Blog 15- Haitian Workers

The documentary, Mickey Mouse Goes to Haiti, was a good portrayal of the conditions workers in other countries face to provide America with goods (National Labor Committee, 1996).  The documentary speaks to the incredibly low wages given to Haitians.  The workers were under paid, harassed, and kept from voicing concerns. The Disney Company, of course, would not speak to the National Labor Committee.  The workers were fearful to even speak to the camera, in fear of losing their jobs. Their wages were so low; they had to live off of credit for their children to go to school.  They were unable to provide food for their families.  Families shared a one bedroom home for 8 people.  However, the documentary only showed one family's living conditions. That could be a poor representation of the conditions of all Haitians working for Disney, but I imagine the rest are not doing much better.  It is difficult to think of workers not being paid properly for their work as we have unions to prevent that injustice, but we need to take a stand for workers in other countries providing us with goods. Americans' already have a bad name around the world and not paying our workers properly is only adding to our bad reputation. It is very disappointing seeing that from a company we know and love like Disney.  I wonder if the conditions have improved for these workers since this video was made. 

National Labor Committee. (1996). Mickey Mouse Goes to Haiti. Retrieved from: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6_OXhtgHBxk&feature=player_embedded

Blog 14- Reducing Risk for Assault

As a woman, every time I step out of my door at night to walk to my car, I think am I safe?  It is a constant fear many women face. There are steps women can do to reduce their risk for assault.  One thing women can do is be aware of their surroundings.  When walking to your car or to your door know who or what is around.  We should always call security to walk us to our cars if leaving a location after dark. When parking, women should chose a well lit area, close to the entrance for safety. People may say women should not dress provocatively, but that is saying it is the women's fault they are being attacked. Women should be able to dress however they choose, but be aware of their environment for safety.  Women should always leave a location after dark in groups of two or more. When at a bar, women should never put their drink down and take their eyes off of it; someone may put something in it.  Education, as with every blog I have posted, is key.  Knowing things to look for in environment  (making sure a van is not parked next to your car) and taking self defense courses to increase confidence are ways women can educate themselves.

Blog 13- Jail or Rehab??

Should a person with an addiction go to jail or rehab? Honestly, I believe it is a combination. When someone commits a crime, they should go to jail. However, if that person has an addiction I believe a mandatory stent in a rehabilitation/treatment facility should go hand-in-hand with their sentence. The jail time is necessary to fulfill the punishment for their crime, but if they are not treated for the addiction, their behaviors will not change once released. Drugs are easily accessed in prisons. Their addictions are only being fueled in that environment. The disease must be addressed if we expect any change to come from their incarceration. Who should pay for the time in rehab? That is a hard call to make. If it is required as part of their sentencing, the burden would be placed on the government. I wouldn't imagine someone with a substance abuse problem being able to afford a few months in an inpatient rehab facility. We have to allow them a chance to change and if we throw them in jail with no counseling or detoxing time, we are setting them up for failure. I do believe that if a crime is committed, the person should pay their debt to society and serve jail time. With over-crowding in the prisons, it may be more cost effective to send them to treatment facilities rather that jail, but I believe some time in jail is necessary. The jail time proves the seriousness of the crime. Most people don't want to go to jail and a few months in a comfortable inpatient rehab wouldn't be as bad, so they wouldn't be paying for their crime. There has to be punishment, but there has to be rehabilitation. I do not think it is one or the other, jail or rehab, it is both.

Blog 12- Stigma with Mental Health

The stigmas that surround mental health, limit people from receiving treatment.  It is an area that should be addressed in order to provide people with the care needed to be productive members of society. Education is the key to eliminating stigmas. National organizations involved in the research and promotion of mental health could provide PSAs on the common types of mental disorders and their prevalence.  When people realize how commons their symptoms are, they may be more likely to reach out for treatment. Education in the school systems at an early age to prevent some of the illnesses common with adolescents (i.e. eating disorders) could assist with them getting treatment sooner as they know the consequences and their friends know the warning signs.  Another way to prevent stigmas is education throughout communities through support group for people with mental illnesses as well as their family members to prevent prejudice after diagnosis. Mood disorders are so common know, I believe there has been a shift in people's thinking with regards to mental illnesses. However, there are still so many unanswered questions and lack of knowledge in communities about schizophrenia and serious mental disorders; we need to continue providing education to eliminate the stigmas.

Blog 11- Living for the Future

I think about the future all of the time. What will my finances be when I retire (even though it is FOREVER away)? What will my health be like when I am older? Will I have kids that excel the way I want them to? How much longer will my parents be around? What will global warming do in the future?

