Photo courtesy of Suffolk County Sheriff’s office.
Photo courtesy of Suffolk County Sheriff’s office.
Photo courtesy of Suffolk County Sheriff’s office.
On Friday, Feb. 14 Suffolk County Sheriff Errol D. Toulon, Jr. recognized Brooke DiPalma and Jaimie DiPalma as the recipients of the Community Leadership Award for their extraordinary dedication to mental health awareness and suicide prevention through P.S. I Love You Day.
On April 23, 2010, Brooke and Jaimie experienced an unimaginable loss when their father, Joseph DiPalma, died by suicide. In the wake of their grief, they turned their pain into a powerful movement for change. Inspired by their father’s final words, “I love you,” Brooke, with the support of her family and high school community, founded P.S. I Love You Day. Held annually on the second Friday of February, the initiative encourages people to wear purple as a sign of unity against bullying, a commitment to ending depression and a message of hope for suicide prevention.
P.S. I Love You Day has grown into a nationwide movement, fostering conversations about mental health and spreading kindness in schools, workplaces and communities. Through their efforts, Brooke and Jaimie have provided a platform for support and awareness, reminding individuals that they are never alone.
Each month, Sheriff Toulon presents the Community Leadership Award to recognize Suffolk County residents who go above and beyond to better their communities and provide support to those in need.
Exercise helps build long-term physical and mental health, but regular exercise is often a challenge. Even with all the fitness-related apps to prompt us, modern society has an equal number of tech demotivators. It’s just too easy to let the next episode of our favorite series autoplay or to answer those last few emails.
Even if we want to exercise, we “don’t have time.”
I have good news. There is an easy way to get tremendous benefit in very little time. You don’t need expensive equipment, and you don’t have to join a gym. You can even sharpen your wits with your feet.
Esther Tuttle was profiled in a New York Times’ Science Times article a few years ago, when she was 99. Esther was sharp as a tack and was independently mobile, with no mobility aids. She remained active by walking in the morning for 30 minutes and then walking again in the afternoon.
Of course, this story is only anecdotal; however, evidence-based medicine supports her claim that walking is a simple way to get exercise that shows incredible benefits. One mile of walking a day will help keep the doctor away. For the step-counters among you, that’s about 2,000 steps a day for an adult with an average stride length.
Does walking improve mental acuity?
Walking has a dramatic effect, preserving brain function and even growing certain areas of the brain (1). Study participants who walked between six and nine miles a week, or just one mile a day, reduced the risk of cognitive impairment over 13 years and actually increased the amount of gray matter tissue in the brain over nine years.
Participants who had an increase in brain tissue volume also experienced a substantially reduced risk of developing cognitive impairment. Interestingly, the parts of the brain that grew included the hippocampus, involved with memory, and the frontal cortex, involved with short-term memory and executive decision making. There were 299 participants with a mean age of 78. All were dementia-free at the trial’s start.
In another study, moderate exercise reduced the risk of mild cognitive impairment with exercise begun in mid-to-late life (2).
If you’re pressed for time or building your stamina, you can split a mile into two half-mile increments. How long does it take you to walk a half-mile?
Does walking affect one’s mood?
Researchers performed a meta-analysis of studies related to the relationship between exercise and depression. They found that adults who walked briskly for about 75 minutes per week cut their risk of depression by 18 percent (3).
If you ratchet up your exercise to running, a study showed that mood also improves, reducing anger (4). The act of running increases your levels of serotonin, a hormone that, when low, can make people agitated or angry.
How do I build better habits?
A common challenge I hear is that working from home reduces much of the opportunity to walk. There’s no walking down the hall to a meeting or to get lunch or even from the car or train to the office. Instead, everything is only a few steps away. Our work environment is working against us.
If you need a little help getting motivated, here is a terrific strategy to get you started: set an alarm for specific points throughout your day and use that as a prompt to get up and walk, even if it’s for only 15 minutes. The miles will add up quickly.
A client of my wife’s schedules meetings for no more than 50 minutes, so she can walk a “lap” around her house’s interior between meetings or even do some jumping jacks. She also looks for opportunities to have an old-fashioned phone call, rather than a video call, so she can walk up and down the hallway while she’s meeting. Of course, this is one person, but it might prompt some ideas that will work for you.
