Issuu

Wednesday, October 8, 2014

A PUBLICATION OF THE COUGAR

THE HEALTH ISSUE

Let's talk about sex, Texas Underwhelming sex education in state secondary schools is having a significant impact on sex in college. PG. 6

| The Health Issue

2 | Wednesday, October 8, 2014

EDITOR'S NOTE: SURVIVING SCHOOL DESPITE THE ILLNESS

The Health Issue is the first in a series of new special sections published every month by The Cougar. These sections are intended to give recognition and focus to certain aspects of student life that can often be overlooked.

veryone’s heard the old adage: In college, you’ve got a choice between a social life, good grades or sleep. Pick two. That’s never been quite accurate for me. Forget the social life — extra-curriculars, internships, family responsibilities, therapy, medication are difficult enough. There are some days when getting out of bed just seems impossible. When dealing with depression and chronic pain, managLAURA ing all my responsibilities GILLESPIE can seem less like juggling baseballs and more like getting pelted by a pitching machine. I can't always sacrifice a day or two of sleep to work non-stop. I just don't have that kind of energy, whether it be mental or physical. So school is difficult. Grades slip. I sleep for 10 or 12 hours at a time. I forget things — a lot of things. I apologize and bow my head and feel humiliated for letting my illness get in the way of my responsibilities. After receiving a diagnosis in December 2013 I began to go on daily medication, and my health began to improve. But some days are still rougher than others. Health is more than a bad bout of the flu or a broken leg. Health is internal as well as external, and not every student who is struggling with poor health may look it. Most people probably couldn't tell I'm battling with mental illness and pain and are surprised when I tell them. That’s why it’s so important that the University has resources for its students of all disabilities and illnesses, alongside its regular services for students who get sick and need to get an appointment with the dentist or the orthopedist. It's why I’m proud to share those voices and resources with The Cougar’s wide range of readers. With more students on campus than ever, it becomes vital that the University has the resources and facilities in place for students, no matter what their needs might be. This Health section is a valuable resource for you, and I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed putting it together.

About Cooglife The Health Issue

EDITOR Laura Gillespie COPY EDITORS Joshua Cochran Alexandra Doyle

Justin Tijerina Cara Smith CLOSING EDITORS Christopher Shelton Cara Smith

WRITERS Luiza Braga Rebecca Hennes Amber Hewitt Glissette Santana Cara Smith

PRODUCTION Jose Cruz Josue Diaz Alex Tomic

SALES MANAGER Callista Brown

PHOTOGRAPHERS

ABOUT THE COVER Located on the second floor of Student Service Center 1, Counseling and Psychological Services works hard to reach out to the tens of thousands of students on campus. Despite a tiny staff and sometimes slow waiting times, students have given CAPS rave reviews. | File photo/The Cougar

Small Counseling and Psychological Services staff works to reach out to students REBECCA HENNES

SENIOR STAFF WRITER @BECCAGHENNES

Counseling and Psychological Services has been a part of the UH community since 1985 and is dedicated to helping students in need from all walks of life. According to CAPS Associate and Clinical Director Christopher Scott, the number of students seeking services at CAPS has increased dramatically since 2010. Enrollment has reached a high point on campus, and as a result, more students are seeking help at CAPS than ever before. “We are seeing a substantial increase in crisis (and) after-hours contacts,” Scott said. “What has not kept pace with increasing enrollment and on-campus residency is the size of the CAPS staff. The International Association of Counseling Centers has given us feedback that our staff is only about half the size it should be for a university with an enrollment of over 40,000 students." Despite this ratio, Scott said CAPS is dedicated to providing the best services for students. According to Scott, the wait times for counseling at UH are significantly better than most Texas universities.

