Dr. Peggy Spencer, M.D., has been serving students for 17 years at the Student Health and Counseling Center. Dr. Spencer is a Daily Lobo contributing columnist and has written articles for Parent Matters since its inception. She is co‐author of the book “50 Ways to Leave Your 40s,” released in March, 2008. Email your questions to her directly at pspencer@​unm.​edu.

This page features a compilation of Spencer’s advice columns as published in the e‐newsletter Parent Matters. The SHAC is open to all UNM students.

Dear UNM Parents:

As a UNM parent myself, I know how worrisome it can be when your son or daughter leaves home and is out of your daily sphere of influence. What if they get sick? What if they get hurt? What if they have emotional problems? Who will take care of them if you can’t?

I’m here to reassure you that Student Health and Counseling can help. SHAC, as we are now called, is a full service medical and mental health clinic. Our name has changed slightly this year from Student Health Center (SHC) to SHAC, to emphasize the very important role that our counseling department has always had, and to make their existence better known. College can be stressful, and our therapists are well trained to help.

SHAC is located right on campus, just across the walking mall to the East of the Student Union Building (“The SUB”). We have same‐day, walk‐in care for urgent medical problems and injuries, and for mental health emergencies as well. We also have appointment‐based office care for less urgent or more long‐term problems, again in both the medical and counseling departments. We have specialists in surgery, dermatology, allergy and podiatry in house, and can refer to any other specialists if need be. 

SHAC accepts several different insurance plans. We can even serve as your student’s primary care provider for certain plans, and we value the connection that gives both the providers and the students. We have a pharmacy on site, as well as x‐ray facilities, lab, physical therapy, chiropractic and massage. Our health education department does outreach and education in a variety of settings on campus.

Our main phone number is 277‑3136. Please call, or visit our website at http://shac.unm.edu for more information.

Sleep Well: Advice from Dr. Peg (12/07)
Just like food, water and air, our bodies need enough rest. Many students have trouble sleeping with resulting fatigue, poor concentration and irritability, among other symptoms.

Encourage your student to put into practice these tips for a good night’s sleep:

1. Make sure your bed is right for you. If you’re not comfortable, you won’t sleep well. Keep the room temperature comfortable.
2. Keep regular sleep hours. Try to go to bed and get up at the same time every day. Do not nap during the day if you have insomnia.
3. Exercise during the day. Even 20 to 30 minutes of brisk walking helps, but don’t do it right before bed or it might keep you up.
4. Watch out for stimulants. If you use caffeine, stay away from it in the afternoon and evening.
5. Relax with a warm bath about an hour before bed, since it is the fall in body temperature that stimulates sleep. You can also try stretching or other relaxing routines that you set for yourself.

Mental health awareness may prevent tragedy (10/07)
When an incident like the shootings at Virginia Tech happens, campuses around the country inevitably buzz with concern. Could it happen here? Of course, it could, theoretically. Something of the magnitude of Virginia Tech is highly unlikely, but disasters on a smaller scale, from dropouts to suicide, happen everywhere. How will we know it is coming? How can you as a parent recognize a potentially dangerous development in your student and/or their friends?

My advice in a nutshell: Listen to your gut, and watch for changes.

If something a student says or does makes you uneasy, pay attention. Trust your gut. Follow it up with logical thought, too, but don’t discount the value of your own intuition. I’m not talking about personal likes and dislikes, but rather that gut‐level sense of being disturbed. It might signal danger for the student, for you, or for others, and probably has merit. Investigate.

Second, if you notice a significant change in a student’s behavior or demeanor, pay attention. It could signal a serious emotional problem. Some examples include increased absences, decreased contact with others, increased aggression or, conversely, isolation; talking about death or suicide a lot, even joking about killing themselves; rapid change in weight, decreased personal grooming or hygiene; inappropriate behavior, bizarre speech or writing. Giving away precious possessions, like stuffed animals or CDs, or anything else that signals a significant change to you.

If you have a student you’re concerned about, you have several options for action. You can speak with the student. You can consult with other professionals on campus, like the Counseling and Therapy Services (277‑4357) or the Dean of Students (277‑3361). You can refer the student to the same resources. If there is an immediate threat to anyone’s safety, call 911 for campus police.

Supplement Student Diet with Vitamins (9/07)
Many busy students have less than ideal diets. Rather than take the time to fix nutritious meals or even sit down, they might rely on vending machines or fast food more than you wish they would. Even if they do eat well, research is showing that a vitamin supplement is a good idea.

A vitamin is a nutrient you have to get from food because your body can’t make it from scratch. There are 13 vitamins: A, B1, B2, B3, B5, B6, B9, B12, biotin, C, D, E and K. Vitamins have a variety of important roles in the body, from building bone and blood cells to helping us see in the dark and possibly preventing heart disease.

The easiest way to get enough vitamins, and the current expert recommendation, is to take a good multivitamin every day.

One good resource for vitamin information is Dr Andrew Weil’s Web site. Weil offers an individualized questionnaire to help you and your student make decisions about which vitamins and supplements you might need.

Paying for Health Care at UNM (7/07)
Paying for health care is probably something most college students haven’t had to think about. Now, not only are students making most of their own health decisions, but they may have to pay for services. Many are growing out of their parents’ health insurance and have to decide whether or how to insure themselves. It gets confusing.

