Our campus celebrities during Her Campus Western Ontario’s Mental Health Awareness Week are Basmah El-Aloul and Alyssa Podrebarac, creators of the #WellnessWednesday Campaign, a year-long initiative at Western that promotes mental health and well-being. Basmah, a London native, is Vice-President Academic of the Science Students’ Council, the council responsible for holding and developing the #WellnessWednesday Campaign. After graduating from her undergrad this year, Basmah hopes to continue her studies in medicine as well as epidemiology. Co-founder of the initiative, SSC’s Student Support Commissioner Alyssa Podrebarac, is from Stoney Creek Ontario. With three years of undegraduate studies under her belt, Alyssa is working towards her goal of becoming a dental professional. Get to know the creators of this initiative and how you can get involved with #WellnessWednesday!
Photo by Mauricio Diaz
Why did you decide to come to Western?
Basmah: “As someone who has lived in London for the majority of my life, I was ready for a new city when it came time to apply for universities. However, I had the opportunity to participate in a cooperative education program in my senior year of high school, which paired me up with a researcher in the Department of Physiology & Pharmacology here at Western. Not only was it a great introduction into my area of study, but spending my afternoons during the week on campus and interacting with current students made me fall in love with Western. I actually accepted my offer to Western at the last possible minute because it was not my original plan, however I am confident saying that it was one of the best decisions I’ve made and the past (almost) 4 years have been incredible!”
Alyssa:“In contrast to Basmah, my heart has been set on this school from day one. I initially fell in love with the gorgeous campus but that love soon extended to the community and student experience that Western prides itself on. From the first time I set foot on Western Campus I felt safe and this institution has provided me with unique and enriching opportunities that I don’t believe any other school could. I’m not sure if I’ll ever be able to say goodbye this place!”
In a nutshell, tell us what #WellnessWednesday is. “The #WellnessWednesday Campaign is a campus-wide, yearlong initiative to promote mental health and wellbeing among students at Western. We strive to provide students with a weekly reminder to take care of themselves and to educate students about the mental health and wellness resources available here at Western. Our goal is dissolve the stigma surrounding mental health, start a dialogue and bring mental health issues to the forefront so that students no longer have to suffer in silence.” Photo by Mauricio Diaz
Where did the idea for #WellnessWednesday stem from?Basmah: “Alyssa’s position on the Science Students’ Council (Student Support Commissioner) is actually in its infancy. In the past, mental health and wellness was not necessarily a priority for the Science Students’ Council. However, we are all aware that students are often faced with stressors both inside and outside the classroom that may challenge wellbeing and impact learning. Coming into the role of Vice-President Academic, I knew that mental health is not an issue that can be ignored when it comes to promoting an environment that fosters learning and academic success. With that in mind, the Student Support portfolio was added to Council in March 2014 with the goal of promoting a community that enhances student wellbeing, mental health and academic success within the Faculty of Science.”
Alyssa:“When I discovered the newly available position of Student Support Commissioner, I was immediately inspired to pursue my passion for mental health. Being the sole successful applicant, I was excited to establish this position as an integral part of the Science Students’ Council and lay the groundwork for future success. A focal point of my platform was to facilitate a Mental Health Symposium, a week-long event to promote awareness and wellbeing within the faculty, but that idea came to take on a different shape than I had initially envisioned. We originally planned to host a mental health awareness week, however we knew that a week was not enough to create the change we desired. The idea of the #WellnessWednesday Campaign definitely came as a light-bulb moment. We wanted to spread the initiative across the entire school year so that students have a constant reminder to take care of themselves, especially during high-stress times such as midterm season. The vision behind the campaign was to host events that would allow students to take study breaks (a lot of our events take place in Taylor Library!), or initiatives, such as handing out exam care packages, to put a smile on students’ faces, but to also include an educational component each week that reminds students of the plethora of resources available to them.”Fun fact: #WellnessWednesday was only intended to be the working title of the campaign until we came up with a different name. At the time, we weren’t sure that Wednesday was even going to be the day! Photo by Mauricio Diaz
Was there any personal motivation that went into the creation of the initiative?Basmah:“If you don’t personally suffer from a mental health disorder or illness, whether you know it or not, it’s likely that a friend, family member or classmate that you know does. An important aspect of this campaign is that it is not only for students facing a challenge related to their mental health. It’s for everyone, because it’s important to be mindful and supportive of those around you. It’s essential to provide students with the basic knowledge to know when to ask for help or to be able to help a friend. For me, knowing that this initiative has potential to prevent someone from suffering in silence was enough motivation.”
Alyssa:“I was been involved in the mental health awareness movement since I was in high school. There I was a student leader for the iMATTER: Taking Care of Teen Mental Health program. We used this training module to educate grade nine students on the stigmas associated with mental health and as a means of starting a dialogue on the subject. When I was as young as 16, I attended conferences and facilitated this mental health program for educators across my school district who were interested in adopting it. The creation of the #WellnessWednesday campaign allowed to me continue in the fight against mental health and I am eternally grateful for receiving this opportunity.” Photo by Mauricio Diaz
How did you go about getting the idea for the initiative to actually setting it into motion? “We like to think that we are still in the process of setting this initiative into motion, because we see a lot of potential for the campaign to grow. We started off by consulting various individuals such as academic counseling staff, Emily Addison (the University Students’ Council’s VP Internal), Science Soph Team, and other Western leaders involved in promoting the wellbeing of students. Their advice and support along the way has played a major role in the success of the campaign. We regularly run focus groups at our Student Support Committee Meetings to identify issues and explore new ways to address them through the campaign. We have an incredible Student Support Committee, which is the foundation of everything we do. They are the masterminds, event planners, and marketing team behind all things #WellnessWednesday and we are incredibly lucky and thankful to have them!”
What do you hope will be the greatest outcome of #WellnessWednesday? “At the end of the day, if we were able to put a smile on someone’s face that wasn’t having the brightest day, then we’ll be able to call this campaign a success. We recognize the fact that a taking study break for art therapy or receiving an exam care package, is likely not the resolution to a mental health challenge a student is facing. However, our goal is to promote a supportive and accepting environment among students—an environment where students feel comfortable seeking help when they need it. We hope that the end result of this campaign is we were able to remind students that they are not alone, that there is always someone willing to listen, and to build a stronger sense of community among students.
What has been your favourite activity so far?
Basmah: “We recently hosted a D.I.Y. Day where students had the chance to take a study break in Taylor Library and decorate a mug with Sharpies!”
Alyssa:“I would have to say the Art Therapy session we held at Taylor Library. It gave students a means of expressing themselves and exploring talents they may have not known they had.” Photo by Mauricio Diaz
Photo by Mauricio Diaz
Any special plans in the works for Wednesdays in the new year? “Students-at-large are also constantly coming to us with suggestions of events and initiatives that they would like to see happen on #WellnessWednesday. We love this because we truly want to make this a campaign by students for students. We are hoping to incorporate as many of their ideas as possible into the campaign. We are definitely striving to create a variety of different types of events as well, to ensure that there is something for everyone! We will be releasing our upcoming events soon! Students can stay posted by following The Science Students’ Council on Instagram or Twitter (@westernssc), as well as Facebook.com/westernssc.“