Our increased understanding of the phenomenon known as Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) in the years since, and the difference between Willamette Valley losses and those of the rest of the U.S., suggest both the basic cause of the problem and what steps we can take to remedy it.

As long as humans have managed honey bee hives, they’ve seen the creatures die back in the winter, but losses since 2006 were of a whole new magnitude. While historical shrinkage was 10-15% per winter, the American Bee Journal estimates the 2006 shrinkage at 45%. Dr. Ramesh Sagili, assistant professor of Horticulture at OSU Corvallis, tells Salem Weekly that the following winter of 2007, colony losses were 35.8%. 2008 had losses of 29% and in the winter of 2009 they were 34%.

“These unusually high numbers,” Dr. Sagili says, “are a huge threat for the beekeeping and agricultural industries.”

European honey bees are not native to North America but were brought over by settlers in the 1700s. They are used to pollinate an abundance of crops on which we rely: soybeans, apples, cantaloupes, cucumbers, watermelon, strawberries, blackberries, onions, pumpkins, avocados and carrots. In fact, fully one-third of crops central to our diet are only possible because of commercial honey bees.

The percentage may get even larger. A study conducted by the United Nations, published in Current Biology in 2009, found that there has been a more than 300% increase in worldwide agriculture that depends on bee pollination in the last fifty years.

The potential for a food disaster resulting from CCD is the main reason the USDA allocated $20 million for a 5-year investigation into it in 2008.

Scientists around the world have found the following:

1. The introduced Varroa mite carries viruses that attack honey bees
2. Insecticides, for obvious reasons, kill honey bees
3. Some genetically modified crops actually produce a natural insecticide (Bt toxin) that may affect honey bees
4. Bee rental and travel (local bees are trucked to California to pollinate almonds through many ag lands with numerous chemicals involved), causes stress
5. Malnutrition more frequently befalls honey bees because they must forage on mono culture crops, which lack all the amino acids, vitamins and minerals they need
6. Malnutrition is increasingly caused by the use of high-fructose corn syrup to feed overwintering honey bees.  Some researchers are also concerned by the higher use of genetically modified corn to make this syrup.

All researchers believe that there is not one single cause but a combination of factors that result in CCD. But the unifying factor is modern agricultural practices. This includes our increasingly monocultural crop plantings, which denude the ground of competing and alternate sources of pollen for honey bees. It also includes the increase of pesticides, which cost the United States $4.3 billion dollars in 2007, kill bees that stray onto crops adjacent to the ones they are targeted to pollinate, and insinuates itself into streams and soil.

Viruses blamed most frequently for CCD wouldn’t cause the number of deaths if it weren’t for what Dr. Sagili causes the “perfect storm” of environmental factors. “Viruses like that from the Verroa mite usually don’t kill bees. We’re seeing it now because of the new stresses honey bees face.  They just can’t keep up.”

Sagili works with Dr. Dewey Caron, retired professor of Entomology from Cornell who now lives in Portland. “The nature of the epidemic seems that honey bee colonies are stressed… their immune systems are unable to cope with the multiple insults and the colony spirals downwards, leading to colony demise.”

The Willamette Valley suffers fewer CCD losses than the rest of the nation, and Sagili points to factors here in Oregon that contribute to this. “We have a diversity of pollen resources, good nutrition that helps them survive. Many of the many plants we consider weeds are helpful. Himalayan blackberries, fireweed and vetch and other weeds; we have them here in abundance when compared to other states.”

Sagili estimates that Oregon lost 25% of bees in the winter of 2009 and 17% in the winter of 2010. “Though seventeen percent is too high,” Sagili says, “they’re nowhere near the national numbers.”

The practices science blames on the problem of CCD; increasing reliance on one-crop farming, pesticides, genetically modified crops and thousands of miles of bee travel, may be the reason our valley is less impacted by CCD. The discoveries also pose a question that all of us who farm, or eat, may need to answer: how industrialized do we insist our food sources be when our top pollinator dies from our methods?

For more about disappearing honeybees:

Salem Progressive Film Series presents:
The Vanishing of the Bees-a documentary that examines the alarming disappearance of honeybees (known as Colony Collapse Disorder) and the greater meaning it holds about the relationship between mankind and mother earth
Guest speakers: Mike Rodia, Willamette Valley Beekeepers Association and Carolyn Breece, Faculty Research Assistant, Entomology Program, Oregon State University.

Thursday, April 12th  7 PM
Grand Theatre
191 High Street NE
Downtown Salem
Info: 503-385-1876
www.salemprogressivefilms.net

Women’s Work has multiple goals.  One is to work towards an end to hunger in Marion and Polk Counties.  Another is to engage financially challenged or isolated women and help them explore the innate artisan inside.  Yet even another is to heal struggling persons with productive learning and community.  The last is to broaden the way a venerable area museum approaches, interacts with, and offers value to Salem residents.

The end result is unique local handmade items created by emerging artists, and the placement of these crafts for sale in a traditionally “upscale” venue, Bush House Museum’s Art Center.  The income returns to the women themselves.

Bush House Museum Program Director Ross Sutherland speaks about the heritage of Bush House as “ongoing involvement in the lives of all the residents of town.”   Lulu Bush helped found the Salem Library; Sally Bush fed hoboes at her door.   The family that lived in Bush House, like the museum, was not obsessed with social position the way one might expect of “the white banker on the hill.”

To honor the family’s values, several years ago the museum initiated Sally Bush Food Drives, where admittance was two cans of food for MPFS.   About the same time Women’s Work artisans developed by MPFS, were invited to display their work at the museum.   Then last year, Sutherland actually invited the women to offer their traditional crafts for sale to the museum’s patrons and customers.  Work was displayed and sold at the 2011 Bush House Museum Holiday Showcase.

