Friday, March 28, 2014

The Magic and Comfort of Reading a Sweet Romance Book

I inherited my love of reading from my father. And when he passed I inherited a lot of his books. My overfilled bookcases are pitiful or wonderful depending on your perspective. 

Last week I saw a cute mime on FaceBook that said:
A reader lives ten thousand Lives ~ A non-reader has only one.

Reading is just what the doctor ordered.

Years ago when I thought I had a hormone imbalance, my doctor said I needed to watch a good movie or read a good book. He mentioned that this was an effective way to reduce stress. 

Studies show it takes little more than six minutes of getting into a good book before your heart rate and muscle tension is reduced. 

So when my iron level dropped to 7, and my doctor said he’d rather see a minimum of 50, I realized why I’d been doing more reading lately. The stress of being exhausted is made bearable by reading a story where the good guys win and we have a happy ever after.


But I had trouble staying awake when I began to read. I knew this was not good because I am almost 70 years-old. And according to studies published in the journal Neurology earlier this year, a lifetime of reading might just help keep my brain in shape as I age.


My first iron infusion was on Monday. And while I still feel tired. I can stay awake, I can read, and I am catching up on my blogging.

Reading is said to help us sleep better, ward off Alzheimers, help us be more empathetic to others, as well as remove stress caused side effects, such as depression.

I am so thankful that God gave me the ability to read, and a love for reading. I hope you can enjoy reading too. Sweet Romance fiction is "flinch free" reading.

Sharon A Lavy lives with her husband in SW Ohio. When not reading, writing, or sewing for her family, she enjoys traveling with her husband in their small Flight Design airplane.

She is best known in the novel writing community, as that German Baptist lady.

In the Old German Baptist community she’s a dressmaker, a pattern maker, and the sister who writes.

And in her own mind she’s a wife, a mother, and a grandmother, but above all a child of God. ~~ Her greatest desire is to be a woman after God’s own heart~~

You can find her on the web: 


Q4U: How many books have you read so far this year?

18 comments:

  1. What a great post! I love the picture of your plane! But I can't tell how many books I've read so far this year, though - I don't count them . . .

    ReplyDelete
  2. How interesting! I know reading takes me away from the stresses of normal life for a while, but I had no idea it had such a marked measurable effect on reducing heart rate etc. I've also been very tired recently and it never occurred to me it could be lack of iron. I need to get that checked. Thanks, Sharon!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Sharon, I am so happy that you're feeling better. I read about a book a week. Sometimes more, sometimes less. But I read every single day. I love to get lost in a good story...and happy endings are my favorite.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Reading is not just for kids!!!

    I am kind of on the soap box to promote reading ever since a friend of mine decided to feel guilty and asked God to take away her desire to read fiction.

    I feel reading is one of His greatest gifts to me. And I promote #Flinchfreefiction. I don't know where I first saw that hash tag, but I love it.!

    ReplyDelete
  5. My motto is if you are too busy to read at least one novel a week ... you are just too busy! Giggle.

    ReplyDelete
  6. I hope you're feeling better Sharon!
    Falling asleep reading is usually what tips me off that I might be ill - in my case, the last occasion was due to vitamin D deficiency - because normally, once I start reading not only does my stress disappear, so does my fatigue and I could read all night! On the other hand, I've known people with PTSD who could only fall asleep if someone was reading to them. There is so much healing power in reading. Thanks for the reminder, Sharon!

    ReplyDelete
  7. So glad you're feeling better, Sharon, and are able to stay awake to read. I was an early and voracious reader and still am. My mom was the book hoarder in our family. When she passed away, my sisters and I had hundreds of books to keep or give away. It was hard to part with some of them, but the people we gave them to knew our mother and were glad to have her books. My only regret was that I didn't have time to read them all before we gave them away.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Glad you are keeping healthy, Sharon. I've been anemic in the past too. And reading is so under-rated by many. Some see it as a waste of time--poor deluded, unhappy people.

    ReplyDelete
  9. One of the greatest pleasures in the world is getting lost in a good book, that is for sure. I was interested in your comment about your friend, Sharon. I've seen it said that women can be addicted to romance which like any addiction is unhealthy - but just because you read a lot of romance doesn't make it an addiction. (Not that I'm saying your friend is addicted but it made me think.) Romance possibly gets picked on more in Christian circles because people think romance equates with 50 shades and/or its a threat to marriage. I discovered some interesting literature on this when I researched the topic for my masters Very interesting.

    ReplyDelete
  10. I don't think my friend was reading anything bad, just fiction. Sweet fiction. But many times we are brought up to think that reading is wasting time. But it is often healing.

    However reading is so powerful that we do need to be careful what we read.That is the truth.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Sorry to be slow to read your blog. We have been out of town for four days. What a delightful post, and so true! Loved the photos. Best wishes to you for good health!

    ReplyDelete
  12. I have to admit that I started to read romance novels because I just couldn't stay positive and happy and read story after story with sad, depressing endings. I needed to switch it up and be able to read something positive in between the heavier stuff.

    ReplyDelete
  13. What a great post. Reading helps me relax, but writing really, really do wonders for my stress level as I live the life of my heroine while writing my new novel.

    ReplyDelete
  14. It’s no secret I am a fan of love stories, especially during the hot summer months. There is just something about the season that makes me want dig my toes into the sand and to sink my teeth into sweet YA romances, funny rom-coms, and heart-wrenching love stories. Sadly, summer is quickly coming to an end, which means I only have a few weeks left to indulge in one of my favorite reading guilty pleasures. Luckily, there are still plenty of new books out there to help me do just that.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Focusing on minimal baby shower cake ideas will help you in expending less while still making it personal. Consider that the cake is simply a part of the party and you can make the party pleasurable for everyone without spending a fortune on the baked recipe. Simpleness can be an elegant and classy choice.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Everybody loves bread. It is baked recipes and easy to eat even while you are walking on the street or on the the way to your office. Loves eating it does not mean that you know how to make it. We usually get our bread and pastry at bakery or supermarket and it is already baked and ready to eat.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Present day magicians by and large case that magic is nevertheless one of the numerous ways for a person to accomplish further profound development. magic trick game

    ReplyDelete
  18. Your website is so cool. I am impressed by the info that you have on this site. Great site! Go to mysite picbear about instagram

    ReplyDelete