Dream Lifestyle in ‘The Great Gatsby’: Critical Essay

The American Dream promises “Liberty, Life, and the pursuit of happiness.” In the 1925 novel, The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald, we examine the 1920’s and the characters’ desire for the American Dream. A young man called Nick Carraway, who is a cousin of Daisy Buchanan was the one who narrated the novel. The story observes a man named Jay Gatsby who directs his life around his desire to be with Daisy; a romance that he had half a decade ago. Jay Gatsby’s yearning accompanied him from poverty to great wealth, into Daisy’s arms and then eventually resulted in his death. Throughout The Great Gatsby, the author asserts that The American Dream is unreachable because those people who believe it are always seeking things that excel greater than themselves. They frequently strive for more, focusing on material things, and are not content with what they have. He illustrates that it is precarious for an individual to grasp for more than what they are appointed and manifests the intention that if one becomes too obsessed with materialistic things, they would not be accorded the assurance of happiness.

All of the characters attempted to pursue the American Dream. Even the characters that are already living the life of the American Dream are not genuinely happy. Throughout the novel, we can examine the extravagant lifestyle of Tom Buchanan and his wife, Daisy. “Her husband, among various physical accomplishments, had been one of the most powerful ends that ever played football at New Haven—a national figure in a way, one of those men who reach such acute limited excellence at twenty-one that everything afterward savors of anticlimax. His family was enormously wealthy—even in college his freedom with money was a matter for reproach.”(8) They were both born into the American Dream lifestyle and they represent all the achievements of the American Dream. They possess everything they want and need; wealth, fame, and all things that other people wish for. “‘Go ahead,’ answered Daisy genially, ‘And if you want to take down any addresses here’s my little gold pencil…’ She looked around for a moment and told me the girl was ‘common but pretty,’ and I knew that except for the half-hour she’d been alone with Gatsby she wasn’t having a good time.”(113) Their relationship wasn’t perfect as Tom continuously cheats on his wife with different mistresses and Daisy loves another man, Gatsby. Although Tom and Daisy don’t have a proper relationship, they still stayed together. Daisy stayed to be with Tom despite his infidelity because she wanted to keep up her respectable reputation and position. During Tom’s unfaithfulness with Daisy, he still loves her and performs his best to stay with her. Their pursuit of the American Dream significantly affects Gatsby since he won’t be able to be with Daisy anymore.

One of the characters that made an effort to pursue the American Dream is Jay Gatsby. Gatsby portrayed the role of a wealthy and well-known man. He has tremendous prosperity, yet it is still not enough for him. Gatsby was born in an exceedingly in-need household but happened to accumulate abundant wealth by working with a millionaire, Dan Cody. “His heart beat faster and faster as Daisy’s white face came up to his own. He knew that when he kissed this girl and forever wed his unutterable visions to her perishable breath, his mind would never romp again like the mind of God. So he waited, listening for a moment longer to the tuning fork that had been struck upon a star. Then he kissed her. As his lips touched blossomed for him like a flower and the incarnation was complete.”(119) Jay Gatsby’s desire for wealth was driven by his ultimate dream, to be with the lady he loves, Daisy Buchanan. However, he requires the ability to reach his dream because he didn’t have a good and respectable reputation. Tom exposes Gatsby telling the other characters that he’s wealth came from illegal ways saying, “I picked him for a bootlegger the first time I saw him and I wasn’t far wrong.”(143) The other characters began to view him differently, and Daisy didn’t want to be seen with such a flawed man that could ruin her image. The novel ended with Gatsby falsely accused of assassinating Myrtle Wilson, creating tension between her husband, George Wilson, and Jay Gatsby, resulting in Gatsby’s assassination and George’s suicide. In the end, Gatsby had great wealth and lived the lifestyle of the American Dream, but never gained back Daisy’s love. Gatsby’s dream and love for Daisy are what pushed him to his destruction.

The American Dream in the novel, The Great Gatsby caused harmful effects on individuals’ lives. The American Dream influences people to seek more than what they have. Tom and Daisy’s “Old Money” only gives them an extravagant lifestyle and success but not their happiness. Their American Dream life is full of unfaithfulness and lies. Gatsby’s “New Money” and materialistic life does not receive appreciation or acceptance from the New York high society or Daisy. Scott Fitzgerald demonstrates that the American Dream would only bring hardships and discontentment to the pursuer as supposed to its first promises of success and happiness.

Work Life Balance: Critical Essay

The essence of work-life balance

The global pandemic that hit the whole world has affected individuals around the globe in various ways and still continue to face the complex and syndicated challenges as a community which are usually initiated through social, economic, environmental as well as political aspects. Although it has shown a significant rise in worsening the physical as well as mental health of individuals. According to WHO, over 60% of countries reported disruptions to mental health services for vulnerable people, including children and adolescents to 72% while other adults to 70%. The main causes for poor mental stability were the closure of businesses, loss of income, layoffs, unemployment, transitioning to remote workplaces, lack of physical contact with other individuals, fear of contracting the virus, loss of loved ones, affected economies, etc. In conclusion, facing new realities and managing to adjust to the new normal is not easy. Striking a balance between personal and professional lives during an ongoing pandemic was a challenge each individual has faced while stress is an essential and inseparable aspect of human life. Maintaining stability needed proper handling of emotions which comes through emotional intelligence.

Emotional intelligence refers to the capability of a person to manage and control his or her emotions and possesses the ability to control the emotions of others as well. It is proven to be an important skill of leadership. Emotional intelligence is said to have five main elements namely, self-awareness referring to being aware of one’s own strengths and weaknesses, self-regulation meaning holding oneself accountable and taking responsibility for their actions, motivation implying having a positive motive to be the driving force even in different situations, empathy indicating to show understanding to someone else’s troubles and lastly social skills being about communicating these skills and point of view to build and maintain a good bond with other individuals. Emotional intelligence was defined by Peter Salovery and John Mayer as, “The ability to monitor one’s own and other people’s emotions, to discriminate between different emotions and label them appropriately, and to use emotional information to guide thinking and behavior. This definition was later broken down and refined into four proposed abilities I.e. perceiving, using, understanding, and managing emotions. They are distinct yet related. There are three important Emotional intelligence models namely: –

• Ability model:

The ability-based model views emotions as useful sources of information that help one to make sense of and navigate the social environment. Individuals vary in their ability to process information of any nature and in their ability to relate emotional processing which is used for manifesting oneself in certain adaptive behaviors. There are mainly four types of abilities included in the ability model namely perceiving emotions which is the ability to detect emotions of oneself as well of others through faces, images, and videos, Using emotions referring to the ability to harness emotions to facilitate various cognitive activities like thinking and problem-solving, Understanding emotions indicating the ability to comprehend emotion language and to recognize and describe how emotions are evolving, while lastly managing emotions which is the ability to regulate emotions in both ourselves as well as other individuals.

• Mixed model:

This model was introduced by Daniel Goleman which focuses on Emotional intelligence as a wide array of competencies and skills that drive leadership performance. It also includes the five main emotional intelligence constructs which are self-awareness, self-regulation, social skills, empathy, and motivation. The model is often used in a corporate or other professional setting to train and evaluate management-related potential and skills. Mostly, a management consulting company can perform a series of evaluations on employees or potential hires based on the mixed model set of values. The company can make suggestions and recommendations regarding staff or can train their employees directly.

• Trait model:

The trait model is of recent origin and a constellation of emotional self-perceptions located at the lower levels of a personality. Also referred to an individual’s self-perception about their emotional abilities. It was introduced by Petrides and describes an individual’s perception of their emotional world and also breaks from the idea that Emotional intelligence is ability based. It proposes that people have as a part of their personalities a number of emotional self-perception and emotional traits. In conclusion, it contends that there is no right or wrong emotion.

