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Wellness
news & updates
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May Wellness - Thrive with Playfulness | |
Just because we are adults with careers and personal responsibilities, does not mean our days need to be full of worries or all about work. We recognize the importance of play for children but sometimes forget that play isn’t age specific. Play is any activity that brings you joy without having a specified outcome or result. | |
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Engaging in play allows us freedom from pent-up energy that causes tension in our bodies and mind. Being playful strengthens individual well-being and our relationships. Work communities that engage and encourage play are more productive, creative, and experience less burnout. In a Psyche Central article, adults who allowed themselves to be spontaneous, silly, funny, and playful also experienced:
- Higher levels of creativity;
- A greater sense of hope;
- Elevated mood states;
- Capacity for growth and learning; and
- Greater overall well-being
That is why we are encouraging individuals, teams, classrooms, and our whole MetroED community to seek more play. This New York Times article offers ways to assist adults who have forgotten how to play:
- Make friends with your inner critic who is afraid of how it looks to play
- Remember what you like to do as a kid and find a grown-up version of it
- Let play be intrinsically motivated without posting it online or sharing it with others
- Discover your play type: social, whimsical, light-hearted, or intellectual
More resources to help you prioritize play:
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HECKAWELL Movement -
Creating Youth Well-being
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HECKAWELL stands for Helping Every Child Know Authentic Wellness. The movement is about destigmatizing mental health and wellness while creating inclusive spaces for youth to engage in their well-being. The movement aims to reduce the fear or shame of mental health conditions and the fear of getting help. Staff and students are invited to share their stories on social media at #Heckawell to help normalize mental health. Watch the video above for more information about the campaign.
More resources to support youth:
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May is Mental Health Awareness Month | During Mental Health Month, Mental Health America encourages everyone to examine how their inner and outer worlds impact well-being. Support yourself and others. Learn more about how your genetics, your mind, your home, your work, and your neighborhood impact your health. | |
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We have gathered more resources for you:
Environment:
Support Yourself:
Support others:
Be the Change: Learn about Mental Health First Aid. Contact Tricia Zamora if you are interested in taking a class with MetroED.
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You Don't Have to Be Alone to Feel Lonely | |
If you feel lonely these days, you are not alone. Wait! What? Yes! With over 50 percent of U.S. adults feeling isolated and disconnected from others, loneliness was recently declared a national epidemic. Being alone is not required to feel lonely. Even those who are around others daily or who are in long-term relationships experience loneliness as well as physical and mental health decline associated with it.
More resources:
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The 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline is a free resource available 24/7 to provide confidential support for anyone. 998 can provide resources for you or loved ones, provide prevention resources, and provide assistance to those in crisis.
To learn more, visit: https://988lifeline.org
You can also text or call: 988
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Spring Cleaning is Good For Your Health | | |
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Your Mental Well-being Is Always Changing | |
Mental health is complex and always changing. Just because you have never been diagnosed with a mental health condition doesn't necessarily mean you are mentally well. Likewise, it is possible to be diagnosed with a mental health condition while flourishing.
Check-in with your well-being regularly using the confidential Mental Health continuum these tools:
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Employee Assistance Program - The Science of Happiness | |
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In addition to providing cost-free counseling services for you and your household members, your Employee Assistance Program (EAP) highlights a monthly health topic. This month’s health topic is The Science of Happiness.
To access happiness and mental health resources:
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Break The Stigma of Addiction and Substance Use | |
While mental health awareness continues to grow, stigma and shaming remain high for people with mental illness due to substance use. Many still believe substance use is a choice because there is little education on how:
- Factors beyond a person’s control such as trauma, lead to substance use; and
- The brain changes that occur with substance use make it hard for an individual to stop.
More resources:
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Morning Mood Boost, Thursday, May 18 | Start the day feeling upbeat and energized. Come with an open mind and leave with a positive and peaceful one. No experience is necessary. Includes coffee and breakfast snacks to go. Drop in or RSVP through the Google Calendar. Check your calendar for details. | |
Happify - A Wellbeing App FREE for All | Each month we like to highlight well-being tools that are available to you and your loved ones. Happify provides daily inspiration to keep you uplifted, courses and tools to change negative thought patterns and manage stress, access to webinars with experts, and everything in between. Go to happify.com to access Happify online or find and install the Happify app via your phone at the Apple Store or Google Play. | | |
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The Governing Board is committed to providing equal opportunity for all individuals in education. District programs, activities, and practices shall be free from unlawful discrimination, including discrimination against an individual or group based on race, color, ancestry, nationality, national origin, ethnic group identification, age, religion, marital, pregnancy, or parental status, physical or mental disability, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity or expression, or genetic information; a perception of one or more of such characteristics; or association with a person or group with one or more of these actual or perceived characteristics. | | | | |
