2021

The 14th Annual Walk Me Home Family Fun Run/Walk for Foster Care is Saturday, June 12! It's not too late to create or join a team. You can register HERE.

The Walk Me Home Enrichment Fund provides children and teens in foster care in Tennessee the opportunity to receive financial assistance for a variety of special needs and activities, such as camps, musical instruments/lessons, school/church trips, and sports participation.

LET'S MAKE A PLAYLIST! Music has a powerful effect on our brains! In fact, brain images show that music can trigger feel-good hormones. Help us create a DCS “Work Playlist” in honor of World Music Day this Monday, June 21st!

Please submit YOUR favorite workday song(s) to dcswellness.council@tn.gov. Be sure to include:
- The Title of the Song(s) for our "DCS Work Playlist"
- The Song(s) Artist (if available)
- [OPTIONAL] Whether or not we have permission to include your Name and Song submission(s) with others when we share our final “DCS Work Playlist.”

WORLD ENVIRONMENT DAY TIP #3! Rachel Jones (Administrative Services Assistant II with DCS Human Resources) is sharing more of her personal sustainability tips as we start to go back into the office. Check out her Tip #3:

TIP #3: B.Y.O…
“Bring your own…” is not just a way for cheap college students to get out of providing cups for their friends, it can be a lifestyle and motto for those passionate about reducing waste. I recommend that everyone who eats at least one meal while at work keep the following items in their desk or bring them into the office each day: cutlery, cup, plate/ bowl, hand towel. I say that because you’re bound to drink something like water or coffee throughout the day and contrary to the song, Red Solo Cups do not actually decompose.
You should also bring your own set of cutlery, or keep a communal set in your break room, because every piece of plastic ever made still exists on this planet. So each time you accept a take-away fork or you bring your container of plastic forks to work, you’re adding to the proverbial “island” of trash in our oceans.
I recommend keeping a bowl or plate at the office because you never know when someone may bring in a cake for the group or you’ll suddenly want to heat up that item you brought that you thought you’d eat cold. Heating up paper products may sound okay in your book if they’re not plastic-coated but remember that your paper product had to be bleached to become that white color, and those toxins are ever-present when we heat our foods. I keep a microwave-safe bowl in my space and use it for all my plate and bowl needs.
*Bonus tip- I also keep one empty takeaway container at my desk for when I choose to buy lunch out. Not every restaurant will accommodate but I have learned that many restaurants will put my lunch straight into my reusable container and save me the waste of a Styrofoam box!
The last item sounds a little odd, and it’s definitely more work than the others, but I also recommend at least one hand towel lives at every office. When you’ve got your whole office using reusable and washable dishes, you’re inevitably going to have dishes that need to dry. If you forget your hand towel at home that day, you’ll be stuck going through layers and layers of paper towels trying to dry off your dishes. I personally bring in a dish towel once a week for our whole office to use as needed, and each Friday I take it home to clean it and bring it back on Monday morning.
These few bring-your-own swaps can not only help your office’s break room feel more like a kitchen at home, but they’re saving waste and creating community amongst peers. Aren’t you wondering who has that cute coffee cup in the cabinet? Maybe you’ll run into them on your next break!

Wanna reduce those aches & pains from your workday? In honor of “National Work from Home Day” (Thursday, June 24), take a moment to make sure your workspace (at home or at the office) is ergonomically fit for YOU. Here are some helpful handouts from Working for a Healthier TN to help you make the right adjustments:

For a Home Workspace:
https://www.tn.gov/content/dam/tn/wfhtn/documents/wfhtn_home_workspace_ergonomics_handout.pdf
For an Office Workspace:
https://www.tn.gov/content/dam/tn/wfhtn/documents/wfhtn_workplace_ergonomics_handout.pdf
Please pass along your pics of updated employee workspaces to dcswellness.council@tn.gov!

EARN CASH INCENTIVES THIS SUMMER Summer is here! It’s a great time to focus on your health and well-being – while earning cash incentives along the way. State health plan members can get started at: MyActiveHealth.com/WellnessTN.

NOTE: If you are a state employee, but not enrolled in the health plan - you still have access to ActiveHealth’s web portal and mobile app!

THIS WEEK'S EVENTS

LIVE WORKOUT: CORE (STANDING). Ready for an activity break to help you feel energized and motivated? Join us on Tuesday, June 22, 9:30-9:45 a.m. Central/10:30-10:45a.m. Eastern. Workout: Kayla will be leading a standing core workout.
JOIN 'YOGA FOR ALL' IN JUNE! Join fellow state employees for a 15-minute live virtual seated yoga class each Wednesday at 12:30-12:45 Central (1:30-1:45 Eastern) that is suitable for beginners & relaxing for all fitness levels. No special equipment or attire is needed - just a chair! **Download your calendar appointment for every Wednesday in June HERE.**
"MENTAL HEALTH MATTERS" IS BACK! Due to several requests, the #4Mind4Body Mental Health Matters webinar (from Here4TN) will be available again for state employees on Thursday, June 24 from 11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. Central.
- This one-hour presentation focuses on the impact of COVID-19 and social unrest.
- Click THIS LINK to register.
- NOTE: Registration is required. This session will not be recorded. (If employees are not able to attend the webinar, a copy of the slides can be shared after June 24.) If Internet Explorer doesn’t work to register, you may need to try a different browser.
DON'T FORGET ABOUT DCS' FRIDAY FITNESS BREAKS! Join your colleagues every Friday in June from 11-11:15 AM Central for a chance to get fit. (Click THIS LINK to join.)