The concept of work-life balance comprises three words which are work, life, and balance, and a proper prioritization between the three aspects to maintain stability and harmony. It can be different for different individuals but it is the degree to which an individual can balance the emotional, behavioral, and time demands of work, family, and personal duties simultaneously. Work-life balance can be referred to as the situation in which employees are capable of giving the right amount of time and effort to their work and living outside of work. Proper work-life balance leads to the harmonious and holistic integration of work, family, social and personal life and the extent to which individuals are equally involved and satisfied with their professional and family roles. A good work-life balance can prove to have numerous positive effects which included less stress and a greater sense of well -whereas a poor work-life balance can bring increased responsibilities at work as well as at home, longer working hours, etc. Employers are trying to promote work-life balance to create an environment of work where fewer cases of absenteeism are observed, costs are saved and a more productive workforce is experienced. They don’t do this by providing flexible working hours and telecommuting which helps employees in having a better work-life balance.

An average human spends a quarter of their life at work and that work doesn’t necessarily stay at work only and spills into our personal lives. In recent times, workplace toxicity and toxic work culture are very normalized. Individuals have relatively started to believe their colleagues are likely to be threats rather than collaborators. According to a career builder survey, 43% of workers say their office is populated by cliques – which are tightly knit groups of co-workers who socialize in and outside the office often excluding other employees. They are marked out of important emails and kept out of important decision making also called inner circles in the popular clique culture proven to be a top sign of a toxic workplace where favoritism, groups, and nepotism is being almost normalized. Some examples include McKinsey and Company as well as Amazon. McKinsey and Company had been accused of harboring a toxic work environment, while an employee expressed that in the toxic work environment, managers view employees as tools to produce client deliverables and nothing more.

Another example that shows workplace toxicity is Amazon. In 2015 the New York Times ran a piece on its work culture which read, “At Amazon workers are encouraged to tear apart one another’s ideas in meetings, toil long and late emails (arriving past midnight followed by texts asking why were they not answered and held to standards that company boasts are unreasonably high). The internal phone directory instructs colleagues on how to send secret feedback to one another’s bosses. Employees say it is frequently used to sabotage others.”

Fierce 2015, reports 78% of employees believe that toxic coworkers hit the morale of the whole team whereas 17% of employees say such coworkers increase stress and reduce their productivity. It takes a toll on the health of the employees. According to American Psychological Association, the Journal of occupational health psychology says employees have negative reactions to their bosses had been suffering from high blood pressure. Also, Howard’s business review claims that toxicity at work has put individuals at risk of heart attacks or other life-threatening cardiac conditions and it also reduces the immunity of individuals. A WHO survey of 130 countries provides the first global data showing the devastating impact of COVID-19 on access to mental health services and also underscores the urgent need for increased funding. Although 89% of countries reported in the survey that mental health and psychological support is a part of their national COVID-19 response plans, only 17% of these countries have full additional funding for covering these activities this shows how many countries including India have had a poor health care system and why it is important for individuals to focus on their emotions through emotional intelligence.

Leaders have not done very much about this as their top priorities were always deadlines and targets. According to Hogan assessments, 75% of employees find their work manager is the worst part of their day, and 65% of employees would prefer having a new boss than a raise. Also, a Howard Business School study reports, 25% of the employees work experienced bad behavior at work and took it out on their clients,48% of employees intentionally decreased their work efforts, adding to this 78% of employees said that their commitment to the organization had declined, while 66% said that their performance has declined, this shows why employees need to take a close look at the problem of toxic work culture. Organizations have started to take emotional intelligence seriously as there is a constant need to help people improve their working experience along with improving their quality of life. It has started to recognize the impact of well-being and work-life integration on performance and effectiveness. In the past two years, we have observed organizations deploying multiple initiatives spread across all levels offering a complete list of tools and skill-learning techniques to support employees through these challenging times.

There is a significant increase in vacancies than applicants because of the rise in resignations. A recent study also found that the company culture is likely to influence resignations 10.4 times more than the salary. Some multinational companies have proven this right while Tesla and Netflix had seen more resignations recently than any other companies. Experts say the toxicity driven by a highly competitive work environment may be the reason why talented workers leave their workplace. This leads to a fall in the net output and shows a significant rise in attrition which then leads to a fall in the reputation of the company. Companies have started to do their bit by conducting internal surveys, taking feedback, etc. Weeding out workplace toxicity needs to be coded into HR policy. This very statistic shows how important emotional intelligence and work-life balance among employees is important in order to avoid complications at the individual as well as organizational levels.

Emotional intelligence will continue to be a crucial element of great leadership and the most important one in the coming years as we individuals try to understand the concept of the new normal. The stresses of working remotely, add new and complex pressure as well as friction to each individual life. The recent pandemic has presented leaders with an unprecedented challenge that is to lead through uncertain times of unknown scope and no clear end in sight. The crisis has tested IT leaders on grounds, of their ability to manage fear and anxiety, their capacity to make clear and confident decisions, their competence in delivering bad news along with managing disappointments, and also their power to motivate and encourage others around them. Leaders all over the world had to display empathy, the main skill of emotional intelligence in order to show they understand and feel the challenging circumstances all the employees are in. For creating and maintaining a harmonious work environment in the complex technology-driven world and a globalized workplace with increased diversity, it is essential to acknowledge and build emotional intelligence.

Emotional intelligence and work-life balance in the educational sector.

Education is a tripolar process where the teacher, learner, and curriculum are inseparably intertwined. The goodwill of an educational institute is dependent upon the goodwill of its teacher. Educators, school universities, and educational authorities play a crucial role in implementing emotional intelligence in learners. Hence they need to practice it in the first place. Nevertheless, they cannot totally communicate with the students at an emotional level. Education imparting is a labor of love but the realities have changed making it more stressful. The pandemic has brought tremendous change in the educational sector, educators had a quick shift from classrooms to online sessions, from a room full of students to being glued to their screens while interacting with their students through online platforms this has been a major challenge for teachers recently. To handle the stressors and the ability to control emotions is what emotional intelligence is all about, an emotionally intelligent educator is a better guide and it will prove to be an asset to the educational sector at large. Hence training is necessary to help them become emotionally intelligent as the present generation faces a new set of problems. It will result in the handling of one’s emotions and actions thereby also handling relationships smoothly by controlling emotions. Emotionally intelligent individuals will be able to tackle complex and new problems as they possess a set of skills such as empathy, self-control, optimism, motivation, self-awareness, stress tolerance, emotional awareness, etc. Today across the globe in educational as well as other sectors the significance of emotional intelligence has become more sustainable.

Emotional intelligence builds a sense of self-awareness that facilitates teaching professionals to be able to identify their own emotions as well as that of others. Different kinds of conflicts and misunderstandings between employees as well as the organization can be resolved if they are emotionally capable and intelligent. This is vital as the current online education System demands employees to have excellent emotional management for a fruitful learning process. Highly emotionally intelligent employees tend to motivate their colleagues as well as themselves to understand their behavioral and psychological well-being.

Organizational culture is changing and employees as well as educators are being selected based not only on IQ but also components of educational intelligence as it creates an environment of growth and development various institutions are developing teacher training programs keeping in mind educational intelligence as a prime factor to develop their employees as mentors, leader and guides. Being an emotionally intelligent individual is the need of the hour as each one is adapting to the change personally as well as professionally. Work-life balance is basically separating work from our personal lives. In the fast-running era of human life, people are failing to maintain a perfect harmony between their professional pressures and the responsibilities at home be it men or women. Work-life balance has been a concern for all those who are interested in maintaining a fine balance between work-life and its association with broader quality of life.

A recent study from the Office of National Statistics found that 48% of adults felt they were struggling with poor work-life balance. Although in a study by educational support, over 74% of teachers reported they struggled with maintaining boundaries between their work and home life over the last few years. Almost ¾ of teachers report they find work stressful and the pandemic has added a lot more to this, work pressures have intensified in the past years the average time spent on the job has increased drastically, and 74% of educational staff say the inability to switch off from work is the major contributing factor to the work-life imbalance, 20% of teacher’s workload is completely outside school hours. In the era of work-from-home employees tend to find it difficult to maintain a balance between personal and professional life. For the majority work-life balance is different from all as all have different priorities and values. In school teachers find it more difficult to balance multiple roles and responsibilities as work and family life emphasize the work-life conflict, the responsibilities in school are different organizing and involvement in extracurricular, finding techniques to improve students learning, etc.

