What's the Tea with Ministry?
Welcome to What’s the Tea with Ministry!
Where we spill the tea on the Jesuit and Mercy mission at the University of Detroit Mercy! Bringing you mission-centered conversation through storytelling, reflection, and community connection all over a cup of tea.
What's the Tea with Ministry?
Nurturing Wellness and Connection on Campus
Can a simple cup of tea create a stronger sense of connection and wellness? Join us for an intriguing conversation with Sydney Gordinier and Anasia Staley as they share their journeys in promoting wellness at the University of Detroit Mercy. Sydney, an experienced nurse practitioner, and Anasia, a dedicated fourth-year nursing student, bring their unique perspectives to a dialogue that covers everything from mental health awareness to financial wellness resources. Experience the warmth and community fostered by the tradition of offering tea, a practice rooted in the values of Catherine Macaulay and the Sisters of Mercy.
Discover a wealth of resources designed to support both students and staff in achieving mental, physical, financial, and social well-being. From financial aid and the Catholic Credit Union to free therapy sessions and the Wellness Center's expanded health services, there's something for everyone striving for balance among the seven wellness principles. Listen as we discuss the stigma surrounding mental health, particularly in minority communities, and the generational shifts in addressing these challenges. Sydney and Anasia offer valuable insights into the dynamics of campus wellness, encouraging all to take that vital first step in seeking support.
Reflecting on the mission and values of the University of Detroit Mercy, Sydney and Anasia share personal stories that highlight the impact of community and service on their lives. Anasia recounts how her engagement with Detroit's community shaped her education, while Sydney speaks to the powerful connections fostered on campus. This episode is not just about resources and awareness but also about the transformative power of service, kindness, and community in both personal and professional realms. Join us as we celebrate the contributions of these inspiring individuals who are championing a culture of wellness on campus.
Welcome to what's the Tea with Ministry where we spill the tea. On the Jesuit Mercy Mission at the University of Detroit Mercy bringing you mission-centered conversation through storytelling, reflection and community connection, all over a cup of tea Hosted by University Ministry and a student co-host. That's us. I'm Anna Bryson, university Minister, and I'm Kateri.
Speaker 2:Sollers, your student co -host. Today we're going to be talking with Sydney Gordenaire and Anasia Staley. Sydney Gordenaire has been a nurse for eight years and a nurse practitioner at the Wellness Center for almost three years now. She received her undergraduate degree at Grand Valley State University and her master's at South University. She enjoys working with the young adult population at the university because she gets to be most students' first experience interacting with a health care provider as an adult. This leaves a lot of space for education, conversations and a lasting positive impact on the student's health. A fun fact about Sydney is that she has golfed at the northernmost golf course in the US. This was in Alaska, where she lived for a bit and loved it.
Speaker 1:Anasia Staley is from Detroit, michigan. She is currently a fourth year in the nursing program at Detroit Mercy. She is also a peer wellness educator and is involved in the campus activity board. She became a peer wellness educator to be a resource for overall wellness and mental health. Her long-term goal is to become a nurse practitioner working in neonatal care or maternal care. Some things she likes to do outside of school is crocheting, cooking and going out with friends and family.
Speaker 1:Welcome, sydney and Anasia Amazing. So thank you both so much for being here today. We're so excited to have you on to talk a little bit more about our wellness center, the Peer Wellness Educator Program and overall just wellness in general.
Speaker 1:One of the things we do on our podcast is we offer tea to our guests. This comes from our mercy tradition, specifically from Catherine Macaulay on her deathbed, encourage the Sisters of Mercy to have a comfortable cup of tea, and so often the mercy, spirituality and charism is found in conversation circles where tea is served, and so before we started the podcast recording today, I offered you each a cup of tea and you gladly took it, and now that we're finally in, we're recording this in October, and so it's actually finally cold enough where hot tea makes sense to be drinking. So I'm going to go around and ask both of you I'll ask all of us really what tea you chose to drink today and why. If that helps, I'll start and just say that I chose a lemon ginger tea and that's because I'm trying to keep all of my wellness in check, including my immune system, so that's the tea I selected today. Aneesha, what tea did you pick?
Speaker 3:I chose the cranberry apple. For some reason I've been craving apple cider so I thought the cranberry apple kind of soothes my cravings a bit nice what about you, sydney?
Speaker 4:I chose the chai black tea. Um, I'm very basic when it comes to my tea choices. Usually it's like an earl grey with way too much honey. So this was the next best thing, and it is really good um, I'm drinking the lemon ginger tea too.
Speaker 2:I wanted to keep my wellness in check, and I really like uh, lemon ginger, tea too, so yeah, yeah, we were very on theme today that was our goal
Speaker 1:I love it. So, yeah, again, thank you so much for both of you being here, spending this next hour or so with us in conversation and chatting with us about wellness and the different roles that you play on our campus to help bring wellness care to everyone. So we're so excited that you're here, and I want to start by having Sydney take a moment and just share what your role is at the university, because not everyone may know what you do or what your role is at the university, because not everyone may know what you do or what your role is at the university.
