1 00:00:03,110 --> 00:00:05,850 Clarissa Green: Hi! My name is Dr. Clarissa Green and I am a 2 00:00:05,850 --> 00:00:08,250 psychologist that works at the Moorpark College 3 00:00:08,250 --> 00:00:11,310 Student Health Center. Today I'm going to be talking 4 00:00:11,670 --> 00:00:14,640 you through a few strategies to survive finals 5 00:00:14,640 --> 00:00:17,580 during this really unsettling time that we've all 6 00:00:17,580 --> 00:00:19,800 been facing. I know you're at a lot of your 7 00:00:19,800 --> 00:00:23,700 professors have asked me to record a little 8 00:00:23,700 --> 00:00:27,890 something to help guide you through this time. And 9 00:00:28,010 --> 00:00:31,740 I am going to be starting today by discussing some of 10 00:00:31,740 --> 00:00:33,840 the mental health concerns that we've been 11 00:00:33,840 --> 00:00:37,890 seeing from students during this global pandemic. 12 00:00:39,150 --> 00:00:42,060 I'm going to cover some some tips for surviving finals 13 00:00:42,090 --> 00:00:45,360 while we're facing social distancing. I know it 14 00:00:45,360 --> 00:00:47,880 sounds like they'll slowly be easing restrictions 15 00:00:47,920 --> 00:00:51,360 but it looks like until finals are over we still 16 00:00:51,360 --> 00:00:54,810 will be committed to social distancing. And I'll 17 00:00:54,810 --> 00:00:58,560 end today with when and where to seek help. So to 18 00:00:58,630 --> 00:01:02,950 begin reviewing some of the mental health concerns 19 00:01:02,950 --> 00:01:06,490 that either I've been reading about or that I've 20 00:01:06,490 --> 00:01:09,430 heard from students or that I've been experiencing 21 00:01:10,720 --> 00:01:13,420 so you may notice that some of these concerns 22 00:01:13,600 --> 00:01:16,720 you've been experiencing as well and others you 23 00:01:16,720 --> 00:01:19,240 may not. But just going to review some of 24 00:01:19,240 --> 00:01:23,940 these themes with you. So this has been a big one. 25 00:01:23,970 --> 00:01:28,380 Reduced motivation and feeling less 26 00:01:28,380 --> 00:01:32,730 motivated is actually been largely impacted by 27 00:01:32,730 --> 00:01:37,200 this pandemic. We aren't around our friends, 28 00:01:37,350 --> 00:01:41,640 fellow students, co-workers... We're really in a state of 29 00:01:42,720 --> 00:01:46,470 exploration. It really is hard to stay motivated 30 00:01:46,500 --> 00:01:48,450 with your school work. So you may have noticed 31 00:01:48,480 --> 00:01:51,450 that all the days are kind of blending together and 32 00:01:51,450 --> 00:01:54,090 you feel less motivated when it comes to school 33 00:01:54,090 --> 00:01:57,630 and your academics. So that is something I've been 34 00:01:57,630 --> 00:02:01,070 hearing a lot about. As well as feelings of 35 00:02:01,070 --> 00:02:05,120 loneliness. It's been really hard not being able to 36 00:02:05,120 --> 00:02:10,040 see friends or just even be around people at a 37 00:02:10,040 --> 00:02:14,330 coffee shop or seeing people walk around campus. 38 00:02:14,360 --> 00:02:19,220 It's really this sense of isolation. In addition to 39 00:02:19,220 --> 00:02:24,380 this isolation increased anxiety has also been a 40 00:02:24,440 --> 00:02:25,880 major trend right now. 41 00:02:28,400 --> 00:02:31,570 This idea that you had to face this big shift to 42 00:02:31,580 --> 00:02:34,110 online classes some of you may have really liked-- 43 00:02:34,380 --> 00:02:38,720 and some of you less so. But there's this global panic 44 00:02:38,750 --> 00:02:40,520 that's been going on. All these events are 45 00:02:40,520 --> 00:02:45,350 canceled. You're at home with family. And I know for 46 00:02:45,350 --> 00:02:48,080 some individuals like hanging out with family has 47 00:02:48,080 --> 00:02:51,950 been a good thing; with others not so much. And so 48 00:02:51,950 --> 00:02:55,560 that's been really stressful. And also you know 49 00:02:55,580 --> 00:02:58,400 there are many people that have lost