The Hoya: The Health and Wellness Issue: February 3, 2017

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Despite common student perceptions, there have been significant improvements in campus health and wellness. Collaborations between the Georgetown University Student Association, Health Education Services and the Student Health Center, among others, have led to increased awareness and engagement.

Health Improvements: A Community Endeavor Eleanor Tolf Hoya Staff Writer

When reflecting on student wellness on campus, it is easy to sensationalize and laser focus on extreme examples of poor health. With their risky behavior and lack of self-care, college students have a reputation for failing to live their best lives.

However, with increased attention from health care institutions and the media, universities have begun to emphasize the importance of students’ mental and physical health through a variety of programs and services.

Georgetown is no exception. The Student Health Center, Health Education Services and numerous student clubs have all installed educational events and trainings that facilitate dialogue around holistic health.

The debate about Hoya health and wellness is interdisciplinary and involves various groups and organizations not formally associated with health care. The Women’s Center has made recent improvements to ensure that women on campus have the right to adequate and appropriate health care.

“Our health and wellness offices have increased their staffing,” Director of the Women’s Center Laura Kovach said. “More staff means we can support more students.”

The center works closely with the SHC to understand the specific needs of Georgetown’s students, faculty and staff. Since 2010, Kovach and Hoya Kids Learning Center Director Jane Banister have worked to expand lactation spaces on campus.

“New moms struggled to find space to pump when they returned to class or work from having a child,” Kovach said. “We are happy to see how students, faculty and staff are utilizing these spaces.”

The Women’s Center continues efforts to enlarge spaces and resources needed for female Hoyas.

Regarding general student health concerns, the most common complaint is the difficulty in accessing the resources of the Student Health Center. Dr. Blair Heinke, director of sports medicine at the Student Health Center, recognizes these issues as well, stating that the availability of doctors

will likely remain a weakness going forward.

“A lot of issues we address are acute,” Heinke wrote in an email to The Hoya. “You wake up with a sore throat and a fever, so you need to be seen today. It is very difficult to predict how many of these urgent appointments we will need and sometimes … the wait becomes long.”

The Student Health Center is working hard to address these concerns and is implementing many new improvements to quality of and access to care. Heinke indicates four specific areas for improvement: more appointment availability, more services, more space and more technology.

The SHC is already taking steps toward addressing availability issues with expanded hours and new staffing efforts. According to Heinke, it will also soon be offering Mirenas, a type of intrauterine device, as a new service for patients suffering from dysmennorhea, or painful menstruations. However, issues continue to persist due to physical and financial constraints, especially the fixed size of the Student Health Center.

Another important health institution on campus is Health Education Services.

In fact, many of the health initiatives that many Hoyas are familiar with — BeWell Week, Stall Seat Journal, Sexual Assault Peer Educators — are led by HES, spearheaded by Director Carol Day. “Georgetown is a unique hybrid of health in general,” Day said in an interview with The Hoya. “We like to think comprehensively about health and well-being for all students.”

Recently, HES has focused on creating a healthier social culture on campus, with a healthier approach to alcohol, mental wellness and additional protections against sexual assault.

Back in 2004, The Stall Seat Journal was founded as a result of an unusual collaboration of Health Education Services, the Anheuser-Busch beer company and eight Georgetown students. Anheuser-Busch works with the National Social Norms Institute to establish healthy drinking practices, apart from the traditional calls for abstinence, and provides grants allowing the

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The Women’s Center, although not formally a health care institution, has worked to provide better health care for women students, faculty and employees.

distribution of the monthly educational posters in more than 400 bathrooms on campus.

“We try to make them timely and interesting for students always,” Day said. “We often try to build in health messages. So, despite the fact that it’s focusing on something relevant to your life at the moment, no matter if it’s finals or a variety of things, we will also give other messages about alcohol use health protection.”

The goal behind the Journal is to emphasize that the norm is usually less extreme than many assume. Day stresses that the publication uses Georgetown-specific research data to tear away at the sensationalized image many have of college alcohol culture. In a 2010 campus study run by HES, 86 percent of respondents reported The Stall Seat Journal to be “Very/Moderately Useful,” while 41 percent claimed to have used specific tips they learned from the publication.

Somewhat related to alcohol use on campus, sexual assault has become a main focus for Health Education Services. With three different content units, SAPE is rapidly expanding at Georgetown and being incorporated into multiple clubs. Last year, SAPE educated 700 students on raising awareness about campus sexual assault and how to support survivors.

This year, it hopes to exceed that figure with a record number of 75 peer educators.

University President John J. DeGioia recently approved funds for “Bringing in the Bystander,” a training program to be given to all student leaders and at least three people from each of the largest clubs on campus.

The training will emphasize how to spot and react to dangerous situations.

Last year, SAPE Special Projects Chair Carlo Izzo (COL ’17) said in an interview with The Hoya that the bystander program would be designed in reaction to the concerning results from the recent campus climate survey. Administered in January 2016, the survey revealed distressing statistics; for example, about one in five Georgetown students suspected that a friend had been sexually assaulted. HES has made concerted efforts to partner with different organizations to encourage a healthy culture of sexuality on campus.

“Everyone in our office is meeting on a subcommittee with that group trying to figure out how to address the problems we’re having with sexual assault, harassment, relationship violence,” Day said about her office’s response to the results of the climate survey.

Beginning next week, HES will host a series of dinners with the Office of Residential Living to educate students about healthy relationships. Another successful partnership has been HES’s work with the Women’s Center, installing the sexual assault awareness curriculum “I Am Ready” during New Student Orientation.

In recent years, Day has seen the HES and the wider campus community take the greatest steps in their work for students’ health and wellness. The university’s Mental Health Advisory Board is just wrapping up after almost two years of careful work exploring students’ mental health needs.

“We can look at our data and say, yeah, nationally, as well as at Georgetown, incidents of anxiety and depression have gone up,” Day said. “Students are stressed and not well in ways that we think are meaningful.”

In response, the counseling center has begun to adopt new policies that make mental health care more accessible through free appointments, lower copays, more providers and increased transparency about medical leave policies.

Students have noticed and responded to these same needs. Active Minds, a student organization, aims to destigmatize mental illness by encouraging open dialogue across campus through events and panels it hosts.