Speaker 4:Sure, yeah, thank you both for having me today. Like Anna said, my name is Sydney. I'm one of the nurse practitioners at the Wellness Center. So the Wellness Center is located on McNichols campus and we're right next to the beach volleyball courts, in front of Scheipel. We're kind of hidden but it is best that we're in the dorm rooms because we're nearest to those that we serve. So I help on the physical health side of the wellness center, seeing students for physical health needs, and then the other half of the wellness center addresses the mental health concerns of our students. I've been here about three years and, as you know, my bio in the beginning stated I really do enjoy and work with this population because most of the time I am the first kind of healthcare provider that these students see without an adult present and there's so many more questions and I get to kind of be like that nursing motherly figure and I really enjoy being that. You know the education, the connection and the guidance too.
Speaker 1:Super great. Thank you, and Anasia. We invited you specifically because you do serve as one of our peer wellness educators on our campus. Could you describe for me what a peer wellness educator is?
Speaker 3:Basically, we are students on campus who act as a resource for other students regarding wellness, mental health. We also do things for like financial wellness, career wellness, things of that sort. We are located in the dorms. We all stay on campus. Two of us are in Scheipel, two of us are in the quads. I think it's great that we have this program, because a lot of students are afraid to reach out to like maybe like older peers or professors, people, maybe in ministry people who are in the wellness center and they can might be like a little bit afraid of reaching out on like mental wellness, physical wellness. So I think having us on campus makes it a little easier, especially when we have like student concerns. We're able to help them a little bit and also give them the proper resources they need to continue to grow. Awesome, super cool.
Speaker 2:Thank you. What resources on our campus exist for students and staff to access wellness care?
Speaker 3:Well, first the Wellness Center. There are I don't know if they're considered counselors or therapists yeah, they go by both.
Speaker 4:Okay, so there are therapists in the.
Speaker 3:Wellness Center. They are free for students. You fill out a form. I've been through it before so you just fill out a form, intake form. They get you in as soon as they can and you'll be able to receive counseling services as well. Inside the wellness center there's also, if you don't have, like, access to a health care provider, if you don't have a main doctor or anything like that, you can go to the wellness center. They do like flu shots, tp tests, um things like that to help you out.
Speaker 3:If you have any questions as well Outside of like mental and physical wellness, we also have things there is CCPD, so they help with like career wellness kind of. So if you're scared about interviews or you don't know how to dress right for an interview or what to say, they help out with that as well. Also, ministry um, I personally was not very religious person when I came to this school, but I think ministry kind of made it very inclusive for everyone to be able to like learn the values of our school and also just teaching the values of our school. Yeah, um, that's all I can think of top of my head. Do you know of any more?
Speaker 4:yeah, no, I think you did a great job summing it up and just to kind of jump off that. Um, I can think of off my head. Do you know any more? Yeah, no, I think you did a great job summing it up and just to kind of jump off that. I guess part of my role too is I supervise the peer wellness educators. So there's four students currently that work as peer wellness educators. Sometimes we shorten that to PWE, so if you hear me mention that throughout, that is who I'm referring to, and we focus on actually like seven different pillars of wellness, and the whole point of doing that is because our lives and just us as human beings are more complicated than just physical or mental wellness. It gets so busy.
Speaker 2:Yes.
Speaker 4:Yes, it really does. And, like, your finances matter, your spirituality matters, and all of that affects your wellness. So we try to focus on seven different pillars and we divide it up to kind of help guide us. And those pillars are physical health, mental wellness, social wellness, financial well-being, community well-being, and purpose and career. So when people come to me and they're like, what wellness resources do we have on campus? Well, it's too many to count, right? So it just depends on what you need help with or what you're seeking, because financial aid is a great resource for your financial wellness.
Speaker 4:The Catholic Credit Union on campus check out their website. They have some really great articles with a lot of great advice. In addition, we have a lot of clubs on campus so that helps with our social and community well-beings. For staff members, a lot of our wellness resources come from our benefits NHR, so things like UNAM they have free therapy sessions, limited in numbers but free for not only the staff member but also their spouse and their dependents. Uhc if you elect to have that health care as a student or a staff member, they have Teladoc services. So if you have chronic conditions like hypertension, diabetes, prediabetes, you can get connected virtually for free with doctors and mental health services, as well as health coaching. I believe that kind of guides you and hopefully reverses those chronic conditions. Uhc also offers virtual health care 24-7 for, like urgent care concerns. So a lot more wellness resources on campus for both students and staff than what we think.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and that's a major part of why we invited you both here to to talk about. This is like, I think, often we don't know what we don't know, and so if, if we can provide a platform with our podcast to help educate on different areas of our campus, whether it has to do with people we've previously interviewed for different clubs or different groups um, different departments on campus, um, or people connected in our wider mercy and jesuit networks, that's really our purpose and so I appreciate you both uh, just sharing a bit more and going in depth that, like, there is a wealth of of um resources available to help people meet the needs that they need for their overall wellness, to meet those seven principles.
Speaker 4:And we're not going to cover them all, so that's just a taste of the offerings. I encourage everyone and anyone to just ask. Please reach out and ask, because there is a whole list of services both on campus and locally off campus that can meet your wellness needs, and at any stage too. Some people don't have the financial stability to pay for it. There's services to help you too. So just ask. You can always reach us at the Wellness Center.
Speaker 1:Great. One of the questions I want to ask is obviously the seven principles. It's best when they're lived out in balance, but I did want to ask for the two of you, on a personal level, which principal do you feel most passionate about in terms of educating and providing resources to people on campus?
