Even before 2020 began, many Americans of all ages had mental health conditions and alcohol or drug issues that werent getting the attention and care that they deserved.

Now, six months into the COVID-19 pandemic, three months into a major social justice movement, two months away from a national election and with school starting, hurricanes blowing, wildfires burning and the economy slumping, its a fair bet that many more people are struggling with mental health concerns.

Thats why Michigan Medicine assembled a panel of experts for a recent webinar to offer concrete steps that might help, and links to further resources for helping to manage overall well-being.

This recording has a wealth of tips, from breathing exercises to family activities to advice about the kinds of healthy lifestyle choices that can bolster mental health and keep alcohol use in check. The U-M Department of Psychiatry also offers a wide range of resources and helpful links in its COVID-19 Toolkit.

If youre feeling overly stressed, depressed, anxious or concerned about your alcohol use or someone close to you is showing such signs you dont have to start with a specialist. In fact, primary care providers such as family doctors, general internists, pediatricians and primary care nurse practitioners, are trained to handle many mental health symptoms, says Jill Schneiderhan, M.D., a U-M family medicine doctor and mental wellness specialist.

So just as you would start by contacting them for a new physical symptom, dont be afraid to contact them about changes to your mental health and substance use. That includes a persistent low mood, finding things less enjoyable, and anxious thoughts that intrude on your everyday life.

Several of the experts focused on the things you can do to improve your mental state, including more regular bed times and wake times, cutting out screen use in bed, keeping up social connections even if its via video chat or phone calls, eating a healthy diet, getting regular physical activity, engaging in a hobby, spending time outside, and engaging with art and music.

Elizabeth Duval, Ph.D., a clinical psychologist in the U-M Department of Psychiatry, offers some specific breathing exercises and mindfulness activities that anyone of any age can do, almost anywhere.

Box breathing: Breathe in for a few seconds, hold for a few seconds, breathe out for a few seconds, and hold for a few seconds before breathing in again.

Try the 54321 exercise: Sitting or standing wherever you are, take a moment to notice and name out loud or to yourself five things you can see right now, four things you can touch, three things you can hear, two things you can smell and one thing you can taste.

When talking with someone, say what you are feeling inside. Just speaking it out loud can actually help defuse the feeling itself

If youre a parent, keep in mind that your children are noticing and reacting to the way youre handling these times, says Polly Gipson, Ph.D., a clinicalpsychologist who heads U-Ms Trauma and Grief Clinic. Thats especially true if your family has lost someone to COVID-19, or you belong to a group or live in an area thats being especially affected by current events.

But you can be a model to them by engaging in healthy mental wellbeing self-care and finding ways to focus on positive memories, things to be grateful for, family togetherness because of the lack of scheduled activities, and more. She recommends the CALM method: Communicate with the child to share information, find out what they know and validate their feelings; help them stay Active and creative; Learn how children in general, or your child in particular, show distress; and Model self-care by using positive strategies and sharing them with children.

Childrens future mental health depends in part on how theyre affected by adverse experiences now, both their own and those that their larger community is going through. If you notice troubling behavior in the children in your life, speaking up to get help can make a major difference.

Alcohol and cannabis sales have shot up during the past six months, and jokes about drinking or using marijuana-derived products to cope with these times are rampant on social media. This is typical during stressful times, says Mark Ilgen, Ph.D., the addiction psychologist who directs the U-M Addiction Treatment Services. But he warns that as time goes on, what was once a short-term coping mechanism could develop into a substance-use problem.

Fortunately, he says, support groups, twelve-step groups and addiction care specialists have pivoted to offer online help. And newer medications can help people who have developed a dependence on alcohol, opioids and more. If youre not sure you need this level of help, he notes that many people can cut back on their substance use on their own, by setting targets for themselves including limits on daily or weekly alcohol or cannabis intake. If you find you cant stay within these self-imposed limits, thats a time to seek help. Find more information on the U-M Addiction Treatment Services COVID-19 Addiction & Recovery Resources page.

Above all else, the experts note, if you or someone youre in contact with have been feeling hopeless or even suicidal, its crucial to get help. Dont shy away from discussing the topic, and get in touch with a primary care provider if its not an urgent situation. For urgent or life-threatening situations, contact the National Suicide Prevention hotline at 800-273-8255 or call 911.

Read the original:
Coping and Hoping: Mental Health Tips for Trying Times | University of Michigan - Michigan Medicine

In this week's Your Best Life, 6 News Anchor Leslie Draffin traveled to Salado to explore sound baths, a holistic approach to relaxation and healing.

TEMPLE, Texas September is National Self-Care Awareness Month and right now is the perfect time to take a little better care of yourself. In this week's Your Best Life, 6 News Anchor Leslie Draffin traveled to Salado to explore sound baths, a holistic approach to relaxation and healing.

