The Wellness Weekly
Week 1
Welcome to the first Wellness Weekly!
We hope you and yours are safe and well. We appreciate all you are doing every day to maintain that safety and wellness for you, your family and your school community. You matter and your work matters. We know this pandemic is associated with increased uncertainty and stress. We also know using trauma-informed approaches (like resilience) to promote wellness we can actively grow those parts of our brains that will help us weather adversity and bounce back better when we can finally get back to being in the same room with each other.
What exactly do we mean by well? In general, wellness refers to all aspects of health (physical, mental and social well-being) and a dynamic process of change and growth so we can be our best selves. What does wellness mean right now? Take a deep breath. I mean really take a deep breath. Take three. (You just practiced resilience building, good job!) Perhaps just reading this far has made you wonder how you could possibly focus on one more thing? You are already being asked to stay up on the emails, the technology, the teaching, the supporting the teaching, the PD and keeping your toilet paper well stocked. We do not want to be one more thing. We want to be a value add, hope filled resource to contribute to your wellness.
We know that you will use what works for you and hope to provide a variety of ideas and practices. If not reading this email is the help you need today, by all means stop reading and maybe come back to this when you have capacity. If you need an idea for how to start building resilience in these troubling times, we’ve got you covered. If you want to read an article on the science of hope or the ways in which we can stay socially connected and physically distant, we’ve got you. If you just need to hear a soothing voice that is not sharing another grim statistic or look at baby penguins hatching, we’ve got you. All of these things will help your brain and your body stay well and build resilience for the next moment, the next day...they should also make you feel good when you do them. And you can always just breathe.
We also know that if you are struggling to get through each day, maybe even to get through each moment, help is available. Please reach out to the Washington County Crisis 24 Hour Line at 503-291-9111 or to our Employee Assistance Program Cascade Centers at 800-433-2320. Reach out to us with your wellness ideas, comments and questions so we can be well together.
~Brought to you by your Student Services Prevention and Intervention Team. For questions, please contact Amy Baker.
Practice
Podcast
Play
It's Okay Not to be Productive During a Pandemic
Employee Assistance Program
24 Hour Crisis Line
Call 503-291-9111