Speaker 3:Personally I have three. Mine would be like mental wellness. I notice a lot of students they kind of put their mental wellness behind, especially when they're trying to focus on school and maybe they work and some students take care of their families, so they're not really like thinking of themselves and how they are mentally. So that would be one. Another one would be physical. Last year I did a program on people finding sources on how to get free health care, free testing, how to do proper hygiene. Sometimes, going here I have learned that not everyone was taught the same about different things and not everyone had parents or grandparents to help care for them. So sometimes they do come to school and they learn everything kind of over and new here. And another thing would be financial wellness. School can be expensive. Financial wellness school can be expensive. Um, and everything's gonna be expensive. Just living now like food, everything, clothes, everything.
Speaker 3:So also financial wellness and helping students on that can try to focus on that as well.
Speaker 4:Yeah, what about you, sydney? Um, two that I probably am most passionate about educating on is, of course, physical wellness. That is, I mean, nursing is more than physical wellness, but it is a large part of it. So that's a lot of what I do day to day, even just with my interactions with patients is talking about physical wellness, but also social wellness. So I see a lot of like social isolation in my patients and with just students in general on a college campus a lot of social isolation or just disconnect and, like I was saying earlier, there's so many clubs on campus, there's so many people to help support you, that it's just something worth educating about.
Speaker 2:I think students don't know that they're in social isolation until they're so deep into it. And it's actually because I'm the president of the Black Student Union and it's hard for me to get people to come out to events and it's just so hard to get students to come out of their rooms. But I understand that they're tired and that they just want to rest, but at the same time, it's not good for you to be holed up in your room alone. Yeah, yeah, and I I get that because I put myself through that. But at the same time, you need social interaction.
Speaker 3:So, yeah, I would say that I relate to that, doing programs now that I'm in the quads and everyone's a little bit older and now, everyone kind of just wants like their space and alone time. But I also think it is important, like you said, to be social, because I think it just makes you feel a little bit better. Yeah, even if you went to an event, you said like, oh, I didn't like this event, but maybe I met someone that I like and now.
Speaker 3:I want to keep, continue to talk to them and meet up with them, and now you meet new friends, so that's kind of a hard part like social well-being and I hear that same thing from students time and time again.
Speaker 4:It's hard, yes, it is hard, but it's just like a physical muscle that we need to exercise. Once we go and we get that dopamine and kind of like surge yeah of hormones, you're more likely to do it again. So the first step is always the hardest. Reaching out to organizations is very difficult. I'm not trying to discount that. Putting yourself out there is super challenging, very intimidating. But once you do it once and have a positive just a positive time there, you're more likely to do it again and you will start to see the benefits of that.
Speaker 1:And I think that's something that, like, yes, certainly our students are dealing with, but I think on a staff level and for our faculty, we have similar issues. I think all of us experienced COVID at a really interesting time. Obviously, we were all different ages, we were going through different important life transitions or we were just living our career, but then that was disrupted as well, and I think there has been a new way of learning how to be social again, because there was a time where, like, socializing was taboo and so how do we get back into? Like no, this is something we need for our wellness as human beings. We need human interaction and connection, and I appreciate your point, sydney, about like you get the dopamine release and you're enjoying your time. It is always the hardest to get out the door.
Speaker 1:But, then, once I'm in a space, whether it's a meeting I had to go to for work that I wasn't really looking forward to, or even you know, I'll be honest even coming right before this, like I love doing this podcast, it's so fun, but for whatever reason, it was just a slow morning, maybe I didn't have enough coffee, I'm not sure, but I was like watching the time tick by and I was like, oh, I haven't gotten these X number of emails done or this thing done before you know the podcast. But I got to get over there, um, and even those feelings of like gosh, what. It just takes a lot of energy to get from one place to the next, um. And then, once you're in it, you're like, oh, I love this, it's the best, it's the most fun, um. So I think that's very true for all of us.
Speaker 4:I've been friends with the same people for 15 years and I love them to death. But even sometimes, after you know, you schedule a hangout and you're like, dang, I don't really want to go. And then you show up and you're like, oh, it was the best time ever, let's do it again tomorrow. But it is a really familiar feeling, I think, for most people. And to add to like that COVID point, I think phones and a lot of like the virtual distractions kind of pile on to that feeling of like.
Speaker 4:Oh, I necessarily don't need that in-person social connection. But you're lying to yourself you do yeah yeah oh yeah, phones technology I could.
Speaker 1:I need like a nice cleanse from my phone.
Speaker 2:I could throw away my phone.
Speaker 4:I really could yeah, but then, you need it like that's amazing yeah because you need people, because you have your parents calling you and then email, so you need it, but then you get frustrated with yes, yes, I actually just this morning was listening to a podcast and there's a couple churches that are getting together and doing um, they, I think they call it a phone fast. But basically it's like all virtual technology, just kind of like fasting when you can and I think they're kicking off in january.
Speaker 4:So it's pretty interesting. There's like larger communities that are, you know, realizing this issue and trying to address it as well.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, I'm thinking this is way off in the future, but I have been thinking about giving up, like all of my social media entertainment during Lent. When Lent comes and I was like it's only six, seven weeks of my life, I can do it. It's tough, it's hard. I mean part of it's also, like a small part of it's my job. So part of my job is, in fact, to run some of our social media and I work with a social media intern, so in some ways I have to be on social media but I could log out of my own social media page.
