Category: San Antonio News

A man in his 20s was taken to an area hospital after being shot twice inside a West Side home, San Antonio police said.

Officers were called just after 1 a.m. to the 900 block of Jean Walk after receiving word of a person wounded.

According to police, the man was inside the home with his girlfriend when someone from the outside fired inside the home.

Police said the man was struck in both legs and was taken by EMS to University Hospital for treatment. The man’s wounds do not appear to be life-threatening.

Officers say they suspect the shooter was the woman’s ex-boyfriend, based on information they received from witnesses. The suspect fled following the shooting.

At this time, they have not made any arrests. The investigation is ongoing, police said.

Find more tips and news coverage on our Mental Wellness page.

Are you familiar with this scenario? You’ve been lying in bed all night tossing and turning, dealing with intrusive thoughts, and spinning scenarios in your head that probably won’t come to fruition. Then, just as you finally get a moment of respite, your alarm goes off. It’s time to go to work, but you have this overwhelming sense that you should just stay in bed and ignore the day.

Yeah, me too. As someone who has lived with a mental illness most of my life, this is exactly what my mornings look like. And why don’t we add in a debilitating sense of anxiety and fear with sometimes no rhyme or reason?

I know I’m not alone, though. One in five people in the United States over the age of 18 has a mental illness. And 71 percent of adults reported at least one symptom of stress, which includes headaches or feeling overwhelmed or anxious.

Those of us with mental illnesses must learn ways to cope with our challenges so we can function in society. This particularly becomes a challenge in the workplace, where people may not feel as comfortable as they do in their private lives.

After spending most of my life living with an anxiety disorder, I have learned tools that help me not only exist in this world but also thrive in this world. It hasn’t been an easy road though. There were years of heartache and fear, as well as trial and error before I learned what helped me. I knew that my road to a successful career while living with a mental illness would impact me, and it has. It has been challenging, but also beautiful as I’ve grown to accept myself, with my constant companion anxiety and all.

In the early days of my career, mental health and mental illness were never discussed. I was ashamed and fearful that someone would find out about me, and I would get “in trouble” or fired because of my mental health challenges. These feelings lead me to overcompensate and never really feel comfortable in my job.

From the outside, my overcompensation and fear made me look like I was the most thoughtful, hardworking, and eager person in the room. But on the inside, I felt insecure, overwhelmed, and incompetent. This disconnect of who I was on the outside versus the inside led to many years of me struggling to make it through a workday because of my endless anxiety.

And what do you think happened? I burned out. It was hard to keep up being “the perfect employee” that I wowed them with at the beginning of a new job. When that facade fell, intrusive thoughts and panic attacks would creep in. This went on for years.

Even though I was successful in my career and people would say I was “working my way up,” I continued to feel that this working thing was harder for me than I saw my peers experiencing. What was I doing wrong or differently? The answer was that I was doing nothing wrong. I just was living and existing each day with a mental illness – a mental illness that was a dirty secret I didn’t share with the world.

Now we are two years into the COVID-19 pandemic, and much of the workforce (about 63 percent of Americans) have experienced, or know someone who has experienced, a mental health challenge. The conversations around mental health are slowly changing. With us spending most of our waking hours at work, employers are recognizing that they need to accommodate the mental wellness of their employees so that they stay healthy and engaged. This change in workplace culture is very exciting to someone like me.

In a future article, I want to dive deeper into how workplaces can support mental health and wellness. But before we have that conversation, I’d like to share with you, from my personal experience, what it is like being inside the mind of a working professional who lives with a mental illness.

Here are some insights from my workplace experiences and how I have learned to cope with my mental health challenges in the workplace:

I often must remind myself that everyone has bad days and challenges at work. No one is immune to this, and I am not alone in feeling upset about bad days.I recognize that my anxiety kicks in when I feel overwhelmed. I have to read my body cues and take a break when I feel anxiety start to impede my work. Sometimes this happens while I am in a meeting or on a Zoom call, and I now feel comfortable asking to take a moment for myself.At the beginning and end of my workday, I take a self-inventory with how I am feeling and put those feelings in two buckets: What I can control and what I can’t control. This helps me know what to tackle and what to let go of.If it has been a challenging day, I TRY (yes, sometimes not successfully) to leave the negative thoughts and anxiety until the next day when I can have a fresh perspective.I challenge myself every day to find five positive things that have occurred that day and write them down. They must be different things every day.I have no shame or guilt in taking a mental health day, everyone needs one.I find one person at work with whom I can be vulnerable and share my challenges without judgment. This also could be a friend outside of work, but I like to feel that I have someone in the workplace who supports me and understands my challenges.I tend to blame myself for anything that goes “wrong” at work, which is defeating and not productive for me. The best lesson I learned is to find a solution to the challenge without blame or judgment. If there is no solution, I try my best to let it go because it is not in my control.I work hard to make mental health and wellness a topic of conversation with people at work and out in the community so that we can all see that mental health is important and part of everyone’s lives.