Professional pressures like high expectations and numerous demands can lead to conflict between life and work domains. Teachers are expected to provide learning experiences according to the needs of the learners along with work pressures which lead to an imbalance between work and life affecting teaching efficiency. Educational employees have to build strategies and techniques to create a balance like setting priorities to be accomplished, managing their availability, planning with the new normal in mind, training themselves to use technology, maintaining schedules, etc. Although it is not easy to separate work and personal life while working from home. Many organizations are on the quest of increasing the standards of employees by improving their organizational commitment, enhancing job satisfaction levels, and also reducing work-related stress. Many teachers have started using social media to create a PLN which is a personal learning network, which is a way for employees to use social media to connect with other educators to collaborate, share ideas, and exploration of professional interests. This is a new medium used by teachers to learn a lot more and connect with other employees. Work-life balance is one of the biggest factors in teachers wanting to resign thus it is important that strategies are used to maintain a balance. It needs a lot of planning and determination along with self-discipline to create harmony between work and home life.

Essay on Why Is It Important to Tell the Truth

The different principles and core fundaments of any society should be based on truth. Truthtelling should be a standard rule to judge someone on his deed. And I believe that no one should not be indifferent to the notion of truth regardless of his social status. In the book, Post-Truth, Mcintyre explains to us how we got to the “post-truth” era where telling the truth does not matter anymore and how can we stand against this cynical movement. While, On Truth, Harry tells us the importance of truth and how it helps our societies properly. Let us examine the different concepts and the takeaway from these two books.

For Harry, lies and false equivalencies of facts are what can undermine the development of society at all levels. The lies of the liars, as he calls it “bullshitting” can put people into a confusing world full of skepticism. These lies can become very dangerous when it comes to decisions making and are a threat to the good functioning of a society. Mcintyre characterizes it as people who vehiculate “fake news” where the original intention is to control and manipulate people. The different ideas and ideologies that come to them are only based on their own political agenda and personal opinions rather than facts and truth-telling.

In Post-truth, the author discusses events during the American 2016 presidential election and Brexit in the UK, where the notion of truth and facts is undermined and subordinated by personal opinions. Mcintyre explains that the current zeitgeist care only about how well information will fit into reality and what people want to hear. Those political power will “spin the truth most favorably to their advantage, knowing full well that this is what they are doing, for there is clear intent to influence others” (Mcintyre, 9). Harry, they are indifferent to the truth and evidence but rather focus on what will make their audience believe them. Bullshitting is dangerous and it represents a threat to our society.

In the book, On Truth, Harry discusses the value and the importance of the truth. For him coming up with the right evidence and facts on something where there is no contestation will bring us joy and satisfaction. A rigorous demonstration of these facts will eliminate any uncertainty and undermine any fake news and free people from worries and doubts. The author takes an example of the scientific method and points out the Euclidean theorem where all subjects matter can be demonstrated and approved. Why do care about truth and what is its importance?

Truth is important, and every society must have a minimum standard of judgment on its decisions about what to believe and what not to believe. Society’s prosperity depends on the capabilities of its citizen to distinguish what is truth and what is not, and what are the consequences that come with dishonesty.

For Mcintyre, the alteration of truth-telling comes from science denial and the postmodernists era where facts and evidence do not matter anymore but only where the end justifies the means. “postmodernist thinkers are undaunted, however, by the undeniable ubiquitous acceptance of this practice” (Harry, 20). Even though our decisions are marked by events and personal opinions and circumstances we should, in our clear mind deliberately seek the truth and discard any false equivalencies. For Harry to assess what is truth and what is false we must have an “evaluative or normative judgment” (Harry, 30).

For Harry, truth “possesses values and have practical utility because they consist of, and because they, therefore, can provide us with, accurate accounts of the properties of the real objects and events with which we must deal when we act” (Harry,51). Without the truth, we live in a world with non-fundamental reasons to believe or trust someone. But we are guided by those who try to manipulate us for their own gains and interest. Our beliefs and perceptions will be disoriented to the point where we live with ignorance. “we can therefore do no better than to spin out uninformed guesses and, shakily, to hope for the best” (Harry, 60). Consequently, the truth will help us construct a productive and prospective social life.

Thankfulness for Having a Child: Research Paper on Down Syndrome

Personal Experience

The situation that I decided to experience is being told that I am pregnant with a child that most likely has Trisomy 21, also known as Down syndrome. As I place myself into this situation, I begin to wonder how I would feel and what I would do if this event was to happen to me. If a doctor was to tell me that my son or daughter most likely had Down syndrome, I think that I would be upset at first, but would then be thankful. At first, I would be upset because, although I do not have a child of my own yet, I am sure that it is hard to hear that your child has Down syndrome after praying for a healthy baby. It is possible that I may even begin to question if I did something wrong that would give my child Down syndrome. Eventually, I would accept that my child would have Down syndrome and I would be thankful. I would be thankful to be having a child because many women struggle to get pregnant. I would also be thankful for having a healthy child who has Down syndrome. Having a child with Down syndrome would be difficult, but it would all be worth it for someone you love. If I were in this situation, I would have to learn and adapt to meet the needs of my child, but no matter what, I would always be thankful.

Definition of Down Syndrome

According to the National Down Syndrome Society (2019), within the human body, a nucleus can be found in every cell. The NDSS (2019), continues to say that within the nucleus, there are genes that are grouped together in rod-like structures called chromosomes that contain the genetic makeup that is present in an individual. In a common nucleus, 23 pairs, half coming from each parent, of chromosomes are present. However, as the National Down Syndrome Society states that when there is an additional copy of the 21st chromosome, whether it is half or full, Down syndrome results in the individual (National Down Syndrome Society, 2019, para. 1).

The Commonality of Down Syndrome

The National Down Syndrome Society also provides statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that clarify how common Down Syndrome is in the United States. The NDSS states that “according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, approximately one in every 700 babies in the United States is born with Down syndrome, making Down syndrome the most common chromosomal condition in the U.S. About 6,000 babies with Down syndrome are born in the United States each year” (NDSS, 2019, para. 3). These statistics show that this condition is common in the United States.

Causes

Both the National Down Syndrome Society and the textbook, written by Newman and Newman, state that Down syndrome is a genetically transmitted condition caused by a mistake in the division of cells. More specifically, the article explains that the condition is

“caused by an error in cell division called ‘nondisjunction’. Nondisjunction results in an embryo with three copies of chromosome 21 instead of the usual two… prior to or at conception, a pair of 21st chromosomes in either the sperm or the egg fails to separate. As the embryo develops, the extra chromosome is replicated in every cell of the body” (NDSS, 2019, para. 6).

Newman and Newman (2015) add that mothers who are over the age of 40 years old are at primary risk of giving birth to children who have down syndrome. This is due to, in part, the deterioration of the ova. However, Newman and Newman (2015) also explain that aging men can contribute because the number of defective sperm increases with age. With all this being said, Newman and Newman conclude that although age may be a factor, many children who are born with down syndrome have mothers who are under the age of 35 (Newman and Newman, 2015, pg. 118).

Hereditary or Not

Many people ask the question of whether or not Down syndrome is hereditary and can be passed on throughout the generations of a family. The answer is that Down syndrome is a genetic condition, which means it is related to genes. However, according to the National Down Syndrome Society, only 1% of Down syndrome cases are hereditary and travel through genes from the parent to the child (NDSS, 2019, para. 16). All in all, this condition is caused by atypical division in cells, making it a genetic condition and not hereditary.