Speaker 1:Yes yes, maybe not my work. One Best of luck I'll definitely get back to you.
Speaker 4:We'll see how it goes. I can get rid of TikTok. That's a start.
Speaker 1:That'd be really good. Wow, I need to get rid of that one. Speaking of just we were talking about resources. We're talking about different things, programs and being involved in getting ourselves out the door. I'd love to ask both of you about either some projects or programs different things that are going on within your sectors, with PWEs, within the wellness center, that you are excited about or hoping to implement sometime in the future.
Speaker 3:Well, next month I am doing a Pilates event which I'm very excited for, but in the future I would love to have more of the male population of school come to programs and events. When I do a lot of programs I notice that it's mostly women, which is perfectly fine. But I do notice that when, like I'm talking like the other PWA, stefano, there's a lot of guys who come up to him about advice and things that they might be going through, but they might not want to go to those resources or want to come to programs. I think there's like a stigma kind of in our society. It's getting a little bit better, but there is a stigma of our society that men have to be tough or like they can't. It's not normal for them to seek out help or mental help or anything like that. So I do want to do in the future like a program maybe kind of not catering but more it would be still catering to more of like the men and their mental health, and maybe like a relaxing program that they can do.
Speaker 3:So that's kind of a bigger program that I was looking for to do in the future that would be a nice program to do.
Speaker 4:Yeah absolutely. I think the project that I'm most excited for right now that the Wellness Center has been working on is on the health clinic side. We kind of divide it because we work a little differently than the mental health side. In the health clinic side we are accepting seven different major insurances which.
Speaker 4:I know is nerdy and geeky to most people, but what that does is it opens up the door to students having a lot better access to health care. So before we would charge a very small fee or waive it if students couldn't afford it. But now we can bill health insurances and whatever's remaining. We don't charge the extra four. So when students come to see us with the seven major different insurances in our area, there's virtually no fee for service coming to the student. Of course they're paying for their health insurance. So I'm not saying it's free, but at time of service, you know, in our clinic it is free. So I'm really excited about that. We've seen a lot more students this term because of it. Yeah, that's awesome thank you.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's great and you should. Did you have anything else?
Speaker 3:you were thinking through a thought and then, so I was thinking more like programs about hygiene too, because that was a really good event that I did last year and I kind of want to implement it as, like the rest of my time of being a pwe, especially if I do it again next year, I would love to do like more hygiene events, teaching people um. Last year I gave resources up where they can find hygiene products, maybe for free. There's a lot I learned myself. There's a lot of people in non-profit organizations that do like a lot of like hygiene drives. There's one, I believe, in Ferndale that gives away free clothing for people in need. So just trying to get those resources together, because I know that there are some people, especially students, who may not be able to afford certain things and they may be scared to say that they can't afford something. So just be able to give those resources to people. I just want to help that.
Speaker 1:Yeah, no, that's great. I think that's super important. We can't do everything. There's a famous poem in prayer that I'm not going to remember the name of, but it's attributed to Oscar Romero and it basically says, like the phrase, we can't do everything, but there's a great piece or something I'm paraphrasing for sure, but there's like a great piece in knowing that, like we can't do everything, but we can access different resources outside of our community but within our wider Detroit community and then you know greater Metro Detroit that do have resources that our students and staff and faculty can access.
Speaker 1:The hygiene kits. That brought back a memory for me. I used to.
Speaker 1:During the first year after college I did a postgraduate volunteer program with an organization called the Colorado Vincentian Volunteers. So if any of you know our Jesuit volunteer who works in our office, we have a new one every year. Last year was Doug, this year, if you haven't met her yet, we have a young woman named Becky. She's fabulous.
Speaker 1:So they're doing a similar program to what I did, but I worked in refugee resettlement for the year and one of my major jobs was working in our volunteer and donations section and I had to coordinate a lot of hygiene kit drives and I relied heavily on a lot of churches. Actually that would put them together for me and then I would get to hand them out to my clients. So that just brought back that memory of like not everyone has access to all those resources and so it's really great to know where we can get those things, especially for people who maybe wouldn't regularly buy those things for themselves because they're concerned about their finances or they don't feel like they have access to those things or even just like the mental block of like I don't necessarily deserve that type of self-care, which I think a lot of people struggle with at different times and different periods of their life.
Speaker 4:So that's super cool and, if I may jump in real quick, the Wellness Center actually this week started. We purchased some hygiene supplies and we have food banks on campus. We have many resources, so the Wellness Center kind of wanted to become like the hygiene home. So we do have a lot of hygiene products now for free for students and, like I said earlier in the podcast, you just need to ask because it is there for you and this is kind of a collaboration to Title IX office had purchased thousands of tampons and pads and we as PWEs help distribute them throughout campus.
Speaker 4:So there's some in the fitness center and a couple other buildings. But if you need a more long-term supply of menstrual hygiene products, the wellness center has them all. Now, Thanks to Title IX, we're hanging on to them. There's thousands. We put together little menstrual hygiene kits in little bags, discreet bags. You can just come and ask for it. There's about 40 tampons, 40 pads and 40 liners in each bag and we can give them to you month after month. If that's what you need, that's perfectly fine, at no cost. And we ordered shampoos and conditioners and deodorants and toothbrushes, so just really want to be that hygiene home for those who you know can't turn anywhere else. Yeah, Amazing.