Walking has other benefits as well. Weight-bearing exercise helps prevent osteoporosis and osteoporotic fractures. Sadly, if you don’t use them, bones weaken and break. Walking is a weight-bearing exercise that helps strengthen your joints, bones and muscles.
Remember to use your feet to keep your mind sharp and yourself even-tempered. Activities like walking will help you keep a positive attitude, preserve your bones and help increase the plasticity of your brain.
Dr. David Dunaief is a speaker, author and local lifestyle medicine physician focusing on the integration of medicine, nutrition, fitness and stress management. For further information, visit www.medicalcompassmd.com or consult your personal physician.
The holiday season is a joyous time of year, but it can also throw your wellness routines out of alignment. Doctors advise prioritizing healthy choices during this period, so you can start 2025 on the right foot.
“Everyone’s holiday wish is to be happy, health and safe, but the season is often a time for overindulgence in food and drink, increased stress and exposure to respiratory illness,” says Bruce A. Scott, M.D., president of the American Medical Association (AMA).
The AMA recommends taking these steps during the holidays:
1. Vaccines are a safe and remarkably effective defense from a number of serious respiratory viruses that circulate in the fall and winter. To protect yourself and your family, get up to date on your vaccines, including the annual flu shot, as well as the updated COVID-19 vaccine for everyone 6 months and older. Vaccines are also available to protect older adults from severe RSV. Tools to protect infants during RSV season include maternal vaccination as well as the monoclonal antibody immunization. If you have questions, speak with your physician and review trusted resources, including getvaccineanswers.org.
2. Watch what you eat. Pay particular attention to labels and avoid processed foods as much as you can, especially those with added sodium and sugar. Consider having a healthy snack before the big meal or offer to bring a healthier dish for the holiday spread. Drink water instead of sugar-sweetened beverages, and eat nutritious, whole foods like fresh fruits and vegetables alongside richer holiday fare.
3. Stick to your exercise schedule and prioritize physical activity during this busy time of year. A good rule of thumb for adults is at least 150 minutes a week of moderate-intensity activity, or 75 minutes a week of vigorous-intensity activity. Brisk walks, bike rides, hikes and even family-friendly sports like basketball and touch football are good for heart health.
4. Use time with relatives to find out whether your family has a history of type 2 diabetes or cardiovascular disease, and whether other family members have been told they have prediabetes. With this information, you can better understand your risk and take charge of your health.
5. Prioritize your mental health. Factors like holiday spending and navigating time with extended family can bring on extra seasonal stress. You can help manage stress by getting sufficient sleep, exercising and seeking help from a mental health professional when you need it.
6. Make smart choices and plan ahead if you’re driving. In December 2021 alone, 1,013 Americans died in alcohol impaired-driving crashes. Do not drive under any circumstances if you intend to drink. And if you are the designated driver, make a 100% commitment to sobriety.
7. Be prepared when traveling. Whether you’re flying or taking a road trip, you might be tempted to grab convenient, unhealthy food for the journey. Consider packing your own snacks, such as fresh fruits and vegetables or small portions of dried fruits and nuts.
8. Get New Year’s resolutions started early. Speak with your doctor or health care professional about quitting tobacco and nicotine use, and declare your home and car smoke-free to eliminate secondhand smoke exposure.
“The holiday season is a wonderful time to reconnect with family and friends – it’s also a chance to reconnect with your physical and mental health,” says Dr. Scott. (StatePoint)
The murders last week of Kelly Coppola and her boyfriend Kenneth Pohlman in St. James were the nightmare every supporter of victims of domestic violence works hard to prevent.
After prosecutors charged Daniel Coppola, Kelly’s ex-husband, with two counts of murder, police reportedly shared that the family had one domestic incident from when the couple was married.
Kathleen Monahan, associate Professor in the Stony Brook University School of Social Welfare. Photo courtesy Kathleen Monahan
Domestic violence is “an ongoing problem and an ongoing public health issue,” said Kathleen Monahan, associate professor in the School of Social Welfare at Stony Brook University. “When you’re talking about 30 percent of the female population being battered at least once during their lifetime, you’re talking about a really big problem.”
After the murders, agencies on Long Island that work steadily to avoid such a horrific outcome “kick into high gear” and “try to mobilize women that we think are in real danger,” Monahan added.
Women aren’t the only ones exposed to domestic violence, as children sometimes see it directly or hear it while they are hiding in another room. Recent estimates suggest that between 3.3 million and 10 million children are exposed to domestic violence each year, according to the Domestic Violence Services Network.
