Madeline's Blog

One group that NDSU offers is a health concerns support group. I think this is a very interesting group that I did not know NDSU offered. This group focuses on students who have chronic illnesses which can make it hard to do activities every day in college. I did not know that NDSU offered this kind of group, but I think it can be very beneficial to people. Many people struggle with chronic illnesses and may feel alone. I think this group would be very helpful to find others that struggle with the same illnesses, and they can help each other work through them. Since chronic illnesses can make daily activities harder for some than others, I think it is important to connect with others who face the same struggles and learn new ways to do things.  I was recently diagnosed with chronic migraines which have made things super difficult for me to do. Since I am so sensitive to light and noise when I have a migraine, it makes it super hard for me to do my homework or even go to class and work.

One group that NDSU council members host is Pawsitive Relaxation. This group involves dogs as a way to manage and cope with stress, while also giving tips on ways to manage stress. This group stuck out to me right away because I love animals. I think that it is so fun and cool that NDSU provides this group and allows people to connect with animals. Dogs bring out the best in people and can help a person calm down. I think it would be interesting to know how many dogs there are during each therapy session and what kind of dogs they have.  Personally, this would be something that I would be interested in doing because of my love for animals. This would be a good way to decompress and step aside from the busy life I have. With work and school sometimes, it is hard to find time for yourself, but it is very important to make sure you do. Otherwise, if you do not set aside time to relieve some stress, you will end up getting burnt out. I think that the dogs would help me feel better because

 One health experience that I will never forget happened a little over a year ago. I was super sick and though that I may have strep throat. If that was the case, my mom wanted to get me into the doctor so I could get on antibiotics right away since I had an event that weekend. I remember that I was so weak because I couldn't eat or drink because nothing would stay down in my stomach. My dad offered to drive me to the clinic, but he could not go inside with me because this was when COVID was still a big concern. I remember we had to park outside and wait for nurses to come outside and get me. When they finally did, they were in huge suits protecting themselves in case I had COVID. When I finally got into a room, the nurse checked my vitals and asked me how I was feeling. I was feeling very faint, nauseous, and I had a sore throat. She told me that they were going to test me for COVID because it was spreading a lot, and she was going to test me for strep because that is what I thoug