By Lisa Carlson, MS, RDN, LDN, Campus Registered Dietitian
Welcome to Northwestern – or Welcome back, Wildcats! You may be on campus this quarter or experiencing campus life remotely. Either way, now is the time to focus on staying healthy during this very unusual time of COVID quarantining.
If you are following the rules, you are probably wearing your mask, socially distancing and staying clear of crowds, and washing your hands often. How about watching out for your own physical and mental well-being because of the COVID situation? That may require a little extra self-care and creativity.
We have recently spoken with several health and nutrition experts on and off campus to share insights and strategies on ways to stay healthy, connected and even joyful as you head into the school year.
Nourishing Your Body
Mary Donkersloot, RDN, a registered dietitian and nutritionist out of Los Angeles and Oregon, says it is very important for students to take care of their food environment to stay well-nourished during these uncertain times.
“Planning your food, snacks and meals and controlling your food environment will trump willpower every time,” she says. “If you’ve stocked up on high-carb and high-sugar snacks, crackers, cookies and drinks, that’s what you’ll grab when you are feeling a bit anxious, bored or disconnected.” Instead, she recommends staples like fresh fruit, raw veggies, cheese sticks, yogurt, nuts and seeds. These foods are satisfying and nutritious. If necessary, buy bulk sizes (like for trail mix) and portion out quantities in bags so you don’t overeat.
Individualized Nutrition Counseling
Northwestern Dining provides complimentary nutrition counseling (now virtually) for all Northwestern students on topics such as:
Healthy and mindful eating
Weight management
Nutrition and fitness
GI health issues
Food allergies
Eating disorders and disordered eating
Lisa Carlson, MS, RDN, LDN, Northwestern's registered dietitian nutritionist, offers a personalized approach to nutrition and is dedicated to helping all students achieve a healthier lifestyle through nutrition. Her services are private and virtual through a secure WebEx program. To request an appointment, contact her at dietitian@northwestern.edu.
Mind your Mental Health
Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) is the primary mental health service at Northwestern University. Here is a link for the many core services and offerings available to students: https://www.northwestern.edu/counseling/
Claudia Rosen, LCSW, therapist and clinical director of Connections Health, a collaborative counseling group in Evanston, says that it is very important for students to be mindful of their mental health during this time. Her team of therapists has several strategies and tips to help students cope whether they are on or off campus:
- Create supportive routines: You may be having a hard time because you still have to be relatively isolated. Although you are starting to adapt, you are probably missing the casual social connections. One thing that helps is to create routines and schedules that are supportive during this time. In the beginning of the pandemic, there was a lot of uncertainty as to when isolating was going to end, kind of a “COVID fatigue.” Then there came normalizing, and now there may be more anxiety as you start classes and wonder what will happen when the weather changes in late fall and winter. Stay connected with friends and family via texts, phone calls, chats, as much as possible. Eye contact, kind words and smiling under your mask is all so important.
- Get in the kitchen; Try something new. Over the summer, lots of students picked up new hobbies or sports (artwork, gardening) and many headed into the kitchen and started cooking and baking. If you have access to a kitchen, try some simple recipes. It doesn’t have to be sourdough bread, just something that reminds you of home or family. If you live on campus and are on the meal plan, mix it up by opting for a dish you haven’t tried just to enliven up your food routine.
- Set your table: Eating alone can be a challenge especially if you are used to eating with your family and are now quarantining in your dorm room. Try to create a pleasant dining experience. Set a “table” even if it is just on your desk, make it uncluttered. You might consider a cloth napkin and a placemat or play relaxing music. Set the right mood for enjoying your food, and create a beginning, middle and end to your eating.
- Eat mindfully: Food is soothing and pleasurable. While acute stress can lead to loss of appetite, chronic stress can lead to food to soothe and potentially overeating. Know when you are going to eat, when you are going to sleep, study and exercise. Avoid distracted dining by uncoupling the act of eating (even snacking) from all other activities. What that means is when you are eating, just eat, without checking emails or being on social media. Adding the digital experience changes our relationship with food. When you eat and do another activity, you don’t fully experience the cues of hunger and satiety or the pleasures of eating. By separating these activities you can mindfully eat without distraction.