In the St. James homicides, Coppola told his 15-year-old daughter to wait in the car while he allegedly committed the murders.
Indeed, while the vast majority of these violent incidents don’t result in death, they do present an untenable situation for victims, some of whom receive ongoing verbal, emotional, financial and physical abuse in the course of an unhealthy relationship.
Abusers sometimes break down their victims, criticizing them and damaging their ego, while getting them to question their judgment or mental abilities.
Domestic violence is often about “power and control,” said Wendy Linsalata, Executive Director at L.I. Against Domestic Violence. “Any time a survivor is working to take back the power and control over their life, [the abuser] feels the anger increase” as does the danger.
L.I. Against Domestic Violence offers a 24-hour confidential hotline, 631-666-8833, that people who are struggling with domestic violence can call for help.
“If something doesn’t feel right to you, follow your instincts,” urged Linsalata. “As minor as it is, reach out to us. You’re not wasting our time. We won’t judge what you’re feeling or thinking.”
Linsalata suggested that domestic violence is not primarily or exclusively caused by alcohol or mental health problems that affect the abuser.
Research has demonstrated that taking away alcohol from an abuser doesn’t prevent their inappropriate and unwelcome behaviors, Monahan noted.
To be sure, alcohol can remove inhibitions, which exacerbates abusive behaviors.
Mental health problems can also lead people to act violently or inappropriately.
“Can mental health contribute? Sure, but is it the all-out case? No,” Linsalata said.
Prevalent problem
Advocates for domestic violence victims urged people to recognize a pervasive problem in their interactions with someone who is abusive.
“This can happen to anyone at any time, regardless of their socioeconomic status, their race, ethnicity, gender, sexual identify, or sexual orientation,” Linsalata said. “This happens across the board.”
Abusive behavior often starts early in a relationship and can appear to involve paying close attention.
When someone needs to know where their partner is at every hour, needs to check their partner’s phone and wants to monitor their partner’s communications or connections, they may be seeking to exert excessive control.
How to help
Advocates offered advice about how friends and family can help others who may be living with domestic abuse.
“If [someone] discloses something to you, please believe them,” said Linsalata. Their partners can seem friendly, personable and charming, but they may, and often are, completely different when they are alone with their domestic partners or families.
“Let them know you’re a safe person to talk to,” said Alberta Rubin, Senior Director of Client Services at Safe Center Long Island. “You’re not going to push them to do something. You want to be there for them.”
Linsalata urged people to recognize that the violence or abuse is “never the fault of the victim” and the “onus is on the person making the choice to abuse them.”
Residents or family members can also call the L.I. Against Domestic Violence hotline for tips on how to start the conversation with those they believe need help.
“Don’t tell them what to do or say, ‘I wouldn’t stay for that’ or ‘I would go to court and get an order of protection,’” Linsalata suggested.
If she noticed a family member was struggling in a relationship, Monahan would express her concern and ask how she can help.
Professionally, she’d let a survivor know that he or she could be in danger and can receive support from organizations on Long Island or from therapists.
Preventing abuse
Groups throughout Long Island have been working to help students understand the need to respect boundaries and to avoid becoming abusers or predators.
The Crime Victims Center Executive Director Laura Ahearn. Photo courtesy Laura Ahearn
Laura Ahearn, Executive Director of The Crime Victims Center, highlighted the “Enough is Enough” program which she said Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) spearheaded to prevent relationship violence and sexual assault on campuses in New York.
Efforts at preventing these kinds of abusive relationships have started in middle schools as well, as students learn about healthy boundaries.
Monahan suggested that people don’t start out life as abusers.
“How do you take this beautiful looking baby and put him or her on a pathway to destruction?” she asked. Amid other contributing factors, all the different ways a child is traumatized during “crucial developmental stages can make them angry and without the essential tools to navigate in society.”
Victims advocates point to the importance of an Extreme Risk Protection Order, which prevents people who are thinking about harming themselves or others from purchasing firearms.
“We don’t want to infringe on anyone’s rights,” said Linsalata. “We want to keep people safe.”
Ultimately, advocates urged people to consider the slippery slope of harmful behavior, even from family members or from those they love.
“In the field, we have a saying that, ‘if he hits you once, that’s not going to be the end of it,’” said Monahan. “If he crossed over that line” he could and likely will do it again.