Sutherland is excited.  “We wanted to connect with a broader range of craftspeople because we thought they could provide value and partnership.  And they did.  They gave Bush House Museum the opportunity to do what we want most; to support and empower local emerging artists and broaden range of work we show.”

Kat Daniel, director of MPFS, calls Women’s Work “a great way to help people become self-sustaining.  It started at a food pantry a few years ago, by just asking women what they could do.  What a confidence booster the Bush House venue has been for presentation and sales!”

Valinda sold a rug there at Christmas.  She agrees with Daniel’s focus on emotional rewards.  “It’s nice to be paid for rag rug.  But even more than the money, it’s a confidence builder; I made a rug, and someone saw it and they bought it!”
Gypsy Georg teaches crafts to a room full of affable women who knit, stitch, work with needlepoint or at a loom.  The word “camaraderie” dominates any conversation about the program.  “When women become older, or housebound, or less conventionally-able, their self-esteem goes down,” Gypsy says.  “It’s very isolating.  The best way to bolster confidence is to get outside ourselves and work with others to accomplish something creative.”

Cynthia Lester founded Sunnyside Organics, an organization that offers horticulture therapy through garden work and developing goals.  As part of the Women’s Work effort, Sunnyside planted 200 assorted plants that bear “everlasting” flowers and herbs for papermaking, wreathes, sachets and other crafts to sell.  Wire art is created by sight-impaired students who propagate Sedums to plant in wire structures.  “It’s great to help others discover how talented they are,” Lester says.  “We learn that just because a door is shut doesn’t mean it can’t open again.”

Ross Sutherland describes the Bush House Museum’s collaboration with MPFS and Sunnyside Organics as “an open-ended partnership.  We want to facilitate women as emerging artists and bring relevance to people who don’t know about the Bush family, and who don’t even have much interest in history.  We want to perpetuate the ongoing intentions of the family, which was to be of service to the community as an ongoing tradition.  It’s just a few degree off the usual understanding of a ‘museum,’ but it makes all the difference.”

Fasenfest’s transition began with her growing discontent over the displacement of local communities brought on by increased competition from large chain stores and restaurants, and the transformation of affordable housing into “fancy, high-design living quarters at fancy, high-design prices.” She started reading authors such as Wendell Berry and Vandana Shiva, who articulated a new relationship with the land and a different way of doing business. But her transformation culminated with a backyard epiphany that she calls her “Newton moment.” While an apple didn’t literally fall on her head, she looked at the huge old pear tree in her yard and instead of seeing it as a nuisance that left rotting pears and attracted fruit flies, she saw it as a resource or “original asset.” Fasenfest says her revelations “offered an entirely new lens through which to look at my world.” It also raised some questions that focused her work: How had she come to take those pears for granted, leaving them to rot? What had happened to her understanding of resources, labor, value and stewardship?

While most of us welcome the easier lifestyle industry has given us, it has also been a slippery slope characterized by severe environmental damage, an economy that must continually grow with limited resources, and as Fasenfest describes it, a “system designed to give the most to a chosen few.” She argues that there is no “they” out there responsible for this state of affairs; we are all complicit. She says, “That is the liberating moment, the realization that we have been swept away and we have bought into this theology.” She points out that a hundred years ago family disposable income was largely spent on food and housing, with a small percentage of that income devoted to insurance and luxuries such as entertainment. Now we spend less than ten percent of our incomes on food, a bit more on housing and a substantially larger portion of family income on insurance and luxuries. “Instead of owning a pair of boots that will last many years, we want a pair of boots in every color.”

Householding is an ancient concept and according to Fasenfest, it “promotes the revival of a personal system of resource management, founded on principles of equity, thrift and stewardship.” It is “a move away from consumer culture and toward a culture of producers” based in our homes, gardens and local farms, as well as our communities. She has become enchanted with what she calls “the University of Grandmothers,” elders who “understand seed and soil and possess an awareness and knowledge of being that says this is just what you do.” They adapted their own ways of doing things particular to their needs, like using old vegetables to mix into pot pies and soups, or old fruit as pie filling. In an era of fast food, microwave popcorn, and high-tech kitchen appliances that are rarely used, Fasenfest fears that this knowledge will disappear with the passing of that generation.

Fasenfest has written one book called “A Householder’s Guide to the Universe” and is busy working on a second book. She says the first book is a personal narrative about her journey and offers some practical tips on implementing the practices of householding but the second will build on the humble simplicity of the University of Grandmothers. It will be more of a “how-to” guide and will also examine what a curriculum of householding economics would look like with the idea of taking it to the schools as a revival of home economics for modern times. It will help readers develop a profile in which they take a an honest look at what they want in their lives. Fasenfest believes we must lower our cost of living and determine our needs while eliminating more of our wants. She stresses the connection between the economy of nature and our own well-being, arguing that “if the earth is sick, we all will be sick, and no amount of market manipulation will change that.” It will take deep work but “what we’re hoping for is a repair of the planet and of ourselves.”

Friends of Straub Environmental Learning Center’s 2011-2012 Lecture Series, featuring Harriet Fasenfest, “Home Economics and Householding in the Modern World: What Does It Mean and What Would It Look Like?” January 26, 2012, 7 p.m. Loucks Auditorium, Salem Public Library. All lectures are free and open to the public.

Publicity photo included.