Speaker 1:That's so cool. I love that I'd also brought. I used to work in the wellness center when I was in college. I didn't go to Detroit Mercy, I went to one of our sister Jesuit schools, john Carroll University, and one of my favorite perks of working in the Wellness Center I was just like the front desk check-in sign-in student.
Speaker 1:I would check people in for different appointments, but it was all of the free samples and all the free things that come out of the Wellness Center. But it was all of the free samples and all the free things that come out of the wellness center. So certainly there were. We had similar supplies, different things for hygiene, and I used to remember they would put together like stockings for us around Christmas time for all their student workers and I got a lot of that stuff, which was great, but it was also wonderful to know that it was a great resource on that campus as well. But it was also wonderful to know that it was a great resource on that campus as well. So I'm glad we're going to have our little hygiene home in the wellness center for our students.
Speaker 1:Thank you, we're excited.
Speaker 2:So why is mental health care and awareness important to you guys?
Speaker 3:Personally. For me it was important to do this job because I know how it feels to deal with mental health. To do this job because I know how it feels to deal with mental health. When I was a freshman here I was like not happy at all, like I didn't know how to not only be like social with other people, but also I was a COVID senior so I was coming out of not interacting with anyone at all, doing everything online in class, to coming to college. And now I have to interact with everyone and I'm going to class and then I have to figure out how to manage like going to school and working and also trying to be social. So my mental health was very much so like low and kind of in the dirt. Um, but when my friend she was like well, there is like the wellness center and I had my very first therapy appointment in the wellness center and it helped me a lot. But when my friend she was like, well, there is like the Wellness Center and I had my very first therapy appointment in the Wellness Center and it helped me a lot and I started going. I've been in therapy for about three years. I've maybe like switched my therapist, but it's been very helpful. So I really just wanted to.
Speaker 3:When I got this job, I wanted to act as a resource for students as well, because mental health is very important. It starts to when your mental health is low. It starts to interfere with who you are as a person. You start to not come out of your room, you don't want to interact with other people, you maybe start like slipping in class. You don't want to go to class, you don't want to go to work, and it makes you just feel very low and low energy and you just really don't feel like a person that makes sense, like you don't really understand your emotions and it just comes really hard.
Speaker 3:So I think mental health is important, especially with us as students and even as staff, because we do a lot. We do a lot in class, some of us work multiple jobs, some of us have outside activities in clubs. So I think it's very important to check in with yourself and be like hey, maybe my mental health is not good right now, maybe I need to take a break from certain things. Maybe I do need to pursue a resource like you don't have to go to therapy, but maybe you'll journal your feelings, maybe that helps out. So I think it's been really important for me as a student to kind of check my mental health and check how I'm doing every single day, and also I want to be that resource for students to kind of remind them to like, hey, check in with yourself, make sure that you're good, because this is the only life that you have and, honestly, making sure that you live life to the fullest and making sure that you're as happy as possible is very important.
Speaker 4:So yeah, I think, anisha, that was beautifully said 100%. Mental health, to me, is one of the main contributors of the quality of life that we have. So if we have poor mental health, we're going to have a poor quality of life. If we have good mental health, we have a more positive quality of life. Speaking to that awareness piece, one in five US adults struggle with mental illness and this is from the NAMI National Alliance on Mental Illness website, and they also have stated that 50% of all lifetime illnesses begin by age 14 and 75 by age 24. So this affects almost all of us at some point in our life and the awareness piece is so important because there is a stigma attached to mental health. So, anisha, I want to applaud you for sharing your story because you're helping break that stigma.
Speaker 4:The National Council for Mental Well-Being they published a research article recently that had stated some of the barriers to receiving mental health care. That had stated some of the barriers to receiving mental health care and they were high costs and insufficient health care coverage, limited option, long waits, lack of awareness, which, surprisingly, the highest lack of awareness of resources was in younger adults. So we're talking Gen Z and millennials. They didn't know what their resources were, and they actually found this study that most turned to YouTube, twitter, twitter, facebook, social media in general, which is not a reliable resource, and then the last barrier to receiving mental health care was the social stigma attached.
Speaker 4:So they found through the study, 31% worried about other people's judgment if they said you know I'm receiving mental health care, if they said you know I'm receiving mental health care, and 21% of the study participants said that they even lied to avoid telling people that they were receiving mental health care, and the younger that the participant was, the more true that statement is.
Speaker 4:So 20% of the boomer generation have lied, 30% of Gen X, 40 percent of millennials in the study had once lied about receiving mental health care and 49 percent I'm sorry they said that they worried about people judging them for receiving care. So boomers were the least, but Gen Z 49 percent of them said that they were worried about other people judging them for receiving mental health care.
Speaker 4:Yeah, so there are shocking numbers, but as many of us know we're each probably going to go through a mental illness or a mental struggle at some point in our life. So if we talk about it, like you just did in Asia, and we raise awareness, we're going to make it easier for that next person to help find their resources or just maybe gain the acceptance that they're looking for.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I think, especially with minorities it's kind of hard. I remember talking I don't know if I was in a class or something where it was like a big group of us and we were talking about how hard it is growing up in minority families and mental health not being taken seriously. Like I have had multiple family members who have dealt with mental health issues but they were not seen kind of seems like crazy or like not being taken as serious. But I think the stigma is kind of like it's kind of like fading away, like my family's a little bit better with mental health. But not everyone's family is like that. Not everyone's family encourages them to go to therapy.