In the spring of 2015, students, in collaboration with CAPS and HES, launched Project Lighthouse, an online peer-to-peer counseling program. Chair of the Georgetown Univeristy Student Association Mental Health Committee and a leader of Project Lighthouse Ben Johnson (NHS ’17) believes mental

and physical health are inextricably linked.

“I don’t think mental health can be separated from physical health,” Johnson said.

“For example, good mental health can help give motivation to make healthy choices about sleep, eating, exercise and drinking, which can in turn create better or worse mental health.”

Heinke concurs.

“Unfortunately, mental health is also a very complex issue that has no quick fixes,” Heinke said. “Our student health providers are good at identifying mental issues and recommending treatment options, counseling and medications. However, we are not trained specifically in counseling and cannot offer that side of treatment in our clinic.”

Johnson is encouraged by growing discourse around these stigmatized subjects from both students and the administration, but he considers community to hold the most responsibility when it comes to breaking down mental illness.

“Early exposure to ideas about seeking help for mental health concerns, such as during NSO, in professor’s syllabuses or during RA meetings, could help normalize the idea and the promotion of mental health events and services, both from students and from the administration, will keep students thinking about it,” Johnson said.

Johnson said he sees a growing wealth of resources for mental wellness at Georgetown, such as CAPS, the Cornerstone Initiative and HES. There are people scattered throughout every pocket of the administration attempting to ease the stress of daily student life at Georgetown, but many people never hear about them.

“I think we still have a long way to go in publicizing services,” Johnson said. “My number one unknown resource probably goes to the fact that the Cawley Career Center actually employs licensed counselors to not only give you help with the job search but also with the stress that comes with it.”

Even with all the health service improvements coming to campus, Georgetown’s chaotic culture often makes it hard for students to take advantage of the copious resources.

Johnson is heartened by the new emphasis on mental health on campus but acknowledges there is still work to be done.

“Given the history of ignoring mental health, despite its clear importance, I always think we should take a special effort to consider it when thinking about health,” Johnson said.

Meanwhile, Day is concerned that the overbooked schedules of Georgetown students may interfere with adequate focus on their health.

“They’re often willing to cut corners on their health, or they think they need to, in order to stick with the expectation that here’s the rhythm of the culture or here’s what you do to be a superstar at a place like Georgetown,” Day said.

For the resources to be successful as they expand on campus, the responsibility falls on not only the administration but also the students. Day sees her work as dependent on an equal collaboration with the Georgetown community.

“We’ll always be challenged by ‘busyness’ culture. We need students to be equal partners and say, ‘Yeah, we have to do less. We’re stretched too far,’” Day said.

Until then, resources will remain opportunities. Georgetown has made measurable improvements in health and wellness in the past few years, but many students on campus have yet to recognize those steps in the right direction.

When more students start actively prioritizing their well-being in partnership with the university and its available resources, the constant effort to improve campus health becomes easier. An increase in that effort requires a collective commitment from providers, students and the university, but, according to Heinke, community mentality is a tool they already have at their disposal.

“Our strength is our community with providers who are excited and dedicated to taking care of students,” Heinke said. “I speak for all my colleagues when I say I love to work at Georgetown for that community feeling and sense of purpose.”

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Tips for Mindfulness Mindfulness is all about being fully present, open to new experiences, conscious of your own feelings and aware of the events going on around you.

1

EMBRACE meditation.

2

Meditation can be really important for taking some time out of your day to focus on the present moment, your body and your mind. UCLA Meditation, calm. com, mindful.org and Chopra Centred Lifestyle are some websites that have free guided meditations in a variety of styles to help you refocus in the middle of a busy day.

brighten up your Daily routine.

3 4

It is easy to rush through your morning routine on autopilot. Instead, make an effort to be present and observe the sights, smells, sounds and feelings of your morning. You will help set the tone for a more relaxed, purposeful day. Moreover, taking a few minutes every day to savor the value of life will also help you lay the ground work for more authentic dialogue.

remember to Slow down.

Focus on your breathing.

When you are walking from place A to place B, spend some time paying attention to your surroundings. Daily walks between classes and work are often already a part of your routine. Instead of ignoring the beauty in places you frequent, take a little time to smell the roses.

5

live in the present.

When you find yourself feeling intense emotions, pay very close attention to your breathing. You can also incorporate focused breathing into your meditation routine. The ujjayi breath, a method of breathing from yoga and Taoist traditions, relieves tension, regulates body heat and increases the amount of oxygen in your blood. Breathe through the nose and engage your diaphragm with deep, low breaths.

It can be easy to get lost in your own thoughts or to let yourself stay in a state of stress. Choose an object that you see on a regular basis, like a mirror in your room or your coffee mug, that reminds you to take a deep breath and focus on being more mindful. This object will become your anchor to the present and remind you at every moment the intrinsic value of every fleeting second of your life. See yourself live, taste life!

JOHN MAIN MEDITATION CENTER

Folllowing Fr. John Main’s method of Christian meditation, the John Main Meditation Center hosts group meditations as well as Buddhist and Quaker meetings.

JOHN MAIN MEDITATION CENTER

Compensating for college students’ excessive mentality of multitasking, the John Main Meditation Center offers an oasis for reflection and introspection.

Inside the John Main Meditation Center

Meena Raman Hoya Staff Writer

For many Georgetown students, busy schedules and marked-up planners are the norm. With such a fast-paced college culture, multitasking has become a necessity.

Such a strong emphasis on activity leaves little room for contemplation. The John Main Center for Meditation and Interreligious Dialogue, however, provides a space for reflection. Aiming to promote mindfulness and meditation on campus, the center is a source of support for many students regardless of their faith or background.

The JMC is housed in Anne Marie Becraft Hall, the oldest building on campus, which is at the corner of Old North Way and Library Walk, across from New South. The center derives its name from Fr. John Main, an Irish Benedictine monk who is best known for developing his own method of Christian meditation incorporating mantra, a sacred prayer word or phrase.

His teachings have been upheld by the World Community for Christian Meditation, which, in collaboration with Georgetown University, established the JMC in 2005. The JMC is considered a non-profit organization of the American chapter of the WCCM. Twelve years after its conception, the JMC remains an integral component of spiritual life at Georgetown. The building consists of a large, sunlit room lined with floor pillows and chairs. Additionally, a large center table contains scriptures from a number of religious traditions.

