Nov 1, 2021 | Feature, News, Sports |
By Paige Lusczyk, contributing writer
The Well-Being Committee has created an eight-week program, Wellness Weeks, promoting wellbeing in five main categories: physical, social, emotional, occupational, and nutritional. Open registration began on Sept. 27 and will run until Nov. 21. Going into week three of the program, registration is still offered to any students, faculty, or staff.
Unlike last semester’s Wellness Challenge, Wellness Weeks follows a more personal path in accomplishing goals. The Wellness Challenge drew in people who were more social and competitive as you could compare your wellbeing score. Wellness Weeks still has a weekly raffle and a grand prize raffle as an extra incentive.
“[The Well-Being Committee] wanted to focus a lot more on the individual,” the Chair of the Well-Being Committee, Ben White said.
The Wellness Weeks program has the person fill out a long-term goal according to one to five of the categories that they want to better in. The program structures around the layout of S.M.A.R.T. goals (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound) with one larger goal with smaller goals leading up to it.
Some long term goals like social or emotional goals are not always measurable and do not exactly follow the S.M.A.R.T. goals layout. “They are not really judged. [the Well-Being Committee] are really leaving it up to the participants,” White said.
It is mentioned in the form that any unhealthy goals like losing too much weight in a short period of time will be addressed but White stated that “[the Well-Being Committee] didn’t have to reach out to anyone” and White was “really really happy with what people came up with.”
The Well-Being Committee checks in with those who have registered every Monday to see if they completed their weekly goal and put them into the raffle for the week. The prizes include $25 gift cards to local businesses, Mainely Outdoor Gear Rental, and a Fitness Design from the FRC. There are two grand prizes valuing up to $100.
White realized there were a lot of ways that UMF’s community could advance their wellbeing. White created these programs and the Well-Being Committee to create such opportunities and give the community an extra boost of support.
“Times are hard for a lot of people right now and engaging in well-being practices and activities can help people in a lot of different ways that I view that they could use some help,” White said.
Being part of the UMF community is not just about getting a degree or working. It is important to also ask “were they happy? did they thrive?” White said. “I wanted to contribute to that portion.”
Wellness Weeks will continue to accept new participants. The registration form can be found on MyCampus → Campus Life → Wellbeing. All information will be forwarded to late participants so they are caught up to speed. The only downside to starting late is the possibility of not being entered into the grand prize raffle.
The Well-Being Committee is currently looking for student representatives as well to bring new ideas for future programs. Please reach out to umfwellbeing@maine.edu if you are interested.
Nov 1, 2021 | Feature, News, Opinion |
By Angie Tehuitzil Corral, Staff Writer.
Reward yourself. It’s not selfish, it’s necessary! We are already into the second half of the semester, giving time for the stress to build up. College students often put too much pressure on themselves, which prevents them from taking an interest in their mental and physical health. However, this can easily be fixed by including self-rewards to help students stay in complete control and provide appropriate incentives to finish work properly.
Gretchen Rubin is an author who has written several books about finding ways to live happier. One of her most popular books is “Better Than Before”, in which she emphasizes the importance of rewarding yourself. She states that “in the chaos of everyday life, it’s easy to lose sight of what matters, and [one] can use habits to make sure that [one’s] life reflects [their] values”.
Rubin asserts that many college students fall into this endless cycle of stress as they always focus on everything else and forget to care for the body and the mind.
Examples of reward methods that might stick:
Go outside. It’s mid-October, yet we are still experiencing sunny and beautiful Autumn days, which is uncommon for this time in Maine. So take advantage and appreciate it by going out and spending some time alone with nature. A quick walk to release the stress, going to the Sandy River, going on a hike, or getting a mat for some yoga outside are all good options.
Take some time to make a good homemade meal. Being in a time crunch, especially in college, means not always having time to fuel your body adequately, so many students will end up grabbing anything on the go. And let’s be honest. Ramen is not so good when eaten three times a day. So instead, prepare something tasteful and nourishing that will fill you up with energy for the day.
Take a nap; you’re staying up all night doing endless amounts of homework. So, after class, sprint back to your room and sleep! Now, this doesn’t have to be a five-hour nap, but simply getting 15 min is all you need for a quick recharge that will help you focus.
Self-rewards are not limited, and it’s all about what works for you. These are even some examples UMF students asserted they like to do:
“I like to meditate or blast out music” – Ali Phair.
“Sometimes, I’ll usually just go back home and enjoy drinking a cup of tea” -Sylvie Haslam.
“Take some time out of my day to go out with friends and shoot some hoops”- William Harryman.
Meanwhile, Professor Blossom, a psychology professor at UMF, stressed the importance of self-reward for college students as students typically take mental health for granted. “Self-reward is important so that we can take the time to notice our accomplishments and reinforce ourselves for persevering.” Blossom said.
Most students are always busy finishing their workload, and so students struggle to find time for themselves. But including self-rewards allows us to uplift our motivation to generate better outcomes, because you can’t expect so much from yourself without giving yourself anything.
So, next time you’re on the borderline of feeling stressed, take a deep breath and relieve it by starting to practice a self-rewarding method that works for you.
Oct 18, 2021 | Exclusive, Feature |
By Paige Lusczyk, Contributing Writer
The Well-Being Committee has created an eight-week program, Wellness Weeks, promoting wellbeing in five main categories: physical, social, emotional, occupational, and nutritional. Open registration began on Sept. 27 and will run until Nov. 21. Going into week three of the program, registration is still offered to any students, faculty, or staff.
Unlike last semester’s Wellness Challenge, Wellness Weeks follows a more personal path in accomplishing goals. The Wellness Challenge drew in people who were more social and competitive as you could compare your wellbeing score. Wellness Weeks still has a weekly raffle and a grand prize raffle as an extra incentive.
“[The Well-Being Committee] wanted to focus a lot more on the individual,” the Chair of the Well-Being Committee, Ben White said.
The Wellness Weeks program has the person fill out a long-term goal according to one to five of the categories that they want to better in. The program structures around the layout of S.M.A.R.T. goals (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound) with one larger goal with smaller goals leading up to it.
Some long term goals like social or emotional goals are not always measurable and do not exactly follow the S.M.A.R.T. goals layout. “They are not really judged. [the Well-Being Committee] are really leaving it up to the participants,” White said.
It is mentioned in the form that any unhealthy goals like losing too much weight in a short period of time will be addressed but White stated that “[the Well-Being Committee] didn’t have to reach out to anyone” and White was “really really happy with what people came up with.”
The Well-Being Committee checks in with those who have registered every Monday to see if they completed their weekly goal and put them into the raffle for the week. The prizes include $25 gift cards to local businesses, Mainely Outdoor Gear Rental, and a Fitness Design from the FRC. There are two grand prizes valuing up to $100.
White realized there were a lot of ways that UMF’s community could advance their wellbeing. White created these programs and the Well-Being Committee to create such opportunities and give the community an extra boost of support.
“Times are hard for a lot of people right now and engaging in well-being practices and activities can help people in a lot of different ways that I view that they could use some help,” White said.
Being part of the UMF community is not just about getting a degree or working. It is important to also ask “were they happy? did they thrive?” White said. “I wanted to contribute to that portion.”
Wellness Weeks will continue to accept new participants. The registration form can be found on MyCampus → Campus Life → Wellbeing. All information will be forwarded to late participants so they are caught up to speed. The only downside to starting late is the possibility of not being entered into the grand prize raffle.
The Well-Being Committee is currently looking for student representatives as well to bring new ideas for future programs. Please reach out to umfwellbeing@maine.edu if you are interested.
