Archive for November, 2015

Clip N Curl Family Hair Care is holding a Food Drive for the Plain City Food Pantry from now through Christmas. Drop off one food pantry donation and receive either $2.00 off your hair styling appointment or $2.00 off one retail item per visit.  There is no limit on the number of items you may donate.

Donations will be delivered on Friday, December 18.

Clip N Curl will also be open during Christmas Under the Clock from 5:30-8 pm. Take your food pantry donation items in to them during the celebration, as well.

To Like Clip N Curl on Facebook, Go HERE.

Clip N Curl is located at 251 West Main Street in Plain City. For more information or to schedule a visit, call: 614-873-4998

When you drop off your food pantry donation, you can also pick up gift certificates from any stylist. These make excellent gifts and stocking stuffers for everyone on your list.

Take a look at the Lovejoy’s ad for November 30 to December 6.

Stop by the deli and bakery. Get fresh items for less.

Check out all the great 10 for $10 items. Buy one or ten. They are all only $1 each. There are hundreds of 10 for $10 items in the store.

Like Lovejoy’s on Facebook by going HERE.

For more information on Lovejoy’s IGA, visit their web site HERE.

Remember, we hope you will shop locally and support locally owned businesses here in our community!

Click on each of the pages of the ad to enlarge them. When they show up on a separate page, click again to make the pages even bigger. You can also print them out and take them with you when you go shopping!

It’s that time of the year again where darkness consumes your early commute and greets you as you are finishing your work day. Many individuals are able to cope with the shortened days and colder temperatures. However, some individuals have a harder time with the change. This phenomenon has been named seasonal affective disorder or “SAD” for short.

SAD usually begins and ends consistently around the same time each year for patients. Most people, if they develop SAD, develop it in the fall and continue to have it into the winter months. However, there are some individuals who develop SAD in the spring and continue to have symptoms into the summer; this however is much less common.

Some common symptoms of SAD are:

• Irritability
• Tiredness or low energy
• Problems getting along with others
• Hypersensitivity to rejection
• Heavy, “leaden” feeling in the arms or legs
• Increased sleep
• Weight gain
• Cravings for foods high in carbohydrates

You may be reading these symptoms and diagnosing yourself or a loved one with SAD. Be careful labeling yourself or others as many people will experience these symptoms during the winter months, but do not fit the criteria of being clinically diagnosed with SAD.

On the other hand, if you experience these symptoms for days at a time or realize that activities that used to make you happy do not any more, it may be time to talk to your physician. This is especially true if your sleep or appetite drastically changes or you have thoughts of suicide or turn to alcohol or drugs for comfort.

There are some risk factors that put individuals at a greater risk for developing SAD and they include:

• Being Female
• Younger age
• Having a family history of SAD
• Living farther from the equator
• Having a history of major depressive disorder or bipolar disorder

Although it is not completely understood why some individuals develop SAD, the following are thought to be contributing factors:

• Circadian rhythm: The decrease in sunlight may disrupt your internal clock which may lead to depression.
• Serotonin: The reduction in sunlight may decrease the levels of serotonin. This neurotransmitter is responsible for feeling good. Consequently, a decrease in this substance would cause someone to feel “down” or sad.
• Melatonin: The change in seasons can alter the concentration of melatonin within an individual. This could be the reason for changes in sleep pattern and mood.

You may be wondering how you can treat this condition, especially since we live in Ohio and it is inevitable that our weather will stay consistently dark and gloomy. Below are the following treatment options, along with things that can be done at home to help ease the symptoms and improve one’s mood.

• Light Therapy:
  • Mimics natural outdoor light which may help alter brain chemicals to improve mood. This is considered first line treatment for fall-winter SAD.
• Psychotherapy: 
  • Also referred to as “talk therapy.”
• Medications: 
  • Some patients with severe SAD may benefit from antidepressants, especially Wellbutrin (bupropion). If patients tend to have SAD repeatedly during the same seasons, their doctor may start them on an antidepressant before fall.
• Alternative options:
  • Brighten your day, literally. Open blinds, trim branches that block the natural sunlight from entering your house, or add skylights. Also, try to sit by windows even when you are stuck inside.
  • Get outside regardless of the weather. This is especially helpful if you can do it within two hours after getting up–very convenient if you have a pet who needs a good walk!
  • Exercise, exercise, exercise!!!

Hopefully this information will help you or a loved one during this upcoming winter!

Infograph from the following web site: http://www.accesshealthcareservices.com/beating-winter-blues-guide-seasonal-affective-disorder-sad/

First image in blog, courtesy of: http://www.yellowbrickprogram.com/seasonal-affective-disorder.html

Joe and I want to wish everyone a very peaceful and blessed Thanksgiving.

Please note that Plain City Druggist will be closed on Thursday, November 26, in observance of the holiday. We will re-open on Friday, November 27, at 9 am.

If you have an emergency or need anything while we are closed, please call the after hours number: 614-240-8421. If Joe does not call you back within an hour, call again and leave another message with your phone number.

Last year at this time, Joe and I were just getting ready to close on our purchase of the drugstore on Karl Road. I remember thinking that Thanksgiving day was going to be the last day of peace and quiet for quite some time–and it was! We spent the Black Friday after Thanksgiving, as well as the entire weekend, counting drugs and trying to get everything in the acquired pharmacy transferred over to us so that it could open on Monday morning as Happy Druggist Pharmacy. Joe then spent the entire month of December working out all the kinks, dealing with a ton of headaches, and manning the counter at Happy Druggist.

I am so thankful that we survived all of that hassle and that this year our Thanksgiving weekend will not include lists of drugs and pill counts!

