by JOSEPH COOLS staff psychologist ---naws from the Family Service and Mental Health Clinic of McHenry County --- Governor Proclaims State School Nurse Day Fire-Emergency Tips PAGE 9 - PLAINDEALER tragic death toll this winter proves how far we have yet to go." acknowledged Tofany. FRIDAY. JANUARY 20, Itn PUNCH LINE (Editor's note: This is another in a series of especially written articles for McHenry county readers. Joseph Cools is a psychologist on the Family Serviceand Community Mental Health center staff. This article is "Coping with Death-the Grief of Mourning ") Grief is perhaps the most universal and easily un derstood reaction to the loss of a loved one. Grief in most ways is indistinguishable symp- tomatically from a clinical depression. There are, however, two important dif ferences. First, it is a reaction to a specific incident, the death of someone we love. Depression is usually a reaction to a series of life experiences which the person is often unable to pin point. Second, mourning grief is basically a healthy reaction, a normal human reaction to the loss of a love object, rather than the debilitating, long lasting gHef of the chronic depression. Symptomatically, mourning grief may include one or more of the following: Crying frequently, loss of appetite, sleep disturbance, loss of energy, a feeling that life is not worth living, headache, gastro intestinal disturbances, and a myriad of other physical complaints. Disturbing as the symptoms are to the mourner, it is important to remember they are time-limited symp toms, diminishing gradually, until they disappear com pletely. Usually if the deceased was particularly close, the symptoms of grief reappear at intervals, such as the an niversary of the death, or the emergence of an event or place that reminds one of the deceased person Not only is grief a completely normal reaction to loss of a loved person, it is a necessary reaction. The absence of grief as a reaction to death may have disastrous consequences to the survivor. Failure to grieve usually means that the person is internalizing painful emotion to the point where it appears that the death was not up setting. The painful emotion not expressed will always prove harmful physically and psychologically, sometimes for a very long period of time. Chronic depression is the usual and most debilitating con sequence of the failure to adequately deal with the grief of death. Thus, the person who does not grieve is not "hard," or "strong," or "taking the loss well." He is troubled, s o m e t i m e s d e e p l y . Professional help is usually indicated, and quickly; before the absence of grieving becomes firmly established in the psychological makeup of the survivor. Grief, openly expressed, and bitterly painful, is the healthy human reaction to the death of one we loved and admired. ' Governor Thompson has o f f i c i a l l y p r o c l a i m e d Wednesday, Jan. 25, as School Nurse day in Illinois. The Governor stated in the proclamation that he did so to remind the public, and especially parents, of the significance of good health and well-being in the education of children. He further stated that school health services and qualified school nurses are as important to adequate education of young people as teachers of the three R's, language or philosophy. Illinois has some 1200 nurses who devote their time and skills to the health and health education of Illinois school children. Involved in administering the schools' total health program, they contribute much to the well- being of the children and the welfare of our communities. Parents of school-age children are encouraged to learn more about the school nurses, school health services, and school health program in their school district. Final Clean Water Plan Slated For Kishwaukee RECYCLING DRIVE Frosty winds, cold temperatures and snow flurries will not deter the McHenry County Defenders and their volunteer recyclers in the county from being at their regular posts Saturday, Jan. 21. In McHenry, the Junior high Student Council will be handling all recyclable materials from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The collection site is the Market Place shopping center on Route 120. The Northeastern Illinois Planning Commission (NIPC) is asking residents to participate in the concluding phase of planning for clean water in the Kishwaukee river basin. A meeting for residents concerned about water quality in Kishwaukee basin will be held at 7:30 p.m., Jan. 24, in Huntley village hall, 58 Coral street, on the village square. The