Amateur Connoisseur

Jan’s Health Studio

One of my favorite movies is Clue the movie based on a board game and has a group of six dinner guests trying to find a murderer based on very random clues presented after dinner by the butler. After we uncover more and more murders in a locked mansion, we are finally told how it all happened by no other than the butler. But wait, it could have happened that way, but what about this second option. And we are told yet another probable solution to the crimes but wait there is one more final option that was actually how it happened. This case in Wisconsin reminds me of that movie where it has multiple solutions, but no title card saying this is how it actually happened.

Madison Wisconsin, 1970’s, you wouldn’t have to look far to find a selection of massage parlors in the capital city. They had names such as “This is Heaven”, “The Geisha House”, and “Genie’s Magic Touch”. They all hinted at the types of massages they offered, dicks and balls and happy endings. One parlor that was located in a strip mall, Jan’s Health Studio, had more of a clinical name, but it was offering the same services as the other studios with less discreet names.

Jan’s Health Studio had a masseuse named Barbara Hoffman, and she had a regular client, a shipping clerk named Gerald Davies, and Gerald was in love with Barbara.

Barbara had been a student at UW-Madison, majoring in biochemistry and had a 3.9 GPA and was a National Honor Society scholar. She spoke three languages and was trying to leave the skin trade as that industry attracted some unsavory characters like a cocaine kingpin, Sam Cerro.

Does this story seem invented to garner sympathy from her clients? Everything up to this point is 100% true. Being hired by an insurance company, Barbara was able to leave the Health Studio. Oddly enough, Gerald and Barbara kept a relationship going after she left.

Here’s How It Could Have Happened

December 23, 1977, when Gerald was at Barbara’s, she told him about an odd occurrence in her home the day before, she stated that when she had returned home there had been a dead body in her bathtub. She didn’t know who it was and assumed it was left there to frame her for murder from the organized criminals from the Studio. body

Barbara claimed she panicked and dragged the nearly nude body outside and hid it in a snowbank. She said she needed Gerald’s help and he informed her “What you need is to call the police.” Barbara said she couldn’t do that, there was no way they would believe her. He agreed to help her, and they took the body from the snowbank and put it into Gerald’s car. They ways to dispose of the body came full circle back to being placed into another snowbank. But this time they found the largest one they could, and it happened to be at the entrance to Blackhawk Ski Club, about 20 minutes away. The couple agreed to keep their adventure secret and planned to spend Christmas with their respective families.

Gerald kept secret the adventure on December 23 for approximately 30 hours. On Christmas Day he went to the police and told them everything. The story was less than believable coming from Gerald, but they did go to Blackhawk to check the burial site. When they dug into the snowbank, they found a dead man dressed in his underpants and tied up with rope. Gerald had told the truth about the body. However, it was possible that Gerald had killed the man himself and made up a crazy story about it appearing at his girlfriend’s house.

The police issued a warrant and examined Barbara’s apartment. There was no evidence of a corpse but there was evidence of bleach having cleaned up the bathroom floor. Crime scene investigators searched the snowbank where Gerald said the body was before they moved it. They were able to find blood and hair in the snowbank.

But who was the dead man who was only clad in his underpants?

The police discovered the man was Harry Berge, a 52-year-old single man who worked at a tire company in Stoughton. He lived alone after his mother passed away a few years before. He had a life insurance policy for $30,000(approximately $140,000 today) and the beneficiary was Linda Millar. The police didn’t know who Linda Millar was. But Gerald did. Gerald stated that Barbara was Linda Millar.

Gerald continued by stating that after she left the massage parlor Barbara tried to cut all ties to her former life and used the new name, Linda Millar. Barbara now had a motive for killing Harry Berge, who she claimed she didn’t know.

Prosecutors went forward with a case against Barbara Hoffman. Their chief witness was Gerald and since he had been lied to by his girlfriend as she was carrying on with another man, he had good reason to testify against her.

But then letters were received by the police, the defense lawyer, and the local paper. The handwriting was authenticated as being written by Gerald Davies. In his letter he stated that “Barb is innocent and I wrecked her life,” he wrote. “All those stories I told about Barb are false.” However, he never stated what the true story was. Before anyone could question Gerald Davies, he was found dead in a bathtub after Easter. His cause of death was unclear but suspected he had overdosed.

Here Is Another Way To Look At It.

If we believed Gerald’s dying confession that Barbara was not guilty, then there is only one other suspect who killed Harry Berge, Gerald Davies himself, the man the police suspected initially.