“I would encourage anyone to poll any Tier 1 university counseling center in Texas and ask them about their wait time for first appointments,” Scott said. “I think they would find that we what we offer (is comparable), even though we have a fraction of the staff of many of these other university counseling centers.” Typical counseling centers at large universities have a wait period for a first appointment of about two weeks. Scott said CAPS accommodates first-time students as quickly as possible and also works to make a number of same-day 8 a.m. appointments available each day. CAPS also has a consultant on duty 24/7 to help with crises. Last week, CAPS saw 10 walk-in crisis appointments. “Whether students want to drop in for a Let’s Talk Consultation, seek routine services or are experiencing a crisis, we do our best to be there,” Scott said. “We pride ourselves on providing quality treatment to students rather than just crisis services and referrals.” Every semester CAPS surveys students

COUNSELING

Continues on page 11

The Women's Resource Center gives out a variety of protection free against STDs and

pregnancy. | Justin Tijerina/The Cougar

Contact The Cougar thedailycougar.com NEWSROOM (713) 743-5360 editor@thedailycougar.com facebook.com/thedailycougar twitter.com/thedailycougar

EDITOR IN CHIEF Cara Smith

(713) 743-5362 editor@thedailycougar.com

@thedailycougar

| The Health Issue

Wednesday, October 8, 2014 | 3

University professors list cancer risk factors, health in new book AMBER HEWITT

STAFF WRITER

In a new book about cancer risk factors and prevention, four UH professors contributed knowledge and background information about research and lifestyle. Containing commentary from over 100 experts, “The Cancer Prevention Handbook” offers insight into numerous health topics. The contributors gave advice on known cancer risk factors and explained how to avoid them. Author Steve Riczo was eager to draw information from UH professors. “The University of Houston has an excellent reputation for research and academic excellence, so it was on the top of my list of top-tier U.S. universities to tap for this important subject,” Riczo said in a UH press release. The book addresses the potential

cancer risk factors and seeks background knowledge from researchers about how to manage and change lifestyle habits that may affect those factors. Assistant Professor of Biotechnology Cecilia Williams discussed how certain hormones may increase risk. “(We) discuss(ed) endocrine disrupters, which are hormone-like compounds that are common in our environment,” Williams said. “BPA is the most well-known one, which is used in the manufacturing of plastics. In fact, nearly all Americans have measurable levels in their blood. The research of how this affects us is not conclusive. The levels may be low enough to not cause significant adverse effects in adults, but developing fetuses and children appear to be at higher risk.” Williams also gives advice on how

to avoid dangerous environmental chemicals. “In the case of endocrine disrupters, it is good to reduce your use of plastic bags and bottles,” Williams said. “Also reduce use of canned food … and avoid microwaving plastic containers with food or drinks in them.” Assistant professor of nutrition Tracey Ledoux, Graduate College of Social Work Associate Dean of Research and associate professor Patrick Bordnick also contributed to the book. Ledoux is featured in the section on obesity and nutrition, while Bordnick appears in the behavior and lifestyle chapter. More than 70 institutions were interviewed for “The Cancer Prevention Book,” which is now available online.

"The Cancer Prevention Handbook" collects interviews from experts across the county, including from several UH professors. | Courtesy of Steve Riczo

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4 | Wednesday, October 8, 2014

| The Health Issue

A round trip to healthcare Students from around the globe were asked about their health care systems back home. Nearly all of the systems in their home countries differed from what we experience in the United States — some for better, some for worse.

Business Junior Annah Chulam was exposed to Brazil’s health care system until she was 17 years old. She said that the situation in her home country is complex — although Brazilians can count on either public or private assistance, the corrupted government gets in the way of quality health care for the lower class.“Not enough money is invested in our health system,” Chulam said. “This leads to hospitals not working at full capacity, or not enough doctors, or not enough machines to take care of the patients.” Chulam added that Brazil’s private health system is similar to the American one, but not as expensive. “What I like here is that if you show up to a hospital — any hospital — with an emergency, you will be taken care of,” Chulam said. “The chances of you dying in the waiting room are very little. But if they do take care of you, then the costs can end up being off the charts.”

Economics Senior Somtoochukwu IK-Ejiofor left Nigeria at the age of 17. She said that because Nigeria is still a developing country, only Nigerians who have good jobs can enjoy quality health care. “The U.S. healthcare system is more advanced and affordable for all,” IK-Ejiofor said. “In Nigeria, the poverty is so high that access to healthcare is very limited.”

