Colorado ‘Safer at Home’ Order

Multiple states are beginning the slow transition of reopening the state and businesses. So what does that mean for Colorado residents?

On April 27^th the Safer at Home order began which encourages everyone to continue staying home. Critical businesses are open and non-critical businesses are opening with curbside pickup among other restrictions.

On May 1^st retail and personal services can open if they implement good practices to maintain the safety of customers.

The Safer at Home order is different from the Stay-at-Home order in that there is more flexibility for consumers to get necessary items and for employers to begin to have employees return to the workplace while maintaining social distancing and other sanitation practices. Local governments such as counties can implement guidelines that match the state or issue their own that may be more strict or more relaxed. Colorado residents are encouraged to follow the state guidelines unless their local government has issued a variation.

You can read more about the Safer at Home order below:

https://covid19.colorado.gov/safer-at-home

Colorado Resources Part 2

COVID-19 Resources to Support You & Your Family

Brought to you by Sue Schneider, Family & Consumer Science & Community Development Agent, Larimer County Extension

We find the most updated information so that you don’t have to search. Click on the links below to find the supports you need.

 Do you need some help?

This page offers a variety of resources if you need assistance during the pandemic from grocery delivery to rent assistance.

Helpful Links to COVID-19Resources  

This page features articles and studies from trusted local and national resources. Many of your questions about the pandemic can be found here.

Senior Shopping Hours

We listed designated hours for older adults at all Larimer County markets and retailers.

Rent and Utilities Assistance

Help is available through local providers including internet to help you stay connected virtually.

Behavioral Health Options
Many people struggle with coping during the pandemic. Whether for yourself or a loved one, help can be found on this page.

Education and Well-Being

Check out all the virtual opportunities to learn, grow a garden, stay active and have a sense of well-being.

Willing to lend a helping hand?
There are many opportunities to help out during the pandemic. We listed agencies that could use a helping hand.

What’s Your Plan for Advance Care Planning
Who would make medical decisions if you are unable to? Now is the time to have the conversation. Learn about the free resources to put your plan together.

COVID-19 Scams
This has the many scams that are out there and how they work. Be aware.

Larimer County, Colorado Resources Part 1

During the current stay-at-home order in the state of Colorado, vulnerable populations are at risk of not being able to complete daily essential tasks. There is help available. Two programs in Larimer County are ready to assist the community in carrying out daily tasks. 

A Little Help.  

A Little Help volunteers are available to help with your critical needs which can include trips for groceries, pharmacies for medicine, and health care facilities.  

https://www.alittlehelp.org/application-membership

For assistance you can call: 970-412-9396 

Adopt a Neighbor Program  

Through this program volunteers assist neighbors who are vulnerable to COVID-19 with daily tasks such as grocery shopping and delivery, picking up medications, driveway shoveling, and pet care. Simply fill out a form to be put on a list to receive help. 

https://www.fcgov.com/volunteer/   

https://www.fcgov.com/neighborhoodservices/adopt 

If you need assistance, you can call 970-416-4245, 970-416-8000

Para recibir ayuda en Español: 970-416-8001

Tips for Worry

By Raquel Daniels GRANDcares Site Coordinator, Larimer County

Worry can be described as thoughts and emotions that lead to unease and are negative or troublesome in nature. We all experience worry from time to time, from little worries such as “did I leave the light on?” to larger worries such as “is this car repair going to cost a lot?” With the current pandemic facing the world, the worry that many people may be experiencing may include worry about finances, health, and uncertainty about the future. Worry that may be experienced can generally fit into two categories. Real problem worry involves problems that are affecting you right now and you can act on. There are also hypothetical worries that are the "what if..." worries. Below are some tips for thoughts of worry:

Remind yourself that thoughts are not facts. Thoughts are just thoughts. Ask yourself is this thought helpful or unhelpful? Practice replacing beliefs with more realistic outcomes.

What is reinforcing these thoughts of worry? For example, watching Covid-19 updates every hour has the potential to increase worry. Under what circumstances would these thoughts be reduced in intensity? Tuning in to updates less frequently such as twice a day.

