Cultivating self-care is violence prevention

Public health education recognizes resiliency in individuals and communities. The field is crosscutting and interdisciplinary; yet, does really take into account cultivating self-care in our future workforce? Students and their professors describe past & current relationships of violence, increased stress, weight gain, anxiety and a growing sedentary life-style. This prompted the author to revitalize an undergraduate course with kinesthetic awareness & expressive arts to create embodied health consciousness, an entirely new form of practice-based academics, as a form of violence prevention. The context and scope of teaching/learning Community Health Education at San Francisco State University addresses health equity and social justice in urban communities as it provides students with a strong background on developing evidence-based interventions. The curriculum provides a participatory learning environment that integrates theory and practice, honors diversity, and fosters leadership, collaboration, critical thinking, and communication skills. An innovative teaching method was added to student learning competencies. Students report a growing interest in learning about their own health stories as they learn about the public's health. Student assignments reveal important college health concerns in the areas of mental health, physical activity, stress and weight management. Course evaluations reflect embodied learning and multicultural experience through the application of yoga, dance, drawing, creative writing, collage, poetry and photography. Integrating physical, mental, spiritual and community health through active creative participation is an effective way to learn and practice preventing violence, in particular – violence of the self.