800 South Washington St., Afton, WY 83110 (307) 885-4337 | www.drlivingstondds.com
March 2019
Life With Livingston Dental
e G e n
Spring Snow Brings Childhood Delight
Snow Days in Early Spring
from any major city. My dad did construction work in the area, and soon after the storm hit, he got a call from city officials asking for his help. “If you can somehow get to your truck,” they told him, “we’ll pay you a lot of money to help with snow removal.” Dad’s truck was about 20 miles away, but he’d just purchased a snowmobile. When he got that phone call, he hopped on his snowmobile and traveled 20 miles to his parent’s house where his truck was being stored. I remember all of us feeling scared for him because we didn’t know if he would make it. grandparents before he left and cleaned off the surrounding streets. The next day, he showed up at home with his front-end loader; he’d dug out the gravel truck. For the next five days, Dad hauled snow 20 hours straight each day, working from early in the morning to late at night. I’d never seen that much snow in one place, and it set a new benchmark for me. Moving forward, when people said “It’s going to snow!” I was skeptical. That spring snowstorm in Canada forever raised the bar. Fortunately, our prayers were answered, and Dad arrived safely at our grandparents’ house where his truck was covered in snow. He cleared the way for our
The storm immobilized everything in our little town. The severe wind blowing through southern Alberta created snow drifts that were 10-feet high. Our dream had come true: School was shut down for three days, and even the snowplow couldn’t clear the snow away. We lived in a little community called Raymond, which was about 20 miles
Thinking about this time of year when I was a kid, I’m reminded of the snow we experienced in Canada in early spring. In March, it was common to get a good dusting in Alberta. As a kid, my biggest wish was to have a snow day. I would dream of the day that would be mine if only it snowed enough for me to miss school. Of course, being in Canada, we were well-equipped to handle winter weather, so it took a lot of snow for the schools to declare a snow day. One March when I was 10, the weatherman issued a major storm warning for southern Alberta. Major storm warnings were somewhat common, so we didn’t think too much of it and expected to wake up to some snow and go to school as usual. The next day, we woke up to four feet of snow. You can imagine our childhood delight as we watched the snow come down from the sky and tower over our heads! We were in heaven. It continued to snow through that day and night, and we woke up the next day to an additional 2 1/2 feet. My brother and I grabbed a ladder, climbed up on our roof, and jumped down into the snow drifts below. At one point, we pulled out our sleds and rode off the roof. We dug tunnels through the snow and created a city in our new blue- white world.
1 Livingston Dental
Creating a Home Care Plan When retirement approaches, you may be thinking about the freedom you’ll enjoy after putting in your last nine-to-five.
To Live Your Best Retirement
services that are state and locally funded and cover those who qualify through Medicaid. If you or your spouse are veterans and meet the requirements, you may be eligible for aid and attendance benefits. These benefits are paid for by the VA in addition to a veteran’s monthly pension. It may cover the costs of in-home care for veterans who require the aid of another person or are housebound. Visit Benefits.va.gov to learn more. Still, you may not want to rely on qualifying for one of these services. Consider adapting your estate plan to include designated in-home care. Meet with your attorney to review your living trust and see if it addresses a caregiver. Talk to your family members and loved ones about the possibility that you or your spouse may need this service. While a family member may offer to step into that role, consider how easily they will be able to carry it out. Even a part-time caregiver could provide you with support and make your family members feel like they are not doing it alone. Planning for the possibility that you may need in-home care services can help make your retirement even more enjoyable. Knowing you’ll have a close helping hand can ease your family’s worries and even strengthen your bond. These items may be unsafe to sell, costly to ship, or impossible to refurbish effectively. When a charity regularly receives items they cannot use, they have to spend hours of manpower sorting through things that end up in the trash anyway. This process can be expensive for organizations with already-strained resources. Some local charities spend over $1,000 a year on dumpster and trash removal fees for unusable donations. While charities will have no choice but to throw unusable donations in the trash, there are services you can use to make your spring-cleaning eco-friendly, even for items you can’t donate. For example, if you have torn or stained blue jeans, reach out to Blue Jeans Go Green. This program keeps denim out of landfills by turning it into insulation. And while Goodwill can’t take your batteries or old flip phone, you can check out Call2Recycle.org to learn how to safely recycle your e-waste.
It’s a culmination of years of hard work and a cause for celebration! Before you get to celebrate, though, it’s important to consider what kind of support you might need down the
road. With our generation living longer than our parents, there’s a possibility that we may require additional support services. You and your spouse may not know if either of you will need in-home care, but considering this possibility and the financial factors that come with it can help you better enjoy this exciting phase of your life.
In most cases, neither Medicare or Medicaid covers in-home care. There are some exceptions, like home- and community-based
Donate With Care
Spring is in the air, and it’s time to celebrate with another round of spring-cleaning. Banish the clutter and make room in your life for something new! Many charities see a sharp increase in donations as spring-cleaning season starts. Donating your used books, kids’ toys, and gently worn clothing allows your old items to have a second life. However, when filling that donation box, make sure you’re donating each item because it can do good and not just because you feel bad about throwing it away. Charities have a big problem with well-meaning citizens dropping off items that are better left in the trash. There are many items charities simply cannot handle. Most charities will have lists of items they can and cannot accept on their websites. Some items that you should not donate include: • Expired medications • Old TVs • Cribs • Loose remote controls • Personal care items, like soap, shampoo, or makeup • Mattresses • Carpets • Tangled cords or phone chargers • Any broken, damaged, or dirty items
Your donations can be a big help to local charities. Just don’t “donate” your garbage.
