ADVICE

By Colin Smith | Contributor“TO THE WORLD, YOU MAY BE ONE PERSON; BUT TO ONE PERSON, YOU MAY BE THE WORLD.” -DR.SEUSSLEGAL GUARDIANSHIPWHO DO YOU TRUST TO MAKE DECISIONS FOR YOU WHEN YOU CAN NO LONGER MAKE THEM?Sometimes in Court, I watch the cases being heard before mine. Once, an elderly woman with dementia was refusing to surrender her driver’s license. Her adult children were petrified that Mom still drove, since she would drive somewhere and then forget how to get home. The children would disable her car so that it wouldn’t start, but resourceful Mom would then rent cars from Enterprise—they pick you up—and the process would repeat itself. The Court agreed that Mom should not drive and took away her driver’s license.On another occasion, a man was obtaining guardianship over his 18-yea...

By Dr. Dean Beckloff | ContributorCOVID-19 has brought an abrupt halt to our lives, and for some of us, our own livelihoods have been threatened too. It has been tough not to speak to those who have contracted the disease and…those who have lost their struggle to it. There has been untold stress, challenges to us personally and challenges to our families. There are a number of voices out there too, giving us an overload of information, and some of it conflicting. For the most part, we just want to keep our loved ones safe and our kids growing well through this crisis.Our young folks, our teens and college age students have suffered in some unique ways too. Proms have been taken away—an important and huge rite of passage for most of our high school students. Our high school seniors may not ...

By Colin Smith | ContributorAmericans love the story of the person who pulls him- or herself up by the bootstraps. The story is a staple of our society, since the vast majority of us are either immigrants or descended from them. The small business is consistently relevant, thanks to immigration and historical catalysts. Now, the 2019 Coronavirus threatens to end the era of big-box retail and cause large firms to shrink, thereby sowing a generation of small businesses.Any business owner will tell you that they never worked as hard for someone else as they do for themselves. Therefore, most family business owners find themselves so involved with the daily operations that they never stop to come up with an exit strategy. What happens if the owners get ill, have a family emergency, or want to ...

By Tanni Haas, Ph.D.As families are hunkering down at home, parents are looking for ways to keep their kids meaningfully engaged. How about encouraging your kids to download some apps that can help them stay mentally and physically fit? Here are some of the very best ones available, and the best part is that they’re all completely free.Eat & Move-O-Matic(Available: Apple Appstore; Age range 9-18)If you want your kids to understand the consequences of their food choices, Eat & Move-O-Matic is the right app for them. Created by the Learning Game Lab at New Mexico State University, the app teaches kids to be aware of what they eat or drink. It lets them compare the calories in their food choices with the type and length of time of physical activities like biking, running, or walking n...

By Katie McCallum | Houston MethodistWhile nothing can truly replace the in-person hugs, hello’s, high-fives and happy moments, here are 10 great apps, devices and online services to help you stay in touch with your loved ones — while staying safely hunkered down at home.Tools to help you keep in touchWith a variety of free video chat apps and web platforms available, there are plenty of ways to see and talk to your family and friends. Here are a few we recommend:WhatsApp:Available across devices and around the world, WhatsApp is a great way to message, call or video chat with basically anyone. And with encryption services built into the platform, you can be sure your communication stays private. However, while making voice or video calls, keep in mind that WhatsApp relies on your cell dat...

By Elizabeth Lenart | ContributorThe Counseling Place, which provides affordable professional counseling and education services on a sliding scale to all ages and income levels in North Texas, is asking for the community’s support during “North Texas Giving Tuesday Now” through May 5 at midnight. With the onset of COVID-19, anxiety, depression, and emotional exhaustion caused by the virus, uncertain employment, and isolation are making existing mental health problems more complex and creating new ones, drastically elevating the need for mental health services now and in the future.“The virus has changed life as we know it, and based on what our clinicians are already seeing, we are bracing ourselves for what is to come,” said Deborah Dobbs, who has been with The Counseling Place for 23 yea...

By Amy Harberg, M.E.d., LPC, RPT, NCC | ContributorThese are unprecedented times; in a society where everyone is always so busy, we are being forced to slow down and stay at home.Sure, the situation is scary and uncertain, but this experience also presents an unbelievable opportunity for us as a society: the opportunity to connect deeper with the people that we take for granted. We are social creatures and we crave human contact, yet we move so fast in our current lives that we miss many opportunities to foster this basic need. Anxiety and depression have been on the rise for years. Social, academic and financial pressures are at an all-time high and although many people express the desire to slow down, it unfortunately is a common belief that if you slow down then you are not doing enough...

By Colleen Benzin | Managing Director, Apparent InsuranceSo many things about our lives right now aren’t “normal,” and we’re all learning how to adjust. But social distancing also offers us opportunities to build new skills and focus our attention on a handful of activities—and one is teaching your teen to be a responsible driver. With roads less busy than usual, now’s the time to practice good habits and prepare for the “what if” scenarios.Teach them to ignore distractionsWhen you’re a parent of a teen and it comes time for them to start driving, you’re often so worried about them learning skills like merging properly and remembering to check their rear-view mirror, it’s easy to forget to warn them against one of the biggest road risks—distracted driving.When we think “distracted driving”...

By Amy Ridings and Ruth Guerreiro | Genesis Women’s Shelter & SupportWhile many of us are currently practicing social distancing and staying inside our homes, victims of domestic violence who are trapped with abusers don’t have the luxury of feeling safe. At Genesis, one of the most critical services we provide is safety planning, where a licensed counselor helps a survivor think through practical changes that may increase her safety. If you find yourself feeling unsafe in your own home, you may want to consider some of the suggestions below, but remember – everyone’s situation is unique, meaning that not all suggestions may apply to you. You are the expert in your own life, and we encourage you to listen to your instincts. And despite what is happening with the COVID-19 outbreak, you ...

By Katie McCallum | Houston MethodistApril 7, 2020–To wear a mask or not to wear a mask? This question has been up for debate since the beginning of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.In the early days of the pandemic, public health experts asked healthy people to avoid wearing face masks — as these are critical medical supplies that must be reserved for healthcare workers. There’s also the notion that wearing a mask could instill a false sense of security in some people, making you more likely to venture outside of your home more than necessary and disregard social distancing recommendations.As the COVID-19 situation has become more widespread and more serious, guidance from public health officials around covering our faces has shifted. In fact, the Centers for Disease Control and Preven...