WSU Health & Wellness Services, Vol. 2/ No. 3 | November 2013
EDITOR’S LETTER
Every year during Thanksgiving dinner, my family goes around the table and says what we are thankful for. Usually my aunts say something heartfelt, my mother something cute, and of course an uncle has to say something slightly inappropriate. Don’t forget about the table stacked with delicious foods: turkey, mashed potatoes, corn, stuffing, pumpkin pies, and dessert bars. Cue elastic pants, big comfy chair, and hours of football. Tis the season of giving thanks. It’s pretty common knowledge that Thanksgiving started because of a feast Native Americans shared with the pilgrims, but why do we still celebrate it today? Perhaps to reconnect with family…or maybe it’s just an excuse to eat lots of food.
I recently discovered a video online about the science of happiness. This study said that one of the greatest contributing factors to your happiness is how much gratitude you show toward others. Interesting isn’t it? It’s not your grades, the amount of money you make, or your friends that make you most happy but rather, how you treat and show respect for others. Happiness is entirely in your control. Thanksgiving is the perfect time to show you are thankful for those around you. This year instead of saying you’re thankful for pumpkin and fudge pie (my usual cop out) say something genuine.
In the spirit of giving thanks, this month’s issue of Wellzine highlights the organizations that gave back to victims of Winona’s downtown fires in September. Several students were affected by this as well as the Winona Islamic Center and a few nearby businesses including: Blooming Grounds Coffeehouse, Brosnahan Law Firm, Integrative Health, Pretty Things, and Sole Sport. With the support of so many local organizations and Winona State Warriors, we hope you will all be back on your feet soon.
Check out the video
Kim Wellzine | November 2013
r e d i e n h c S
contents pg11
pg05 7 DIMENSIONS OF WELLNESS
EVERY ISSUE
09 11 13 15 17 19 21
03 05 07 08 23 25 27
INTELLECTUAL
Eating Healthy Could Lead to Straight A’s
SPIRITUAL A Community Fueled by a Fire EMOTIONAL Cutting: Prevention & Getting Help ENVIRONMENTAL
“Urban Micro-Farming” Workshops: Sustainability in Your Own Backyard
SOCIAL
Get On Top of Your Sex Life: Bedsider at WSU
OCCUPATIONAL Spice Up Your Work Space PHYSICAL
Alternative Healing: Acupuncture & Reiki Energy
pg15
& HEALTH& WELLNESS SERVICES
CALENDAR CREDITS
Affordable Care Act for College Students?
&
SE TECH FRESHMEN NEWS THE TRUTH ABOUT TANNING HEALTHY ALTERNATIVES Face Wash Recipee
BULLETINS FIVE TIPS
5 Ways to Have Fun in the Cold
SUNDAY
MONDAY
TUESDAY
Novemb 3
credits PUBLISHERS Shawnessy Mohawk
EDITOR IN CHIEF Kimberly Schneider
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GRAPHIC DESIGNER
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Get Yourself Tested Awareness Week
Anxiety Mgmt Seminar: Calming the Anxious Body 2pm , IWC 222
Fit Stop: Flu Shots/ Awareness, 11am, IWC 138
Healthy Monday: Signs of Suicide, 7pm, IWC 138
Anxiety Mgmt Seminar: Calming the Anxious Body, 2pm , IWC 222
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Veterans Day (No Classes/ Fit Stop: Living on a Budget, Offices are closed) 11am, IWC 138 Anxiety Mgmt Seminar: Calming the Anxious Mind, 2pm , IWC 222
Cam Neely COVER PHOTO CREDIT
Speak Out! Against Violence 7pm, SAC in Kryzsko Commons
Cam Neely
November Observances
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American Diabetes Month Great American Smoke Out National Healthy Skin Month
Wellzine | November 2013
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Get Yourself Tested Awareness Week
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Anxiety Mgmt Seminar: Changing Anxious Behaviors, 2pm , IWC 222
Fit Stop: Healthy Eating During the Holidays, 11am, IWC 138
Healthy Monday: Beating the Winter Blues, 7pm, IWC 138
Anxiety Mgmt Seminar: Changing Anxious Behaviors, 2pm , IWC 222
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WEDNESDAY
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THURSDAY
FRIDAY
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Get Yourself Tested Awareness Week
Get Yourself Tested Awareness Week
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Get Yourself Tested Awareness Week
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SATURDAY
Wellness Wednesday: Friends Don’t Let Friends have Unprotected Sex, 3pm, IWC 138
Wellness Wednesday: Student Perspectives on Alcohol, 3pm , IWC 138
Wellness Wednesday: Managing Your Wellness, 3pm , IWC 138
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Grief and the Holidays 7 pm, IWC 267
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Thanksgiving Break
Thanksgiving Break
Affordable Care Act for College Students? Clinic IWC 222 Hours: Mon-Fri: 7:30 - 4:30 p.m.
Pharmacy IWC 130 Hours: Mon-Fri: 9 a.m. - 5 p.m.
