August 20, 2012

June 23, 2014

GENERAL ANNOUNCEMENTS

Getting to Know

WELLNESS

Niloofar’s Weekly Wellness Tip

This week, I wanted to share a piece I wrote for those of you who may be struggling to let go. Whether it’s letting go of a failure, a mistake, a relationship, a phase of life, or

anything in between, I hope this article will help you find the willingness to move forward. Don’t forget that UMKC has a Counseling Center located on the Volker

campus and that as a student, 8 free sessions per semester are included in your student fees. ~Niloofar

“Time Does Not Heal”

Just under three months ago, my beautiful and beloved grandmother died in a freak accident

at the age of 73. My uncle, her youngest, fraught with grief, asked his siblings if they really

thought time would heal. A medical doctor, he was frightened by the “condolences” offered

by a patient. “Ever since my own mother died, over 20 years ago, every time I see a happy

looking mother and son together I am consumed with rage and a desire to kill them,” he

offered.

The words are terrifying not just because of their venom, but because we’re taught to

believe that people can’t, won’t, and don’t stay in pain for that long. We are told that time

heals all wounds and that if we simply exhibit patience, the “scary stuff” goes away.

And it does. But it’s not time that does it.

It’s choice.

I know all too well the pain of holding on when what is required is letting go. I know that it is

possible to hold on to pain one, two, three, ten years after its expiration. I know that it’s

possible to metaphorically end your own life in response to the end of another’s. I know that

it’s possible to read self-help books, work with coaches, take medication, and find yourself

not very far from where you started. It’s possible to ask in disbelief “How can all this time

have passed without anything changing?”

And it’s because nothing changes unless we do.

It’s because when we experience a loss (of any kind!), it is our loss. And because it is our

loss, we’ve been gifted with the free will to decide how we want to deal with it. We get to

decide whether we will hold on, whether we will grieve, whether we will face the fear and

the pain, and whether or not we will live and love again. Many people go through the

transition process unconsciously. They feel the shock, the fear, the denial, the anger, the

acceptance, often in waves over and over again, until they eventually reach a new normal.

But sometimes, we decide on some level that we won’t accept. We refuse to mourn and

we refuse to allow.

Time will never take away what we don’t want to give up.

But why? Why don’t we want to give up? There are many reasons, some of the most common

being:

A fear of facing the painful feelings

On some level we buy into the belief that we don’t have what it takes to face this grief. We

believe that if we continue to hold on and refuse to fully mourn that it is easier than

assimilating the loss and allowing ourselves to fully realize that this person or situation is

gone. We believe, wrongly, that what’s on the other side of the loss hurts more than staying

where we are.

An unwillingness to let Life “win”

Sometimes there is the notion that if we were to give up, if we were to come to peace, that

we are telling Life that we are okay with what happened. That we are the losers and life

“won”. The problem is that life always wins. When we hold on, we are holding on to the

past, which is by the definition, something which has already happened. You already

lost…letting go is simply the acknowledgement of what is. Fear of the feelings changing and what that means

Deep down, we all know that we can face any loss. But some of us, due to mistaken beliefs,

are frightened by what this means. There can be a sense that allowing the feelings to not be

so intense, and being willing to be at peace means that we did not truly love the

person. That if the love were “real” or “deep enough” we would live the rest of our lives

with a long face. In truth, our holding on is not a monument to our love, it is a monument to

our need and our mistaken ideas about what love is supposed to look like. Real love is

flexible, resilient, and loves to live. Real love honors the person by integrating them into our

lives in a new form.

No one gets through life without loss. And in the end, we will lose our own lives (at least in

their current form). Endings are simply a part of nature. And because they are a part of

nature, the ability to deal with them is a part of our natures. We were made to be

resilient in the face of loss. We can overcome anything and it is this innate strength that has

allowed the human race to survive tsunamis, earthquakes, war, heartbreak, and the millions

of tiny and tremendous transitions that are a natural part of existence. The key to that

strength is choice. Courage. Willingness. Or simply: Surrender.

Things to do in KC This Week

Things to Do in KC This Week (Compiled from around the web. These are not UMKC sponsored or sanctioned events)

4th Annual KC Maker Faire (Saturday and Sunday at Unio n Station): Maker Faire: Kansas City celebrates things people create themselves — from new technology and electronic gizmos to urban farming and “slow-made” foods to homemade clothes, quilts and sculptures. This family-friendly event demonstrates what and how people are inventing, making and creating. It brings together Makers, Crafters, Inventors, Hackers, Scientists and Artists for a faire full of fun and inspiration. Come see what others are making and be inspired to tap into your own creativity! For more information visit: http://www.makerfairekc.com/ Heart of America Shakespeare Festival (Free!): The Heart of America Shakespeare Festival will take place on Tuesday through Sunday from June 17 through July 6, 2014, in Southmoreland Park. There is no performance on July 4; there’s one Monday performance on June 30. Signed performances for the deaf or hearing challenged will be offered on Saturday, June 21 and Tuesday, July 1. Admission is free; donations are encouraged. This year’s production is The Winter’s Tale. Gates open at 6:00 p.m. Pre-show entertainment begins at 6:30 p.m. and includes a variety of performances, including a pre-show parody by Team Shakespeare. The show starts at 8:00 p.m. Bring blankets or lawn chairs. Southmoreland Park is located at the corner of Oak Street and Emanuel Cleaver II Blvd. (47th St.), just two blocks east of the Country Club Plaza and across the street from the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art in Kansas City, Missouri. http://www.kcshakes.org/ USA vs. Germany FIFA 2014 World Cup (Free!): This Thursday, June 26th at 11:00AM USA will play Germany in their final match of the first round of the 2014 Fifa World Cup. There are several watch party locations across Kansas City, including a FREE watch party in the KC Live! Block at the Kansas City Power and Light district. http://www.visitkc.com/events/event-details/index.aspx?id=35043 For more events, visit Ink Magazine’s online, searchable calendar: http://calendar.inkkc.com/ and Kansas City on the Cheap: www.kansascityonthecheap.com (which also has great deals and coupons!)