Biotechnology Sophomore Kun Qian was 18 years old when she moved to the U.S. from China. “In China, people always go to clinic centers or the doctor's office in a hospital if the sickness is not very serious in big cities,” Qian said. “Normally, people without insurance prefer clinic centers because they are always cheaper than hospitals.” Qian said that clinics are more popular in the U.S. than in big Chinese cities and that “many senior citizens still prefer the traditional Chinese medicine.” “Something I dislike about the American system is that the copay here is always very expensive,” Qian said.

CHINA

NIGERIA BRAZIL

Reporting/Photos by Luiza Braga LGBT

Continues on page 11

| The Health Issue

Wednesday, October 8, 2014 | 5

LIKE US ON

SPONSORED ARTICLE

UH Wellness helps students from far beyond the counter

Good Night Sleep

Try Something New Ask For Help Get Involved Exercise

Find Your Passion

the Stairs Be Open Minded Pay It Forward

Wear Sunscreen Dress For Success Breathe Slowly

Safe Sex Appreciate Diversity Lifelong Learning Safety in Numbers Give Back Exercise Compromise Don’t Smoke

Make A Budget

Listen Without Judging

Challenge Yourself

campus community members who have health related questions, as well as offer referrals for those who need additional campus resources, such as counseling or health care. UH Wellness is located on the first floor of the Campus Recreation & Wellness Center, suite 1038. All campus community members are welcome to stop in, seek out educational materials, meet with staff, or relax in our space. We are also available to visit your organization, department or class to present or facilitate conversations on a variety of topics. Our direct phone line is 713-348-5430. More information can also be found at our website: uh.edu/wellness/.

Balance

Eat Fruits and Veggies

Smoke

Safety in Numbers

We host a variety of programs and workshops throughout the year to engage campus community members. Those programs include time and stress management to nutrition and sexual violence prevention. We also work with a variety of student organizations and campus offices to spread the message of health and wellness through orientations, resource fairs and large campus events — such as SGA’s Health and Wellness Week, Take Back the Night or World AIDS Day. UH Wellness is also home to the Cougar Peer Educators, a nationally certified peer education program that works alongside our office to expand the message of health and wellness on campus. Finally, we are available to speak with

Drink Water

Safe Sex

Make A Budget

UH Wellness is the clearinghouse for health education, prevention and proactive intervention on-campus. Part of the Division of Student Affairs & Enrollment Services, the office is dedicated to empowering students, faculty and staff to make safe and healthy decisions. Through delivering comprehensive and diverse programs and services, UH Wellness seeks to address all dimensions of wellness. As an office, we focus on a variety of health and wellness issues — including alcohol and drugs, sexual health, nutrition, mental health and spirituality. The office serves a variety of functions on campus, including direct education, outreach and referrals.

Appreciate Div

Exercise Pay It Forw

Get Involved

Ask For Hel

CHOOSE WELL .

UH WELLNESS

Appreciate Diversity

Ask For Help

Listen Without Judging

Exercise Pay It Forward

Get Involved

Make A Budget

Safe Sex Appreciate Diversity Lifelong Learning Safety in Numbers Give Back Exercise Compromise Don’t Smoke

Eat Fruits and Veggies

Wear Sunscreen Dress For Success Breathe Slowly

Safety in Numbers

Challenge Yourself

Exercise

Find Your Passion

Good Night Sleep

facebook.com/thedailycougar Try Something New Ask For Help Get Involved

Be Open Minded Pay It Forward

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. 713-743-5430 . www.uh.edu/wellness

6 | Wednesday, October 8, 2014

| The Health Issue

Sexual education in Texas fails to represent a population that's growing — the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community. | Photo illustration by Cara Smith/The Cougar

Texas sex-ed leaves gay, lesbian students in the

With less preventative education, STIs are common in the Lone Star State — especially in its growing LGBT c CARA SMITH

