and misunderstandings about what it all means. This has an …

woman smiling

Taking Steps Can Lead to Great Strides When it Comes to Total Health and Well-Being

Health and Wellness

If you find the below article useful please consider making a donation so we can create more.   I am sure many of us have all heard or been told about how important physical activity is when it comes to our physical health, however, many people may not know just the important factors it can play when it comes to our overall well-being . In April of 2016, the Arc embarked on our first walking program. It was a campaign aimed to kick off the American Heart Association’s National Start Walking Day. The goal was to not just to make …

Shelley VanLare

Arthritis symptoms and treatments

Health and Wellness

If you find the below article useful please consider making a donation so we can create more.   MAY IS ARTHRITIS AWARENESS MONTH Did you know that arthritis is the number one cause of disability in the United States?  More than 50 million Americans are impacted.  In that number about 300,000 babies, children and teens have some type of a rheumatoid arthritis disease.  There are indeed over 100 types of inflammatory arthritis.  Rheumatoid and osteoarthritis are to two most common.  Over 1.5 million people are affected with Rheumatoid arthritis compared to over 27 million suffering from osteoarthritis.  Below is some …

Shelley VanLare

Are you heart healthy?

Health and Wellness

If you find the below article useful please consider making a donation so we can create more.   February is Heart Health month!  How much do you know about keeping your heart healthy? Heart disease is the leading cause of death for men  and women in the US.  About 600,000 americans die from heart disease every year.  Heart disease is the term used for several types of heart problems. Am I at risk? 47% of American adults have at least one of the three major risk factors – high blood pressure, high cholesterol and smoking tobacco.  The more risk factors …