Category Archives: Health

Minding Mental Health in May

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It has been about two years since the Covid-19 breakout began and since then mental health and mindset awareness has gained more public attention than ever before. The CDC said, “Mental health includes our emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It affects how we think, feel and act. It also helps determine how we handle stress, relate to others, and make healthy choices.” And while the term mental health has been in common use, its importance nowadays seems to be highlighted by Covid-19. 

Mental Health Month was established in 1949 to increase awareness of the importance of mental health and wellness in Americans’ lives, and to celebrate recovery from mental illness. Unfortunately, back then there were no guidelines for how to live in a pandemic-driven world other than trying to hold on to faith and finding someone to talk to. Because almost everything we are experiencing is unscripted and uncertain, leading to more anxiety, fear, and depression. Since COVID-19, millions have fallen victim by being taken away from their loved ones causing mental and emotional damage.

Mental Health and Awareness month is hosted every year in May. And with it fast approaching it can give people a sigh of relief and help them acknowledge their weakness and fears. The National Alliance on Mental Illness said, “Now more than ever before, it is important for the mental health community to come together and show the world that no one should ever feel alone.”

Your Brain on Mindfulness

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When stress hits, how do you relieve it? If you’re a college student, you might say you play video games, binge your favorite TV show, or sleep. These are all excellent ideas when you’re bored, but they don’t necessarily resolve the issue, which is stress.

Stress is defined as “a state of mental or emotional strain or tension resulting from adverse or very demanding circumstances.” The word itself evokes feelings of anxiety and causes you to sweat. So why do we stress? According to the Mental Health Foundation of the United Kingdom, stress is often caused by new experiences, unexpected events, and even when we feel like we don’t have control over a situation.

While a healthy diet and exercise have been the fundamental ways to fight stress for years, mindfulness meditation is another way to achieve peace of mind. Psychologists J. Creswell and Bassam Khoury think of meditation as a way of training your attention to attain a mental state of calm concentration and positive emotions.

Mindfulness meditation can be broken up into two phases: attention and acceptance. The attention phase is about tuning into your surroundings and focusing on what is happening in the present moment. The acceptance phase involves monitoring your feelings and sensations without judgment. Instead of reacting to your thoughts or feelings, you accept them and let them go.

You can begin mindfulness meditation anywhere and anytime, whether through meditations or mindful moment practices like taking time to pause and breathe before replying to that text from your boss. Take your time, find a safe space, and breathe. Notice the breathes as you inhale and exhale. As thoughts come and go, recognize them and bring your attention back to your breath. You are now mindfully meditating and one step closer to a stress-free lifestyle.

COVID-19 Testing Troubles

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Let’s pretend you woke up this morning with a sore throat, a headache, and body aches. You are needed at work, but you work at a nursing home. Sure, it may just be allergies, but it could also be COVID-19. Since you work in close quarters with at-risk elderly patients, you decide to be cautious and get tested for COVID-19, just to be safe. However, all medical offices near you are booked until the end of the week, and at-home tests are sold out everywhere. Do you risk it and go to work anyway? This is a scenario people are faced with regularly right now.

As infection rates rise and fall, the chaos continues. Controversy arises from conflicting opinions regarding all things COVID-19. Should we get vaccinated? Should we wear masks? Does social distancing actually work? The opinions and ideas vary across the nation. Amongst the confusion, one thing remains true: people are still contracting COVID-19 everywhere. The demand for COVID-19 tests is at an all time high. We test when we feel symptoms. We test when we are exposed. We test before traveling. We even test when we are in recovery and need to know if it is safe to return to normal life. In short, massive quantities of COVID-19 tests are needed every day.

During a time of such increased demand for COVID-19 tests, the citizens of the United States have received some good news. According to VOA News, “The Biden administration will soon require health care insurers to cover the costs of up to eight home test kits per person per month.” Under normal circumstances, this would be greatly beneficial to the United States.

