Let’s be honest, writers spend a lot of time sitting. Yeah, some of them have standing or even walking desks (and I have no idea how those folks manage to walk and type at the same time—I’d fall over within the first thirty seconds), but the bulk of us nail butt to chair while we’re churning out our wordage.

Which isn’t healthy, I know, and I try to get up every hour or so and walk around, do some cleaning, something that gets me on my feet. But another thing I do to try and stop clots from forming is wear compression socks. These days they’re pretty popular and you can get them in a range of sizes, colors, and patterns. I have three sets in blue/white/grey from SqueezeGear that look like baseball socks and make me feel a bit like a superhero when I’m wearing them.

More importantly, they help keep blood flowing up my legs instead of pooling in my feet and ankles, which is a Good Thing for my heart, my brain, and my ankles. And I just got the plain old graduated compression socks—there are so many cute patterns (and plain colors if patterns aren’t your jam) to choose from, as well.

So a tip from your Auntie Mel—if you do a lot of sitting, get some compression socks and wear them while you’re at your desk. You can thank me later.