As a typical college student, you have to ask yourself how the Affordable Care Act affects you. You should also consider the responsibilities you now have in order to obtain health insurance or maintain your current coverage. Some students get health insurance through employers but most students are covered under their parent’s insurance until the age of 26. Others have been added to their parent’s policy. This is all easy enough if their parents have health insurance. According to the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, there are about 32 million people in the U.S. who are uninsured with 497,500 from Minnesota and 560,000 from Wisconsin. Also known as Obamacare, the Affordable Care Act was created to help Americans gain access to affordable health insurance coverage. Why does everybody need health insurance? Like an automobile, your body needs regular checkups to maintain its engine and find problems before they cause major damage and need extensive repair. We should be going in for annual checkups and minor illnesses so they don’t turn into a major illness or something that requires surgery. People without insurance tend to forego the checkups and ignore minor problems thinking a doctor’s appointment is too costly. However, with health insurance there could be little to no cost. All it takes is one major illness or surgery and bankruptcy may be the only option to get out from under mounting medical bills. Health care costs are the number one cause of bankruptcy in the U.S.
Left: Paul and Babe travel around the cities to promote healthcare in Minnesota (Linzey Sarreal/BBDO)
Starting in 2014, no one can be denied coverage because of a pre-existing condition like asthma or diabetes. Some yearly dollar limits on care will be waved. This means that people can seek more services without having to pay out of pocket. Annual exams, flu shots, and contraceptives are covered under preventative care and screenings as well. Other services that health insurance companies are required to provide are: outpatient care, prescription drugs, emergency room care, therapy, labs, vaccines, and behavioral and mental health services. The insurance exchange is an online resource where you can find information about different health plans and coverage. Healthcare.gov is the federal insurance exchange. If you are a resident of Minnesota, you can look under MNsure.org. Here you can access the cost for each plan and enroll or find out whether you qualify for financial assistance based on annual income. There is also a hotline available for your questions: 1-800-366-7873.
The process for purchasing coverage through MNsure has been broken down into five steps: 1) Access the website and choose individual coverage. 2) Provide details about yourself in order to find the coverage needed. 3) Select a desired plan and compare rates and coverage. 4) Apply for financial assistance or tax credits if you qualify. 5) Enroll in your chosen plan. January 2014 is when we will all be required to have insurance or pay a penalty. The penalty is one percent of your yearly income or $95 per person—whichever is higher. This tax penalty is expected to increase within the next few years as well. Start researching your options now regardless if you are covered under your parent’s policy or not. The Affordable Care Act affects us all and 2014 will be here before you know it. Submitted by Traci Kauphusman WSU Health & Wellness Services Insurance Coordinator
Health & Wellness Services
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Dear WSU Freshmen,
Southeast Tech Southeast Technical, in collaboration with Winona State University, is pleased to offer Health and Wellness Services at Winona State’s Integrated Wellness Complex facility. Some of the most common reasons for visits to the clinic are listed below. Learn more about student health services on the Winona State Health & Wellness Services page, and also review important parking information prior to your visit. Services Offered (not comprehensive): • Acute injuries • Allergy injections • Birth control counseling • Blood pressure monitoring • Emergency contraception • General illness • Gynecology exams (pap smears and pelvic exams) • Immunizations • Laboratory services • Pharmacy services • Physical exams • Pregnancy testing • Sexually transmitted infection testing • Triage service for urgent care and walk-in patients • Womens Health Clinic Parking Information: Winona State has created a new parking policy for Southeast Technical Students to make using Winona State Health and Wellness Services a little easier. Simply pick up a parking pass from the Southeast Technical receptionist desk and display it on your vehicle’s dashboard. Parking is available in the Gold lot, adjacent to the Integrated Wellness Center.
Finals are right around the corner and with the anticipation of winter break on your mind, things can get a little hectic. Thankfully there are resources on campus to keep you focused and stress free. Winona State University’s Warrior Success Center offers a free tutoring service and is available to all students. There is a stigma about tutoring that says if you need it, you are not smart. However, this is not true. The tutoring center was created to help students better understand course material and show you ways to be an independent learner. The tutors are current students at Winona State who have taken and excelled in the course they are teaching. So you’re in pretty good hands. The tutoring center is on the second floor of the library 220, but drop in tutoring is available in Somsen 213, Lucas B-11, and 116 in the Performing Arts building. To make a one-on-one appointment with a tutor, please visit the website and follow the instructions.