SCHOLARSHIPS

Scholarship Applications for both scholarships can be found at www.cfozarks.org. The deadline for BOTH is June 20th SMITH/GLYNN/CALLAWAY MEDICAL Scholarship (Year 3-6 Students) Description

The Smith-Glynn-Callaway Scholarship in memory of Stanley S. Peterson, M.D., provides financial assistance to a medical student attending a Missouri medical school.

Requirements

• Applicants from Southwest Missouri are preferred • Must have pre-medical education, preferably obtained at a Missouri college/university • Applicants must have been accepted to a Missouri medical school • Must demonstrate financial need; attach FAFSA–EFC • Submit Financial Needs Form – signed by school official • Essay • One letter of Recommendation • Prior recipients will continue to be renewed for up to three additional years, providing

they maintain 'student in good standing' academic status

Number of Awards 1

Award Amount $5,000

Renewable Yes

WM M. WALKER MEMORIAL MEDICAL SCHOLARSHIP (Year 5 S tudents) Description

The Walker Medical Scholarship provides funds to assist a student enrolled in an accredited medical school in Missouri or Iowa.

Requirements

• Must be medical student enrolled in accredited medical school in Missouri or Iowa • Must be entering final year of medical school • Must be natural-born US citizen • Must be developing superior clinical skills, and have demonstrated ability to communicate with patients effectively/with empathy • Top 15% of class • Preference given to Veterans; if credentials equal, special consideration to US Marine • If no applicants meet ALL the above Criteria, the CFO-Selection Committee with Walker Family representation, is authorized to award other outstanding medical students from MO/IA who may not yet be in their final year with requisite clinical skills/patient experience

Number of Awards 1

Award Amount $5,000

Renewable No

Scholarship

NATIONAL HISPANIC HEALTH PROFESSIONAL STUDENT SCHOL ARSHIP Eligibility Requirements:

· Students are NOT required to be Hispanic but an aff inity for the health of Hispanic communities IS required.

· 3.0 GPA

· Year 3-6 students only

Amount: 2 different scholarships available · 2 year scholarship at $5,000 per year

· 1 year scholarship at $5,000

Deadline: October 3, 2014 at 5:00pm EST Application Deadline: Friday, October 3 rd, 2014. Recipients will be notified by October 24th, 2014. Applications can be downloaded from www.nhmafoundation.org or see Robin Hill for a paper copy.

OPPORTUNITIES

Human Factor Submissions

Family Medicine Midwest Conference

STUDENT ORGANIZATION MEETINGS AND OTHER EVENTS

Dermatology Interest Group

Surgical Society

Surgical Society

Medicine in Sports and Sports Medicine Interest Group

TMC Touchdown Family Fest

On July 19th, Medicine in Sports and the Sports Medicine Interest Group are teaming up to do sports physicals at the TMC Touchdown Family Fest. Volunteers are needed so if you interested please contact Dayne Voelker at dhvgy5@mail.umkc.edu or Hima Veeramachaneni at hvd5d@mail.umkc.edu for more information.

TMC Touchdown Family Fest

TMC Touchdo wn Family Fest

July 19th. 7:30-3:30pm. Chief's Stadium. Breakfast and Lunch Provided. 8 Certified Volunteer Hours. The deadline for signups for people not volunteering through MSAC is June 25th. UMKCSOM will be helping with physicals, Breast/Testicular Exams, Registration, Dietary

Discussions for Hypertension and Diabetes. And below is the link for people to register to sign up as a clinical volunteer.

Contact: ncopp9@mail.umkc.edu Kiki Osude

hm7b6@mail.umkc.edu Huma Mujadad

Announcements Format

Policy for In the Know Announcement Submissions

1) All submissions must be in JPG format (if the announcement is a flyer). PDF and Word documents must be converted to JPG before being emailed to

shahmohammadin@umkc.edu

2) If the announcement is a text only announcement, please include it in the bo dy of your email . Please use black font only and include a title for your announcement

such as “Emergency Medicine Interest Group”.

3) If an announcement includes incorrect information (such as an incorrect date or time), and that week’s In the Know has already been sent out, a revision for your specific announcement will not be sent out to the school . The only time a correction email

will be sent out is if the error is on the part of Student Affairs (mistyped or forgot to include an announcement).

Submissions which do not meet the new requirements will be returned to sender requesting the appropriate edits. The announcement may then be resubmitted to

shahmohammadin@umkc.edu for inclusion in the In the Know.

4) To be included in the following Monday’s “In the Know”, announcements must be submitted by 5PM the prior Thursday.

To submit information for the next Student Affairs Weekly Announcement, send an email

to Niloofar Shahmohammadi at shahmohammadin@umkc.edu.