Although the JMC is open for private meditation, many visitors opt for silent group meditation sessions, which are held every weekday at 12:30 p.m. and 6:00 p.m., as well as 10:00 a.m. Tuesdays through Thursdays.

The center also hosts Buddhist meditations Monday and Thursday evenings and Quaker meetings Tuesday evenings, in addition to weekly meditation sessions in partnership with Georgetown University’s Counseling and Psychiatric Service. The services provided by the JMC are free of charge.

Nicholas J. Scrimenti (COL ’18) is the JMC program coordinator and leader of the new Student Advisory Committee. His advice for beginners is simply to start attending group meditation, especially because meetings open with instructions for newcomers. Scrimenti describes the JMC as a “very welcoming community.”

Still, some students question whether they truly have the time to commit to meditating.

“Meditation is a centering force that guides our concentration to the matter at hand and, in effect, makes time more spatial,” Scrimenti said in an email to The Hoya.

He further explained that the practice of meditation is adaptable and easy to integrate into one’s daily routine. Ideally, it should become something individuals look forward to doing.

JMC Director Elizabeth Cardone offers similar advice for those looking to begin meditating. She suggests taking half an hour

to visit the JMC. “Ideally, students should spend time in meditation every morning and every evening. Even five minutes can serve to refresh and energize the soul,” Cardone said. “Once you develop a routine of meditation, you will find it has a positive impact on time managements skills, and you may find a healthy realignment of your priorities.”

Other students may feel deterred from the practice due to its seeming difficulty. Cardone stresses the importance of not judging one’s “performance” when meditating. Ultimately, the practice offers long-term benefits and transformative effects.

“Meditation reduces stress and anxiety, improves sleep patterns, boosts the immune system and promotes overall well-being,” Cardone said. “Additionally, meditation can have a powerful benefit for those hoping to overcome trauma or addictive behaviors.”

Scrimenti echoes these beliefs yet said he believes that focus should not be limited to the outcome of meditating.

“The practice is a reward in itself. Moreover, the quantifiable benefits of meditation, as many meditators can attest to, are not as salient as the intangible fruits of the practice; things such as compassion, deeper interpersonal relationships and tranquility,” Scrimenti said.

Perhaps the most powerful feature of meditation lies in its ability to transcend religion. As students and faculty sit together, their respective faiths are cast aside. Cardone puts it best, stating: “Silence can be a universal language.”

Despite the center’s Christian roots, the JMC celebrates a diverse range of spiritual traditions. At group meetings, for example, scriptures of any religion may be read before or after meditation.

Cardone states that interreligious dialogue is sparked through the center’s promotion of external programs, such as the Way of Peace Fellowship. Georgetown students from all backgrounds are encouraged to apply. Those accepted will attend the Way of Peace Conference hosted by Catholic University of America in April.

Involvement with the JMC promises plenty of opportunities, as well as the chance to meet and connect with new people. Regardless of one’s motivations to pursue meditation, its reflective, cathartic potential carries a wide array of possibilities.

Furthermore, it is one of the best ways to achieve mindfulness, defined by the Foundation for a Mindful Society as “the basic human ability to be fully present, aware of where we are and what we’re doing, and not overly reactive or overwhelmed by what’s going on around us.”

The JMC’s doors are open to all, regardless of one’s experience with meditation or personal faith. Visitors are united through a common belief in integrating mindfulness into their daily routines and can certainly attest to its positive effects.

“The gift of meditation will change your life,” Cardone said. “Come and see for yourself.”

COURTESY MEDITATION CENTER

Teaching people how to integrate the practice of meditation into their daily routines remains the primary purpose of the JMC nonprofit organization, twelve years after its launch.

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As Georgetown’s first online peer-to-peer support platform, Project Lighthouse aims to show stressed college students that any problem is worth talking about, regardless of what others may think. A year from its official launch in April 2016, the program has already supported more than 200 students in the Georgetown community.

Project Lighthouse: Peers Helping Peers lucy pash

Hoya Staff Writer

As Georgetown’s first online peer-topeer support service, Project Lighthouse has grown since it was founded last April.

Created in partnership with Georgetown’s Counseling and Psychiatric Services, Health Education Services and the Office of the Assistant Vice President for Student Health, the initiative for the program was announced in January 2016.

Director of Education of Project Lighthouse Leanna Syrimis (SFS ’18) said she was enthusiastic about Project Lighthouse’s progress, which has included the training of peer supporters, who are all student volunteers.

“Last January, we were just beginning to train our first class of peer supporters and hadn’t yet launched our website,” Syrimis said. “It is incredible to me that in such a short period of time, we have built this organization from the ground up — not only by training peer supporters but also by creating our website, building our institutional memory and also developing our own Georgetownspecific curriculum.”

Project Lighthouse believes that one’s time at college is analogous to one’s time at sea. Some days may feel like smooth sailing, and others may feel rougher and more ominous. The service seeks to be a stable, fixed spot for students, always available and reliable in times of need, just as a lighthouse is for sailors.

Through Project Lighthouse, students

are provided with an easily accessible outlet to chat anonymously with their fellow trained peers about various issues and possible helpful resources. Some of the most common mental health issues detected are panic attacks, generalized anxiety disorder, social anxiety disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, depression, bulimia, anorexia nervosa, substance-related disorders and attention deficit disorder.

A large portion of the Project Lighthouse chats are related to general stress, academic stress, relationship issues, career anxiety and social isolation. The chat sessions are open from 7 p.m. to 1 a.m. daily and are completely anonymous and confidential. Project Lighthouse staff members have no way of tracking students; they only know what students choose to tell them.

Since its launch, Project Lighthouse has supported over 200 Georgetown students. The program, however, hopes to increase its advertising. Since most people learn about Project Lighthouse through word of mouth, many sections of the student body have never heard of the service. This semester, Project Lighthouse will be piloting a mentorship program to encourage more community interaction and growth.

Carol Day, Director of Health Education Services, wrote in an email to The Hoya that Project Lighthouse gives Georgetown students a gateway to campus mental health resources.