EDITOR IN CHIEF

@CARA_SMITH5

When looking at sex ed exercises that compare sexually active students to chewed-up pieces of gum and widely ignore LGBT sex, media and national organizations alike have pointed out the disconnect between the perception of sex in the classroom and the perception of sex in the dorm room. Most authorities on the prevention of sexually transmitted infections and unwanted pregnancies agree that the key to sustainable prevention is education. But judging by the United States' international standings in these areas, something’s

been lost in translation. “State Policies in Brief: Sex and HIV Education” takes a look at high schools’ current sex ed policies. It was published by the Guttmacher Institute, a think tank that focuses on sexual and reproductive health. Twenty-two states in the U.S. and the District of Columbia mandate sex education for public school students; Texas is one of 28 states where such education isn’t required. Texas is also one of three states that requires only “negative information” rather than “inclusive information” in the curriculum about same-sex sexual encounters. Negative information includes only a part of the picture, while inclusive information gives facts on

both sides of an issue. For example, negative information might provide students with information about the higher rate of HIV within the gay community, while inclusive information would include the low incidence of HIV transferred through oral sex in comparison to anal sex.

Stigmas fuel the cycle Anti-LGBT stigmas fostered in non-inclusive environments help contribute to high rates of depression and anxiety in the LGBT community, according to LGBT Resource Center Director Lorraine Schroeder. “The LGBT community has higher rates of anxiety and depression, not because they’re LGBT, but

because of society’s reacti said. “Young people will b hook up with somebody a Schroder explained tha within the LGBT commun as condom use decreases and depression increase. S inevitably leads to a highe mitted infections within t perpetuates the cycle of s and subsequent anxiety a

Silence does more ha

Non-heterosexual sex g in high school sex-ed cou

| The Health Issue

Wednesday, October 8, 2014 | 7

The numbers are in: Sex education varies by state With the fifth-highest birth rate in the nation and a high rate of STIs such as chlamydia and gonorrhea, Texas has come under fire for its sex education in K-12 schools. Compare the Lone Star State to the rest of the nation in terms of sex education, HIV/AIDS education and more, and you'll find it's one of many states lacking in sex-ed. Here's a look at the ways many states, including Texas, limit sexual education. All information taken from the Guttmacher's Insitutes's "State Policies in Brief" report.

DON'T REQUIRE HIV ED

DON'T REQUIRE SEX EDUCATION

dark

community

ion to that,” Schroeder be depressed and go and and not care.” at sexual encounters nity are often high-risk, s when feelings of anxiety Sex without condom use er rate of sexually-transthe community and stigmatized LGBT sex and depression.

arm than good

goes largely unmentioned rses, but not because

EDUCATION DOESN'T HAVE TO BE MEDICALLY ACCURATE

SEX EDUCATION MUST INCLUDE INFORMATION ON ABSTINENCE

MUST INCLUDE NEGATIVE INFORMATION ABOUT SAME-SEX RELATIONSHIPS

there is no need for it. The latest census data, taken in 2010, showed a three percent increase in the LGBT community population, but only a one percent growth in the national population. “Admit it: people have same-sex sex. We’re not going to have that go away just by not mentioning it,” Schroder said. “The problem is, (Texas high schools) aren’t representing sex accurately anyways.” Associate Director of the UH Health Center Lindsay Barber said that ignorance of basic sexual health is seen all the time at the Health Center. “All the (clinics') doctors’ stories boiled down to students being aware of the resources, (like sex-change surgery, hormones), but had no idea the process that was involved in these options,” Barber said. “(Students) hear about options… but are not educated about what these decisions mean.”

“Not only do (we need to) be talking about safe sex, but we need to make a point to make sure that we're being inclusive with same-sex partnerships. That's something that people, especially if they're not part of the LGBT community ... won't really think about.”

A talk worth having

won’t really think about.” Lukingbeal, who’s researching the LGBT community and its mental health for his doctoral program, stressed that it’s not inherently bad that heterosexuals don’t think about same-sex sex, and vise versa. However, unintended negligence combined with social taboo is leaving many LGBT students in the dark.