Speaking and writing about my mental illness over the past few years has been life-changing for me. I now feel more authentic in my work life and my private life. I no longer feel shame about who I am or worry about keeping my mental health challenges a secret. While making the decision to be more open about my mental health challenges wasn’t so I could improve my work life, it has been an added bonus and freed me to focus more on my work.

If you or someone you know has mental health challenges that need to be addressed, there are many resources available. Please see this list for resources. You are not alone and there is help.

Read more like this on our Mental Wellness page:

A Picture Doesn’t Tell the Whole Story: An Inside-Out Transformation10 ways to be positive in a negative world4 ways to change your approach to goal setting4 strategies for taking care of yourSELF post-quarantine7 techniques you can use to work through fear and anxiety when making a major decision5 ways to help combat anxiety in the age of COVID-19KSAT Explains: Your mental health in 2021 amid COVID pandemicWATCH: KSAT Community’s ‘Resilience in the New Year Virtual Mental Health Town Hall’Social media during the pandemic: The good, bad and ugly

Keldon Johnson scored off a rebound of a missed free throw with three-tenths of a second left to give the San Antonio Spurs a 110-108 victory over the Golden State Warriors on Sunday night.

Jakob Poeltl made the first of two free throws to it at 108 with 2.4 seconds left. He missed the second off the back iron, but Johnson grabbed the rebound and converted the winner.

Klay Thompson missed a 3-pointer from the right corner as time expired.

Josh Richardson led the Spurs with 25 points, and Dejounte Murray had 19.

Jordan Poole scored 28 points, and Thompson had 24 Golden State. Playing their first game since losing Stephen Curry to a left foot injury, the third-place Warriors dropped 1 1/2 games behind second-place Memphis and 10 1/2 games back of NBA-leading Phoenix.

Golden State appeared in good shape when Andrew Wiggins was fouled with three seconds left and the game tied at 107. He made his first free throw, but missed the second. Kevon Looney was called for a loose-ball foul on Poeltl, setting up the closing sequence.

Draymond Green was in the Warriors’ starting lineup for the first time since returning from a calf injury last week, but he was ejected in the third quarter after getting called for two technicals in an eight-second span.

San Antonio led 36-22 at the end of the first period on the strength of 59.1% shooting. But Poole and Thompson combined for 15 points in the second quarter and the Warriors cut it to 63-57 at halftime.

TIP-INS

Spurs: Devin Vassell raced downcourt and hit a 3-pointer to beat the halftime buzzer. … Lonnie Walker IV remained out with back spasms. The guard left Friday night in a loss to New Orleans in the first quarter.

Warriors: Golden State got Wiggins and Nemanja Bjelica back. Moses Moody (right shoulder) remained out for the Warriors. … Green returned to the starting lineup after coming off the bench in his first two games back from a calf injury … Otto Porter Jr. had a career-high 16 rebounds.

UP NEXT

Spurs: At Portland on Wednesday night.

Warriors: At Orlando on Tuesday night to start a five-game trip.

Every day for the last seven years, Dorothy “Dot” Ward has called the apheresis center at the South Texas Blood and Tissue Center her office.

“We actually do is collect peripheral blood stem cells from donors that have become a DNA genetic match for patients that are suffering some form of blood cancer,” Ward, a cellular therapy nurse, said.

The patients in need of this type of treatment are desperate. It’s usually their last hope.

“When a match is found. It’s, I mean, it’s like winning the lotto,” Ward said.

Great things are always happening at @connectforlife. Tonight on the #NightBeat we are introducing you to one of the nurses here at the Apheresis Center. Not only does she collect stems cells and bone marrow, she is a donor. @ksatnews pic.twitter.com/d917RPCqqc

— Leigh Waldman (@LeighWaldman) March 20, 2022

Dot became a donor when she started working here as a phlebotomist 22 years ago. For six years, she sat on the list waiting to see if she was someone’s life-saving match. In 2004, she finally was.

“Her name is Jemma. At the time of her transplant, she was 19-years-old. She is now 36-years-old,” she said.

Jemma Wilson was diagnosed with Leukemia at 14. She received treatment and went into remission before her cancer came back with a vengeance. Jemma needed a bone marrow transplant quickly.

