Blog 8: An Easy Way to Improve Your Health? Believe It.

What's warm and fuzzy and good for your health? Pets of course!

Since childhood my house has been crawling, slinking and prancing with pets. My animals have been a consistent source of happiness, comfort and stress relief for me and the other members of my household. Pets are an integral part of many people's lives, and the benefits of owning a pet extend beyond the "awww" factor. Below are a few ways that pets can improve your life and overall health.


1. Owning a pet can reduce stress and lessen feelings of loneliness and depression, which in turn alleviates stress-related health problems. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, owning a pet can decrease your blood pressure, cholesterol and triglyceride levels and feelings of loneliness. Caring for an animal offers people the opportunity to give and receive unconditional love without the standard stress of human relationships, inevitably elevating the owner's mood. When I come home from a long day of work and school, the ecstatic, tail-wagging greetings from my dogs always lighten my spirits. Walking into my room and seeing my 16-year-old cat curled up on my bed, I can't help but smile.

Pets also seem to have an uncanny ability to sense when humans are down or depressed. Talking about her Labrador Retriever, pet owner and graduate student Victoria Arnold said, "Sawyer makes me more happy than anything else. When I feel down he seems to know it and will lay his head in my lap for some attention."



2. Pets can improve your fitness and cardiovascular health. Studies show that pet owners have statistically lower triglyceride and cholesterol levels than people who do not have pets. It is believed that the reason for this is because, as stated above, pets help to alleviate stress. But pets (particularly dogs) can also serve as an impetus to get out and be active. Walking, running or even just rolling around on the ground with your dog can get your heart pumping and provide you with a great workout.

"As a running partner, Sawyer makes me want to run more, plus when we do go on runs he pushes me to go faster," said Arnold. "It's nice to have him challenge me. He most definitely makes the runs more enjoyable. It turns into a game with us. Sometimes I go trail running with him and let him run lead. It's a lot of fun to race each other in the woods."



3. Growing up with pets benefits children mentally and physically. Owning pets seems to have a positive impact on early childhood development. According to the study "The Health Benefits of Pets" by the National Institutes of Health, "A number of studies of children in diverse family circumstances suggest that, at least for some, the presence of a pet is greatly beneficial." It goes on to say that studies suggest that interacting with pets can help children create and maintain healthy relationships with peers.

But it seems children that are exposed to animals on a regular basis experience physical benefits as well. According to a WebMD article "5 Ways Pets Can Improve Your Health," children that live with furred animals have a lower propensity for allergies and overall stronger immune systems.

4. Pets can improve your social life. While animals cannot hold a conversation, they can still provide social stimulus for humans, particularly people who suffer from social anxiety. Connecting with another emotional being, regardless of species, opens the door for compassion and caring. The Animal Rescue Foundation (ARF) in Walnut Creek has a "Teaching Loving Care" program that is based on this very idea. The program, which pairs ARF with the Contra Costa County Probation and Mental Health Departments, aims to "assist high-risk adolescent females in developing positive personal skills so that they can become contributing members of society." This is done through socialization with cats and dogs from the rescue center.

The WebMD article mentioned above even suggests that pets can help your dating life! Walking your dog or visiting a dog park opens new venues for socializing, potentially leading to romance, or at least friendship. Taking my dogs on a neighborhood walk usually results in 3-4 conversations with other dog-walkers. These are neighbors that I now know by name and am friendly with, neighbors that I would not have even spoken to if not for the flawless opener: "Oh your dog is so cute! What's her name?"



Pets can have an incredibly positive impact on your life. So go take your dog for a walk, or lounge around with your cat. Don't have a pet? Shelters and rescue centers exist in almost every county, including Contra Costa. Go search for a new, furry friend! It's a simple act that could change your life.

Contra Costa County Animal Shelter Adoptions

ARF Adoptions

Photos by Colleen McCullough

Blog 7: Now UC It, Now You Dont!

Just when you thought being a Californian couldn't get better (and I couldn't get any more sarcastic) the University of California offers up some disheartening figures.

According to an article printed in the Contra Costa Times Thursday, UC Berkeley has doubled its admission offers to out-of-state and international students this year. Pointing to the lack of state funding, the university’s in-state admissions offers are down 15 percent. This drop has opened up spaces for out-of-state students, who pay nearly $20,000 more a year in fees than those from California. According to data released last week by the University of California, 18.5 percent of next year’s freshman class will come from other states, up 8 percent from last year.

At a time when colleges and universities up and down the state are already impacted, favoring out-of-state applicants over in-state students only stands to strengthen the detrimental impact of the public education crisis in California. As both a taxpayer and a college student from California, this practice by UCB enrages me. UC Berkeley is a public school, meaning it is funded in part by California tax dollars. Why should my money help out-of-state students receive a world class education when my fellow students from the great state of California are eligible, wanting and highly capable of excelling in this institution?

The university’s position on the issue is that all students stand to benefit from the rise in out-of-state students.

