[{"_1":2,"_98":-5,"_99":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,74,86],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":44,"_46":47,"_48":49,"_50":51,"_52":53,"_54":55,"_56":57,"_58":59,"_60":61,"_62":63,"_64":65,"_66":67,"_68":69,"_70":67,"_71":72,"_73":72},"mediaId",6273946,"mediaKeyId","2996982-cba4a678947627b5cd723be37f7a5ce7","parentId",2996982,"title","Living Art program promotes healing through arts and nature in Missoula","audioSeconds",0,"startMs",2977885,"endMs","viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2996982-cba4a678947627b5cd723be37f7a5ce7&start=2977&end=2977","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2996982-cba4a678947627b5cd723be37f7a5ce7/thumbnail_2977885.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6273946/Missoula/Missoula-County/Montana/Living-Art-program-promotes-healing-through-arts-and-nature-in-Missoula","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6273946-fb947da6117dc5c57adf7611c768b4ff/orig.mp4?Expires=1771204380&Signature=JykppQz2qFXWBWEQBxGkOIMw1EtPDCzf0E1i3ZzEmFbjgGHdLP3Sw9AJcb~vBKGJWlLO-VvfRWF-G~kCz7weKIf5qXX~gKdIB24UTCn-5cyLvGz-Hoo8UKDVy3Ubm963NCNpQvpet1Gtf~qnkIXqSSkwg7RD2Et~qGsAiTHD6UfLPmMTkTlIVJOf~CwbKLvXvkv1URqzZ~m~wjra0LL~UGJcb~5A8QWt~02fTTQJUTQpMn4gh9ZI7yNEqEo6ScsuXHwYYVjCgLcV7GcLqFmXquoRFpY5tTbpsAuLbJ68Q6ipUDer2WMzQUSVvKgOedRlf8oXVvj0DZX4sTdWd5-wvA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","City of Missoula, MT","date","2025-04-15T18:22:07Z","article","Yupa Stein, director of Living Art in Missoula, told a hospital women's health audience that the nonprofit uses arts and nature-based experiences to support people facing illness, loss and caregiving stress.

\"We believe that the arts and our relationship to the natural world are essential to our wellness,\" Stein said. She described programs that help participants access strengths and deepen relationships to themselves and others through art-making and nature connection.

Stein introduced a monthly drop-in poetry workshop that Living Art launched in February 2004 and praised facilitators Beth Farris and Judith Johnson. Participant Sheila Weishauer read a short personal poem about recovery and creative practice and credited the workshop with giving a safe place to express pain and build strength.

Organizer Beth Shank, a facilitator of women's health at a psychiatric hospital, announced a series of upcoming health lectures tied to the community program: Deb Seidbrand, a physician assistant in cardiology at the International Heart Institute of Montana, is scheduled to speak on women's heart health in February; and Dr. Judy Bisher, a family practice physician at the Western Montana Clinic, is scheduled for a March 15, 2007 talk on weight management. Shank gave times and a venue for in-person attendance at St. Patrick Hospital's Broadway Building.