Student falling asleep at his desk. Courtesy MetroCreative Connection
By Daniel Dunaief
Imagine a typical school classroom filled with adults, listening as intently as they can to a detailed lecture about the finer points of tax law or multivariable calculus.
The adults in the room who weren’t particularly interested in the topic might struggle to concentrate, and several of them might try — perhaps unsuccessfully — to stay awake.
Now, bring a group of 8-year-olds into the same room, with the same instructor, and the same material. The likelihood that any of those younger students would fall asleep in their chair is far lower.
One reason for that difference is that the younger set, consistently, gets more sleep, while the older generation, from high school students on up the chain, typically, are not as well-rested.
“We think it’s normal, if you’re bored, to fall asleep, but it’s not,” said Dr. Steven Feinsilver, director of the Center for Sleep Medicine at Northwell Lenox Hill Hospital. “Falling asleep in a lecture that doesn’t interest you means that you either have a sleep [problem] or, more likely, are sleep deprived.”
Indeed, the percentage of the population that is sleep deprived is estimated at around 50% or more, a staggering number, which means that at least half the population needs more restorative sleep.
With the start of another academic year just under a month away, sleep experts are urging students to start shifting back to their respective school sleep schedule in the coming weeks.
These sleep experts suggest that students who may sleep until 9 a.m. or later during the summer, but will soon get up for school at, say, 6 a.m., are experiencing a type of jet lag people often feel when they travel across the Atlantic.
Sleep experts say that changing an adolescent’s schedule to an earlier waking routine, a week or more before school starts, can ease that school-year transition, while others recommend shifting up wake-up time, by an hour earlier per day during the September lead-up.
“If you know you’re going to have to be waking up at 6 a.m. for the first day of high school, you should be starting to wake up within that hour, within three days or so, before that so your body gets used to it,” said Lauren Hale, professor of preventive medicine and sleep behavior expert at Stony Brook Medicine.
Routines, including getting enough sleep, are important in preparing for the mental effort required to meet daily learning challenges.
“Our brains like a consistent schedule,” said Brendan Duffy, director of Sleep Services at Catholic Health, which includes Port Jefferson-based St. Charles Hospital and Smithtown-based St. Catherine of Siena. “It’s important to get up at the same time,” even on weekends.
Teenagers need more sleep
The academic age group that needs the most sleep is the one that is often getting the least.
High schools often start just after 7 a.m., in part because after-school activities such as athletic practices and events, as well as other extra-curricular activities, take up the hours between the end of school and the onset of darkness.
“Between 15 and 25, everybody’s clock tends to run slow,” Feinsilver said.
The school districts that have pushed high school start times back have seen their test scores go up, added Feinsilver.
He acknowledged that it’s challenging for parents who are managing their own work schedules to balance their children’s academic hours. Parents and schools can and should try to compromise, he urged.
Benefits on the athletic field
Boy chases a soccer ball. Pixabay photo
A return to school also means the restarting of athletic programs, some of which begin before the first day of the new academic calendar.
Student-athletes are pushing their minds and bodies, as they juggle demanding academic requirements with training and competition.
Sleeping the estimated optimum of seven to nine hours per night not only helps improve an athlete’s competitive skills but also helps prevent physical problems.
Sleeping enough is a “way to avoid injuries,” said Duffy, who has been talking to students in a range of ages all the way through college.
Duffy added that professional teams are also encouraging athletes to budget for the sleep their minds and bodies need.
Additionally, he suggests sleep is a form of prehab, as sufficient rest can prevent injuries that would require rehabilitation.
Duffy has spoken with several area teams about the importance of sleep, including the Stony Brook women’s soccer team.
“For 90% of the players, this is the first time” they hear about the importance of sleep athletically, said Tobias Bischof, the head coach of SBU women’s soccer team. “My players are 18-to-22 years old and it’s not on their radar yet how important sleep is.”
He describes sleep as “probably the greatest recovery tool we have” and believes it’s “super important for injury prevention.”
As a coach, Bischof has started journaling his sleep patterns and believes he and others can be better coaches with enough rest.
He suggested that coaches are under tremendous pressure and sleep helps him become more patient.
Numerous factors contribute to success on and off the field with these student athletes, including nutrition, hydration, self-care and relationships with their families, as well as sleep, Bischof added.