Additional info (sidebar?):

The Annual Lecture Series is one of the cornerstone programs sponsored by Friends of Straub Environmental Learning Center. It brings noted authors, scientists, photographers, government officials and others to raise awareness and understanding of the natural world, and to engage the community in environmental issues and topics related to sustainability. It provides free life-long learning experiences to people of all ages. In November noted author and outdoor enthusiast Bill Sullivan packed the auditorium and entertained the audience with anecdotes and pictures of some of his adventures in the wild areas of Oregon and southern Washington.

All lectures are held at Loucks Auditorium at the Salem Public Library at 7 p.m. All lectures are made possible made the generous donations of FSELC’s supporters and sponsors. The lectures are free and open to the public.

Harriet Fasenfest, author and advocate, will be the next featured speaker in the Straub Environmental Lecture Series on January 26, 2012. She will present “Home Economics and Householding in the Modern World: What Does It Mean and What Would It Look Like?”

Science writer Sharon Levy will present “Once and Future Giants” on February 23 and she will provide insight on what current research concerning the demise of large mammals such as mammoths and saber-toothed cats reveals.

James Roddey from the Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries will be talking earthquakes on March 15 with “Earthquakes in Oregon: What can Native American Myths and New Scientific Discoveries Tell Us About ‘The Big One’”?

Accomplished geologist, educator, author and photographer Ellen Morris Bishop will examine Oregon’s fiery volcanic heritage in “Living with Thunder: A Past, Present and Future History of Oregon’s Volcanoes” on April 26.

John Bolte will look at the increasingly relevant issue of water systems and scarcity on May 24 with “Willamette Water 2100 Project: Anticipating Water Scarcity and Informing Integrative Water System response in the Pacific Northwest.” Bolte is the developer of “Envision,” the modeling package that develops “future scenarios,” and serves as a means to ask “what if” questions for different policy alternatives regarding water management in the Willamette water system.

Today, babies are having babies. Adults are being infected with sexually transmitted diseases. Emotionally and physically, society has trapped itself in an unhealthy cycle of not understanding our bodies. The joy of sex is exploited, but not explained. That leads to unhealthy relationships and an unhealthy community.

That point is made clear in a study by the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation which shows that Marion, Jefferson and Linn Counties are included in the top 10 counties in Oregon based on the total amounts of both teen pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections (STI).

Annika Shore, Youth HIV Education Coordinator with Cascade AIDS Project, works to help schools with their sex education programs. The organization itself has many facets of education, prevention and outreach.

Prior to 2009, sex education was not required curriculum for all Oregon schools. Today, law requires that school districts provide age-appropriate sex education in all public elementary and secondary schools as a part of the health education curriculum.

It also requires that the course material and instruction enhance the students’ “understanding of sexuality as a normal and healthy aspect of human development.” Within that curriculum, students are taught about the success and failure rates for prevention of pregnancy, that sexually transmitted diseases are serious possible outcomes of sex and to encourage family communication and involvement.

Tristan Taormino is a sex educator, author of several books, and a feminist pornographer. She spends a lot of time holding classes and workshops and tours nationally, speaking to college students on a variety of subjects. She’s made it her mission to educate all genders, all orientations “in their pursuit of healthy and empowering sex and relationships.”

Oregon is ahead of the curve when it comes to sex education in public schools, Taormino says, mainly due to its progressive requirements for sex education. Abstinence-only education is still on the books around the country, but it’s not legal in Oregon.

The implementation of the legalese is a different story, Shore says. “When I talk to students it’s a totally random selection of the youth that is getting that education.” She’s spoken with students who have received comprehensive sex education, but in a school 15 minutes away, students don’t remember they’ve had Sex Ed at all.

“In one school, you can learn about how effective [condoms] are, how to put them on, how to negotiate condom use with a partner. Then another school would not bring condoms into the schools at all and, instead, replace them with a slideshow.”

Taormino is concerned about abstinence-only education. “One of the things that is written into federal funding for abstinence-only is that you are not allowed to talk about contraceptives unless you talk about birth rate. False information is being spread,” she says, adding that it’s not uncommon for failure rates of condoms and birth control to be inflated to make a point.

While abstinence-only isn’t taught in Salem-Keizer schools, Trisha Ebbs, a high school teacher at North Salem High School, says that the main focus of their studies is how abstinence “is the only 100 percent effective method to not getting pregnant or transmitting an STD.” A more technical term for this type of curriculum is “abstinence-based.”

The 24J school district uses a program from ETR Associates called “Safer Choices.” The program includes a condom demonstration. Within the lessons, students are taught how to identify different types of sexually transmitted diseases.

Taormino thinks that demonstrations are an important part of learning how to have sex safely. “It’s time to get hands on and be explicit. Two-dimensional diagrams don’t teach people; they just don’t. I feel like we are constantly afraid to give young people information about sex. It should be quite the opposite. We should pile them on and save space for judgment to ask questions about sex,” she says.

“We also include the instruction on other birth control methods but our main focus is abstinence and how this is the only safe method. There is no other safe method. There is a safer method, which is using a condom consistently and correctly every single time. Other contraceptives are addressed but with the emphasis that birth control only protects you against pregnancy not STDs,” Ebbs says.

The program, according to ETR’s website, begins with three classes on not having sex. Those classes are then followed by instruction on understanding STDs and HIV, examining the risk of unsafe choices.

What aren’t shown in the district’s curriculum are the graphic pictures of what sexually transmitted diseases look like. Ebbs explains that pictures commonly found on the Internet depict worst-case scenarios and that scare tactics are not the best policy when it comes to teaching students.

“If students have only been exposed to worst-case scenarios, they may believe they do not have an infection due to no signs or symptoms when in fact they may have an underlying infection,” she says.

In Salem-Keizer, condom availability ends in the classroom. After the demonstrations, students dispose of them before leaving the room. Condoms are not available, otherwise, in schools.