"If you're suffering from anxiety, depression. If you work a lot, if you haven't worked in a while, it's basically good for everyone," said McKenzie Reeves, a massage therapist, reiki master and owner of Salado Creek Healing.

Reeves said sound baths are basically a meditation tool she as used during her other therapies for the last year.

"If you can help the body find its balance again it'll start to heal," she said.

A sound bath has nothing to do with water. Instead, you're bathed in sounds of different frequencies meant to put you in a deep, meditative state. Reeves uses various tools from crystal bowls to gongs and chimes. Each one tuned to different parts of the body.

According to Reeves, "These are in 432 hertz, which is the miracle tone or frequency. So, it just helps to allow total body wellness and allow your body the availability to heal itself by just giving it a break from real life."

The life-long singer also uses her voice to create healing frequencies of sound.

"I found out that I can sing with them. I can sing another note and it creates a harmonic either binaural beat or some sort of harmonic frequency there that is really powerful for the body, things just release. It's really amazing," she said.

Reeves said to understand why it works, think of your body as a flowing, vibrational system.

"Everything's vibrational, you know they teach you in science in school, that everything's just vibrating at a certain frequency. So, when you get out of frequency it creates a lot of pain and other disturbances like emotional disturbances in the body," she said.

Reeves said sound can help move those stuck feelings.

"So by playing through them and allowing the sound waves to flow through your biofield, which is the energy field around you, it washes away and helps tune the body back into wellness and frequency, happiness. If you think of how you hear somebody sing something that's super, super powerful and you get goosebumps like that affects you on a vibrational level! And so, listening to beautiful music is just healing. It has been since the dawn of all the time," she said.

Each sound bath lasts about an hour. Reeves plays and sings, taking participants on a journey into relaxation and sleep.

"You can release a lot of stuff, stuff that you didn't know you had, stuff that your family's been holding on to for a long time, or things that have been chronically bothering you for as long as you can remember. It allows you to feel weightless for just a moment, sometimes longer, helps get out of the heavy," she said.

Reeves sound baths are donation based so it's accessible for anyone to try. If you'd like to try one for yourself, you can find Reeves on Facebook.

See the rest here:
Sound baths | A holistic approach to relaxation and healing | Your Best Life - KCENTV.com

The patients seen by mobile integrated healthcare and community paramedic programs are among the most complex out there. While CP leaders have now devised a standardized framework for evaluating their needs, much remains subjective when individual medics sit down to rate individual patients.

Wednesdays EMS World Expo session on MIH-CP patient management challenges provided an opportunity for providers from different departments to collaborate on a pair of case studies and work jointly through that evaluation framework, known by the mnemonic CPS MERITS. The idea was to benefit from each others experiences and ideas.

CPS MERITS was developed by Dan Swayze, PhD, COO of the Center for Emergency Medicine of Western Pennsylvania, and Anne Jensen, EMT-P, special projects coordinator for San Diego Fire-Rescue. Jensen led Wednesdays session with Faith Applewhite, NRP, from the Santa Fe (N.M.) Fire Department. They were joined by community paramedic Shawn Percival, who works with Jensen in San Diegos Resource Access Program (RAP), and Santa Fe mobile health paramedic Ramos Tsosie, a colleague of Applewhites in Santa Fe Fires Mobile Integrated Health Office (MIHO).

Both departments use CPS MERITS, but to galvanize the exchange of ideas, they crossed services to work through the case studies, with Percival and Applewhite leading the first and Tsosie and Jensen the second.

The mnemonic, described in a 2019 EMS World article by its creators, helps providers understand the nature and severity of the patients condition, establish a baseline to measure change over time, and provide a road map for care planning. It stands for:

Each of these dimensions is measured as threatening (in need of immediate assistance), unsustainable (working but not for long), sustainable (not ideal but could work long-term, such as a person adapted to homelessness), or ideal. Once rated they can be prioritized for action, with threatening and unsustainable situations taking natural priority.

Percival described a mid-60s female living in a city neighboring San Diego who, during their 18-month collaboration, called 9-1-1 400500 times in her own town and another 80 in San Diego.

He judged her clinical and psychological situations threatening: She had dementia with severe behavioral and cognitive impairment, and often sought Tylenol for arthritis pain in her wrist. Shed overdosed on it previously and didnt understand the danger of taking too much. She was triggered by family, and while her dementia made any help difficult, her problems seemed mostly behavioral, Percival said.

