HomeHomeApril 2005
Taking Care of Our Hearts
A couple of stories about heart health came to our attention recently, and it seems that science has finally caught up to conventional wisdom. The first story was released on the Science Daily web site. Johns Hopkins University Researchers have discovered that there really is such a thing as "broken heart" syndrome"–stress cardiomyopathy. Although this syndrome is sometimes confused with a heart attack, it is very different. Emotional stresses can cause severe but reversible heart muscle weakness.
One of the researchers quoted in the release noted that most of their cases of "broken heart" syndrome involved middle-aged or elderly women. Is this new-found stress partially a result women joining the work force decades go–and trying to change a "man’s world?" Or is it merely a hazard of living during an era when technology is rapidly changing the world–and not just the work world, but the home front as well? Or is something more fundamental going on?
Author Gail Godwin addressed the challenges we as "modern" human beings face in her 2001 book, Heart--A Personal Journey Through Its Myths and Meanings (HarperCollins, New York):
"In our contemporary bottom-line society, heart-knowledge–based on feeling values, relationship, personal courage, intimations of the ineffable, a passion for transcendence–tends to be mistrusted as impractical, profitless, or non-existent…
The heart has been reduced once again to the visceral, but this time without any sacred connection to the powers of life and light. No longer do we literally cut our enemies’ hearts out and feed them to an out-of-date sun god: we do it the bloodless, sophisticated way, without a flint knife, and feed them to the contemporary god of "market value function," which leads to money and power."
Is it any real surprise, then, that officials at the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute list heart disease as the number one killer of American women? The NHLBI has launched a public awareness campaign about the "Heart Truth."
The Fountain of Youth — Love
Recently, the Sydney Morning Herald included a report about comments made by Professor Mark Cohen of RMIT University in Melbourne to an international conference on healthy aging. Professor Cohen believes that love improves a person’s chances of living a long life. He quoted a study of Israeli men with heart conditions whose lives and health were affected by their relationships with their wives. According to Cohen, the men who felt loved by their wives had a 50% reduction in their angina and cardiac disease.
Clearly, these recent stories are reminders that it’s time for all of us to take care of our hearts–not just our physical hearts, but our "emotional" hearts as well.
Teresa
News, Tips, and Resources for Learning about and Helping a Broken-Hearted World
Tsunami Relief and Realities
The Tsunami, which devastated areas of Southeast and South Asia over three months ago, is no longer front-page news, but the need for aid and attention to the stricken areas continues.
CNN online recently included a story about Oxfam International’s reports on women in the affected areas. Sadly, the tsunami killed three times more women, on average, than men. Another consequence of the disaster is that women are now victims of rape, harassment, and forced marriages.
CNN online also includes a comprehensive list of groups aiding tsunami victims.
The Washington, DC-based Women’s Edge Coalition is running an "Invest in Women, Make a World of Difference" Action Drive to help women affected by the tsunami. The mission of the Women’s Edge Coalition is "to advocate international economic policies and human rights that support women worldwide in ending poverty in their lives, communities and nations."
According to their web site, the Global Fund for Women is "providing long- term support to local groups in the affected regions with grants that will help communities rebuild, prevent sexual violence, and ensure women and children are accorded their full human rights in all aspects of social, political and economic development."
Here’s an inspirational example of one person making a difference for his former homeland. Minnesota-based Evan Balasuriya took action and formed a group of volunteers who traveled to Sri Lanka to provide help. You can read more about this group on the "Help Sri Lanka" web site.
For an interesting perspective of the Tsunami aid situation, check out Michael Perry’s report for Reuters about the amount and impact of Australian dollars sent to affected regions.
Women and Issues of Global Poverty
In Manitoba, Canada, the UN Platform for Action Committee offers an excellent web site entitled "Women and the Economy." and includes information on women in poverty.
Children and Poverty
The United Nations Children USA just released their sobering 2005 report on the "State of The World’s Children." According to the report, "more than half the world's children are suffering extreme deprivation from poverty, war and HIV/AIDS – conditions that effectively deny children a childhood and hinder the development of nations."
Why Librarians are Our Best Friends
The University of Wisconsin Library offers wealth of information on their "Statistical Resources About Women and Gender" page.
Upcoming Conferences
Conference Alerts offers a quick way to check out coming international conferences by listing "events in women's studies, gender and related fields," and is an excellent resource. Also listed are upcoming events related to reproductive medicine and women’s health.
The Annual "Turn Beauty Inside Out" 2005 Girls Leadership Conference will be held in Los Angeles, California, from April 13th — 15th. The TBIO campaign is an "ongoing public education effort started by New Moon® Magazine and now coordinated by Mind on the Media. This is a collaborative effort to foster participation, discussion and awareness of women's and girls' images in the media."
The Institute for Women’s Policy Research is holding their 8th annual conference in Washington, DC from June 19th — 21st. The theme is "When Women Gain, So Does the World." According to their web site, "The conference theme centers on the reality that investing in women’s status globally is important not only for women themselves but is critical to the economic and social well-being of entire communities, institutions, and nations." The IWPR also offers a terrific resource in their "Status of Women in the States - 2004" web page.
The Women’s Leadership Exchange is "committed to supporting the growth of women-led businesses in all sectors through the sharing of knowledge, resources and contacts that uniquely marks the Women's Leadership Exchange®." They offer a list of their conferences on their home page.
Mexico City, Mexico will be the site of the June 23-25 "Global Summit of Women 2005." The theme is "Leading the 21st Century Economy," and this is a "premier gathering of women business, professional and governmental leaders from around the globe to advance women's economic and entrepreneurial progress worldwide."
Women In Technology International or WITI, has a mission "to empower women worldwide to achieve unimagined possibilities and transformations through technology, leadership and economic prosperity." Their first conference will be held in May in Los Angeles and is titled, "Taking the Lead…In The Digital Age." A list of all of their coming conferences can be found here.
More on Helping Military Families
In our November 2004 edition of WITNE, we included resources for helping military families, most of whom are doing more than their fair share in support of the USA.
Here’s another helpful resource from the Veterans of Foreign Wars VFW Foundation. The Unmetneeds.com web site states that the need is great because "According to the Department of Defense, our country has over 700,000 military spouses across the services–93% of them women. Nearly half of those are married to enlisted members who make less than $20,000 a year in basic pay. When Reservists are included, these average yearly pay amounts reach alarming lows."
Melissa Rodriguez, Military Families Editor at Bellaonline offers a wealth of information, including features about "Online Tax Help for Military Families" and "Armed Forces Taxpayer Benefits."
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