Dear Savvy Senior,

Over the past few years my 57-year-old husband’s snoring has gotten much worse. It’s to the point that I have to either wear earplugs or move to a different room. Any suggestions?

Sleep Deprived Susan

Dear Susan,
Snoring is a very common problem that often gets worse with age. Around 37 million Americans snore on a regular basis according to the National Sleep Center.
Snoring occurs when the airway narrows or is partly blocked during sleep usually due to nasal congestion, floppy tissue, alcohol, or enlarged tonsils. But you and your husband also need to know that snoring can be much more than just an annoyance. It can also be a red flag for obstructive sleep apnea, a serious condition in which the snorer stops and starts breathing during sleep, increasing the risks of cardiovascular disease, stroke, cardiac arrhythmia and hypertension. According to the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, 34 percent of men and 19 percent of women who snore routinely have sleep apnea or are at risk for it.
Self-Help Remedies
Even if you are unsure whether your husband has a primary snoring problem or sleep apnea, sleep experts suggest you start with these steps.
Open a stuffy nose: If nasal congestion is causing your husband to snore, over-the-counter nasal strips such as Breathe Right may help. Or, if allergies are the cause, try saline nasal sprays.
Elevate his head: Buying a foam wedge to elevate his head a few inches can help reduce snoring, or buy him a contoured pillow to lift his chin and keep the tongue from blocking the back of his throat as he sleeps. Also check out Nora (smartnora.com), a wireless snoring device that slides under the pillow and gently moves the head to a different position when snoring is detected. This, they say, stimulates the relaxed throat muscles and opens the airway.
Sleep on side: To prevent back sleeping, which triggers snoring, place a pillow against your husbands back to keep him from rolling over or sew a tennis ball in the back of his pajama shirt. Or check out the Night Shift Sleep Positioner (nightshifttherapy.com), a device that’s worn around the neck that vibrates when you roll on your back.
Avoid alcohol before bed: Alcoholic beverages can relax the muscles in the throat, and constrict airflow. He should not consume alcohol three to four hours before bedtime.
Lose excess weight: Fat around the neck can compress the upper airway and impede airflow and is often associated with sleep apnea.
Quit smoking: Smoking causes inflammation in the upper airways that can make snoring worse.
Need More Help
If these lifestyle strategies don’t make a big difference, your husband should see his doctor, a sleep specialist, or an otolaryngologist who may recommend an overnight study to test him for apnea.
For primary snoring or mild to moderate sleep apnea, an oral appliance that fits into the mouth like a retainer may be prescribed. This shifts the lower jaw and tongue forward, keeping the airway open.
Some other options are Theravent snore therapy (theraventsnoring.com) and Provent sleep apnea therapy (proventtherapy.com), which are small nasal devices that attach over the nostrils to improve airflow.
But the gold standard for moderate to severe sleep apnea is a continuous positive airway pressure, or CPAP, device. This involves sleeping with a mask and is hooked up to a machine that gently blows air up your nose to keep the passages open.
If these don’t work or are intolerable, surgery is an option too. There are procedures available today that remove excess tissue in the nose, mouth, or throat. And a newer procedure called hypoglossal nerve stimulation that uses a small device implanted in the chest to help control the movement of the tongue when it blocks the airway.

Send your senior questions to: Savvy Senior, P.O. Box 5443, Norman, OK 73070, or visit SavvySenior.org. Jim Miller is a contributor to the NBC Today show and author of “The Savvy Senior” book.

