Sam Klein, Editor

The beginning of your college years can be equally as terrifying as they are memorable. No matter the distance from home, adjusting to living in a different place surrounded by hundreds upon thousands of new faces can be overwhelming. You are bound to meet interesting people, take boring classes, and ignite passions you didn’t know you had; but in the process, discomfort can be found. Here is a “How To” guide to embracing said discomfort and enjoying your freshman year to its fullest potential…

Don’t compare your experience to others

People are different. That’s a fact that must be understood in order to have a positive college experience. People come from all walks of life, from different states, socioeconomic backgrounds, religions, the list continues. Some people enter college with an agenda, of which might not match yours. While you might want to get straight A’s, others might want to party as hard as they can, other people trying to come home as much as possible. Just because you choose to stay in, go out or go home, doesn’t mean you are better or worse than your peers. Comparing yourself to other people, in general terms, is a dangerous game, and one that will be detrimental when adjusting to a new place. Just because you notice your roommate made friends quickly doesn’t mean you’re failing because it’s taking you some time. That just means everyone is on their own path with their own timeline and you need to be patient with yourself.

Live in the moment

Time goes by exceptionally fast. With classes, homework, extracurriculars and taking the time to reward yourself for it all, you might constantly be thinking about the next thing.  But remember to stop. Breathe. Reflect that you have the incredible opportunity to get a college education. Free time might be sparse, but when you have it, bask in it. Enjoy every second you get to laugh with friends or relax because eventually the time will have come and gone, and you don’t want to wish you had done things differently.

Feel your emotions as they come

Homesickness, sadness, anxiety- these are all common emotions for college students. Don’t reject them even if embracing them can feel awkward. Allow these feelings to pass through, understanding you are not alone and that they are normal. Do not bottle them up, nor sweep them under the rug. Your emotions are valid and are all part of the discomfort that comes with moving to a new place. When the going gets tough, keep going. Don’t give up on the school or your experience based off of a few bad grades or weeks. Hang in there because better things are always coming.

Join different clubs/organizations

Getting involved is extremely important for joining a college campus. Whether that be athletics, clubs, or Greek life, find organizations on campus that pique your interest. Making friends and feeling connected becomes much easier when you have a group of people with similar interests. Not only this, but you are able to feel a sense of belonging and purpose. Certain clubs also help build your resume and make you appear more marketable to future employers, which never hurts to have in the forefront of your mind as a new college student. Not every club or organization is for everyone, so reach out to advisors or do research of your own online to discover the best fit for you! Maintain an open mind and try things you might not have previously tried, for you’ll never truly know if you like something if you don’t try it.

Don’t be afraid to take time for you

The social atmosphere of college can sometimes get overwhelming and feel like an obligation. Just because your friends are hanging out doesn’t mean you have to join them. Know that it is okay to take alone time, as living in a dorm rarely offers privacy. There is no shame in needing to step away for a little while. However, don’t allow yourself to become isolated. Take the necessary time and re-join your friends next time they do something together.

No one is judging you more than you’re judging yourself

Simply put, just be you. Don’t try to compromise who you are to make friends or stand out in a crowd. Don’t refrain from doing something because you think someone might laugh or stare. When you think about the potential criticism from others, you become your own worst critic, and what sense does that make? The people that are meant to be in your life will embrace you for the things you are, and even the things you are not, so don’t fixate on the people who won’t. Be you, for you.

Olivia Funk, Staff

Coming back on campus, it can be hard to eat the same dining hall food day after day. These three easy recipes can give you a change from the dining hall, not to mention they are dorm friendly and delicious!

Mac and Cheese in a Mug
Making homemade Mac and Cheese has never been easier with Mac and Cheese in a Mug. 

Start by grabbing a microwavable safe mug, adding 1⁄2 cup of macaroni noodles, 1⁄3 cup of water, and a pinch of salt. Microwave for 3 minutes stir it up and add a splash of milk and a handful of cheese of your choice. Add some pepper, garlic powder, and onion powder, and a pinch of hot sauce if you would like. Stir it up again and microwave it until the cheese has melted and combined (at least 30 seconds) then enjoy!