Focus on what is versus what if. When the brain begins to think about cases of what if, these cases tend to snowball into much larger worries. Think of a snowball starting at the top of a hill, as soon as it begins to roll it becomes larger and larger. This tends to happen with thoughts as well. These thoughts become magnified to extremes and the potential worst-case scenarios. Ask yourself what is the realistic likelihood that things will really go that badly?

What are you worrying about? Is this a real problem worry that you can do something about? If yes, then take action. Is this a hypothetical worry? Practice letting the worry go and focus on something you can do right now.

If worrying still needs to happen, set a timer. Decide when your time to worry will be and how long. During this time, perhaps 15 minutes, writing down hypothetical worries you may be experiencing or experienced throughout the day.

Lastly, talk to someone. Telling someone your worries will get them out of your head. When worries are said out loud, they are not as big or frightening as they were as thoughts.  

Be Kind to Your Mind

By Raquel Daniels GRANDcares Site Coordinator, Larimer County

As it has been several weeks now with most people staying inside their homes it is time for a mental health check. Many aspects of wellness are being tweaked as people continue to adapt to staying indoors. One way to be kind to your mind is to determine how your mind is doing on the healthy mind platter. Similar to a plate where the different food groups are represented, the healthy mind platter has seven mental activities to balance your mind:     

• Sleep time- Getting the amount of rest the brain and body need to be able to be alert and functioning well each day.       
• Physical time- Moving the body is rejuvenating to the brain.
• Focus time- Focusing on challenges or tasks that are goal oriented strengthen connections in the brain.
•  Time in- Taking time to quietly reflect inward on the body, thoughts, sensations and feelings.
• Down time- Time when the brain is not focused, is relaxed and can wander, helps the brain recharge.
• Play time- Enjoying novel experiences or doing something creative makes new connections in the brain.
• Connecting time- Connecting with people around us. We are all part of a system and wired for connection.

Each of these seven mental activities offer something different to your brain. Each individual is different and time allotted to mental activities will vary from person to person. The goal is to create balance. The food groups are intended for us to have balance in our diet and the goal for the healthy mind platter is to have balance for your mind. Perhaps not all of these are done in one day but split over the course of two days. Scheduling in time to attend to all areas can be beneficial to continue to thrive and make connections.

The Healthy Mind Platter was created by Dr. Daniel J. Siegel, Executive Director of the Mindsight Institute and Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at the UCLA School of Medicine in collaboration with Dr. David Rock.

Colorado Resources

By Raquel Daniels GRANDcares Site Coordinator, Larimer County

All of the states are currently being affected by Covid-19 and the state of Colorado is no exception. With that said, many communities are pulling together resources to raise awareness and extend as much support to neighbors and friends alike in their community. Below are links for resources in the areas of housing and food. These are two essential necessities that are greatly impacting families in the state of Colorado. Many people across the United States experience food and/or housing insecurity. This current uncertain climate can exacerbate that experience. Many individuals are also facing changes in employment which has a domino effect on these and other areas of life. There are many ways the community can come together to support one another and make a difference. 

These resources are brought to you by the Early Childhood Council of Larimer County.

Housing:

Neighbor to Neighbor                               www.n2n.org

National Alliance to End Homelessness   https://endhomelessness.org/coronavirus-and-homelessness/

National Coalition for Homeless              http://nationalhomeless.org/coronavirus-covid-19/

Leap                                                          1-866-HEAT HELP, www.colorado.gov/cdhs/leap

National Low Income Housing Coalition https://nlihc.org/coronavirus-and-housing-homelessness

Homeward Alliance/The Murphy Center https://www.murphycenter.org/coronavirus-covid-19

Food:            
Expensify.org                                            https://www.expensify.org/hunger#reimbursement

Food Bank of Larimer County                 https://foodbanklarimer.org/news/covid-19/

Food Bank Grab-N-Go Lunches              https://foodbanklarimer.org/news/covid-19/ 

Poudre School District                             https://www.psdschools.org/node/1477