There’s still shame and stigma with sex, Taormino says. “I’m constantly struck by letters that I receive; questions I get asked at my classes and workshops. People have so much guilt and judgment around their own sexual desires. So many people are walking around thinking they are not normal, what turns them on is wrong and things they want to explore are dirty and bad.”

She adds, “There’s still too much repression and silence. There’s too much silence on this issue. It just does everyone a disservice. I’m not surprised about the stats, they’re pretty alarming and I’m not sure when people are going to get the wake-up call.”

Being open to talk about sexuality in healthy way is one way to solve the problem at hand.

“If you look at international comparisons, the countries where talking about sexuality is not taboo, [where] carrying condoms doesn’t mean you’re a slut or a player, those places have dramatically lower STDs,” says Shore.

How we think of and talk about sexuality and the gender roles that we reinforce is a cultural problem across the country, she says.

Taormino was slated to be the keynote speaker at Oregon State University’s Modern Sex conference. Her talk was titled “Claiming Your Sexual Power.” She was summarily uninvited from the event because of her resume and website.

Her resume and website include the reasons why she might be a good person to talk about modern sex to a group of college students.

“Basically their position is that it was not a good use of taxpayer dollars to bring me to talk on campus. They brought other people in to talk about really similar things, but they modified it simply by saying that ‘her involvement in pornography makes her less credible,’” Taormino says. The talk had nothing to do with pornography.

Around the same time, Salem Weekly experienced a backlash after publishing an issue with a row of condoms on its cover. As a result, a few distribution points pulled the issue from their shelves. The problem was the sex-positive message that it contained.

Taormino says that it’s a pattern that she’s seen elsewhere. It’s common to see a lead news story about violence or the front page of a newspaper to be plastered with molestations, rape, and other sexual crimes. The acceptance of it changes when speaking about sex in a positive way.

“When it comes to sex, everyone takes a few steps back. It’s really left over from our puritanical roots. There’s still so much repression around sexuality and there’s so much confusion. On the one hand, there’s all this advertising with titillation about sexiness, but on the other hand we don’t want to give people concrete information and education,” she says.

Taormino ended up speaking at OSU after all. A student association made good on the promise. The following day, Taormino spoke about being a feminist pornographer to a little school down the road, University of Oregon. They weren’t as concerned about their funding.

She believes that one of the biggest problems with sex education in America is that its main goal appears to be withholding information and resources. Shame is still a major barrier to society’s ability to talk about sexuality in a healthy way.

Parents add to that shame by being embarrassed themselves to talk frankly about the issue. That shame contributes to teenagers not being able to talk to their parents or their partners.

“There is no space in our culture for those conversations. Kids are nervous and parents don’t know how to have [the conversations]. The message from school is a bunch of diagrams and that’s it. That’s not helpful for anyone,” Taormino says.

Politically, she says, the conservative right-wing says that if condoms were in the school that students would then immediately start having sex.

“Instead, we play this game, this pretend game, let’s not give them any information. They already have the ideas. Why aren’t we helping them understand the decisions that they’ll make?” she asks.

Being able to talk openly about sex makes a difference. More specifically, being able to communicate with a partner is the key to making healthy and responsible decisions, Ebb says.

“Do you have your partner’s consent, are you and your partner both ready, do you know your partner’s history, have you both been tested, and do you have a condom if you choose to engage in sexual activity?” Ebb explains.

Communication is also important at home. Shore does an exercise in classes where she poses a question and asks the room of students to move to one side of the room or the other, depending on their answer. One of the questions is “Is it easy to talk about sex?” A recurring theme with the answer is that the youth who say yes to that statement come from a home where there are open conversations with their parents about sex.

“What happens in the home is so much deeper and more ingrained than in schools. People can overcome their childhoods, but it’s [still] vitally important,” she says.

Taormino sees a solution with a bombardment of information thrown at young people from all sides: parents, teachers, media.

“I want parents to be comfortable, I want great online and written resources. I feel like in some ways we have to bombard. We know kids learn things from the media, the parents, peers, school. I feel like we have to make a multi-level effort. We all have to be on the same page,” she says.

The solution to the problem is not cut-and-dried. It is even questionable whether the teen pregnancies and spreading of STDs is caused solely by lack of sex education. Shore says that most young people know they should use condoms and have access to them. What is certain, however, is that youth programs are necessary.

Shore says the programs that really work are the ones that don’t just address sexual issues. There’s one program that she references on the East Coast that is finding success by focusing on youth development.

“Its goal is to reduce teen pregnancy, but you’d never know it if you were a part of it,” she says. The program follows a student for seven years, provides homework help, mental health care, and education like job skills and sexual health.

“The sexual choices of high school students are made in the same way adults make their decisions. We make our choices based on self-esteem, efficacy, how we were raised, our community norms, and our sense of hope for the future. If we have young people who don’t see a future for themselves, we see STDs and pregnancy,” Shore says.

Taormino agrees that self-confidence plays a strong role in making decisions around sexuality. “Part of the problem is that when we feel so much shame and guilt around sexuality, we can then behave in more risky ways or put ourselves in more compromising situations, because we don’t have any one else to talk to, because we’re not ‘normal,’ she says.

Having “the talk,” the big one filled with analogies of birds and bees and awkward pauses, isn’t something that should happen one time; instead, it should be a conversation that happens throughout childhood.

“One thing that is good for parents to remember is that sexuality isn’t just something that happens during puberty, to start with self-efficacy from the beginning by trying to be mindful, not ingrain shame around bodies,” Shore says.

