Hope, Health and Holidays

For some, it’s a wonderful time of year. For others, it’s a challenging time of year.

Mental and emotional health may need extra care during the holiday seasons. And sexual health doesn’t take a winter break either. It’s one thing to give to friends and family, it’s more challenging to give to ourselves: you have to pour into your own cup so the overflow can water your loved ones – one cannot pour from an empty cup.

When taking inventory of your mental and emotional health:

• Assess how you are feeling, be aware of any trauma-related triggers;
• Step back from any unhealthy situations or people;
• Release the need to control;
• Uphold your boundaries and
• Trust that you have the tools and coping mechanisms to improve your mental state and heal from any emotional struggles.

Your sexual health is also in your control. One major step is to visit a PPDE health center –– we have physical and virtual (telehealth) appointments available. We offer birth control and family planning, breast exams, services to quit smoking, PEP and PrEP (HIV prevention), HIV testing and treatment, STD/STI testing and treatment, UTI treatment, hormone therapy for trans patients, regular annual exams, Emergency Contraception and safe, legal abortion.

Entering the new year, we welcome 2021 with open arms – for so many reasons – and we stand ready to continue the work that needs to be done: Providing affordable, life-saving reproductive health care and medically accurate, comprehensive sex education. We will continue to advocate for those without a voice. Together.

Give yourself the best gift this holiday season – the gift that keeps giving: self-care.