Friday, December 7, 2012

Christmas on the Ball at the BellHOP Cafe 12/8/2012


“Christmas on the Ball” at the BellHOP Café on  Saturday, 12/8/2012 Public Invited
Introductions and Welcome by Pat Jonas of BUMC and Heather of BellHOP Café in Bellbrook
Overview of Session including Health and Safety Warning and Disclaimer
               Make a Habit of toning, stretching and movement first- fitness later.  PACE YOURSELF
               Standing, Sitting on the ball- with/without bouncing, lying on the ball, lying on the floor
               Helps Heart, Upper Body, Core, Lower Body, Spine and Mood
Opening Prayer
Breathing on the ball.  Without- five whole breaths and five with bounces.
Standing:  Five reps each of twist (p117)*, front bend and side bend (p118), hug and 30 seconds of drape over ball (p115)
Recovery for two minutes
Sitting:  100-150 bounces with music, Hip Release (124), Pelvic tilt (p34), crunch (p36), back stretch (p35)
Water, fluids, bathroom break, ball repair/ reinflation 5-7 minutes
Health Tip:  Dr Synonymous (aka, Dr Jonas) Stress Reactions, Cortisol, and the Ball
Lying on ball: back toner (p50), rise and shine (p52), push up (p46)
Lying on floor: five reps each-lower body toner (p68), lift ball, squeeze ball
Sitting on ball: 2 minute bounce with music
Recovery, refreshments from BellHOP menu, fellowship
Next formal session 7 PM January 10 at BUMC (followed by 7PM Jan 14th at BUMC)
Next informal session:  Your place- three times weekly 2-3 each standing, sitting, lying (five reps or 30 seconds-depending). Bouncing 2-4 minutes depending on energy and comfort.
More exercises at www.Ball-Exercises.com
*From Sculpt Your Body with Balls and Bands by Denise Austin, 2004 by St Martin’s Press

Wednesday, November 21, 2012

Depression: Many Faces and Many Seasons



By Pat Jonas, MD

"I know just how you feel. I was really depressed after my grandmother died when I was in high school." Someone may use a comment like this to be supportive of a friend who is feeling lost or down or blue or empty. The comment may be helpful or it may miss the mark, even leading to more feelings of emptiness in the sufferer.

Depression has many faces, and many meanings to individuals, families and communities. Most are familiar with transient feelings of loss, grief, emptiness, fear, or loneliness. Most adults have also heard of "clinical depression" separating it from the type of "common" depression that comes from life's many stressful or negative experiences and situations.

What kind of messages does the Bible give about depression? Here are a few verses that seem to set the stage for more understanding.

Depression can follow exhausting times (Judges 15:18)
God can encourage hurting people (2 Samuel 22:29-31)
Depression can follow success (1 Kings 19:3-4)
God helps those who feel crushed (Psalm 34:18)
Abraham had hope when there was no reason to hope (Romans 4:18-22)
God will wipe away depression (Revelation 21:4)
Holy Bible, New Living Translation.
Why is thy countenance sad, seeing thou art not sick? (Neh. 2:2)
My soul is weary of my life. (Job 10:1)
Save me, O God; for the waters are come in unto my soul. (Ps. 69:1)
A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones. (Prov. 17:22)
Encyclopedia of Bible Facts.

What we refer to as Clinical Depression is defined medically by the National Institutes of Mental Health:
"Everyone occasionally feels blue or sad. But these feelings are usually short-lived and pass within a couple of days. When you have depression, it interferes with daily life and causes pain for both you and those who care about you. Depression is a common but serious illness.
Many people with a depressive illness never seek treatment. But the majority, even those with the most severe depression, can get better with treatment. Medications, psychotherapies, and other methods can effectively treat people with depression."

Clinical Depression may show up differently across the lifespan, from childhood to the senior citizen years. Yes, even children can feel the pain and emptiness of clinical depression.
Pastors, poets, authors, scholars, song writers and many others have described "common" depression in many ways, since it affects so many of us. Reference to sadness, discouragement, loss, loneliness and grief abounds in our hymns (e.g., "His Eye is on the Sparrow" starts with "Why should I feel discouraged?")
Physicians recognize the challenge in identifying and treating clinical depression, which doesn't arise or depart quickly. They also recognize how easy it is to misunderstand the seriousness of clinical depression because of the exposure we all have to sadness, loss and grief. Many persons who are "becoming themselves" again on medication and/ or psychotherapy for clinical depression stop the medication or therapy prematurely. A trusting relationship between patient and physician and/or psychotherapist becomes critical for success.

"If there be a hell upon earth it is to be found in a melancholy man's heart"
........Robert Burton in Draper's Book of Quotations for the Christian World.


If you and your loved ones are bouncing back from stress, loss and grief, prayerfully give thanks for your blessings. If you or your loved ones are feeling empty with emotional pain or continuous deep sadness in spite of your best efforts to cope with life situations, consider a visit to your physician or a mental health professional for further clinical exploration of a diagnosis and treatment plan. Clinical Depression may be a factor.

Monday, September 17, 2012

Liberty: The Town Pump

What do you remember about the town pump in Liberty?  I have some information that it was drinking water for some of the up town people who used well water for other purposes but didn't find the well water pure enough to drink.  The old town pump.  It's no longer there.  Neither is the apartment building behind the pump.  Who has pump stories to tell?