- Walk on the sunny side: When it’s OK, depending on your quarantine status, spend time outside in the natural light. You get a good dose of vitamin D and it is good for your psyche. Take a walk, run or bike. Do it alone or with a friend, just remember to wear your mask and social distance. This will also help with sleep.
- Create eat-study-sleep boundaries. Use your desk or a table for studying and use a table for eating. Use the bed for sleeping and relaxing activities, like light reading. It sounds simple, but when you eat or study in bed or sleep on a couch it disrupts things. Create a self-soothing and separate environment for each by clearing away clutter.
- Sleep on it. With all that is going on in the world it can be difficult to get a good night’s sleep. Create a routine around sleep: rise and shine around the same time each day and hit the pillow at about the same hour when the day is done. Keep a notebook by your bed to jot down things to tackle in the morning. Have a few night-time routines such as herbal tea or light reading before bed instead of the glare of your cell phone.
- Act with kindness: There is nothing quite like doing something nice for someone else to make you feel happy. It can be an unexpected call to a
grandparent, dropping off a care package or sending a note. Volunteering at the Northwestern’s Purple Pantry, our on-campus food pantry, is another way to help. Remember, little things like holding a door open for someone, asking someone how they are doing and meaning it, or giving a compliment, make others and ourselves feel good.
Claudia Rosen, LCSW at connections-health.com, 1854 Sherman Ave, Evanston, IL 60201,
847-565-6402, connections-health.com, claudia@connections-health.com
Mindfulness and Breathing
Cindy Conlon, JD, PhD, adjunct faculty at SESP, and an expert on mindfulness, says being fully present and in the moment – the essence of mindfulness – is so very important during this time of uncertainty.
“Life happens moment to moment. When you are in the moment and not trying to multi-task, you can experience a deeper connection. Remember, all we really have is this moment we are in,” she says.
Besides being mindful, another way to cope and protect your health is through proper breathing.
Cindy references author James Nestor’s book, Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art, a well-researched book on the many health benefits of re-learning to breathe correctly.
According to Nestor, "No matter what we eat, how much we exercise, how resilient our genes are, how skinny or young or wise we are - none of it will matter unless we're breathing correctly." He goes on to say that about 90% of us are not breathing correctly, coherent breathing, where you breathe through your nose (instead of your mouth) and your tummy (not your chest) expands when you breathe in and out. Mouth breathing and taking short shallow breaths is linked to our fight or flight response. More natural breathing (tummy breathing) calms us down. Cindy says it is why yoga feels so good—a lot of time is spent breathing properly.
Breathing right takes time to master. It also encourages proper posture. Of course, wearing a mask can make it difficult to breathe correctly. When you can safely remove your mask (when outside, away from people), do so to breathe more normally. Also, when you don a mask, smile as much as you can and make eye contact with other people. It is those little connections that help us and let us know that we are all N in this together. Feel free to contact Cindy at cindykconlon@gmail.com, for more information on this simple but critical aspect of well-being.
References:
Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art by James Nestor (NY: Riverhead Books, 2020
Why We Sleep by Matthew Walker (NY: Scribner, 2017)
Stay Active Virtually
Nancy Tierney, MS, associate director of fitness and wellness at Northwestern University Athletics and Recreation and her team have put together all kinds of ways students can stay active through virtual (and eventually in-person) programming. See the attached links to everything from healthy recipes to 30-minutes virtual exercise and yoga classes. Stay tuned for new classes and a reopening schedule. Although things may look a little different, says Nancy, she and her team are looking forward to another great year of keeping students healthy!
Fall Virtual & In-person Programming link
Northwestern Community Discounts Thanks to our partners at Learfield, we’re excited to offer exclusive discounts to the Northwestern community. Discounts for at-home fitness equipment and apparel are available from Life Fitness, Dicks Sporting Goods, Perform Better, and Technogym. More details are included here.
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Lisa Carlson, MS, RDN, LDN
Campus Registered Dietitian Nutritionist
Compass Group | Northwestern University