Thompson School District                       https://www.thompsonschools.org/Page/21645

Hunger Free Colorado Hotline                https://www.hungerfreecolorado.org/food-resource-hotline/
(855) 855-4626

House of Neighborly Services                 https://www.honservice.org/

Chalk Beat                                               https://chalkbeat.org/posts/co/2020/03/15/map-colorado

Walking on Sunshine

By Raquel Daniels GRANDcares Site Coordinator, Larimer County

There’s a reason why Vitamin D is called the sunshine vitamin. Your skin begins the process of creating vitamin D in natural response to sunlight. It is important to be staying indoors for your health and spending a little time outdoors has health benefits too!

•  Light tends to elevate people’s mood. Stepping away from the screen and into the sun can be a little reset button for your mindset.
•  Getting outside can increase your movement. Getting at least 20 minutes a day or 150 minutes a week of moderate activity can decrease stress.
• You don’t have to go far. Doing movement in your backyard, in the garden, or on the balcony are steps from your door.

In a nutshell, taking breaks to step outside are essential. Keep in mind a few things before heading out the door: stay home if you are not feeling well, keep a social distance from others, avoid places during times of high use, and keep up with hand washing practices.

Having a change of scenery is helpful. This is a time of adjustment for work and movement for many people. Many individuals spent multiple hours inside whether that was at work in an office or at school in a classroom. With the length of days getting longer, there is plenty of time to soak up the sun. Below are two links to provide some helpful recommendations for your level of movement.

Colorado State University Department of Exercise Science:

https://chhs.source.colostate.edu/health-and-exercise-science-instructor-shares-tips-for-staying-healthy-in-our-homes/

The CDC physical activity recommendations for different ages:

https://www.cdc.gov/physicalactivity/basics/age-chart.html

Taking a Breath with Mindfulness

The current state of today is a time of stress and with that stress it is good and quite frankly essential that we regularly check-in with ourselves. Regularly checking-in will allow you to know in what areas you are doing well and what areas need a boost for your wellness. This can be in the form of mindfulness practice. The word “mindfulness” has been a buzzword for quite a while and actually is a really valuable self-care practice. The practice of mindfulness is being attuned and aware of one’s thoughts, feelings, and body in the moment without judgement. Often as a people, we primarily focus on looking ahead towards the future and the list of tasks that need to be completed before the day is over. Similarly, people are constantly on the go rarely pausing to take notice of how one feels in the moment. The goal of mindfulness is to stay in the present. Mindfulness has been beneficial in targeting stress as well as helping foster self-regulation (Brown, Ryan & Creswell, 2007).  As many individuals are currently staying home, now is the perfect time to check-in with mindfulness. Departments of Colorado State University are readily making helpful tips and resources available for people staying at home including Colorado State University Extension. 

You can join Sue Schneider, Ph.D. with Colorado State University Extension in Larimer County, Colorado and practice mindfulness in your own home.

·       Morning Meditation: Thursdays in April (April 2, 9, 16, 23, & 30), 9:00 – 10:00 am

Zoom link: https://zoom.us/j/560109111

·       Authentic Connection, Thursday April 16, 10:30 – 11:30 am:

Zoom link: https://zoom.us/j/536167806

·       Morning Meditation: Join us for regular morning meditation sessions. Basic instruction will be offered as well as guided meditations and time for silent practice. Our practices will vary week to week. The sessions will conclude with reflections on how to make and maintain space for everyday mindfulness. All levels welcomed!

•    Authentic Connection: How often are we truly present with others? How can we deepen our connection with those we love? We will explore four elements of authentic connection — presence, mindfulness, attunement, and compassion — and practice mindful listening as a foundation for extending the gift of presence to others.

·       If you haven’t downloaded the zoom app, please do so beforehand (https://zoom.us/download).

Brown, K.W., Ryan, R.M., Creswell, J.D. (2007). Mindfulness: Theoretical foundations and evidence for its salutary effects. Psychological Inquiry. 18:211–237. doi:10.1080/10478400701598298.