Category: Published Articles

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This is my first article that I’ve written for Ebony. I was pretty excited to see this shared on their twitter feed and then on their site… because Ebony is Ebony. Self-care is an area that is really important to me, not only physical but mental, so I was happy to be able to write on this. Thanks to @Dani_Whispers AKA HotelWhisperer for the opportunity.

 

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Mental Floss: What I Do to Preserve My Mental Sanity

Keep your mind right with these helpful tips.

by Christen N. McCluney, October 6, 2016

Life can be stressful. One of the best things we can do for ourselves is create healthy habits to preserve our mental sanity. Here are things I do that you can try too.

PRAYER/MEDITATION
When I’m having a moment the first thing I do is pray. In addition to prayer, I meditate and use scriptures and affirmations like, “positivity is my new normal,” to get myself through moments. I also use HeadSpace, a guided meditation app, for daily mindfulness and have explored services like Still Going, that offer meditation with a live coach.

YOGA
When I really need a break I turn to Yoga Nidra. It’s guided meditation that leads you into a deep sleep-like state of relaxation. It’s practiced lying down in a dim room with blankets, eye pillows, and other props to make you comfortable. I prefer the studio and the energy it gives, but you can also practice at home thanks to all the Yoga Nidra videos on YouTube.

WRITE
I’ve written for as long as I can remember. In moments of happiness, sadness and everything in between. One of the best ways to release is putting pen to paper. Whether it’s in a journal, on a blog, a letter, or an email sent to self, writing always helps.

BREATHE
Sometimes I don’t have a moment to disappear at work so I’ve turned to breathing techniques to relieve stress. The easiest one is the 4-5-6 pattern. You inhale through the nose for 4 counts, hold your breath 5 counts and exhale slowly through your mouth for 6 counts. Repeat until you’re back to your usual centered, calm self.

Christen N. McCluney is a social media strategist and freelance writer based in Washington, D.C., writing on love, spirituality and wellness.  You can follow her on her blog Simply Christen and on Twitter.

Read more at EBONY http://www.ebony.com/wellness-empowerment/mental-sanity-preservation#ixzz4MYko91VA
Follow us: @EbonyMag on Twitter | EbonyMag on Facebook

 

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By Christen N. McCluney
September 13, 2011

Everyone can’t afford to get away for a vacation. Time constraints, budget issues or other life obligations may keep us from traveling the way that we want to, but a “staycation” is a great alternative to have a little break without going far from home.

When planning a staycation one of the first things to do is set your parameters and figure out what your budget is for the weekend and how far you want to travel (under 50 miles is usually a good distance). You can start looking on sites like travelzoo or even living social to see what types of deals are in your area. Many hotels offer great deals if you plan ahead and some even offer discounted rates for in-state residents.

If you decide to venture out plan your weekend like you are a tourist. In most places there are plenty of attractions and activities that often get overlooked because we are so set in routine. Tourism sites offer ideas on a multitude of attractions and activities that are right outside your door and many sites even have sections telling about free events going on.  Sites like zozi.com offer deals on local attractions and adventures that you may normally miss out on.

If you decide to stay at home and not go the hotel route make sure to treat it as a vacation. Don’t do laundry, pay bills or check up on email. Do something outside of your every day life like having a private film festival of all the movies you wanted to see in the theater or spend the day in bed with books and magazines or have a traveling spa come over and give you treatments.

Whatever you decide it’s easy to relax, relate and release without having to travel far or spend a lot of money.

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By Christen N. McCluney
September 6, 2011

It’s a new month and a great time to plan for the rest of the year. Here are five financial to-dos as we kick off this month:

  • Check your credit score. Doing this at least twice a year will make you aware of changes in your score, see if there are any errors and can help you decide if you need to make changes in your spending habits.
  • Clean out your closet. All the clothes and even electronics you have laying around that you don’t use can be donated to charity. Giving these things away will produce a nice write off during tax season. Just make sure you get a receipt so you can itemize your donation when tax season comes around.
  • Start thinking about holiday plans. If you know you are heading home for the holiday season start checking out prices on flights and hotels now. The closer you get to the more prices will start to increase. Even if you only browse now you have an idea of how much you need to save.
  • Think about your budget and gift ideas for the holiday season. Having a plan in order will prevent you from overspending and will keep you alert in case you see an item ahead of time.
  • Write a financial mission statement. This statement lays out what you want in the future and how you plan on getting there by investing, saving, giving to charity or simply spending less. Having a clear statement written down (and posted) will keep you on track in your financial decision-making.