Career Services, Maxwell 314 Student Union, Kryzsko Commons Warrior Hub, Maxwell 222 Tutoring Services, Darrell Krueger Library 220
Freshmen News
The Truth About Tanning By: Alix Borland, Madelyn Erikson, Chelsea Fetterolf, Alex Johnson, Heather Knight, Stephanie Landsom, & Addy Sand
In todays society people with sunkissed skin are revered. While some people are genetically blessed with a more tanned skin tone, others try anything and everything to achieve the look through artificial means. These artificial sources include: tanning beds, spray tanning booths, bronzing lotions and sprays. However, these sources expose the user to harmful chemicals or radiation that can cause disease and premature aging. There are many myths about tanning beds. Many people think that sunless tanning is safe, that it will prevent sunburns on vacation, and that it is a way to get vitamin D. Nevertheless, tanning beds expose the user to high concentrations of ultraviolet rays, which causes damage to the cells and can lead to cancer. Therefore getting a base tan does not necessarily prevent you from getting sunburnt later. While it is important to get vitamin D to promote bone health, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 20 minutes of natural sun exposure a day, even with sunscreen on, will provide you with enough vitamin D.
Sunless tanning increases the users risk of developing skin and eye cancer. According to the Food and Drug Administration, those that start tanning before age 35 increase their risk of developing melanoma by 75 percent. In addition, the UV rays from tanning beds can suppress your immune system, leaving you more susceptible to disease. Repeated use of tanning beds can cause damage to your eyes and can cause the skin to loose its elasticity, which will result in the premature formation of wrinkles. According to the FDA, using a tanning bed more than once a month increases your risk of developing melanoma by 55 percent. According the Federal Drug Administration, those that use indoor tanning beds can reduce their risk of UV exposure by taking a few simple steps. Some of these steps include: wearing properly fitting goggles without cracks, following recommended exposure times, building up your tan over time by starting with short exposure times, and after you develop a tan, do not go back more than once a week.
Furthermore, those who sunburn easily, have a family history of melanoma, frequently get cold sores, and those taking medications that increase UV sensitivity should not use tanning beds. Spray tanning carries risks for users as well. The FDA has approved dihydroxyacetone, the key ingredient in tanning sprays and lotions, for external use only. DHA should not be inhaled, ingested, exposed to the lips, nose, and areas in and around the eyes. While it is easy to avoid these areas with tanning lotions, sprays are less accurate during the application process. According to the Mayo Clinic, those that use tanning sprays and lotions have complained of rashes, coughing, and dizziness. However, there has not been enough research done to fully determine the risks of DHA exposure. Although the current societal image of beauty is to be youthful, tanned, and fit bodied, the consequences of tanning are often overlooked.
Health & Wellness Services
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We’ve all been there. The semester becomes stressful with midterms, papers, work, and projects. Finals are looming in the distance. All of these worries put your health on the backburner— especially your dietary health. Not eating healthy when you are too busy is the worst thing that can happen, especially if you are busy. Just 7.8 percent of students eat five or more servings of fruit and vegetables every day, according to a National College Health Assessment done by the American College Health Association. That number is surprisingly low even with the stereotypes associated with college students eating habits. One of the main things I’ve learned in over four years of college life is that if you don’t maintain a balanced diet throughout the stress, your grades can suffer.
Wellzine
This isn’t something that can just be seen through trial and error, however. Science backs it up as well. Some of the bad things that students can have in their diets are sugar-filled sodas and energy drinks. A 2012 UCLA study showed how a steady diet of fructose makes your brain run slower which can affect memory and your ability to learn. The study, which first appeared in the Journal of Physiology last year, shows that fructose comes from cane sugar and high-fructose corn syrup. Another negative affect to consuming sugar often while in school is how it affects your energy. Kelsey Boigenzahn, a senior Business major has seen this first hand. “Eating healthy gives me more lasting energy and true energy without feeling a sugar high and then getting tired,” she said. Boigenzahn is referring to the ever-present crash when you have a lot of sugared products.
Intellectual
Stefani Schmidt, Senior Journalism and Political Science
Eating Healthy Could Lead to Straight A’s
Winona State’s ‘Ask-aNurse’ registered nurse Joyce Peckover believes that everything should be consumed in moderation.
Images from Salvation Army US West Flickr page November 2013
“The biggest goal in eating healthy is it helps keep your immune system up,” Peckover said.
Another way to eat healthy is to avoid fast food and junk food as often as you can. This is obviously easier said than done with our fast-paced lives and the fact that healthy food is sometimes more expensive.
And of course having a better immune system prevents you from getting sick more. One of the most important things students can do for their learning ability is eat breakfast. Eating breakfast can kick off the necessary eating habits every student should have. “Healthy eating causes good habits—the more healthy food you eat the more you want to have it again,” Boigenzahn said.
“It’s hard to eat healthy when I have so much to do all of the time,” Caitlyn Lindsey, a Therapeutic Recreation major said. “It’s annoying to eat healthy.” Fortunately, some healthy food is budget-friendly and a lot easier to eat quickly. For the most part, we all already know how to eat healthy—we just need to carve out some time to make it happen. Then nothing can stop you from getting those 4.0s.
Here are some healthy snack ideas according to Fastweb, an online scholarship website: Apples
String cheese
Carrots
Hummus
Peanuts
Peanut butter
Bananas
Trail mix
Oranges All of these delicious and somewhat cheap foods can be supplemented easily into your diet. Health & Wellness Services
Ben Strand, Sophomore Mass Communications Journalism and Creative Writing
Spiritual
A Community Fueled by a Fire One of the biggest fires in recent Winona history destroyed three buildings in downtown Winona Sept. 14, including the Islamic Center.