NBPC staff will present results of its second test plan for this basin. Participants will be asked to comment on: methods for cleaning up the water, a management system to coordinate cleanup activities, and water quality levels the plan should seek to maintain. Some suggestions from residents could be made a part of a final draft plan for the Kishwaukee river basin, which will be integrated into an areawide clean water plan for McHenry, Cook, DuPage, Kane, Lake and Will counties by May of 1978. The plan eventually will provide the guidelines by which state and federal funds will be made available to local governments for water quality projects. SOFT • WATER RENTAL No installation charge NEW fully automatic softeners TWO year option to buy with FULL rental fee deducted ONE phone call can answer any (Questions per month PHONE 312-259-3393 R*nt-a-Soft, a division off tho Arlington Soft Wator Company, Arlington Hoights, Illinois 60004 Serving McHenry Area • Rtl Itijj 4 riC N* SAVE • * • * The reason many en terprises fail to go forward is that it is much easier to plan to do than to do. • • • • Farm prosperity is es sential to national pros perity, and, at times, to having something on the table to eat. (A series of articles on fire prevention and other emergencies written by the firefighters of Company 1, McHenry.) ' The National Safety council has reported the winter- r»«ished month of January, , saw home accident deaths Soar 33 percent over the same period in 1976. Preliminary NSC figures reveal fire deaths zoomed at least 60 percent and poisoning by gases and vapors, mainly carbon monoxide, jumped 40 percent. At the same time traffic deaths were down 10 percent. NSC President Vincent L. Tofany attributed the residential death increase to the severe winter weather which forced many to remain home, away from jobs and schools. ^ "Mother Ne^re hit par ticularly hard ur»uer youngest children. Although deaths for all age groups rose, with the exception of the elderly aged 65-74, the largest fatality rates occurred among children and young adults," Tofany noted. The council's preliminary statistics show that all classifications of home deaths were far above those for an average Janaury -- falls, fires, burns, poisonings by solids and liquids, poisonings by gases and vapors, suffocations by ingested object, mechanical suffocations, firearms, elec trocutions-except home drownings. About half of the January,- 1977, death increase was due to a big rise in fire and poison gas deaths. For example, home fire deaths reached 950 in January 1977 compared to 600 in January 1976. Home poison gas deaths accounted for 200 fatalities in January 1977, and 140 in January 1976. Tofany said it appeared the strain on home heating units and the use of makeshift heating devices to cut the bitter cold triggered the large numbers of fires and the release of deadly heating device-unit combustion-caused fumes. Traffic deaths were down because, in many areas of the country, traffic was brought virtually to a halt due to severe snow storms and other inclement conditions. The safety leader urged all "veterans" of the Big Freeze of 1977 to have home heating systems inspected and to learn more about cold weather survival techniques and cold weather family crisis planning. "Our dwindling natural resources, as outlined recently by President Carter, and prospects of perhaps colder winters to come, make it im perative that we Americans energetically seek safe ways 10 cope with the cold, hard realities of the future. Once warned is forewarned. Our BENEFIT ART SHOW The Cary-Grove Art guild has begun making plans for its fifth annual scholarship benefit Art show to be held in the Crystal Point Mall Feb. 25 and 26.' Optimism is the theme of the show and will appropriately be called the "Think Spring" Art s h o w . I t i s o p e n t o a l l a r t i s t s o f ' the fine arts. Crafts and commercial products will not be accepted. Anyone wishing further information or a registration form ma£ on tact Carta Fortier at 4S&-276&. i Exercise caution I just got my license! )p00000000c0000000e00|0|00«00gl00000000000000< American Legion Post 491 - RINGW00D ROM), McHENRY - FISH FRY EVERY FRIDAY (5:00-9:00 P. M.) PERCH-ALL YOU CAN EAT OTHER MENU AVAILABLE OPEN TO THE PUBLIC "2ND TIME AROUND" COCKT/UL MON.-WED.-THUR8.-FRIDAY HOUR 3:30 to 6:00 Cut Prkf. bo oooo o OOOOOOOOO OO----O--OOOOOOO OOP OQOOO DO DAILY 9 TIL 9, AY 10 TIL 6 HORNSBYS ^ f a m i l y c e n r c r s -- 4400 W. RTE. 120, Biflvahies- smaD prices! 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