Meals, records, and income werent a problem (ideal), but the other four domains were all unsustainable: Family (social) was tiring of her repeated 9-1-1 calls and false claims of abuse. She was housed (environment) but not always supervised and thus could go out for Tylenol. (Shed also leave the gas stove on, which, while caught each time by her husband, could raise the situation to threatening, Percival noted.) Her calling 9-1-1 for transportation couldnt be sustained, and taxi companies had begun refusing her service over repeated nonpayment. And while she could basically self-care (skills), the stove issue and persistent nonunderstanding of Tylenol overdose dangers left that unsustainable too.

Two threatenings, four unsustainablesa tough patient for sure. The proposed big-picture solution was conservatorship, and her daughter was willing to assume it. But a barrier popped up: Despite the dementia, she was deemed to have the capacity to consent. The countys patient advocate suggested a special conservatorship with dementia powers, so now Percivals team is working with the hospital social worker to navigate that application process.

A lesson here: Sometimes you need multiple plans. You never know where its going to lead you, said Percival. You think youve reached the end goal, then the goal posts have been moved on you.

This patients unsustainable dimensions also intertwine with the conservatorship, but it is rarely used, hard to get, and COVID has slowed court processes. The team is currently awaiting a decision.

Tsosie said his department has found the CPS MERITS framework useful but added an extra legal domain after missing some patient arrests.

The patient he described was a 41-year-old male, mostly homeless, who lived part-time with extended family in the pueblos outside Santa Fe but frequently traveled to town with his mother. In the 18 months theyd worked with him, hed overdosed on opiates 16 times they knew of and maybe more. Hed also been hit by motor vehicles several times and had TBI and a leg injury that caused chronic paina big driver of his substance use.

Obviously the ODs made his clinical situation threatening. Psych was too: The TBI caused problems with impulse control, Tsosie said, and it was hard to get this patient to appointments. Drugs and alcohol were easily available.

Meals and transportation were judged sustainable, but the income domain rose to threatening because the patient was focused on getting disability to the detriment of any other efforts at self-help.

All other dimensions were unsustainable: Family (social) was loyal, but he couldnt use at the pueblo so often didnt stay. In town (environment) he often slept on the streets. He wanted disability but was unable to collect the necessary paperwork (records). He had good social skills, but lack of impulse control often led to aggression. And while he had various court issues (legal), complying with such requirements wasnt usually a priority.

Three threatenings, five unsustainablesanother tough one. But while this patient clearly needs help, his repeat overdoses forced the team back to a much more basic posture: just trying to keep him alive. They gave naloxone to him and his family and took him repeatedly to a harm-reduction clinic in an effort to habitualize his use of it. His income domain was also difficult to address: Hed applied for disability and been denied twice, so they connected him with a representative to help, but he continues to miss appointments.

Beyond that the team has worked to stay in close touch with the patient, keep a feel for his baseline, and offer support and positive social interactions. Tsosie described those interactions as oxygen to those in such challenging circumstanceswithout them, he said, its hard for you to think and feel and navigate the world.

Efforts to help these patients are ongoing. You may face some equally as difficult. There arent right or wrong answers with CPS MERITS, and the point isnt that you should agree with all the ratings here. It can be subjective and vary with community resources. The lesson is theres value in sharing multiple perspectives and working through such assessments with additional sets of eyesthats something community medics often need.

John Erich is the senior editor of EMS World.

Original post:
You Be the CP: Case Studies of Complex MIH Patients - EMSWorld

c/o Ava Nederlander, Photo Editor

First Things First (FTF), the orientation program organized by the Resource Center for first-year, First-Generation Low-Income (FGLI) students, ran from Monday, July 20 to Friday, Aug. 28. As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, this years FTF program was conducted online, featuring a number of synchronous and asynchronous programs rather than previous years in-person, two-and-a-half-day program before New Student Orientation (NSO).

FTF specifically aims to help FGLI students adjust to campus life and equipthemwith the necessary resources, support systems, and academic services to succeed at the University. The program is also an opportunity for students to engage in conversations about their backgrounds and how to navigate a predominately white and wealthy institution.

This years six-week program divided each week into themes, each focusing on a specific facet of campus life: a welcome to Wesleyan, financial aid and independence, academic readiness and resources, connections and networking at Wesleyan, self-care and discovery, and onwards and upwards.

Students attended workshops and panels organized by Resource Center Director Demetrius Colvin and FTF intern CeCe Payne 21, interacting with each other and their FTF orientation interns.

According to Colvin, FTF acknowledges the inequalities faced by FGLI students and provides them with resources for success at the University.

If you come from a family that has thatexpectation, or has that experience, then not only are you passively getting a lot of that information just as youre growing up, but then you also have a direct source you can go to, as you are facing challenges and having questions, and first generation low income students really dont have that same resource, Colvin said. So thats partially why this program was created to help them get that social and cultural capital they need to successfully navigate the institution.

In addition to helping address some of the institutionalized challenges FGLI students face, FTF builds connections for students, creating a community built on shared experiences.