Elevated Ramen
Everyone’s college staple is ramen noodles. It’s quick, it’s easy and it tastes delicious, but here is a great way to elevate the same old ramen recipe. Start by boiling a pot with water as the package says, but before you add the noodles soft boil and egg or two. You will do this by cooking your egg in the boiling water for 7-8 minutes and then putting it straight into an ice bath. While your eggs cool, follow the normal package instructions. When you add your seasoning mix to the cooked noodles, add some garlic powder, onion powder, soy sauce and sesame oil to taste. Take the shell off of the eggs, cut them in half and add on top with more soy sauce and sesame oil. There you have it, elevated ramen. Stir Fry
If you have more kitchen space, this a great easy recipe to make and will give you plenty of leftovers. Start by cooking a cup of rice or heating up a microwavable rice packet. While the rice is cooking, cut up your veggies of choice. I used carrots, peppers and sugar snap peas. Frozen vegetables can make it even easier. I also decided to use chicken in my stir fry, but you can definitely sub or a different meat option or just stick with a veggie stir fry. While the rice cooks, heat up a large pan with olive oil and add your chicken, cooking it all the way through. Then take it out and set aside to rest. In the same pan, add more oil and then add your onion and veggies. Once they soften a bit, add some minced garlic. Once the rice is cooked, add it to the pan along with the chicken and mix everything up. Add soy sauce, sesame oil, and if you like it spicy, some red pepper flakes. Push the rice mixture to the edges of the pan, creating a circle in the middle where you will crack one egg. Once the egg starts to cook a bit, mix it with the rest of the rice. Add more seasoning if you would like and enjoy your delicious and easy stir fry!

Kori Deibert, Faculty

Holiday festivities are right around the corner and that means it’s the season of family, celebration, and lots of food. It can be hard to resist our favorite holiday recipes that adorn Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, and Christmas like pecan pie, latkes, and sampling everything on the buffet table. But consuming 200 extra calories a day can strain the waistline causing you to gain two to three pounds over a five-to-six week period. Below are some simple tips to help you enjoy the holidays so you don’t have to deprive yourself the delicious holiday favorites.

1. Eat before you go. Excessive hunger promotes overeating.

2. Drink lots of water. Drinking water before a meal can help increase your feeling of fullness.

3. Don’t put everything on your plate. Start by taking a walk around the buffet table to look at all the options.

4. Add color to your plate. Include bright colored fruits and vegetables on your plate. Make it your goal to fill half of your plate with these bright and vibrant colors.

5. Before getting seconds, wait 10 minutes. It takes 10 minutes for your stomach to signal to your brain that you are full.

6. Pull out your walking shoes. Take a walk before eating or between dinner and dessert.

7. Don’t stand next to the buffet or appetizer table to prevent mindless eating.

Emily Ulrich, Faculty

What is the first thing that pops into your head when you think of the holiday season? Do you think of tinsel and lights? Maybe a menorah or a big family meal. The holidays are often full of happiness and celebration, but for those that struggle with mental illness, or have experienced damaging loss or trauma, this time of year can be an especially difficult experience. Even for those that don’t regularly battle a mental illness, the holidays are a stressful time of year that may cause new and unexpected symptoms to come seemingly out of the blue. 

Holiday celebrations are typically a time where loved ones gather and reconnect, but there is a dark cloud looming overhead for many. Loss and grief are often triggered at this time because this is a time where you would be with loved ones, but when you can not do so at this special time of year, mental health may decline drastically, even if at any other time of the year you cope well. Simply put, you start to miss people more when you know you would be with them anyway, but now you can’t. Even outside of the triggers of past traumas, the holidays are simply a very stressful and hectic time for everyone, and sometimes that stress can just build up and build up until it can become seemingly too much to handle for many people. All these negative feelings can culminate for anyone, and those that struggle daily with previously existing mental illnesses can have exasperated symptoms. 

There is little that can be done to prevent these symptoms from occurring at all, but there are measures that can be taken to minimize the debilitating effects that they have on daily function. Validating and accepting your own feelings is an important first step. When you acknowledge that your feelings are valid, and there is nothing wrong with you, you are practicing a form of self-care that is very important to help get you through any difficult time. You’re not crazy; you’re human and you’re hurting, it’s natural. Not agreeing to everything everyone asks of you is also important. If you don’t want to do something, don’t do it; a good person will understand and won’t take it personally. Keeping your physical body healthy is imperative as well as physical and mental health are directly related. Reach out to your loved ones and support system. There are people that love you and will listen to you and are here to help you in a time of need. If you find that friends and family aren’t enough, or you don’t feel comfortable sharing with them, don’t be afraid to seek professional help if need be. There is no shame in needing additional professional support if need be. 

Kori Deibert, Faculty

November is National American Indian Heritage Month, a time to celebrate the rich histories, diverse cultures, and significant contributions of our nation’s first people. The Lenape were Philadelphia’s original inhabitants. They were hunters, fishers, and cultivated the area along the banks of what is now the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. They believed in a holistic healing approach, that connection with the spirits is what made healing so powerful. Most descendants of the Lenape now live in Oklahoma and still follow their ancient healing traditions. Several common plants with medicinal properties used by the Lenape that are found in the Northeast include birch, cattail, dandelion, sassafras, sumac, and wild grape.