Gael Gorman, a member of the Red Cross organization, said they assisted 16 people in finding shelter and food, some of which were Winona State University students.
The fire station received a call around 2 a.m. and Fire Chief Curt Bittle said they had the fire under control by late morning, but it was one of the “worst fires” he’s ever fought.
Winona State student Blake Johnson was one of the people affected by the fire.
The Winona community was shocked by this event but there was a great response as volunteers, businesses and churches offered numerous great services to those affected by the fire. Central Lutheran Church opened their doors to the Islamic Center members to hold their worship until services could resume at the Islamic Center.
“After it all happened I was a little stressed; I didn’t plan on having to bunk around,” said Johnson. “The support from the Red Cross and the community really eased my stress with their help and donations.” Fires are dangerous and damaging, especially in college towns, but they can also be prevented. If you’re looking for help on fire prevention or fire safety, visit Winona’s website, and go to the “Fire Department” under “City Services.”
“It’s just what you do in The National Fire Protection tragic times like these,” Agency also has a fire prevensaid Connie Larson, tion week to help emphasize Central Lutheran office the dangers of fire, and this administrator. “Members year it happened to come said they were very thankful for the church opening their almost a month after the downtown fire. doors for them.” Their main focus this year was to prevent kitchen fires They spent their time in worship discussing the recovery because kitchens are a common area of the house for and what new challenges they face after their place of fires to start. worship for more than ten years is gone.
Wellzine
November 2013
Below: Damage from the fire (Andrew Link/Winona Daily News) Opposite: Damage from the fire (Marie McMahon)
While fire prevention week is over, it is safe to say that here in Winona it serves the community best that fire safety precautions are taken and followed to prevent fires like this from happening in the future.
A great demonstration of sympathy and setting religious barriers aside, churches like Central Lutheran showed just because they are two different religions doesn’t mean they can’t lend a helping hand in a time of need.
While this fire has done its damage, the help the community had to offer to those who needed it was eye opening to say the least.
Actions like this don’t need to pertain to only desperate or tragic times but rather, they should happen everyday throughout the community.
Even though the help given by the community made for a good start to the recovery from the fire, there is still a long way to go in making the recovery complete.
If you take some time everyday to help someone, it will go a long way, feel gratifying, and it will make the world a friendlier place to live.
The Islamic community is hoping to rebuild a new worship center as their old worship center took on the worst of the damage from the fire and was completely destroyed. Until then, churches around the community continue to extend helping hands to them.
With the season of giving around the corner, think about the different ways you can give. Whether it’s to the community, your best friend or your family, it never hurts to put a smile on someone’s face.
Health & Wellness Services
Kim Schneider, Sophomore Mass Communications Journalism and English Writing
Emotional
Cutting: Prevention & Getting Help As social media has become a more prevalent force in our society, so have online blogs and sites that glamorize cutting. However, this is a very serious issue that should not be idealized or taken lightly. Everyone has times of stress. Everyone goes through ups and downs. However everyone also handles these situations differently, some in healthy ways and others in unhealthy ways. There are many misconceptions about self-harm and cutting. Many people associate cutting with suicide. However, this is not always the issue. “Most cases of self-injury are not suicide attempts,” said Eunice Alsaker, counselor at Winona State University. “That doesn’t mean that someone who cuts can’t be suicidal.” There are a multitude of reasons someone self harms. These reasons often have to do with confidence level, feelings of being overwhelmed, numb, angry, or out of control. Sometimes cutting is a way to transfer negative energy to pain as a way of controlling those emotions, said Alsaker.
Wellzine
November 2013
Regardless of the reason, there are healthier ways to process or tolerate negative emotions. Alsaker said, “You want a really long list of healthy alternatives. These need to be in place before they stop cutting.” Healthy alternatives can be any number of things. This can include playing music, going to a public place, taking a shower, watching a movie, working out, or finding an artistic outlet such as painting or writing. “Distractions are great,” Alsaker said.
She also suggests waiting fifteen minutes. At the end of that time, the person that feels the need to cut may realize that they no longer need to. If trying to find individual healthy alternatives does not seem to curb the desire to self harm, try opening up to a friend or a counselor. In this way, a support system can be created. “I think that people who cut work hard at hiding it,” Alsaker said. “That can prevent them from seeking help.” The first step is to be open and honest with someone. Counseling and Wellness Services in the Integrated Wellness Center are available for all Winona State University and Southeast Technical College students for free. If the concept of counseling is not appealing or seems intimidating, then try telling a friend. Sometimes opening up to a person who knows you well can help you figure out the emotion beneath the desire to cut. If you happen to be the friend on the receiving end of that situation, there is a certain way you should respond to that situation.