FTF for me is sort of like the first kind of community youre brought into, FTF Orientation Leader (OL) Mahey Gheis 22 said. As a first-generation, low-income student, it means finding people that can relate to you on that level which is kind of hard to parse out when youre at Wesleyan among a general population of college students, and its an opportunity really for connections that can be formed on the basis of those commonalities, which I think is really unique.

FTF Orientation Leader Ariana Baez 22 echoed Gheis words, describing her own experience as a participant and OL for FTF as both meaningful and welcoming.

FTF was the thing that made me feel secure in my position at Wes regardless of my identity and actually because of my identity, Baez said.It celebrated me and ensured me that I was here on my own merit, not as a statistic or filling a quota for Wes, but it really empowered me to take up space and find my own community.

It is unclear whether the changes made for this years program will carry over into future years. Nonetheless, Baez hopes that the positive feedback about the new format will be taken into consideration when planning for next year so that the program can continue to grow and support FGLI students in the best ways it can.

Every FTF student that I talked to this semester, I think, felt a lot more supported because it wasnt a three-day thing, although they didnt get the traditional social in-person interactions that I did, Baez said.

Despite this lack of in-person, Payne stillemphasized the overall success of this years FTF program.

There were a lot of moving parts that went into this, but it came together in a really conducive final product, Payne said. I think one of the big things we had to keep asking throughout was just about access and thinking about the fact that we were in the middle of a pandemic and there were a lot of things that were on peoples plates that they might not have had planned in March. It was just a lot of different things that we had to consider to make sure that everyone was able to capitalize in the way that we wanted them to. I think at the end of the day, we did a good job.

Oliver Cope can be reached at ocope@wesleyan.edu.

Hallie Sternberg can be reached at hsternberg@wesleyan.edu or on Twitter @halsternberg.

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First Things First Adapts to COVID-19 Regulations for Class of 2024 - Wesleyan Argus

After the SARS pandemic in 2003, a study was conducted on 129 quarantined people to find out the effects of the pandemic on their mental health. 28.9% of subjects were found to have PTSD, and 31.2% had symptoms of depression. And the longer the quarantine, the worse things got.

But chances are, you might not even remember the SARS pandemic; so imagine the mental and emotional toll of a pandemic with the historical proportions we are experiencing today with the coronavirus.

I have seen a pretty significant uptake in both depression and anxiety in the pandemic, says Laine DiStefano, a licensed therapist from North Texas.

Maybe you werent struggling with your mental health before the pandemic, but COVID-19 is hitting everyone's mental health in some major ways.

Wherever we were emotionally before the pandemic, the alarming uncertainty and rapid lifestyle changes it produced have negatively impacted us all, says Deborah Ann Davis, a certified personal trainer and award-winning self-help author.

People are really struggling with social isolation, says DiStefano. And naturally, when people get depressed, they tend to self-isolate, which makes them further depressed. And were all sort of thinking about mortality and death and loss and things like that at a higher rate.

So not only do we all have a pandemic to deal with, but we also have less access to the things that used to help us cope with stress, whether it be friends or family or fun activities outside of our homes.

The stress is cranked up really really high, and our access to coping strategies is cranked really low, adds Avery Hoenig, a clinical psychologist. People who normally dont struggle with depression are experiencing symptoms of depression and anxiety as well.

You might have already experienced this tug-of-war between your mental and physical health during the quarantine. Hanging out with friends may ward off depression, but it puts us at a higher risk of infection. So how can we practice self-care while being wary of the dangers of the coronavirus?

The biggest thing is just for us to be kind to ourselves... This is hard. And its not hard because were doing it wrong, its hard because its really hard. " Avery Hoenig, clinical psychologist

What Ive recommended for my patients is to just try to balance risk and benefit, says Hoenig. Theres a risk to go to the grocery store, theres a benefit of getting groceries. So I think especially with social interaction there is a risk, but there is a risk with lack of social interaction, too. Stress reduces our immune system and makes it really hard for us to fight things off.

Hoenig lists ways that she likes to take care of her mental health in a safe way, like socially-distanced picnics, exploring new hiking trails around Dallas, and phoning a friend while walking around her neighborhood.

A risk of a large gathering in tight quarters is pretty high, and I dont know if the benefit would be much higher than a one-on-one kind of socially distanced outdoor picnic, says Hoenig. So try to make the decisions based on possible benefit, and kind of eliminating possible risk can be a good guide.

DiStefano recommends having a social isolation bubble.

If [you] have a group of friends who are also being super careful, who are doing all the right things, wearing masks, people [you] can isolate together with, I think its important that we have social connection and we dont let those go to the wayside either so if you can do that in a safe way, that goes a long way with mental health too.

