The team at Cedar Practice would like to wish our patients a very happy and healthy New Year!
A New Year is a fantastic time to prioritise the health and wellbeing of yourselves and your loved ones. Below are a list of things you can do or changes you can make to improve your physical or mental health this year.
Ensuring you and your children are up-to-date with vaccinations
Children should have routine childhood vaccinations at 8 weeks old, 12 weeks old, 16 weeks old, 1 year old and 3 years and 4 months old.
Teenagers should have a HPV vaccination between the age of 12 and 13 years. At the age of 14, they should have the MenACWY vaccination and a tetanus, diphtheria and polio booster. All children and teenagers between the age of 2 and 15 should have an annual flu vaccination.
Pregnant women should have a whooping cough vaccination and an RSV vaccination at different times during pregnancy, and a flu vaccination if pregnant during flu season.
Adults over 65 years old may be eligible for a pneumococcal, shingles and/or RSV vaccination. They should also have an annual flu vaccination.
For adults with certain underlying health conditions, they may be eligible for a pneumococcal, shingles, meningitis and/or hepatitis vaccination. They may also be eligible for an annual flu vaccination.
This helpful link on the NHS website highlights vaccinations and when you should have them. If you are unsure if you have had any of these vaccinations or think you may be eligible, please make an appointment with the Practice Nurse.
Stopping smoking
If you currently smoke, one of the best things you can do for your health is quit smoking. You’ll begin to see almost immediate improvements to your health. It’s never too late to quit, and it’s easier to stop smoking with the right support. This link on the NHS website details how local stop smoking services can help you quit.
Smokefree City & Hackney is our local Stop Smoking service. You can self-refer to the service via their website, or by calling the team on 0800 054 1190. Alternatively, we can refer you to the service on your behalf. Please contact us and let us know you would like to be referred for smoking cessation support – we’d be delighted to help!
Reducing the amount of alcohol you drink
Alcohol is a toxic chemical that can have a wide range of adverse effects on almost every part of your body. Drinking more than the low-risk guidelines on a regular basis increases your risk of serious health conditions. Regular or frequent drinking means having alcohol most weeks and the more you drink the higher the risks to your health.
Serious risks include:
- cancers of the mouth, upper throat, larynx, oesophagus, breast, liver and bowel
- heart disease
- liver disease
- damage to the nervous system
- pancreatitis
- mental health problems
Why not try the Dry January challenge? From better sleep and a mental health boost, to saving money and time, having an alcohol-free month has lots of benefits.
If you think that you have a problem with alcohol, there is a lot of support available to help you. You can self-refer to The City and Hackney Recovery Service via their website, or by calling them on 0345 144 0050.
Maintaining a healthy weight
If you’re overweight, losing weight will give you more energy and help to reduce the risk of obesity, heart disease and type 2 diabetes. The NHS Better Health website has helpful advice and tools to get you started on your weight loss journey.
If you are living with obesity, you may be able to self-refer to Healthier Together Hackney’s free 12-week weight loss programme on their website.
Alternatively, if you are living with obesity and have high blood pressure and/or diabetes, we can refer you to the free NHS Digital Weight Management programme. Please make an appointment with the Healthcare Assistant if you wish to discuss the options of support available to you.
Having regular exercise
Exercise can reduce your risk of major illnesses, such as coronary heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes and cancer, and lower your risk of early death by up to 30%. Research also shows that physical activity can boost self-esteem, mood, sleep quality and energy, as well as reducing your risk of stress. To stay healthy, guidelines state that adults should try to be active every day and aim to do at least 150 minutes of physical activity over a week, through a variety of activities.
The NHS website has a number of instructor-led exercise videos, focusing on both aerobic and strength exercises, which count towards the guidelines of weekly physical activity.
If you are a Hackney resident over the age of 50, Hackney Council run a free sport and physical activity programme called the New Age Games programme. The programme includes activities such as aerobics, badminton, pilates, tennis and water aerobics. You can visit their website to register and view their weekly programme.
Hackney Council also run a programme of free weekly and monthly walks around Hackney – for more information and to register, visit this link.
Staying connected with others
Feeling lonely, isolated or disconnected from other people can have a large effect on our wellbeing. It can affect our behaviour, but can also cause physical symptoms. If loneliness is very severe or lasts for a long time, it might increase the risk of some physical conditions such as dementia and mental health conditions such as stress, anxiety, low mood or depression.
Tips to deal with loneliness include keeping in touch with people, doing things you enjoy and sharing your feelings. Joining a group or club is also a great way to connect with and meet people.
Volunteer Centre Hackney Better Together offer a wide range of free activities at the Cedar Practice, including but not limited to coffee mornings, arts and crafts, walking groups and yoga sessions. If you’d like to participate in a session, share an idea for a new activity, or volunteer to lead your own class, we’d love to hear from you! For more details, please contact our Community Engagement Care Coordinator Zeesham by email at zeesham@vchackney.org or call him on 07460 268177.
Getting mental health support
It’s important that if you are feeling stressed, anxious, depressed or struggling to cope, that you reach out for help and support. City and Hackney Talking Therapies provide free confidential talking therapy for people registered with a City and Hackney GP. They offer psychological therapy to help with issues ranging from Anxiety, Depression and Panic Attacks to Phobias, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) and Post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
You can self-refer to their service via their website, or by calling them on 0207 683 4278. Alternatively, we can refer you to the service on your behalf.
If you need urgent help and are worried that you can’t keep yourself safe, please call 111 and select option 2 for mental health support or you can get help at your local Accident and Emergency department.