Categories
Getting Started

Resource Spotlight: Tools and Resources for Return to “New Normal”

As we begin to think about returning to a “new normal,” many of us are experiencing new stress and anxiety.

According to an article in HR Executive:

“Employees’ mental health is worsening as the return to the workplace looms, according to new research, with rates of stress, anxiety, depressed mood and PTSD risk on the rise once again. The latest data from Total Brain’s Mental Health Index signals an impending trend reversal among female employees, who had seen remarkable mental health improvements since January. Compared to March, women are showing a 33% increase in feelings of anxiety, a 25% increase in stress, and a 23% increase in depressed mood. The index results come as other data has pointed to the concerns that employees have about returning to the workplace. Recent research from Total Brain found that two-thirds of American workers say they feel somewhat or extremely anxious about returning to work. Limeade research found that a shocking 100% of employees surveyed are anxious about returning to the workplace.”

Recognizing these feelings are normal, you’re not alone in them, and addressing them with tools and resources can/may be helpful. This article from Forbes provides strategies to help combat some of the fears and anxieties related to returning to work.

LinkedIn Learning has also put together a list of resources for adjusting to a “new normal” and dealing with stress and anxiety:

To help professionals get the support they need, we’re sharing courses on mindfulness and stress management. Experts will help you learn how to:

  • Cultivate mindfulness practices to increase focus, remain grounded in change and ambiguity, and manage emotional triggers
  • Understand the impact of a mindful physical workspace and how to create one
  • Manage stress and get ‘unstuck’ when you’re overwhelmed
  • Build up your energy reserves so you can show up the way you want to with colleagues and loved ones

Adopt mindfulness practices to shift out of ‘fight or flight

Mindfulness practices calm our nervous system and shift brain activity out of ‘fight or flight’ mode. Discover which mindfulness practices work best for you and how to fit them into any schedule in the following courses:
Mindfulness Practices
The Mindful Workday
Mindful Meditations for Work and Life

Understand and manage stress and overwhelm

Train your brain to get unstuck from overwhelm and stress and create practices in your life that help you feel more spacious and full. Learn how with the help of these courses:
Manage Stress for Positive Change
How to Manage Feeling Overwhelmed
Balancing Work and Life
LinkedIn is here to help you navigate the changing world of work with information and resources, including relevant LinkedIn Learning courses to help.

Additionally, both short and long-term mental health resources are available through our EAP and health insurance providers.

Categories
Getting Started

Culture of Care: Resource Spotlight

This week our resource spotlight is turning back to Zoom fatigue, with some solutions to combat it.

You would think that a year into Zoom meetings we would have all mastered the tips and tricks by now, but it seems like I’m always learning of new ways to help. My personal favorite from the following article was the tip to “hide self-view” which I was not aware of until now!

A recent article by Stanford Researchers shows four reasons why video, or zoom, meetings fatigue us, with helpful and simple solutions for each. See the reasons and solutions summarized here:

Excessive amounts of close-up eye contact is highly intense. In a normal meeting, everyone’s focus is usually on the person speaking, but in Zoom meetings everyone is usually looking at everyone, and the amount of eye contact is much greater. Faces on Zoom are usually much larger than how you normally would experience when you’re with someone in person which can cause our brains to interpret it as an intense situation. Solution: Take Zoom out of the full-screen option to minimize face size and increase space between yourself and your camera.

Seeing yourself during video chats constantly in real-time is fatiguing. It’s unnatural to have to look at your own face while you are speaking in real-time. When you see a reflection of yourself, you are typically more critical of yourself. Solution: Use the “Hide self-view” button in zoom. You can access it by right clicking your own photo, or hovering and clicking on the three dots. Then click on “hide self-view”.

Video chats dramatically reduce our usual mobility. In-person and audio conversations allow us to walk around and move more. However, in video conferencing you are restricted to a smaller space so you can stay in the camera view. Solution: Move the camera further back so there is more space to move, and periodically turn your camera off for a brief nonverbal rest.

The cognitive load is much higher in Zoom. When we are face-to-face nonverbal communication is natural. In video meetings we have to work much harder to send and receive signals. It requires more thought which in turn leads to more cognitive load. Solution: Not only take breaks by turning off your camera, but by turning away from the computer and taking some time for audio only communication to lessen your cognitive load.

Take good care.

Culture of Care Team

Categories
Awareness

Resource Spotlight: Dual Career

This week our resource spotlight turns back to our Dual Career Resources.

Internal Postings: Spouses/Partners of OSU employees are eligible to apply for internal postings at OSU as well as external postings. To apply for an internal posting mention somewhere in your cover letter or resume that you are a part of a dual career couple.

Letter of Support: The OSU Work Life Coordinator can send a letter to the search coordinator letting them know you are a part of a dual career couple if you apply for an OSU job. Simply send the coordinator an email at work.life@oregonstate.edu with the position number, job title, and name of the hiring coordinator.

GOHERC: Individuals are encouraged to utilize the Greater Oregon Higher Education Recruitment Consortium which has a free job board to explore employment at other institutions of higher education within the greater Oregon and southern Washington region.

