Helping Hearts, Blog of Anne Sanders

February is a short but love-filled month. It’s a month when we think of others for various reasons, be it the Random Acts of Kindness week or Valentine’s Day. It also needs to be a month that we think about our own hearts. As the proverb goes, “guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.” Selfish, you might say, but important and not just in a spiritual way. According to the Centers for Disease Control, cardiovascular disease—including heart disease, stroke, and high blood pressure—is the number 1 killer of women and men in the United States. It is a leading cause of disability, preventing Americans from working and enjoying family activities according to the American Heart Association. Million Hearts® is a national initiative to prevent 1 million heart attacks and strokes by 2017. If you’re not sure of the state of your heart, there are some ways to find out. Million Hearts ® has a Heart Attack Risk Calculator, A My Life Check and Heart 360 which helps you tr...

  Photo courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net   Okay, I’m overwhelmed. My new Christian novel Behind the Stage is coming out in two weeks. I’m getting my website ready, researching credit card machines you can use on your smartphone, setting up book signings and all this is on top of what I am usually doing (work, school, Relay for Life steering committee and, oh yeah, taking care of my family).  Not only that, but next Friday is the celebration of several great events, not just Valentine’s Day. It’s National Donor Day , V-Day , and International Book Giving Day . It’s also part of Random Acts of Kindness week and February 15 is National Make a Blanket Day . Whew! Now I’ve got that all said, I can’t write about all of those things in one week, so a few will have to wait until later.  It’s funny. I’ve had this feeling of being overwhelmed many times and also the feeling of having no control over things. But once I’ve decided that I can’t do it ...

Scarlet, ruby, vermillion, rose, cherry, crimson, maroon and claret. These are just a few of the types of red people will be seeing on Valentine’s Day cards, chocolates and even underwear in the next couple of weeks. Because February is the month for love due to Valentine’s Day, it’s also the American Heart Association’s month of the heart and a host of other heart-related celebrations. Today is National Wear Red Day. Since red is my favorite color, I’m all for it. It also happens to be an awareness tool to let people know that heart disease—the #1 killer of women—is largely preventable.   If you decide to wear red today, let people know why. Next week from February 7th to 14th is Congenital Heart Defect Awareness week. The Congenital Heart Information Network wants people to know that c ongenital heart disease is considered to be the most common birth defect, and is a leading cause of birth-defect related deaths worldwide. With any cause, you can always don...

Everybody has their own way to make a difference in the world. Some have the time to volunteer a regular amount of time every week.   Others give regularly to their charity of choice. Still others raise money for sporting events in which they participate. Some spend time on the computer clicking for a cause or e-mentoring. My husband and oldest sister donate in another way. They give blood to help save lives. January is National Blood Donor Month because during the winter people give blood less often.   Yet the need does not go away during the winter months.   In fact the Red Cross reports that every two seconds in the United States, someone needs blood and 44,000 units of blood are needed every day.   One pint of blood can help save up to three lives. Here are 25 more quick facts about giving blood. My husband has tons of t-shirts from all the blood drives he does. Donors can give every eight weeks. However, he sometimes travels to places that delay his...