These are questions that deal with the future that I ask myself often, but I wonder if I am really living for the future. If I were, what would I do differently? For starters, I would eat healthier. We all want to be healthy and live forever, but the choices I am making now do not support that desire. Exercising goes hand-in-hand with eating healthier. As we age, it is better for our balance and overall energy level to exercise. With my parents, I am not doing things now to keep them health either. We go to dinner for get togethers rather than a hike or bowling. Anything active would be better than sitting around and eating. When we cook for birthday celebrations, providing healthier options for the meals, especially with my father being a diabetic is another way to take better care of my parents. With the environment, if we were living for tomorrow we would be more aware of our effects we would be more “green”. Things like recycling, taking public transportation, shorter showers are all areas in which to save our environment.

It is easy to think and worry about the future, but it is difficult to put the plan into action for truly affecting the outcome. 

Blog 10- Disease Prevention

Academic institutions can play an important role in the prevention of disease for women.  Education, as with anything, is crucial.  Institutions offering more courses either required portions of the curriculum or electives, which promote health awareness, are one way to further education required for disease prevention.  If women know prominent diseases faced by their gender and common signs and symptoms, they will be more likely to catch diseases while still treatable.  Some institutions are beginning to host walks (5k or marathons) to promote awareness of certain diseases as well as health fairs to cover general health issues (high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and obesity).  Academic institutions with open campuses requiring students to walk to class rather than park right at the building will increase physical activity of their students with the hopes of increasing their health. Requiring a course with physical activity (even if it just bowling) will help students be more active.  A gym membership can be expensive, and most college students are living on a budget; providing a free gym to students would not only provide a place for them to work out, but provide a place for students getting degrees in athletic training etc. to get hands on training and learning.  Intramural sports are typically a part of the college experience.  I always participated in softball, bowling, and flag football.  Those intramural sports were a great way to meet people and be physically fit. There are many opportunities for academic institutions to provide education and increased physical activity.  The key is many students do not know all of the options available. Providing information through flyers, emails, and announcements in classes is one way to get the word out on campuses.  Students will not remember all of the activities available if the information is provided during orientation when they are already in information-overload.

Blog 9- Regular Exercise

When it comes to eating healthy and exercising regularly, I have a difficult time.  Eating healthy is difficult for me because it is so easy to go pick up dinner from a fast food place than to come home and cook. My commute to/from work takes an hour each way. So by the time a work an 8+ hour day and drive two hours, I am looking at a minimum of a 10 hour day. Who has the energy to cook, much less work out, after a day that long? I am in the process of finding an apartment closer to work so that should help with my lack of time.  My apartment complex has a gym, however there is only 1 treadmill and someone is always on it. On a positive note, my work just opened a free gym to employees. Hopefully after I move closer, I will have more energy to go workout before or after work.  I have over the past month, been exercises 1-2 times a week. I would like to increase that to 3-4 times. I feel when my commute is cut way down I will have more energy and time to increase the number sessions per week.

Over the next 5 years, I see my challenges only increasing for working out.  Marriage and kids are in my 5 year plan and that comes with it's own set of time challenges. I hope to have developed fairly sensible eating habits (rather than eating out so much) that I can carry over to my kids. I do not want my children to have to deal with food issues as I have. I want to teach them to eat healthy from the start.

My goal is to just find a workout routine and stick with it and maybe no matter the obstacles with time management I face, I'll be able to continue the routine.

Blog 8- Menopause

Menopause has been seen as a condition that must be fixed. We view the symptoms of menopause as the end to a youthful life and the beginning of the end. We need to change this view and celebrate women and the freedom menopause brings.  There needs to be more education rather than more confusion on ways in which women can manage their symptoms. Women experiencing menopause and their views of “going through the change” are how we begin to change society's view. If we, as women, look at menopause as the beginning to the end and this horrible thing we all must go through, then society will as well. Women should celebrate their independence from monthly menstruation, children, and certain responsibilities. It is a time to be free and enjoy life and not deal with all of the schedules and responsibilities women had in their 30s and 40s.  The media is, in my opinion, helping some with the view that aging isn't such a bad thing. With more and more older women dating younger men and looking better in their 50s than 20s we are beginning to appreciate the middle age. Aging isn't all bad. Education, as with everything, is the key to women understanding and appreciating the changes in their bodies. If they do not know why they are feeling certain symptoms then they cannot make lifestyle changes or medication changes necessary to address them.  Lifestyle changes such as diet and exercise can remediate some of the hot flashes and depression women feel. Medication is not always the answer. Not to sound like a broken record, but the only way women will know this is through education! It's the key!!

Blog 7- Sexually Transmitted Diseases

Sexually transmitted diseases have become more common than we like to admit.  It is no longer a sign of promiscuity or immortality.  Any woman or man is at risk for contracting sexually transmitted diseases (STD) due to having more than one partner in their lifetime.  Times have changed and majority of people are no longer waiting until marriage to have sex.   We, as a society, have become more focused on a healthy sex life.  This means people are having sex even without a committed relationship.

