Well, how has your life been over the last 3 months? I find its sometimes good to just stop and reflect for a bit. I have come into this year with the knowledge I need to refocus, reimagine, and reinvent, and this is already manifesting, albeit slowly, but it is lovely watching the year reveal itself to me. The trick is (I have found), is not to push when you are wanting change. In my mind I liken it to treading water (something we use to do in the swimming pool when we were kids).
As you would all know, keeping a print magazine going these days isn’t easy, with so many people now preferring to do everything online, and perhaps making the choice to receive information via audio or video rather than necessarily reading it. But I still believe there are enough people who like reading, prefer print to digital, and are interested in staying up-to-date with the latest on health and wellness to warrant keeping this magazine going – albeit on a smaller scale. Personally, with regard to digital and online, I am choosing to move away from the virtual world and turn it off whenever I can. I feel it is really doing a lot of damage to people, communities and societies. Although having said that, I go online for business (largely because you have to) and to keep in touch with my community and friends, and of course to learn about things.
I guess what I am saying is that I am very selective. Plus I have had a couple of bad experiences with trusting business people online, which really gave me a fright. The upshot of this, is that I decided to look about for something else I could do alongside producing this magazine, and have been lucky enough to secure a position as a Leisure and Lifestyle Worker at my local regional hospital, and have started playing music for people with dementia. And I have to say, it is just so rewarding. The residents absolutely love it, and I really love it so everybody wins. But I am also very interested in dementia and publishing on it whenever new information and research comes out – such as the articles in this issue on the numbers doubling by 2050 and that a healthy diet can lower dementia risk. So watch out for more in this space.
Falls prevention is also something that is really big which our government has recognised, giving $4m for researchers to look into changing practice including in the home. And interest in medical cannabis is growing fast everywhere – including in Australia – but it is the first time I have seen anything on its use for skin cancer (see article on slowing down melanoma cell growth p.17).
We have featured a bit more in this magazine on end-of-life, with an apt title I think for the article contributed by Hayley West: Talking About Death Is Not Going To Kill You in which you will find out more about the different types of funerals that are becoming available. Precious Time is also a good read regarding making decisions with family at the end of your life. The article on finding purpose I think is just so important, and the wellness washing article contributed by Sandra Surace (you may have read about this on socials) is good to understand for best approaches in the workplace. There are many other articles in this issue of course, but I just have to say in closing the issue of hydration is just so underrated – I hope you are onto this. Keep drinking lots of water every day! And our sleep article from Dr Michael Mosley’s latest book well worth a read. So I hope you enjoy these contributions and others. Keep cosy during these cold winter months, and be kin
CATE MERCER
Editor/Publisher
The Art of Healing
This Editor’s Note appeared in Vol 2 Issue 87 of The Art of Healing.