jobs. Their 50 00:02:58,400 --> 00:03:01,730 parents have lost jobs and facing economic 51 00:03:01,730 --> 00:03:07,040 struggles. So all of this contributes to our 52 00:03:07,040 --> 00:03:09,770 frequent worries that we may be experiencing an 53 00:03:10,040 --> 00:03:14,360 increased level anxiety. So it's something if 54 00:03:14,360 --> 00:03:16,730 you're experiencing these things this is 55 00:03:16,730 --> 00:03:19,730 something that's been felt by a lot of others 56 00:03:20,120 --> 00:03:20,930 during this time. 57 00:03:23,650 --> 00:03:25,730 In addition I feel like this goes hand-in-hand 58 00:03:25,750 --> 00:03:28,390 with the motivation problems as problems 59 00:03:28,390 --> 00:03:31,430 concentrating. A lot of people don't know that 60 00:03:31,450 --> 00:03:35,020 problems concentrating are core symptoms of 61 00:03:35,470 --> 00:03:38,620 anxiety and depression. This doesn't mean if you're 62 00:03:38,620 --> 00:03:40,870 having problems concentrating that you have anxiety or 63 00:03:40,870 --> 00:03:44,050 depression but it does mean that you're having a 64 00:03:44,050 --> 00:03:48,850 shift in mood. And during this pandemic so many 65 00:03:48,850 --> 00:03:50,770 students have been talking about having 66 00:03:50,770 --> 00:03:54,970 difficulties concentrating, feeling engaged, not 67 00:03:54,970 --> 00:03:58,660 being able to ask questions in class or turn to a 68 00:03:58,660 --> 00:04:01,870 classmate for support. And it's really just been 69 00:04:01,870 --> 00:04:04,510 hard to attend to your work even though you're 70 00:04:04,510 --> 00:04:08,020 wanting to get stuff done. So again something that 71 00:04:08,020 --> 00:04:08,770 we've been seeing. 72 00:04:11,190 --> 00:04:14,730 This meme cracked me up. But yes I'm hearing a lot 73 00:04:14,730 --> 00:04:18,150 about a lack of privacy that students are facing 74 00:04:19,530 --> 00:04:22,470 and not just students but families more broadly as 75 00:04:22,890 --> 00:04:26,280 everyone used to have a lot more private time, 76 00:04:26,880 --> 00:04:32,070 alone time. And now it's like family is always 77 00:04:32,070 --> 00:04:35,610 around. Families may be violating boundaries and 78 00:04:35,610 --> 00:04:37,980 just walking straight through the door into your 79 00:04:37,980 --> 00:04:42,720 room. And it's really hard to kind of set some 80 00:04:42,720 --> 00:04:45,870 time to work on your studies or even complete your 81 00:04:45,870 --> 00:04:47,070 finals during this time. 82 00:04:50,030 --> 00:04:52,520 And last, I wanted to spend some time talking 83 00:04:52,520 --> 00:04:56,570 about this idea of grief during this global 84 00:04:56,570 --> 00:05:00,050 pandemic that we've been facing is a lot of us 85 00:05:00,050 --> 00:05:02,840 have been mourning the lives that we used to have. 86 00:05:03,590 --> 00:05:08,060 Whether it's spending time with friends or hiking 87 00:05:08,060 --> 00:05:12,800 on a trail that's now currently closed, 88 00:05:12,800 --> 00:05:15,380 an internship that we want to have and we can't have it. 89 00:05:15,380 --> 00:05:18,620 If we wanted to walk during graduation that's 90 00:05:18,620 --> 00:05:22,430 no longer possible. There's all these big life events 91 00:05:22,880 --> 00:05:25,730 that we can't participate in. Weddings being put on 92 00:05:25,730 --> 00:05:31,700 hold. And it's been a grieving process. And I know 93 00:05:31,700 --> 00:05:36,050 grief is something that we usually use that term 94 00:05:36,050 --> 00:05:38,660 when we're discussing someone who's died in our 95 00:05:38,660 --> 00:05:42,500 lives and grieving them. But we can also 96 00:05:42,500 --> 00:05:46,310 grieve important experiences that are no longer 97 00:05:46,310 --> 00:05:49,340 there for us. Somebody knows that you've you've 98 00:05:49,340 --> 00:05:52,520 kind of been a little sad about all these big 99 00:05:52,520 --> 00:05:56,690 changes. Again that is completely normal and a 100 00:05:56,690 --> 00:05:58,220 hard thing that a lot of people have been 101 00:05:58,220 --> 00:06:04,940 experiencing. Also this this idea of grief is 102 00:06:05,000 --> 00:06:07,220 very different if you have lost someone during 103 00:06:07,220 --> 00:06:11,600 this semester. A lot of people have suffered loss 104 00:06:11,600 --> 00:06:14,260 of a grandparent or someone else during this time 105 00:06:14,270 --> 00:06:17,630 that's a loved one. And what's strange about this 106 00:06:17,630 --> 00:06:21,320 time of grieving someone that you love is that 107 00:06:22,190 --> 00:06:25,100 people can't congregate for funerals. And that's a 108 00:06:25,100 --> 00:06:27,650 big part of the healing process and a big part of 109 00:06:27,650 --> 00:06:30,890 closure, being able to celebrate this person's 110 00:06:30,890 --> 00:06:34,040 memories even being able to get support from 111 00:06:34,040 --> 00:06:37,910 others that are there. The ceremony is a 112 00:06:37,910 --> 00:06:40,940 big part of the grieving process. So some people 113 00:06:40,940 --> 00:06:44,750 have been delaying funerals. Others have been 114 00:06:45,770 --> 00:06:48,740 conducting them virtually and finding a sense of 115 00:06:48,740 --> 00:06:52,100 closure through that. But there has been a lot of 116 00:06:52,100 --> 00:06:57,950 grief lately during this really hard time. So we 117 00:06:57,970 --> 00:07:01,070 are going through all these hard things. We are 118 00:07:01,070 --> 00:07:02,960 dealing with all this frustration that we're 119 00:07:02,960 --> 00:07:05,150 feeling about these things. We're bummed out about 120 00:07:05,150 --> 00:07:08,600 these things, stressed about these things. And so I 121 00:07:08,600 --> 00:07:11,300 wanted to walk you through eight tips to help you 122 00:07:11,300 --> 00:07:13,730 get through finals because you are almost there! 123 00:07:13,730 --> 00:07:18,110 Which is very exciting. So the first one. This is 124 00:07:18,110 --> 00:07:20,420 something that you may have heard over and over 125 00:07:20,420 --> 00:07:25,280 again by your professors or popular media is that 126 00:07:25,690 --> 00:07:27,470 I can't stress enough how important it is to 127 00:07:27,470 --> 00:07:31,190 create a daily schedule. At first, our 128 00:07:31,190 --> 00:07:35,150 schedules were really created for us by our events 129 00:07:35,180 --> 00:07:38,320 that we had scheduled. So now we have to kind of 130 00:07:38,330 --> 00:07:41,180 bring that structure to our lives and that will 131 00:07:41,180 --> 00:07:44,330 help increase motivation. But I recommend when 132 00:07:44,330 --> 00:07:46,700 you're creating a schedule to have three 133 00:07:46,700 --> 00:07:50,090 categories of tasks. So goals that are related to 134 00:07:50,130 --> 00:07:54,290 finals. Different chores around the house that may 135 00:07:54,290 --> 00:07:56,480 be helpful for you, like cleaning your room, making your 136 00:07:56,480 --> 00:08:01,550 bed. And self-care activities like going for a run, 137 00:08:02,020 --> 00:08:06,450 like stretching, taking a shower. Things that help 138 00:08:06,450 --> 00:08:10,100 to take care of you. And I'd really recommend as 139 00:08:10,100 --> 00:08:12,260 your scheduling out your day with different 140 00:08:12,620 --> 00:08:15,110 different goals related to finals 141 00:08:15,500 --> 00:08:18,680 is use the chores and a self care activities as 142 00:08:18,680 --> 00:08:23,220 breaks. You see a lot of students they kind of 143 00:08:23,240 --> 00:08:25,730 don't choose to take breaks but they just get very 144 00:08:25,730 --> 00:08:28,850 distracted and they just sit in front of their 145 00:08:28,850 --> 00:08:32,120 laptop and end up scrolling on their phones. But I 146 00:08:32,120 --> 00:08:37,550 recommend making these breaks meaningful to help 147 00:08:37,550 --> 00:08:40,160 you feel better while you're you're trying to 148 00:08:40,160 --> 00:08:42,890 either cram for exams or writing that final paper. 