The Living Art presentation framed arts programming as an adjunct to clinical care and community support, with volunteers and monthly classes intended to reach a wide age range, from children to older adults.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Wisdom for Women #1","oneSentenceSummary","Living Art director Yupa Stein described monthly drop-in poetry workshops and arts programming to support people facing illness and loss; a participant read an original poem and staff announced upcoming health-related talks at St. Patrick Hospital.","taxTitle","Missoula, Missoula County, Montana","taxId",4050,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":75,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":76,"_41":77,"_43":78,"_45":79,"_46":80,"_48":81,"_50":82,"_52":83,"_54":55,"_56":57,"_58":84,"_60":61,"_62":63,"_64":85,"_66":67,"_68":69,"_70":67,"_71":72,"_73":72},6273950,"Montana Meth Project presenter warns of rising meth use among Missoula women and teens",1634,1362270,2997015,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2996982-cba4a678947627b5cd723be37f7a5ce7&start=1362&end=2997","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2996982-cba4a678947627b5cd723be37f7a5ce7/thumbnail_1362270.jpg","/articles/6273950/Missoula/Missoula-County/Montana/Montana-Meth-Project-presenter-warns-of-rising-meth-use-among-Missoula-women-and-teens","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6273950-0cfe4332cf1f7be9b4b60baf5a35ab26/orig.mp4?Expires=1771204380&Signature=O39OF1iNriSQ4Hl09SCh22ZD8QhFy3XdK4RKCEwKuL8jEdVqY6TJO8PCNAgEPZX445BUzvxJktY~7VDA86cqCOwrmtrh9GdU0KLzVyVdzpgWlRgCKWrZVMafJJcA~pbPDIjR54JnBbz9nRHHFHmThf5Dx2tjn6SKqqgFM5zqqZaWO-7oSk9GS8SzXbOQu0HG6wHvYlwgMTM86RFbZ0KVhGKZOhkopwYBA5u4-SSqp0ISALxnxcWF0FxhUwm2HvxQl2qJj5i53MOx6G2GVnGRqXJV87pMVwGmKfYWU2J8Z9xpMUqHABkZ9UzzfK7mcecUuEhUE-wgi4p~4p9T6oP0Dg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Paige Shea, executive director of the Montana Meth Project, told a Missoula audience that methamphetamine availability and addiction have risen in Montana and urged prevention, public education and expanded treatment capacity.

Shea described methamphetamine as \"a powerful central nervous system stimulant that strongly activates multiple systems in the brain,\" and explained that the drug's manufacturing, distribution and pharmacologic effects have produced a rapid rise in addiction and related harms across rural parts of the state.

Key local data Shea cited: treatment admissions for women with meth problems rose more than 50 percent between February 2002 and February 2004; about 85 percent of women in a recent state prison report had a recent history of meth use; and in a state survey roughly 41 percent of Montana teenagers (age 12'17) said methamphetamine was easy to obtain. She said about 52 percent of children in foster care in Montana were placed because of parental meth problems in a recent report she referenced.

Shea described cognitive and psychiatric harms from meth use, including severe dopamine surges in the brain that she compared with natural rewards. She cited a laboratory comparison showing dopamine release measures that were hundreds of times larger for meth than for natural rewards and said the drug can act as a neurotoxin, producing cognitive impairments similar to traumatic brain injury.

On prevention, Shea outlined the Montana Meth Project's media campaign aimed at teens and parents. The campaign uses real Montana youths in radio and television messages and seeks to reduce perceived benefits of meth use and increase parent'child conversations. Shea cited survey results the project tracked: an increase in the share of teens saying meth \"does not make you popular\" (reported as rising from roughly 73 percent to 87 percent in campaign-targeted measures) and a 44 percent increase in parent'teen discussions about meth in the period surveyed.

Shea also discussed treatment challenges: relapse rates are high, treatment can take years, and she recommended long-term support, noting that recovery-related symptoms such as sleep disturbance and cognitive difficulties can reappear six months after initial abstinence. She described residential options in Missoula for women with children (Carol Graham Home) and called for more treatment resources and ongoing prevention work.

Shea traced meth's arrival in rural Montana to changes in precursor access, cross-border supply chains and the economics of distribution, and said that while manufacturing shifted away from local small labs after changes in pseudoephedrine regulations, supply and demand keep meth in rural communities. \"We need to create an environment in the state where the majority of our kids say, 'That's a bad drug,'\" she said.

