Day 1: Let’s start detoxifying your body! Before you start your day, make a lemon water detox drink! All you need is to squeeze ½ of a lemon, into an 8 oz cup of warm water. [1]

This will help your immune system, your liver, your skin, and even your breath!

Day 2: Take time to go down memory lane and create the music playlist of your life. Use this playlist to help you clean the house.

Day 3: Dress up or add something to your outfit that you usually don’t.

Day 4: Sit down and think about your health. Is there anything you need to see a doctor for? Visit www.indyhealthnet.org to make an appointment!

Day 5: Take time out to stretch out your body. Find a video online, or fitness class to help guide you. Most fitness studios offer free introduction classes!

Day 6: Take a trip to the grocery store and complete this mini scavenger hunt for healthy food alternatives! Try to find:

• 1 Organic fruit
• 1 Vegan alternative
• 1 Non-GMO product
• 1 Gluten free product

Now bring home the food product that you’ll think taste best!

Day 7: We’re bringing back the lemons! This time we will use lemon to make a Honey Lemon Facial Mask. Just mix ½ of a lemon and 1 tbsp of honey in a bowl. Spread the mixture across your face (avoid your eyes) and leave it on for 15-30 minutes.

This will help you keep your skin moisturized and clear of acne and blackheads. [2]

Day 8: Tonight go to bed an hour earlier than you usually do. Try not to use technology at least 15 minutes before bed. This will help your mind relax.

Day 9: Take a stroll in a new and safe environment.

Day 10: Take time to clean out your emails or delete unnecessary pictures in your phone. Less clutter may help your mind feel better!

Posted by: Akiliah Walker, Marketing and Communications Intern

The idea of mental health awareness campaigns is not a recent event. In the late 1940′s the first National Mental Health Awareness Week was started in the United States. In the 1960’s this annual, weekly event was upgraded to a monthly designated event.

Mental health awareness is an important concept. According to a study published in 2017, which followed individuals ages 11-38 and tracked their mental health, 17% avoided mental health issues. Forty -one percent had a mental health condition that lasted for multiple years and forty-two percent had short –lived mental health conditions. Depression, anxiety and substance abuse were the most common diagnoses in the study. In addition, the leading cause of disability is not cancer or chronic pain, According to the data from the World Health Organization (WHO), depression is the leading cause of disability worldwide, and has held that distinction for many years.

Unfortunately, despite increasing awareness, the rate of depression is not decreasing. In developing nations, people often did not receive treatment for symptoms of depression. Between the years of 2005-20015, the rate of depression actually increased by 18 percent.

HealthNet’s Behavioral Health and Human Services Line has licensed therapists and psychiatric providers to help work with many of these life challenges.  Our Navigators schedule appointments and assist with the program’s flow.  A  Navigator can be contacted at the centers where there is a Behavioral Health provider to schedule an appointment. Therapists are trained to help you with issues such as stress management, relationship issues, divorce, parent/child communication, sexual abuse, eating disorders, domestic violence, grief/loss, job changes, depression, anxiety and other mood disorders. Social Workers are advocates for our patients and will assist families with their basic needs. Social workers can also provide education, support and referrals to additional agencies.

Psychiatrists and Psychiatric Nurse Practitioners prescribe medications and can make referrals to other specialists.   Nurses assist with your medication questions, concerns, and refills in between appointments with the psychiatrist/psychiatric nurse practitioner.

Please do not hesitate to contact the Behavioral Health program if you have any questions, or if we can be of any assistance. To learn more, please click here.

Post by Jim Jones PhD

Would you like to reduce stress?  Would you like to sleep better at night and feel more energized during the day?  Wouldn’t it be nice to feel less tired and more mentally alert?  There is a remarkably simple solution to make these things happen: exercise!

Physical activity is a great way to keep your body healthy but it has several benefits for your emotional health as well.  Exercise has been shown to alleviate symptoms of depression and anxiety.  Activities like walking, running, biking, swimming, and dancing release endorphins and actually help you feel better.  It also gives you a good opportunity to get outside and with spring arriving soon, we could all use a little sunshine (see previous blog post, Blue Monday).

So, you know the benefits of exercise but still have trouble finding the time to do it?  Below are some ways to help make physical activity a priority in your life.

1.)   Make it something enjoyable!  No one says you have to get on a treadmill for an hour to exercise.  Do something you like and that fits with your life.  Take your kids to the park and play with them.  Try gardening.  Join a class that provides aerobic exercise to fun music or take a relaxing yoga class.

2.)   Make it social.  Get an exercise buddy.  Having a partner helps keep you accountable and also provides time to be with that person.  Maybe it’s something you can do with your spouse or with an old friend with whom you don’t get much time.  The social interaction that can come with exercise (either with a friend or in a class at a local rec center) is another way to boost your mood.

3.)   Be realistic.  You likely won’t have washboard abs after two workouts, and that’s okay.  Take it easy on yourself and your expectations for exercise.  Notice the positive changes you do experience like more regular, restful sleep and more energy.  Praise yourself for taking good care of the one self (physical and emotional) that you have.

For more information about HealthNet and our services, visit www.indyhealthnet.org.

Check out Preventable Tragedy: A Hawaiian Teen’s Suicide after Foster Care,” an article written by Natalie Wendt.  In this article Natalie Wendt speaks about a 19-year-old from Hawaii who had just committed suicide.  Natalie further explains how the 19-year-old had just been phased out of foster care and fell on hardship when his Medicaid coverage ended on his 19th birthday.  So, he was without the possibility of mental health treatment because of the expenses.

This article got me thinking about other hardships that young adults who are too old for foster care may come across when they are suddenly thrown into the real world.  Luckily, Natalie linked back to an article written by her colleague, Josie Raymond.  The article was called “Foster Care Fosters Homelessness,” and this struck me as pretty logical.

Chapin Hall at the University of Chicago actually did a study on former foster youth, and the results follow the logic that is pointed out in Raymond’s article title.  Foster children were followed starting when they entered foster care at 16, were still in care at 17, and were placed because of a reason other than delinquency.  The Executive Summary reports the outcomes of these children when they were interviewed at the ages of 23 and 24.

• 24% of these kids were homeless at least once since they left foster care; half of these were homeless MORE THAN ONCE in that time
• Only 48% were currently employed
• 57% had health insurance; and two-thirds of these were insured by Medicaid

There is a gap here.  A gap that needs to be filled by support services of some kind.  Read the articles above, become aware, and spread awareness.  Help our community fill this gap.

Learn more about what services HealthNet’s programs provide.  Or, donate directly to one of their programs by clicking here.

Those serving in the United States Navy are not only defending our country, but they are also fighting for each one of us individually. They endure long separations from family in sometimes hostile circumstances and often come home with emotional and mental health needs. Their families also struggle with the hardships of their loved ones being gone. Social workers play a vital role in helping everyone staying strong.

The social workers at HealthNet do just the same – help families stay strong. Assisting people in managing their daily lives, coping with issues, navigating relationships, and solving personal and family problems are a few of the things they do on a daily basis. There are many different kinds of social work careers, but in the end, they are here to serve one ultimate purpose – to help provide support services to improve people’s lives.

HealthNet’s social workers provide much needed services to those living at or below the federal poverty level. Whether it is with emergency diapers, basic necessities or referrals to low cost legal services, they are here to help regardless of the person’s financial status.

To learn more about HealthNet and how you can help our social workers provide basic needs, please visit www.indyhealthnet.org.