149 00:08:44,180 --> 00:08:47,840 And I would say selecting a good workspace can 150 00:08:47,840 --> 00:08:49,340 make all the difference too. 151 00:08:51,350 --> 00:08:54,740 I know that I'm very guilty of having my workplace 152 00:08:54,740 --> 00:08:59,030 get a little crazy and messy but it can be a world 153 00:08:59,030 --> 00:09:02,570 of difference if you keep your place clean and 154 00:09:02,660 --> 00:09:05,870 organized. It doesn't matter if you know the rest 155 00:09:05,870 --> 00:09:08,060 of your room is crazy for wherever you're working 156 00:09:08,420 --> 00:09:10,160 you need to be clean and organized to help you 157 00:09:10,160 --> 00:09:14,030 feel a sense of calm. And yeah selecting 158 00:09:14,030 --> 00:09:16,160 a location that makes you feel good. Whether it's by 159 00:09:16,160 --> 00:09:19,700 a window, or it's on your bed...whatever feels 160 00:09:19,700 --> 00:09:20,380 best for you. 161 00:09:22,730 --> 00:09:26,390 And I recommend not doing the whole subject book 162 00:09:26,400 --> 00:09:29,870 spread out thing. Really, take out one subject at 163 00:09:29,870 --> 00:09:33,290 a time. This helps again to keep you focused on 164 00:09:33,290 --> 00:09:37,370 what you're working on. But also not how you get 165 00:09:37,400 --> 00:09:39,470 overly stressed with all the things that you need 166 00:09:39,470 --> 00:09:42,170 to do. And a big one is keeping your phone on 167 00:09:42,170 --> 00:09:42,620 silent. 168 00:09:44,660 --> 00:09:47,090 Those vibrations keep us distracted. And actually 169 00:09:47,090 --> 00:09:51,170 there's been research conducted that even having 170 00:09:51,170 --> 00:09:53,990 your phone out on silent can reduce your ability 171 00:09:53,990 --> 00:09:56,300 to concentrate and intent on the tasks that 172 00:09:56,300 --> 00:09:59,060 you're performing. So it's even better if you can 173 00:09:59,060 --> 00:10:01,310 turn it off or put it across the room so you're 174 00:10:01,310 --> 00:10:05,300 not tempted, to keep it on silent. That's not 175 00:10:05,300 --> 00:10:08,330 saying that you have to do that all day long, but 176 00:10:08,330 --> 00:10:10,270 just while you're you're working on something to 177 00:10:10,470 --> 00:10:11,100 to put that phone aside. 178 00:10:13,700 --> 00:10:16,730 Tip number three is breaking up large assignments 179 00:10:16,790 --> 00:10:19,910 into smaller assignments. Don't just say "Okay, today 180 00:10:19,910 --> 00:10:23,390 I'm going to write a paper." That is way too 181 00:10:23,390 --> 00:10:27,530 large of a goal to help you stay focused. So 182 00:10:27,620 --> 00:10:29,870 breaking that down into larger goals. Write an 183 00:10:29,900 --> 00:10:34,250 outline. Create references page. Find 184 00:10:34,490 --> 00:10:37,310 references for paper. Write one page. You want to 185 00:10:37,310 --> 00:10:39,890 break up that larger assignment into smaller more 186 00:10:39,890 --> 00:10:43,760 manageable goals, and you want to take breaks. 187 00:10:43,790 --> 00:10:47,390 These are key to help you maintain a sense of 188 00:10:47,390 --> 00:10:52,340 concentration and focus and motivation. And offer yourself 189 00:10:52,340 --> 00:10:55,780 small rewards when you've accomplished a goal. This 190 00:10:55,780 --> 00:10:59,650 could be a run. This could be a treat that you 191 00:10:59,650 --> 00:11:03,130 have saved. Like cookies. Just little things that 192 00:11:03,130 --> 00:11:05,350 will make you feel excited once you accomplish 193 00:11:05,350 --> 00:11:09,760 something. So that again it breaks up what can be 194 00:11:09,820 --> 00:11:12,580 like a sense of monotony that can happen. 