The Community Caregivers Support Group’s fourth annual FREE Seminar will be at Council Road Baptist Church in Bethany on Saturday, April 1, 2017. This year’s theme, “Planning for the Future while in the Present”, will focus on eldercare/caregiving, and, as always, will provide pertinent, readily available information resources. Join us for coffee and donuts at 8:30 a.m. The seminar begins at 9:00 a.m. and ends at 11:45 a.m.
Our keynote speaker for the first session will be Dr. Mark Stratton, a recently retired professor from OU Medical Geriatric Education and author of a commentary on “America’s other Drug Problem”, which addresses the problem of over-medication and the effectiveness of medication to the aging body. His topic will be Using Medications Safely: A Key to Your Health. The options for session 2, from 10:00 a.m. to 10:40 a.m., will be 1) Wills, Trusts, and Estate Planning led by Kathy Lee Hackett, CFP®, CEP®, and the Director of Estate Planning for The Baptist Foundation of Oklahoma and 2) Final Arrangements led by Gary Mercer with Mercer-Adams Funeral Home.
Session 3, from 10:50 a.m. to 11:30 a.m., offers a choice between 1) Clarifying Medicare with Anna Farha, representative from the State of Oklahoma Insurance Department, or 2) Addressing Dementia and Alzheimer’s led by Carla Scull, Education Coordinator for Oklahoma Chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association.
Council Road Baptist Church is located at NW 30TH and Council Road. The south entrance to the chapel is next to the playground. You may register online at www.councilroad.org or by calling Claree Cox at (405)789-3175 or Gaylene Turner at (405)787-0300.

On Tuesday, March 7, Oklahoma City’s Brightmusic Chamber Ensemble will present its fourth concert of the 2016-17 season, “Romanticism Revisited.” The ensemble will revisit chamber works by three of Romanticism’s greats: Carl Maria von Weber, a contemporary of Beethoven and one of the first significant composers of the Romantic school; Richard Strauss, himself heavily influenced by his idol, Johannes Brahms; and Sergei Rachmaninoff, a major composer of the late 19th to early 20th centuries. The concert features works spanning the Romantic era of the 19th century, from the trio by Weber to the works of Rachmaninoff and Strauss, both written toward the end of the century.
The evening starts with the Weber trio, a melodic and virtuosic work; continues with the one-movement trio by a 19-year-old Rachmaninoff, and concludes with the energetic quartet of Strauss.
The program includes:
Carl Maria von Weber, Trio in G Minor for Flute, Cello & Piano, Op. 63;, Sergei Rachmaninoff, Trio Élégiaque No. 1 in G Minor (for Violin, Cello & Piano); and Richard Strauss, Quartet in C Minor, Op. 13 (for Piano, Violin, Viola & Cello).
Six musicians will appear in this concert: Gregory Lee (violin), Mark Neumann (viola), Jonathan Ruck (cello), Parthena Owens (flute), Amy I-Lin Cheng (piano), and Ruirui Ouyang (piano).
The performance will take place at 7:30 pm on Tuesday, March 7 at St. Paul’s Cathedral, 127 NW 7th Street (at Robinson). Individual concert admission is $20 per ticket. Children, students and active-duty military personnel are admitted free with ID. In addition, anyone suffering financial hardship due to to a layoff in the energy sector may attend free of charge by stating that they are “a guest of the musicians.” More information about this concert is available on Brightmusic’s website at http://www.brightmusic.org.

A Tulsa man who filed a bogus insurance claim and assaulted an insurance adjuster has been sentenced to life in prison. Prentice E. Ponds II, 43, was on parole at the time of the crime. He has a long criminal history with multiple felony convictions.
“Oklahoma is a safer place with this man behind bars,” said Oklahoma Insurance Commissioner John D. Doak. “While it’s common for insurance fraud to be committed in conjunction with other crimes, we don’t typically see violence like this. But it does happen. I am extremely proud of the work done by our Anti-Fraud Unit to get this violent criminal off the streets. I also want to thank the Tulsa County District Attorney’s Office for its excellent work on this case.”
Ponds was arrested in August 2015 after an investigation by the Oklahoma Insurance Department’s Anti-Fraud Unit. Investigators found that Ponds filed a fraudulent insurance claim on a 2014 Chevy Camaro with preexisting damage he’d purchased off eBay. When an insurance adjuster went to Ponds’ home to question him about the claim, Ponds became angry. He attacked the adjuster and took his file and audio recorder. The insurance adjuster was later treated for a head laceration and broken ribs.
Last week a Tulsa County jury convicted Ponds of robbery and insurance fraud. He was sentenced to life for the robbery conviction and 25 years for the insurance fraud conviction. Ponds’ prior felony convictions include assault and battery, robbery and burglary.
“I could not be more pleased with the jury’s verdict,” said Tulsa County Assistant District Attorney Reagan Reininger. “The jury was able to evaluate the evidence and send a message that making a fraudulent insurance claim and robbery by force or fear are crimes that will not be tolerated in our community. A violent criminal was taken off our streets with the help of the Tulsa Police Department and the thorough investigation of the Oklahoma Insurance Department. Because of our collective efforts, the hope is that this criminal will never be able to victimize again,” said Reininger.
“Repwest takes insurance fraud very seriously and works closely with authorities to fervently pursue justice,” said Robert Pirmann, vice president at Repwest Insurance Company. “On behalf of our team, I want to commend the Oklahoma Department of Insurance, the Tulsa County District Attorney’s Office and local law enforcement for their diligent efforts in this case. The violence exhibited against our insurance investigator should never be tolerated.”
About the Oklahoma Insurance Department
The Oklahoma Insurance Department, an agency of the State of Oklahoma, is responsible for the education and protection of the insurance-buying public and for oversight of the insurance industry in the state.