Gerald made more sense than Barbara. If Barbara did want to kill Harry for the insurance money, killing him while he was in his underwear, hiding his body in the snowbank so nobody could find it was a poor way of committing the crime.

The medical examiner said that Harry Berge died from trauma to the head, and although a woman could be responsible it was more of a man’s handiwork. The police postulated that Gerald entered Barbara’s apartment, caught the two of them together and immediately killed Harry to death. But something didn’t make sense.

The body had been kept in the snow near Barbara’s apartment dumpster, the blood confirmed this. Originally this was as far as Barbara could drag the body. IF Gerald had killed Harry and then was responsible for taking the body to Blackhawk, there was no reason to keep the body near the dumpster.

But then another possibility became apparent. What if Gerald entered Barbara’s home, found Harry there alone, and then Gerald killed him but left the body in the tub for Barbara to find. That would explain why Barbara would drag the body to the dumpster and buried under snow. And she did wait a day before talking to Gerald about it. Gerald helped her move the body, and she never suspected her boyfriend had killed her lover. She claimed she feared being framed for murder from the massage parlor criminals, when really it was Gerald.

When the court trial came, the district attorney announced they were dropping charges against Barbara as they were missing their main witness. Barbara’s lawyer was triumphant and accepted this. As she was walking out of the courtroom, police arrested her again, this time for double-murder. She was now accused of killing both Harry Berge and Gerald Davies.

But wasn’t Gerald’s death an overdose? Police learned that Gerald had a life insurance policy, and the beneficiary was Barbara Hoffman. This policy wasn’t for $30,000, it was for $750,000 (over $3,325,000 today). This was a reason to consider Gerald’s death a murder, not to mention him being the star witness on a different murder trial.

Medical examiners ran more tests than usual on Gerald and discovered that he did not die of an overdose but from cyanide poisoning. Knowing this they reexamined Harry Berge and discovered that he too had died from cyanide poisoning and not head trauma as originally believed. Harry Berge had over 40 times the lethal dosage in his system.

Police were looking into some of the organized criminals that frequented Jan’s Health Studio, like Sam Cerro. When police arrived at the studio they met an associate of Sam’s, the manager of Jan’s Health Studio, William Grover Garrott. William eventually would state that when Barbara worked at the studio, she had planned to marry a man, put a large life insurance policy of $750,000 on him and the take a Mexican honeymoon, and then poison him. She planned to then cremate his remains and return with his ashes leaving nothing for the police to analyze.

William agreed to testify against Barbara.

Barbara’s trial is the first one to be fully televised. Barbara’s lawyer, who had previously worked with both Sam Cerro and William Grover Garrott but chose to continue defending Barbara even with a conflict of interest, for which he would be disbarred and reinstated in 2000. Her lawyer had hoped to have two separate trials as he wasn’t confident that he could defend her against both murders together, separate he was confident he could win.

During the trial it was learned that with her biochemistry knowledge, and that she had purchased enough cyanide to kill both men, she was only convicted for murdering Harry Berge. She was sentenced to life in prison.

Since 1978, Barbara has not given an interview or any other statements besides one; “I did not commit the crime of which I have been accused and for which I have been convicted. And that’s all I have to say.”

Even though she has been tried, convicted, and sentenced, the police still question the finality of the case as their earlier misgivings remain.

But How About This?

We know that Barbara wanted to poison a man during a honeymoon and cremate him for a large insurance payout. Harry’s death lined up poorly with this. It is possible that William was trying to get a plea deal for Sam Cerro and told the police whatever they wanted to hear. If that is true, then the organized criminals really did frame her as she suggested.

What if William told the truth? Gerald and not Harry was the one with the large insurance policy, if she was looking to kill someone it would have been Gerald. Getting away with two similar crimes and benefitting from them would have attracted suspicion. And it’s less likely that Gerald killed Harry, since he had died by cyanide poisoning, Barbara’s weapon of choice.

But then the question is posed with her knowledge of cyanide poison, why did Harry have such a high amount in his system? Nobody would use that much if they knew anything about poison, it too would raise questions if detected by the coroner. The victim as well would detect the bitter almond smell and reject whatever you were giving them.

Here’s The Theory Of What Really Happened

On December 22, Harry had attended his Christmas Party and then went over to Barbara’s apartment. As was normal he brewed some instant coffee and taking a tin from the cabinet added several spoonsful of sugar to the coffee. It wasn’t a sugar tin. It was crystalized potassium cyanide. After taking a sip, Harry collapsed and died.