What can you add to your financial to-do list?

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By Christen N. McCluney
September 2, 2011

 

As fall approaches and the humid days of summer disappear some of us natural ladies like to wear our hair in straight styles. As versatile as natural hair can be one of the biggest issues when wearing a straight style is worrying about it reverting while working out.

According to a study done on 103 African-American women by the Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center, thirty-one percent of the women surveyed admit to exercising less because it may mess up their hairstyle.

Having your natural hair blown out or pressed shouldn’t prevent you from getting a good work out. Here are some tips to help maintain our heat styled tresses and our health.

Use anti-humectant products. Anti-humectants are designed to repel moisture and help prevent frizziness in your hair. . Aveda Anti-Humectant Pomade is a great product to protect your hair from the elements. Sabino lok and blok is also another product designed to seal in moisture and block out humidity.

Put your hair up in a high bun or ponytail when working out. This keeps your hair out of your face and keeps your ends from coming in contact with sweat.

Protect your edges. Hair sticks are great to keep your edges smooth. They are designed to slick down hair and also add a protective coating against sweat. A favorite is Luster’s Renutrients Slick Stick, which can be found online and in stores for about $5.  Other good wax sticks are: Tancho Stick, Keracare Wax Stick and Bed Head Hair Stick.

Wick away moisture. Tie a satin scarf or use a moisture wicking headband around the hairline while working out to prevent excess frizz around the edges. If you leave the scarf in place until the hairline dries your hair should stay smooth.

Using some or all of these tips can help you keep your style in place while getting fit.

What do you do to maintain your natural style while working out?

 

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By Christen N. McCluney
August 22, 2011

 

Owning a car is big responsibility. Between insurance, gas and regular upkeep it can be an expense that totally taps into your budget. As a driver I’m good with filling the tank, getting it serviced and keeping it clean but us ladies tend to get a bad rap when it comes to taking care of our cars.

By following a few tips we can keep our cars running smoothly and cut back on major costs and repairs:

Keep your tires properly inflated. Getting a flat is never fun, especially when you are rocking a cute outfit and your favorite heels. By checking your tire pressure regularly you can help prevent unexpected flat tires. Most service stations have tire pressure gauges located on air pumps, or you can pick up one at your local hardware store for a few bucks and keep it in your car.  If you don’t know to check your pressure ask a car care professional to show you or check out this how-to video from Edmunds.com.

Check your fluids. Just like it’s important for people to stay hydrated, cars also need fluids to keep going. Have your oil changed and also get your radiator, transmission and windshield wiper fluid checked every 3000 to 5000 miles. If you really want to be budget friendly learn how to do it yourself. It’s really simple and only takes a few minutes.

Pay attention to warning signs. Often times smells, sounds or leaking fluids coming from your car are indications there are bigger issues. If something seems abnormal take your car in to get it checked. Acknowledging that tiny squeak when you first hear it could save you hundreds of dollars in the end.

By following these basic tips and driving with care you can help reduce major repairs and know your car is operating the way it should be.

View Article on Pynk’s Site

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By Christen N. McCluney
Monday, August 15, 2011

Budget.

For some of us ladies that is a dirty word. Even for me whenever I think about having one I tend to cringe a little bit, but during these trying economic times in order to stay ahead creating a budget is an absolute necessity.

If you are living paycheck to paycheck, whispering a prayer while your credit card gets swiped in your favorite boutique, or stacking up overdraft fees, then a budget will definitely be your salvation. Even if you have a little something left over at the end of the month having a plan will help you be mindful of what you spend and may even add a little extra to your savings or to pay off debt.

Having a budget doesn’t mean you have to give up your social life, quit shopping or even deny yourself anything fun. What it does mean is that you have to sit down, look at what you make and figure out a way to live within your means without relying on plastic.