Shore emphasizes that the more comfortable that a child is just being open around a parent, the more it will reinforce them coming to the parent again at puberty with questions.

“For example, a lot of children masturbate, little toddlers explore their bodies. Most parents have to have something to deal with that. Are you going to shame your young person for doing that? Or are you going to teach them about where to do it safely and respectfully?” she asks, adding that the responses to the tough questions are often a good barometer on whether a child will return with more. “If you freak out, a kid’s going to sense that ‘Oh, I shouldn’t talk about that.’”

Other advice includes that sometimes a parent might not be the best person to answer those questions. “Steer them toward someone who can. Tell them we’re going to go to Planned Parenthood, the pastor at the sex ed program at the church … whatever fits in with the values of the family.”

Parents have to have their own sex education and learn how to teach their children in an age-appropriate fashion. Taormino believes armed with knowledge and signaling to their children that there will be no judgment and no conversation that is taboo, home will become a safe place.

She says, “If they don’t, they’ll go elsewhere for the information and may not get the safe information.”

More information

Marion County Health Department

Marion County Health Department provides both STI/HIV testing at their clinic. HIV counseling and testing is done by appointment. Another appointment will be set up to receive the results. Insurance is accepted and no one will be denied services for inability to pay.

Marion County Health Department

Address:3180 Center St. NE

Phone: 503-588-5342

Hours: Tuesdays from 10:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Planned Parenthood in Salem performs STI/HIV testing. Rapid HIV testing is available where preliminary results are available in 10-40 minutes. Counseling and anonymous or confidential testing for HIV is provided. If you require payment assistance, bring birth certificate and photo identification.

Planned Parenthood – Salem Center

Address: 3825 Wolverine St. NE

Web:

Phone: 888-875-7820

Hours: Monday & Wednesday: 10:30 a.m. – 7 p.m.

Tuesday & Thursday: 8:30 a.m. – 5 p.m.

Friday: 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Saturday: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Cascade AIDS Project

HIV testing is available from CAP for a suggested donation of $50. No one is denied for inability to pay. Walk-ins or appointments are available.

Cascade AIDS Project

Address: 208 SW. 5th Ave., 8th floor, Portland

Phone: 503-278-3879

Web: cascadeaids.org

Hours: Monday-Friday: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

CAP also provides a hotline for HIV/STD advice. The service is free and confidential to answer questions, provide support and refer you to resources throughout the state.

Phone: 800-777-AIDS

En Espanol: 800-449-6940

Web Chat: www.oregonaidshotline.com

Or does it?

The dirty secret is leaking out, through blogs, message boards, and even books. Mothers saying in words loaded with guilt, “I’m not enjoying this. This isn’t like I thought it would be. I’m not fulfilled. And I feel really, really bad about that.”

Perhaps more surprising is science’s contribution to the issue. A comprehensive 2005 study published in the psychiatric Journal of Health and Social Behavior found: “Although there are inconsistencies in findings across studies, most research either finds that parents do not significantly differ in emotional well-being from non-parents or that parents report significantly more emotional distress than persons who have never had children.”

Jane is a Salem-area mother of two small children. She agreed to speak about her feelings toward motherhood honestly, but only if promised the strictest anonymity. Her sentiments could be coming from any number of mothers.

“I’m not sure I had a lot of expectations about what motherhood would be like. I guess when I thought about it I thought in terms of my cat who likes attention, but is perfectly capable of entertaining and taking care of herself for hours at a time. I guess I was unprepared for the constant vigilance and attention kids require.”

Jane quit a career she enjoyed to devote herself to her children. “When I first broached the idea of having kids I was between jobs and a little bored. I thought having a baby might fix that. I didn’t realize it would be several years later and I’d be into a job I adored before we finally had a baby in our home.”

Jane also speaks of the joy of parenting, the moments a woman is promised if she undertakes children, the loving and laughter and warmth. She says, “Those special moments are real, although not frequent enough. I live for those too brief good moments, but most of the moments feel like I’m slogging through them. Maybe that’s something wrong with me.”

Jane isn’t alone in her feelings that her discontent indicates something is wrong with her. The Internet is teeming with women taking advantage of anonymity to say the same shameful thing. But has it always been this way?

The National Marriage Project’s 2006 “State of Our Unions” report suggested that these feelings of dissatisfaction are relatively new. In generations past, children were an investment, a way to eventually ensure a better running home and business, and a retirement plan when old age came. Nowadays children are less likely to play an active role in the financial stability of a household, with more aged parents using their own savings to pay for elder care, as well as often continuing to support their children far into adulthood.

Women especially can be expected to experience more choices and variety than their grandmothers. They sample fulfillment that doesn’t involve having kids, in work and social fields, often in ways that are hard to get back to once kids are born. The loss of this perfectly good old life can be difficult to adjust to.

Barbara Almond, a mother of three grown sons, has worked for 38 years as a psychotherapist, psychiatrist and psychoanalyst. During her career she has worked extensively examining mother/child relationships. Her new book, “The Monster Within: The Hidden Side of Motherhood” is sourced from these experiences. Almond has a term for these emotions, the feeling that your children and the experience of motherhood are disappointing: “Maternal Ambivalence.” She claims that it is a very widespread and natural occurrence, that nonetheless comes loaded with guilt.

Almond says, “It has been my experience that mothers feel very depressed and guilty about any negative feelings they have about their children. They strive to mother perfectly and this is often done at the expense of their own needs. It is only in very recent years that complaints have been voiced publicly. Most middle-class mothers drive themselves too hard and ignore their own needs. They live in a tense and competitive atmosphere when it comes to parenting.”