by Bobby Anderson, Staff Writer

Ask Chickasaw Nation Gov. Bill Anoatubby what he’s most proud of during a term of office that dates all the way back to 1987 and you’d better pull up a chair.
The bright-eyed, beloved 30th governor of the 12th-largest tribe in the U.S. oversees nearly 14,000 employees, more than 300 tribal programs and services and more than 100 tribal businesses.
The latest in that line is a joint venture that should breathe new life into the surrounding Lake Texoma area and Southeastern Oklahoma in the heart of Chickasaw Country.
Late last year the state of Oklahoma and the Chickasaw Nation announced plans to develop a resort hotel and other amenities at Lake Texoma.
It’s an effort to resurrect a failed project that aimed at privatizing the state resort 10 years ago when it was sold to out-of-state investors.
The project excites Gov. Anoatubby on multiple levels.
“This development is another component of our economic development initiatives designed to have a positive impact on the state and local economy,” Gov. Anoatubby said. “It will directly employ dozens of local residents in a number of occupations. We believe it will also have a kind of ripple effect which will strengthen existing businesses in the area as well as bringing other new businesses to the area as a result of increasing the number of visitors to the area.”
“Tourism affects businesses from gas stations and convenience stores to restaurants, sporting goods stores, fishing guides, antique shops and farmers’ markets – and the list goes on.”
The initial plans call for the Chickasaw Nation to construct a three-story hotel, a restaurant and gift shop, a casino featuring up to 300 electronic games and as many as 10 lakefront fishing/boating cottages.
The project covers 50 acres of lakefront property, overlooking Lake Texoma and the historic Roosevelt Bridge. It also involves about 11.5 acres of land acquired by the Commissioners of the Land Office (CLO) from the Oklahoma Department of Tourism and Recreation.
“We believe this new development will help launch a transformation of this area into a major tourism and recreation attraction,” Gov. Anoatubby said. “This is an incredibly beautiful area with so much to offer, it is really exciting to think of the long-term impact this project could have on the area.”
Gov. Anoatubby envisions the project as the kind of place seniors can take their families. There’s something for everyone.
The hotel will include a lounge and meeting rooms, an outdoor pool and recreation area, a fitness center, gift shop, restaurant and a business center, he said.
The development will be off U.S. 70, across from the Chickasaw Pointe Golf Course near the site of the old Lake Texoma State Lodge. Preliminary plans allow for future expansion of the hotel and the construction of additional waterfront cottages.
Gov. Anoatubby said the state has so much to offer with its natural beauty. It’s one of the reasons the tribe has invested in the state through its Adventure Road program, which highlights different areas up and down I-35.
Designed to bring more tourism to Oklahoma, the Adventure Road initiative generated more than 385,000 new trips to the area last year alone, bringing in approximately $647 million in spending from March to September, according to Gov. Anoatubby.
The tribe is also investing in a new information center in Tishomingo, closely located to Lake Texoma which will complement the project.
It’s another feather in the cap of an already stellar career.
“Our mission is to enhance the quality of life of the Chickasaw people so it is gratifying to see the results of our efforts,” Gov. Anoatubby said. “Many of our services are designed to offer opportunities to pursue a higher education, advance in one’s career, or start a business.”
There are countless examples of Chickasaws who have seized those opportunities and achieved success.
“It is gratifying to see Chickasaws who have utilized tribal services, make it a point to come back home to work for the tribe.”
Oklahoma Governor Mary Fallin said she has been a long-time believer in the potential of the Lake Texoma area to be an economic driver in Oklahoma.
“This project will create jobs and revenue for southern Oklahoma while at the same time maintaining the beauty of the site,” said Fallin. “The Lake Texoma lodge and golf course for many years were a top tourist attraction in the region. This hotel and commercial development will be the catalyst to stimulate significantly greater economic development in the future. I appreciate Governor Anoatubby’s vision and willingness to partner with the state of Oklahoma to continue our joint efforts focusing on tourism in this beautiful and strategically located part of our state.”