Barbara did panic and drag Harry to the snowbank before Gerald came and agreed to move it. Then he betrayed her to the police. Later when she was released on bond, Barbara went to visit Gerald and fed him something laced with the correct dosage of cyanide while he was in the bathtub.

Barbara didn’t know or didn’t believe that Gerald had loved her and recanted his statement and no longer planned to testify against her. Barbara killed Gerald to save herself from being convicted for Harry’s murder. Instead, this ensured she would be convicted even though Harry was not the man she intended to kill, nor did she directly poison him.

She herself even said, “I did not commit the crime of which I have been accused and for which I have been convicted,” after all.

Stay Weird Wisconsin

The Alexanders

This case starts with the Lorber Society. In 1840, Austrian Seer and Channel Jakob Lorber claimed he heard a voice that commanded him to write. And he did, he wrote over 25 substantial books and other shorter works. Eventually the voice that commanded Jakob would work through others until the revelations filled over 40 volumes.

During World War II the group limited their activities but after the war they started again. The revelations were a revised gnostic interpretation of Christianity, and that the universe was created by God as the environment for a society of living love. Many people, known as divine sparks, were to grow in the divine likeness until Lucifer revolted and destroyed that plan. He was then entrapped in matter and God is now using matter to filter the impure spirits. On Earth, the sparks are able to return to God, and Jesus came to Earth to speed the redemption process.

The society was run by a man named George Riehle. When Jakob Lorber founded the group, it was a severe spiritual organization that taught unflinching self-denial and upheld the belief that all non-members were basically evil. Every person in the group were free of Satan’s control and everyone else was an instrument of the Devil who needed to be purged.

Harald Alexander met George Riehle in Hamburg Germany when the man was dying, and Harald nursed him through his last days. This was in the late 1940’s or early 1950’s. When George passed away, Harald claimed he had inherited the leadership of the Lorber Society. Harald’s wife, Dagmar, accepted this without question. As did the rest of the society.

Eventually the Alexanders began their family, their first child Marina was born in 1952, and two years later their only son, Frank was born, the following year twin girls, Sabine and Petra. However, the apple of their eye, and the newest Prophet of God was Frank. He was raised that all his wishes were fulfilled, and he would eventually dictate every movement of the family.

Frank reached his teen years without much controversy, but after becoming a teenager, he decided that he could never “pollute” himself with women outside the sect and informed his father that he would be having sex with his mother, and later his older sister. Because Frank wanted it, it was allowed without question.

The incestuous relations became a common occurrence in the Alexander home. Harald enthusiastically encouraged his only son to have sex with his wife and daughters whenever he wanted. Harald showed his religious devotion by also having sex with his eldest daughter, Marina. Dagmar and Marina accepted their roles as sex objects as they were serving the Prophet of the Lord.

The actions within the family were considered normal to all of the Alexanders. Sabine and Petra had a few friends to share the information with and spoke openly about their mother and sister being “allowed to serve”. As the gossip spread the Police became interested in the Prophet and his family.

Before the law could knock at their door, the Alexanders moved to the Canary Islands and set up a small apartment in Santa Cruz, Tenerife. The neighbors found them to be an odd family who didn’t leave the apartment much. Frank and his sisters supported the family with low paying jobs. Harald played the organ and led the family in long and loud prayers.

The family lived in the apartment for 10 months.

December 22, 1970, 15-year-old Sabine was working at the villa of Dr. Walter Trenkler. She was a domestic helper, and she was working in the kitchen preparing a meal when the Doctor answered a knock at the door. The Doctor informed Sabine that her father and brother were on the patio needing to speak with her. The Doctor recalled that both father and son were covered in mud.

Dr. Trenkler went to his office and overheard parts of the conversation and when Harald stated to his daughter: “Sabine, dear, we wanted you to know at once that Frank and I have just finished killing your mother and your sisters.”

To his amazement, Sabine didn’t scream or cry, she took her father’s hand and put it to her cheek and replied: “I’m sure you’ve done what you thought necessary.”

Harold saw Dr. Trenkler standing in shock and said: “Ah, you’ve overheard. We’ve killed my wife and other daughters. It was the hour of killing.” The horrified physician then realized that what he’d originally thought was mud and dirt on the men’s clothes, was actually human blood.

Dr. Trenkler raced into his home and called the police, but the neighbors had already called them as the sounds from the apartment were quite loud and hellish.