Speaker 3:Some people work, you know like, work, work, work, work, but they don't focus on how they are in themselves. So I like that you brought up also the Gen Z, like the younger population, not really kind of feeling, that kind of feeling embarrassed maybe, because I think it's kind of like how, like some older generations might have implemented of this, like you don't need therapy, you don't need this, you just need to do certain things. But some people do need certain resources to help them out. So I like that you brought up that point.
Speaker 4:I think that's what like caught me so off guard when I read this article is because I felt like I'm a millennial. But Gen Z, you know, they call themselves like the woke generation and like in a lot of ways they are. In a lot of ways, gen Z has shined light on a lot of different issues and are helping break stigmas. But I find it so interesting that this study said they were the ones that felt the most judged and that they were the ones Gen Z that didn't know their resources when it came to mental health the most. Yeah, which is wild to me yeah, that I mean.
Speaker 1:Those are really shocking statistics. I would not think that those would be the numbers right, I thought it'd be flipped.
Speaker 1:I also thought it would be flipped, I would think, because I feel like maybe it's I'm also a millennial, but maybe it is the experience of like how mental I don't know if it's like the. My perspective is that mental health has been talked about so much more now than it was even when I was a teenager, and so in some ways I figured like, oh well, it's talked about more if people engage with it more. But it sounds like even with it being talked about more, it's not actually something that a lot of people still feel comfortable to say that they do. Um, and I feel like when we're talking about the stigma, like certainly, um, I know a lot of people in my life who have not been well received when they've shared that they've gone to therapy or that they went to see a counselor, and particularly by people that are in their inner circles or that they're loved by, and that is really sad and painful, and I'm fortunate enough that that's not true for me.
Speaker 1:I have also engaged in seeing a counselor and I have a therapist and I also work with somebody who does spiritual direction for myself. I work as a spiritual director. That is not therapy or counseling. I'll make that clear distinction, but it is one of those ways of keeping my spiritual wellness in check, and then my therapist keeps my mental wellness in check and all of that's all connected. But, um, yeah, I think it's really shocking to hear that gen z feels more embarrassed to reveal that they've engaged in in counseling services, because it seems like something that's talked about, particularly from gen z and millennials, that this is a really important thing and that there shouldn't be this grand stigma around receiving mental health care, which is so pivotal as we've been talking about to your overall wellness If you're not, you know or your overall quality of life, as you said, it's so important. So, yeah, I'm shocked by statistics.
Speaker 4:A small piece of me too, so obviously the study didn't dive into. You know the reasoning behind it, but my own personal opinion is that Gen Z we're talking about. Maybe a 20 year old might just feel more judged in general than a 65 year old, right, so take it with a grain of salt, but it still is a shocking number to hear.
Speaker 1:Yeah for sure. So one of the other things we wanted to ask you about and this has to do with but it still is a shocking number to hear. So one of the other things we wanted to ask you about, and this has to do with overall wellness. We're moving towards holiday season and a lot of big holidays are ahead. People are probably going to be going home for different breaks and seeing family, and that can be a mixed bag of experiences. Sometimes that's a really joyful experience for people and that can be a mixed bag of experiences. Sometimes that's a really joyful experience for people, but sometimes that can be a really challenging experience.
Speaker 1:As an adult now, I find myself when I go see my family for Thanksgiving. The table conversation can be really interesting and sometimes challenging, and it was when I was also in college, so it's not that different. But I imagine that Thanksgiving tables if people celebrate Christmas, christmas, any of our major holidays that are coming up offer a lot of time to be with family maybe sometimes extended family we don't interact with as often, or just being with friends and chosen family. But as we approach the holidays, what is some advice that you would give our faculty and staff and students on just keeping in check with their overall wellness as they approach this, whether it's a positive time for them or maybe a more challenging time.
Speaker 3:I would say take some time to yourself, especially during Thanksgiving, christmas break. I see it as some time to yourself. Especially during Thanksgiving, christmas break. It's kind of I see it as a time for like a breather, because your Thanksgiving break, you're getting off of midterms and all these exams or I know faculty are probably really busy with different things and trying to get into the end of semester. So I would say, take that time for you.
Speaker 3:Also, it's okay to walk away from situations where it might heighten, like those sad feelings or those angry feelings. It's okay to walk away, or it's okay to not be around people who you don't necessarily think are supportive of you or how you are trying to move forward in the future. But also spend time with those who, like you know, really love you and really care for you. I honestly love spending time with those who, like you know, really love you and really care for you. Um, I honestly love spending time with my family, especially, like my mother's side of the family, um, and Thanksgiving like that because I know that they are always rooting for me and me to get better as well. So I love spending time with those who reciprocate kind of the same energy that I reciprocate back.
Speaker 4:So I think my points of advice for just general wellness over the holidays is remain active. You know, a daily outdoor walk does so many beneficial things for our physical, mental health, even our social health, if we're going with other people. So keep active. One of the best pieces of advice I've ever received, because I have quite the sweet tooth like I am not gonna give up cookies or cake especially come Christmas, my mom makes buckeyes.
