Blog 4

What can a woman do to reduce her risk of sexual assault?  There are a number of things that a woman can do in order to reduce her risk.  I searched the web for different sites that had great tips for women that could one day potentially save their lives when something like a sexual assault might happen.  According to the article, http://www.womenshealth.gov/publications/our-publications/fact-sheet/sexual-assault.cfm#d, to reduce the risk of sexual assault, a woman should always be aware of her surroundings as well as taking the precautions of locking doors and driving or running in well traveled areas.  The web article also stated that a woman should trust her instincts.  In other words, if you have a bad feeling about the surroundings you are in then you should go ahead and leave.  Another thing a woman can do is "walk with confidence" (Lukima, 2009).  If a woman is walking with confidence then the assailant is less likely to go for her because she is showing that she has potential strength and her willingness to fight back to protect herself against the attacker.  Another website, www.ripleycounty.com/sheriff/rape.htm, has an article called "Through the Rapist's Eyes" and it talks about what men who are currently in jail looking for in sexual assault victims.  "The first thing men look for ... is hairstyle" (www.ripleycounty.com).  This means that sexual assailants look for women with ponytails, buns or long hair that can be easily grabbed and pulled to allow them control.  The website also says that sexual assailants will look for the fitting of the clothing on potential victims.  If the woman is wearing loose clothing, it is easier for the assailant to take the clothes off.  "Men are most likely to attack & rape in the early morning, between 5:00a.m. and 8:30a.m." meaning that women who are on their way to work via public transportation should be especially aware of their surroundings because they could be at the highest risk of sexual assault (www.ripleycounty.com).  Hopefully women will take precautions, such as defense classes, carry pepper spray or carry stun guns, to protect themselves from sexual assailants out in the world.  

References

Lukima, J. (2009, July 16). Sexual assault fact sheet. Retrieved from http://www.womenshealth.gov/publications/our-publications/fact-sheet/sexual-assault.cfm

Through a Rapist's Eyes. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.ripleycounty.com/sheriff/rape.htm

Blog 3

As a girl, I know in my household the issue of food and weight was not something that was made a big deal.  My mom never made me finish my plate as a child or forced me to eat when I was not hungry.  She would carry about healthy snacks like orange slices, apple slices or a small bag of gold fish for when I did decide I was hungry.  She often let me pick what I wanted to eat if she got to pick the sides.  For example, if I wanted to eat spaghetti for my main meal, she would pick out green beans and a salad for the sides.  She did not keep a scale in the house or forced me to do an extracurricular activity as a form of exercise.  If I wanted to play a sport, I got to pick which one or if I did not want to play, I did not have to.  I think that a family has an impact on the way a woman feels about herself and food.  If a girl has a relative that is constantly talking about her appearances and materialistic things, she is going to compartmentalize that she needs to do whatever she can to keep a tip top appearance.  Her appearance can include the clothes that she wears, how her hair and make up looks or how skinny she is.  If she has a parent that is very set on how her body should look, then she will continue to strive for the high ideals of what she should look like based on how her parents think she should look.  I hope that when I have a daughter I do what my mom did and not focus on how much she should weight, how to restrict her diet or whether she is skinny enough.  As long as she is healthy, then I will love her unconditionally, just as a parent should.

Blog 2

When thinking of talking to a pre-teen about "The Talk", I think of some parents who go on about some make believe story about how babies are made.  Sometimes the pre-teens will come up to their parents and ask questions about it on their own, but if they do not then I think that the parent should start to consider having the talk once puberty kicks in.  When the parents do decide to have that talk with their children, I think that it should be done in a private area so the teen will feel comfortable talking about sex knowing that no one else could potentially be listening in.  The parent should also make sure to let their child know that whatever is said is kept between themselves in order for the pre-teen to be more confident in sharing personal information.  The parent could start by sitting the pre-teen down and start talking about what exactly is happening to their body during the puberty process and then moving into the side of sexual activity.  The parent should cover oral, vaginal and anal sex because these are all ways people have sex.  I also think that the parents should talk about different contraceptions other than abstinence because not everyone practices that.  I think that the parent should definitely use different sources, including books or webpages.  Planned Parenthood and MTV each have websites with resources about safe sex and different contraceptives available.  If the pre-teen in a girl, the parents could also take the girl to the OB-GYN for further information about which contraceptive would work best for her.  The parent should anticipate questions about the parent's own first time and how do I know when I am ready to have sex.  The parent should answer open and honestly with their child.  I think that the parent should make sure to tell the pre-teen that ultimately it is their own decision when they decide to have sex because the pre-teens are the ones that know how they are feeling.  The parent can tell them not to all they want, but sometimes that does back fire and the pre-teen gets in over his or her head.  Although every parent is going to talk to their pre-teen differently, the main point is to just make sure you do talk to them. 

Assignment 1

Some issues I am worried about are different types of cancers, diabetes and obesity. Some types of cancer include skin cancer and lung cancer. I am worried because cancer has gone through my mother's side of my family. Diabetes and obesity are known to go hand-in-hand on my dad's side of the family because when family member's have gain weight, they have also gained Type 2 diabetes. 

I interviewed 3 different women: *Samantha, *Gretchen and *Regina. I asked them the same question about what heath issues concerned them the most and why.

*Samantha said that her name health concerns included cancer and stroke. Her father's side has been known to have cancer through out the family line. Her grandfather also suffered from a stroke during his life. 

*Gretchen said she is worried about obesity, alcoholism and skin cancer. She says she is concerned with obesity because she feels like she consumes a variety of junk food. Alcoholism is a concern because her family is known to have a different array of alcohol at family events. She is also concerned with skin cancer because her mother and herself go to the tanning salon multiple times during the week. 

*Regina is worried about obesity and skin cancer. She worries about obesity because she said she has noticed that she has started snacking late at night. She is also worried with skin cancer due to the fact that she is light complected and spends time outside in the sun.

Some of my concerns are similar to the people I interviewed, like cancer and obesity. *Samantha and I have a similarity with cancer because it runs on the father's side of the family. *Gretchen and I are similar, yet different because we are both concerned with cancer and obesity, but I am not concern with alcoholism like she is. *Regina and I are similar because we are both concerned with the same health issues. Cancer is a bigger concern because it can't necessarily be limited unless it is skin cancer and sunscreen is used on a normal basis. Obesity can at least be controlled by diet and exercise. 


(* indicates that the names are pseudo)

Hello,

My name is Kayla Garcia. I am from Arlington, Texas and 20 years old. I am a sophomore Health Studies, Pre-Occupational Therapy major. I am also the Member Coordinator of the Alpha Gamma Delta Sorority. I enjoy being outside in the warm weather, shopping, crafting and photography. I am very interested in health, like learning new workouts or different foods to eat for a healthier life. I would rather go out in the sun and go for a walk in a park instead of being inside on a machine. I am also a kinesthetic person so I love to do things like dance, yoga or Zumba. Something that makes me unique is that I can make a 3 leaf clover with my tongue. It is something I just tried one day and have been able to do it ever since.

Something that I expect from this class would be to learn more about how to take care of my body as a woman. I would also like to learn things about different studies that were done on women for health reasons, like diabetes or cancer. Seeing that men and women are so different, I think that would be an interesting thing to get into. Hopefully I get to learn even more information from this class!