As quoted in the article, Susan Wilbur, director of undergraduate admissions for the University of California said "These students do not take space from a California student. They are bringing more money to the university, which enables us to teach our California students at the same high-quality level that they are used to."

The university looks to out-of-state student fees and tuition as a means of funding the school in a tight economic time.

“The additional nonresident funds will help UC Berkeley maintain academic excellence for all students," said Walter Robinson, assistant vice chancellor and director of undergraduate admissions.

I do understand the plight of the university. With statewide budget cuts to public education, continuing to fund the world-renowned programs that all the UCs, particularly UCB, have to offer is going to be very difficult, and require thinking outside of the box. But outside of the state?

The percentage of out-of-state freshman at all UCs this year is 14 percent, up from last year’s 12 percent. According to the Times article, the trend is more pronounced at UCB because it receives more out-of-state applicants than the other UCs. Maybe. Or maybe it’s because Berkeley’s reputation is rooted so firmly in its (expensive) scientific research, and so the school most desperately needs the additional funds.

I would hope that all California college students are bothered by this preferential treatment of applicants. If anything, I believe schools (especially in California) should give priority to local applicants. For example, San Francisco State University gives local priority to transfer students from the surrounding six counties: Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, San Francisco, San Mateo and Santa Clara. All public universities should participate in a similar program.

Instead of making things more difficult for Californians in an already taxing time, state universities should be helping California students any way they can. When are Californians going to finally get the long end of the stick?

Blog 6: Welcome to the Dark Side

What makes serial killers so darn loveable?

This may seem like a ridiculous question but with the success of Showtime network’s hit series "Dexter," its worth asking.

"Dexter," entering its fifth season, follows the life of Dexter Morgan: Blood splatter analyst for the Miami Metro Police Department by day, ruthless serial killer by night. Fueled by an unquenchable need to kill that began when he was a child, Dexter has learned to direct his cravings in as healthy a way as possible. Unlike the criminals that he helps put behind bars at his day job, Dexter follows a strict code when choosing his victims. He only kills people who are “bad”- cold-blooded killers that have escaped the legal system or managed to avoid it altogether. In short, people like him. Photo courtesy of Showtime.com

On the surface, however, he appears to live an ordinary life. He goes to work, he comes home to a wife and kids (yes, he has both). He makes small talk with his coworkers and drinks beer with his sister Debra. No one has the slightest inkling of the inner workings of his psyche. He is the quintessential antihero, and this quality plays a major role in the show’s success.

The season four finale of "Dexter" drew more than 2.5 million viewers when it premiered in December, breaking network records. That same season the show won two Golden Globes, including Best Performance by an Actor in a TV Series for Michael C. Hall’s portrayal of the character that Showtime has coined “America’s Favorite Serial Killer.” The show has spawned an online animated series, iPhone apps, a plethora of fan art and countless fan sites.

As a man with such unsavory after-dusk habits, why are viewers so drawn to the character Dexter Morgan?

The answer is what Dexter refers to as his "Dark Passenger."

Dexter describes his overwhelming urges to kill as being driven by his Dark Passenger, a malevolent shadow of himself that inspires him to do terrible things. It is this shadow that makes the character and show so appealing to such a vast range of people.

"Dexter's Dark Passenger reminds the audience of their own, dark primal urges," says "Dexter" fan and former DVC student Myles McKinnon. "Though society looks down on murder, Dexter's killings often seem justified, which makes the viewer question their own moral beliefs and what the laws of the land deem right and wrong."

It is no great nugget of wisdom that we are all good and we are all evil. The Chinese understood this when drawing up the yin and the yang, showcasing the idea that we are all composed of both light and dark. Robert Bly comments on this concept in his book "A Little Book on the Human Shadow."

“We notice that when sunlight hits the body, the body turns bright, but it throws a shadow, which is dark…Each of us has some part of our personality that is hidden from us.”

Most of us are encouraged from an early age to sweep this part of ourselves under the rug. We are brought up to develop our light side- to be healthy and successful and good. But the dark still exists within us and often surfaces when we least expect it. In contrast, there are some who are fully engulfed by their darkness, like drug addicts or (standard) serial killers.

Dexter is the perfect balance of both. He has learned to embrace and channel his dark side while still functioning in a seemingly healthy and productive way. And while most of us hopefully are not regularly overcome with the desire to kill someone, this series offers valid psychological and philosophical insight. When was the last time you took a long, hard look at your shadow? Perhaps examining and embracing the darker side of our psyche can be a good thing.

However, this naturally raises the question: Can we do both? Can we indulge our Dark Passenger without losing control? I challenge you to consider this prospect. Don’t get me wrong. I am not encouraging anyone to do things that are harmful to themselves or others. But simply acknowledging our less-than-angelic urges can allow for a level of self-acceptance we rarely experience. Try giving it a shot. If all else fails, maybe you’ll get your own TV show out of it.