“They are serving as a resource that

provides students with an access point for students to get help with issues and, as needed, to get referrals to health professionals and additional support whether those resources are on campus, in the community or online,” Day wrote.

Executive Director of Project Light-

“

We train volunteers to be peer supporters, a position which involves a general awareness of mental health issues on campus and a broad skill set.”

LEANNA SYRIMIS (SFS ’18) Director of Education, Project Lighthouse

house Will Emery (COL ’19) said that, although students may initially come to Project Lighthouse for specific issues like academic stress, they often build on their conversations.

“Often, the conversation expands to reflect on broader thoughts about the person’s life. This happens when they recognize they have the opportunity to discuss their deeper thoughts in an accepting and nonjudgmental environ-

ment,” Emery said.

Although peer supporters need to fill out an application, Project Lighthouse aims to be as inclusive as possible. Syrimis said the training for Project Lighthouse, which involves 25 hours of intensive theme and skilled-based activities, focuses on the culture of the Hilltop. In order to ensure that the Peer Supporters are providing the best possible care, Project Lighthouse maintains an intensive chat audit system.

“We train volunteers to be peer supporters, a position which involves a general awareness of mental health issues on campus, knowledgeability of on-campus and local D.C. resources and a broad skill set which includes unconditional positive regard, active listening, validation of emotions and reflecting and questionasking skills,” Syrimis said.

Syrimis also said that these peer supporters are incredibly sympathetic and always willing to help in any way possible.

“I am continuously blown away at the overwhelming sense of service, integrity, empathy and compassion that our trainees and peer supporters alike radiate,” Syrimis said. “Think of the kindest person in your friend group who is always looking to ways to help out. Project Lighthouse is a whole club full of these people.”

Emery said that those at Project Lighthouse want Georgetown students to know that any problem is important and worth talking about, no matter how small or trivial it may seem.

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Georgetown’s interest in the well-being and safety of its students has come to pervade every corner of campus — even the bathrooms. The Stall Seat Journal, a monthly newsletter featured in bathroom stalls across campus, has been an integral part of the social norms campaign at Georgetown since it was founded in 2006.

Stalling Unhealthy Student Habits Since 2006 SARAH JACKMAUH Hoya Staff Writer

The university’s focus on the health and safety of students has become so widely promoted that the topic has carried over to the unlikeliest of places: the bathroom stall.

Since 2006, as part of the social norms campaign at Georgetown University, the Stall Seat Journal initiative has increased dialogue about certain health topics students tend to face in college life and beyond.

The Stall Seat Journal is a monthly newsletter placed in a plastic case on the back of bathroom stalls across campus. Each month, a new edition replaces the old, featuring topics and issues relevant to students’ lives, including alcohol safety, healthy eating habits, sleep cycles and study tips to name a few. For example, during the final exam periods in December and May, issues of the Stall Seat Journal typically discuss different ways to relieve stress, recommending seven to eight hours of sleep and promoting nutritious meals conducive to boosting memorization and study capacity.

The Stall Seat Journal is not specific to Georgetown. In 2006, Anheuser-Busch gave grants to 10 universities, including Georgetown, to publish the Stall Seat Journal as part of the social norms campaign. The campaign came to be branded as a more realistic approach to facilitating dialogue regarding college health.

Health Communications Specialist and Social Norms Program Coordinator Laura Marcucci leads the Stall Seat Journal’s spread across campus and monitors its content.

“Social norms theory is a data-driven approach, which uses statistics around health behavior to dispel myths and misperceptions around what students perceive as the ‘norm’ on campus,” Marcucci said. “By using accurate data on Georgetown students and their wellbeing, we promote awareness and increase education around actual campus norms.”

Despite the circulation of the Stall Seat Journal on other college campuses, Marcucci noted that staff members of Health Education Services at Georgetown are careful to tailor the material to the community, using focus groups and school-specific research to find content most applicable to Hoyas. Most prominently, Georgetown’s National College Health Assessment provides detailed survey results that summarize important topics for Georgetown students especially.

The primary themes that span most of the Stall Seat Journals are those of alcohol risk reduction and the campus drinking culture.

A September edition states that 80 percent of students who choose to drink stay with the same group of friends for the entire night and that 60 percent maintain a mental tab of the number of beverages consumed. Well-aware that some of-age students choose to consume alcoholic beverages, the producers of the Stall

Seat Journal also include these safety tips and statistics.

For students under 21, the publication promotes local alcohol-free activities, including concerts at the 9:30 Club, U Street Music Hall or Verizon Center, as suggested in the September 2016 issue.

“Because we include information about sensitive health topics, the poster location is ideal, because students can read the information in private,” Marcucci said. “This takes the pressure off a student who may not want to stop and read the content in a hallway or other public location.”

Marcucci also noted that the Stall Seat Journal has become a wide success at Georgetown and at other schools including the University of Kansas, Virginia Commonwealth University and the University of Virginia.

Currently, the publication appears in over 500 stalls around Georgetown’s campus, including Healy Hall, Yates Field House, Leo J. O’Donovan Dining Hall and the Student Health Center. Originally, the posters were only featured in student dormitories that had common bathrooms, but their popularity has burgeoned members of Health Education Services to broadcast them further.

“This increases viewership among upperclassmen who may not be living in on-campus housing,” Marcucci said of the expansion.

Also included on the poster are key contacts, such as the Georgetown Emergency Response

Medical Service and Georgetown University Police Department phone numbers for any students who may need medical attention or additional services.

The Stall Seat Journal is sponsored by and in collaboration with many student-run groups and local businesses, such as GERMS, Georgetown Dining Services, Saxby’s Coffee and Trader Joe’s, as well as other popular on-campus and area groups.

Students have become very fond of the Stall Seat Journal as it keeps expanding across campus, to the extent that some of the readers now participate in the production and development each month. Marcucci said that, when the production schedule is created, she and a student assistant will research, create a draft and individually sketch out a poster. Then, the content is sent to a graphic designer, who creates the Journal at the discretion of Marcucci and her assistants. Four student employees help with the distribution, which takes them approximately three to four days to set up displays around campus.

Marcucci encourages students to browse through past and present Stall Seat Journals and learn effective statistics useful for leading healthy and safe social lives at school.