195 00:11:14,510 --> 00:11:18,230 Tip number four (this is my favorite tip) is 196 00:11:18,230 --> 00:11:22,640 enlisting support in getting through finals. An 197 00:11:22,640 --> 00:11:24,950 example of this is have a friend study with you 198 00:11:24,950 --> 00:11:27,650 virtually. In the beginning to me feel a little 199 00:11:27,650 --> 00:11:29,600 weird to kind of be staring at each other while 200 00:11:29,600 --> 00:11:32,720 you're working on face time. But it's a great 201 00:11:32,720 --> 00:11:35,190 strategy. Just feel like you're not alone in your 202 00:11:35,200 --> 00:11:37,700 both kind of working on your study goals together. 203 00:11:39,600 --> 00:11:44,250 Also keep each other accountable by trading goals. 204 00:11:44,570 --> 00:11:47,130 Could be with your classmates or friends or family 205 00:11:47,130 --> 00:11:50,280 members just tell someone "Oh hey I'm trying to get 206 00:11:50,280 --> 00:11:52,740 this done in this hour can we check in on each 207 00:11:52,740 --> 00:11:56,010 other?" And so you'll kind-of feel more 208 00:11:56,010 --> 00:11:58,200 accountable: "Oh I have to get this done so I can 209 00:11:58,390 --> 00:12:00,400 text my friend that I've finished it." 210 00:12:02,600 --> 00:12:06,440 And also setting fake progress deadlines with 211 00:12:06,440 --> 00:12:11,000 one another can be a big part of that. So I highly 212 00:12:11,000 --> 00:12:15,500 recommend for you to enlist some support in 213 00:12:15,500 --> 00:12:20,150 tackling finals. Tip number five is to relax your 214 00:12:20,150 --> 00:12:23,960 body. When we get stressed we tense our muscles. 215 00:12:24,140 --> 00:12:26,690 We can even experience like an accelerated heart 216 00:12:26,690 --> 00:12:33,140 rate, and stress is not good for concentration. So 217 00:12:33,170 --> 00:12:36,260 taking time throughout the day to relax your body 218 00:12:36,260 --> 00:12:39,440 through your favorite exercise stretching or 219 00:12:39,590 --> 00:12:42,570 breathing exercise. We also have this great 220 00:12:42,810 --> 00:12:45,120 mindfulness website from the Student Health Center 221 00:12:45,140 --> 00:12:49,110 it's been built up with so many resources. And 222 00:12:49,110 --> 00:12:51,960 also there's a lot of free apps to use that you 223 00:12:51,960 --> 00:12:54,450 may already be using to experiment with different 224 00:12:54,450 --> 00:12:57,600 types of relaxations like the Calm app, like 225 00:12:57,600 --> 00:13:01,740 Headspace. There's a lot of different ones. 226 00:13:01,740 --> 00:13:05,880 Liberate is a great app. So just check them out 227 00:13:05,880 --> 00:13:08,400 and do some. I know a lot of them offer free 228 00:13:08,400 --> 00:13:11,610 trials or limited access to the apps that are free. 229 00:13:12,480 --> 00:13:14,200 So during finals if you haven't checked it out 230 00:13:14,200 --> 00:13:16,500 already may be a great time to take a look. 231 00:13:19,270 --> 00:13:22,630 Tip number 6. I know that this is one that's 232 00:13:22,630 --> 00:13:25,990 really hard because there's such a temptation 233 00:13:26,020 --> 00:13:29,680 during finals to restrict sleep and pull an all 234 00:13:29,680 --> 00:13:30,370 nighter. 235 00:13:32,690 --> 00:13:35,770 The recommended amount of sleep for college 236 00:13:35,770 --> 00:13:38,050 students is 7 to 9 hours per night. 237 00:13:40,120 --> 00:13:42,580 Even if you know if you restrict sleep slightly 238 00:13:42,580 --> 00:13:45,070 during finals to get some things done that's 239 00:13:45,070 --> 00:13:48,820 perfectly fine. But I'd really recommend against 240 00:13:49,540 --> 00:13:52,990 participating in that all nighter because the lack of 241 00:13:52,990 --> 00:13:55,630 sleep is associated with concentration problems 242 00:13:55,630 --> 00:13:58,930 and a reduced working memory. This is hugely 243 00:13:58,930 --> 00:14:00,730 problematic, especially when you're trying to take 244 00:14:00,730 --> 00:14:04,060 a timed exam. I know that a lot of the exams have 245 00:14:04,060 --> 00:14:07,600 been open book right now. But even with the open 246 00:14:07,600 --> 00:14:10,630 book exams you have to find a lot of the content 247 00:14:10,690 --> 00:14:13,930 quicker than you normally would. So