Deborah Ann Davis wrote about self-care in her book How to Get Your Happy On. She says, If you feel lower than before, reach out to someone with more energy, and let it boost you. If your negative self-perceptions are more pronounced, seek out a professional counselor for help. Find library books for guidance. Write in a journal. Confide in a friend. Scream into a pillow.

There are many practical things you can do to take care of yourself during this time, but there are also ways of thinking that could help you stay strong.

People who have higher levels of depression tend to attribute negative things to permanent factors. So saying to yourself, 'This is never going to go away, things are never going to change, that is absolutely not helpful and it is destructive to your mental health, says DiStefano. So keeping the faith and believing that this is going to get better and that were all going to adjust and the situation will improve is imperative to your mental health.

Hoenig also emphasizes self-compassion during this time. The biggest thing is just for us to be kind to ourselves, she says. This is hard. And its not hard because were doing it wrong, its hard because its really hard. Trying to kind of have that compassion with ourselves and people around us can kind of go a long way.

Original post:
Dallas Therapists Share Their Pandemic Advice for Patients - Dallas Observer

When talking about any bank, its important to remember that current bank sector valuations are far below normal and sentiment is lousy, as investors worry about the impact of the confluence of tight spreads, weak loan demand, rising credit costs, and limited expense leverage. Given all that, it may well not be until late next year before banks start trading on recovery prospects.

Even so, I continue to believe that Citizens Financial (CFG) is just too cheap at a double-digit discount to book value, particularly in the context of upside potential from balance sheet optimization, better operating leverage, and growth in fee-generating businesses. With annualized total return potential in the double digits, I believe this is a name worth considering, and I dont see much risk to the dividend unless theres a significant deterioration in the economy beyond whats already expected.

Most banks commented after second quarter earnings that they believed the bulk of their reserve-building was done, and virtually, every bank Ive seen update their views since has maintained that view although always with the caveat of if things dont get worse from here So too with Citizens, where management presented at Barclays recent bank conference and confirmed a reduced need for future reserve builds. This is perhaps one of the benefits of the new CECL standard in that it leads to earlier reserving ahead of actual losses.

Deferrals are of limited value in predicting credit problems, but evolution here has been positive. Citizens had below-average deferrals exiting the second quarter (6% in the 10-Q), and those have since dropped further to around 4.5%, with commercial loan deferrals at only 1.8% of loan balances at the end of August.

Exposure in the loan book to industries at high risk from COVID-19 is still elevated, though, at around 17% exiting the second quarter (managements estimate is closer to 10%). On a positive note, the exposures are pretty diverse, with no real concentration across areas like oil/gas, hospitality, and so on. Whats more, even the exposed areas arent necessarily at high risk, as the companys exposure in oil/gas is in less price-sensitive segments, its exposure in food service is largely to fast-food/quick-service, and its exposure to retail is largely to gas stations and convenience stores.

Id also note that criticized loan balances are accelerating, with criticized C&I loans up 45% qoq between the second and first quarters, and criticized CRE loans up 37%. In both cases, CFGs criticized loan levels are above-average, though not enough to concern me too much. Citizens also looks a little under-reserved relative to the Feds Severely Adverse scenario compared to other banks, but Id also remind investors that Citizens is challenging the Feds numbers, given that it doesnt factor in certain risk-mitigating items like loss-sharing obligations.

The general theme shaping for the third quarter on the revenue side of things is pretty similar to the theme from the second quarter. Higher levels of deposits are leaving banks with excess liquidity that they cant profitably deploy, given weak loan demand and low rates on securities. Thats going to pressure net interest margins. At the same time, though, fee-generating businesses like capital markets and mortgage banking remain healthy, and that should provide a boost to CFGs non-interest income in the third quarter.

Looking out a bit, Citizens is going to have to continue working on its self-help initiatives to offset secular pressures from weak rates and weak loan demand. Citizens has shifted toward a much more asset-sensitive position over the last few quarters, giving it meaningful leverage to rate increases, but with the Fed recently saying it intends to maintain low rates into 2023, thats not going to help much.

Management continues to invest in its fee-generating businesses like wealth management and capital markets, and Citizens has a pretty diverse array of businesses under its umbrella. The company is also pushing hard on its TOP 6 program, with an increasing focus on fin-tech investments meant to streamline processes, reduce costs, and improve (or at least maintain) customer experiences.

Balance sheet optimization is also still in the mix, with the company looking to make better use of its excess cash, exit low-return commercial relationships, and optimize its funding. On that latter point, $3.5 billion of CDs reprice in the second half of the year its not a huge number relative to the deposit base ($140B-plus), but were very much in an every bit helps phase of the cycle.