The person should respond with compassion, said Alsaker. They should thank their friend for telling them and express their concern. They can help their friend find resources but should know that they can not stop it or fix it, they can only express that they are concerned about their friend. This person should also try not to criticize or judge their friend for cutting. In fact according to the Mayo Clinic, criticizing or accusations can increase the risk of selfinjuring behavior. Regardless of why or how someone self harms, it is possible to stop feeling the need for self-injury. “The bottom line is finding healthy self-affirming ways to tolerate difficult emotions,” Alsaker said. Everyone goes through times of negativity and stress. Although it is not possible to get rid of these negative emotions, it is entirely possible to learn to tolerate and handle them better. Photos by Marie McMahon
If you need help
please call: Health & Wellness Services
“Urban Micro-Farming” Workshops: Sustainability in Your Own Backyard
Environmental
Leah Perri, Sophomore English Writing
In an industrialized world, it can be very difficult to find foods that are unprocessed or pesticide and chemical free. However, there are ways that anyone with a small plot of land can grow and harvest food in environmentally friendly ways. Winona State University will host the first Urban Micro-Farming Workshop series, led by associate professor of biology Bruno Borsari. The workshops are hands-on, all-day events hosted periodically throughout the year and are open to students and the general public. “All of these workshops are interconnected and linked to this idea of overall wellness,” said Borsari.
“My point here is to demonstrate how anybody even with a few square feet, can make that soil very productive by developing a hobby that can become attractive to others and can reduce your carbon footprint.”
Chickens also have an unusually high body temperature due to their fast metabolism. In fact, if raised in a greenhouse, chickens can mitigate the temperature for plants and help them grow.
“Backyard Chickens for Sustainable Living,” the first of the four workshops, was held on Sept. 21. This workshop focused on the benefits of raising chickens and ways to maintain a chicken friendly environment in their own backyard.
While not feasible in large farms, these practices can be valuable to urban micro-farmers.
Chicken feces are actually one of the best fertilizers for gardens, according to Borsari, who raises four chickens himself.
“For a small-scale farmer, these are interesting things to learn because when you apply them,” said Borsari. “You can grow food that does not rely on imports that come from outside of the garden.”
The purpose of the workshops is to explore different environmentally sustainable methods that can be practiced by anyone. They encourage personal farming techniques as well as raising livestock, vermicomposting, beekeeping, and gardening. “How can you take good care of yourself if you live in an environment where the air is polluted, the water is polluted, there is soil erosion, and food production is chemically dependent?” Borsari said.
Wellzine
November 2013
Above: Chickens living in a backyard (Toronto Chicken/Blogto)
Another benefit of raising chickens is the high protein content and digestibility of their meat. Feathers can also be used for pillows, clothes, or insulation. The second of the workshops, “Soils and Vermicomposting,” was just recently held on Oct. 12. This workshop emphasized how soil is a living network system that can be very beneficial when managed properly. Underneath the surface of the ground exists an infinite number of organisms. Insects, earthworms, nematodes, springtails, and centipedes are just a few of the larger species, but there are also an infinite number of microbes that call the topsoil home. According to Borsari, the soil is like a big digestive vat. These organisms are feeding on the soil, the decaying plant material—basically anything that falls on it. “Through the activity of these soil organisms, everything is recycled, and that is a beautiful process, capable of regenerating fertility and maintaining life.” Borsari focused the workshop on the “king” of the compost world—the earthworm. In particular, the red wiggler is the species of choice for vermicomposting. Workshop participants were taught how to manage red wigglers. Borsari demonstrated how to put together a vermicomposting bin—a large plastic box of about 24-30 gallons in volume, filled with materials that can host the earthworms comfortably.
“The worms become like my garbage disposal,” said Borsari, who practices the method himself. Apple cores, eggshells, bad veggies; all can be buried within the top layer of the litter to feed the earthworms. “In this way, we don’t have garbage ending up in landfills,” Borsari explains. “Everything you consume is recycled one more time by the earthworms—giving you prime quality soil that you can be used as fertilizer later for your garden.” On Feb. 1, Winona State will host “Beekeeping Basics.” This workshop is taught in the winter, as it is a good time to prepare for your own beekeeping when springtime rolls around. Students will learn about the biology of bees, their phases of growth and development, how to get started and what equipment is necessary for beekeeping, as well as the benefits of raising bees. “Bees have been raised by people for thousands of years,” Borsari says. “We are now in a time where we are losing the bees, which many people don’t realize will have a paramount effect on food production.” By knocking down natural habitats and spreading pesticides in the countryside for agricultural crops, we are losing a lot of native pollinators. Not only valuable for their byproducts, bees are essential to agriculture and without them our diet would change drastically. The final workshop of the series, “Gardening for Pollinators” will be held on March 15. This workshop
provides information on the types of plants you can introduce to your garden to attract natural pollinators like bees, beetles, flies, wasps, and butterflies. One way to do this is to develop a prairie garden, instead of keeping your lawn cut short. In fact, Borsari has already worked to implement different prairie gardens around campus. In 2006, he helped create a garden behind the Science Center and has recently helped with the garden in front of the IWC. These gardens host native Minnesota plants that will hopefully become highly attractive to pollinators. There are also prairie gardens behind the Tau center, as well as Garvin Heights, which students and faculty of the biology department work hard to maintain. Through these workshops, Borsari not only hopes to educate and enthuse people about environmental sustainability practices, but also to bring the Winona community a little closer together. “It is a continuous cycle that affects our health and something I hope others will share my enthusiasm for,” Borsari said. The Urban Micro-Farming Workshop Series is offered through Winona State Outreach and Continuing Education. Each session costs $85. To learn more or register, visit winona.augusoft.net or contact Professor Borsari: bborsari@winona. edu 507-457-2822
Health & Wellness Services
Get On Top of Your Sex Life: Bedsider at WSU This month’s first Wellness Wednesday is titled “Friends Don’t Let Friends Have Unprotected Sex” and it got me thinking: having a kid during this hectic time in my life would put everything on hold.