The soccer coach doesn’t ask about sleep when he’s speaking with high school players who might join the SBU team, but it comes up when athletes ask about ways the school works with athletes beyond training.
He describes mental health support as well as sleep education.
“You always want to make them a better version of themselves,” Bischof said.
Jim Taylor, who specializes in the psychology of sports and parenting and who has been a consultant to the U.S. and Japanese ski teams, met Duffy when they were on a podcast panel related to sport psychology in 2022. Taylor suggested that sleep is much more than a physical process, as it has psychological and emotional implications.
“One of the most powerful tools that athletes have is sleep, which impacts them in so many ways,” he explained in an email.
Taylor, who competes in triathlons, has seen his results improve from top 20 in his age group to two national championship titles and three world championship podiums.
“Of course, I’m sure other factors contributed to my improved results, but I know that improved sleep was a key contributor,” he explained.
Mental health
Sleep can also be a sign of, or a contributing factor to, mental health issues.
In a Sleep-to-Rise campaign, the Sun Belt Conference suggests that talking about sleep is a gateway to discussing mental health.
Not getting enough sleep or poor sleep quality can increase the risk for mental health issues, while poor sleep itself can reflect mental health challenges.
In its sleep-to-rise online effort, the conference urges athletes to consider sleep a “competitive advantage.”
“With student-athletes, we emphasized the importance of prioritizing your sleep,” Lauren Shear, assistant commissioner of Championships & Sports Administration at the Sun Belt Conference, explained in an email. “This meant highlighting how sleep affects both mental health and physical health.”
Shear added that the conference tries to provide educational resources on mental health, nutrition, sleep and other factors to equip the student-athletes with the information they need to succeed in and outside competition.
She tries to get seven to eight hours of sleep per night and has noticed that when she gets six or less, she’s more irritable and lethargic. She’s also more likely to get sick.
Stony Brook’s Hale added that sleep, unlike diet or other life changes, can provide a noticeable benefit.
“People can see immediate results quicker than other behaviors,” Hale said. “If you choose not to have dessert, you might feel like you lost something and you don’t see a benefit the next day. If you actually got a full night of sleep, you might feel the benefits that day.”
Sleep tips from SBU’s Hale
•Prioritize your sleep health
• Try to have regular sleep times, even on
weekends
• Make sure you get morning light
• Avoid substance use, like caffeine late in
the afternoon
• Put screens away before bedtime
• Sleep in a cool, dark, quiet place
• Pay attention to your body. Figure out when you get restorative rest compared with when you don’t.
From left, Legislator Stephanie Bontempi (3rd from left) and Legislator Manuel Esteban (center) at the forum. Photo courtesy of Leg. Bontempi's office
John Venza, one of the presenters, speaking to the audience. Photo from Leg. Bontempi’s office
The Northport Public Library recently collaborated with Suffolk. County Legislator Stephanie Bontempi (R-18th L.D.), Suffolk County Legislator Manuel Esteban (R-16th L.D.) and Suffolk County Legislator Robert Trotta (R-13th L.D.) to facilitate a timely discussion on addiction, mental health and today’s youth.One of the objectives of the event, entitled “Breaking the Stigma,” was to encourage more frequent and honest dialogues on the topics in both public and private circles.
“The issues of addiction and mental health are too important to ignore or tiptoe around,” said Bontempi.“These serious issues warrant our full attention, and part of the process leading to that is recognizing that they are simply part of the human condition.We need to address our issues, not be ashamed of them.
“The night’s presenters included John Venza and Gordon Gooding who spoke respectively about concerns surrounding addiction and the stressors associated with everyday life.The presentations made it clear that there are no shortage of challenges out there, but there are also many treatment options and preventative tools.
“If you are a parent or caregiver of children, staying up-to-date on the growing body of knowledge and resources in this arena is so important,” added Bontempi.
Left, Dr. Daniel Jamorabo, gastroenterologist at Stony Brook Medicine and assistant professor of medicine in the Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology at Stony Brook University’s Renaissance School of Medicine. Right, Dr. David Purow, chairman of Medicine-Gastroenterology at Huntington Hospital. Left by Stony Brook Medicine/Jeanne Neville; right from Northwell Health
No one rushes to make a reservation at a pre-colonoscopy restaurant with a cleansing and well-reviewed special of the day.
In fact, for most people, the preparation for a potentially lifesaving diagnostic procedure is somewhere between unpleasant and unpalatable.
