T-R PHOTO BY LANA BRADSTREAM Center Associates Executive Director Paul Daniel explains how a person’s mental health is like a tree — growing above the ground toward the sky, but also below the ground with roots spreading through the dirt. He was a speaker at the University of Iowa College of Public Health forum.

Eliminating barriers to physical activity and mental health were a couple focuses during the University of Iowa College of Public Health forum on Wednesday. Marshall County business and community leaders met at the Marshalltown Community College to discuss what they are doing and challenges they might be facing.

Panel speaker Center Associates Executive Director Paul Daniel told the roughly 30 attendees one out of five people struggle with mental illness.

“That’s about 20 percent, that’s about eight people in this room,” he said. “Out of the eight, only two or three get services. . . . Those are your neighbors, your spouses, your kids, your friends you hang out with. Those are the people you are working next to.”

Daniel said mental health is on the rise and asked what people will do when it reaches their homes. Part of mental health is how a person thinks plus how they feel is the way they act.

“It’s dysregulating our feelings and thoughts,” he said. “Because we have dysregulated thoughts and feelings, our acts will be different.”

Daniel also stressed mental illness is a chemical imbalance. He shared the story of a person who always felt worthless. Her parents compared her to others and told her to get good grades and become a doctor, but she worked as a receptionist.

“In her mind, it goes back to words that were said which impact the way she thinks and feels,” he said.

Daniel told attendees trees do not only grow up — phototropic, but also down — gravitropic — as the roots stretch through the darkness and the mud. In order for the tree to continue growing up, sometimes the roots need to continue growing, as well, he said. Helping people go through the gravitropic growth is part of mental health.

“You got to go down to go up,” Daniel said.

Since opening the Center Associates Urgent Care in May, he said they have had 1,700 visits. While the wait times for people getting mental health is cut, Daniel said the sad part is they do not have enough providers.

“Mental health is something that is on the rise, and if we can get our people in your employment and businesses to be aware that it’s okay to talk about, [then it will not be] a scary thing we’re going to stuff and repress,” he said. “We need to continue to destigmatize and make it normal for people to say . . . they need help.”

Also speaking was YMCA CEO Director Kim Jass-Ramirez, who stressed the importance of physical activity.

“It is recommended you get in 150 minutes of cardiovascular activity each week,” she said. “You should have two days of strength training, or resistance training.”

One saying Jass-Ramirez said is a good place to start is, “Move more. Sit less.”

“When you think about how much we sit during the day, do whatever you can just to move more,” she said.

Removing barriers to physical activity is an important hurdle to overcome so people can start anywhere, Jass-Ramirez said. Making exercise enjoyable is one way to do that.

“There are so many ways to move your body and be active that is enjoyable,” she said. “When you think of employee wellness, you think of things to do as a staff team, and that’s great. But a lot of people want to do something with their family. They’re going to want time outside of work to be doing things with family and physical activity is a great way to do that.”

The exercise does not have to be huge chunks of time, either. Jass-Ramirez said the activity can be short, such as 30 minutes per day, broken into 10-minute segments. Being aware that human beings start and stop things is good knowledge to have, so she said people should not get discouraged.

Helping establish connections between people is another way to increase physical activity. Jass-Ramirez said the Surgeon General has determined social isolation is hazardous to a person’s health.

“We encourage people to come and connect with one another, even just to have coffee,” she said. “It’s not specifically physical activity, but it does reinforce it.”

Making healthy choices enjoyable is something panel speaker Natoshia Askelson, deputy director of the Prevention Research Center for Rural Health and associate professor at UI College of Public Health spoke about.

“Does anyone want to guys the percent of Marshall County residents who reported zero time leisure activity,” she asked. “We are at 27 percent, about a quarter of Marshall County residents. . . . They may have a physically active job, but we got some folks we need to move. . . . from sedentary to light activity.”

Askelson said Marshall County is fortunate to have resources to encourage activity, such as the YMCA, trails and parks. She asked how leaders could use those things to get the community more active. Getting people to organize free activities, such as yoga or tai chi in the park, is a big aspect as cost is an issue for many community members. Askelson said a study revealed free group or family activities made it more likely for sedentary people to get up and move.

Her center has created an evidence-informed intervention called Active Iowa to promote activity in rural areas and communities such as Marshalltown. The program provides an implementation manual, templates for training leaders and marketing and more. Askelson said it works nicely in workplaces, especially when incentives such as prizes are implemented.

She added a person’s mental health improves if they engage in physical activity.

Also on the panel was Marshall County Public Health Director Sydney Grewell who was there to speak about keeping the public safe and healthy through encouraging healthy activities and preventing disease. Two focuses she has is preventative care by encouraging regular checkups with physicians and vaccinations.

“With the COVID pandemic we saw a decrease in vaccine confidence,” Grewell said. “So we are seeing increased measles and pertussis because of a decrease in vaccinations.”

Continuing to educate the public on the importance of vaccinations is one way Grewell is fighting that loss of confidence. By getting vaccinated, she said people will help protect vulnerable members of the community, such as those with cancer or children who are not old enough to receive them.

Also speaking at the forum was Diane Rohlman, director of the Healthier Workforce Center of the Midwest and associate dean of the College of Public Health.

Contact Lana Bradstream at 641-753-6611 ext. 210 or lbradstream@timesrepublican.com.