Work Life Website: More information about dual career resources as well as other work life resources are available at the work life website.

Other Noteworthy Resources:
BEavers HERE NOW: Enjoy a different 15 minute guided meditation each week. Benefits of mediation include stress reduction, better sleep, sharper concentration, anxiety management and happier relationships. Sessions take place every Monday through Friday at 4 p.m. Register at: https://beav.es/JEF.
Care.com Webinar: Removing the “man-can’t” myth, Tuesday April 13th 9-10AM: Moms and dads have been struggling during the COVID-19 pandemic, experiencing equal amounts of stress, despite stereotypes. Dads today are “all in” and more emotionally and physically involved at home than ever before. Josh Levs, an expert on modern dads in the workplace, will share how men can engage on issues of gender equality and diversity, how they can become co-champions for change, and strategies to offer work-life balance for both women and men. Register Today
Planning a Family Vacation: April 20, 2021 9AM Register Here. In looking toward the future, and with the recognition that traveling may look different this summer, Beyond Benefits is offering a webinar for Planning a Family Vacation: Recognizing that numerous tourist destinations are competing for our travel dollar, coupled with our perception that our time is at a premium, it is highly worthwhile to apply planning skills to mapping out a destination and a budget that meets the interests and financial constraints of our family. With numerous choices and considerations, a planned vacation can be a creative and exciting process and deliver exceptional value as well.
OSU Science on Tap | Wine Off the Vine in Oregon and Italy: The OSU Alumni Association is pairing two popular programs for one splendid evening. Learn about the sensory science of wine from OSU Fermentation Science program’s Elizabeth Tomasino at Wine Off the Vine in Oregon and Italy Thursday, April 15, at 5:30 p.m. Be part of the live virtual tasting and discussion of wine from Oregon and Italy. Then hear how you can experience the region on Alumni Group Travel’s upcoming tour, Flavors of Northern Italy, departing September 2021. To receive a recommended wine list, register for free at osualum.com/SOTwine.

Categories
Awareness

Resource Spotlight: Need Based Community Resources

This week our resource spotlight is on this page the Family Resource Center put together with the following Need Based Community Resources:

Department of Human Services: Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)- The Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program provides cash assistance to low-income families with children while they strive to become self-sufficient. The program’s goal is to reduce the number of families living in poverty, through employment and community resources.
For more information on how to apply visit www.oregon.gov/DHS/assistance/pages/cash/tanf.aspx
The local DHS office is located at
545 SW 2nd, Ste. B
Corvallis, OR 97333
Phone: 541-757-4201

Community Services Consortium Resources– The CSC has compiled a list of local resources dealing with your health and well-being such as:
Medical
Crisis Intervention & Assistance
Financial Services
and much more!
Visit their website for more information!

WIC: Nutrition for you and your family– WIC is the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (up to age 5).The Oregon WIC Program aims to provide public health leadership in promoting the health and improved nutritional status of Oregon’s families by providing:
Nutrition education
Breastfeeding promotion
Supplemental nutritious foods
Partnerships with and referral to other public and private community groups
Benton County Health Department
530 NW 27th Street
Corvallis, OR 97330
541-766-6835
For more information, please visit www.fns.usda.gov/wic.

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)– The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is a federal program offers nutrition assistance to millions of eligible, low-income individuals and families and provides economic benefits to communities. SNAP is the largest program in the domestic hunger safety net. Oregon works with our federal partners, other State agencies, nutrition educators, and neighborhood and faith-based organizations to ensure that those eligible for nutrition assistance can make informed decisions about applying for the program and can access benefits. For more information and/or to apply visit www.oregon.gov/DHS/assistance/pages/foodstamps/snap-info.aspx.

Parenting Success Network– The Parenting Success Network is a coalition of organizations in Linn and Benton counties dedicated to strengthening and supporting families. Network organizations provide educational programs and support services to enhance parents’ ability to raise healthy children in caring homes. For more information and to view upcoming classes visit www.parentingsuccessnetwork.org

Other noteworthy resources:
OSU Community Hub: Managed by the Family Resource Center, this free platform is where Beaver families can connect, learn and share. Introduce yourself and get to know other Oregon State employees through this new resource; ask questions to your colleagues about child care, caregiving and community resources; and join interest groups to connect with those who share similar experiences.
Care.com Webinar: Removing the “man-can’t” myth, Tuesday April 13th 9-10AM: Moms and dads have been struggling during the COVID-19 pandemic, experiencing equal amounts of stress, despite stereotypes. Dads today are “all in” and more emotionally and physically involved at home than ever before. Josh Levs, an expert on modern dads in the workplace, will share how men can engage on issues of gender equality and diversity, how they can become co-champions for change, and strategies to offer work-life balance for both women and men. Register Today
Informational session about Healthy Team Healthy U next Tuesday, March 30th, from 12:30-1pm Register Here. The informational session will cover:

  • Who is eligible to enroll
  • How to login/sign up for HTHU
  • A live demo of the actual website
  • What resources are available on the website
  • The My StayWell App
  • Upcoming events
  • Q&A, if time permits


Categories
Getting Started

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