Sexual Health & Young Adults on Campus 9 July 2018 Bliss Team No comments Categories: Sexual Wellness, Students, Therapy Recently, Sexologist Kelly McDonnell-Arnold invited me on her Rogers TV Talk Show, “Sex Talk with Kelly.” (Airing Wednesday’s at 10:30 pm, on Rogers Cable Network, check it out!) Our goal was to start a conversation around how parents might approach sexual health topics with their adult children on campus. Apparently there’s much to say on that topic, and those 7 minutes really flew by! We felt it was important to encourage healthy sexual attitudes while also keeping safety in mind. Here are a few suggestions on how to continue the conversation, as well as links to some excellent online resources. What should parents know? 1 in 5 female students will be sexually assaulted while attending university (CFOSO, 2015). What I want to highlight even further, is that for those 1 in 5 woman – it’s likely the assault will be done by someone they know. Keep in mind that females aren’t the only ones at risk to be sexually assaulted. Everyone deserves to feel safe on campus while exploring their sexuality. What can parents do? Open the door for conversation. Use media and current events as conversation starters. Encourage them to talk about safety and sexual health with their peers. Are they going to party? Encourage them to talk about safety planning with their roommates before they head out for the evening. Young people are creative and they’ll make a plan that suits them best. What could parents say? “I wrote down a list of all the sexual health resources on campus and I left it on your desk along with some condoms. Remember, sex should be fun but it should also always feel safe.” This is a BIG topic, so don’t feel like you have to communicate everything about sexual health all in one conversation. Simply being a resource, or linking your children to appropriate resources is a great place to start. Written by Bliss therapist Jenna Luelo. Learn more about Jenna and get her secret “Tips From the Couch” here. We are thrilled that you’ve found your way to our Bliss Blog, and hope that Jenna’s article has helped you as either a parent or student, prepare for a safe experience on campus! Check out the resources that Jenna recommends below! Resource Links: Sex and U: https://www.sexandu.ca Sexual Assault Center: http://sacha.ca/resources/statistics Local Sexual Health Campus Contacts: University of Waterloo: https://uwaterloo.ca/campus-wellness/blog/post/sexual-health-resources-or-near-campus Wilfrid Laurier University: https://students.wlu.ca/wellness-and-recreation/health-and-wellness/self-help-resources.html Conestoga College: https://www.conestogac.on.ca/medical-care-clinic/education/sexuality References Canadian Federation of Students-Ontario [CFOSO]. (2015). Sexual Violence on Campus. Retrieved from: http://cfsontario.ca/wpcontent/uploads/2017/07/Factsheet-SexualAssault.pdf Do you have any questions for us? We’re happy to help! Feel free to get in touch with us here. If you’re interested in booking your first appointment with Bliss, you can do that here.
Realistic Sleep Tips for Busy Students 15 September 2016 Bliss Team No comments Categories: Students When you’re in school, one of the most important keys to success is a decent night’s sleep. Yet for many students in university or college late night study sessions and coffee binges are normal and, unfortunately, necessary. Lectures and readings and essays and exam study sessions eat up your precious time, never mind balancing a social life, extracurriculars, and a job on top of your school work! Even writing that sentence was exhausting. So how do you balance your busy schedule with your need for sleep? The recommended 7-8 hours might not be within reach, but we have some tips that just might help you reclaim your nights (or at least some of them). Limit afternoon naps to one hour if possible. You may have been up all night writing an 8 page paper and need some extra nap time to get you through your shift at work. Ultimately you know what’s best for you, but longer naps during the day tend to affect the quality of your nighttime sleep, so avoid those three hour afternoon naps when you can! Exercise as regularly as possible. Bodies that have been put to good use during the day sleep better at night. Take the stairs whenever you can, walk to class or to work, do some yoga in the morning – squeezing in small bits of physical activity whenever you can is still better than nothing at all! Try to create a relaxing bedtime routine for yourself. About a half an hour before you decide to go to bed put down the books, put away the phone, and do a few things that you find relaxing. It will make it much easier to fall asleep if you have allowed your brain to make that transition to a comfortable, sleep-ready state. Invest in earplugs or an eye mask if you share your sleep space with a roommate. Hopefully you generally try to respect one another’s sleep schedules, but if your roommate just has to read in bed or talk to their partner on the phone before they sleep, you will be happy to have some way to tune them out. We know that the idea of a well-rested University student can seem laughable. But prioritizing a healthy sleep routine can actually make it easier for you to balance your busy schedule during the day.