Officers took the Alexanders into custody, and other detectives went to the apartment. When they opened the door and walked in it was a place of carnage. All the dishes, clothing, and papers were smashed, broken, and torn into pieces. The ceiling, walls, and floors were coated in blood.

The middle of the living room were the mutilated bodies of 18-year-old Marina, and 15-year-old Petra. Their breasts and genitals had been hacked away and nailed to one wall. Marina had also been disemboweled.

In the bedroom 39-year-old Dagmar was found. Her breasts and genitals were also hacked away. Her heart was cut out and bound on a cord before being nailed to the wall.

Both father and son were at the police station and admitted to the murders. Frank stated the following: He had been in the bedroom when Dagmar entered. She had been looking at Frank and he had the feeling that his mother was not permitted to look at him in that manner. He then took a clothes hanger and struck her on the head until she fell and lost consciousness.

Harald had gone into the other room and played the organ and praised Jesus. Frank followed and struck both Marina and Petra. When Frank began to remove the offending parts Harald joined and helped him.

Harald agreed to every detail his son confessed and said that the sexual organs were “offending parts” and they had to be removed. The women in the house had known and expected the “hour of killing” at any time and that they had discussed as a family about this “holy time” and how the women were human sacrifices for The Prohet Frank Alexander. Both Frank and Harald then stated that they felt no guilt and that it was all part of their religious beliefs…. that women were unclean and had to be purified by killing.

Psychiatrists examined the father and son and concluded that they were both unfit to stand trial. Both were committed to an asylum for the criminally insane.

Sabine Alexander, the surviving female member of the family, begged the authorities to send her to the asylum with her brother and father, but she was rejected. She was instead sent to a secure convent, a place where her wish to be isolated from the ‘impure’ and ‘Devil-owned’ people who made up most of Society could be satisfied.

Frank and Harald Alexander were in the mental asylum, but in 1991, they managed to escape. Their whereabouts are unknown.

Be strong, make good choices, be safe

Last Meal Monday – Part 2

Another week has begun, and another posting about the last meals of condemned prisoners in the United States. I am starting to look forward to Mondays and this topic and it seems that I’m not the only one interested in this topic. Many people like to know what the condemned eat before being escorted to the death chamber.

(This post and series is not intended to cause controversy regarding capital punishment, and is only intended to discuss the final meals of those who have been judged in a court of law and sentenced to the death penalty.)

Who: Gary Gilmore
Age: 36
Where: Draper, UT
How: Firing Squad
When: January 17, 1977
His Crime: Murder of two men in 1976. He asked to be executed and didn’t fight the sentencing.
Last Meal: Baked potato, a few cups of coffee, hard boiled eggs, a hamburger, and three shots of Jack Daniel’s whiskey.

Who: Gary Carl Simmons Jr.
Age: 33
Where: Mississippi
How: Lethal Injection
When: June 20, 2012
His Crime: Murder and Rape
Last Meal: Supreme deep dish pizza that had jalapeno peppers, onions, and mushrooms. 2 large strawberry shakes, McDonald’s fries with extra mayonnaise and ketchup. 10 8 ounce packs of parmesan cheese, a family size pack of Dorito’s, and 10 8 ounce packs of ranch dressing. This meal was almost 29,000 calories!

Who: Bobby Wayne Woods
Age: 44
Where: Texas
How: Lethal Injection
When: December 3, 2009
His Crime: Kidnapping of his ex-girlfriends kids, attempted murder of one, rape and murder of the other.
Last Meal: Half pound of fried potatoes, two chicken fried steaks, two burgers, two fried chicken breasts, four slices of bread, three pork chops, two pitchers of milk, and a half pound of onion rings. He completed it with a chocolate cake as dessert.

Here are the three last meal requests for this week. Have a great week!

Hirsutism

Funny looking word right? If you know what it is then you know what this is about. If this is a word you are unfamiliar with, hang on, I will explain.

Hirsutism is defined as: Excessive hair growth on unexpected areas of the body, such as on the face, chest, and back.

I’m not talking peach fuzz or the hair that would normally grow on your body. I’m talking about your chin, neck, chest, even your back and sideburns. For some this is something that may be inherited for others it is caused by PCOS.

PCOS is Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome. Many women are afflicted but not all of them have the hair growth. For me I do.