As of 2013, nearly 88 percent of UH students were admitted to the University as residents of Texas*. By comparison, 79 percent of University of Texas at Austin and 86 percent of Texas A&M University students originated in Texas, in the Fall 2013 and Spring 2014 semesters, respectively. Given the higher proportion of Texas students that UH admits, UH Wellness Center Director Patrick Lukingbeal is aware of the misconceptions that the University has a responsibility to address. “Not only do (we need to) be talking about safe sex, but we need to make a point to make sure that we’re being inclusive with same-sex partnerships,” Lukingbeal said. “That’s something that people, especially if they’re not a part of the (LGBT) community, or if they’re not involved in a same-sex relationship,

Patrick Lukingbeal, UH Wellness Center DIrector

Work to be done “There’s not going to be much known about safe-sex practices in those communities if we’re not talking about it,” Lukingbeal said. That’s one of Lukingbeal’s major goals — to increase open communication about sex. UH Wellness has already taken strides in fostering a public dialogue about sexual health. “The Naked Truth” is a workshop series held on select dates of

the center’s Wellness Wednesdays from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. in Rm. 1038 of the Campus Recreation and Wellness Center. The next meeting in the series will be held on Oct. 15. UH Wellness will also coordinate with the American College Health Association to administer the National College Health Assessment, a national benchmarking survey that’s been taken by over 800,000 college students. UH has never before administered the survey, which will allow students to anonymously share their sexual habits and their perceptions of healthy sexual practices. Students can expect the survey in their inboxes sometime in January or February. It’s an initiative Lukingbeal has been looking forward to — he isn’t disillusioned about the amount of work that needs to be done by universities to combat sexual ignorance. “There’s more that we can do about basic sex-education, contraceptives, STI testing, those sorts of things,” Lukingbeal said.

Openness about sex 'a good thing' Young people are having sex, and the LGBT community makes up a growing proportion of today’s sexually active youth. Schroder said that failure to address the entire population isn’t going to make their sexual needs “go away,” but will leave the issues unaddressed and will be increasingly harmful to the entire community. “We tell kids that sex is bad and sex is wrong, and it’s not,” Schroeder said. “We just need to be honest (and talk about the fact that) people have sexual drives, and that’s a natural thing. It’s a good thing.” *It’s not clear whether all of those students attended high school and received sex ed classes in Texas.

8 | Wednesday, October 8, 2014

| The Health Issue

Health Center adjusts to booming on-campus student population help assist the students in getting seen between classes when they know it’s a convenient time for them,” Barber said. Once only accepting walk-ins, the Health Center now allows students to schedule appointments. Walk-in patients are still accepted, and the appointment system helps the Center to have time to treat walk in patients. “It’s based on medical necessity,” Barber said. “If you come in here and say you’ve had back or neck pain for three months and you’re just getting around to coming in now, you may not be as high on the priority list as someone who comes in bleeding or something like that. We tried to provide those spaces so that we’re not turning anybody away.” While the Health Center is doing what it Arianne Goddard, senior print journalism major, has her reflexes checked by Dr. Vanessa Tiney, staff physician in internal medicine with the UH Health Center in a staged can with more students, photo. The Health Center, located next to Student Service Service Center 1 is available to students during regular business hours. | Justin Tijerina /The Cougar some students are still wary of the benefits of going to the on-campus GLISSETTE SANTANA ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR center. Freshmen health major Brittany @GSANTANA347 Lawson thinks the Center will be too full with all the students on campus. With UH in the midst of its highest “I think the staff ’s going to be overenrollment to date — nearly 41,000 run and a lot of kids aren’t going to go students — on-campus facilities have had because they don’t want to wait,” Lawson to step up their game to ensure students said. receive quality and timely service. The “They could possibly self-diagnose and Health Center strives to remain competpotentially cause other problems.” itive in the day and age of the Affordable The Health Center has its own pharHealth Care Act while also providing for macy, along with a lab and various clinics Lindsay Barber, Associate director of the Health Center including a Women’s Clinic, Men’s Clinic, the tens of thousands of students that may walk through its doors. Orthopedic Clinic and Psychiatry Clinic. “A lot more students are covered under don’t really have to go anywhere else for can spend more time concentrating on And while the Health Center only takes their parents' insurance than this time your healthcare.” patients rather than taking notes. A the UH endorsed health insurance, a genlast year, so with that, we try to keep our Changes have been put into place to new portal, Open Communicator, will let eral appointment only has a $20 co-pay. prices low with knowing that you could streamline the process of getting stustudents make their own appointments “The main thing in healthcare is that go off campus with your insurance,” said dents and faculty in and out of the Health online and talk to their doctor or their you want to offer access, quality care, and Lindsay Barber, associate director of the Center as quickly and efficiently possible. doctor’s nurse about lab results and folyou want to do it at a low price, which is Health Center. “We try our best to make Electronic medical records have low-up appointments. exactly what we have accomplished here,” it a one-stop shop for students, and you replaced paper charts so that doctors “(Open Communicator is) going to Barber said.