Speaker 4:I'm obsessed is just eat a little bit of fiber in that meal prior to having all those sugary sweets, because when we eat sugar it kind of looks like a mountain peak, it goes up and then down really quickly. But if we have some fiber in our system, so maybe we're eating almonds with the chocolate, because when we eat sugar it kind of looks like a mountain peak, it goes up and then down really quickly. But if we have some fiber in our system, so maybe we're eating almonds with the chocolate or we're having raw vegetables as an appetizer that sugar peak, the blood glucose, is going to look more like maybe a wave, as opposed to this giant mountain peak. And then I think my last piece of advice and I kind of talked about it earlier, but it's just remain present over the holiday season.
Speaker 4:I think so many of us get caught up in our day to day, our lives are so busy, and then when we have downtime, like it's so easy to check out using our Netflix or phone or laptop, but we're missing out on these like small and large ways to connect, like this beautiful life that we have.
Speaker 4:And the holidays offer us this amazing time to realign our values with our actions, and what I mean by that is, like myself and I'm sure most of us, just want to soak up every moment possible with the people we love. Because when life kind of concludes, the money didn't matter, the degrees don't matter, the job doesn't matter, but the people we love. Because when life kind of concludes, the money didn't matter, the degrees don't matter, the job doesn't matter, but the people we love will. So over break. I would encourage everyone to just put your phone down and I mean like put it away, because environment is always going to win over willpower. So hide it, put it in a drawer for an hour and practice being present to maintain, like these meaningful connections with the ones we love.
Speaker 1:Amazing. Thank you both for your advice. So we always ask all of our guests two questions, and they're both related to our mission and our identity here at the university. So we are a Jesuit Mercy Catholic institution, but we are also a place that has a set of values that we interpret and see in the midst of the community we're a part of, and so I want to ask these two questions of both of you, but we'll start with just the first one, which is what is your favorite part of our mission? And this could be related to a value that you see in our community. This could be related to something that you've heard from the Jesuits or the Mercies. It can be whatever you interpret that question to mean, but I'd love to hear what your favorite part of our mission at the University of Detroit Mercy is, and I'll ask Anisha to go first.
Speaker 3:My favorite part would be the service of our mission. When I started the nursing program I didn't know that a lot of our schooling would be acts of service and learning how to serve not only our patients but our community as a whole. I think that's kind of what helped me feel comfortable and like wanting to apply for this role. I love that as a university it's a big thing for us to do service and also we're in a community. Our school is like kind of gated but we're also sitting in the community of Detroit, so going outside of that gate and helping others is very important. Like I love that they have um the service during PTV for freshmen, because I think it kind of allows them to understand our mission as a school and also kind of make them more comfortable going outside of our little small gated community and going outside of that and helping the people around us. So I think service is probably my favorite part of our mission Awesome.
Speaker 4:What about you, sydney? Don't tell my boss I hope she's not listening but I don't know our missions and values quite well, but what I do see all the time and I think can answer this question appropriately is the value of connection. So it is a smaller campus and, as a faculty member, I love the fact that you know, I don't call the Dean of Students, I call Monica Williams, I don't call IT, I call Nick. So there's a lot of very personal connections created on this campus and I hear this from the students as well. When it comes to clubs and organizations and professors, there's always this one person that they can turn to, that they have a relationship with and a connection with. I shouldn't say all the time. I do speak broadly. Of course there are some students or faculty that may not feel that way, but I don't mean to paint with a broad brush, but for most of the time what I hear is that connection is extremely important and we can all probably think of a way that that value has impacted us in our time here.
Speaker 2:What motivates you guys to live the mission?
Speaker 1:Yeah, what's the thing? Some people have different means or modes for what motivates them to live different values out. I often come from like. The space of my spirituality is often the driving force, but I'd love to know, for the both of you, what motivates you to, you know, be passionate about service. What motivates you to continue to seek connection or to create connection?
Speaker 3:um, I believe kind of like the way that I grew up as a child and kind of like growing into my older adult self, I've always wanted to help other people and, like Sydney said, also do a social connection. I was younger, I was very, very quiet, I never liked to talk to people, um, but as I got older I learned how important it is to build that kind of social connection with other people. Like I never would have thought me going to college that I would have personal relationship with my professors or have like a name-to-name business with my professors or faculty. Like when I was younger I was taught to say like, oh, mrs. Like I was like Miss Sidney, but now I just call Sidney Sidney, or like my professors I'll be like, oh, I like. So she's like, oh, like you can call me like by my name. I'm like, but I'm used to saying like professor such and such but, um, I do like that social connection.
Speaker 3:I think that kind of motivates me as well to just keep going and also just keep building connections with other people.
Speaker 3:Um, I think it is important in life to build connections with other people because it kind of helps you out for the long term and also kind of helps you kind of meet new people. Um, and also with the service me being in the city of Detroit, I have learned things that people can go through, especially in our city. Some cities, part of our cities, are not that great and need that extra help and service and connection and I believe that is so important. So that kind of drives me to always try to help and do service in any way that I can, whether it be like a drive where me maybe volunteering at a soup kitchen or volunteering helping pick up trash around the area, um, so, like during PCV, even though it's really hot and like my allergies are flaring up and everything, I still had fun and being able to talk to the freshmen know why it's so important for us to just be picking up trash and cutting the grass and things like that so that kind kind of motivates me.