“We are grateful to the campus community for their partnership,” Marcucci said. “We look forward to providing ongoing and relevant health promotion information this year to help students thrive.”

Leo’s Hacks: 5 Quick and Healthy Meals MARY CATE WHELAN Hoya Staff Writer

Georgetown students are always on the go, so quick meals are a must. Choosing the most convenient food option, however, is not always the healthiest. Eating clean in college can still be tasty, though — all you need are a few tricks.

Here are a few hacks for eating healthy at O’Donovan Hall.

TOASTS Trendy toasts are a current food fad, taking over many Instagram feeds. Although Leo’s doesn’t have avocados to make the basic avocado toast, this is a simple and fun way to get creative and invent a toast of your own!

Ants on Bread My personal favorite is a twist on a favorite childhood snack.

What you need: 1. Whole wheat bread 2. Peanut butter 3. Celery 4. Raisins All you have to do: 1. Toast the bread.

2. Lather it with peanut butter.

3. Chop up bite-sized pieces of celery.

4. Sprinkle raisins on evenly.

5. Voila!

WRAPS Mediterranean Medley This wrap is so simple and filled with delicious Leo’s staples, accessible to the pickiest diners.

What you need: 1. Spinach tortilla wrap 2. Hummus — I prefer the red pepper hummus 3. Red peppers 4. Feta cheese *All of these great ingredients are located on the lower level of Leo’s.

All you have to do: 1. Spread the hummus evenly on your tortilla.

2. Stuff it with peppers, feta, and any other vegetables of your choice.

3. Wrap it up.

4. Enjoy the crunch of this healthy Medi terranean Medley wrap.

Banana Bites A timeless pairing — peanut butter and ba-

nana — is turned into a twist on a classic.

What you need: 1. Whole wheat tortilla 2. Peanut butter 3. Banana 4. Honey (optional) All you have to do: 1. If you’re feeling fancy, warm up the tortilla in the panini press for 30 seconds.

2. Spread peanut butter evenly on the tortilla.

3. Drizzle honey on the tortilla.

4. Place the banana, whole, in the tortilla.

5. Wrap it up.

6. Cut into bite-sized pieces.

LOW-CARB OPTIONS We all know carbs are simply delicious, but these next two snacks are good enough to beat the craving.

Veggie Stir Fry This staple station at Leo’s is more than just rice and noodles.

MARY CATE WHELAN/THE HOYA

What you need: Any veggies you’re craving.

All you have to do: 1. Go on the wok line and ask to have your favorite fresh veggies mixed in with soy sauce (or any sauce of your choosing) 2. Top it off with some Sriracha to spice it up — spicy foods can help boost me tabolism!

Chicken Lettuce Cups With this combination of proteins and vegetables, you won’t even miss the carbs.

What you need: 1. Large leaves of lettuce 2. Grilled chicken 3. Any sauce or dressing of your choosing (my favorites are balsamic vinegar or soy sauce) All you have to do: 1. Cut the grilled chicken into small squares.

2. Put some pieces of chicken into a lettuce leaf.

3. Top with your dressing or put it on the side to dip in 4. For an added kick, drizzle on Sriracha.

A final tip on drinks: If you are craving a soda, take advantage of the fruit-infused water options downstairs.

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RESTAURANT PICKS

Eating Healthy on a Student Budget

Protein Bar | 925 17th St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20006

South Block Juice Co. | 3210 Grace St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20007

Protein Bar is dedicated to providing healthy, delicious food in an upbeat, modern environment — all within the span of a few minutes. Although its food products are designed for maximum convenience, they remain packed with flavor and nutrients. The restaurant offers an extensive menu of drinks and shakes, as well as plenty of options for breakfast and lunch. Its breakfast scrambles are especially tasty; the spinach and pesto scramble bowl ($4.99) contains whole eggs, nut-free basil pesto, spinach, broccoli and a touch of Parmesan cheese. Packed with protein, it is a flavorful and health-conscious alternative to the typical breakfast wrap (or worse yet, skipping the meal altogether). Protein Bar’s prices are certainly reasonable given its high caliber, making it the ideal choice for a student staying healthy while on the run.

Located in the Grace Street Market, alongside Grace Street Coffee and sandwich shop SundeVich, South Block offers both health and flavor. This charming locale features signature creations made with fresh ingredients. Healthy, delicious foods are at the core of South Block’s ideology. Customers can indulge in exquisite, nutritious treats that will delight their taste buds while providing a filling, nourishing meal. The strawberry avocado toast ($10) and the CaveMan bowl ($10) — prepared with freshly made cashew milk and cacao nibs — are must-tries. Refreshing drinks, such as the mango-and-coconut super smoothie Green-A-Colada, or the more traditional cold pressed orange-and-banana Old School ($7), will quickly energize you before heading to class.

Postmodern Foods | 2920 M St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20007

Fruitive | 1094 Palmer AlLEy NW, Washington, D.C. 20001

The purpose of Postmodern Foods is to change the way we approach convenient, “fast” food. Located on M Street, the organic food and drink company offers a diverse range of nutrient-rich snacks and meals, ideal for students on the go. Its philosophy towards food is refined and elegant, reinterpreting classic dishes with a healthy and unexpected twist. Some of its most popular selections are the Korean walnut pea sushi ($10) and the blueberry chia smoothie with oats ($12) — sure to help diners avoid the post-lunch carbinduced crash. Postmodern Foods also boast a lengthy menu of cold-pressed juices and smoothies — delicious and clean alternatives to traditional sugary drinks.

Fruitive takes its certified organic restaurant distinction seriously. With a menu of all plant-based ingredients, this modern restaurant is bound to satisfy all kinds of healthy cravings. Fruitive serves a variety of customers, from rookie juicers to seasoned health foodies, and offers them the opportunity to have energizing, delicious meals. Located in CityCenter, the cozy eatery features breakfast toasts, superberry bowls, wraps and tacos — all 100% organic. The Sesame Ginger Tacos ($11.95), paired with edamame and buckwheat noodles, are a flavorful adventure, while the PB NO J bowl ($9.95) gives the comfort of familiar sweetness.

Boost your morning with a heartening smoothie like the Coconut Colada or the Coffee Date.

