00:00Hi, guys. It's so good to see you. I'm Dr. Jen Cottle, and I couldn't be more excited to be here
00:10at Essence Wellness House. Welcome. I'm so glad you're here with me. I am a family physician,
00:15and I'm also an associate professor at Rowan University School of Osteopathic Medicine.
00:20I'm also an on-air health expert, and I'm also a video creator. So I make my videos for YouTube
00:24and Facebook and things like that. So couldn't be more excited to be here. It's such a wonderful
00:29time in history, and so many amazing things are happening in this world, and I'm very excited.
00:34So I want to start out with Toya. Hi, Dr. Jen. I'm Toya, owner of Sweeter the Juicery here in
00:41Grapevine, Texas. And I have a question about the COVID-19 vaccine. Given the history of healthcare
00:48and how Black Americans specifically have been treated, how are we supposed to trust that this
00:55vaccine is safe for us? Okay, Toya, I love your question. You are asking, why should you trust the
01:01COVID-19 vaccine? Why should we, as a group of people, why should people get this vaccine?
01:05Now, I understand that so many people are worried about the COVID-19 vaccine. There are a lot of
01:10rumors and myths going around. There's a lot of misconceptions. There's a lot of fear about it.
01:15So the first thing is that it's safe and effective. And I know you're saying, well, how do I know it's
01:18safe? The science behind the vaccine is not new. It's actually been in the works for a long time.
01:25That's one of the reasons why when our moment came and the time came to really get a vaccine
01:29rolling, we were able to do that because it was built on years of research that had already existed.
01:35And remember that we know the vaccine is safe and effective because we have studied the vaccine
01:39on tens of thousands of people and people are still being studied. Now, don't let that fact worry
01:45you like, oh, it's still being studied. Why would I take it? Well, no, this is what we do. Okay. So we
01:49still want to follow those people and that is happening. But guys, really, I understand that this may
01:55or may not be enough for you. I would understand if that's the case, but I want you to know that
01:59I'm a living, breathing human being, a physician that a black physician who believes in this vaccine.
02:05I've gotten the vaccine. We'll be getting my second dose very, very soon. My parents will be getting
02:09the vaccine this weekend. They are in their seventies. I recommend it for my patients who qualify
02:14and also my family. Last thing is side effects. A lot of people worry about that. The most common
02:19side effects are fevers, chills, muscle aches, et cetera. The side effects I had, the only side
02:24effects I had was pain at my injection site, which by the way, I get when I get the flu vaccine and
02:29every other vaccine I've ever gotten. Most people will do very well. There are some people who should
02:34not get the vaccine and people with certain allergies and allergic reactions to the vaccine
02:39ingredients. Talk to your doctor about that. And the last thing I'll say, by the way, is vaccine
02:42ingredients. I know you're wondering what's in it. By the way, there's only a few ingredients in it.
02:47I've done articles and videos listing every single ingredient, by the way, that's how few ingredients
02:52there are is that they can actually be listed. So make sure you check out my Insta, Facebook,
02:56YouTube. I've got videos exactly on what you're looking for, which is the ingredients guys.
03:00I hope this is helpful. Make sure this is the start of your conversation. Now take this information,
03:05go to your doctor, ask more questions, but I do encourage you to be a part of this conversation
03:10to get the vaccine. If you qualify for it. Peace. I'm Sierra Lashana. I hail from St. Louis,
03:16Missouri, and I'm the owner of Free Flower Yoga and Herbalism here. My question is for Dr. Jen.
03:23I want to know, COVID-19 has increased a lot of people's stress levels, and we know that the body
03:29responds to chronic stress by putting the body under a response of flight or fight. So what are some
03:36ways that we can begin to regulate that autonomic nervous system to reduce those stress levels?
03:41I'm so glad you asked about this. Stress levels are through the roof, literally because we are in
03:46the middle of a COVID pandemic and like don't throw politics in there and all the other craziness that
03:51has happened this year. But we are talking about COVID in particular and all the stuff that's
03:55happening right now and how we can deal with our stress. I have five, six, maybe seven tips for you
03:59to help relieve stress. First thing is to don't be afraid. Please don't be afraid to reach out to people
04:05who are good for you. And honestly, I would even go one step further and say, reach out to a therapist.
04:10If you really need to talk to somebody, please don't be afraid of talking to your doctor, to seeking
04:16out a therapist, someone who can help you go through your thoughts and help you organize how you're
04:20feeling and help you through this stressful time because it is stressful. Talking, talking it out is
04:26so important. Second thing is exercise. Believe it or not, yeah, exercise is good for a lot of things,
04:30our heart, our waistline, but also our stress levels. So if you're not getting regular exercise and no,
04:35I don't want you to go into gyms if it's not safe right now. And I don't mean you have to buy a real
04:38expensive machine. You can just get outside, put your sneakers on and walk around the block.
04:42Exercise could not be more important. Ah, sleep. Whose sleep has been disrupted during this crazy time
04:49called 2020, 2021? Right here. I literally like, I'm like a bat or no, I guess I don't know if I'm
04:54a bat, whatever. I'm a night owl. My days and my nights are all mixed up. I don't know if you feel
04:59this way, but making sure you're getting those seven to nine hours of sleep, whatever is right for you.
05:04Okay. And making sure that you're keeping a consistent sleep schedule is going to be
05:08so important. Also eating healthy. I know this is a time we want to sit on the couch and munch
05:14in those potato chips and the comfort foods and stuff like that, because y'all, we all need
05:17comforting. I'm right there with you, but we also have to make sure that we're eating healthy,
05:22eating healthy, not only feeds our brain and our bodies and nutrients that it needs, but it's also
05:28going to help our overall stress levels in terms of keeping our body healthy and making sure that our
05:32stress stays to a minimum. Guys, remember during this time, you're not alone. Find things that you
05:39love to do as well. Don't forget yourself, whether it's listening to music, whether it's playing an
05:44instrument, singing, whatever you do, make sure you're making time to reach out and do things that
05:51make you who you are. Stress can be overcome, but it's going to take work. Remember, if you don't feel
05:59like you're able to get over your stress and that's getting the best of you, as I said before,
06:02please talk to your doctor. We're here to help.
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