According to Bedsider, seven in ten pregnancies among unmarried women from 18-29 are unplanned. In the event of an unplanned pregnancy Winona State University’s Health and Wellness Services and Semcac Clinic College has had the stereotype as a sexual free-for-all lon- located in Winona are valuable resources. ger then I have been alive, and it has also been known as an extremely stressful time of a person’s life—everything One unique service Bedsider provides is a daily reminder is changing all around you. So it is not inconceivable to take birth control pills. They also provide a nationthat one morning a pill could be forgotten, or one parwide directory on their website, which lists health centicularly wild night a condom could be neglected. ters that offer emergency contraception and other birth control information.
Social
Mitch Johnson, Senior English Writing
We have all been exposed to the birth control options: condoms, the pill, Plan B. Yet one little slip up could mean the derailing of your entire college career.
This is where Bedsider enters the equation. It is a nonprofit, non-partisan organization that works to enlighten youth on the different types and different benefits of birth control.
Wellzine
November 2013
Winona State is the only college campus in Minnesota that has a Bedsider program, according to Shawnessy Mohawk, Health promotion graduate student and the Bedsider campus representative.
When I asked her how Bedsider came to Winona, she told me about the Sexual Health and Awareness Group that operates on campus. SHAG works in concordance with Winona State Health and Wellness Services and Semcac Clinic to promote sexual health through awareness and education. SHAG thought Bedsider would be a great addition to their contraceptive outreach to students. Bedsider will be launched at 3 p.m. Nov. 6, 2013 for Wellness Wednesday in the Integrated Wellness Center. There will be a plethora of information on contraceptives that fit individual lifestyles as well as a variety of free items including t-shirts, posters, iPhone cases, and more. Mohawk says the goal of Bedsider in Winona best: “Our goal is to be a useful resource where people can learn about their birth control options, better manage their birth control, and in the process, avoid getting pregnant until they’re ready, both financially and emotionally.” Bedsider Winona State University is here to help you get on top of your sex life. It is chock-full of useful information about relationships, sex, and protection. It lays out your options, shares fun facts, and offers funny texts to remind you to take your birth control. It is totally free and constantly updated. Feeling curious? That’s the idea.
Images provided by Bedsider
Health & Wellness Services
Spice Up Your Work Space As full-time students, our job is our schoolwork. We spend hours in classrooms trying to find the most comfortable position to either sleep or soak up knowledge. Besides spending time in our desks for classes, we spend hours in other desks either at home or at the library. If you’re feeling any sort of pain in your back, neck, or wrists, you might be doing this whole studying thing wrong.
Occupational
Grace Pesch, Sophomore Public Health
Notice that pain in your lower back and how you feel like you’re developing early-onset arthritis? Maybe you’ve been going too hard at the gym… or maybe it’s test week. Your newly grown pain has probably sprouted up from the place you spend most of your time: your desk.
Wellzine
November 2013
There is much knowledge to be gained on the subject of ergonomics and how important it is to someone who practically lives in a desk during their college years. According to Merriam-Webster, ergonomics is a science that deals with designing and arranging things so that people can use them easily and safely. Students don’t typically think about if they’re sitting properly at their desk or the impact all that sitting has on their bodies. Joan Till-Born is the Risk Manager for Olmsted County employees and deals with ergonomics all day long. She works to better adapt employees to their work environments. She says she makes three main adjustments for her employees. One of those adjustments is posture.
Images from Nicole Sullivan
“Often people will sit on the front edge of the chair – sit on the whole seat pan and sit up straight, try not to lean to the sides,” said Till-Born.
If you aren’t feeling as adventurous as your fellow classmates, standing at your desk while you work is another good option.
Along with sitting, students do a lot of typing. Most documents are turned in online, so typing is a huge part of a student’s day.