That, however, may have changed as the U.S. Food and Drug Administration recently approved another incremental improvement in the colonoscopy preparation that could make the preparation and the procedure — which can detect early signs of cancer — less bothersome.
Manufactured by Sebela Pharmaceuticals, Suflave is a low-volume preparation that tastes like a lemon-lime sports drink. It should be available in August.
“Patients really like” Suflave, with about 80 percent finding it palatable, said Dr. Daniel Jamorabo, a gastroenterologist at Stony Brook Medicine and assistant professor of medicine in the Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology at Stony Brook University’s Renaissance School of Medicine.
Jamorabo called it a “wonderful addition to the bowel preparations that are out there.”
Jamorabo said the ingredients in most preparations are the same: the difference in the Suflave preparation seems connected to the flavor.
The thinking in the gastrointestinal community is that “we need to find a preparation” that is more pleasant, said Dr. David Purow, chairman of Medicine-Gastroenterology at Huntington Hospital. “That will capture more people who are somewhat reluctant to have a colonoscopy.”
Colonoscopies are a “necessary screening procedure,” Purow added, and health care professionals in the field don’t want the discomfort during preparation to discourage people from getting the procedure.
Indeed, doctors have a much higher success rate with patients when they detect evidence of colon cancer early.
Getting it right
Doctors suggested that the success of preparing for a colonoscopy varies.
Jamorabo estimated that around 10% of patients may not take all the steps necessary to have the screening.
In those circumstances, these patients have to reschedule the procedure and go through drinking fluids that clear out their systems more effectively.
Gastroenterologists urged people to ask questions if they don’t understand any of the steps they need to take to prepare.
For some patients, the COVID-19 pandemic delayed their routine colonoscopy visits, as people stayed away from hospitals and medical care facilities during periods of highest viral infection.
Jamorabo added that colon cancers have started to show up in younger people.
In 2018, the American Cancer Society recommended lowering the age for screenings from 50 to 45.
“It’s showing up more” in people under 50, said Jamorabo. “It may even go lower.”
Doctors discovered stage three colon cancer in late actor Chadwick Boseman before he was 40.
“We don’t know yet” why it’s causing cancer in younger people, Jamorabo added, but “it’s not rare. It’s been going on for a couple of years. We can’t write it off as some statistical anomaly.”
Early symptoms
People can and should be on the lookout for symptoms that might indicate colon cancer.
Unintentional weight loss, such as losing 10 pounds or more in three to four months without changing diet or exercise regimen, could indicate a problem.
Blood in the stool, changes in bowel habits and ongoing constipation could also require medical attention.
More subtle signs, such as fatigue, shortness of breath or decreased appetite, could indicate that people are losing blood in their stool.
As for the overlap between COVID and colon cancer, Jamorabo believes that the ongoing inflammation from the SARS-CoV2 virus could predispose people to cancer.
“I don’t think enough time has elapsed” to know if there’s a link between the virus and colon cancer, he added.
With anxiety building over big-picture issues like global warming and an intensely divided population, people are likely increasingly worried about the state of the world.
“Most gastroenterologists are probably busier than they’ve ever been,” Purow said. “Some of that is probably due to the times in which we are living.”
Stress and anxiety can cause gastrointestinal symptoms that manifest in different ways.
Even with less concern about the pandemic, doctors are still seeing more people with alcoholic liver disease, as some turned to alcohol to relieve their ongoing anxiety.
“We’re trying to expand our network of dietitians and mental health professionals that we’re working with,” said Purow.
Information is power
An important tool in preventing colon cancer involves tracking the colon’s health through colonoscopies.
Having Suflave on the market could “lower the dread” of having a colonoscopy, Jamorabo noted. “We need to make the logistics of the preparation easier.”
These are polarizing times. The days of civil conversation around delicate issues are long gone. Social media is a blessing and a curse. As a graduate school educator, it is a blessing if you need to have evidenced-based research in an instant. It is a curse because so much of what is posted is opinion, at best masquerading like it is evidence-based research.
Critical thinking is a thing of the past. Too many people believe whatever they see online, especially if it supports their own position. What happened to the days of genuine give and take conversation? What happened to agreeing to respectfully disagree?
We are still reeling from the pandemic; especially our young people. Mental health and human relations have really been impaired.