I dont see much prospect for higher spreads over the next three to five years, and loan growth is likely to be muted over the next few years, though I see Citizens having some market share growth potential. Of course, one of the most commonly-used words in conjunction with models and estimates is surprise, so there would be upside if the U.S. economy recovers at a stronger/faster pace, particularly with Citizens enhanced rate sensitivity. As is, though, I do believe that cost reductions and fee income growth will help, and I believe Citizens can generate mid-single-digit pre-provision profit growth in 2022-24, and that should be an above-average level of growth for banks of similar size.

Long term, I see Citizens growing core earnings at a low single-digit long-term rate. That supports a fair value in the $30s, as does the companys likely ROTCE over the next two years.

There are legitimate (or at least fair) concerns about Citizens' ability to offset core spread earnings pressure with fee income, operating leverage (lower expenses), and better balance sheet management, but I think todays double-digit discount to tangible book is still too much. Yes, banks are very much out of favor now and likely to underwhelm on core earnings for a while, but for patient long-term investors willing to collect dividends ahead of the eventual recovery-driven re-rating, this is a name worth considering.

Disclosure: I/we have no positions in any stocks mentioned, and no plans to initiate any positions within the next 72 hours. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.

Read the original here:
Citizens Financial's Discount Is Shrinking, But It's Still Too Wide Relative To The Opportunity - Seeking Alpha

(WORDINBLACK.COM) On Sunday, Sept. 12, the NY Times Magazine called 2020 The Lost Year for students across America and their families dealing with remote learning and the social, psychological and cognitive challenges it presents.

But since COVID-19 pulled the plug on live, in-school learning last spring, two predominantly Black charter school systems in Sacramento have turned negatives into positives, chaos into community.

Theyve made it clear that without sustained parental involvement, the horse wont run, the plane wont fly. When it comes to remote learning, Fortune School of Education and St. Hope Public Schools are making sure no child, parent, guardian or grandparent is left behind. In addition to free meals, the school systems are providing free Chromebooks, wifi hotspots, low-cost Internet, headsets, tech support, teaching assistants and behavioral and psychological counselors. They are also providing well-trained teachers who have learned to be patient with themselves as well as their scholars and families.

For generations, African Americans often felt that the education deck was stacked against them inferior schools, higher rates of discipline and suspensions, fewer resources, teachers that seemed not to understand or believe in them.

Black students remain the lowest performing subgroup in California other than special needs students, said Dr. Margaret Fortune, founder and CEO of eight predominantly Black K-12 charter schools in Sacramento serving 1,904 students and another in San Bernardino serving 395. Were 65 percent African American and 26 percent Latino and mixed race most of them low income.

St. Hope Schools serves a similar population at PS7 elementary and middle schools and Sacramento Charter High School in Sacramentos Oak Park neighborhood: more than 1,000 predominantly African American students, the majority low-income, said Chief of Schools Kari Wehrly. Both Fortune and St. Hope helped their teachers, students and families adjust to on-line learning in a matter of weeks.

At first, we had our teachers filming their instruction every single day, posting the video, and students had all day to complete their lessons, Ms. Wehrly said.

Dr. Fortune, too, saw video learning as a way to showcase her best teachers and share their lessons system wide. But both charter systems have come to realize that teachers and students need to meet in cyberspace in real time.

Students were telling us they needed more structure, and families said they dont want to be home-school teachers, so now our classes run live from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily, Ms. Wehrly said.

A good experience in school now is not a normal experience; learning from your kitchen table is not normal, said Dr. Fortune, whose schools require their scholars to sign in remotely by 7:45 a.m. in their school uniforms for a half day of live instruction four days a week the rest of the time is spent on self-paced learning that relies on on-line programs such as MobyMax and Reading Eggs.

Both charters report that thanks to the demands of distance learning, theres more parental engagement than ever.

Its not uncommon for us to have 100 parents on a Zoom call with the principal to teach them how to use the curriculum, Dr. Fortune said. We dont expect you to become an overnight tech expert.

When Fortune Schools announced it was time to pick up free Chromebooks, there were lines of cars around the corner these are low-income Black folks, Dr. Fortune said. We also provide three meals a day. For some of our students, school is their refuge from troubles at home and now they dont have that refuge. In addition to teachers in virtual classrooms, technicians, counselors and special ed teachers often drop in to keep an eye on students who may be in trouble, Dr. Fortune said.

For students whose parents work and cant be home to guide them, the Oak Park Community Center is open all day to receive kids from a variety of schools. The community center staff tell me the Fortune (School) kids are on time in their uniforms and dont need to be coached, Dr. Fortune said.

Some families rely on older siblings to keep everyone on task. St. Hope parent Elesia Morris, a home health nurse from Elk Grove, has left her 13-year-old daughter EMyiah, a 9th grader at St. Hopes Sacramento High School, in charge of her younger brothers at PS7, Emare, 11, and Eric 13.