story and photos by Bobby Anderson, Staff Writer

The state of Guerrero, Mexico is a juxtaposition of two worlds.
The resort city of Acapulco, backed by the Sierra Madre Del Sur mountains spills into the Pacific Ocean.
Cliff divers entertain throngs of sunbathing tourists daily plunging some 136 feet into the crashing waves below.
But travel a few miles in any direction and you run the risk of becoming entangled in the violence and death associated with what you might expect from Mexico’s heroin capital.
Oklahoma Heart Hospital RN Shawn Watts walked that fine line a few weeks ago, going on a medical mission trip that provided help and hope for hundreds of families.
Watts realized the world is a very different place outside the walls of Oklahoma Heart Hospital South.
An outdoor covered basketball court served as the mission trip’s staging ground surrounded by a dense urban population eager to seek medical care.
Watts served as triage nurse sending patients to either a dentist, optometrist, pharmacist, family practice doctor or pediatrician based on their needs.
“They’re so worry about their kids staying healthy they wanted their kids to get vitamin shots and even antibiotics when it wasn’t appropriate,” Watts said.
At OHH all Watts has to do is walk into a supply room to get whatever he needs to take care of patients.
“They gave me a box of IV catheters, tubing and medication,” Watts said. “It’s field medicine. That’s exactly what it is.”
Fifteen minutes away was storied Acapulco.
“You hear that and think ‘Oh, how nice.’ It’s not,” Watts said. “In Mexico they develop a resort community and you go two miles beyond and it’s gone. That whole culture is gone. You have true Mexico. They have chickens hanging for sale gutted in the streets. They burn their trash in the streets at night.
“Fish are laying out all day long for sale not even iced in the market. You drive whatever direction you want to. It’s just the culture.”
So Watts assumed when he arrived he’d bunk up in a corner in someone’s house on the floor.
Little did he know he would find a resort hotel room for $43 a night.
People from all over would line up early in the morning to catch the clinic as it opened. Some rushed out the door without even taking their morning medication.
“I would check their blood pressure and it would be 180/110,” said Watts, who traveled with the medical-based Fishers of Men. “We couldn’t tell if their medicine was working for them.”
Multivitamin IV solutions, or banana bags, flowed freely for most of the day as the group did what it could for whomever showed up.
Despite residents not always having access to medical care or the medicines they needed, Watts said the culture had a few things working for it.
“You have no choice but cardiac health there because everything was uphill and you walk to everything,” Watts said. “These little old ladies their blood pressure was well controlled just on basic medicines. They didn’t use medications like we do. They used medicines that were more basic, been around for years and didn’t require monitoring afterwards. Long-term they weren’t the best but they were the most practical for that area.”
Diabetes, malnourishment and dehydration were all issues.
In the hot Mexico sunshine, Watts would go through 6-7 bottles of water daily with no access to a restroom.
“We left there at 6 p.m. and we all went to the restroom after that,” Watts said.
The days flowed for Watts.
“I triaged them so fast that I made the doctors and the dentists mad because I set up extra lines,” Watts laughed. “I had a couple CNAs with me and we did blood pressure, scales, temperatures, measurement. I started slotting them so fast the director of the mission board said ‘You come back. You organize. You’re good. You get everything done. You come back.’”
That’s no surprise. ER, ICU and now CCU at Oklahoma Heart Hospital have been Watts’ sandbox for the past 17 years.
His first calling was in applied ministry as a youth minister in an inner city.
He started doing home health on the side.
“It flowed,” Watts said. “I became an aide and did home health for four years and went to nursing school and worked three jobs during that.”
He would go to class for three hours and see patients on his lunch break before repeating the cycle in the afternoon.
“I love it. It just fits,” Watts said. “I’ve tried to slow down and thought about an office job since I’m 50. I just don’t have the gears for it.”
That’s a good thing not only for the people of Oklahoma City but the residents of Guerrero as well.