Chaia | 3207 Grace St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20007

Pleasant Pops Farmhouse Market and Café | 1781 Florida Ave. NW, Washington, D.C. 20009

After garnering buzz from its trendy pop-up stand at a local farmer’s market, upscale taco shop Chaia opened up its own brick-and-mortar location in Georgetown. The restaurant describes its motto as “farm-to-taco,” employing simple cooking techniques and organic ingredients. Served on freshly-made corn tortillas, each vegetarian taco comes filled with a mix of seasonal veggies and salsas. Among its best selections are the creamy kale and potato pepper jack taco, stuffed with poblano crema, green sauce and pickled onions ($3.75 for one, $11 for three.) Its unique combination of flavors is a testament to the restaurant’s bold fusion of traditional Mexican ingredients with modern health foods.

With locations in Adams Morgan and Downtown, Pleasant Pops stemmed from a very simple concept: Instead of using all sorts of artificial sweeteners and flavor-infusing chemicals, why not simply bring out the natural scrumptiousness of fresh fruit? The locale follows a simple process of freezing and molding fresh ingredients to create its famous pops. The Farmhouse Café also features a regular menu that includes smoothie bowls, banana toast and avocado hummus. Try the non-dairy pops ($2.50), ranging from orange chai to Mexican chocolate. Pops are a refreshing treat with all the benefits of fresh fruit and organic ingredients. For cold winter days, there are also hot pops, served with coconut milk and cinnamon.

Recipes by katherine pietro/the hoya

ILLUSTRATION BY PETER SHAMAMIAN/THE HOYA

B8

the guide

THE HOYA

friDAY, February 3, 2017

feature

Feature

On Spiritual Health

“

Rev. Bryant Oskvig

Spiritual well-being is the integration of experiences into a sense of self related to meaning and purpose in relation to others and the world. Our religious traditions give us a rich symbol system, a language and methods to examine and develop this integration. Such integration is not done quickly but requires developed habits that serve as foundation. Spiritual wellness then is thoughtful attentiveness and requires time for reflection. In the midst of all that needs to be done or could be done, it is easy to push off or avoid introspection. The questions of, ‘Where have I felt most alive in this past week, or in my friendships, or from my course work; and from where have I felt most drained and most consumed?’ get removed from calendars or never even incorporated into one’s days or weeks. Like other practices of wellness, spiritual wellness requires exercise.

Just as you can’t run a marathon without training and suddenly become heart

“

healthy — I have tried — you can’t have one significant moment of self-awareness and be spiritually well. One’s sense of meaning and purpose in relation to self and others is ever evolving as we experience new things, which requires continuous reflection and nurture.”

Rev. Brandon harris

For me, spiritual health means being in a place of living in right relationship between God and others. When I ask if someone is spiritually healthy, it’s: ‘How is your life in relationship to God, and how is that lived out in your relationship with other people?’ I think here at Georgetown, because students are so busy, when I talk to students about spiritual health, it’s about: ‘How do you find space in your daily life to remind yourself of the larger purpose of life, the reason why you’re here?’ Again, it’s: ‘How are you living in relation to God and other people?’ So, ‘Am I being snappy? Is it because I’m tired and not resting? Am I failing to see someone else’s worth and value?

Am I taking time in my busy schedule to pray or to meditate or to just sit in silence?’

For me, it’s taking time in the morning for my own personal devotions, so reading scripture or prayer. In my tradition, we believe that our spiritual, mental, emotional, psychological health is all intertwined.

“

GEORGETOWN CAMPUS MINISTRY

FILE PHOTO: NAAZ MODAN/THE HOYA

On campus, when homesickness, social pressures and multiple assignments jeopardize students’ happiness, “mindfulness meditation” can restore a healthy balance.

Finesse Your Stress Kathryn Baker Hoya Staff Writer

GEORGETOWN CAMPUS MINISTRY

When I’m spiritually healthy, I should be physically healthy. If I know that I’m loved, that’s part of spiritual health in my tradition — I know I’m loved by God — that’s going to help my mental health. It’s going to help me to think about how I’m taking care of my body, so that’s how, at least for me, it’s all intertwined.”

Imam Yahya Hendi

Being spiritually well means, to me, a few things. Number one: being balanced in your life, being balanced between your material needs and your spiritual needs, your intellectual needs and your emotional needs. According to Islam, every human being is made of the four components: the body or the flesh; the mind and the intellect; the heart and the emotions; and the soul and spirituality.

Therefore, to have a balanced person, you need to take care of the four components.

So sleeping well contributes to spirituality and eating well, eating healthy, eating a balanced diet, eating what’s good. Reading contributes to spiritual well-being. For me, walking by the Potomac contributes to all of that. It’s exercise, you walk, you see God’s creations — it contributes to one’s spiritual stillness, peace. Being in good company, that contributes to spirituality also. Being in a love relationship, I don’t mean man and woman, or woman and woman or man and man — you can love yourself, you can love the trees around you, you can love your cat, your dog, you can love God, love His creations, love others. There are people who can be spiritually balanced by going to a certain religious service. Wake up in the morning and take a walk. Don’t sleep until afternoon, then rush to class, rush to the library or to the cafeteria to eat. Give up on the fast culture.

GEORGETOWN CAMPUS MINISTRY

Don’t rush through your lunch or dinner.

You don’t have to always be on your cellphone. Enjoy your food, don’t turn on the phone. If you are reading, enjoy the words, the paper, the writing. If you are watching television, enjoy it, enjoy the moment. If you are with your friend, out for lunch or dinner, just give up on anything called ‘technology.’ Enjoy the moment. Balance your life. One of the distractive elements of our spirituality is what I call ‘boxism.’

We are born in a box, our room looks like a box, we grow up in a box, we go to school in a box, we pray in a box and when we die, they force us to be in a box down there. I say, get rid of ‘boxism.’ Get out of that box.

So walk, run, swim, jog, go and enjoy.”

GEORGETOWN CAMPUS MINISTRY

Dahlgren Chapel serves as a physical reminder for the Georgetown community of the Ignatian and Jesuit commitment to interreligious collaboration for spiritual harmony.

It is no secret that college is demanding. Homesickness, multiple assignments, work and social pressures make for an overbearing load. College students become extremely familiar with stress and its crippling effects. According to a study done by the Anxiety and Depression Association of America, 80 percent of college students frequently experience daily stress.