At UNM, charges at the Student Health Center (SHC) work as follows: Any student taking 1 credit hour or more is eligible to be seen as a patient here. For students taking more than 6 credit hours per semester, the office visit charge is $10 per visit (higher for the specialists). Students taking less than 6 credit hours pay $25. There are additional charges for lab work, x‐rays and medications. Some examples: A throat culture costs $16. A chest x‐ray costs $73. A prescription of penicillin for Strep throat costs $13.

Payment is due at the time of service, however, any costs that are incurred in the SHC can always be charged to the student’s bursar account. They will appear on the primary UNM bill as “student health charges.” If the student has insurance, the insurance company may pay part or all of their medical bill. We offer an insurance plan designed for students that can be purchased online or at the SHC.

We also accept Presbyterian, United and Lovelace insurance plans. If the student has other insurance, they can pay us (or charge it) and get a receipt, which they then submit to their insurance company for reimbursement.

For more information, visit the SHC website or call 505 – 277-3136.

Traumatic Stress Responses (4/07)
By Dr. Peggy Spencer, MD, and Harry Linneman, PhD

Reactions to traumatic events are as varied as people are. Your response may be very different from your roommate’s or your mother’s. We’ll discuss here what is normal and what is not, what to do now and when to get help.

Traumatic stress reactions can be loosely divided into physical and emotional, short term and long term. Many people initially feel shock and disbelief, even denial. Also common are anger, fear, anxiety, sadness, hopelessness, compassion, helplessness, and survivor’s guilt.

You may struggle in your mind with why this happened, trying to find answers, to make sense of the tragedy. You may worry about something similar happening to you or in your community. You may have physical responses. All of these are normal. However, if you have severe emotional or physical symptoms, please get professional help.

If you have a history of previous trauma, as many of us do, the news of a tragedy might bring that past trauma to the front of your mind, and you might find yourself thinking, dreaming, reliving or having feelings about the other incident. The severe form of this kind of reaction is called PTSD, or Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, but most cases are milder, a temporary resurfacing of memories which fade into the background again.

How can you cope with your own feelings and thoughts during times of tragedy? Connect with those you care about. Spend time with friends. Call your family. Talk about your feelings and reactions, or write about them. Post your condolences online. Above all, take good, healthy care of yourself.

Delayed responses to trauma can happen up to weeks and months after the initial event. Keep this in mind as you observe and care for your own mental health.

Sources of help include:
Agora Crisis Center — Albuquerque, 277‑3013 or 1 – 866-HELP-1-NM
Student Health Center — 277‑3136. Counseling And Therapy Services 277‑4537
Residence Hall Advisors — 277‑9203
Dean of Students — 277‑8230
CARS — 272‑6868 (Counseling And Referral Services, for staff and faculty)

Preparation is key to fun, safe spring break (3/07)
UNM spring break is March 12 – 16. With a weekend on either side, your student will have nine days of getaway time. It’s a wonderful opportunity for them to relax, travel and have some fun. They deserve a break. And, of course, you want them to be safe.

The best thing you can do for your student is to talk to him or her about alcohol. Most serious mishaps during spring break are related to drinking. Some students drink and drive and crash, or drink and have unprotected sex and get a disease or get pregnant. Encourage them to be responsible, careful and legal.

Make sure their health insurance covers them wherever they are going. If they’re going on an organized tour, encourage students to do research to be sure the group is reputable. Further, if they are traveling out of the country, students may need immunizations and should make a travel appointment at the Student Health Center as soon as possible. They may need a passport to re‐enter this country. See the U.S. State Department’s spring break travel site at http://travel.state.gov/travel for more information.

And encourage your student to attend the Student Health Center Health Education Department’s “Safe Spring Break” event Wednesday, March 7 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on the SUB Plaza. Call (505) 277‑8563 for more information.

Document sick days to avoid attendance penalties (2/07)
Most students can tolerate a minor cold or illness without skipping an academic beat. But what happens if your student gets really sick, and has to miss a class, or several days of class, or even an exam? Some professors take roll, and some classes have attendance requirements. A student might miss so much that they have to drop a class, or even withdraw for a semester. Dropping hours can put financial aid at risk.

Is there any recourse? There is. If a student is seen at the Student Health Center during their illness, we can provide them documentation of their illness and a medical excuse. This comes in the form of either a pre‐printed note, with specific dates (for short‐term illnesses), or, for more significant absences, a more general letter, stating that academic functioning may have been affected by their health. The student can take the document to professors, the dean’s office, and/or financial aid.

With written support, they are more likely to be accommodated in their effort to make up work and/or retain financial aid. Our goal is to help students stay healthy and in school, or to get healthy and return to school quickly.

Home for the Holidays (12/06)
If your student is flying home for the winter holidays, encourage them to check the latest security requirements before they pack. The best resource is the Transportation Security Administration Web site, http://www.tsa.gov.

Once students arrive home, they are likely to be tired from the semester, advises Dr. Peggy Spencer of the UNM Student Health Center. They may sleep a lot, especially the first few days. Students may be more vulnerable to colds or infections, she says. Also, remember that they have been on their own, out of your sphere of influence for a few months, and are used to living according to their own rules.

There may be conflicts as you both readjust, Spencer notes. Keep communication channels open and try to be a little flexible. Most importantly, enjoy their new growth and wisdom and have a great holiday!