In these “trying” and “unprecedented” times, we are all trying to do our best in the midst of constant, harrowing news about the pandemic. UMass Amherst has tried to implement Wellness Wednesdays to allow students some kind of reprieve, but they’ve become a source of major resentment, at least for me. With no holidays, no breaks, and a compacted semester, I feel like my classmates and I are hanging on by a thread. The daily FaceTime’s I have with my friends consist of abysmal things like, “I wish I had something to look forward to”. The University’s Wellness Wednesdays feel like a joke at times, with professors requiring work due the day after and so much work anyways that the whole day is spent playing catch up. They are spread so far apart in the semester, and we only have two of them. They offer no real support nor reprieve from this class schedule; however, there has been a light at the end of the tunnel.
One of my favorite things about being a member of Her Campus is the community. The work that we do doesn’t require us to become as close-knit as we are, so I like to think that Her Campus at UMass is unique in how we’ve cultivated such a supportive group. With our new Wellness Director, Meghan Buschini, and our subsequent GroupMe chat, Her Wellness, I feel like things are almost normal. Last week I finally was able to reschedule a shift at my job to attend a Wellness Check-In, and I loved it! We talked about journaling, the pandemic, our emotional states, and Meg led a wonderful guided meditation. I was so annoyed I hadn’t attended one sooner! I nearly started to cry during the meditation when Meg told us, “Give yourself permission to be here mentally”. It has been non-stop with online school, working, and trying to be Covid-conscious, and hearing someone tell us to give ourselves permission to let go for a moment was overwhelming. It created such a safe and comfortable space for us to talk candidly with each other and let our guards down. We ended the night just chatting on a lighter note, and I felt SO much better afterward!
There are so many other events that Her Campus at UMass holds, like Coffee Hour, Mocktail Hour, and Trivia Nights that bring us together despite us not being together physically. Overall, I really enjoy being a member of Her Campus, and will need to start reorganizing my schedule to attend more events!