However, it is incredibly difficult to get an at-home test right now. Jennifer Avegno, New Orleans Health Department Director, says, “We placed an order for tens of thousands of tests almost a month ago, but have yet to receive it.” The national shortage of tests is causing an abundance of setbacks, and unfortunately, it is unknown when the issue will be resolved.

For the time being, there is an official U.S. Government website that offers four free at-home COVID-19 tests to be shipped to you. While waiting on the shortage to resolve, be sure to visit COVIDtests.gov – Free at-home COVID-19 tests to order your free tests. Fingers crossed you don’t need more than four before they are replenished!

Elder Isolation During Covid

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It has been almost a year since seeing my mother. The reality of it boggles my mind at times. She is a darling, vivacious, outgoing, eighty-three-year-old lady. She and her friends keep the phone lines busy either calling, texting or checking on each other on Facebook. Social distancing has had an interesting effect on the elderly and how they live life. 

            My mom’s daily routine before the pandemic was to go to the gym, swing by on the way home to visit with friends, pick up her granddaughter from school, and go to church activities. Nowadays, she goes downstairs to walk her daily mile around the dining and living room, checks on her friends thru social media, waits for family to come by and goes to church online. 

            Elderly people in our community have experienced some of the same issues as so many others have nationwide. The full impact of isolation is not fully understood by science, but it is evident that it is affecting so many elderly citizens. Everyday situations that normally would not cause emotional distress in times past can quickly become a major issue for those that have stayed in isolation. 

            How can we, as compassionate community, help combat this phenomena? Emily Rind writes a handwritten note such as this quote on care packages. “I know it must be hard not seeing your family and loved ones, so I hope this will brighten your day and put a smile on your face.” Emily is a sixteen-year-old who has taken upon herself to make care packages to those in her local area nursing home. She fills the care packages with puzzles, word search books, activities, and other items. 

            There are so many other ways to reach out to elderly who are staying home during the pandemic. Entrepreneurs are creating innovative ways to touch those we cannot reach out to physically hug. I recently purchased a pillow online for my own mother. It was a picture of the state of Texas with an arrow connecting the state of California. It was customized with our names and hers so anytime she felt like a hug from us she could squeeze the pillow. There are also lamps you can touch in your home, and it changes the color of the lamp your loved one has in their home to indicate you just thought of them. Sending cards in the mail is another way to reach out, even if your loved ones are close-by. 

            Studies are showing that those over 65 years of age, older women, and those living alone tend to have a higher ratio of depression, anxiety and even linked to strokes and dementia. Even mental health care is difficult to access for those who are on a limited income, even those with some medical insurance. 

            As the pandemic is on the downslope perhaps, we could continue to reach out to those who are elderly as one day we will be in that life cycle as well. Hopefully there will be those who reach out to us at that point to brighten our day and put a smile on our wrinkled face.

Advice from an Average Student

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As the winter break approaches many people have their sights set on Christmas but I decided to get a head start on  New Years’ Eve and try to figure out what my resolution would be. During this time of year it is hard not to think about classes, finals and, honestly, what I could have done better as a student so I decided to run with that. 

Here are some tips I found on how to be a better and more successful student.

Set Realistic and Achievable Goals 

  • Set both short-term and long-term goals
  • Set goals from the very beginning will help keep you motivated and focused
  • Make sure that your goals are realistic is important in ensuring that you do not set yourself up for unnecessary frustrations 

Focus on Time Management 

  • Procrastination is many people’s worst enemy so staying on top of due dates is a great way to keep yourself from slipping into that habit
  • Stick to a schedule. If you want to make sure you have time for your social life as well as your studies, try and spread out your workload so you don’t feel overwhelmed with trying to do all your homework in one night
  • Remember that you don’t have to wait until the due date to submit your assignments, you can work on them ahead of time and get them out of the way so you don’t have to worry about them later

Take Care of Yourself

  • Make sure you get an adequate amount of sleep is important to make sure your brain can take in all of the new information you will be learning in class
  • When you are well rested you can pay attention in class more easily than when you can hardly keep your eyes open
  • Going to class sometimes feels like the most laborious task of all time; if you are well rested it’s less likely to seem that way 

Although these are just a few tips on being a better student, I’m sure that once you apply them, you will definitely see a difference. If you would like to see more ideas on how to be a better student, click here. 