The presentation included descriptions of survey methodology and dates (surveys cited were conducted in February of multiple years and comparisons referenced data from 2002 and 2004). Shea said the Montana Meth Project focuses on prevention campaigns statewide and recruits volunteers to support local outreach.","Paige Shea of the Montana Meth Project told a Missoula audience that methamphetamine availability and use are widespread locally, cited treatment and foster-care statistics, and described a prevention media campaign aimed at reducing youth use and increasing parent-child conversations.",{"_33":87,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":88,"_41":89,"_43":90,"_45":91,"_46":92,"_48":93,"_50":94,"_52":95,"_54":55,"_56":57,"_58":96,"_60":61,"_62":63,"_64":97,"_66":67,"_68":69,"_70":67,"_71":72,"_73":72},6273955,"Missoula physician demystifies menopause, urges individualized decisions on hormone use",1090,24994,1115760,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2996982-cba4a678947627b5cd723be37f7a5ce7&start=24&end=1115","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2996982-cba4a678947627b5cd723be37f7a5ce7/thumbnail_24994.jpg","/articles/6273955/Missoula/Missoula-County/Montana/Missoula-physician-demystifies-menopause-urges-individualized-decisions-on-hormone-use","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6273955-235e15dd6518caefce6c1790238f1916/orig.mp4?Expires=1771204381&Signature=Vw9n6UgxY~SXTCGqwjdXRmlS5MJUHtlPM00po~b~jIGoPtaQ6d9cRIOwNmMfRNWjFyk7ny34wlbKnzUlIfptlY2iTLE74komRmKgmHl6b64J0l7oN5w2Rw-It5a20y2XDnETKaGPOoA~naq943lMF~4ks91dCI83AVTk9zagxuI7yXmdbTu23DQuCa6PU3-KxOoiSnUO6Q1WbNKmlEpXvf0tqyPZzcL-b45O0uVYs1YuWGH~LAcSndYdTd0M8g28JUaZ6RbsY-WaxAXIFPleft4BBKcDuRBYxWYEVrMYSXOr9wcLHo-Fqghvlj9ZlQzZw-prZxtnC6L8QKQ7XERSzA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Dr. Anne Murphy, a physician speaking at a Missoula women's health event, told attendees that the most disruptive symptoms occur during perimenopause and urged women and clinicians to tailor treatment to symptoms, personal and family history, and stage of transition.

Murphy said perimenopause commonly lasts three to seven years before the last period, and that the average onset of perimenopausal symptoms is about age 47 but the normal range runs roughly 40 to 55. \"With a little common sense and guidance, you really aren't gonna do this wrong,\" she told the audience.

Why this matters: confusion about menopause treatments has risen after decades of shifting advice about hormone replacement. Murphy cited the Women's Health Initiative (WHI), a large randomized study, as the best long-term evidence available and said it changed clinical practice by showing increased risks associated with some hormone regimens.

Murphy summarized clinical guidance from her 23 years of practice: rely on symptom reporting rather than single hormone blood or saliva tests during perimenopause because hormone levels fluctuate; reassess treatment choices every six to 12 months; and consider nonhormonal options for mood and cognitive symptoms. She said antidepressants frequently provide better relief than hormones for mood and some cognitive complaints, and that many sleep medicines can be used short term without long-term dependence.

On hormone therapy, Murphy described key WHI results she presented: the combined estrogen-progestin product studied (Prempro) was associated with an increased incidence of breast cancer, heart attack and stroke, while estrogen alone (used in women without a uterus) showed a smaller increased risk of stroke but not of breast cancer or heart attack. \"There's no one right or wrong answer to this question,\" she said, emphasizing individualized risk assessment and regular monitoring, including bone-density checks, lipid profiles and mammography for women using hormones long term.

Murphy warned against assuming unstudied bioidentical or topical hormone preparations are safer than the WHI-tested products: \"There's no reason to assume that.\" She advised that decisions about continuing hormone therapy should be revisited if personal or family circumstances change, for example if a close relative develops breast cancer.

She also noted that postmenopausal vaginal dryness is commonly treatable with topical therapies that have less systemic exposure than systemic estrogen, and that many menopausal symptoms are temporary: \"The menopause is actually a time of fewer symptoms than is the perimenopause,\" she said.

Murphy closed by stressing quality-of-life considerations and annual clinical follow-up during the transition.

Acknowledgments and sources: Murphy referred repeatedly to the Women's Health Initiative during her remarks and described its design and implications for long-term estrogen use.","Dr. Anne Murphy told a Missoula women's health audience that perimenopause is often the most symptomatic period, hormone therapy decisions should be individualized and re-evaluated yearly, and that the Women's Health Initiative remains the key long-term study guiding risk assessments for estrogen therapy.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Living Art program promotes healing through arts and nature in Missoula

Montana Meth Project presenter warns of rising meth use among Missoula women and teens

Missoula physician demystifies menopause, urges individualized decisions on hormone use