The decision to have children is not fated, as it used to be. Even after the advent of birth control, it was still a given that happy unions would produce children. But now studies are showing that not only is happiness plentiful for nonparents, but becoming a parent might actually detract from happiness in some measurable way.

For the first time in history, it may be becoming acceptable to not be one of those people. A world may be dawning where not having children doesn’t automatically mean you’re selfish or short-sighted. Rather, it indicates a contentment with life as it is.

And furthermore, if a woman does choose to become a mother, perhaps it is now more possible than ever to strive for a “selfish” balance between the needs of the mother and her children. To have a realization that complete self-sacrifice isn’t the only good way to parent.

Almond says, “Perhaps the pendulum is swinging away from ‘perfect mothering,’ which is impossible anyway, to motherhood that takes into account the needs of both parties. This might be better for everyone.”

Experiencing Salem Community Acupuncture isn’t anything like the typical acupuncture experience. First of all, it doesn’t break the bank; you can actually afford it thanks to a sliding scale ranging within $15 to $35 a treatment. You decide what you pay.

“This model was created in Portland by an organization called Working Class Acupuncture. Acupuncture works best with frequent regular treatments and it can become expensive. This model makes it so it’s accessible to as many people as possible, while still being able to maintain a profitable business,” said Nancy Sutton, MSW, L.Ac. and co-owner.

Unlike the common acupuncture setting which takes place in a doctor’s office, on a table, the environment at Salem Community Acupuncture is welcoming and soothing. You walk in and baby blue walls surround the room. Recliners are spread out throughout so you can lie back and relax as you get treated. There are blankets to keep you warm and soothing music to let your mind wander off.

So what is acupuncture? “It’s the stimulation of qi (pronounced chi) by putting needles in points on the body known to historically do that,” says Nancy Arntson, RN, L.Ac. and co-owner. It can cure or treat many ailments including but not limited to headaches, insomnia, neck pain and hypertension to name a few. Acupuncture isn’t a fad or a type of hocus pocus, but a form of medicine that has been around for thousands of years and highly effective. Many would ask, how does sticking needles in you heal? The exact answer is unknown but Sutton’s thoughts on the issue are as follows.

“Acupuncture affects vital energy of the body. If that energy gets stuck, there’s not enough energy or too much, we get sick. Acupuncture helps unblock stagnation,” says Sutton.

Not only as a practitioner, but as someone who has used acupuncture in her own life, Sutton firmly believes in its healing qualities. “I dealt with debilitating anxiety and depression and had no success with previous treatments. I started getting acupuncture and began to feel like a normal person again. It also sparked my career change and here I am today.”

Salem Community Acupuncture has been around since January of last year. “We both had the idea and her name came up as a person to contact. We knew we didn’t want to do it alone,” said Arntson.

For skeptics, or people who don’t know much about acupuncture, taking the first step and just trying it is the difficult thing. For those who do give it a shot, the effects can be life-changing.

Wickham suffered migraines for 11 years, at least eight of which he was on pain pills. “The pills only covered the pain, made it tolerable. Acupuncture actually takes the pain away.”

“You sit and relax. I’ve even fallen asleep in there. You don’t notice other people in there, it’s a good experience.” He added. Wickham isn’t the only one who’s noticed a change. “My friends have noticed a huge difference in my general well-being. My kids have also noticed a difference.”

Making a difference in a patient’s quality of life is what Sutton and Arntson love about what they do. “Contributing to my community means everything to me and providing the opportunity for a lot of people to accesses it. Knowing patients’ quality of life is improved and that they can live with less pain, stress or be a better parent,” says Sutton.

Arntson echoes similar feelings. “People getting better access to acupuncture and creating a comfortable atmosphere; when [a patient's] life is changed and I hear someone say they feel better and are able to play with their grandkids. That’s what I’m proud of.”

The sincere wishes to help their patients doesn’t go unnoticed. “They are very supportive,” says Don Outland. A patient since early February, he began going 4 times a week and is down to only once a week. Acupuncture has helped him quit smoking, which he did for 30 years.

“It has really helped calm me and provide me with an opportunity to relax instead of reaching for a cigarette.” He still has cravings, but along with the willpower to quit and some meds, acupuncture has played a significant part in making a change.

Mention needles and many will cringe. “People associate acupuncture with pain and can’t get past that,” says Arntson. Personally, as someone who is substantially afraid of needles and having tried acupuncture for the first time at Salem Community Acupuncture, I can say it didn’t hurt. “I never tell people it doesn’t hurt. People have different experiences and sensations but most of the time it doesn’t hurt,” said Sutton.

Salem Community Acupuncture represents a return to tradition: acupuncture where you can experience it with family members or friends, in a relaxing setting, as it’s done in China.

MORE INFORMATION

Salem Community Acupuncture

2416 13th St.

503-798-2918

salemcommunityacupuncture.com

Pam Voltz and Rachel Dueker founded Without Strings this year to help provide preventative healthcare to low- and no-income community members. “Pam Voltz watched yet another low-income client die in the Salem ICU, a death preventable from a flu shot. Since our first clinic, our group has grown from nurses, PA’s, CNA’s and ordinary citizens doing big things in small doses because we no longer wish to wait for government to step in,” said Rachel Dueker, co-founder of Without Strings.

With no paid staff, no office overhead, and no budget, the group successfully put on two preventative care clinics under the Marion Street Bridge. “We work under the bridge to keep it accessible and go where folks can easily find us,” Dueker said.

What started out as a vaccine clinic has grown to serve the needs of those who need it most. “A lot of these guys are on their feet a lot. They have a lot of foot problems. If they get in front of a doctor it’s because they have an immediate need. No one is talking prevention,” Dueker said.