One of the first steps to take is rather simple. Pull out your pay stub and look at your net income. Some of us have this big number in our head and in the world of direct deposits and e-banking many of us never take the time to really see what we make. If we actually look, we may be slightly shocked to the see the number that appears after taxes, insurance, savings plans and benefits are subtracted.

Once you’ve checked out your pay stub look at your monthly expenses. It’s always good to start with your fixed ones such as rent, car payments, savings, insurance, debt and student loans. From there look at your other expenses that may fluctuate, such as your utilities, cell phone, cable, groceries, entertainment, etc.

A great way to get an estimate on what you are spending is to pull up your bank statement and look back over the past few months to see where your cash is really going. When I did that I realized that happy hours, dinner with friends, vintage shopping and trips to my favorite red and white box store put a dent in my expenses.

Now that you’ve gathered all this info take a moment and do some good old-fashioned math. Subtract all your expenses from your income and you will come up with either a positive or negative number. If you have a positive number you actually have money left at the end of the month. If you have a negative, I’m sure you already know that you are spending more than you earn. But the great thing about having a budget is you can recognize how you are overspending and turn that around.

Growing up I saw my dad do his budget the old fashioned way with a pen and paper, but now there are many software programs and resources online such as mint, LearnVest and bundle, where you simply plug in your information, connect to your accounts and they do the calculating for you. Some sites will even send email alerts if you go over the amount you allot for that area in your budget.

One of the biggest things budgeting will help you do is recognize the difference between needs and wants. Needs are your basic necessities like food, clothing, shelter, and basic transportation. Wants are things that we may dream about having but aren’t essential to our survival, like wanting shoes with a certain color sole as opposed to ones that may be more economical.

Looking at what you really need can help you trim several expenses. By evaluating my spending I eliminated extra cable channels (that I never watch), started packing my lunch daily and started taking care of some of my own beauty needs. I also cut back on dining out, and began using sites like open table, living social and groupon to find deals on my favorite places to eat. I even stopped buying as many books and started visiting my public library, which surprisingly had many new releases along with e-books.

Just by taking a little time out of my schedule to create I budget I now have extra money to pay down debt faster and increase my savings. I even created a splurge fund so that when something seems too good to miss I don’t have to destroy my budget to have what I want.

View Article on Pynk’s site

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Freedom Awards Recognize Employer Support

September 30, 2010
By Christen N. McCluney

Hundreds of people came together last week to honor 15 employers from across the nation for the 2010 Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom Award.

The Freedom Award, created by Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR), a Department of Defense agency, publicly recognizes employers who provide exceptional support to their Guard and Reserve employees.

The award, which is in its 15th year, is the highest in a series of employer recognition awards given by the Department of Defense.

Nominations come from a Guard or Reserve member employed by the organization they are nominating or from a family member.

James G. Rebholz, the National Chairman of ESGR said that there were over 2700 nominations for the award this year and that a select committee narrowed it down to 15 candidates. He added the winners this year stood above the other entries based on the types of things they’ve done on a personal human basis for their employers.

“Every year it’s exciting to me,” he said. “It never ceases to amaze me that the level of employer support seems to increase and that is what we are seeing here.”

The 2010 recipients included include seven large American corporations, four small businesses and four public sector organizations and ranged from universities to major corporations.

One of the recipients of the Freedom Award was East Carolina University. They were nominated by Lt. Col. Paul J. Schenarts who is in his fourth tour of duty in Afghanistan with the United States Army Medical Corps and serves as trauma surgeon at the university in the school of medicine. Steve Ballard, chancellor of the university, said he was “honored, surprised and thrilled” to receive the award.

“To get this recognition  made us feel good,” he said. “Other universities get more money, get more credit and get more recognition but this is more important to us than any of those things.”

U.S. Army Master Sgt. Steven Boos also nominated his employer Food Lion for their support during his deployment. Boos, who works as a store manager for the company, said his company worked around his schedule when he had to leave for training , made sure to keep him in the loop while he was deployed through emails and phone calls and always made him feel comfortable that he had a place to return to.

“They made me feel like I was a part of the bigger picture,” he said.

Cathy Green, president of Food Lion, accepted the award on behalf of her organization. She said the company has over 230 employees in the Guard and Reserve and they send care packages, write letters, check in on families and do yard work to make sure the families know they are cared for.