“If you come in (the Health Center) and say you've had back or neck pain for three months and you're just getting around to coming in now, you may not be as high on the priority list as someone who comes in bleeding or something like that. We tried to provide those spaces to that we're not turning anybody away. .”

| The Health Issue

Wednesday, October 8, 2014 | 9

SPONSORED ARTICLE

Working to bridge the Texas-sized gap in healthcare The resiliency and strength of Texas women has been tested time and time again as public lawmakers endlessly debate women’s healthcare, for better or for worse. Though some may consider this merely a game of politics or moral grandstanding, the decisions made in the House and Senate chambers of our capitol building have a very real impact in Texans’ lives, especially among low-income families. In a state where 2.4 million adult women have no health insurance of any kind, the need for affordable and accessible care is, well, Texas-sized. Currently there are nearly 1.3 million Texas women ages 20–44 who are reportedly in need of preventive and wellness care. While this number has continuously grown over the years, the state’s capacity to care for these women has generally decreased. Over the past decade, women’s healthcare has been at the forefront of some of the most extreme battles over state appropriations. Beyond countless abortion restrictions, we’ve seen a slew of cuts to family-planning funding—the most extreme being in 2011 when the Texas Legislature cut the family-planning budget by two-thirds, forcing over 70 clinics to close their doors in some of the most underserved parts of the state. During the last legislative session in 2013, there was a notable attempt to repair that damage. Legislators allocated

$71.3 million into a newly reformed Texas Women’s Health Program (TWHP). That program had been intentionally restructured in 2011 to exclude providers like Planned Parenthood, who are affiliated with abortion services, despite the fact that they are also a leading provider of family-planning services and that this would cost the state a $9-to-$1 match from the federal government. Lawmakers arrived at a bipartisan compromise to restore women’s healthcare services by allocating $100 million into a state-operated extended primary healthcare program, with 60 percent earmarked for family planning and 40 percent for other primary care such as wellness exams, cancer screening, and diabetes and heart treatments. And lastly, the 2013 funding changes resulted in $32.1 million in state funding being awarded to the Women’s Health and Family Planning Association of Texas, the agency responsible for distributing money to qualifying providers in Texas. Because these funds are now going primarily to non-family-planning-specific sites, like community-based clinics and Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs), many advocates have expressed concern over whether or not these providers are adequately equipped to address the family-planning needs of all Texans. Although this remains to be seen, one thing is certain: in spite of drastic

funding and program administration changes, the funding allocated for these programs still addresses only one-third of the need in Texas. According to the Guttmacher Institute, Texas had the third-highest teen pregnancy rate in the country in 2010, and the highest prevalence of repeat teen births. With the recent trends in Texas family-planning funding and the extreme bias for abstinence-only education in Texas public schools, this comes as no surprise. Kathy Hinze, nurse practitioner and senior director of obstetrics and gynecology at Legacy Community Health Services, describes how a lack of insurance and low incomes are significant barriers to mothers seeking care. “Many of our clients who don’t have funds, insurance, or aren’t enrolled in any kind of assistance program think that they have to have everything in place before they can get care,” Hinze says. “This can be problematic, especially because women who don’t get the care they need while pregnant are more likely to deliver a low birth-weight baby, or there’s a higher risk of complications. We try to help them, no matter what.” Despite all of the needs that Legacy has been able to successfully address, they know that there are many Texans not getting the care they need. Until the Texas Legislature acts responsibly on healthcare in this state, more and more needs will go unmet.