Diagnoses

There are two ways in which Down syndrome can be diagnosed: prenatally or after birth. To diagnose this condition prenatally two tests can be performed, known as screening tests and diagnostics tests. The National Down Syndrome Society provides information on both tests that are performed. According to the NDSS, screening tests give the probability of having a child with the condition and they are not the most accurate; however, they are not harmful to the mother or the child. The tests that are conducted are blood tests, also called serum screening tests. These tests are used to measure different materials in the mother’s blood and their amounts. To roughly calculate the probability of having a child with Down Syndrome, this amount of different substances plus the age of the mother is used. Additionally, a sonogram is commonly conducted along with blood tests to examine for characteristics that may be an indication of the condition. Another prenatal test is diagnostic tests, which according to the NDSS (2019), have almost 100% accuracy; however, there is up to a 1% risk of a miscarriage with these tests (NDSS, 2019, para. 23). Chorionic villus sampling and amniocentesis are the two types of diagnostic tests that are conducted. Chronic villus sampling is done in the 1st trimester between 9 and 14 weeks, while amniocentesis, is conducted in the 2nd trimester between 15 and 20 weeks (NDSS, 2019, para. 23). On the other hand, Down syndrome can be diagnosed after birth. This is done simply by looking at the child. Certain physical traits may determine if a child has Down syndrome. According to the article, these physical traits include “low muscle tone, a single deep crease across the palm of the hand, a slightly flattened facial profile, and an upward slant to the eyes” (NDSS, 2019, para. 24). If these physical traits are present, the child may have Down syndrome, but they also could not. To verify, a karyotype is performed. The NDSS (2019) describes a karyotype as a chromosomal analysis and it is conducted when the doctor draws a blood sample, photographs the chromosomes, then groups them by their number, size, and shape. From this, doctors can examine the chromosomes and determine if Down syndrome is present in the child or not (NDSS, 2019, para. 24).

Effects

The textbook discusses some of the effects that Down syndrome can have on a person’s health. Newman and Newman (2015) state that the additional 21st chromosome can have many physical and intellectual effects on a child. These effects include “an IQ in the range of 30-80, distinctive facial features, heart defects, intestinal problems, hearing defects, susceptibility to repeated ear infections, and tendency to develop narrowing in the arteries in adulthood, with attendant increase in the risk of heart disease” ( Newman, Newman, 2015, pg. 95). Overall, Down syndrome has many effects on an individual and their health.

Down Syndrome Resources in Toledo and Bowling Green

Within the Toledo and Bowling Green area, there are many different resources for individuals with Down syndrome. Two of these resources include the Down Syndrome Association of Greater Toledo and the Council for Exceptional Children. In 1983, a group of parents with children with Down syndrome wanted to create more opportunities for them, which lead to the creation of the Down Syndrome Association of Greater Toledo (Down Syndrome Association, n.d., para. 1). The Down Syndrome Association of Greater Toledo states that their mission is “to empower individuals with Down syndrome to achieve their goals and reach their fullest potential by providing support, education, and advocacy not only for the individual, but also their families and communities” and have the vision of “a community where all individuals with Down syndrome are accepted, included, and given limitless opportunities to pursue their dreams as respected members of society” (DSA, n.d., para. 1). This association has various programs and services for individuals of all different ages with Down syndrome. They have programs and services for new parents, early childhood, school-age individuals, teens/adults, aging individuals, and even families and communities. Some of these programs and services include life skills workshops, social dances, and training in inclusion and awareness for schools and businesses. The second resource is the Council for Exceptional Children, which is called the CEC for short. This is a student organization at Bowling Green State University that I just recently joined. The organization works with children with disabilities, including those with Down syndrome. Various events, fundraisers, and more are set up for these individuals, and students volunteer to help. Some of these events include trick-or-treating, prom, sports events, and so much more. This organization also helps family members of individuals with Down syndrome, to ensure that they are not feeling left out or neglected. Overall, these two organizations within the area are great resources for those who have Down syndrome and for those who know someone with Down syndrome.

Resources

  1. Down Syndrome Association of Greater Toledo. (n.d.). Mission and vision. Retrieved on Sept. 20 from http://www.dsagt.org/page-1586290.
  2. National Down Syndrome Society. (2019). What is Down Syndrome?, Retrieved on Sept. 20 from https://www.ndss.org/about-down-syndrome/down-syndrome/.
  3. Newman, B.M. & Newman, P.R. (2015). Development through life: A psychosocial approach, 12th edition. CT: Cengage

Work Life Blending: Synthesis Essay

Background

There is a creating preparation in the present working environments that representatives don’t give up their lives just in light of the fact that they work. Work and life remain the two most fundamental regions in the life of a used single individual.

In any case, the trial of changing work and non-work demands is one of the present central mindfulness toward the two individuals and associations. With the creating contrasts of family structures addressed in the present workforce, particularly with the creating standard of twofold calling families, the criticalness of managing a worker’s work-life balance has extended outstandingly over the span of late years.

Organizations grasp that the possibility of a specialist’s precious and family life impacts work quality and that there are solid business motivations to promote work and non-work coordination.

In this undertaking, we fight that helping representatives to achieve a work-life balance should transform into a fundamental bit of HR arrangement and system if it is to really get the best from the association’s kinfolk without relinquishing them unsatisfied, exhausted, and unfulfilled.

Introduction

Scope of the study:

The investigation covers the different angles in worker work-life Balance and estimated increment in efficiency responsibility, duty better collaboration and correspondence improved confidence, and more positive authoritative pressure.

Problem statement

The absence of work adaptability, high work weight and longer working hours are worrying numerous BPO industry laborers, decreasing their activity execution and profitability just as causing broken homes. In the network, there is developing worry that the nature of home and work life is falling apart. These have come about to poor representative information and execution at their specific employment place, in light of the fact that a worker, who thinks that its hard to appropriately adjust their family life, will in general additionally experience issues overseeing assignments at their work environment, in this way bringing about poor worker execution.

Additionally, there is a view, broadly advanced by some administration experts yet not firmly upheld by sound observational proof, that laborers are less ready to show boundless promise to the association. One reason offered for this is the changing idea of the mental agreement at work; choppiness in associations has made it less plausible to offer secure dynamic vocations and along these lines to legitimize why laborers ought to be submitted.

Objectives of the study

The goals of the task report are as per the following:

  • To discover explanations behind work-life equalization of representatives in CANDID BPO administrations, Mumbai.
  • To increase knowledge into current work time arrangements and practices, just as work-life balance issues
  • To discover the viability of work-life parity of representatives in CANDID BPO administrations, Mumbai.
  • To discover how to improve the work-life parity of representatives in CANDID BPO administrations, Mumbai. in CANDID BPO administrations, Mumbai.

What is work-life balance?

At the point when an individual keeps up a harmony between his own and expert life, the marvel is called Work-Life Balance. This articulation holds worth very much since it is imperative to have harmony between individual and expert life. Work-life balance is at the cutting edge of the universe of work. Kaizen, the Japanese way of thinking for consistent improvement, alongside the job of data innovation (IT) aids and aids the administration individuals, to get the most extreme yield with the assistance of accessible assets.

The harmony between individual and expert life fluctuates from individual to individual and the association where the person is working. At the point when an individual doesn’t keep up equalization and works a lot in the authoritative setting, this may cause him some restorative, mental, and conduct outcomes, subsequently, their profitability will likewise be low. Studies have indicated that work-life stress is unsafe for the representatives. Late sitting and working in excess can cause irregularity in a person’s close to home and expert life; anyway, there are a few strategies to deal with work-life stress for example time the executives, task the board, unwinding, adaptable working hours, telecommuting and exercise and so forth. Work-life balance improves a person’s well-being, work fulfillment, responsibility, and association and diminishes non-attendance and presenteeism (condition of physical nearness yet not gainful). Regardless of the advancement in the improvement of keeping up the work-life balance, there is still more to be finished.

Balance is not better time management, but better boundary management. Balance means making choices and enjoying those choices.’ – Betsy Jacobson.

Work-Life Balance in Today’s World:

Many individuals face the issue of adjusting to work and family life. Numerous worldwide organizations stay open for 24hrs. Representatives need to work in shifts. Day move and night move. Night move representatives feel hard to adapt to family life and well-being. This thus prompts separations and awful well-being. Numerous Mothers feel hard to proceed with work after conveyance since their home turns into their first need. She might be an excellent laborer however she stops to take care of her newly conceived family. Many Corporates have thought of the choice of Flexi time and a work-from-home chance to tap theories representatives. Individual requests, for example, visiting the school for a report card or medical clinic or any crisis require consideration. All things considered, the representative needs to take disappear and stay missing from work. Organizations have presented flexi timings for working with the goal that an individual worker can finish his booked work by coming to the office whenever. This reduces the weight of arriving at the office on time when individual life needs more consideration. Hurray India enables representatives to work Flexitime.

Telecommuting is additionally embraced to adjust work and individual life. Organizations would prefer not to pull off dedicated and result-arranged representatives such a large number of organizations have presented telecommute openings where a worker can telecommute. There is no worry about visiting the office on schedule. Here a representative can alter time to commit to work and family. Giving a worker alternative to telecommuting helps the business in modifying work from a little office and deal with a major workforce.