When people are not properly educated on the importance of protected sex, they are more likely to protect themselves against STDs.  The education level of individuals may be affected by their social or economic class.  However, that does not mean that a well educated, middle to upper class person would necessarily be at a lower risk of contracting the diseases, it just means they are more likely to protect themselves than someone that has not been educated on safe sex. 

As we move forward with our thinking with regards to sex, we can no longer harbor the old stereotypes of sexual activity.  Just because a person has multiple partners does not mean they are promiscuous or immoral and just because some one is of a lower economic class does not mean they are destined to contract a STD.  We continue to evolve our thinking and stop making snap judgments about a person.

Blog 6- Surrogate Mothers

Surrogate mothers assist couples who are facing infertility.  These women provide not only their bodies to carry the babies but their egg for fertilization as well.  Their egg is combined with the sperm from the man of the infertile couple.  They carry the baby and after delivery, give the baby to the infertile couple (Alexander, LaRosa, Bader, Garfield, Alexander, 2010).  In the video, Professional Surrogates, a couple and their surrogate was followed (Fox News WB 56, 2006).  The professional surrogate provides services as a job.  She has her own children and in an effort to provide for them financial, provides children for women who cannot provide for themselves.  It is amazing the monetary compensation these couples must provide.  They not only are paying for the medical expenses but from my understanding, an addition approximately $35,000.  That is an enormous cost!  The surrogate, according to the video, receives about half of that amount.

If a woman has the emotional strength to carry a baby for 40 weeks, give birth and then give the child away in order to help another family, I find that admirable.  I personally would not be able to emotionally handle it.  It was interesting to see how involved she appeared to be with the family and child.  I imagine that must be difficult. However, in the interview, she, the surrogate, says very matter of fact that is not her child.  Maybe that is her way of separating herself from the child she has carried for so long in order to avoid an emotional connection so she does not have a difficult time giving it away.  It is wonderful there are women who are able to provide such a special gift to families who are unable to have children on their own.  It is truly a precious gift. 

Alexander, L. L., LaRosa, J. H., Bader, H., Garfield, S., Alexander, W. J. (2010). New Dimensions in Women's Health. Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett Publishers.

Fox News WB 56 (Producer). (2006). Professional Surrogates Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xnJXO9T0u3Y

Blog #5- To have or not to have

The decision to have children or go childless is a decision all couples must make. One of my close friends, let's call her Maddy, has decided to place the decision in God's hands.  Maddy and her husband have chosen to abstain from intercourse on days of peak fertility.  Every morning she wakes up and takes her temperature to check her basal body temperature to determine if she is ovulating. It is only a slight change, therefore only certain thermometers can be used (thermometers that read to the hundredth degree).  Maddy, and her husband, is Catholic and due to religious beliefs have decided to not use contraceptives. 

The both want children, lots of children in fact, but the timing is not right for them.  She is just beginning in her career and he is still in graduate school. They have only been married a short period of time.  However, if they were to get pregnant tomorrow, they believe it is what God has chosen for them and they will make it work. It takes a lot of commitment for Maddy to wake up every morning and check her temperature. She jokes that on Saturday mornings it is very difficult for her to wake up and take her temperature (you must take it at the same time every day, much like the pill). One Saturday she said she would skip the day and fell back asleep and woke up with the thermometer in her mouth from her husband getting up to take it! It is great for Maddy to have such support from her husband in keeping up with their choice for planned parenthood.

I have another friend, let's call her Grace, does not want to have children at all. She is single, owns her own home and is happy. She wants to get married some day, but does not want to have children.  She has made her decision and has never waivered.  She will not date a man with children and utilizes birth control and condoms to avoid pregnancy.

No matter how temporary or permanent our decisions for having children or going childless, we are so blessed to have the options to chose.

Blog #4- Sex Education

Sex education and what should be included has been an issue for many years.  In my opinion, it is an essential element in school education.  In high school, we were offered Health as a course. Except, this health course was a complete joke.  We learned a few diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, etc. but nothing with regards to health issues the majority of us faced as high school students.  Sex education, no matter how uncomfortable to teach, would have been more relevant to our age.  My sex education came from my friends. Later I learned my mother had "the talk" with one of my sisters but only when she came to her with questions. It is a very uncomfortable subject for many people to discuss, but how can we expect this young generation to know and understand sexuality if we are too uncomfortable to speak about our own. 