To Breathe, Or Not To Breathe?

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I’m going to say it. Not everyone knows this about me but…I have asthma. I know, I look like the most athletic and perfectly healthy specimen you have ever laid eyes on. But it is true; I have sports induced asthma. The “sports induced” part makes me sound a little cooler…right? A little less like Napoleon Dynamite?

When I was younger, about second grade, I would run to the sidelines of the soccer field with tears in my eyes wheezing uncontrollably. I would try to ask my coach for a sub, but I couldn’t speak… so he would tell me to put my hands on my head and shove me on my way. After a few of these episodes, my mom took me to the doctor to figure out what was happening. 

I took a few tests; breathing into a tube for as long and as hard as I could. I remember standing in front of a computer with flickering cartoon candles, I was told to blow them all out by blowing into a device. I tried a few times but could never get them all out; I remember my mom telling me to try. I was trying! My little second grade lungs just weren’t a match for those digital candles. 

The doctor prescribed me an inhaler to take once a night before bed plus another inhaler to take before soccer games and if I was having trouble breathing. Getting into the car after the appointment my mom squinted at me through her rearview mirror and asked “were you really trying your hardest? Giving it everything you could?” This lady thought I was faking it! She thought I wanted inhalers for fun. 

I didn’t take the nightly inhaler for long, after a few months my prescription was adjusted to just the emergency inhaler with the preventive pre game “puff.” Let’s fast forward about thirteen years– my Advanced News Writing class took a field trip to look at the undergraduate independent research project presentations. I glanced over a few projects until something caught my eye: an Elmo inhaler. 

The presenters saw me looking at their Elmo inhaler poster and began to explain their research question: is there a relationship between steroid inhalers and growth rates in children? To sum it up– in the few studies done there has been a correlation between steroid inhalers and children with growth deficiencies. My first question was how they came up with the research question, these two factors seemed completely unrelated to me. Both researchers had personal experiences with stunted growth and wanted to see if their childhood steroid inhalers were to blame. 

This research information was really interesting to me. What if I had continued taking my nightly steroid inhaler? My height has played a huge roll in my personality, athletics, and career; so to imagine my nightly inhaler stunting my growth is mind boggling. We take for granted the medicine we have today, brushing off side effects and what we put into our bodies. An inhaler I was given to help my breathing could have had drastic effects on my life. What side effects are hiding behind your trusted daily routine?

Paint Your Stress Away

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Texas A&M University-Texarkana Counseling Services hosted an event to reduce stress amongst the lives of students and faculty on campus. As we all know, college can be a really tough time for many, which adds to the stress levels on an individual. To reduce this, alcohol tile painting was brought to campus.

A&M-Texarkana Counseling Services brought in a professional painter to give a one-on-one / private session to students. Students were given three tiles to make beautiful tile “paintings.” The tiles could have been used as a coaster, a painting, or however one would like it to be. After being given the tiles, the painter gave students a brief tutorial on how the process works. She gave them an apron, a various array of colors, paintbrushes, and alcohol so students could spread their colors to make a masterpiece.

The event lasted from about 11-2 in Eagle Lounge of the University Center and students left with an urge for more. Who knew that painting tiles could reduce stress?

Photo by Philip Derouen

Color Me Calm

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On November 13th the student couseling services teamed up with Color Hype for a mental health awareness & suicide prevention event. The event was promoted through word of mouth as well as flyers posted throughout the school. All students were welcome to join. 

For the students who attended, there were tables set up with ink, alcohol, and ceramic tiles. Students walking by were welcomed to join in and permission slips were available for students who missed a portion or all of their classes during the event. 