Shes always been bossy, she said its been in my DNA since I was three, Ms. Morris said. At first they told her, Youre not our mom, but now theyre so used to her waking them up since my husband and I are at work, they go to her for help with everything.

Ms. Morris, whose two oldest sons graduated Sacramento High School and went on to Berkeley and UCLA, said her three younger kids were thrilled when they learned they no longer had to get up at 5 a.m., be out the door at 6:45 a.m. and into the car for a traffic-clogged 14-mile drive to school.

Since they dont have to go to school that early and dont have basketball practice, they dont have to go to bed that early, either, she said.

For grandparents who may not use the Internet, Its really about getting the kids and the teacher together, said Ms. Morris. I believe my kids are learning just as much. My 6th graders teacher called and said he was kind of struggling with Spanish, and we were able to log into office hours.

The same goes for attendance both charters quickly follow up with families whose scholars arent logged in to class.

The key to engagement is to keep school fun and interesting. We had over 600 people view our virtual yoga class some of our parents are more engaged now than they were in person, Dr. Fortune said.

Meanwhile, students have learned to be more self-reliant and self-disciplined than ever because they can monitor their progress working through their online curriculum. This is more like college, Ms. Wehrly said. Nothing replaces getting to see your students in person every day and pulling them aside if you need to, and students get bored at home and are craving to be back in person with their peers. It requires a level of resilience how do you persevere and create your own routine? What does self-care look like?

About the only time they see their teachers and classmates in person is at drive-through events to pick up meals, materials or homework packets. One kindergartener saw her teacher and wanted to give her a hug.

Until students can be in class together, the use of Facebook Live to communicate and celebrate is creating a positive dynamic which weve never had before, Dr. Fortune said. When we held our kindergarten, 5th and 8th grade graduation ceremonies, instead of 100 parents we had 11,000 people from all over the country, and even got a shout out from comedian Tracy Morgan. Its a level of celebrating the individual scholar that goes beyond the four walls of the multipurpose room, and our parents are communicating with parents from all over the country.

Weve gone beyond our initial goal of keeping our school community together in a healthy and joyful way and now are adding to our academic rigor, so kids dont fall into COVID-19 learning gaps.

By Stephen Magagnini | OBSERVER Correspondent

The OBSERVER has joined nine of the nations leading Black publishers to come together to reimagine the Black press in America. Our first official initiative is the launch of Word in Black, a news collaborative unlike anything we have seen in the industry. The mission could not be more important: Word in Black frames the narrative and fosters solutions for racial inequities in America. The group will publish stories on important issues such as voter suppression, inequities in education and healthcare, reimagining public safety and more. The following story is part of the collaborative. For more information, visit http://www.wordinblack.com

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Learning In The Age of COVID: From Chaos Comes Opportunity to Build Community - Sacramento Observer

With the outbreak of the COVID 19 epidemic, the entire mankind around the world is suffering. Strengthening the bodys natural defence system (immunity) plays a significant role in maintaining optimal health.

As we all know, prevention is better than cure, although there arecurrently no drugs for COVID-19 treatment, it is best to take preventive measures to enhance our immunity during these tough times. The Ministrys guidelines on post-COVID management also recommend adequate sleep, rest, and a balanced nutritious diet; looking for early warning symptoms (such as high fever, breathing difficulties, unexplained chest pain, etc.), and regularly take medications as recommended for COVID-19 diseases, as well as for managing Comorbidities (if any). It said that a holistic strategyis needed to provide follow-up care and improve the health of all patients who have recovered from COVID.

Ayurveda, the science of life, spreads the gifts of nature in maintaining a happy and healthy life. The extensive knowledge of Ayurveda in preventive health care is derived from the concepts of Ritucharya(seasonal care) and Dinacharya(daily regimes) to maintain a healthy life. This is a plant-based science.

The simplicity of self-awareness and the harmony that everyone can achieve by improving and maintaining their immunity is emphasized acrossAyurvedas classical scriptures.

The following self-care guidelines for preventive health measures and immune improvement, with relevant reference to respiratory health, are recommended by theMinistry of AYUSH.These are also supported and recommended by Ayurvedic literature and scientific publications.

Ayurvedic Immunity Boosting Measures

1. Chyawanprash prevents COVID-19: Is it effective?

Earlier, the Ministry of AYUSH recommended that Chyawanprash should be taken in the morning with warm water/milk under the guidance of an Ayurvedic doctor. However, the question here is-Can taking Chyawanprash provides protection against COVID-19 infection?

Chyawanprash is enriched with minerals, vitamins, and effective antioxidants, which can help strengthen the immune system and prevent a series of health problems.It is believed that the high vitamin C content in Ayurvedic herbs can help you improve immunity,metabolism and prevent various viral and bacterial infections, including the common cough and cold problem.

