Dear AME Community,

This has been a challenging period for humans and non-humans around the planet.

We have multiple wars and humanitarian crises, divisiveness, and extreme weather events.

We can do our best where we are. It is more important than ever to take care of ourselves, protect our sleep, foster equanimity each day, and be kind and connected to those around us. We can stretch ourselves to have difficult but mindful dialogues with those around us (in person -- not on social media!) and to take care of the parts of the planet we touch.

In this issue, you can read about our UC Climate Resilience class, which is teaching young adults these skills, including how to use mindfulness, compassion, and equanimity to find balance in a rocky world, when campus life has been far from peaceful. You will hear from two UCSF graduate students. Lastly, we hope you will join one of the Esalen 2024 retreats!

Warmly,

Drs. Elissa Epel and Aric Prather

New AME Center Publications

Heart rate variability (HRV) is a helpful new biofeedback tool.

Dr. Kirsten Aschbacher studied HRV in a large-scale digital health intervention, finding that age was associated with a significant decline in HRVB, which was steeper among men than women.

Read the paper here.

Healthy nutrition during pregnancy is critical, but it is also an emotional time where stress eating is common.

In recent work, AME researchers found that checking into hunger rate and the MyPlate method together were related to lower levels of stress eating.

Read the paper here.

AME researchers conducted a meta-analysis to examine the associations between sleep duration and antibody response to vaccination in healthy adults.

Read their findings in the paper here.

Featured AME Researcher: Yoobin Park, PhD (Relationships and Health)

Dr. Yoobin Park is a postdoctoral researcher at UCSF’s Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, working with the NIH Network for Emotional Well-Being. She holds a Ph.D. in social psychology from the University of Toronto, and her research focuses on close relationships and well-being, examining well-being in and out of romantic relationships, relational decisions, and how our close relationships may affect our physical health.

We spoke with her about her work with the EWB, her research interests, and the research topics she hopes to pursue in the future in this Q & A.

Dr. Park 's Profile

Upcoming Esalen Wellness Retreats

Esalen is a place of connection and restoration. Check out Dr. Elissa Epel’s upcoming retreats:

Come Together: Festival of IntraConnectivity and Spirit

June 24-28, 2024

Scholarships available! Learn more here.

Deep Rest, Recovery, and Renewal

Oct 4-7, 2024

Learn more here .

UC Climate Resilience Course

The UC Climate Resilience Course is now underway!

This Spring Quarter has marked the start of the UC Climate Resilience Course, an innovative class taking place at eight different UC campuses in which students are learning to transform climate distress into collective action.

The UC Climate Resilience class aims to fill a critical gap in climate education and well-being, building on the science of personal and social resilience and climate change action, creating a sense of belonging for students, and motivating empowerment and self-efficacy via advocacy projects. Did it really improve climate action, climate hope, and mental health? Stay tuned for our quantitative evaluation of the course, coming soon!

We spoke to two UCSF students about why they chose to enroll in the course, their experience thus far, and their capstone class project. Read more here!

Wellness Recipe of the Season: Citrus Coconut Cooler

Stay hydrated this summer for optimal health with a delicious citrus coconut water beverage containing coconut water, citrus juice, and honey or agave!

Recipe Here