• Birch bark is used to make tea for treating coughs and colds.
• Cattail pollen can be applied to wounds to stop bleeding. If ingested, it can help with menstrual pain. Mashing the cattail roots can be applied to treat blisters, boils, cysts, stings, and infections.
• Dandelion is rich in vitamins and minerals that can be made into tea to treat the liver, cleanse the blood, and clear skin conditions. The plant also acts as a gentle laxative to help with digestion and elimination.
• Sassafras root can help reduce blood pressure by acting as a blood thinner.
• The white part of the sumac root can help treat a toothache or canker sore.
• Wild grapes have antioxidants and anti-inflammatory properties for the heart. They are also a great source of dietary fiber, providing a laxative effect. The juice is rich in Vitamin C, E, iron, and niacin.

Kori Deibert, Faculty

During the Oct. 26^th Wellness Wednesday, Wellness Initiatives Coordinator, Kori Deibert, and Director of Investigations and Compliance from Public Safety, Chris Berry, partnered to offer students safe drinking tips for the upcoming Halloween weekend. Students were asked a question related to alcohol and were also asked to pour what they thought was a standard drink of beer into a solo cup. The lines on a solo cup are  indicative measurements of standard drink sizes for most liquors, wines, and beers. One standard drink is equivalent to 1 oz. – 1.5 oz. of hard liquor (depending on the proof), 5 oz. of wine, and 12 oz. of beer. Understanding that the size of the container is not an accurate way to measure a standard drink because there is so much variety in container sizes. A 16 oz beer can might appear to be a “single serving size” but  contains 1.5 standard drinks.

As we head into the season of holidays and celebrations, remember these safe drinking tips:

·        Avoid large-batch punches that may have a deceptively high alcohol content

·        Never leave your drink unattended

·        Be aware of sudden changes in the way your body feels

·        Eat before and while drinking

·        Alternate alcoholic drinks with non-alcoholic drinks, such as water

·        Always use the buddy system. Make sure you leave with the same group you arrived with and never travel alone. 

David O’Brien, Editor-in-Chief

We, The La Salle Collegian, had the privilege to interview Dr. Samantha DeCaro, the director of clinical outreach and education for The Renfrew Center, the largest network of eating disorder treatment facilities in the U.S. DeCaro provided information surrounding eating disorders, what causes them, what promotes them and how to combat them. 

While thought surrounding eating disorders only generally focuses on traditionally discussed such as: anorexia, bulimia, and binge eating, it is important to keep in mind that there are others that are not traditionally diagnosed. Psychiatrists and leading scientists are beginning to view eating disorders less as a specific condition but rather conditions functioning along a spectrum. As new patterns of behaviors emerge, leading psychologists are attempting to help people who engage in disordered behavior before it escalates to the point of traditionally diagnosed eating disorders. Examples of other disorders on the spectrum that are not traditionally discussed are: orthorexia, a disorder characterized by sacrificing daily calories and engaging in unhealthy behavior for the sake of “clean eating,” and drunkorexia, a disorder characterized by exhibiting behaviors that mirror those of traditional eating disorders under the influence of alcohol. 

While there are no direct causes that lead to developing eating disorders, there are various issues that may indirectly lead to them, these include: diet culture, financial troubles, toxic environments, genetics, anxiety, depression, impulsive behavior, and PTSD. In addition to these, research suggests that exposure to social media is directly correlated to the development of eating disorders. In our interview DeCaro discussed that, “Research studies show that there are links between social media use and: body dissatisfaction, drive for thinness, negative mood, poor sleep quality, disordered eating, eating concerns, low self esteem, and anxiety & depression.” In addition to this, new research studies show a connection to higher rates of body dissatisfaction with individuals who view body positive and “fitspo” accounts. DeCaro made a point to say people are better off simply avoiding accounts that discuss different types of diet culture for the sake of their mental health.

In addition to these issues being common on a college campus, the transition from adolescence to adulthood is the time period where most eating disorders emerge. For incoming students, the radical change in environment can exacerbate these issues leading to disordered eating or directly cause eating disorders. College diet culture also serves as a breeding ground for anxiety surrounding eating habits. As students enter college, student organizations ranging from campus athletics to Greek Life enforce diet culture. Incoming freshmen are also forced to grapple with eating habits as concepts like “the Freshman 15” make their way into general conversation.

DeCaro said that the best method for combating eating disorders is to establish a support system that can help guide students through their issues. Eating disorders thrive in isolation and through a support system people struggling are significantly more likely to improve and/or overcome them. Students struggling with these issues and who feel uncomfortable reaching out to people in their general surroundings should contact the La Salle Student Wellness Center and discuss their struggles with a mental health professional. 

In addition to this article, Dr. DeCaro and the Renfrew Center has provided resources for those who may need help combating eating disorders or those interested in learning more about the topic. 

https://renfrewcenter.com/library/
https://renfrewcenter.com/services/college-program/
https://renfrewcenter.com/resources/for-you/
https://www.nationaleatingdisorders.org/screening-tool/