it's really 248 00:14:13,930 --> 00:14:17,320 important to get a little bit of sleep so that 249 00:14:17,320 --> 00:14:20,620 your anxiety isn't out of control and you're able 250 00:14:20,620 --> 00:14:24,180 to really focus on what's going on a little 251 00:14:24,180 --> 00:14:30,240 bit during finals. And tip number seven is setting 252 00:14:30,240 --> 00:14:36,120 boundaries. So to avoid having siblings or family 253 00:14:36,120 --> 00:14:40,290 members or roommates interrupting study time, just 254 00:14:40,290 --> 00:14:43,140 knock on their door and ask them for 255 00:14:43,230 --> 00:14:46,470 uninterrupted study time. But what can be helpful 256 00:14:46,470 --> 00:14:49,770 is not just leaving this open ended. It can be "'kay, 257 00:14:49,840 --> 00:14:51,420 until noon, I'm going to be working on this 258 00:14:51,420 --> 00:14:54,750 project. If you could just give me some time to 259 00:14:54,750 --> 00:14:58,230 work quietly that would be amazing." I know it's 260 00:14:58,260 --> 00:15:00,300 easier said than done to effectively set 261 00:15:00,300 --> 00:15:04,570 boundaries with friends, family, and roommates but 262 00:15:04,590 --> 00:15:06,540 sometimes having a conversation can be helpful. 263 00:15:09,040 --> 00:15:12,280 If you are taking a final, so you're in progress 264 00:15:12,310 --> 00:15:15,130 taking a final, make sure that you're in turning your 265 00:15:15,130 --> 00:15:18,220 phone off, that you're closing your door. And I 266 00:15:18,220 --> 00:15:21,070 recommend putting a sign on your door for family 267 00:15:21,340 --> 00:15:24,220 like "Don't knock. Final in progress until 2 p.m." 268 00:15:24,880 --> 00:15:28,360 Something that signals to people in your life that 269 00:15:28,660 --> 00:15:32,440 you are busy. Making sure that you kind of log out 270 00:15:32,440 --> 00:15:34,930 of any social media, so you're not tempted to do 271 00:15:34,930 --> 00:15:37,780 that during your exam. Keep yourself fully focused 272 00:15:37,840 --> 00:15:38,500 on that final. 273 00:15:40,840 --> 00:15:43,660 And lastly, tip number eight is remind yourself 274 00:15:43,670 --> 00:15:46,760 this is almost over. You all have less than two 275 00:15:46,760 --> 00:15:51,980 weeks until the end of finals. And you can really 276 00:15:51,980 --> 00:15:55,070 celebrate your success of being finished because 277 00:15:55,100 --> 00:15:57,310 regardless of what you were able to complete this 278 00:15:57,310 --> 00:16:00,860 semester you should feel very proud of what 279 00:16:00,860 --> 00:16:05,130 has been an unprecedented time for all of us. And 280 00:16:05,510 --> 00:16:10,490 so celebrate your your small successes during this 281 00:16:10,490 --> 00:16:10,850 time. 282 00:16:12,940 --> 00:16:14,890 And just a reminder some of these strategies 283 00:16:14,940 --> 00:16:16,960 you think: "Oh my gosh it's not helpful for me at 284 00:16:17,080 --> 00:16:19,990 all," and that's perfectly fine. Do what works for 285 00:16:19,990 --> 00:16:23,320 you. So if there's something to take away from 286 00:16:23,320 --> 00:16:26,320 this, go ahead and try it. If others don't seem so 287 00:16:26,320 --> 00:16:27,340 relevant, that's fine. 288 00:16:29,860 --> 00:16:32,050 If you are a little bit concerned about what 289 00:16:32,050 --> 00:16:35,920 you've been feeling during this finals time there 290 00:16:35,920 --> 00:16:38,470 are some ways to seek support either during the 291 00:16:38,470 --> 00:16:41,140 finals, or if you want support after finals, 292 00:16:42,310 --> 00:16:45,380 that's perfectly fine too. I get a lot of 293 00:16:45,380 --> 00:16:48,050 questions about well when when do we seek help? 294 00:16:49,220 --> 00:16:52,100 When is counseling good for me? Who is counseling 295 00:16:52,100 --> 00:16:52,490 for? 296 00:16:54,620 --> 00:16:57,410 I would say some broad guidelines are if you've 297 00:16:57,410 --> 00:17:00,110 been feeling something, not been feeling good 298 00:17:00,110 --> 00:17:03,920 about your stress for two weeks or longer, it's 299 00:17:03,920 --> 00:17:05,840 usually a good time to seek some support. 