Health Education
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vegetarian Cooking
workshop
Mondays 4:00-5:30 p.m.
February 4M-February 18*
University Health center, Cafeteria
Free to uo students, call 3464456 to
sign up.
Partake in the preparation and enjoy
ment of simple, fresh and delicious
vegetarian meals. Expand your repetoir
of recipes and cooking skills.
"One cannot think well, love well,
sleep well, if one has not dined well. "
-Virginia Woolf
Quit Kit
Quitting tobacco is the healthiest move
you an make! Pick up a “quit kit’ from a
Health center practitioner or from the
Health Ed Office.
CPR Certification
Tuesday, January 22, 5:00 - 8:00 p.m.
Health Center Cafeteria
American Heart Asssociation course.
Register at 346-2770.
Free Cholesterol
Screening
Every Tuesday 9:30 -11:30 jlm.
UO Health Center, Health Education Office
Simply drop by, no appointment necessary
To register for or to learn more
about these workshops, check
out the University Health Center's
Web site at http://healthed.uore
gon.edu. You can also call 3445
4456or stop by the Peer
Health Education Office on the
first floor of the University Health
Center.
Winter 2002
Health Information Tables
at the Ret Center
Wednesdays
3:00-5:00 P.M.
January 23:
Healthy Resolutions
February 6:
Compulsive Exercise
February 20:
EDAP
March 6:
Spring Thing
Brighten Up Your Days
Treatin/f Seasonal Affective Disorder
By Kate Mahaffey
It’sjanuary and another dark,
rainy, gloomy day lurks outside your
window. You don’t want to get out of
your warm, cozy bed and face the day.
All you want to do is sleep. You feel
lethargic and apathetic towards
everything. Without realizing it, you
could be dealing with a form of de
pression known as S. A.D. (Seasonal
Affective Disorder).
Ten million people in the United
States suffer from this disorder.
S.A.D. is triggered by decreasing ex
posure to sunlight and is most com
monly experienced any time between
September and May. It is accompa
nied by changes in mood and behav
ior. Nine out often people experi
ence decreased energy and
enthusiasm in the dark days of win
ter. The diagnosis of S.A.D..howev
er, is made when the symptoms are
severe enough that the individual’s
life is disrupted and considerable dis
tress is experienced over a period of
three separate seasons, with mood
disturbance occurring in two consec
utive seasons. The seasonal pattern
of symptoms that are unexplained by
other situational stressors is a key fac
tor in the diagnosis of S.A.D,
The main symptoms of S. A.D. are
as follows: irritability, fatigue, avoid
ance of social interaction, poor mem
ory, oversleeping (but also sometimes
insomnia or disturbed sleep), feelings
of guilt, hopelessness, low self-es
teem, weeping, inability to cope with
stress, decreased sexual desire, and
abusive behaviors, as well as seasonal
alcohol or drug abuse or seasonal dis
ordered eating. The main difference
between S. A.D. and clinical depres
sion is the noted seasonal pattern that
exists.
S.A.D. is triggered by decreased
exposure to sunlight, which creates a
change in the brain chemicals mela
tonin and serotonin. Melatonin is a
hormone associated with cyclic body
process ofbeing awake and asleep.
Serotonin is a neurotransmitter that
regulates mood and hunger. There
may also be an inherited susceptibili
ty for S.A.D.
Some current available treatments
for S.A.D. include light therapy with
special florescentbulbs, herbal reme
dies and prescription drugs. Herbal
remedies include St.Johns Wort and
Asian and Siberian ginseng. Antide
pressant prescription drugs such as
Prozac (fluoxetine) or Paxil (paroxe
tine) can also relieve symptoms.
Each of these therapies is available at
the UO Health Center. Call 346-2770
for an appointment.
Coping strategies for minimizing
symptoms of S.A.D. include keeping
your home well-lit, managing stress,
getting regular exercise (preferably
outdoors when possible), establish
ing a regular sleep pattern and main
taining a healthful diet. If you feel
you are experiencing S.A.D., it is im
portant to discuss your symptoms
with a counselor or medical practi
tioner. The effects on a person’s life
with S.A.D. can severely disrupt their
education, careers and relationships.
Visit the UO Counseling Center (346
3227) and/or Health Center (346
2770) to get the help you need. Ser
vices are confidential.
Helping A Friend in Need
By Andrea Hart
“IfIjust keep going for three more minutes I will
beat 400 calories and I won’t have to come back
tonight. Three...two...one. Off the treadmill she goes.
After an hour of agonizing pain she returns to her
room and sleeps through her afternoon classes. She
wakes to the sound of the girls in her hall leaving for
dinner. She pretends to be asleep so that her room
mate will not ask her to join them. When they are
gone she gets up, stretches her aching muscles and
reaches for tonight’s dinner—diet soda, a piece of
toast, and two celery stalks. She opens a book and
tries to concentrate on homework, but there is no ig
noring the constant churning in her stomach. She e
mails her teachers and explains today’s absence as
another bout with the flu. She lies down and starts
to do some reading, but falls asleep going over to
day ’s calorie count...again. ”
Could someone you know be suffering from
the physical and psychological pain of an eating
disorder? Would you even know if they were?
91 % of women recently surveyed on one college
campus had attempted to control their weight
through dieting, 22 % dieted “often” or “always”
(Kurth et al., 1995). There are numerous and var
ied signs that reflect disordered eating. These in
clude, but are not limited to, a preoccupation with
food, calories, and fat content, withdrawal from
activities because of weight and shape concerns,
and excessive and rigid exercise programs that fo
cus on burning off calories. If you think you
know someone who shows one or more of these
signs, you can do something to help.
The University Health Center has a great deal
of information to offer, if you know where to
look. In the Peer Health Education Office (346
4456) on the first floor of the Health Center, you
will find books, pamphlets and friendly peers to
facilitate your search. The Health Center also
erpploys a registered dietitian. Kristin Olmos
(346-2794) is available through practitioner refer
ral and self-referral. She can assist students in
planning a healthy diet. The UO Counseling Cen
ter (346-3227) provides group therapy for indi
viduals suffering from an eating disorder as well
as for individuals with some kind of problematic
food issue. The Counseling Center also offers in
dividual counseling.
If you think that a friend is suffering from an
eating disorder, realize that you can’t force them
to change. Professional help is available on cam
pus and often the most helpful thing you can do is
- encourage your friend to seek help. These same
resources are also available for friends to learn
how to be most helpful. Don’t hesitate to educate
yourself.
Winter 2002
Contributing Writers and Peer Health Educators
Peer Health Educators: Nikki Fancher, Kenzin Fultz-Wahl, Aloma Guthrie, Andrea Hart, Yusuke Kurihara, Kate Mahaffey, Matt Nelson, Amy Pape Jess
Pfeters, Lisa Rowe.
Photos: Annie Dochnahl
WellNow is published each term, except summer, for UO student* by the Health Education Department of the Health Center, 13th and Agate Streets, University of Oregon. http://heaUhcenter.ucngon.edu
r
Health Hi-Lights, Winter 2002
FPEP
The university Health center is par
ticipating in a federal program FPEP,
Family Planning Expansion Project.
This program allows the Health Center
to provide men and women FREE fami
ly planning services, birth control and
reproductive health care.
For more information on how to
qualify for this program, stop by the
Health Center or call 346-2770 or check
our website at
http://healthcenter.uoregon.edu