“Folks can have their feet cleaned, assessed, treated and are sent away with clean socks, wound care and anti-fungal kits,” Dueker said. With donations, volunteers are able to serve patients a hot meal as well.

Voltz, a physician’s assistant student, coordinates the medical care, and Dueker is a former drug and alcohol counselor who works with the social services aspect and recruits volunteers. Volunteers, grants and donations make the clinic happen. “We don’t just stand behind the table and talk to these guys, we interact. For a lot of the folks who have no income they don’t get listened to a lot. It’s about having to wait. A lot of these people are really used to people looking through them, and not at them,” Dueker said.

About 80 people receive services at the open-air clinics. It takes a partnership between OHSU nursing students, every floor of the Salem Hospital, and donations to make the clinics happen. “We received two grants and we were able to buy 120 pairs of diabetic compression socks for our patients,” said Dueker. The Nurses Give Back Program has supported the program through grants.

“We are starting to see that we are providing a resource for people to talk about what their needs are in a relaxed setting,” said Dueker. The group isn’t about asking patients to make lifestyle changes. They are there to serve the clients where they are right now.

One man came through the line and got his flu shot, but refused his pneumonia shot. “A couple of weeks ago he was admitted to ICU for pneumonia; he died in the hospital. But we knew him. About four nurses had worked with him in the community, and he didn’t have to die alone,” Dueker said.

For more information or to find out how to volunteer, go to withoutstrings.org. Update: This version is slightly different from the print version. The website has been corrected and Voltz’s is a physician’s assistant student, instead of a physician’s assistant as previously published.

“Fibromyalgia affects more women and that tends to be because men don’t get checked as much and due to hormonal and dysregulation in metabolism in women,” says Dr. Peter Lind, who practices Wellness Care with an emphasis on Functional Neurology and Functional Metabolism.

Fibromyalgia has been around for a long time. There is debate regarding its existence and how to successfully diagnose it. Fibromyalgia is a term to describe pain throughout the body. Other symptoms include chronic fatigue, sleep disorders, digestive disturbances, balance issues, and memory loss. These are only a few of the symptoms.

“Diagnosis of fibromyalgia is not like diagnosing diabetes or arthritis. Most conditions and diseases once diagnosed have a simple, straightforward treatment plan. Unfortunately this doesn’t hold true for fibromyalgia since there are so many symptoms associated with it,” says Lind.

There is no x-ray, no MRI study, no CT scan, no blood test or any special testing needed to diagnose it. The only test is to palpate on the back, neck, gluteal region, arms and legs. Eighteen points have been established in these areas. If 11 of 18 are tender to palpation for at least three months, then fibromyalgia is the diagnosis.

Dr. Lind believes it’s necessary to go much deeper than that. According to Lind, it is necessary to look at neurological, metabolic, neurologic and metabolic disturbances. “You need to look at imbalances that lead to pain in muscles and fibrous tissues,” says Lind.

Medications, along with other treatments are used to treat fibromyalgia. Studies are showing that tai chi helps relieve symptoms.

In terms of impact on the body, “It can be practiced in a way where no matter what condition, it won’t be stressful to the body,” says Marshall Buchholz, instructor at Professional Martial Arts of Salem.

Tai chi is a slow-motion Chinese martial art. It involves meditation, breath control, and strong but gentle motions to direct the flow of spiritual and physical energy of the body. People afflicted with fibromyalgia most commonly suffer joint and muscle pain. One of the benefits of Tai Chi is that it’s gentle and the person can take it as far as they feel comfortable.

“Tai Chi is known to help joints in muscles and it’s an easy exercise. I think it can benefit something like fibromyalgia,” says Buchholz.

Fibromyalgia can be a debilitating condition. “Some people have trouble getting out of bed, have trouble thinking and remembering things,” says Lind.

If conventional treatments aren’t providing relief and there’s a possibility that tai chi can do so, the same thing doesn’t necessarily work for everyone but it’s a worth a shot. Why not try it?

In one hour, participants experience nine arts integrated into one: three types of dances, martial arts and healing arts.

Dance techniques include jazz, Duncan and modern dance.

Salem NIA instructor Sherry Coburn says, “Jazz is animated, modern dance is making shapes with your body, and Duncan dance is about really expressing your feelings, expressing every note in the music with your body.”

NIA’s martial arts are Chinese tai chi, Japanese Aikido and Korean Taekwondo. They focus on the “hara,” the center of gravity, or the core. All NIA instructors must have extensive martial arts training (Coburn is a blue belt).

The three healing arts are yoga, Alexander technique and the Feldenkrais method, which is about self-awareness through movement, aiming to reduce pain and stiffness. Alexander was a Shakespearean orator who began to lose his voice. After noticing that voice and breathing problems are commonly caused by tensing the muscles of the upper torso, especially the neck, he developed this technique to displace that tension and continue acting.

In her sessions, Coburn encourages students to vocalize and act out different emotions, making the NIA experience very cathartic. She might direct an angry “No!” yell or a happy “Yes!” to accompany the punches, or tell people to remember the most in love they’ve been as they freely dance around.

“It’s like therapy! You feel anger, happiness, and work out some of those emotions,” says participant Wendy Stalfire, who has seen physical balance increase despite a medical condition. “I think it’s because of the crossing motions, making new connections in the nervous system,” she says.

Although there’s a choreography to follow, people are encouraged freedom of expression and movement.

Carmen, a NIA participant for two years, says at first she used to only follow the form, but soon began to open up.

“I have done a lot of different kinds of aerobics and NIA is a total workout. It helps keep the brain active, improve balance and elasticity and it’s great for any age,” she says, recommending NIA to anyone 40 and up to maintain healthy joints with NIA’s gentle dance rotations.