This is something I have had all my adult life and many years in my teens as well. I absolutely hate it. It’s the first thing I would change about myself if I could. However there is not a cure for PCOS and therefore I can’t get rid of the hair.

There are ways to treat it. Prescriptions, waxing, laser, electrolysis, shaving, or for those who are comfortable and in my mind courageous just let it grow.

I have done all of these options and am currently on medication to help lessen it, but it’s never truly gone.

For those of you who have hirsutism what has worked for you?

For those who do not, please be understanding, and do not mock, taunt, or bully, we are all beautiful and we are all unique.

Be strong, be beautiful, be you

Beach Bodies

We just finished the cold and snow and then we got rain, rain, and more cold rain. But finally the last few days have have hot weather! It’s crazy how one day we have 60 degree weather and the next it’s in the 90’s. One thing about the weather in Wisconsin is that it is unpredictable and we can and have had all 4 seasons in one day.

However the hot weather makes me think about cooling off on a sandy beach with turquoise water, and tropical drinks. It doesn’t take long before I think about swimming and bathing suits and beach bodies.

Yikes! I have been bold the last few times I was at a pool and wore a two piece and I was semi comfortable with that. If there was more people I would not have been able to do it.

A part of my own self care, and lifestyle improvement is to be happy with myself. So if I want to wear a two piece bathing suit, then I will. Beach bodies come in all shapes and sizes, all levels of fitness, all the colors of the people of the world. The only requirement to have a beach body is to have a body. And go to the beach.

Ladies and gentlemen, let’s encourage each other and compliment one another when we see a swimming suit we like. Or if you can’t do that, smile and keep walking. You do not know what it took for that person to get where they are.

Remember I am in your corner, I think your body is amazing, and your look fabulous!

Be strong, be beautiful, be you

Instant Pot Taco Pasta

Some things just work and the taco flavors and the comforting pasta in this dish do. Since this is an Instant Pot recipe it cooks up very quickly and you can have a hot tasty dinner in less time than it takes to boil the water.

Ingredients:
- 1 pound of ground meat (beef, turkey, etc)
- 1 yellow onion diced
- 2 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1-2 Tbsp taco season
- 8 ounce can of tomato sauce
- 1 cup mild salsa
- 3 cups beef stock
- 12 ounces uncooked pasta shells
- 6 ounces cheddar cheese
- 1/2 heavy cream
- Salt and pepper to taste

Directions
- Using the sautée feature brown the meat until no longer pink.
- Add onion and garlic and cook until tender turn off the sautée feature.
- Season with salt and pepper and taco seasoning. Add tomato sauce, salsa, and beef stock.
- Pour in the pasta and do not mix. Be sure the pasta is covered with liquid. Add some water if needed.
- Put the lid on and seal the pot. Set timer for 5 minutes. Let pot come to pressure and cook. When done release pressure quickly.
- When pressure is released, open lid carefully and mix pasta. Add in the heavy cream and cheese. Stir until cheese is melted. Serve warm.

What’s nice is you can add more to the dish or serve it with your favorite sides.

Happy Eating!

Clara Bates

This story is close to home, approximately 15 miles from my house is the county line and near this line is the setting for today’s case.

June 30, 1952 a bartender, 76-year-old Clara “Cad” Bates was murdered. An unusual noise that sounded like a woman and child weeping lured 34-year-old Edward Kanieski to Cad’s Bar.

The bar had closed earlier than usual that night and the front door was locked. Edward left and returned with a friend and gained entry to the building from the back. When the two men entered Clara’s living quarters they found the bartender, dead.

Police were called immediately and it is reported that Clara had been nude except for her stockings and shoes. There was a rope around her neck, but she died from multiple blows from a blunt object to the head.

The murder weapon was never determined nor located.

There were rumors that Clara was the madame of a “sporting house” at the bar and provided patrons with a prostitute. It is suggested that Edward was one of her clients. And even that he had been at Clara’s earlier that evening.

With minimal police work, police arrested Edward for Clara’s murder. The prosecution presented fiber evidence from Edwards jacket and pants that matched a rug and a dog in Clara’s home.

Based on this highly circumstantial evidence, Edward was convicted. Edward would appeal his case often and in 1972 his case was heard at the state Supreme Court where the finer evidence was thrown out as circumstantial and no motive was provided. Edward was released but sadly died in 1975.

The question remains who killed Clara Bates?

One unique theory, and one I have never heard associated to him, was Ed Gein.

In 1954, about 20 miles south Ex Gein would kill bar owner Mary Hogan. Sounds a little similar. But we will never know if Clara Bates was Ed’s first victim.

