Those who suffer with anxiety and/or depression oftentimes discover that the stress of trying to cope with their condition just adds to the burden.

As a nurse practitioner at Pawnee Valley Medical Associates, which is part of Pawnee Valley Community Hospital, Heather Holaday understands that these situations can seem overwhelming and offers guidance about treatments and lifestyle changes.

Holaday wanted to share her information during April, which is Stress Awareness Month.

“When patients come to us with concerns about anxiety and depression, we recommend a healthy diet and exercise as a starting point for their stress management,” Holaday said. “For example, an average of 150 minutes per week of moderate-intensity exercise or 75 minutes per week of vigorous-intensity exercise can be very helpful.

“It is important to choose a routine that is achievable and sustainable.”

In addition, treatment may involve cognitive behavioral therapy, which usually is completed with a mental-health counselor.

“If necessary, we also offer treatment with medications to help with mood, stress and anxiety management,” Holaday noted. “This medical treatment can supplement the positive lifestyle changes.”

The recommendations are even more important today because the pandemic increased the number of patients diagnosed with anxiety and depression.

Stress can filter into all parts of daily life because of “financial concerns, fear of the unknown about COVID-19, loss of family and friends to the virus, job layoffs, and fewer interactions and activities outside the house,” the nurse practitioner said.

According to the American Psychological Association, stress affects all bodily systems when it becomes severe or chronic.

“Your mind and body are one; our mental health significantly impacts our physical health,” Holaday said. “Our bodies can withstand normal, intermittent stress. However, chronic stress can negatively impact our overall health. Stress management is just one way to help decrease the negative effects.

“Recognizing that you are struggling mentally is not a weakness,” she emphasized “It is a strength that could potentially improve your overall well-being.”

Most important, she added, if stress becomes so overwhelming that a patient experiences negative self-talk or thoughts of self-harm “it is vital to share this with your healthcare provider. We care about you and are here to help provide the resources and treatments that you need.”

Holaday is part of the family-medicine team at the clinic and hospital.

The new sleep technologist at Pawnee Valley Community Hospital (PVCH) is using her education and experience to perform sleep studies and care for patients at the facility’s Sleep & Diagnostic Center.

Caitlan Stice, who recently moved to Larned, is a registered polysomnographic technologist. She helps specialists who study, document and analyze sleep patterns, providing positive airway pressure (PAP) therapies when indicated.

“There are a number of situations in which you should consider an appointment for a sleep study,” Stice said. “If you feel unrefreshed in the morning, tired throughout the day and/or wake up multiple times a night, a sleep study might be in order.”

Gasping or snoring also can be a concern, while hyperactivity in children may be a sign of sleep-disordered breathing, she added.

Stice outlined some additional information: during sleep, cycles go from light to deep; in the deep-sleep stage, organs are repaired; and if the airway is obstructed, the brain will tell the body to move to allow taking a full breath, which can lead to a change in cycles.

“Getting the proper rest is so important to our daily living,” Stice commented. “In addition, sleep disorders can result in health issues such as diabetes, heart problems, high blood pressure and stroke.

“I look forward to providing care and education to patients, while performing high-quality sleep studies to help prevent some of these problems.”

Stice said that even though she has been at PVCH only a short time, she already knows that “patient care is the top priority in the sleep lab and all other areas of the hospital. I also have been very impressed with the personnel and equipment in the sleep lab, which offers top-of-the-line care and treatment.”

The technologist began her sleep-medicine education at OIT in Klamath Falls, Ore., and earned an applied science degree with a certification in polysomnography in 2013.

She has worked in sleep labs in Aurora, Co., Portland, Ore., several towns in Wyoming, and Billings, Mt. Stice has worked with all ages at varying levels of complexity. She was born and raised in Aurora, Co.

Stice was familiar with Kansas because she visited her grandmother in Peabody during the summers. “I have received a warm welcome here and I love this lifestyle,” she said. “I want to raise my child in a smaller town with friendly people. This is very important to me.”

Megan Donecker, Sleep & Diagnostic Center director, said “all of us are excited that Caitlan came from Montana to create a new home in this great community and provide excellent care to our sleep-deprived patients. Her education and years of experience are assets to our sleep lab and the community.”