According to http://www.juststand.org/, standing while doing your readings will burn more calories than sitting and reading at your desk. For a 130 pound female working for 8 hours, she will burn over 250 more calories in her work day just by standing at her desk instead of sitting. Ergonomic specialists have created desks that can be raised to accommodate this choice.
Way back when in typing class, it was taught that the wrist shouldn’t rest on the keyboard or table when typing. This is a very good tip when trying to avoid carpal tunnel, which is prevalent amongst students. Learning how to sit and type properly are just two minor adjustments students can make. It’s hard enough to make time in our busy schedules to go to the gym and we all too often count walking to and from classes as exercise. Yes, that counts a little, but there is so much more you can do without changing too much of your schedule. Wellness Coordinator for Olmsted County, Amy Hoot said, “When taking a phone call, stand and talk instead of sitting in your chair.” Stretching breaks every five minutes keeps your blood flowing, said Hoot. Another great idea when trying to stay active throughout the semester, is taking your homework to the gym with you. I’m sure you’ve seen it all—textbooks, novels, even computers at the gym. It’s a great time management idea!
If standing is too much of an adjustment to tackle, a yoga ball is an easy switch out for your desk chair. It’s a nice abdominal exercise and you still get to rest while doing your work. It’s probably the easiest way of exercising you’ll ever do besides walking. Ergonomics is important for students to understand. We spend so much time with our hands on our keyboards, staring into a screen, and sitting uncomfortably in desk chairs. Knowing how to adjust the way you work to avoid injury and discomfort will prevent one more thing to worry about in the future. Along with steering clear of improper use of your muscles, finding ways to sneak in activity in busy schedules is valuable. College students need plenty of sleep, but we also need exercise. Sleep is much more glamorous and inviting, but your body will thank you in years to come if you just get out of your chair once a day.
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Sydney Swanson, Senior Mass Communications Photojournalism
Alternative Healing: Acupuncture & Reiki Energy I’ve never liked needles. The idea of getting a shot or having blood drawn has always made me feel anxious with tensed-up muscles, so the thought of acupuncture left me feeling the same way. Paying someone money to poke me with a hundred needles did not sound like it could make me feel better in any way, shape, or form. Then one day I had a friend describe her acupuncture experience to me. She went in, got poked by needles, and left feeling like a ninja. That got me curious and resulted in a visit to Jade Community Acupuncture Clinic on East Third Street in downtown Winona. “What would you like to work on today?” owner Jade Fang asked when I had gotten seated in a room among five other already pricked bodies. “I’ve been feeling stressed,” I replied—I had heard that stress was something acupuncture could pinpoint. She poked me in various locations with acupuncture needles that are around ten times smaller than the average injection needle and as fine as your hair. At first I was worried I would get the urge to move suddenly and end up stabbing myself, but to my relief I fell asleep instead.
Physical
I awoke not feeling quite like a ninja but definitely feeling less stressed. “It’s funny because acupuncture has been around way longer than western medicine,” Infinity Wellness owner Dr. Kristin Lichty said about the term “alternative healing.” Both Fang and Lichty practice acupuncture in Winona, though their styles differ.
Wellzine
November 2013
At Jade Community Acupuncture there is a small room lined with three chairs on one side and three facing them on the other side. The chairs are each covered by a fleece blanket and allow for reclining during the session. There are also heat lamps near each chair in case anyone has cold feet. The room is well lit and soothing music plays from a cd player located near the center of the room. Up to six people can be receiving acupuncture at one time and they are fully clothed besides their feet. This community style acupuncture helps keep the cost down for customers. Just a few blocks down lies Lichty’s space. Lichty is a doctor of chiropractic and is also licensed in acupuncture. At Infinity Wellness, Lichty provides a small room for acupuncture with two beds, although there is typically one person receiving a session at a time. Although the spaces are different, Fang and Lichty are working with the same practice of acupuncture in traditional Chinese medicine. The Chinese understanding of acupuncture deals with qi (also spelled chi or ch’i), which translates, to natural energy or energy flow. This energy or qi can get stuck in our bodies and acupuncture can be used to release the energy blockage. Left: Finding your inner self (Dmap Travel Guide) Opposite: Accupuncture (Sydney Swanson)
At Infinity Wellness, Lichty also uses a Stim unit in her acupuncture sessions. Alligator clips are hooked onto the needles and connected to the unit, which provides the body with electrodes and stimulates a quicker energy flow. It promotes a meditative state and can further help in unblocking energy in the body. While the practice deals with energy blockages, it can be used to treat a variety of things including headaches, chronic pain, stress, fatigue, infertility, digestion issues, anxiety and allergies to name a few. Fang grew up with both of her parents practicing acupuncture and said it was frequently used to help her with colds and headaches. Lichty wasn’t exposed to acupuncture until two years ago when she went in to work on right ankle pain that had been present for about six months. “Two minutes in, the ankle pain was gone and it hasn’t been back since,” Lichty said of her experience. Another form of energy healing that can be found in Winona is Reiki healing. Reiki is different in that it works primarily with the flow of energy in the Chakras or energy centers of the body versus the meridians, which are energy pathways.