What gets you out of bed in the morning? AllianceHealth Seminole

I enjoy volunteering. I wanted to for years. I volunteer other places because when you work for free you’re in demand. Bettie Conn

I feel very much at home here at AllianceHealth Seminole. I worked here a long time ago. Mary Jo Lofgren

I get to spend time with patients on the front lines. Sharon Carr, RN

I guess it’s that certain satisfaction I get when I help people out.  Dedra Johnson

Oklahoma has a rich agricultural history thanks to dedicated farmers. In 1998, the Governor’s Outstanding Achievement Award in Agriculture was created to recognize those who have helped lead the industry while demonstrating exemplary personal values and pursuing agricultural achievements in Oklahoma. Through Feb. 10, the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry (ODAFF) is accepting nominations for a total of four Oklahoma Excellence in Agriculture Awards.
The award winners will be announced at a recognition ceremony on March 29, 2017 at the state capitol as part of the state’s annual Oklahoma Ag Day celebration.
Examples of eligible agriculture enterprises for the Governor’s Outstanding Achievement Award in Agriculture nominee are: livestock and crop production, agribusiness, forestry, horticulture and nursery management. In addition to considering the nominee’s production agriculture involvement, the application also recognizes leadership in agricultural and state organizations as well as additional awards and honors. The winner will be someone with at least 25 years in agriculture who derives the bulk of his or her income from agriculture or has retired from an agricultural enterprise.
Previous award-winners have represented different areas of Oklahoma as well as a variety of agricultural groups and commodities. Past recipients have guided their families and communities to success by excelling as dairymen, cattle ranchers, pork producers, wheat farmers, conservationists and educators. Uniting previous Hall of Fame inductees is their service to their communities in addition to their contribution to the agriculture industry.
In addition to the Governor’s Outstanding Achievement Award in Agriculture, ODAFF also presents the Agriculture Environmental Stewardship Award, Outstanding Legacy in Agriculture Award and Outstanding Public Service in Agriculture Award. The Legacy in Agriculture Award is the only one strictly for posthumous nominees.
Governor Fallin’s Agriculture Environmental Stewardship Award recognizes Oklahoma agriculturalists who are leaders in developing and adopting outstanding environmentally innovative agricultural practices. This award will highlight the efforts of an Oklahoma agriculture producer who is a steward of the environment and is dedicated to conserving the natural resources of Oklahoma while helping to ensure a continued supply of food and fiber.
Governor Fallin’s Outstanding Public Service in Agriculture Award honors an individual who has made outstanding contributions of public service to Oklahoma agriculture. The recipient will be someone who works diligently to improve public perception of agriculture in Oklahoma. The recipient should be a person who has given time and talent unselfishly to advance the Oklahoma agricultural industry.
Governor Fallin’s Outstanding Legacy to Agriculture Award posthumously honors someone who made significant life-long contributions to Oklahoma agriculture. The unique or extraordinary contributions the individual made to Oklahoma serve as a role model for the agriculture industry.
“The Oklahoma Excellence in Agriculture Awards give us the opportunity to recognize those individuals who have made a positive and lasting impact on agriculture in our state,” said Oklahoma Secretary of Agriculture Jim Reese.
The deadline for all nominations is 5 p.m., Friday, Feb. 10. The recipients will be selected by a committee of representatives from agricultural commodity organizations and farm and ranch organizations. Any questions regarding the nomination procedure or completion of the official nomination form can be directed to Jason Harvey at (405) 606-1477. The nomination forms can be found at www.ag.ok.gov/odaff-halloffame.htm .

