In health class we learned about suicide, what causes it and ways to deal with it in others. In the movie there was a girl who was about to commit suicide, she was very stressed out and upset. But then Jerry came along and talked to her, offered help, and he offered to have a cup of coffee with her. Jerry let her know that someone in the world cared for her, and that there were other options besides suicide.

We learned in health class that often people with depression often feel their only option to alleviate their pain is through suicide. Ways to help someone else with their suicidal feelings include letting them know that they are loved, and giving them medical treatment through pills, ex. Lexapro and Zoloft.

I have had experiences with friends of mine who were suicidal. It is a very difficult thing to deal with. I helped them out by letting them know I cared about them, and by recommending them to search for medical treatment, because depression (causing suicidal feelings) is an illness. This is something that has become easier to deal with as I’ve dealt with more and more people with suicidal feelings.

In class we learned about bullying, about why people do it, and how to deal with it. Trevor’s friend kept getting beat up by the older and bigger kids. This really hurt the little guy. Eventually, Trevor made a stand and stood up for his friend, potentially saving his life. Sadly, the bullies took Trevor’s life
with a knife.

We learned in class that one of the biggest reasons people bully others is because they are hurting. Maybe the bullies got beat up when they were younger, so they feel they have a right to do the same to others. Hurt people hurt people.

When I came to Twin Valley, I saw a lot more open bullying than I did at my other school. I sat next to this one guy in chorus, not too popular or “cool”, but we soon became friends. He didn’t really have many other friends. I then really started to care about this guy, so I invited him to come sit with me at my lunch table. He likes it, but sometimes this girl at our table makes fun of him for being weird. At first, I didn’t do anything, but I soon learned to stand up for him, even though she likes me less when I do. I want to work on defending these sorts of people even more effectively.

We learned a lot about sexuality in health class, that was a very, very interesting week. The mother worked at a stripper bar, where men would come, get drunk, and want to have sex with the girls. Also, in the movie, Eugene and Arlene felt great attraction for each other, they kissed but he realized how much it would change his life, so he pulled away. But as their relationship grew deeper, they decided to have sex, to share their bodies. They were ready for the consequences.

In health class we learned about how incredibly powerful sex is, how it can create life, destroy life (through STI’s), and bind two people together. Sex is something that two people should choose carefully to share, and only when they are ready for the potential consequences. I also learned that sexuality is not limited to the physical, but also consists of spiritual, cultural, emotional, and cultural aspects.

I have felt a bit of the incredible bond that sexuality can create: through kissing, through sharing deeply emotional thoughts, and through praying with a significant other. Something I have always liked about a dating relationship I have had is that we felt the freedom to talk about almost anything. It’s harder to leave someone once you’ve shared such deep emotions with someone. I want to work on controlling
my sexuality.

We learned about all sorts of addictions in health class. Jerry and Arlene both were addicted in the movie, Jerry to heroin, and Arlene to Alcohol. Jerry’s life had been messed up by his heroin addiction, to the point of making him homeless. Even after Trevor helped him back on his feet he still couldn’t get away from his addiction. He knew he had a problem though. Arlene would turn to alcohol as a way to self-medicate herself every time she felt pain in her life. She hid it all over the house, ex. In the dishwasher, lights, etc. She hid her problem, but as the story went on, and as she faced the reality of her problem more and more, she told Trevor the truth, and he helped keep her sober.

In health class we learned about addictions, what they are, symptoms, and ways to get out of them. After you realize that you have a problem, some ways that can help getting out of addiction include having an accountability partner (telling someone is very important! It’s hard to fight addiction alone) and getting treatment.

I see my neighbor out smoking when times are tough for her. She’s said so many times how she wants to stop, but that it’s so hard. I would advise her to look for other ways to deal with her pain, and to ask a good friend of hers to keep her accountable, or even for her to seek treatment.

One of the more recent things we learned about in health class was first aid. In the movie Trevor was stabbed with a knife in a fight, causing some seriously severe bleeding. He bled out before the hospital arrived and died.

We learned in the class on first aid that when someone is severely bleeding the first thing you need to do is call 9-1-1, and then apply pressure. Next you need to keep layering the wound with cloth and bandages, whatever you can to help slow the bleeding until they can get the wound stitched/skin grafted.

Last summer I was riding my bike to my youth leader’s house and on the way over I came to a very steep hill with a curved road. I had been having trouble with my bike chain, it fell off while I was going down the hill, I looked down to see a detached chain, looked back up to see I was off road headed for a mailbox at 30mph on a road bike. Smash! I hit the box and slid across the driveway next to it, next thing I know I’m hobbling out to grab my bike from the middle of the road. I’m sore and bleeding all over, profusely from my arm that hit the box, and my hip that slid across the driveway. Two elderlies payed it forward for me by taking me to my youth leader’s house and giving me some towels to apply immediate pressure. After arriving we bandaged and washed every wound.