But…

Any time Joe finishes one project, he quickly jumps into something new. I always ask him to let me catch my breath before he starts the next great escapade. He seldom listens to that advice, however. And so, we are currently working to open the latest drugstore in West Jefferson. We’ve had so many current customers who live in West Jefferson ask us when the store will be opening that we thought we’d better make an announcement.

We are happy to announce that Happy Druggist Pharmacy West Jefferson should be open for business in the spring of 2016.

We are working right now to update and remodel the building which is located at 487 West Main Street in West Jefferson (the pharmacy will be in the west end of the building). We are told this used to be the old grocery store in town. Richard Murray also told us that he helped build it! That just gives me chills, because if Richard built it, it was built right–and he was building it for us even though he didn’t know it at the time.

You can keep up with everything that is happening with the new store in West Jefferson by visiting and liking the Facebook page HERE.

Even as we expand and move beyond the boundaries of Plain City, we will always call Plain City our home and everyone we know here our friends.

As we celebrate 16 years in Plain City, here are the top five things we are most thankful for this year:

1. All the wonderful people we know–friends, family, customers, business colleagues, staff–each and every one of you add something to our lives and we are thankful that our paths crossed. We don’t know what we would do without you! We can hardly remember what life was like before Bob was running the compounding lab, Trudi was at the front counter, and Grumpy Cat Greg was tooling around Plain City in the delivery van (the Grumpy Cat images are in honor of Gregger).

We have also come to know so many new people through Happy Druggist. We can’t imagine our lives now without our super manager, Mark Robbins, and his wife, Shelley, and their children, Natalie and Brady.

2. Community Support–we could not still be in business after 16 years without the support of those in Plain City and neighboring areas who choose to walk through our doors and support a local business! Remember as we enter this holiday season of gift buying–shop locally and support all the “super duper” businesses we have in our village.

3. Passion–Joe and I are so fortunate to be doing what we love with our lives and running a business together! There are not many husbands and wives who get to eat lunch together almost every day and have been doing so for the past 14-15 years. We are very, very lucky and blessed.

4. Good Health–because we see so many people without it, Joe and I are very glad to be healthy. We wish for good health for all of our patients.

5. Plain City, Ohio, United States, Planet Earth–we are so thankful to live in such a lovely place in the most wonderful country on this beautiful planet.

Finally, I am personally so thankful for my wonderful new office next to the drugstore with its beautiful violet wall. I used to have an office attached to the compounding lab that was the size of the bathroom and did not have a window. I now have a window and sunlight and plenty of space to write and take care of all the drugstore stuff that lands on my giant desk! I feel so lucky to have such a great new area where I can work without distractions (excluding Greg’s daily interruptions, of course).

Thank you to everyone reading this blog posting. We appreciate your continued support of us and the pharmacies–both current and future!

It is that time of the year again when family and friends travel near and far to celebrate the holidays with their loved ones. Thanksgiving, in particular, is a holiday where food has a central role and is usually in excess. Many families make home cooked Thanksgiving meals that include sweet potatoes layered with melted marshmallows, pumpkin pie covered with whipped cream, or a turkey leg smothered in rich, creamy gravy.

I am here to offer some guidance to help you enjoy your holiday season while eliminating those stubborn pounds that seem to hang around well into March.

1) Consume healthy proportions

• Plan on having one plateful at Thanksgiving lunch/dinner. Your plate should consist of 50% vegetables, fruits, and a roll (whole wheat preferable), 25% of a starch (preferably a sweet potato without marshmallows), and 25% ham or turkey. One way to think of this 25% rule is a cupcake sized portion of mashed potatoes and a Hersey’s chocolate bar size of turkey.
• If you are still hungry after one plate, wait 10 minutes. If after 10 minutes you are indeed still hungry, have seconds of a healthier option including green beans, carrots, salad, or white turkey meat.
• Aim for a colorful plate–the prettier, the better for you.
• For dessert, choose a pie that is either fruit filled or pumpkin versus chocolate or pecan.

2) Eat before Thanksgiving lunch or dinner

• If your family enjoys their Thanksgiving for lunch, have breakfast as normal or a small snack before.
• If your family enjoys their Thanksgiving for dinner, consume meals as usual prior to dinner.
• If meals are skipped, you are more likely to over eat when the time comes.

3) Substitute healthier options into your meal

• Use plain Greek yogurt instead of sour cream.
• Add chicken broth, herbs, or garlic to mashed potatoes instead of butter.
• In green bean casseroles, use roasted almonds instead of deep fried onions.
• When making pies, used whole wheat crusts.
• Use olive oil instead of butter when feasible.
• Provide whole wheat rolls instead of white ones.

4) Drink plenty of water on Thanksgiving and exercise after

• Drink plenty of fluids before lunch/dinner. This will avoid dehydration which may make you feel hungrier than you actually are. Drinking more fluids will actually make you feel fuller faster.
• After lunch/dinner avoid lying down or taking a nap. Go on a quick walk with family and friends and enjoy the fall weather. This will speed up your metabolism and help your body digest your food.

5) Avoid excessive snacking throughout the day

• Once everyone is done with the food, cover it up and store it in the refrigerator. By putting the food away, you are less likely to over eat and will have leftovers for the next day!

On behalf of November being American Diabetes month, I have included a link that has healthy Thanksgiving recipes for diabetics. http://www.eatingwell.com/recipes_menus/collections/healthy_diabetic_diet_thanksgiving_recipes

Graphics:

Lexington Athletic Club. Charlie Brown Thanksgiving. http://lexingtonathleticclub.com/uncategorized/thanksgiving-hours/. Published November 26, 2014. Accessed November 3, 2015.

Diet and Fitness. Feeling Stuffed. The Men’s Magazine. http://howtomanguide.com/2013/12/diet-fitness/how-to-lose-the-thanksgiving-day-weight/. Published December 1,2013. Accessed November 3, 2015.