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3 Tips for Easing Jaw Pain
Anyone who’s woken up with it knows that jaw pain is no joke. Because the joint that controls jaw movement, the temporomandibular joint (TMJ), is so complex, it’s difficult to diagnose one root cause for jaw pain and makes it tricky to treat. The pain can stem from many issues including stress, trauma, a worn joint, dental conditions, an uneven bite, bruxism, sleep disorders, and more. Before you turn to invasive treatments, here are some simple at-home treatments you can try to reduce and prevent flare-ups of jaw pain. USE HEAT AND ICE ON THE AFFECTED AREA. Your jaw pain may be a result of inflammation, so putting a warm washcloth or pad on the area and alternating with ice may reduce the pain. Taking an anti-inflammatory medication like ibuprofen can also be helpful. PRACTICE RELAXATION TECHNIQUES. Methods like the “goldfish exercise” and the “yawn-sigh” can ease tension in the jaw. For the goldfish exercise, keep your tongue on the roof of your mouth, put one finger on your jaw joint, and put another finger on your chin. Drop your draw, bring it back up, and repeat. For the yawn-sigh, open your mouth as big as you can, take a big yawn, and stretch your jaw muscles as you tighten your shoulders. As you exhale, relax all your muscles, and repeat.
GET A MASSAGE Massaging your jaw muscles may help relax them and ease tension. You can also turn to a certified massage therapist who will gently and effectively manipulate areas that are overused or stiff. Some people also find relief through acupuncture. Did you know Livingston has a resident jaw-pain-relief pro on our team? Her name is Shelbi, and she’s a TruDenta therapist trained in diagnosing and treating jaw pain and headaches related to dental issues. Her treatment plans incorporate massage therapy, cold lasers, and alpha stimulation to give you jaw-pain and headache relief. Livingston is one of the only dental clinics in the state to provide TruDenta, and our office is eager to educate others about the life- changing effects this treatment can have. Call our office today to learn more and see why many of our patients — including Dr. Livingston — are TruDenta fans.
Puzzle Time! Homemade Corned Beef Ingredients
Inspired by Food Network
• 8 cloves garlic • 8 whole allspice berries • 12 whole juniper berries • 2 bay leaves, crumbled • 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger • 2 pounds ice • 1 5-pound beef brisket, trimmed • 1 small onion, quartered • 1 large carrot, coarsely chopped • 1 stalk celery, coarsely chopped
• 2 quarts water • 1 cup kosher salt • 1/2 cup brown sugar • 2 tablespoons saltpeter (potassium nitrate) • 1 cinnamon stick, broken into large pieces • 1 teaspoon mustard seeds • 1 teaspoon whole black peppercorns
Directions
1. In a large stockpot, combine water, garlic, and all herbs and spices to make brine. Cook over high heat until salt and sugar are fully dissolved. Remove from heat and stir in ice. 2. Once water temp reaches 45 F, place brisket in a 2-gallon zip-close bag, pour in brine to cover, lay flat in a large container, and store in fridge. 3. Brine for 10 days, checking daily to make sure brisket is fully submerged and brine is stirred. 4. After 10 days, remove brisket from brine and rinse under cool water. In a large pot, cover brisket, onion, carrot, and celery with water. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and gently simmer for 2 1/2–3 hours. 5. Remove, slice across the grain, and serve.
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on being named Top Dentist of Wyoming 2018!
800 South Washington St., Afton, WY 83110 (307) 885-4337 | www.drlivingstondds.com
Inside
What Spring Snow Brings
Considering the Costs of Home Care Why Charities Hate Spring-Cleaning
Relieve Your Jaw Pain Homemade Corned Beef
Yellowstone’s Anniversary
Happy Birthday, Yellowstone!
preserving public land. It’s thanks to this decision that we get to enjoy parks like Yellowstone today. This March will mark the 147th anniversary of the famous area, and it will be a reminder of the legacy of national parks. Yellowstone set the stage for the preservation of land for public use, “as a public park for the benefit and enjoyment of the people.” How lucky are we to have access to this national treasure right in our backyard! Happy birthday, Yellowstone. Make sure you get out and enjoy the park’s magnificent beauty this month.
All are passionate about preserving this wilderness filled with wildlife, mountains, valleys, geysers, and other natural wonders. It was the explorers’ documentation of the land — Thomas Moran’s paintings, William Henry Jackson’s photographs, and others’ descriptions of the area — that convinced Congress two years later that the area needed to be preserved instead of turned into settlements. On March 1, 1872, Yellowstone National Park became the first national park in the U.S., kicking off a legacy of protecting and
Can you imagine the U.S. without national parks? It wouldn’t be the America we know today if it weren’t for some intrepid and passionate explorers who appreciated the untouched beauty of the West and made sure others saw it, too. The year is 1870, and people are gathered around a campfire situated beneath the cliffs of the Madison Plateau in Montana. It’s a group of adventurers exploring the West. The group includes artists, like Thomas Moran, photographers, like William Henry Jackson, naturalists, and authors eager to enjoy the wonders of the region. 4 (307) 885-4337 | www.drlivingstondds.com
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