No one was prepared for the pandemic’s aftermath. We are still not well equipped or trained to navigate into the future. This present generation of young people is profoundly wounded mentally, emotionally and spiritually. We are failing to prepare them to deal with the divisive world we have created and are living in.
Our schools are central to empowering the next generation to wellness and wholeness. Instead of always ripping at our schools and our teachers, we need to work harder at collaboration. We need to be committed to a holistic approach to learning — body, mind and spirit.
Our children should be exposed to evidence-based material in every subject area. We need to be more conscious of the impact, for better or for worse, of the smart phone. That little device can build people up or with the push of a button destroy someone.
At what age should children have a cell phone? What restrictions should be imposed? Should elementary and middle school students have cell phones in class? Should we create universal guidelines in this regard?
The other issue that needs to be addressed is how parents parent their small children with tablets to keep them busy. How and where do our children learn about human connections? How do they learn about their feelings and how to express them?
There has to be a partnership between parents, school and community. Together we need to foster positive human connections grounded in love, respect and radical inclusiveness which our nation is founded on.
Father Francis Pizzarelli, SMM, LCSW-R, ACSW, DCSW, is the director of Hope House Ministries in Port Jefferson.
Canadian wildfire smoke reduced the amount of sunlight reaching the ground over Long Island. Photo by Terry Ballard from Wikimedia Commons
Brian Colle saw it coming, but the word didn’t get out quickly enough to capture the extent of the incoming smoke.
Dr. Jeffrey Wheeler, director of the emergency room at St. Charles Hospital in Port Jefferson. File photo from St. Charles Hospital
The smoke from raging wildfires in Quebec, Canada, last week looked like a “blob out of a movie” coming down from the north, said Colle, head of the atmospheric sciences division at Stony Brook University’s School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences. As the morning progressed, Colle estimated the chance of the smoke arriving in New York and Long Island was “80 to 90 percent.”
Colle, among other scientists, saw the event unfolding and was disappointed at the speed with which the public learned information about the smoke, which contained particulate matter that could affect human health.
“There’s a false expectation in my personal view that social media is the savior in all this,” Colle said. The Stony Brook scientist urged developing a faster and more effective mechanism to create a more aggressive communication channel for air quality threats.
Scientists and doctors suggested smoke from wildfires, which could become more commonplace amid a warming climate, could create physical and mental health problems.
Physical risks
People in “some of the extremes of ages” are at risk when smoke filled with particulates enters an area, said Dr. Jeffrey Wheeler, director of the emergency room at St. Charles Hospital in Port Jefferson. People with cardiac conditions or chronic or advanced lung disease are “very much at risk.”
Dr. Robert Schwaner, medical director of the Department of Emergency Medicine and chief of the Division of Toxicology at Stony Brook University Hospital. Photo from Stony Brook University
Dr. Robert Schwaner, medical director of the Department of Emergency Medicine and chief of the Division of Toxicology at Stony Brook University Hospital, believed the health effects of wildfire smoke could “trickle down for about a week” after the smoke was so thick that it reduced the amount of sunlight reaching the ground.
Amid smoky conditions, people who take medicine for their heart or lungs need to be “very adherent to their medication regimen,” Schwaner said.
Physical symptoms that can crop up after such an event could include wheezing, coughing, chest tightness or breathing difficulties, particularly for people who struggle with asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
When patients come to Schwaner with these breathing problems, he asks them if what they are experiencing is “typical of previous exacerbations.” He follows up with questions about what has helped them in the past.
Schwaner is concerned about patients who have had lung damage from COVID-related illness.
The level of vulnerability of those patients, particularly amid future wildfires or air quality events, will “play out over the next couple of years,” he said. Should those who had lung damage from COVID develop symptoms, that population might “need to stay in contact with their physicians.”
It’s unclear whether vulnerabilities from COVID could cause problems for a few years or longer, doctors suggested, although it was worth monitoring to protect the population’s health amid threats from wildfire smoke.
Local doctors were also concerned about symptoms related to eye irritations.
Schwaner doesn’t believe HEPA filters or other air cleansing measures are necessary for the entire population.
People with chronic respiratory illness, however, would benefit from removing particulates from the air, he added.
Wildfire particulates
Dr. Mahdieh Danesh Yazdi, an air pollution expert and environmental epidemiologist from Stony Brook University’s Program in Public Health. Photo from Stony Brook University
Area physicians suggested the particulates from wildfires could be even more problematic than those generated from industrial sources.