“It’s an incredible honor for our organization,” she said.  “When I think about people like Steve and the things they do everyday to give us freedom as Americans words can’t describe how I felt that we were nominated.”

The 2011  Freedom Award nomination season will be Nov. 1 to Jan. 17, 2011 and nomination information will be available on the Freedom Award website.

To learn more about the Employer Support Freedom Awards and to see a complete list of  recipients visit the Defense.gov special.

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A Forum on Women Veterans
August 5, 2010
By Christen N. McCluney

Hundreds of women came together last week at The Women’s Memorial at Arlington National Cemetery for a forum on Women’s Veterans.

The purpose of the forum was to educate, engage and to empower women veterans and women veteran advocates with the latest information from the Department of Veterans Affairs and to expand the dialogue of what is available to women veterans. The forum, which was held for the first time, tackled tough issues that women veterans are facing including health care needs, mental health, military sexual trauma, benefits and homelessness amongst women veterans.

Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric K. Shinseki, addressed the crowded auditorium and shared that women represent nearly eight percent of the overall women population and nearly six percent of all veterans that use the health care services at the VA.

“We expect that number to double in the next ten years,” he said. In 2009 alone the department experienced a 20-percent jump in the number of women using the health care facilities.

“Our goal is 100 percent accessibility to veterans that need us and we must anticipate and address the challenges faced by women,” Shinseki added.

Dr. Patricia Hayes, chief consultant, Women Veterans Health also told the crowded auditorium that in the Vietnam era only about three percent of the total active-duty population were made of women. That number today is nearly 15 percent. She added because of that the face of women veterans are also changing.

“Our new generation of veterans are young,” Hayes said, “[Currently], 47.3 percent are younger than 30 years old and 78 percent are less than age 40.”

Because of that, the VA has to tackle new needs such as reproductive health, flexible hours for working parents and increased appointment availability.

One of the main things they are trying to do is change the culture of how women are taken care of in the VA. Instead of transferring from doctor to doctor their hope is to have the whole scope of women’s health care covered in one visit.

At each VA Medical Center, Women Veterans program managers are also available to assist women veterans. They help coordinate all the services women need including primary care, medical services and even mental health and sexual abuse counseling.

There are many complexities with dealing with women in the VA, Shinseki told the crowd. “It becomes our responsibility not just to acknowledge the differences but to anticipate those changes and where they might lead us.”

The VA is also trying to make sure that women realize that they are veterans too and deserve the care that is being offered. Dr. Billie J. Randolph, deputy chief consultant of the VHA Prosthetics and Sensory Aids services received a thunderous applause from the audience when she added that people need to realize “women are not little men.”

Another issue that many women veterans are facing is homelessness. Peter Dougherty, director of the homeless veterans program said there are about 107,000 homeless veterans out on a given night and although the number of homeless veterans is decreasing the number of women are increasing. He said that women returning from war have unique risk factors for homelessness, such as trauma from sexual assault while in the military and lower earning potential than men. The VA and the Department of Housing and Urban Development are working together to develop programs like HUD-VASH, that helps eligible homeless veterans find and retain stable independent housing and supportive services for at risk veterans.

The forum ended with a showing of Lioness, the story of the first group of women soldiers to be sent into direct ground combat and an information marketplace full of information and resources that would be useful for women veterans.

When asked about what is next after this forum Dr. Irene Trowell-Harris, director of the VA Center for Women Veterans said, “We put this forum together specifically for the women to look at the overall big picture to see how we could immediately implement policies, look what is being done and know what needs to be done for the future,” said Trowell-Harris.

One message that she wanted to get out is that many women don’t self identify as veterans because they have a perception that if they did not serve in combat they aren’t considered a veteran.

“If they served and had honorable discharged they are eligible for all the benefits and services that men get. The only difference is that women have gender-specific needs.”

Visit http://www1.va.gov/womenvet for more information on the Center for Women Veterans and services the VA has to offer women.

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Cyclist Ride 2 Recovery

June 9, 2010
By Christen N. McCluney

Early Tuesday morning of last week, hundreds of cyclist and volunteers gathered outside of a hotel in Manassas, Va. to prepare for day two of the Ride 2 Recovery Memorial Challenge. The event is a six-day, 350 mile ride from The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier to Virginia Beach.