Sunday, September 16, 2012

A "New" Church

After an exhaustive, nationwide search, we found our new church.  Well, maybe we shortened the search a bit when we realized that the Methodist church closest to our home (one mile) was the best fit for our situation.  After three weeks of attending, meeting people, eating the brownies they delivered to our home after we signed in as a visitor the first Sunday of our attendance, connecting to the Methodist language and format of the services, enjoying the music which included a talented gospel and all purpose quartet (with mandolin, too) and a group of instrumentalists and a music director who even writes music and plays the oboe, feeling welcome and comfortable, connecting to sermons and prayers and scripture and children's sermons, hearing a refreshing message about the discipleship of all, and catching a new "Christian" breath, we joined the Bellbrook United Methodist Church.

Friday, July 20, 2012

Faith and Family Medicine


"Faith and Family Medicine"

Hope United Methodist Church July 21, 2012

A.     Introduction of Presenter:  Pat Jonas, MD

B.     Review:  
a.      What is Family Medicine?
b.      How does a Christian Family Physician mix faith with patient care?
c.      What is the Human Centered Health Home? 
d.      What is the 5-5-5?
e.      How might prayer affect coronary arteries and heart function?

C.     Overview:
a.      Family Medicine

b.      Honoring God’s Creation, Validating Human Worth and Uniqueness, Sharing Uncertainty, Celebrating Successes

c.      Respecting, Protecting, Connecting, Inspecting, Detecting, Correcting, Reflecting


d.      The 5-5-5
                                                              i.     Eat 5 colors of food daily (M & M’s don’t count)

                                                             ii.     Eat at least five servings of fruits and vegetables daily

                                                            iii.     Practice five health behaviors
1.      Exercise (aka, Movement) e.g. “TV Toning Ball”
2.      Control Blood Pressure
3.      Control Weight (Body Mass Index)
4.      Control Cholesterol
5.      Control Stress
e.      Whole-Hearted Prayer balances the autonomic nervous system

                                                              i.     Decreases traditional “sympathetic over-drive”

                                                             ii.     Increases parasympathetic nervous system tone

                                                            iii.     Increases DHEA

                                                            iv.     Decreases cortisol, blood pressure, weight, glucose, cholesterol, triglycerides

                                                             v.     Decreases plaque buildup, timing of heart attacks and strokes

Thursday, July 19, 2012

Men of Hope Presentation July 21, 2012


"Faith and Family Medicine"
Hope United Methodist Church July 21, 2012
A.     Introduction of Presenter:  Pat Jonas, MD
B.     Review:  
a.      What is Family Medicine?
b.      How does a Christian Family Physician mix faith with patient care?
c.      What is the Human Centered Health Home? 
d.      What is the 5-5-5?
e.      How might prayer affect coronary arteries and heart function?

C.     Overview:
a.      Family Medicine

b.      Honoring God’s Creation, Validating Human Worth and Uniqueness, Sharing Uncertainty, Celebrating Successes

c.      Respecting, Protecting, Connecting, Inspecting, Detecting, Correcting, Reflecting


d.      The 5-5-5
                                                              i.     Eat 5 colors of food daily (M & M’s don’t count)

                                                             ii.     Eat at least five servings of fruits and vegetables daily

                                                            iii.     Practice five health behaviors
1.      Exercise (aka, Movement) e.g. “TV Toning Ball”
2.      Control Blood Pressure
3.      Control Weight (Body Mass Index)
4.      Control Cholesterol
5.      Control Stress
e.      Whole-Hearted Prayer balances the autonomic nervous system

                                                              i.     Decreases traditional “sympathetic over-drive”

                                                             ii.     Increases parasympathetic nervous system tone

                                                            iii.     Increases DHEA

                                                            iv.     Decreases cortisol, blood pressure, weight, glucose, cholesterol, triglycerides

                                                             v.     Decreases plaque buildup, timing of heart attacks and strokes

Tuesday, July 17, 2012

Men and God: Becoming Wholehearted

As a Family Physician, I speak with patients daily about Prevention, Heart Health, Bone Health, Brain Health, Men's Health, Women's Health, Children's Health, Family Health, The Individual Life Cycle and The Family Life Cycle.  I'm usually speaking with women.  Since they have babies, usually are the ones bringing the children to the doctor's office and see physicians more often themselves, they get more health information over time than men do.  What about men?

What might help men with their health?  Is it only about the prostate gland?  Or anger management?  Or blood pressure and cholesterol?  Or colonoscopy?

"The problem with men, we are told, is that they don't know how to keep their promises, be spiritual leaders, talk to their wives, or raise their children.  But, if they will try real hard they can reach the lofty summit of becoming...a nice guy."  by John Eldredge in Wild at Heart.  Eldredge laments that Christianity seems to have led men to believe that "God put them on the earth to be a good boy."  He continues with a reminder and a challenge that "God meant something when he meant man,....What has he set in the masculine heart?...  What makes you come alive?"

Eldredge focuses his book with his realization that "in the heart of every man is a desperate desire for a battle to fight, an adventure to live, and a beauty to rescue."

But what about blood pressure and cholesterol?  Is there a battle, an adventure and a beauty involved in preventing coronary artery disease?  How does God relate to Health and Prevention for Men?