by Bobby Anderson, Staff Writer

As AllianceHealth Seminole’s Chief Executive Officer, Debbie Hancock, RN, MSN has learned to always carry a set of scrubs with her just in case.
High heels, slacks and pearls are generally the order of the day but then again, like every nurse knows, things tend to hit the fan when you least expect it.
But it’s not a big deal for the 17-year nursing veteran who feels as comfortable in the boardroom as she does in the emergency room.
“It’s a smaller hospital than the one I came from … and there’s really a family atmosphere. Most of the people that work here have worked here forever and that’s dedication right there,” Hancock said. “They want to work here. They want to be here.”
“The people here just make it,” Hancock continued. “They’re proud of their hospital. They’re proud of their community. They could go anywhere but they choose to be here.”
Hancock has served the Seminole population as AllianceHealth Chief Nursing Executive for more than half a year.
She came from a similar role in Texas at Hill Regional Hospital.
Looking to make a move to get closer to her grandchildren, Hancock was able to move from a seven-hour-drive to her grandkids in Wichita, Kansas to just three hours.
WEARING LOTS OF HATS
The experience of a rural hospital is a new one for Hancock, who leads a facility licensed for 32 beds. Her last hospital in Texas had more than a 130-bed capacity.
“With it there’s more challenges here because you wear more hats. You’re responsible for more because you don’t have the people,” says Hancock, who’s worked a couple days each week on the floor for the past few weeks.
On given days, Hancock has found herself serving as the emergency room director or the medical-surgical director.
There’s no flex pool or staffing office to call up when someone is sick.
And the small town of Seminole isn’t one that’s attracting a lot of medical professionals.
“We try to breed them from within,” said Hancock, whose hospital sits a stone’s throw away from Seminole State College. “You have to have people with a different mindset.”
That means showing people that they have ownership of the hospital and their individual unit. After all, they are there to make a difference and stepping up to a leadership role can often be the best and fastest way to improve outcomes.
So far, Hancock has been amazed by staff that have shared leadership roles among them.
“In a bigger hospital you have so many other people you can lean on to take care of things,” Hancock said. “Here you have to lean on nurses that you have.”
That’s why, on occasion, she ditches her desk, puts on her scrubs and hits the floor.
“I see what they’re going through and the struggles that they do have,” Hancock said. “When they tell me we can’t do that … when I work down there with them I find out why.”
THE VISION AHEAD
The wheels are already in motion at AllianceHealth Seminole, which is working to expand offerings.
“I want to see it grow. We have new programs, a sleep lab that’s opening and we’re working on chest pain accreditation,” Hancock said.
February is the expected chest pain accreditation timeline. Soon after the hospital will pursue stroke certification.
“All of AllianceHealth is working towards the same goals and initiatives,” Hancock explained. “It’s important for us to be able to meet our goals. It makes it easier on our nurses when we transfer. When we have the same chest pain and stroke protocols it’s an easy transfer.”
“I just want to see us grow and get the people in place that need to be here.”
She has a feeling most of the pieces are already in place. A couple more hires and she expects a full staff.
Mentoring and moving up within are the order of the day as is Hancock’s willingness to accept suggestions from staff.
“Our goals are the same, it’s just how we get there,” Hancock said. “We’re excited. Good things are happening here.”
AllianceHealth Seminole currently serves more than 30,000 residents in Seminole County and the surrounding area. Seminole is a licensed acute care hospital with two large operating suites, one endoscopy suite, one post anesthesia recovery room, and 32 private rooms. AllianceHealth Seminole began serving the community in October 2007.