Personally, my sex education was just don't do it until you're married.  That is great, BUT it does not teach safe sex for those young adults who will do it regardless.  My teaching centered around not getting pregnant.  Teaching youth to use condoms is not just to prevent pregancy but also disease. It is my opinion, teaching safe practices (wearing a condom and oral contraceptives) is the only way to prevent unwanted pregnancies and disease for younger adults/youth. Having a teacher teach these issues gives students someone they feel comfortable talking to, other than their parents, about these issues. Not all parents are open to discussion and not all kids have parents who are present in their lives to even begin to have discussions about life and sex.  Teaching them ways to handle sexual encounters safely and how to deal with sexual violence is very important. 

Sexual violence is another subject that needs to be covered in sex education.  Again, it gives students someone they feel comfortable speaking to if, God forbid, they are a victim.  I only hope my kids (when I have them) have someone they feel comfortable confiding in, even if it is not me. 

Blog #3- Preventive Practices

Completing the self-assessment of my preventive practices only reinforced what I already knew about myself. I do not utilize enough preventive practices. The basic primary preventions such as nutrition and physical activity (Alexander, LaRosa, Bader, Garfield, & Alexander, 2010) are some of the most difficult to manage. Time management is a huge contributor to these practices. As many in the class can probably attest too, it is difficult with school, work, and life to find time for exercises and cooking a nutritious meal.  There are too many things to accomplish in one day.

I find it odd that the last question, of 10 total, dealt with regular check-ups.  It is crucial, in my opinion, for us to maintain that basic level of care with our healthcare team.  Yes, it is hard to get yearly gynecological check ups and even teeth cleanings, but they are vital in early detection of cancers.  I work in a cancer institution.  The importances of these check-ups become forefront in your mind when you see everyday the benefits and consequences of participating or not participating in check-ups.

On a positive note, I currently implement SOME practices!  I use laughter as stress relief.  I believe in teaching mature conflict resolution.  I am constantly attempting to teach my nephews other ways in which to hand conflict.  With regards to prevention of accidents, I am sure most of us practice these because it is law! We have to wear our seatbelts. With motorcycles, I do not own one and have never ridden in one.  I cannot believe all of the motorcycle drivers I have seen since I moved to Texas without helmets on!! It is a law in Mississippi (where I am from). Motorcyclists must wear helmets. Working as a therapist I have seen too many accidents involving brain injuries that could have been prevented with the use of a helmet.  But, I guess we all have areas in which we could decrease our risky behaviors.

Alexander, L. L., LaRosa, J.H., Bader, H., Garfield, S., & Alexander, W. J. (2010). New Dimensions in Women’s Health. Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett Publishers.

Blog #2

Health care: Right or Privilege

In my opinion, health care is a basic right. However, in believing it is a right, I believe the government should not control or mandate people to have health coverage. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 47 million Americans do not have health insurance (2009). My question is, how many of those 47 million Americans want insurance? Some Americans without insurance are in college or young and working and prefer to keep their money rather than pay for insurance. Is it the government's job to force someone into purchasing insurance if they chose to keep their money rather than pay for insurance? America was created to allow people to make their own decisions. I know that our system is flawed. I see it every day when I have a patient that needs 24 hour supervision and isn't safe to discharge home by themselves and their entire family works and they cannot afford a nursing home and insurance won't cover it. It is frustrating, but I do not believe our government should force anything on us. If there was no longer competition in the health market, would we have as many great drugs (even with the high costs) and the treatments available all discovered through profit driven research? Again, I know the system if flawed, but maybe we should adjust the system rather than force a new one.

(2009, April 2). FASTSTATS- Health Insurance Coverage. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/hinsure.htm

Blog #1

My main health concern centers on nutrition and exercise. I only know a handful of people who truly exercises regularly and eat correctly. Americans, myself included, do not know proper nutrition. We have no idea proper portion control or how many vegetables we are really supposed to eat a day. The kids get French fries and pizza for lunch at schools and if we did give them healthier options, would they eat it? Probably not since most wouldn't know a vegetable if they saw one because we aren't giving providing them in the home. And please understanding, I am including myself. With the preventable disease that are running rampant in the country, I still can't seem to muster up the willpower to put the television remote down and exercise. Maybe this course will help motivate me!

I interviewed a friend whose family is from Pakistan. Her main health concern was diabetes and heart disease. These two diseases are found in very close relatives of her (i.e. father and sister). She voiced concern that she, too, might one day develop one or both of these issues.

The second friend I interviewed is from India. Her main concern deals with an irregular menstrual cycle. Her desire, and her familial expectations, is for her to marry and have children. With her menstrual issues, her concern is not being able to provide her future husband with children, especially as she is in her early 30s and not yet married.


The two friends interviewed are healthy, young women. Who, in spite of their great health, are still, true to our nature as women, worried/concerned with their health.