Archive for November, 2010

Check out our Press Release regarding The October Report on the New Health Metric by The Oxygen Plan.

Click Here to view the article.

Posted in Uncategorized |

At the Oxygen Plan, we pride ourselves in taking a data-based approach to our work. This means The Oxygen Plan is grounded firmly in the behavioral scientific literature. For example, the Stress Test itself is based on generally accepted principles that classify stress into three important areas of our lives: home, work and social. The questions themselves are designed accordingly, providing valid and useful information in each sphere of our lives. The modules of The Oxygen Plan itself “Taking Inventory, Categorizing, Setting Rules & Repeat” are based on the strengths of relevant theories of health behavior change (Stages of Change, Health Belief Model, Reasoned Action and Planned Behavior Model, Social Learning/Social Cognitive Theory (includes Health Locus of Control and Ecological Approaches) to provide an elegant simplicity to helping people change their behavior and their lives in – meaningful and sustainable ways. Because The Oxygen Plan is derived from the strengths of relevant health behavior theories, it has an innate Emotional Intelligence that guides plan users to the meaningful and sustainable changes in their lives without unnecessary words, steps or complexity. By taking inventory and categorizing behaviors as red (carbon monoxide), yellow (carbon dioxide) or green (oxygen), plan uses innately know what to do: eliminate red, problem solve yellow, and go get and give more green! This patent-pending approach works!

How do we know? To date, well over 30,000 people have taken our stress test. The aggregate results of these stress tests in our ongoing study of Stress in America (see press room) suggests that there continues to be a tremendous amount of stress in our society and in our relationships, taking a huge toll on our health, relationships, and our economy. Never before has it been possible to measure, compute, report, trend or aggregate a stress metric as it relates to personal health or organizational cost. Now, we are able to assess stress, calculate the Stress Number®, provide The Oxygen Plan program and re-measure stress for individuals or organizations. ‘The Stress Number® is a significant development in the field of health metrics. We feel the Stress Number® should be used to help individuals and organizations manage health and health care costs just like blood pressure and cholesterol levels, for examples.

How else do we know? As we study our web statistics and compare them to other popular health care sites, The Oxygen Plan performs! Looking at the average amount of time visitors stay on The Oxygen Plan site, we see plan users staying with us for approximately 8:47 while other sites average 7:29 (WebMD), 6:41 (360-5) and 5:54 (MayoClinic.com). On average, Oxygen Plan users view over 24 pages per visit while other sites average fewer than six pages per visit.

Stay tuned for more as we continue to develop The Oxygen Plan. We look forward to providing you more in the way of data-based support for using O2 as the means of helping individuals make meaningful and sustainable behavior change while supporting organizations derive the financial and cultural benefits of a healthier and happier work force.

Posted in Uncategorized |

As much as we at The Oxygen Plan sincerely wish all of you the happiest and greenest of holidays, the message really wouldn’t be authentically “oxygenized” if we didn’t address the fact that for a lot of people, the holidays aren’t always full of jingle bells, gingerbread angels, or maybe not even goodwill to all!

The one major way of not repeating stressful holidays of the past is to leave “yesteryear” behind; look toward the future and enjoy the present for all the new, green opportunities it holds! Like the new, best you, each season is different and can be enjoyed for and by itself, in its own way or by doing something really new. Change your pattern or change your surroundings. Don’t sabotage your green efforts by comparing the experience of a new holiday with past ones.

Here are some additional green, oxygen-infused ways of thinking about the holidays:

Set realistic goals and expectations to keep the holidays “manageable”. Pace yourself and prioritize your time and activities so they don’t occur all at once and stress you out!

Do something nice for someone else. Volunteering, if only for short periods of time, takes the edge off feeling overwhelmed by the bustle of the holidays.

Enjoy things that are free! Window shopping can still satisfy your wardrobe fantasies; taking a drive through town to see holiday decorations can be very relaxing—and funny (especially if your neighbor piles every single holiday figure in creation on his front lawn); help a child make a snowman (if it doesn’t snow, make one out of white trash bags and suspend it from a tree branch!), go caroling or invite the local carolers to stop at your home.

Spend time with supportive, caring green people. Draw your closest people even closer; cultivate new friends from work or school; let old friends know you haven’t forgotten them and value the memories you made together.

Save time for you! If you’re at the center of your family holiday preparations, delegate tasks for others. Now is the time to let your Oxygen Plan life rules, rule! You may be pleasantly surprised by the results.

It’s also okay to feel blue or pressured if the holidays have this effect on you. Never fear! The rules you’ve set in your Daily Oxygen Action Plan will take care of those feelings, because you’ve already created successful ways to deal with them!

On this Thanksgiving, we are thankful for the opportunity to share the concepts of The Oxygen Plan with so many of you; and may your winter holidays and New Year be green with health, happiness and prosperity.

Posted in Uncategorized |