“There was nobody here in the UK, not even one. So that’s when I just started panicking. I’m not going to find a donor, I’m not going to survive,” Wilson said.

Until she was matched with Dot, almost 5,000 miles away.

Dot made the donation on her mother’s birthday and suddenly, Jemma had a future, one she wanted Dot to be a part of.

“I’ll never forget this day in 2018. I received a text message to join Jemma on Skype,” Ward said. “From then to now to this date, we are in touch and we will always be in touch from now on.”

Jemma had one more surprise for Dot. She revealed that one at a dinner honoring donors put on by the South Texas Blood and Tissue Center.

“It was a Skype video from Jemma. Jemma was asking me. Jemma was telling me that she was recently engaged and she would like for me to attend her wedding,” Ward said.

After two years of COVID-19 delays, Dot and Jemma finally met in person.

“It was very emotional, very overwhelming to meet for the very first time,” Ward said.

Days later on March 5th, 2022, Dot watched as Jemma married the love of her life.

“We have the saying where she says, ‘I am you.’ And I was like, ‘and you are me,’” Ward said.

The two are separated by an ocean, but the relationship they created in 2004 has them bonded for life.

“We got along just like sisters. Matter of fact, we are sisters,”

Dot said Jemma has made her the nurse she is today and inspires her to keep doing better.

Registering to become a donor is simple. Follow this link and fill out the questionnaire.

Be The Match will then send you a mouth swab and you’ll be on your way to potentially saving someone in need.

What better way to kick off the spring season than with a free vanilla ice cream cone?

Head to your closest DQ on Monday, March 21, and you can snag just that. The offer is all part of the ice cream chain’s almost yearly tradition, though it was canceled last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The free sweet treat will be available at most DQ locations, minus the restaurants located inside of malls, according to its website.

“Whether your technique is the lick, the lap, the sculpt, the bite, or something uniquely your own, all it takes is a DQ cone in your hand to bring out your special cone-eating artistry. And with DQ Free Cone Day, you can get in on a tradition fit for families of all sizes, kids of all ages, and fans of all things DQ. Cold, creamy, delicious and – best of all – FREE!” the company said in a release.

Each person is limited to one ice cream cone, free of charge. The offer is not valid on delivery or mobile orders.

To learn more about the offer, click here.

Whether you’re looking to take a day trip, or are scouting for your next move across the country, look no further than this Texas city.

According to a survey from Niche.com, it’s the best place to live in the nation this year.

The Woodlands, Texas, is just under four hours away from San Antonio and resides in the Houston-area. With good public schools, a low crime rate and an affordable cost of living, Niche.com says this is the best place for families in the U.S.

Whether you’ve visited The Woodlands before, or if you’re a newcomer, the city offers scenic nature preserves, a waterway trolley, a massive mall and several different restaurants.

The survey’s rankings were based on good public school systems, affordable costs of living, low crime rates and the overall satisfaction from area residents. Niche.com compiled the list after pulling data from the U.S. Department of Education, the Census Bureau, the FBI and public-sentiment polling, according to its website.

Niche.com also took into account local commutes, diversity, health and fitness of residents, housing costs, and more. A total of 50 major cities were ranked, all of which had populations above 100,000.

Other Texas cities made the list as well, including Plano (9), Richardson (12), Austin (25), College Station (27), Round Rock (29) and Irving (40).

To see the full list of best places to live in the U.S. this year, follow this link.

More on KSAT:

San Antonio-New Braunfels metro area weighs in as one of the most obese U.S. cities, study says

Investigators are seeking help from the public to identify vandals who broke into historic churches at San Antonio Missions National Historical Park earlier this month.

Park officials reported that the incidents occurred at Mission Concepcion and Mission San Juan between March 12 and March 17.

The vandals caused “considerable damage” as they gained entry into the San Juan Church and the Concepcion Convento, according to a news release from the park.

They also attempted to break into Concepcion Church, though they were unsuccessful. Instead, the vandals carved names and dates into the church’s entry door.

Tips can be submitted anonymously to the National Park Service. Tipsters can call or text 888-653-0009, email nps_isb@nps.gov or submit a tip online here.

Read more:

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There are a lot of organizations in and around San Antonio working to help the future generations in our community.

The UP Partnership is working to do exactly that but in a unique manner. The goal of the UP Partnership is to ensure all young people across Bexar County are ready for the future.

The group wants to deliver on this plan by coordinating data, aligning pathways and promoting policy change that can help unlock the full potential of our young people, our communities, and our region.