300 00:17:05,870 --> 00:17:08,990 Similarly, if your feelings are impacting your 301 00:17:08,990 --> 00:17:11,420 social relationships like, you've been withdrawing a 302 00:17:11,420 --> 00:17:15,050 lot from your school work, your family life, or your work 303 00:17:15,050 --> 00:17:18,800 life. Of course when you're having thoughts of death 304 00:17:18,800 --> 00:17:22,730 or suicide, it's extremely important for you to 305 00:17:22,730 --> 00:17:26,950 seek help. And then lastly anytime you want us at 306 00:17:26,950 --> 00:17:31,120 the health center. We want to support you for for 307 00:17:31,180 --> 00:17:33,160 what you're going through: any small stressors, 308 00:17:33,160 --> 00:17:36,550 large stressors during this time, because we want 309 00:17:36,550 --> 00:17:40,750 you to be academically successful. Some support 310 00:17:40,810 --> 00:17:43,900 options: therapy or counseling like we were 311 00:17:43,900 --> 00:17:47,920 discussing is very helpful. I see feeling 312 00:17:47,920 --> 00:17:50,290 comfortable with your therapist is really key. If 313 00:17:50,290 --> 00:17:52,950 you feel uncomfortable with your therapist or they 314 00:17:53,080 --> 00:17:55,630 don't feel like they're getting you I'd really 315 00:17:55,630 --> 00:17:58,030 recommend making a switch. You have to feel 316 00:17:58,030 --> 00:18:00,610 comfortable with your therapist for therapy to be 317 00:18:00,700 --> 00:18:03,710 helpful and you should know that there're 318 00:18:03,730 --> 00:18:06,940 different styles of therapy. Some are more 319 00:18:06,970 --> 00:18:09,520 unstructured. Some are more structured, like cognitive 320 00:18:09,520 --> 00:18:11,980 behavioral therapy. You kind of have to find the 321 00:18:11,980 --> 00:18:16,080 right type for you. There's also medication that 322 00:18:16,290 --> 00:18:19,170 can be prescribed by psychiatrist or your medical 323 00:18:19,170 --> 00:18:24,210 doctor. You can make an appointment virtually with 324 00:18:24,210 --> 00:18:26,040 your medical doctor if you want to have a 325 00:18:26,040 --> 00:18:28,920 conversation. And a lot of psychiatrists are doing 326 00:18:28,920 --> 00:18:33,060 telehealth. So if medication can be helpful 327 00:18:33,060 --> 00:18:33,630 support. 328 00:18:35,720 --> 00:18:38,160 And taking care of yourself like eating right. 329 00:18:38,220 --> 00:18:40,890 Working out. A healthy lifestyle is really 330 00:18:40,890 --> 00:18:44,280 important to support both of these options moving 331 00:18:44,280 --> 00:18:44,650 forward. 332 00:18:46,820 --> 00:18:50,090 As part of your student health fee on you are able 333 00:18:50,090 --> 00:18:55,700 to get sessions at the Student Health Center. These sessions are free, 334 00:18:55,730 --> 00:18:58,640 confidential, and don't go on your academic record. 335 00:18:59,150 --> 00:19:02,240 Our services are very short term. If you're only 336 00:19:02,240 --> 00:19:05,450 enrolled in classes for the spring semester we 337 00:19:05,690 --> 00:19:08,600 likely only have time to see you one or two times. 338 00:19:08,720 --> 00:19:11,360 left this semester, but if you're taking summer 339 00:19:11,360 --> 00:19:15,710 school then you can get up to six sessions as part 340 00:19:15,710 --> 00:19:19,220 of the student health fee that you've paid for. And 341 00:19:19,220 --> 00:19:22,340 we're we're happy to support you. We see students 342 00:19:22,340 --> 00:19:26,300 via Zoom, or phone appointments, and we use HIPAA 343 00:19:26,300 --> 00:19:31,450 compliant software for our Zoom sessions. If you 344 00:19:31,540 --> 00:19:35,290 are stressing financially if you're facing 345 00:19:35,290 --> 00:19:37,810 homelessness or if you need a referral to local 346 00:19:37,810 --> 00:19:41,070 food banks, contact financial aid