“It’s a party!” says Coburn. “It’s phenomenal. I’ve had depressed students come and leave happy and laughing. Some people never thought they could dance and they discover their senses, their body.”

The diverse world music ranges from techno to reggae, ambient and much more. Thievery Corporation would be a good example of something played during a NIA workout.

“They’re very vibrant sounds we don’t always hear,” says Coburn, who recently created a NIA choreography to Sting’s “Englishman in New York.”

NIA has been around for 25 years and is very popular in Europe, Asia and Africa. Its basic principle is called “The Body’s Way”: the body naturally chooses pleasure over pain, and NIA uses that pleasure in movement to achieve fitness.

In one of Coburn’s classes, she instructed students to act as a flying bird, stalking a prey down below. The movement was graceful, fun and full of emotion and no one would have noticed they were actually doing squats the whole time.

There could be a taekwondo kick followed by a slow dance while walking backwards and a full-body shake similar to the belly dancing “shimmy,” a great technique to stimulate the nervous system. The stretching part at the end, known as “floor play,” is not static stretching, but free-moving.

“The autonomic nervous system is not normally stimulated. Our bodies need sudden change, shock. We tell the brain to venture another direction,” says Coburn, adding that NIA, a brain-to-toes workout, also works to improve mental clarity and memory.

The sense of joy her students have fallen in love with is evident in their faces after each session.

Janet Brice, a class participant since last year, says the workout has, “trimmed and toned me, given me a greater flexibility than I ever experienced, tremendously reduced shoulder joint issues from carrying a laptop and heavy purses for many years and provided a total acceptance atmosphere where each person is valued at their ability level.”

“There are no words to express what a gift NIA is. It’s like eating chocolate… you can’t explain it. You want it and you love it,” adds Coburn. “You have to experience it. You can’t die until you have NIA.”

For more information about NIA, visit nianow.com. Sherry Coburn can be reached at 503-269-3148 or at sherrycoburn@rocketmail.com

GET MOVING

Middle Earth Dance Studio, 155 Liberty St NE (downtown)

Mondays 5:30-6:30 p.m. and Wednesdays 10:45-11:45 a.m.

YMCA

Tuesdays and Thursdays 4:30-5:20 p.m. (Family class)

Senior 50+ community center, 2615 Portland Rd.

Mondays 8:45-9:40 a.m. and Thursdays 10:30-11:30 a.m.

Prices vary depending on the number of classes attended in a 4-week period (4 classes are $20).

Madison graduated from Tufts University in 2005, studying human sexuality. The book was the result of a sex column she wrote in college. “It is amazing how many sex books are out there that are just boring,” Madison says. “I wanted to write something that told girls what they needed to know about sex from a more interesting, entertaining and funny standpoint.”

Jillian Toda, Willamette Events Board (WEB) Awareness, Discussion, and Dialogue Chair, is responsible for bringing speakers and events to campus, raising consciousness about various topics that affect our communities. “Since I don’t feel like we as students get a lot of sex education, I thought this event would be a great way for WU to delve into the topic. Amber is highly acclaimed and recommended and I expect the event to go well.”

Madison admits that she finds sex fascinating. “Really, I am fascinated by relationships. It’s about shining a light on different aspects of relationships. It’s not that gonorrhea is so awesome.”

She believes that good sex starts with a good relationship. “It’s not just your partner; it’s with yourself, your body and your inner desires. You have to be aware of what it is you actually want.”

Maybe more important than a cute g-string or the perfect fantasy is genuine interest in your partner. “You have to have a partner who respects your physical desires and vice versa. What good is a one-night stand if it is with someone who doesn’t care about your sexual pleasure?” asks Madison.

“I feel like people get the wrong impression. The term ‘hooking up’ has connotations. My book isn’t about casual relationships. It’s about having respect for your body, for your relationship, and for your own needs,” says Madison. “The focus isn’t about how to be irresponsible and having one-night stands.”

What feels like a good “hook-up” is up to you. “I can’t tell people what their desires are. Everyone needs to find out what works for them. But sex is not going to be good unless it’s in a respectful relationship with someone you trust,” says Madison.

“That means trust that they are going to look after your well-being, and they care about you and are being decent to you,” she adds.

For parents of a teen, the talk might be worth coming to, but remember: the talk is going to be geared for 18- to 22-year-olds. “It’s going to address the concerns that young people have,” Madison says. The trickiest part of sex at this time is sexually transmitted disease. “HPV is so prevalent right now; some estimates say that 80 percent of the populations has been exposed to it.” According to Madison, most gynecologists say, assume your potential partner has it, to be on the safe side.

So if good sex is about trust … how do you know? “The tricky thing with trust is you never really know. There is no guarantee that you are not going to get burned, that is with anything in life. The best thing you can do is judge from past experiences or past behavior. Is your partner always caring, in tune with your needs? Then I would say that is a good person. A good hook-up is about respect in a sexual context. At some point you have to blindly trust people,” Madison says.

Madison says beware if the guy or girl is rarely there for you, or doesn’t take the time to talk with you. “That is someone who is not trustworthy and if they don’t value friendships or sex they should not be your boyfriend or girlfriend.”

HOOK UP

Speaker Amber Madison is the author of “Hooking Up: A Girl’s All-out Guide to Sex & Sexuality.” She has appeared on many television and radio programs, including Cosmopolitan and Newsweek. In 2008, Amber won a sexual health communication award from Choice USA.

Wednesday, Feb 16th 2011

7 – 9 p.m.

Willamette University, Montag Den

900 State Street

Free