Health fair booths offer screenings plus latest medical information

By Mary Garrigan, Journal Staff Writer | Monday, April 24, 2006

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RAPID CITY -- People attending the 24th annual Black Hills Area Health & Human Services Fair on Saturday, April 29, can expect to see the usual medical items that are used to test for high blood pressure, screen for diabetes and check cholesterol levels. But at the Life Without Boundaries booth, they'll find another health-management tool - the human mind - being used in an alternative approach to pain management, stress relief and other medical problems.

Diana Southam, a therapist at Life Without Boundaries, a Rapid City counseling practice, will offer a demonstration of a therapy called Interactive Guided Imagery. IGI uses images - the mind's natural language - to combat stress, pain, illness, grief, anxiety or to prepare for or recover from surgery, Southam said.

The health fair runs from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Rushmore Plaza Civic Center. Admission is free and open to the public. In addition to Life Without Boundaries, about 85 organizations will have booths that provide valuable screenings for things such as allergy sensitivity, depression, spinal problems and more. Wellness demonstrations will be held during the day, including clogging, line and square dancing, taekwando, yoga and group exercises.

Southam's IGI demonstration will be held in Rushmore Hall at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday. It will showcase a sample of a one-on-one imagery session.

"There are few physical, emotional or behavioral symptoms or illnesses that are not affected to some degree by the mind," she said.

Imagery is the basic internal language between the body and the mind. Worry, planning and daydreaming are all examples of how we use imagery, as we think in pictures, not words, Southam said.

In the early 1970s, Dr. Martin Rossman and Dr. David Bresler began to develop and research contemporary imagery approaches for patients coping with chronic pain, immune dysfunction, cancer, heart disease and other catastrophic and life-threatening illnesses. They developed the IGI approach, which integrates techniques originating from Jungian psychology, Gestalt therapy and numerous other mental health theories.

IGI differs from guided imagery in that the person uses their own images. The guide's role is to bring an enhanced awareness of the unconscious imagery.

"Clients learn to effectively work with this imagery on their own behalf. This technique is an exciting way to help patients and clients more effectively help themselves, which is something everyone can appreciate," Southam said.

Imagery affects almost all major physiologic control systems of the body, even bodily functions thought to be automatic, she said. Respiration rate, heart rate, blood pressure, metabolic rate, gastrointestinal motility and secretion, sexual function, cortisol levels, blood lipids and immune responsiveness are all affected by the use of imagery.

Once considered a complementary approach, guided imagery is now finding widespread scientific and public acceptance, and it is being used in multiple contexts, Southam said.

"Immediate changes that occur with the use of imagery include lower blood pressure, heart rate, breath rate, oxygen consumption and a sense of peace and calmness," she said. It can change the body's reaction to adrenaline.

Long term, regular use of imagery can lead to improved coping skills and a decrease in anxiety or depressed mood.

In 1989, the Academy of Guided Imagery was established to provide in depth training for clinicians, to raise public and professional awareness about the benefits of imagery, and to support research of the numerous applications of imagery. Since then the Academy has obtained professional accreditation, recruited countless interdisciplinary faculty, sponsored and conducted research, and set today's standards for professional certification in Interactive Guided Imagery. The Academy has taught more than 10,000 psychologists, physicians, social workers, family counselors and other health professionals.

Contact Mary Garrigan at 394-8410 or mary.garrigan@rapidcityjournal.com

If you go

* What: 24th annual Black Hills Area Health & Human Services Fair

* When: 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m., Saturday, April 29

* Where: Rushmore Plaza Civic Center

* Cost: Free admission to booths, screenings and demonstrations from more than 85 organizations. Wellness demonstrations throughout the day.

Health fair booths

* Apria Health Care

* Arbonne International

* DakotaLink

* Susan G. Komen

Breast Cancer Foundation

* Children's Home Society

of South Dakota

* Medicap Pharmacy

* HeavenScent/Life

Without Boundaries

* Life Without Boundaries

* Interim HealthCare

* Tobacco Free Rapid City/

S.D. Dept. of Health

* The Sweeney House

* Foster Grandparent Program

& Senior Companion Program

* Black Hills Regional Eye Institute

* Rapid City IHS Diabetes

Program

* WestMed Rehab

* Black Hills Chiropractic

* Medicine Shoppe

* Westhills Village Home

Health Agency

* Humana, Inc.

* Audiology Center of the

Black Hills

* Easter Seals South Dakota

* Black Hills Arthritis Association

* Black Hills Chronic Fatigue

Syndrome/Fibromyalgia

Syndrome Support Group

* Behavior Management Systems

* Rapid City Community

Health Center, Inc.

* Morton Counseling

* Rapid City Medical Center

* Comfort Keepers

* Lutheran Social Services

* The University of South

Dakota, Department of Nursing

* Alternative Health Care Center

* City County Alcohol & Drug

Programs

* Rehabilitation Medical Supply

* The Physical Therapy Center

* Arbonne International

* Black Hills Neurology

* Diabetes Incorporated

* Transplant/Dialysis

Support Group

* SunCatcher TRA

* Adult Services & Aging

* Meals Program

* Black Hills Depression and

Bipolar Support Group Alliance

* Literacy Council of the

Black Hills

* Black Hills Health &

Wellness Center

* SHIINE and Social Security

Administration

* Swanson Chiropractic

* MADD - Mothers Against

Drunk Drivers

* Independent Distributors

on MonaVie

* Black Hills Surgery Center

* Western Resources for

Dis-ABLED Independence

* Mary Kay Cosmetics

* Christian Science Church

* Heart Doctors

* YMCA

* Wright Vision Center, a division

of Slingsby & Wright Eye Care

* Osteoporosis Screening Center

* TOPS (Take Off Pounds

Sensibly)

* AARP - BH Chapter 0439

* Mended Heart, Mended Little

Heart, American Heart Assn.

* Communication Service for

the Deaf

* SD Lions Eye Bank

* Midge Hemeyer, Waiora

Independent Bus Owner

* Young Living Essential Oils

* Catholic Social Services

* Sunshine Infrared Portable

Saunas

* QMED Inc./QMedCare

* Black Hills Workshop

* Positive Approach

* New Underwood Good

Samaritan Center/Echo Ridge

* United Blood Services

* Advanced Health Care Solutions

* Rapid City Regional Hospital

Public Relations/Marketing

Diabetes Education

Home Care

Cardiac Services

Rehab

Foundation