Mental & Physical Health

Posted

Mental health includes our emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It affects how we think, feel, and act. It also helps determine how we handle stress, relate to others, and make healthy choices. Mental health is important at every stage of life, from childhood and adolescence through adulthood.

2  ways to manage your mental health (during Covid)

  1. Take breaks from the news: After a certain point, it can be more upsetting than informational. Make sure the information you do get is from reputable and non-sensationalist sources. And evaluate how much is helpful for you to read in a day, and aim to stick to that limit. It can be upsetting to hear about the crisis and see images repeatedly. Try to do some other activities you enjoy to return some normalcy back to your life as much as possible. Make time to unwind and remind yourself that these strong feelings will fade.
  1. Take care of your body: Take deep breaths. Stretch. Meditate. Try to eat relatively well-balanced meals, move your body regularly and get plenty of sleep. This will help boost your immunity — and your resilience.
  • Many students, particularly tweens and teens, are not moving their bodies as much as they are supposed to be  during a pandemic or otherwise (60 minutes per day for ages 6 to 17, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention). 
  • Also getting your adolescent to participate in Zoom PE still isn’t sufficient for their physical health. 
  • Being physically active also decreases risk of depression and helps students maintain better mental health as well. 
  •  To get your own younger ones moving, here are a few ideas from families around the country, all almost-guaranteed hits, even with winter coming.
  • Take a hike with family and a friend. 
  • If your adolescent is reluctant to go hiking with just you, try to invite family and friends to tag along. Hiking can be an easy activity while still social distancing and wearing masks! Colorado has lots of trails for all ages. 
  • Jump! Jump! Jump! (Jump Roping)
  • “One of the most accessible, inexpensive, socially distanced sports is something you may not even realize is a sport. Since the pandemic began, jump roping has become “a Tik-Tok craze,” according to Nick Woodard, a 14-time world-champion jump roper and founder of Learnin’’ the Ropes, a program designed to teach kids and adults the joy of jumping. “All you need is time, some space and a $5 jump rope, and you’re good to go,” Woodard said.”
  • Bundle up for snow yoga.
  • Once it starts snowing, 10 to 20 people will gather twice a week at a safe distance in a private backyard with a backdrop of Lake Michigan.                       
  • Form a friendly neighborhood bike gang.
  • “Kids are biking like never before,” said Jon Solomon, a spokesman for the Aspen Institute’s Sports & Society Program, the nonprofit’s initiative to help build healthy communities through sports. Over the year, leisure bike sales grew 203% year over year, he said.”
  • In one neighborhood in Denver, one neighbor has opened up a half-mile dirt bike track on his property to all the kids on the block.
  • Start a small running club. 
  • “In San Francisco, under rain, fog or blue skies (or even the infamous orange one), a group of sixth-graders have been gathering in Golden Gate Park two times a week to run 2 miles. Their unofficial motto: “Safe Distance, Minimal Distance.” Masks are required, and photo breaks are frequent, as is post-run ice cream. Started on a whim by local parents in August, the club has been such a hit, attracting anywhere from six to 20 kids each run, that some occasionally call for a third afternoon per week, even a 7 a.m. before-school meetup (in which case they serve doughnuts). But treats are not the ultimate draw.
  • If all else fails, bribe them.
  •  Pay your kid ? a dollar, a quarter, a penny ? per minute to walk the pandemic puppy you just got. “It gets them out of the house and out of my hair ? and they earn some money,” said Murray Isgrig, parent of Wyatt in Denver. “Even though they don’t have anywhere to spend it.”
  • Additionally if any adolescent/family at Hamilton Middle School needs any supportive services or resources please contact Ms. Torrez-Fluent, LCSW School Social Worker at 720-423-3951, Mr. Crespin, MSW Social Worker at 720-423-9513 for assistance.