READY TO STEP IT UP!? The DCS Wellness Council is excited to be hosting the "Can Your Team Walk Across TN Challenge"! This is a team-based walking challenge where the goal is simple - to walk as far as you can as a team over a four-week period. Start recruiting your team, come up with a fun Team name, and get ready to join us starting July 4! (Learn more about this upcoming challenge HERE.)

WORLD ENVIRONMENT DAY TIP #2! Last week, Rachel Jones (Administrative Services Assistant II with DCS Human Resources) started sharing some of her personal sustainability tips as we start to go back into the office. Check out her Tip #2:

TIP #2: Send inner-office mail. This is one of my favorite things to do as an alternate to waste. I always double check where a person sits and works before I try to send them something. If I do have to send them something as a physical file, I pull out a messenger envelope, address is appropriately and move it through the right systems. This saves us money on postage, moves rapidly through the system, and the bonus of reusing messenger envelopes until all lines are full keeps us from producing more adhesives, paper, and metal clasps from traditional mailing supplies.

DO YOU KNOW YOUR TN STATE PARKS!? Test your TN State Park knowledge and take a little brain break with this word scramble created by your DCS Wellness Council. Submit your answers to dcswellness.council@tn.gov.

TRY THIS ONE THING TO TAKE CHARGE OF YOUR HEALTH! There are several things you can do to take care of your own health, including getting to know your family’s health history. Doing this helps uncover all the traits your family members share – including those that you can’t see, like diabetes or cancer. Please join the DCS Wellness Council this National Men's Health Week (June 14-20) and National Men's Health Month (June) as we aim to help the males and loved ones in our lives lead longer, healthier lives by learning about our own family health histories.

MORE FOR MEN'S HEALTH MONTH & WEEK. You can also check out WFHTN's Men's Health Month handout/infographic. And/or join the DCS Wellness Council in wearing BLUE this Friday, June 18! Submit your photos/selfies to dcswellness.council@tn.gov.

THIS WEEK'S WELLNESS BREAKS:

JOIN 'YOGA FOR ALL' IN JUNE! Join fellow state employees for a 15-minute live virtual seated yoga class each Wednesday at 12:30-12:45 Central (1:30-1:45 Eastern) that is suitable for beginners & relaxing for all fitness levels. No special equipment or attire is needed - just a chair! **Download your calendar appointment for every Wednesday in June HERE.**
MINDFULNESS BREAK WITH WFHTN. Let’s take a mental break to help lower stress and bring some calm into your day. Join us for a live Mindfulness Break with Working for a Healthier Tennessee! What to Expect: WFHTN will be leading mindfulness practices that you can take with you throughout your day and life. This will be a chance to relax and learn techniques for becoming more mindful. No equipment needed! ** Download your calendar appointment for Thursday, June 17 at 1-1:15 PM Central HERE. **
DON'T FORGET ABOUT DCS' FRIDAY FITNESS BREAKS! Join your colleagues every Friday in June from 11-11:15 AM Central for chance to get fit. (Click THIS LINK to join.)

THE TRICKY THING ABOUT EMOTIONAL TRAUMA [from the ParTNers Health & Wellness Center] When you fall and scrape your knee, there's visual evidence of the trauma. It’s easy to know what to do to treat it. You can see your wound healing, and you know when it’s safe to return to normal activities. Unfortunately, emotional trauma does not follow such a predictable process. COVID-19 has left many of us reeling, with conflicting emotions. This can be described as emotional trauma. As the world begins to open and life returns to “normal,” you may feel burned out, tired, confused or unsure how to live life. Unlike a scrape on the knee, there is no tried-and-true course of healing from an unexpected event like a pandemic. June is Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Awareness Month. This observance is timely given the challenges of the past year. Can you relate to some of the common effects of PTSD? READ MORE FROM AMY HERE

THE FIRST STEP TO GOOD HEALTH: KNOW YOUR NUMBERS [from ParTNers for Health]

Your biometric numbers refer to your body mass index (BMI), blood pressure, blood sugar and cholesterol. It’s important to know your numbers to help you manage your overall health.
Your annual physical typically includes blood work as well. By reviewing your results each year, you can more easily avoid potential health conditions such as: Diabetes, High blood pressure, Heart disease.
Tests and screenings that take place during your annual check-up are a valuable tool to take control of your health.
For State employees: Earn an incentive when you complete your biometric screening. Get the biometric form and bring it to your doctor on your next visit HERE.