Speaker 4:Yeah, and I think what motivates me is, well, first of all, my coworkers. You know I receive a lot of grace and gratitude and kindness from my coworkers. Just speaking broadly, you know, there's only five of us, four of us in the wellness center, so of course they give that to me as well, but the whole university does. So I want to reciprocate and give that back. But I think, digging a little deeper, my family is what really inspires me to kind of live out these missions and values. Um, my parents they instilled that in me from like a young age. And then my grandmother we called her mumu growing up um, she was always one to serve others, to create community and to live out these values. That, hopefully, I am today. Great, thank you both. So now we're moving on to my favorite time, which is our lightning round.
Speaker 1:So typically what we do when we have two guests, kateri and I, will go back and forth asking the, moving on to my favorite time, which is our lightning round. So typically what we do when we have two guests, kateri and I, will go back and forth asking the questions. I'll start, I'll ask the question, anisha you'll answer, sydney you'll answer, and then Kateri will ask the next question. Okay, generally it's called a lightning round, so we're trying to go kind of fast. Some of these questions we recognize, though, could have a follow-up of not just one answer, so if that happens, it's okay, especially the last one. We always ask the same question for the last one, which is what's the best advice you've ever received? That usually comes with a little bit of a story, so don't feel like you have to rush through the story. There isn't a timer.
Speaker 4:Well, I'm thinking any question related to food I'll need like multiple choices, like it can't be narrowed down to one well, that's okay, we, we will accept, uh, breaking of the rules and allowing multiple things.
Speaker 1:Um, okay, so I will start and ask sweet or salty, sweet, sweet.
Speaker 2:What is your favorite color?
Speaker 1:Pink Blue. What is one food you could not live without? Seafood, moose tracks, ice cream One of my favorites too.
Speaker 2:Current favorite TV show.
Speaker 3:Real Housewives of Atlanta.
Speaker 4:Love it. Love it 30 Rock.
Speaker 1:Beach or mountains.
Speaker 2:Beach Mountains. Who is your hero, my hero, my?
Speaker 1:mom, my grandma, my muumuu. What's one place you want to visit um bali?
Speaker 4:oh, I want to go to all the national parks. Do you accept multiple?
Speaker 1:that's a category.
Speaker 2:I think that's a category that counts um favorite thanksgiving food, um mac and cheese that's good mashed potatoes.
Speaker 1:Love it both. Uh, what famous person, dead or alive, would you like to have a conversation with?
Speaker 2:it's a harder one I know it's tough.
Speaker 1:It can be anybody. They could be famous. It could be somebody in your life um, say my grandfather Eleanor Roosevelt um, what's the best advice you ever received?
Speaker 2:um, what is meant for you?
Speaker 4:will be, and what is not will not um, I'm not gonna say it as well as I once heard it, but don't live for the weekends. Every day can be special. So you know, create those special moments Monday through Thursday as well yeah, I like that, that's cute, great, well, awesome.
Speaker 1:That, uh, formally ends our time together. Those were the last little bits of our questions. I just want to thank you both for being here, for taking the time, for sharing some really great resources about our campus, also sharing really cool statistics and things that we need to be aware of around mental health. Just really appreciate both of you being here and having a conversation with Kateri and I.
Speaker 2:Thank you guys.
Speaker 4:Yeah, I really appreciated your time. Thank you for having us.
Speaker 3:Yes, it's a really nice conversation.
Speaker 1:So that was a really great conversation we just had with Sydney and Anasia.
Speaker 1:I so appreciated them sharing just from their own personal experiences Anasia talking about her own experience of seeking out counseling and how that has been really beneficial for her. I really also liked what Sydney said at the very beginning and in her bio about like being the first person that a lot of young adults encounter as a healthcare provider and being able to be a space where they can ask a lot of questions. I feel in my space in campus ministry that I often have that same experience, obviously not as a healthcare provider, but as somebody who can have conversations about religion and spirituality. I always really love working with young adults, for that particular reason is like they're very interested in asking questions and talking about their spiritual journey in a space that feels kind of, I guess, safe or like a neutral zone in terms of being able to be expressive and ask questions or, yeah, just share. And I know we were talking briefly before we started recording again that you were saying that you were really appreciative of some of the resources and programs that Anisha was talking about.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I like that they went into all of the different roles that the Wellness Center went into. I think it was really involved and I think that they're really trying to get everyone involved and kind of feeling better about themselves and the peer wellness educator roles. That she's really trying to get everyone involved, especially the men, because they're coming up to her and saying that you know they would like some of these events, but they're not showing up to the events, maybe because they're ashamed or they just don't know, like where to find these events. So I think it's important that we keep including everyone on campus. You've been listening to what's the Tea with Ministry. If you enjoyed listening to us today, be sure to subscribe so you never miss an episode. Also, be sure to follow us on social media at UDM underscore ministry or check us out at what's the Tea with Ministry podcast on the Detroit Mercy website.
Speaker 1:Thank you to our guests Sydney and Asia for being in conversation with us today. Thank you also to all those who made this podcast possible, especially the communication studies department, our sound engineer, michael Jason, our music composer, dan Gregg, marketing and communications and the whole Detroit Mercy community.
Speaker 2:We will look forward to sharing more of the mission with you next time, see you later.