MESD Staff Wellness Newsletter

Wellness begins with a single SPARK - and grows with every choice we make!

As we move into the middle of the plan year, it’s a great time to pause and make sure you’re using the benefits available to you. Many of us get busy and save appointments for “later,” but preventive care is one of the simplest ways to support your long-term well-being—and most of it is covered at no cost under your medical, dental, and vision plans.

1. Schedule Your Annual Wellness Check - Preventive visits help you stay ahead of potential concerns and keep your health on track. If you haven’t had your yearly physical yet, consider booking it now before schedules fill up for spring and summer.
2. Vision Exam Reminder - If you’re noticing eye strain, headaches, or it’s simply been a while since your last exam, now is the perfect time to check in with an optometrist. Routine eye exams can detect early changes in vision and overall health.
3. Keep Up With Dental Cleanings Most plans cover two cleanings per year, don’t let them go unused. Regular dental visits help prevent cavities, gum issues, and unexpected emergencies down the road.
4. Use Your Benefits to Support Wellness - Check your plan details to confirm if it covers any of the following:

• Preventive screenings

• Vaccinations
• Mental health support
• Telehealth services
• Specialist visits as needed

Taking small steps now helps you stay healthy, energized, and supported throughout the year. If you need help reviewing your plan options or coverage details, our Benefits & Wellness team is here to assist.

We've created a space in this newsletter to uplift and share equity-minded businesses and resources — from independent bookstores and service providers to directories and community organizations.

Browse what our community has already shared, discover a new local gem, and consider where your next dollar might go. And if you know of a business, shop, or resource that centers equity, we want to hear about it. Drop it in the community space below. Every recommendation is an act of community care.

Social wellness focuses on cultivating belonging, connection, community, and healthy relationships across all MESD worksites and teams.

Stress shows up in everyone’s life, especially in the helping professions, but you do not have to manage it on your own. Having even a few people you can trust creates a sense of steadiness and support that makes difficult days easier to handle. Strong connections can lift your mood, strengthen resilience, and even protect your physical health. What matters most is not the size of your circle but the quality of the relationships within it.

Busy schedules and constant responsibilities can make it easy to lose touch with others, but it is never too late to start rebuilding those connections. Simple actions such as checking in with a coworker, reaching out to a friend you have not spoken to in a while, or taking part in an activity you enjoy can help you feel more grounded and less isolated.

A practical takeaway for staff:
Choose one small step this week that helps you feel more connected. This might be a conversation in the hallway, a walk with a colleague during lunch, a quick message to someone you care about, or a commitment to join a group or activity. These small efforts can create a real sense of connection and help reduce the stress of daily life.

If you feel weighed down and need extra support, reaching out to a mental health professional can help you learn new ways to manage stress and strengthen your relationships. You deserve support and community, both at work and in your personal life. Whether through your own medical plan or using Canopy EAP, there are resources available to you.

Reference

American Psychology Association (2024) https://www.apa.org/topics/stress/manage-social-support

Physical wellness aims to support movement, fitness, nutrition, hydration, sleep, ergonomics, and overall physical health.

Eating well when your schedule is packed can feel like one more thing to figure out. But good nutrition doesn't require elaborate meal prep or a complete lifestyle overhaul. It's built on a handful of consistent habits: prioritizing protein and fiber to stay full longer, keeping nourishing snacks on hand so hunger doesn't drive your choices, and planning even loosely for the week ahead. Small decisions made in calm moments make it much easier to eat well in busy ones.

This month, we're diving deeper into practical strategies you can actually use. Watch our video Smart Nutrition For A Busy Lifestyle for a guided walkthrough of simple swaps, easy meal-building frameworks, and tips for making healthy choices work with your real life, not against it. Click here to watch.

Sleep is far more than a nightly luxury. It may be one of the most powerful things you can do for your long-term health. A December 2025 study from Oregon Health & Science University found that insufficient sleep outpaces even diet and exercise as a predictor of life expectancy (OHSU News), while a large-scale international study of over 88,000 adults found that sleep regularity, not just duration, is independently linked to dramatically higher disease risk across dozens of conditions (ScienceDaily).

The bottom line: aim for seven to nine hours, and try to keep a consistent sleep and wake time every day.

The good news is that sleep is one of the most modifiable health habits we have. This month, we're sharing two resources to help you get started: the Sleep Setup handout walks you through building a bedroom environment that supports deep, uninterrupted rest, and the Bedtime Blueprint gives you a practical wind-down routine grounded in sleep science. Small, consistent changes add up, and your future self will thank you.

Click Here to watch the Wellable Bedtime Blueprint webinar.

Download Wellable for cooking instructions and more recipes!

Promotion of personal and collective awareness through mindfulness, stress management, emotional reflection, and recognition of individual well-being needs.

Think of emotional fitness the way you think of physical fitness — something you build gradually through consistent, daily practice, not something you only address when something goes wrong.