Burning biomass releases a range of toxic species into the air, said Dr. Mahdieh Danesh Yazdi, an air pollution expert and environmental epidemiologist from Stony Brook University’s Program in Public Health.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has done a “fairly decent job” of regulating industrial pollution over the last few decades “whereas wildfires have been increasing” amid drier conditions, Yazdi added.
In her research, Yazdi studies the specific particulate matter and gaseous pollutants that constitute air pollution, looking at the rates of cardiovascular and respiratory disease in response to these pollutants.
Mental health effects
Local health care providers recognized that a sudden and lasting orange glow, which blocked the sun and brought an acrid and unpleasant smell of fire, can lead to anxiety, which patients likely dealt with in interactions with therapists.
As for activity in the hospital, Dr. Poonam Gill, director of the Comprehensive Psychiatric Emergency Program at Stony Brook Hospital, said smoke from the wildfires did not cause any change or increase in the inpatient psychiatric patient population.
In addition to the eerie scene, which some suggested appeared apocalyptic, people contended with canceled outdoor events and, for some, the return of masks they thought they had jettisoned at the end of the pandemic.
“We had masks leftover” from the pandemic, and “we made the decision” to use them for an event for his son, said Schwaner.
When Schwaner contracted the delta variant of COVID-19, he was coughing for three to four months, which encouraged him to err on the side of caution with potential exposure to smoke and the suspended particulates that could irritate his lungs.
One need not look very far to know that we are facing a mental health crisis.CDC data shows that youth are reporting high rates of poor mental health and suicidal thoughts and behaviors, and a recently published report by the Surgeon General declared loneliness an epidemic.
For many Long Islanders, these findings are not merely statistics or verbiage. This crisis is affecting their daily lives. It may show up with a child pleased to not attend school, or through a decline in the cognitive health of an aging parent. Many of us are feeling a rawness that we cannot quite put to words, nevertheless we know it is there. For some of us it shows up as irritability and angst; others are walking around feeling exhausted.
Living through a pandemic has changed all of us and the way we think about mental health, and left us less resilient as a society. On the bright side, the pandemic has been a catalyst for increased discussion about mental health. We need to make sure this trend continues. In the past, when people thought about mental health, the topic took a myopic view that focused on illness. While mental illnesses are common, widespread, and can affect anyone (around half of people in the U.S. will meet the criteria for a diagnosable mental health condition at some point in their life), this view left many people overlooking mental health and wellness, and the ways we can foster community mental health.
Every day we have a chance to focus on emotional wellness and incorporate tools into our lives. We also have an opportunity to better recognize and respond to mental distress. An important first step is to learn common warning signs for mental health conditions or crises and how to respond.Mental Health First Aid training takes the fear and hesitation out of starting conversations about mental health and substance use problems by improving understanding and providing an action plan that teaches people to safely and responsibly identify and address a potential mental illness or substance use disorder.
Understanding the risk factors for a mental health condition can be more difficult when it’s your own mental health. Take time to reflect on your thoughts, feelings, and behaviors to see if you see a pattern that may be caused by a mental health condition. Here are some questions to get you started:
• Have things that used to feel easy started feeling difficult?
• Does the idea of doing simple daily tasks now feel really, really hard?
• Have you lost interest in activities and hobbies you used to enjoy?
• Do you feel irritated, possibly to the point of lashing out at people you care about?
• Have you withdrawn from family, friends, or society?
• Are you increasing your use of drugs or alcohol?
If you are concerned about your mental health, there are several options available. You are not alone — help is out there, and recovery is possible. It may be hard to talk about your concerns, but simply acknowledging to yourself that you’re struggling is a really big step.
Taking a screening at http://mhaw.org/get-involved/online-screening/ can help you to better understand what you are experiencing and get helpful resources. After that, consider talking to someone you trust about your results, and seek out a professional to find the support you need.
A phone call to the Association for Mental Health and Wellness can help link you to support, services, workshops, and trainings. Call MHAW at 631-471-7242 ext. 2. While you may not need this information today, knowing the basics about mental health will mean you’re prepared if you ever need it.
Colleen Merlo, LMSW, is athe Chief Executive Officer of the Association for Mental Health and Wellness in Ronkonkoma.
*This article first appeared in TBR News Media’s supplement Focus on Health on May 25, 2023.