Organizations give instructional courses to workers with the goal that they are progressively profitable. Different workshops are sorted out. They call the relatives of workers so they also coordinate with the representative in adjusting work and home. At the point when an organization gives a worker a choice of adjusting his work and individual life it builds maintenance and brings down the turnover rate.

There are not many negative symptoms of enabling a worker to telecommute or practice flexi timings –

  1. A beneficial representative turns ineffective.
  2. Underestimates work.
  3. Doesn’t finishes chipping away at a time.
  4. Gives more worry to individual life and individual requests.

An organization needs to watch out for every single representative so that profitability isn’t diminished. An Employer takes measures to hold his representatives and increment execution. Work-life balance is a decent measure taken by organizations. A representative should fit in it and attempt to get the most extreme advantages.

Employee work-life balance

To accomplish the above destinations and to encourage HRD the accompanying procedure instruments or sub-frameworks are utilized:

  1. Performance examination
  2. Potential examination and improvement
  3. Input and execution training
  4. Profession arranging and improvement
  5. Enlistment preparing
  6. Preparing
  7. Occupation turn
  8. Hierarchical improvement
  9. Prizes
  10. Quality circles
  11. Representative welfare and nature of work life (QWL)

All these process mechanisms are linked with the corporate plans, particularly with human resource planning (Manpower planning)

Contribution of these subsystems

Every one of these sub-frameworks or components or instruments adds to the accomplishment of generally speaking HRD objectives. Execution examination centers basically around helping the person to build up his/her present job capacities and to accept greater accountability for that job. Potential examination centers basically around distinguishing the representative’s future likely jobs inside the association. The preparation is the method for building up the person’s close-to-home adequacy or building up the person’s capacity to play out his/her activity job or future employment jobs. Preparing additionally can fortify relational connections (through preparing in interchanges, compromise, critical thinking, value-based examination, and so forth.) and builds cooperation and coordinated effort.

The consequences of employee work-life imbalance:

There is convincing proof that work-life irregularity predicts grave ramifications for representatives, their associations, and society (Allen, Herst, Bruck, and Sutton, 2000; Lockwood, 2003; Vlems, 2004; Mordi and Ojo, 2011). Clashes, especially between work and family, altogether influence the nature of family life and vocational accomplishment for the two people. Individual and cultural results of work-life awkwardness, as per Hobson, Delunas, and Kesic (2001) include:

  • Increased degree of stress and stress-related disease –
  • Lower-life fulfillment
  • Higher paces of family difficulty, savagery, and separation
  • Rising occurrence of substance misuse
  • Growing issues with child rearing and supervision of youngsters and teenagers
  • Escalating paces of adolescent wrongdoing and viciousness

Managing Work-life balance:

A valuable quality of leadership is the ability to balance work and life. they create it clear that this is often a facet they price in others, too. people establish a pattern for their personal life – whether or not it’s being home for dinner four nights every week, attending choir applications, or being in the vicinity of their kids’ college activities. whether or not through unpaid leave or versatile planning, they supply individuals with the chance to steer productive personal lives. Consequently, elevated trust levels are galvanized among the members of the organization

As a girl in leadership, leveling your career, finances, family life, and extracurricular activities are often difficult. Your responsibilities will cause numerous demands on your life which will cause you to feel weak and out of balance. during this age of mobile communications, technology will play a vital role in serving to you attain an additional balanced life. Here area unit three areas of your life wherever technology will assist you to attain balance:

Your time: Most PDAs come with really great features to help you manage your time. Take the time to read the manual that comes with your PDA and maximize its functionality. For example, in addition to the basic calendar functions the Palm Treo has a programmable voice that will speak to you and alert you of your appointments. The iPhone allows you to download some great applications to help you manage different aspects of your life. You can manage everything from your to-do lists to travel management programs that keep track of your frequent traveler programs to goal-setting programs that help you develop new habits.

Your finances: Programs like Quicken or Quickbooks provide great tools to help you manage your finances. These programs allow you to link to your online banking accounts and provide you with a comprehensive and up-to-date view of your finances. These programs also provide great features like bill pay as well as spreadsheets, charts, and graphs. The programs are user-friendly and you have the option to link them to your PDA if you want to monitor your accounts when you’re on the go.

Your social life: Social media have become powerful and effective tools to strengthen already existing relationships and to form new ones. Programs such as Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn have revolutionized the way we connect with each other and how we share information. You can share photos, videos, audio files, and news articles. If you haven’t already, consider joining a social media network to stay in touch with family and friends. Short and regular updates throughout the week will give you a glimpse into the lives of those in your network and help you feel connected even when you’re on the go.

Your career: Technology can help you to streamline your workday so that you work more efficiently. For example, there are various Google applications such as Google Docs that can help you to promote collaboration and to share information with colleagues. You can save time and cut back on travel expenses by hosting video calls via Skype rather than face-to-face meetings. Skype is free and all you need is a computer with a webcam. Technology can also help you to expand your professional network through social networks like LinkedIn. Finally, you can expand your knowledge and learn new things through webinars and online courses from the comfort of your office or home.

Technology should never replace personal connections, but when approached in a thoughtful way, it can be useful in helping you maintain the right balance in your personal and professional life.

Work-Life balance options:

Employers are realizing that the quality of an employee‟s personal and family life impacts work quality and that there are concrete business reasons to promote work and non-work integration (Lockwood, 2003). As Vlems (2005) notes, when organizations decide to facilitate their employees‟ work-life balance, they choose from a wide array of options that include:

(a) Flexi-time

Flexi-time is a scheduling policy that allows full-time employees to choose to start and end times within guidelines specified by the organization. It works well for full-time office staff, but not in shift patterns or in a production line. Flexi-time allows an employee to attend to non-work demands without having to take time off work.

(b) Compressed working hours

This is a system of a four-day working week. An employee can work his total number of agreed hours over a shorter period. For example, an employee can work his or her hours over four days in a week instead of five, and thus, gains a day for himself.

(c) Job-sharing

Job-sharing is a system where two people share a job. They both have the same job but split the hours so that each employee has a part-time position. Apart from splitting the hours, they also split the payments, holidays, and benefits. The idea is to afford employees ample time to attend to non-work activities so as to be able to achieve a good measure of work-life balance.

(d) Breaks from work

By taking breaks from work once in a while, the right balance between work and life can be achieved. These breaks should not only be about maternity, paternity, and parental leave but also time off for career breaks and sabbaticals.

Suggestions

Here are some suggestions to improve Employee work-life balance in CANDID BPO

  1. An effective employee work-life balance has better organizational commitment which leads to better production output and minimizes employee turnover.
  2. Continue with the environment and sanitation hygiene facilities as the employees are very much satisfied with them.
  3. The quality of food in the canteen of the company must be improved so that it will satisfy the employees tastes.

Conclusion

From the study, it is clear that employee work-life balance in CANDID BPO is good, But there is a small gap between employee satisfaction and to company.

Work-life balance programs offer a successful win circumstance for managers and representatives. While the representative may see work-life balance as the situation of overseeing work commitments and non-work obligations, work-life balance from the business’ perspective envelops the test of making a strong organizational culture where workers can concentrate on their occupations while at work. In however it is seen, the presence of compelling work-life balance programs in an association will do both the worker and business great.

For the business, work-life activities make positive manager marking, the advance being a business of decision, encourage hierarchical citizenship, and bolster assorted variety activities. For the representative, there is lesser stress, expanded bliss, inspiration, and profitability, and a superior possibility of contacting both individual and vocation objectives sufficiently. The key job of HR in this manner is to comprehend the basic issues of work-life balance, coordinate it into the association’s HR strategy, and champion work-life balance programs.