In order to truly reduce stress levels, it is necessary to be able to recognize commons signs of stress and understand their origins. The American Institute of Stress lists as many as 50 common symptoms and signs of stress, including frequent headaches and lightheadedness, stuttering, dry mouth, rashes, heartburn, anxiety, insomnia, forgetfulness, paranoia and even impulse shopping.

However, stress is not merely a mental state, it can cause serious damage on the body’s nervous, skeletal, respiratory and cardiovascular systems. It is also linked to high blood pressure, worsened cases of asthma and acne. Recognizing these symptoms can prevent any serious stressinduced health disorders.

More important than being able to identify these symptoms is understanding their origins. The first source of stress is academics. This is especially pertinent to freshmen who are struggling to adapt to the demands of a college curriculum.

Nonetheless, academic stress affects upperclassmen as well, especially when it comes to major coursework.

Academic anxiety is extremely prevalent at Georgetown University, a worldrenowned institution where most students come from the top of their high schools. Academic stress is one of the most common forms of stress among college students. A breakdown of academic stress reveals that it mainly stems from increased workloads, lower grades than expected or desired and the fear of graduating on time.

Another stress factor is interpersonal relations. College students face a plethora of social pressures. Juggling roommates, love lives, shifting friendships and parental relationships is a straining task.

The third most common source of stress amongst college students is intrapersonal stress, such as responsibilities, public speaking or financial factors.

These factors can be unique to each person’s own set of issues. It is often these “inner demons” that cause students the most stress.

There are variety of ways to relieve stress. Before starting any technique, get yourself to a quiet room for 10 to 20 minutes and wear something comfortable.

Ensure that you are as comfortable as possible. It will be hard to force yourself to relax the first few times, but practice makes perfect.

One popular method to relieve stress

is muscle relaxation. Start by tensing a certain muscle group for 5 to 10 seconds and then relax the same region for 10 to 20 seconds before moving on to the next group. Continue until all groups have been relaxed. It is important to finish in a calmed state to feel truly recharged and focused. Some popular muscle groups for this method are the hands, shoulders, neck and thighs.

Exercise is an effective and healthy stress reliever. If you do not enjoy lifting weights or running, try taking up yoga or joining one of Yates Field House’s many fun exercise classes. For those who do not have time to make it to Yates, just taking a short walk around campus can be enough. Exercise is not the only necessary way to take care of your body.

“Important to this process are healthy self-care practices entailing good diet, sleep and exercise, and reducing alcohol use and other behaviors that cause harm to the body or create more difficulty,” Counseling and Mental Health Director Phil Meilman said in an email to The Hoya.

Meditation and visualization are stress relievers that can be practiced from the comfort of a dorm room. Meditation involves fixating on a calming word or thought for several minutes. Do not be worried if your thoughts initially wander. Keep referring to your calming thought. After a while, you should start to feel more relaxed.

Visualization is similar to meditation, except it involves fixating on a beautiful or calming image, such as a beach or meadow. These methods allow you to remove yourself from your stressful environment and enter a state of tranquility.

For fun means to reduce stress, try finding a creative outlet. Coloring can be a less time-intensive method to relieve anxiety and stress. When coloring, focus on how it feels to complete the picture and process the physical action of coloring. Other creative outlets involve knitting, sewing, painting and dancing.

However you choose to relieve stress, remember that you are not alone. Everyone goes through periods of stress in their lives, so never be afraid to reach out to friends and on-campus resources such as the chaplains-in-residence, a trusted professor or a CAPS counselor.

“We will also encourage those who have interest to engage in what is called ‘mindfulness meditation,’ whether by downloading an app such as Headspace or Calm, or by attending our weekly meditation offering at the John Main Meditation Center,” Meilman said.

Stress affects everyone differently. The easiest way to assess your stress is to find the balance that works for you.

“We encourage students to strive for balance in their day-to-day lives among academics, athletics, recreation, socializing, exercise, and family obligations,” Meilman said.

Although easier said than done, reaching balance remains the key to a happy, healthy, stress-free life.

FILE PHOTO: KARLA LEYJA/THE HOYA

Academic anxiety, shifting interpersonal relations and intrapersonal stress all threaten the emotional balance of college students both at Georgetown and nationwide.

the guide

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2017

THE HOYA

B9

COURTESY GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY

The purpose of The Engelhard Project is to incorporate topics relating to student wellness into academic discourse in order to produce a more comprehensive and contemplative curriculum. Entering its 12th year, the program engages students and faculty from a variety of disciplines and backgrounds.

The Engelhard Project: Reflection in the Classroom

DANI GUERRERO Hoya Staff Writer

The Engelhard Project celebrates its 12th anniversary as one of Georgetown’s hallmarks of undergraduate education. Launched by the Center for New Designs in Learning and Scholarship in 2005, it has helped students “create meaningful connections” between their intellectual pursuits and personal experiences and “infuse wellness” into their curriculums.

“The project was built from a model of teaching that a few faculty at Georgetown were already using. It consists in being very intentional about bringing students’ interests, needs and lived experiences into the coursework and animating it,” CNDLS Assistant Director for Strategic Initiatives and Outreach Joselyn Schultz said.

“When you’re trying to connect your material to your students, it’s important to pay attention to who your students are, what they care about, and what’s going on with them.”

Originally envisioned as an academic initiative, the Engelhard Project has progressed into a remarkably wide embodiment of Georgetown’s belief in cura personalis, or care for the entire person. Its closer connection to mental health and wellness issues came from the grant awarded to the initiative by the Bringing Theory to Practice Project. Founded in 2003, BTtoP works to “advance civic education, engaged learning, and the well-being of individual students” through a series of contributions to different colleges and universities.

“The people at BTtoP were interested specifically in well-being issues, and that turned out to be a really great focus point for us,” Schultz said. “Especially because the frame of well-being really allows for it to be anything that is going

on with students related to how they’re doing, while also tying it to something Georgetown has been good at for a long time, which is the safety net and the student resources provided here.”

Engelhard’s high-impact learning practices focus on connecting the academic course material to well-being in a way that both supports students in the learning process and encourages profound reflections on their own attitudes, behaviors and actions.