Ryan Lugalia-Hollon, the CEO of UP Partnership, joined Leading SA Sunday to talk about the program, the progress and the future.

“Across all of our partners, we have one shared mission and that’s to ensure all young people in Bexar County are ready for the future. We do not provide any direct services for what’s called the backbone organization, so we support and connect our partners. We work with over 30 local partners, from UTSA and TAMUSA and Alamo Colleges to smaller organizations like Powerhouse and Austin Center. And collectively, they reach about 400,000 young people, which is roughly 70% of our county’s young people,” Lugalia-Hollon said.

Lugalia-Hollon said the UP Partnership is about identifying the problems, recognizing solutions and then building solutions.

“We provide them data and training to strengthen their programs. More recently, we were able to work with the city to get a dedicated $10 million fund out of the ARPA dollars for youth success. Young people have had a really hard time during the pandemic. They’ve been isolated from one another. They’ve fallen back academically. And so, we’re really excited to see the city make that investment in community partners that give those young people the resources they need after school,” Lugalia-Hollon said.

There are also large-scale efforts on the way.

“Future Ready Bexar County will be publicly released on April 28 with over 50 of our partner institutions. And it’s really a response to the pandemic. So our board in April of 2020 launched an equitable recovery pledge to make sure that the inequities that we had and major outcomes like post-secondary enrollment before the pandemic did not get worse and that we could actually use this crisis as a turning point to create a more inclusive Bexar County for all of our young people. So that’s what drove it. And the plan has three big pillars what we consider must-haves,” Lugalia-Hollon said.

Those pillars are clearly defined, according to Lugalia-Hollon.

“That’s healing. All young people need access to the healing to healing supports, especially if they’re struggling emotionally and mentally, and they need access to high quality programs to post-secondary education and ultimately to careers that will give them a living wage. And they need voice. You know, it’s hard to keep up with all of the challenges that young people have been going through and the only way to do that is to listen to them,” Lugalia-Hollon said.

If you want to learn more about the initiative you can find the information here: https://uppartnership.org/.

You can watch the full Leading SA interview with Lugalia-Hollon in the video player above.

Bexar County investigators are trying to figure out what happened to a man who died of a gunshot wound on Sunday.

According to the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office, three witnesses drove the man to University Hospital, where he later died around 5:40 a.m. He has not yet been identified.

Deputies learned that the shooting occurred on the Southwest Side in the 12400 block of Briggs Road.

Investigators have been dispatched to the scene and are gathering statements from witnesses. The case remains under investigation.

Read more:

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We all know eating right and exercising are key to staying healthy. But can flexing our creative muscles help us thrive as we age? Research from the National Institute on Aging suggests participating in the arts may improve not only our physical well-being, but our mental health, as well.

And now, one woman is getting the elderly off their recliners and into ballet class.

This is not your typical ballet class… Fran Hu lets Ivanhoe news know this by saying, “I’m the first in my family to reach 90.”

Hu and her friends are busy learning points and plies in a ballet class made just for them. Vanessa Woods, the Vitality in Motion owner and founder, explains that “The benefits of it are for everyone.”

Woods, a classically trained professional ballerina, wanted seniors to experience the way dancing made her feel physically and emotionally, “It’s not jolting movement, it’s smooth and sustained and graceful.”

With the help of physical and occupational therapists, woods created vitality in motion. Whether done standing or sitting, at a barre or in the water, students here say they notice a difference.

”It’s an art to start with and generally speaking, true ballet has good music.” Martha, who is 82 years old, says.

Lavern, 81-years-old, adds, “This is just a way to keep the body in shape.”

Mary Elizabeth, also 81-years-old says, “It’s different, than the typical exercise, but it does make it interesting.”

Studies show, older adults who participate in dance experience improvements in balance and memory. An NIH study links dance with improving cognitive function.

Woods says everyone can benefit from the ballet basics, most importantly, “Find a time in your day to do some movement, even if it’s just extending your foot out into the air or your wrist, and just gently moving some just gentle range of motion movements are so beneficial.”

Woods wants everyone to realize, it’s never too late to learn and to love to dance.

The physical benefits of dance on aging bodies is well-established but a study out of Massachusetts General in Boston found the joy and social connections formed in a weekly dance class improves energy and mental outlook.

Ten years after vitality in motion began, it now hosts about 300 classes per month. The oldest student is 107 years old.

You can join virtual classes by logging on to vitalityinmotion.com. Contributor(s) to this news report include: Marsha Lewis, Producer; Roque Correa, Videographer and Editor. To receive a free weekly email on Smart Living from Ivanhoe, sign up at: http://www.ivanhoe.com/ftk