References

  1. Blair-Loy, M., & Wharton, A.S. (2002). ―Employees‟ use of work-family policies and the workplace social context‖. Social Forces, 80, 813-845.
  2. Blood, R.O., & Wolfe, D.M. (1960). Husbands and wives. New York: Macmillan.
  3. Champoux, J.E. (1978). ―Perceptions of work and non-work: A reexamination of the compensatory and spillover models‖. Sociology of Work and Occupations, 5, 402-422.
  4. Clark, S.C. (2000). ―Work/family border theory: A new theory of work/family balance‖. Human Relations, 53, 747-770.
  5. Elloy, D.F. & Smith, C.R. (2003). ―Patterns of stress, work-family conflict, role conflict, role ambiguity and overload among dual-career couples: An Australian study‖. Cross Cultural Management. 10(1): 55-66.
  6. Epie, C. (2006). ―Family-responsive policies in the Nigerian environment‖. Paper presented at the ACREW Conference 2006 on socially responsive approaches to employment and work. London.
  7. Lockwood, N.R. (2003). ―Work-life balance: Challenges and solutions‖. Society for Human Resource Management Research Quarterly, Alexandria, VA.

Are We Losing Our Sense of Place in Life: Persuasive Essay

Memory as a form of constructing reality is a mechanism for the formation of not only an individual but also a social experience. The amount of knowledge about the past of the social group in which the individual finds himself is one of the most important factors of his social identification. The identification function of social memory is embodied in the desire of modern society to clothe the past in symbolic and ritual forms. ‘Places of memory’ exist because of the threat of destruction of memory, supporting the feeling of continuing the story. As applied to the social context, ‘place’ is the accumulator of a person’s subjective experience and denotes the localization of his personal spatial sensations. The sense of place is determined not so much by the physical parameters perceived by a person, as by the certainty that each place has its own special, only inherent, local value.

Recreating the continuity of past, present, and future, memory turns out to be an important way of forming and preserving a collective and personal identity, i.e., feelings of belonging, forcing an individual to recognize personal traits in a particular community with its own value system. Certain social groups, the members of which receive a similar experience by virtue of their belonging to one society, set a specific set of memories to their participants. At the same time, the exchange of memories between representatives of various local social groups creates social memory. Thus, the amount of knowledge about the past of the social group in which the individual finds himself is one of the most important factors of his social identification. Memory is an indispensable condition for the socialization of the individual. And in this case, socialization itself can be understood as a process of familiarizing an individual with different in content and meaning volumes of memories, both group and individual.

The concept of ‘social memory’ in the humanities of scientific knowledge appeared in the first half of the 20th century. By the beginning of the XXI century, it turned out to be analyzed in sufficient detail and became a pretext for polemical interdisciplinary discussions. One of the most important provisions in this area was the thesis of identity (social, cultural, historical and political) as a product of social memory. In moments of personal crises, spiritual experiences, moral fatigue, many people think about how to change their lives, how to find their own way and meaning of life. There are no unequivocal answers to such questions, and there cannot be. Every person’s life is unique and multifaceted. There are situations and conditions that people regard as loneliness, alienation of oneself from other people: it can be self-isolation, both emotional and social. Emotional isolation is the result of a lack of attachment to a particular person; resulting in anxiety. Social isolation is usually expressed in the absence of an accessible circle of social intercourse and is accompanied by a sense of alienation. Such emotional states as despair, melancholy, depression, self-pity, unbearable boredom are most often associated with loneliness. Experiencing a keen sense of alienation entails communication, which can be called deficient and defective. At present, among people, isolation, estrangement from the rest of humanity is quite common, affecting the life of a particular person, his relationship with other people. Thus, alienation is one of the problems of mankind that needs to be overcome. The world is filled with ideas, desires, and aspirations of people. When we look at talented actors, directors, musicians, athletes, successful businessmen and politicians, it seems to us that it is from such people that we should take an example, it is their life that should become a guide. Searching for oneself in life most often means professional purpose, which, besides social benefit and recognition, brings moral satisfaction. A place in life is a significant skill in any business that deserves respect when others consider you to be an undoubted professional and authority. But to a greater degree, it is also a state of joy from the work being done, confidence and comfort in personal relationships.

Many successful people in the professional field, even reaching certain career heights, do not experience happiness – the daily state of spiritual joy. This happens because initially, they chose the wrong path due to ignorance or rejection of their own preferences. In contrast, many were unable to achieve anything, because for too long they chose their direction by trial and error. As a result, such a waste of moral and physical strength led to emptiness, a sense of inferiority and complete disappointment in life.

The goal in life – such a concept many of us are frightened by their significance and unattainability. The rest of the people simply never thought about the problem of finding the meaning of life. Usually, these are infantile personalities, for which everything has already been decided, and this suits them completely – in this case, there is no need to search for the purpose and purpose in life. This condition may vary depending on the specific situation and what the person has experienced. It happens that at a young age he had a clear idea of his desires and aspirations, but over the years he lost it under the influence of a stressful situation, an experienced shock or environment, when the social environment suppresses a person, not allowing him to go beyond certain limits. The theme of combining a successful career and family values is one of the main ones when it comes to life goals and the meaning of life. Psychologists provide guidelines for planning the day and the allocation of time between family and work. Such advice can only be taken as a possible option, and not a guide to action.

Thus, we can say that we have lost the sense of place due to alienation. Aloofness manifests itself as a feeling of powerlessness in the face of everyday problems, a sense of the meaninglessness of what is happening; separation, cooling and breaking with the closest environment, falling out of social ties. This state is accompanied by apathy and self-denial, a rejection of friendliness and companionship, distrust of the sincerity and selflessness of people, a lack of warm cordial communication. Even if the majority of friendly relations still persist, the person often and gradually reduces contact. Aloofness as an experienced feeling and state becomes alienated from real people, their concerns and lives. The core of alienation is anomia, which is defined as a state of disorganization of a person, resulting from its disorientation. The reason for such disorientation may be a social situation in which the norms of conflict take place and the person is faced with conflicting demands or a situation of lack of norms. Relationships between people become superficial. The superficial nature of human relationships encourages many to hope that they can gain the depth and power of feelings in individual love.

Works Cited

  1. Buttimer, Anne. ‘Home, Reach, and the Sense of Place’. The Human Experience of Space and Place. (1980): pp.166-187.
  2. Glassberg, David. Sense of History: The Place of the Past in American Life. Univ of Massachusetts Press, 2001.
  3. Eyles, John, and Allison Williams, eds. Sense of Place, Health and Quality of Life. Ashgate Publishing, Ltd., 2008.
  4. Hay, Robert. ‘Sense of Place in Developmental Context’. Journal of Environmental Psychology. 18.1 (1998): pp.5-29.
  5. Mazumdar, Sanjoy, et al. ‘Creating a Sense of Place: The Vietnamese-Americans and Little Saigon’. Journal of Environmental Psychology 20.4 (2000): pp.319-333.

Reflection on My Spring Break: My Uncle’s Wedding and His Funeral

18 months between my uncle’s wedding and his funeral. March 13, 2016, was my Uncle Eric’s wedding. September 2, 2017, was my Uncle Eric’s funeral. The service for both events was held in the congregation of the Apostolic Faith Home Assembly in Gardena, California owned by his older brother, Marcus. In April of 2017, he was diagnosed with glioblastoma multiforme or ‘GBM’ for short, and was told he had a few months to live at the most.

The initial feelings I encountered when I heard the news weren’t ones of worry or sorrow, on the contrary, I took on this nonchalant attitude towards the situation believing was that he would recover and there was no need to make the day trip to California. When I found out we were going to California for my uncle’s wedding during spring break, I was ecstatic given that these types of trips are reserved for the summer.

The whole experience in California and the wedding was great; we were able to visit Manhattan Beach, spend time with family we don’t usually see, and break away from the habitual spring break routine. Furthermore, I have always felt an indefinite disconnect between myself and this side of my family. I am sure it stems from the fact that my father is incarcerated and my mother doesn’t feel the same obligation to visit my father’s side of the family the same way we visit her family in the Philippines or elsewhere. Whether I am correct or not, I was able to connect with my father’s side of the family and be the ‘glue’ my father speaks of.

Once I heard that my uncle had passed I felt the accustomed feeling of shock along with the guilt of never visiting him in the hospital and assuming everything will be fine. Once my father heard the news and spoke to me about it he asked me to read a letter from him to his brother. Initially, I did not want to do it being the bashful, idle person I am. The decision not to do it was based on the fact that I did not want to step outside my comfort zone to do something so futile. However, after thinking it over I decided to do it because I owed my father this favor after my past displays of selfishness and even though I may hold past prejudices against him you can never truly hate someone.