“The Engelhard Project embeds wellness topics into courses across all academic disciplines on campus,” Associate professor and CNDLS Senior Scholar Joan Riley said. “It changes the classroom conversation, enabling students to apply course material to their lived experiences.

Learning becomes more meaningful and engaging.”

Part of the project’s reach relies on the partnership between faculty and university health professionals to support students both personally and academically. Faculty fellows use a “curriculum infusion approach” that merges academic content with health and well-being topics of discussion. Through discussions led by campus health professionals, presentations, readings and contemplative writing, the courses aim to educate “the whole student.”

“We touch on different topics, trying to pay attention to what’s going on in one class that might help support someone’s issues in another class,” Schultz said. “What we see going on with the nursing school students is actually a perfect match with the business school students’ issues.

Health professionals who are usually in more than one class often identify pulling themes across them. The goal is that all these classes are great entities in it of themselves but also in a

larger conversation with each other.”

Engelhard courses manifest the project’s creative and meaningful pairing of academic formation and personal well-being. In an “Advanced Neurobiology” course, for example, students analyze the biological effects of sleep deprivation. The “Biblical Literature” class explores students’ experiences of friendship in the shaping of healthy social identity. “Foundations in Biology,” a large introductory course, personalizes its content by having the faculty and students share their own experiences with depression.

“What the Engelhard Project has done is create a community of hope, a community of caring, a true community where the notion of caring for the whole person is truly being lived,” Engelhard Health Professional Patrick Kilcarr said.

The Engelhard Project has expanded its aims to the fierce debunking of the “perfect student” myth that continues to permeate the Georgetown culture. By creating dynamic spaces for open dialogue about the most pressing issues students face on a daily basis, the program promotes enduring health-related awareness and discussion.

“It’s an issue faculty are really concerned about but also really energized to try and nudge on,” Schultz said. “A lot of faculty try to be honest and authentic about who they are in the classroom as not necessarily done, perfect, polished people.”

Faculty and health professionals alike strive to communicate this message through lectures, dialogues, thought exercises and readings.

Engelhard students are encouraged to perceive both their academic and personal formation as an ongoing process to which struggles are a key

component to acknowledge, assess and gradually resolve.

“Faculty and health professionals are trying to find ways to let students see they are people in progress, too,” Shultz said. “We are all flawed, we are all working on stuff, we’ve all got our complications and things going on and actually being open to that continual process is what learning looks like.”

The main goal behind the Engelhard Project is to channel students’ mental health and wellness concerns to produce spaces that recognize the nature of these issues and work through them during every class. Awareness is the first step toward resolving the problems affecting students personally and therefore advancing their educational progress.

“The project has the potential for really transforming how students view both the academic side of it, and the relevance to their own lives,” Schultz said. “Engelhard works with the importance of being seen, that you are not just a head walking into a classroom, that you are a full, complicated, complex, interesting person walking in with experiences as real assets to pull out in the classroom.”

The project has certainly ensured students that they are seen, heard and supported by the Georgetown community. By recognizing the importance of nurturing them as individuals as well as academic performers, Engelhard has crafted a comprehensive road for students to access their true potential.

Forging healthy personal and academic paths is an exacting practice. The Engelhard Project provides students with a rich platform that encourages them to embark on their own journeys to wellness.

START PLANNING

FOR SUMMER

Earn credit in 250+ courses while experiencing an unforgettable summer on the Hilltop.

Online courses now available.

Start planning now at: summersessions.georgetown.edu/2017hoya

Summer Sessions: 2017 Dates GU student registration opens in MyAccess on February 6.* PRE-SESSION:

SESSION I:

ONLINE COURSES:

SESSION II:

May 22–June 16 June 5–July 28

June 5–July 7 July 10–August 11

*Courses and dates are subject to change and cancellation. For the most up-to-date information visit our website. Georgetown Summer Sessions are administered through the School of Continuing Studies.

Health Resources for Students On-Campus Confidential Student Health Center 3800 Reservoir Road NW, Ground Floor, Darnall Hall Washington, D.C. 20007 Tel: 202-687-2200

CAPS (Counseling and Psychiatric Services) One Darnall Hall Tel: 202-687-6985 (business hours) Tel: 202-444-PAGE (7243) (after-hours emergencies) Mary Quigley (Eating Disorder Specialist, CAPS) Tel: 202-687-6980 Georgetown Emergency Response Medical Service (GERMS) Village C West 206 Tel: 202-687-4357 Women’s Center 327 Leavey Center Tel: 202-687-6359 Health Education Services 1437 37th St., Poulton Hall, Suite 101 Carol Day — Director, HES Tel: 202-687-8942 Dr. Patrick Kilcarr — Director, Center for Personal Development, HES Tel: 202-687-8944 Jen Luettel Schweer — Associate Director, Sexual Assault Response & Prevention Services Jennifer Wiggins — Staff Clinician, Sexual Assault Specialist Tel: 202-687-0323 Off-Campus Confidential Alcoholics Anonymous Tel: 202-966-9115 Al-Anon/Alateen Tel: 202-882-1334 D.C. Metro Substance Abuse Hotline Tel: 888-294-3572 Narcotics Anonymous Tel: 202-399-5316 or 800-543-4670 Confidential Pregnancy or Sexual Health Services Cell Phone Tel: 202-870-1666 Rape and Incest National Network Tel: 1-800-656-4673 DC Rape Crisis Center Tel: 202-333-7273 Washington Hospital Center, D.C. Forensic Nurse Examiners Program 110 Irving St., Washington, D.C. Tel: 202-742-1736 On-Campus NonConfidential Student Outreach and Support Tel: 202-687-4056 Georgetown University Office of Student Conduct 537 Leavey Center Tel: 202-687-4553 Georgetown University Department of Public Safety Village C West Ground Floor Tel: 202-687-4343 Aura Cutway — Title IX Coordinator, Office of Institutional Diversity, Equity and Affirmative Action M-36 Darnall Hall 37th and O streets NW, Washington, D.C. 20057 Tel: 202-687-4798 Off-Campus NonConfidential District of Columbia Metropolitan Police Tel: 202-727-9099 ILLUSTRATION BY GRACE CHUNG/THE HOYA