The paths which energy travels through bodies are called meridians or channels. In Chinese medicine there are 12 Principal Meridians and they are called by different organ names. In her experience, Fang has noticed confusion with these names at times where a patient hears something is up with an organ when it’s actually just the channel. “A lot of people have liver channel problems and I work on that channel, but it’s not like their liver organ has specific problems,” Fang said. She said this is because that specific channel deals with stress, anxiety and insomnia.
“I have found Reiki helps assist people with self-healing on all levels of human existence: mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual,” Eve Ford said. Ford is a Level II Reiki Practitioner/Therapist practicing from a space on East Second Street in downtown Winona. Ford describes Reiki as a natural, non-invasive, and hands on or off technique that transfers universal healing energy from one person to another. In a Reiki session you are fully clothed and rest on a massage table. Reiki, like acupuncture, can also be used to treat anxiety, stress, fatigue, and overall balance. Whether it’s acupuncture, Reiki, yoga, tai chi, massage therapy, or many others, they’re all energy healing methods. While given the title of alternative healing techniques, they’re becoming more popular in the Western culture and can also be used to complement current health practices.
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Healthy alternatives Jordan Degidio, Sophomore Mass Communications Advertising
It is finally November which means Thanksgiving is right around the corner. This also means you’ll be spending the holidays at home with your family. The whole family will be excited to see how you’re surviving college. So while you’re under the bright lights of interrogation, you’ll want to make sure you put your best face forward. To help impress the family with your beautiful glowing skin, a homemade all natural face wash can do just that. Face washes with all natural products are much healthier for your skin than using the chemicals that are in most brand name products. Even if you decide not to make your own face wash, switching to natural based products for your skin can cut down on redness, dryness and irritation. We’ve provided three face washes for sensitive, oily and normal skin types. All three face washes only have two ingredients so they are very easy to make and you probably have all the ingredients in your kitchen!
For sensitive skin the face wash chosen is less abrasive than most face washes currently on the market. The face wash uses baking soda and colloidal oatmeal. The baking soda is used because it provides a light exfoliation, is a great face wash and is extremely cheap. The oatmeal is used because it is an anti-inflammatory, is moisturizing and cleanses the skin well. Ingredients: 1-tablespoon baking soda 1-teaspoon colloidal oatmeal Water *If you don’t own colloidal, oatmeal grind some oatmeal down in a food processor. How to Make Mix the baking soda and colloidal oatmeal with water until it becomes a paste. Simply wash off your face and apply your face moisturizer. Tips: While washing your face, if the paste begins to dry out just add more water.
Wellzine
November 2013
For the second face wash for oily skin there are also only two main ingredients. You may find this odd but they are both oils. Using oils for oily skin is helpful because oil dissolves oil. While washing your face, the oils will feel silky smooth while they nourish your skin. Ingredients 1-teaspoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil 1-teaspoon Castor Oil
Left: Yogurt (Larry Jacobsen Flickr page) Botom: Oil(Nicole Sullivan) Opposite Top and Bottom: Oatmeal (Nicole Sullivan)
How to Make Apply the oil mixture to your dry skin all over your face. Soak a washcloth in hot water. Set the hot washcloth on your face for one minute and let the steam clean your skin. Gently remove oil from your face with the washcloth. Tips: Don’t use a moisturizer the first night you try it. If you find that you still need moisturizer, continue with your regular face wash routine.
The final face wash is for people with normal skin. The two ingredients are plain yogurt and lemon juice. The yogurt is used because it is a great natural cleanser. It is rich in protein, lactic acid and fat which all help detoxify the skin. The lemon juice is used just for a more pleasant scent. Ingredients: 1-tablespoon Plain Yogurt 1-teaspoon Lemon Juice How to Make Once mixed apply directly to your skin. Massage your skin to help the mixture have its full cleaning effect. Then wash with warm water. Tips Lemon juice can be drying to the skin, so be wary of the amount of lemon juice you mix in.
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Wellzine | November 2013
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FIVE TIPS
5
Ways
Have Fun in the Cold to
1 2 3 4 5
By Julie Thao
Have a snowball fight with snow forts. Building forts will ensure cover from an intense snowball fight with friends.
Take a stroll in snowshoes! The Winona State Outdoor Education and Recreation Center located in the Integrated Wellness Center rents out a pair of snowshoes for a low rate with a student ID.
Pick up some winter skates and have fun on the ice. You can rent ice skates at Lake Lodge located on the Big Lake with your student ID.
Go sledding or tubing through the snow. If you’re not into extreme winter sports such as skiing, go sledding and tubing instead. They are a safer but just as fun activity to do in the snow
Try an outdoor sport! Take a shot at cross-country skiing. Winona has tons of cross-country skiing trails and is also home of the Annual Winona Forest Tourathon, a fifty-mile ski course through the woods. There are tons of other winter sports you can try that can enhance your winter experience into a fun one.