Stay Weird Wisconsin

I don’t like Mondays

Many of us dread the start of our work week. Mondays can be hard to handle. The weekend is a destress time and the time to do something fun. But when Monday rolls around we rouse ourselves from our beds, shower, prepare for work or school and drink copious amounts of coffee to get into the mindset for another week.

However, some of us take things to a horribly brutal level when faced with Monday morning. Brenda Spencer was faced with a Monday morning in January 1979, and instead of accepting the day, she chose to make it a Monday nobody would forget.

Brenda was a bright red headed girl of 16 and lived with her father in poverty. Their home had one mattress that they both slept on on the floor. The home was littered with alcohol bottles.

For Christmas Brenda had wanted a radio but instead received a Ruger 10/22 semi-automatic .22 calibre rifle with a telescopic sight and 500 rounds of ammunition.

Brenda believed that her father had wanted her to commit suicide.

Monday morning and Brenda lived across the street from Grover Cleveland Elementary School. That morning she open fired on the students who were waiting for the principal to open the gate for them.

Eight of the students were injured, Principal Burton Wragg, 53 and Custodian Mike Suchar, 56 would die from the gunshots. A police officer arriving on scene was shot in the neck.

After firing 30 times, Brenda barricaded herself in the house and spent several hours in the house before she gave herself up.

Brenda was charged as an adult and pleaded guilty to two counts of murder and assault with a deadly weapon. On April 4, 1980, a day after her 18th birthday, she was sentenced to 25 years to life.

She remains incarcerated at the Institution for women in Chino California.

Be alert, make good choices, be safe!

Last Meal Monday

In the United States we have an odd fascination with true crime and the last meal of the condemned. Since I wanted to shake things up and try something new I’m looking at Last Meal Monday. Let’s review what a few prisoners have chosen as their last meals before being sent to the great beyond.

Who: Thomas J. Grasso
Age: 32 years old
Where: Oklahoma State Penitentiary
How: Lethal Injection
When: March 20, 1995
His Crime: Murder of two octogenarians in 1990 and 1991.
Last Meal: Two dozen clams, two dozen mussels, a half dozen spare ribs, a double cheeseburger from Burger King, two strawberry milkshakes, half a pumpkin pie, strawberries, and a can of SpaghettiO’s. He never got the SpaghettiO’s.

Who: Ronnie Lee Gardner
Age: 49 years old
Where: Utah State Prison
How: Firing Squad
When: June 18, 2010
His Crime: Murder of two men in 1984 and 1985.
Last Meal: Steak, lobster tail, apple pie, vanilla ice cream, and 7-Up. He also requested to watch the Lord of the Rings trilogy while eating, and this was granted.

Who: Lawrence Russel Brewer
Age: 44
Where: Texas
How: Lethal Injection
When: September 21, 2011
His Crime: Murder of a black man. Hate crime.
Last Meal: Two chicken fried steaks, three fajitas, a triple-meat bacon cheeseburger, a pound of barbecue, a meat lover’s pizza, a bowl of fried okra, a pint of ice cream, and peanut butter fudge with nuts. He declined to eat any of it and due to his actions the last meal request ceased after 87 years.

What would your final meal ever consist of? Not saying you would be in jail, but if you knew tomorrow was your last day, what would you eat today?

Sleeping

We can do many things to improve our external beauty. I have mentioned many of them here, skin creams, serums, treatments, make up. But one thing that I haven’t mentioned is our beauty sleep.

How much sleep do you get at night? Is it really enough? For most adults 7 or more hours a night is recommended. Other factors can affect your quality of sleep and require more sleep at times. Pregnancy, sleep deprivation, or simply getting older.

For adults, getting less than seven hours of sleep a night on a regular basis has been linked with poor health, including weight gain, having a body mass index of 30 or higher, diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, and depression.

Now think about it. If you don’t get enough sleep you may see the signs on your face; bags under your eyes, red eyes, even finding that your skin has become slack and saggy. Your body feels sluggish and your can’t even do the most basic of things.

Your sleep is beneficial not only to rest your mind and body but for your body to repair itself and heal. Sleep can also ensure you remain alert, bright eyed and bushy tailed, and keep you in better health.

So do yourself a favor and take a nap, go to bed early, sleep in, or simply put the phone down and catch some z’s earlier. Your mind, body, spirit, and health will thank you.

Be strong, be beautiful, be you