Wellness Wave Wisdom

By Michael Truong. Michael is Health Services’ new clinical case manager, connecting students to Health Services related resources in the community. Michael is an Associate Clinical Social Worker and proud North County San Diego native who attained his Master’s of Social Work (MSW) at California State University San Marcos. As a second-generation Vietnamese-American, Michael's personal journey as a child of refugees during the Vietnamese diaspora has enriched his perspective with cultural humility, fostering inclusivity, and emphasizing the inherent dignity and worth of every individual. With over 3 years of hands-on case management experience in San Diego County's Child & Family Well-Being Department, Michael served as an Emergency Response Social Worker. In this role, he assessed safety, responded to crises, and facilitated connections to a plethora of community resources for families in need. Whenever a person experiences any form of crime, violence, and/or abuse, it i...

  by Nidya Ramirez Ibarra, LMFT Nidya Ramirez Ibarra is a bilingual (English/Spanish) Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist who grew up in Escondido, CA. An immigrant and past community organizer, Nidya utilizes her knowledge and years of experience as a therapist to co-create a space to initiate change, gain insight, build skills, and establish support. Prior to joining the mental health team at MiraCosta College, among Nidya’s experiences was working for 8 years at a local non-profit with families, individuals, and children struggling with trauma due to intimate partner violence and sexual abuse. In addition to working with student in individual, relationship, and family counseling sessions, Nidya also facilitates MiraCosta’s UPRISE support group for undocumented/ mixed status students and their loved ones. It can be difficult to find out that someone you care about is suffering from intimate partner violence and abuse. The dominant narrative in society says that to be helpful y...

By Rachel Benson, Mental Health Counseling Associate Abusive behaviors can take place in many different forms and settings, such as physical, sexual, emotional, financial, and spiritual. Anyone can be affected by abusive behaviors; when these abusive behaviors become a pattern to gain or maintain control over others, we call it domestic violence. Incidents include isolating, minimizing and blaming, using privilege, intimating, using coercion and threats, and many more. To learn how to prevent domestic violence, here are some tips: 1. Asking for consent or having mutual agreements and healthy dialogue Both parties should be able to mutually agree on certain actions for different occasions. For example, sharing what would be an acceptable action in an intimate relationship and having an open and healthy dialogue between partner(s); Honoring and respecting each other’s opinions and choices; Setting up mutual agreement on financial arrangements. 2. Learning what would be considered domesti...

*No data was shared for students who were not male or female. Original article: https://www.rainn.org/articles/stalking When you learn more about stalking behaviors, you're more likely to notice them before they escalate, and you can take steps to protect yourself. If you discover that you are being currently being stalked—either in-person, online, or via technology—it can be unsettling and even dangerous. Consider taking steps to protect yourself or involve an authority figure who can help you. What is stalking? “Stalking is a pattern of repeated and unwanted attention, harassment, contact, or any other course of conduct directed at a specific person that would cause a reasonable person to feel fear,” according to the Department of Justice. Similar to crimes of sexual violence, stalking is about power and control. Stalking laws and definitions differ from state to state. You can read more about your state’s laws by visiting the Stalking Resource Center. Stalking behavior can take...