The conversation in wellness is shifting from raising awareness about mental health to actively building mental fitness, training the mind like a muscle for resilience, focus, and adaptability. Organizations and individuals alike are moving away from reactive approaches, support in crisis, toward proactive ones built around daily wellbeing habits (Stretching The City). For staff, this means that small, intentional actions taken regularly, pausing to name an emotion, taking three slow breaths before a difficult conversation, or checking in honestly with a colleague, all count as emotional fitness in action.

What makes this shift so powerful is that it benefits everyone, not just those who are struggling. Mind-body practices centered on nervous system regulation, resilience, and emotional balance are among the fastest growing wellness priorities right now, with tools like mood-tracking journals and workplace emotional safety programs becoming mainstream (Dr. Axe). You don't need a formal program to get started. Try ending your day with one honest reflection: what drained you, what energized you, and what you need tomorrow. Over time, that kind of awareness becomes the foundation for both personal wellbeing and a stronger, more connected team culture.

Click here to access free downloadable daily mood trackers

Stress can be caused externally by actions like daily hassles and major life events. We can also experience stress that starts internally, such as when we’re worried about something that might happen or feeling self-doubt. (This is normal since humans can think about the future, unlike our animal and plant friends!)

The cause of and reaction to stress differ from person to person. The same is true for the effectiveness of stress management techniques — different strategies work well for different people! The six Stress Less Exercises below offer a variety of stress management strategies to help you cope positively with stress.

1. Stress Less Exercise: Mindful Meditation
2. Stress Less Exercise: Breath Control
3. Stress Less Exercise: Relaxation Response
4. Stress Less Exercise: Yoga
5. Stress Less Exercise: Guided Imagery
6. Stress Less Exercise: Grounding Techniques

Download Wellable for Mindfulness and Meditation Resources!

Ensure employees have access to helpful tools, financial education, community services, and supportive programs that address everyday life needs.

Financial stress is at an all-time high, and staff are not alone if money feels overwhelming right now. Recent global research found that only 29% of people feel hopeful about their financial future, down from 60% just a year prior, with inflation and housing affordability ranking as the top concerns for most people (Nudge-global). The good news is that financial wellness isn't about having a perfect income or eliminating all debt overnight. It starts with awareness: knowing where your money is going, building even a small cushion for unexpected expenses, and making one or two intentional adjustments at a time.

With summer just around the corner and the travel, activities, and extra expenses that come with it, now is a great time for staff to take stock of spending and set a seasonal savings goal. Research shows that maintaining an emergency fund is the most commonly cited financial stressor, and that building even a modest safety net can meaningfully reduce anxiety (GlobeNewswire).

A great place to start is the free Freddie Mac Budget Worksheet, which walks you through income, expenses, and savings categories and lets you download a completed PDF to keep. Alternatively, attached below is a blank excel and PDF version for your use offline.

It's a simple, no-app-needed tool to help staff see the full picture and plan ahead with confidence.

All OEBB (MESD) Staff members have access to FREE and CONFIDENTIAL assistance benefits for you and your household through Canopy Well EAP.

A few of the services available are:

• 24/7 Mental Health Hotline
• 8 free counseling sessions
• 8 free personal/professional coaching sessions
• Financial coaching
• Free 30-minute legal consultation and discount on legal services
• Fertility health support
• Per parent resources

Access the member site: Personal and professional development videos, webinars, self-assessments, legal tools and more at my.canopywell.com. Log-in or register as a new user with organization name: OEBB.

Contact Methods

• Phone: 800-433-2320
• Text: 503-850-7721
• Web: my.canopywell.com

Non-Retired Members Homepage

Tier One/Tier Two Education Sessions

OPSRP Education Sessions

Provide education, learning opportunities, and helpful information that empower employees to make informed choices while fostering safer, supportive, and comfortable work environments.

Earth Day 2026 carries the theme 'Our Power, Our Planet' — a call for collective action and clean energy investment. As educators, we're already in the business of shaping how the next generation relates to the world. This month is a chance to walk that talk — and to benefit personally from what research consistently finds: time in nature reduces cortisol, improves focus, and elevates mood. Every educator deserves that right now.

Free Earth Day Events Around Portland Below!

April 4th | 9am-1pm | Plant Trees at Harrison Park with Urban Forestry and APANO

April 11th | 12pm-3pm | Earth in Motion Event - Parkrose Middle School

April 1th | 5:30pm-7:30pm | Black Earth Day Tree Talk - Midland Library

April 18th - 19th | 7am-4pm | Pickup Free Compost from PBOT at the Sunderland Yard

April 25th | 9am-1pm | Great Exchange Swap Event St. Johns

Explore the list of wellness resources (internal + community), bookmark each one so you know how to access them.

• MESD Wellness Website
• Save a mental health hotline
• Review Canopy Employee Assistance Resources - For employees and their household
• Explore fitness options through your medical plan - MODA or KAISER
• For those without MODA or Kaiser - Download Wellable for fitness resources