they can be of 347 00:19:41,070 --> 00:19:45,340 great support during this time with helping you 348 00:19:45,340 --> 00:19:49,270 get connected. Because this has been a financially 349 00:19:49,270 --> 00:19:51,250 very stressful period of time for a lot of 350 00:19:51,250 --> 00:19:54,100 students and families. And they are here to 351 00:19:54,100 --> 00:19:57,640 support you. And similarly the Samaritan Center 352 00:19:57,640 --> 00:20:00,580 of Simi Valley. They also can direct you to a lot 353 00:20:00,580 --> 00:20:03,550 of different resources like food banks and showers 354 00:20:03,550 --> 00:20:06,950 and other types of support. So just wanted to give 355 00:20:06,950 --> 00:20:10,240 you some of that information. If you're interested 356 00:20:10,240 --> 00:20:14,350 in long term therapy or want some support from 357 00:20:14,350 --> 00:20:18,280 your community, you can call your insurance and ask for 358 00:20:18,280 --> 00:20:21,460 a list of mental health professionals. You can 359 00:20:21,460 --> 00:20:24,130 call the Ventura County Behavioral Health Crisis 360 00:20:24,130 --> 00:20:28,870 and Referral Line. They're available 24/7. So 361 00:20:28,870 --> 00:20:31,980 that's something there for you. And the Cal Lutheran 362 00:20:32,010 --> 00:20:36,010 Community Clinic offers low fee counseling as well. 363 00:20:37,210 --> 00:20:40,210 So something to kind of think about as far as 364 00:20:40,210 --> 00:20:44,050 resources in the community. If you're having an 365 00:20:44,050 --> 00:20:47,560 emergency or your friend's having an emergency 366 00:20:47,890 --> 00:20:50,440 you can call the National Suicide Prevention 367 00:20:50,440 --> 00:20:53,980 Hotline, both for you if you need immediate 368 00:20:53,980 --> 00:20:56,290 support. But let's say your friend is having 369 00:20:56,290 --> 00:20:59,110 suicidal thoughts. You can call this line at any 370 00:20:59,110 --> 00:21:02,590 time to ask for advice like how to how to handle 371 00:21:02,590 --> 00:21:07,030 the situation and they'll walk you through it. And 372 00:21:07,030 --> 00:21:10,240 then I also listed the crisis text line. You can 373 00:21:10,240 --> 00:21:14,860 text the word "courage" to 7 4 1 7 4 1, and it's 374 00:21:14,860 --> 00:21:18,190 available 24/7. What's beautiful about this 375 00:21:18,190 --> 00:21:21,580 service is if your family members are in the home 376 00:21:21,580 --> 00:21:23,530 and you're worried about somebody overhearing you 377 00:21:23,920 --> 00:21:26,290 you can have a completely confidential 378 00:21:26,590 --> 00:21:30,940 conversation with a trained support staff to give 379 00:21:30,940 --> 00:21:32,920 you some recommendations about how to proceed. 380 00:21:35,100 --> 00:21:37,050 And also if you're having thoughts of suicide you can 381 00:21:37,050 --> 00:21:39,990 go to the emergency room. They're really prepared 382 00:21:39,990 --> 00:21:41,850 to help in these mental health emergency 383 00:21:41,850 --> 00:21:45,120 situations. So there's a lot of different supports 384 00:21:45,120 --> 00:21:47,010 for you with if you're having those types of 385 00:21:47,010 --> 00:21:49,410 thoughts as well as coming to the health center. 386 00:21:49,460 --> 00:21:51,900 But these are really the place to go for emergency 387 00:21:51,900 --> 00:21:52,710 services. 388 00:21:55,670 --> 00:21:58,130 Thank you all for... I guess not having me, but 389 00:21:58,160 --> 00:22:01,850 hearing me. I wish you the best during this finals 390 00:22:01,850 --> 00:22:06,110 period of time. Us therapists at the health center 391 00:22:06,920 --> 00:22:12,470 have created an Instagram, @findingcalmish so you 392 00:22:12,470 --> 00:22:16,600 can go ahead and follow us there for continued 393 00:22:16,640 --> 00:22:19,500 tips that are being posted by our post-doctoral 394 00:22:19,580 --> 00:22:23,480 fellows on our team. I wish you all the best again 395 00:22:23,620 --> 00:22:24,560 and take care.