Last summer, during a special legislative session, the filibuster of Senate Bill 5, an anti-abortion omnibus bill, attracted national attention. Led by Senator Wendy Davis, thousands of reproductive-rights activists took the capitol by storm and sparked a statewide movement unlike any this state has ever seen. Though activists celebrated a brief victory with the defeat of SB 5, the Republican-dominated Legislature successfully passed the bill in its newest form, House Bill 2, during a second special session. Because of its highly restrictive ambulatory surgical and admitting privileges requirements, only seven abortion providers remain open in the state. Many of the providers, who have been forced to close, had been offering family-planning services. The impact of state and federal healthcare policies has become abundantly clear. Now is the time to take advantage of opportunities for making our voices heard. Whether it’s at the polls in November, or in Austin during the next session, our legislators need to be hearing from us. When we act together, we have the power to ensure that all Texans have access to affordable, quality healthcare—no matter what their sex, gender, ethnicity, immigration status, income, or zip code happens to be. And frankly, that is a sure way to save Texans’ lives.

| The Health Issue

COUNSELING

Continued from page 2 and asks them, “What would you like to tell other UH students about CAPS?” Students who agreed to anonymously submit their responses are quoted below. •“CAPS is very helpful with meeting our needs. It is one of the most important services I’ve used as an effort to improve myself.” •“I didn’t know all that I could learn at CAPS but it has exceeded my expectations. I’m very grateful!” •“I encourage my friends to seek out

services at CAPS. I’ve felt very welcome, supported and genuinely cared for by all CAPS staff I’ve encountered.” •“(Do not) wait. You know where you need to go; just take the first step and go.” If you are struggling with schoolwork, anxiety or anything at all, call CAPS at 713-743-5454 to arrange a free initial consultation (ICON) appointment. CAPS is open Mondays and Tuesdays from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Wednesday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. In the event of an after-hours crisis, call the UH Department Of Public Safety at 713-743-3333 and ask to be transferred to the CAPS “Clinician on Call.”

Wednesday, October 8, 2014 | 11

CAPS offers support services around the clock. | Justin Tijerina/The Cougar

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*ALL VISITS AND INQUIRIES ARE CONFIDENTIAL

WORKOUT

Continued from page 9 you would like to use. If you can’t identify which strength exercises to do, use the Life Fitness circuit that surrounds the rock wall at the rec. This circuit will hit every major muscle of the body and is user-friendly! Cardio intervals can be anything that gets your heart rate up and is appropriate for your level of fitness. Burpies, mountain climbers, jumping jacks, squat jumps, and high knees are all examples of cardio intervals. Interval time can be anything you like but 30 or 60 seconds are the easiest to keep track of on your watch. After a five minute warm-up, quickly move through each exercise, alternating between cardio and strength intervals, for the desired amount of time. Complete the entire circuit two or three times for a full workout. Circuit training can be done by anyone! Beginners should decrease their intensity with shorter time in the intervals and lower intensity cardio options. If needed, you can always take a short break half-way through and at the end of each circuit. If you’re new to fitness and aren’t sure where to start, try Campus Recreation’s Group Fitness classes. Group fitness is free for all students with your membership to the rec. Campus Recreation offers cardio, strength, and combo classes to meet your fitness goals as well as mind/body classes to help you keep your stress level in check. Visit the campus recreation website to see the schedule and come to the second floor Fitness Zone Help Desk to sign-up for a class pass. Campus Recreation also offers personal training to help you meet your fitness goals as well as many other exciting activities like intramural and club sports, outdoor adventure trips and clinics, and swim lessons to help you get the most from your student experience! Visit the website for additional information on all of Campus Recreation’s programs at www.uh.edu/recreation. Live fit, Cougars!

12 | Wednesday, October 8, 2014

| The Health Issue

Be you. Belong.

OPENING OUR DOORS TO ALL EAGER-TO-FIND-AHELPING-HAND COUGARS. We wear our pride on our sleeves—our Cougar red sleeves. Now that our new University of Houston branch is here, we can show our pride every day. With a range of financial services, we’re here to help find the best options to suit all your banking needs. Our campus branch is located on the 1st floor of the University Center: Monday through Friday 9am to 5pm TDECU.org

Join today! Be You and Belong.

Federally insured by NCUA. 1014-PA7614 5033-COU-1008

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