Therefore, the idea is that taking this Ayurvedic product may help strengthen immunity against infectionsincluding COVID-19.It is important to note that no scientific research can prove that Chyawanprash can prevent or cure COVID-19. Chyawanprash can only boost your immunity.

Benefits of Chyawanprash

It is claimed that using Chyawanprash has some health benefits:

Heres How to Use Chyawanprash to Boost Immunity

According to the recommendations of theAYUSH Ministry, one teaspoon ofChyawanprashwith warm water/milk should be taken in the morning under the supervision of a registered Ayurvedic physician. It is believed that Chyawanprash is an effective remedy in the post-recovery phase in clinical practice.

Parents who plan to give Chyawanprash to their children should consult a doctor, as the dosage depends mainly on their digestion.

2. Drink decoction(Kadha) or Herbal tea made from Basil (Tulsi), Cinnamon (Dalchini), Black pepper (Kalimirch), Dried ginger (Shunthi ), and Raisin (Munakka). Add natural sugar (jaggery) and/or fresh lemon juice as per your taste.

3. Golden Milk Put half a teaspoon ofTurmeric(Haldi) powder into 150ml of hot milk-once or twice a day.

4. Simple Ayurvedic Procedures

General Measures

During Sore throat/Dry cough

These measures usually treat normal sore throat and dry cough. However, if these symptoms persist, it is best to consult a doctor.

In addition to this, the Union Ministry of Health issued a post-COVID-19 management protocolon Sunday, providing comprehensive follow-up care and well-being of recovered patients. Among the several suggestions,the Ministry of Health recommends healthy eating, moderate exercise, such as yoga, and seeking social support or counseling. The ministry also proposed several home remedies and Ayurvedic medicines to boost immunity.

Health Ministry statedthat it has been observed that after the acute coronavirus ailment, recovered patients may continue to report various symptoms and signs, including fatigue, body pain, cough, sore throat, difficulty in breathing, etc. The recovery period may be longer for patients who have a more severe form of the disease and those with pre-existing illnesses.

It appended:The follow-up care and well-being of all recovered sufferers post-COVID needs a holistic method. Heeding this, the Ministry of Health has issued a post-COVID management protocol. This provides a comprehensive holistic approach for managing patients who have recovered enough from COVID for home care. This protocol is not intended to be used as a curative/preventive treatment method.

Heres the complete post-COVID tracking protocol:

1. At individual level

2. At the community level

3. In a healthcare facility setting

In the absence of specific treatment or a safe vaccine for COVID-19 illness, taking precautions in all possible maybe our best action against coronavirus infection.

READ Amazon, reeling from recent regulatory hurdles, pumps $404M into its India business

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COVID-19 | Ayurvedic Effective Measures For Self-Care: In The Absence Of COVID-19 Drug, Precautions Should Be Taken! Can We Use Chyawanprash To...

The Telegraph

Coronavirus was not the main cause of death for nearly one third of recorded Covid-19 victims in July and August, research by Oxford University has found. Analysis shows that around 30 percent of people included in the coronavirus death toll by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) over the summer months had died primarily from other conditions. It means someone who suffered a heart attack, or even died in a road traffic accident, may have been included in the figures if they had also tested positive for coronavirus at some point, or if doctors believed the virus may have exacerbated their condition. Throughout the entire pandemic, around one in 13 people currently classed as Covid-19 victims did not have the disease as an underlying cause of death. It means 3,877 deaths (7.8 per cent) in which coronavirus was not the primary cause have been included in the figures. In July and August, that number jumped to 28.8 per cent of all registered deaths, meaning Covid-19 was not the main cause of death in 465 of 1,617 recorded victims (listen to the podcast below, which discusses whether Britain's death toll could be set to increase again).

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Focusing on self-care and wearing face masks 'can help mental wellbeing during pandemic' - Yahoo News UK

WASHINGTONFollowing months of lockdown due to the Covid-19 pandemic, an angry mob of heavily armed self-help gurus reportedly demanded Tuesday that Americans reopen their hearts. Its time for U.S. citizens to find a way to look inwards and embrace their own divinity or face the inevitable consequences, said an AK-47 toting Bren Brown, wielding her weapon and threatening untold violence if the nation didnt immediately allow itself to be vulnerable in an effort to accomplish its goals. Our founding fathers created this country as a haven away from that little voice in your head that says No. Frankly, its unconstitutional to deny others a glimpse of your true inner self. We will uphold the American ideal of love and acceptance with blood if necessary. At press time, Marianne Williamson slammed a magazine into her FN SCAR and vowed to unleash hell on Earth until the nation welcomed the healing power of crystals.

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Heavily Armed Self-Help Gurus Demand America Reopens Their Hearts - The Onion