The night before the funeral we made the late-night drive through stormy weather and the occasional pickup driver slipping into sleep to my aunt’s house. At dawn, we then made prepared for the funeral and arrived at the church. There I saw may people I have never seen in my life along with people I have known since I was three. With the letter burning a hole in my front pocket, I made my way to the stand once it was time for any additional words. Dear Eazy Until we meet again. Love, Peace, Soul I am not sure if the crowd was able to hear and understand my reading through my uneasy and minuscule voice, however, I feel that I was able to convey my father’s message thoroughly enough. I am eternally thankful for the experience and insight I was able to collect because it is has shifted my being to the point where it is now changing me for the best and I am excited to be apart of the journey and privilege of being able to interact with the future me.

Possibility of Seeking Treatment During Winter Break: Opinion Essay

Here are a few things to consider when determining whether seeking eating disorder treatment during winter break is right for you.

Academic calendars can vary, but winter break is typically a 2-week period that starts around the Christmas holiday and lasts through the new year. And it can be an excellent time for students to decompress, reconnect with their families, and check in with themselves. The fall is often a white-knuckle ride through packed academic schedules, exams, and academic stress… especially for college students in their first year. This period of transition, with its academic pressures, stress of making friends in a new environment, adjusting to new expectations, and for college students living in dorms, being on their own and without the oversight and familiarity of the family structure for the first time, can create a perfect storm for eating disorders. One study found that 13.5% of women and 3.6% of men enrolled in college had symptoms of disordered eating, such as anorexia and bulimia, and the prevalence of eating disorders among college students seems to be on the rise.

Is winter break the right time to seek treatment? These questions will help determine whether winter break might be a good option.

What kind of eating disorder treatment is needed?

Eating disorder treatment is not a one-size-fits-all solution. When discussing eating disorder treatment, it’s important to consider the level of treatment needed.

Residential Treatment. This treatment option entails 24-hour care from professionals who are trained in treating eating disorders. Residential treatment can provide the care needed for people who may require specialized medical care, or would benefit from a more structured environment. In residential treatment programs, individuals remain at the center during the day and at night, allowing them to work closely with their treatment team on their recovery and build skills that will help them cope upon their release.

Outpatient Treatment. Outpatient treatment is a lower-level option for people who do not need round-the-clock care and the structure of live-in eating disorder treatment. Outpatient is often used to help those in recovery from an eating disorder transition out of residential or partial hospital programs and back into their daily lives. However, it can also be appropriate for people who do not need to be hospitalized, or who need the flexibility to schedule treatment around obligations like school or work. Outpatient treatment may not include medical care or nutrition services, so that’s important to consider as well.

Partial Hospital Programs. Partial Hospital Programs (PHP) are a halfway point between residential and outpatient treatment. Sometimes known as a ‘day program,’ people in a partial hospital program might spend all day in treatment and then return to their own homes at night. This can help people in recovery transition out of residential treatment, but it’s also an option for individuals who may need more flexibility and don’t require residential treatment.

Working with doctors and therapists can help determine which type of eating disorder treatment is best suited to your needs.

Is it more affordable for me to seek treatment during winter break?

Eating disorder treatment is usually covered by insurance, but it can be beneficial to seek eating disorder treatment during winter break, or toward the end of the year. That’s because insurance deductibles reset after January 1st. If an insurance deductible has already been met, seeking treatment during winter break can dramatically reduce the out-of-pocket costs of treatment. And that’s not all: people whose insurance coverage include flex-spending accounts (FSAs) may actually have access to funds that do not roll over to the new year. There’s a reason FSAs are often called ‘use it or lose it’ accounts!

This is not always the case, so it’s essential to understand whether there is a benefit to seeking treatment during winter break based on your insurance plan and deductible.

Will I benefit from using time off from school to go into treatment?

School is stressful enough, but missing school due to eating disorder treatment can be even more stressful. And having work and exams to make up can make it harder to return to the daily grind after treatment. Utilizing time off from school to address an eating disorder can be a smart way to use that time, and ensure that students are able to start the next semester off strong, with support from a treatment team and family in place.

Of course, seeking treatment during winter break also means taking time away from family, friends, and much-needed down time. Those things are important too, for physical and mental health, so it’s important to carefully weigh the pros and cons.

Will seeking treatment during winter break help me in the new year?

The beginning of a new year can be a time thick with meaning and symbolism, and starting the new year off in recovery from an eating disorder can be meaningful. Eating disorder treatment will help people with eating disorders build skills, develop a support network, and feel more empowered in their daily lives. And who wouldn’t want to start a new semester at school and a new year with those things?

The new year can also be a time when cultural messaging around dieting, fitness, and New Year’s Resolutions are particularly strong, even unavoidable. Getting treatment during winter break can help people with eating disorders deal with those messages (which can be persistent and difficult to tune out) and find support if the cultural focus on dieting starts to affect one’s recovery. So, going into treatment during winter break can help those with eating disorder combat those messages and stay on the path toward healing their relationships with their bodies and food.

Does the time of year matter for seeking treatment?

The bottom line is that eating disorders are serious, and getting help sooner rather than later will make the odds of successful treatment much higher. While there may be specific benefits to getting treatment during winter break, it’s important for people with eating disorders to receive care as soon as possible. Getting help right away, regardless of the time of year, can be more important than being able to schedule treatment during winter break.

Resilience And Its Effects On People Lives

Introduction

Resilience, a term that resonates deeply within the human spirit, refers to the remarkable ability to recover from adversity, withstand stress, and adapt to challenges. This intrinsic quality, inherent in both individuals and communities, enables people to navigate through life’s inevitable hardships and emerge stronger. Resilience is not merely about bouncing back from difficulties; it encompasses learning, growth, and transformation as a result of facing them. The concept extends beyond personal fortitude, touching on the collective capacity of groups and societies to endure and thrive despite environmental, social, and economic challenges. In an ever-changing world marked by uncertainty and disruption, resilience stands as a beacon of hope and strength, highlighting the potential for renewal and positive change. It underscores the importance of support systems, coping strategies, and inner determination in overcoming obstacles. As we delve into the nuances of resilience, we uncover the layers that contribute to this dynamic process, including psychological resilience, community resilience, and ecological resilience, each adding depth to our understanding of how resilience operates across different contexts and scales.

100 Words Essay about resilience

Resilience is the profound ability to adapt and bounce back from adversity, a quality that enables individuals to navigate through life’s challenges with strength and grace. It involves more than just enduring difficult times; it encompasses learning, growing, and transforming in the face of obstacles. This dynamic process is fueled by inner determination, support networks, and effective coping strategies. Resilience is not a trait that people either have or do not have; it involves behaviors, thoughts, and actions that can be learned and developed over time. It’s a testament to the human capacity for recovery and signifies the potential for rebuilding even stronger foundations after setbacks, embodying hope and renewal in the human spirit.

250 Words Essay about resilience

Resilience stands as a testament to the human capacity to confront adversity and emerge not just unscathed but fortified. It is the art of navigating through storms and learning to dance in the rain, a skill that goes beyond mere survival to encompass growth and transformation. This remarkable quality is not innate but cultivated through experiences, reflection, and the deliberate practice of resilience-building strategies. It involves recognizing and harnessing one’s inner strengths, while also drawing on the support and resources available within one’s community and environment.

At its core, resilience is characterized by flexibility, adaptability, and the perseverance to overcome challenges. It is about developing a mindset that views obstacles not as insurmountable barriers but as opportunities for learning and development. Resilient individuals possess the ability to maintain a positive outlook, manage their emotions effectively, and sustain a sense of purpose even in the face of difficulties.

Moreover, resilience is not a solitary journey. It thrives on connections with others, benefiting from the collective strength and wisdom of communities. Societies that foster resilience are those that invest in social support systems, encourage open communication, and cultivate environments where individuals feel valued and understood.

In a world that is increasingly volatile and uncertain, resilience is more than a personal attribute; it is a crucial skill for navigating the complexities of modern life. It empowers individuals to face the future with confidence, adapt to change, and seize control over their own narratives, making resilience not just a strategy for survival, but a pathway to thriving.

