Most people who live in northern New England understand the health benefits of being among nature. Dartmouth-Hitchcock emphasized those benefits over the weekend when it shared an article titled, Wildfulness: Nature’s Cure for Stressed Families.
“Getting families into the wilderness might be my biggest impact on public health. There’s no better prescription,” Dr. Sarah Crockett, co-director for Dartmouth-Hitchcock’s Emergency Medicine Student Education, said in the article. “There’s no better prescription.”
Crockett is a Wilderness Medicine specialist and a mother of four who has leaned on nature in recent months to relieve her own stress.
“When COVID-19 hit our area, it was scary, and my anxiety level was intense,” Crockett said. “Nature is where I find peace, so one of my stress interventions was sitting by the brook near our house and, in my own way, meditating. I still try to make it to that spot every week.”
Crockett suggests that families start with easy hikes.
“Flat rail-trails are the highways of hiking; you can’t get lost,” she said. “Remember, if the trail you’re on is too challenging, it’s OK to turn around or stop and play who-can-find-the-most of something.”
Families are reminded to go over some basics before they start a hike so they can plan, and pack, accordingly. Figure out how the length of the hike and the forecast (and if either might change) so you can bring the right equipment and wear the right clothes. Hikers should also bring food and water beyond the minimum expectations, a navigation tool (map, compass, GPS device, etc.), sun protection, light, tools (knife, gear repair) and fire (matches or lighter).
While having all that stuff is a good idea and may prove very handy, there’s something even more critical to take with you.
“The most important thing to bring on a hike is a good attitude,” Crockett said. “Parents might want to climb a peak or make it to a waterfall, but kids don’t care. They just love being outside with people who love them. Play games. Sing songs. Stomp in puddles. Build fairy houses.”
Eastern Ballet Institute had a successful, and socially distant, fundraiser at Kimball Jenkins School of Art in Concord on Saturday. The dance company is moving into the school and will use the proceeds from Saturday’s event to replace carpeting and install multi-use dance flooring at the school’s Carloyn Jenkins Gallery.
The event included a dance-inspired print exhibit, a dance performance and a food truck from Baked Brewed and Organically Moo’ed.
The New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services announced 17 new positive test results for COVID-19 in the state on Saturday. Twelve of the 17 new cases reside in Hillsborough County, including three in Manchester. There were no new deaths or hospitalized cases announced Saturday.
According to a Tweet from Aug. 13, Concord Hospital had ordered COVID-19 tests for 12,091 patients as of that same date and gotten results for 11,936 of those, which included 168 positive test results. Of those 168 positive, only one case is currently hospitalized.