The challenge supports the physical and mental health of injured veterans through cycling, which is an activity that almost all patients with mental and physical disabilities can participate.

The participants in the race, which included servicemembers, veterans and family members, came from all walks of life from all across the country to participate in this challenge.

Army Staff  Sgt. Anthony Lemaitre became involved in the race because some of the soldiers he supervises went on the last ride. “I figured that other than supporting them at the unit this was another way to lend my support,” he said. After this he will also participate in two more rides in Colorado and Florida.

Terry Cleveland, who recently retired from the Navy after 31 years, was a first time rider in this challenge. “It’s my little way to support the vets overseas that have been wounded.”

When asked how he felt after the previous day of cycling he said he was happy that he could actually stand up and feel his legs but it was for a good cause.

Delvin McMillian, a retired airman from Bessemer, Ala. and quadruple amputee participating in Ride to Recovery, June 1. Photo by Christen N. McCluney

The cyclist who were escorted by local police and The American Legion Riders, were greeted with cheers on the side of the road as they set out on a 55-mile trek from Manassas to Fredericksburg, Va.

Employees from the Defense Contract Management Agency, who have an office nearby, decided to stop on the road and lend their support to the cyclist. “We we were doing our morning wellness walk and saw them getting ready to leave and decided to support,” said Sandra Smith, a DCMA employee.

All throughout the ride, which took the cyclist through  historic battlefields and scenic countryside, people from the community and local military organizations were on the route lending their support by waving flags and cheering the riders on as they passed.

Members from  American Legion Post 290 and the USO also provided a rest stop for the riders halfway into the trip for them to take a break and refuel.

Army Spc. Gilad Afridonidze, a member of the Warrior Transition Unit, who was also a first time rider said the trip was pretty difficult and hot, but one of the biggest lessons he learned from this entire journey was to be patient and keep moving on.

The bicycle ride began May 31 and ended June 5 with a party and concert sponsored by the USO.

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Joint Task Force Haiti Prepares for ‘New Horizon’

By Christen N. McCluney
Emerging Media, Defense Media Activity

WASHINGTON, May 13, 2010 – Joint Task Force Haiti is preparing to stand down its disaster-relief mission in Haiti at the beginning of June, nearly six months after a Jan. 12 earthquake devastated the country.

“We will stand down the joint task force on the first of June,” Army Maj. Gen. Simeon G. Trombitas, the task force’s commanding general, said during a “DoD Live” bloggers roundtable yesterday. “That is when I will take the last elements of United States Army South home and send those sister-services personnel back to their home stations.”

More than 22,000 U.S. servicemembers were in Haiti at the height of the mission. Of those, about 14,000 were in ships at sea, while 8,000 soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines and Coast Guardsmen were on the ground at any given time during the height of operations, Trombitas said.

The mission remains to save lives and alleviate suffering while transitioning into mitigating the ill effects of weather, the general said.

Currently, there are about 850 servicemembers on the ground in Haiti. Once the joint task force stands down, eight people will stay in the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince to work with a traditional military liaison office. Their job will be to coordinate humanitarian missions with the U.S. Agency for International Development — the lead U.S. federal agency in the effort — and the Haitian government during an already-scheduled theater security cooperation exercise called “New Horizons.”

The exercise will bring in about 500 soldiers, mainly from the Louisiana National Guard — along with soldiers from the Arizona, Montana, Nevada, Puerto Rican and Virgin Island National Guards — to conduct engineering activities and medical readiness training exercises around Gonaives, which is north of Port-au-Prince. The group will work on engineering projects that include rebuilding three schools and building a fourth. They also will receive training to become culturally aware of the activities in the country while bringing medical help to people in need.

When asked to measure the success of Joint Task Force Haiti so far, Trombitas said he doesn’t believe that success can be measured in numbers.

“Our first success was the incredible flexibility of our military,” he said. Success is measured, he added, in how the Haitian people see the U.S. effort.

“Our success is measured and will be continued to be measured in those things that we have done here and how the Haitian people remember us,” the general said.