400 Words Essay about resilience

Resilience, a multifaceted phenomenon, encapsulates the human ability to withstand, adapt, and grow from adversity. It’s an intricate dance between enduring hardships and emerging stronger, a testament to the indomitable human spirit. This quality, while often discussed in the context of individual psychology, extends into the realms of communities and ecosystems, illustrating a universal principle of persistence and adaptability.

At the individual level, resilience is the inner strength that fuels recovery and transformation following life’s inevitable setbacks. It involves a complex interplay of emotional regulation, optimistic outlook, and problem-solving skills. Resilient individuals harness these attributes to navigate through challenges, drawing lessons from each obstacle and using them as stepping stones for personal growth. This process is not innate but developed through experiences and conscious effort, suggesting that resilience can be cultivated over time through mindfulness, self-reflection, and the deliberate practice of coping strategies.

Beyond the personal sphere, resilience manifests in communities through collective action, social support, and shared resources. Community resilience is the capacity of a group to anticipate, prepare for, respond to, and recover from adverse situations. It highlights the importance of social cohesion, effective leadership, and the availability of support systems in building a resilient community. Such communities are characterized by their ability to mobilize quickly, adapt to new realities, and rebuild in the aftermath of crises, thereby ensuring the well-being of their members.

Ecological resilience further broadens the concept, referring to the ability of ecosystems to absorb disturbances and reorganize while undergoing change so as to still retain essentially the same function, structure, identity, and feedbacks. This aspect of resilience underscores the interconnectedness of human and natural systems and the need for sustainable practices that support the planet’s capacity to recover from environmental stressors.

In today’s rapidly changing world, marked by environmental challenges, social upheavals, and personal trials, the significance of resilience cannot be overstated. It is a critical component of mental health, community well-being, and ecological balance. Cultivating resilience requires a proactive approach to building emotional strength, fostering community ties, and promoting environmental stewardship. It involves recognizing vulnerabilities, embracing adaptive strategies, and committing to ongoing learning and growth.

In conclusion, resilience is a dynamic and multifaceted quality that enables individuals, communities, and ecosystems to thrive in the face of adversity. It is about more than just survival; it is about transforming challenges into opportunities for growth and renewal. As we navigate the complexities of the 21st century, fostering resilience at all levels of society becomes paramount in creating a more sustainable, equitable, and thriving world.

500 Words Essay about resilience

Resilience, often perceived as the quintessential buffer against life’s adversities, embodies the remarkable capacity of individuals, communities, and ecosystems to endure, adapt, and thrive despite challenges and disruptions. This complex construct, woven into the fabric of existence, transcends mere survival, encapsulating a journey of growth, learning, and transformation that is both personal and collective.

At its core, individual resilience is the amalgamation of psychological fortitude, emotional agility, and an unwavering sense of purpose. It is the inner resilience that enables one to confront and navigate through personal trials, from the loss of a loved one to the failure of a cherished dream. This form of resilience is not a static trait but a dynamic process, cultivated through experiences of hardship and recovery. It involves developing a mindset that views challenges as opportunities for growth, fostering a positive outlook, and harnessing effective coping strategies to manage stress and adversity.

Beyond the individual, resilience manifests in the collective spirit of communities. Community resilience is the synergy of shared values, resources, and social networks that empower groups to withstand and rebound from collective challenges, such as natural disasters, economic downturns, or social unrest. It underscores the importance of social cohesion, mutual support, and adaptive leadership in building a resilient community. Through collaboration and shared responsibility, communities can create robust support systems that safeguard their members and facilitate collective healing and rebuilding.

Ecological resilience extends the concept to the natural world, highlighting the capacity of ecosystems to absorb disturbances, reorganize, and continue functioning. This aspect of resilience emphasizes the interdependence of human and natural systems and the critical need for sustainable practices that preserve the earth’s biodiversity and natural resources. Ecological resilience calls for a holistic approach to environmental stewardship, recognizing that the health of our planet is inextricably linked to our own well-being and survival.

In the face of global challenges such as climate change, social inequality, and health crises, the importance of fostering resilience at all levels cannot be overstated. Building resilience requires a multifaceted approach that includes enhancing individual coping skills, strengthening community networks, and promoting sustainable environmental practices. It involves not only addressing the immediate impacts of adversity but also tackling the underlying vulnerabilities and systemic issues that exacerbate these challenges.

Education and awareness play a crucial role in cultivating resilience. By equipping individuals with the knowledge and skills to manage stress and adversity, promoting community engagement and solidarity, and fostering an understanding of ecological sustainability, we can build a more resilient society capable of facing the future with confidence and optimism.

In conclusion, resilience is a vital attribute that enables individuals, communities, and ecosystems to navigate the complexities of an ever-changing world. It is about finding strength in vulnerability, embracing change as an opportunity for growth, and recognizing our collective responsibility to support one another and protect our planet. As we continue to confront global challenges, the cultivation of resilience at all levels of society will be paramount in ensuring a sustainable, equitable, and thriving future for generations to come.

What I Did This Summer: Essay

Essay Example #1

Everything in our life is fleeting, we are born and die, we love and suffer, we build relationships with the world around us and we are at the bottom of society, we are looking for the meaning of life and we cannot find it. I can name an endless list of the typical life of most people, but does it make any sense? Our life is monotonous in nature and often prescribed for us, in the very minutes of internal devastation we delve into the deepest corners of our soul, but what really makes us feel alive is certainly a risk.

«To know what life is worth you have to risk it once in a while» – Jean-Paul Sartre. I absolutely agree with this quote because, as I stated earlier, in order to feel all the charm of life and begin to appreciate it truly, it takes just a couple of minutes to plunge into a state when the level of adrenaline in our body is at the limit. Today people live too well and suffer, I’m not afraid to say this, because of complete nonsense. We are not Jews who lived during the Second World War, we are not deprived of the simple, seemingly, charms of life: how to hear, see and walk. We are just particles of atoms in this universe suffering from pseudo-love or something even more insignificant.

It’s all about human psychology. This risk method is even a kind of psychological therapy for people who have a depressive personality disorder. To understand what life is and how naturally magnificent every moment of it is simply necessary to take a chance at least once as I did this summer.

Briefly speaking, this summer my boyfriend and I went to Tunisia, it was my dream since I graduated from school. We were traveling around the African country when suddenly we came up to the thought of trying bungee jumping. I was very nervous and, at the same time, enthusiastic about this passage in my life. Before the jump, I comprehended my whole life what is really important in it and what is very non-momentous. During the flight, I was so overwhelmed and literally over the moon that I will never forget that feeling for the rest of my life. I’ve rethought every moment so much that now I relate to life as easily and always as positively as I can do it.

Summing up, I can accurately note that the quote «To know what life is worth you have to risk it once in a while» is very accurate as far as the author understands that there is only one life and there is no time in it, there is only every moment for complete pleasure and absolute harmony. «Who does not take risks, does not drink champagne» – as it says in all Slavic counties.

Essay Example #2

Swimming is a big part of my identity. It has been a big part of my life since I was seven. If I didn’t put it on my application, I would feel as if it was incomplete. It has been something that I have done my whole life. I may not be the best swimmer in the world but the joy I get from swimming is what truly matters to me.

My favorite experience with swimming was this summer’s Jefferson Swim League championship when I swam the best that I ever have before. The only reason I say that is because I was the winner of my heat. It was an incredible feeling because it was the championship race. I was overjoyed. At the swimming banquet, my coaches told me how proud they were of me, and hearing that made me feel so accomplished. To this day I’m still proud of that. I have been on a summer swim team since 2017 and it’s been the best experience in my life.

Swimming has made me who I am today, I try my best in everything I do, even though I may not succeed. Swimming made me competitive and athletic. It showed me you do not always have to do better than others to be happy, you just have to try your best. I cannot imagine what my life would be like without swimming.

I enjoy the competition of swimming, especially racing against people my age and maybe not winning but at least trying my hardest. Every year it gets better and better, it makes me sad to know this winter will be my last high school swimming season and this summer will be my last time swimming with a team. I will enjoy each meet like it is my last until the actual final meet arrives and it may bring me to tears but I will race my heart out.