Color Hype representatives were available at all tables giving instructions on how to do the ink art. Practice pieces of paper were offered and once the student felt comfortable with the technique there were encouraged to begin on the ceramic tiles. 

The entire process was a great time for students to take a moment out of their day. Chelsey Rogers stated her view on the activity itself to be “fun mediums where you don’t have to think about it.” There seems to be something therapeutic about taking time out of your day to put attention on being creative. 

For future events visit the TAMUT website to see a full schedule of all campus events.

Slippery Slope to Purgatory

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Do you ever want a boost of adrenaline and an urge to try something new? I can tell you that snow skiing is worth a try. Who doesn’t want to put their feet in a pair of ski boots and rush down a snowy mountain? I don’t think there is anything better than that. Snow skiing may seem simple to some people, but there is actually a lot to learn and keep in mind before going down the slopes.

I went snow skiing for the very first time in March 2019 and, man, it was so much fun! Since I had never been before, my two older siblings did not let the opportunity slip away for me. The three of us and my brother-in-law packed our bags and made the trip to Durango, Colorado to meet up with our uncle and his best friend. Durango is a popular town in Colorado because Purgatory Ski Resort is right up the road.

Purgatory is a smaller resort with less runs and slopes, but since it was Spring Break for some schools, it was packed. I have never seen so many people on a small mountain in my life. The resort has condos that people can rent out for however many days they want to stay. The condo that we stayed in was very neat and old-timey. We cooked out and relaxed in our condo when we weren’t on the slopes. The majority of our time was spent trying to master skiing. My sister, brother-in-law, and I all spent the first full day in lessons and on the bunny slope.

At the beginning of the lesson, I was struggling to get the hang of it. I wanted to give up and just go to the condo, but I knew better than to give up. The second day, I was in lessons half a day then practiced on my own. On the third day, I went up the lift with my brother and uncle and they turned into my instructors. We started on a green run, which is the least difficult. I was skiing along and noticed that I was doing tremendously better than on the bunny slope.

As my confidence was building, they decided to take me on a blue run, which is a step-up from a green. Once again, I went down with some ease and a few crashes along the way, but felt good about it. At the end of the day, I was skiing all over the mountain and having a blast. After we left and got on the plane, I was already wanting to go back. I knew at that moment that I had found my new and exciting hobby. Purgatory will always have a special place in my heart.

Pets Need Healthcare, Too

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While having a puppy can be great, it can also be very expensive. If the little guy doesn’t get the proper healthcare he needs, it can result in issues later on in their life. We have to keep those little scrappy guys healthy if we want all the puppy kisses!

Lamb posing for a picture with her mom.

Last year an old teammate of mine decided she could no longer care for her puppy, and was trying to find her a new home. I could not see this little dog go, I just had to take her. So I did. I adopted my little gremlin, Lamb, with just her first round of vaccinations, no spay, and little bald spots quickly popping up. I have had dogs before but that’s just it, they were dogs. Fully grown, fixed, vaccinated, healthy dogs. My little Lamb was none of those things.

After some research I found a Puppy Plan offered by PetSmart. After taking her in for her first check up, I immediately signed her up. This Puppy Plan is great for young dogs who need a lot of help, the healthcare plan consisted of monthly payments that included a spay, all her vaccinations, and heart worm/flea and tick prevention I added to the plan. The plan also includes check-ups, so Lamb got her bald spots looked at and diagnosed immediately. After some antibiotics; bought at a discounted price because of her Puppy Plan, she was better than new.

Lamb enjoying a puppuccino after her routine checkup included in her Puppy Plan.

My teammate did her best to take care of Lamb but if she had known about this customizable Puppy Plan she might have felt she could continue to keep her. If you’re looking to adopt a pet you need to be prepared to do more than just put food in a bowl, pet healthcare is much more accessible than one would think. Every pet owner should look into PetSmart’s health plans, they can greatly improve your little loved one’s life and cover a variety of pet species