Last Wednesday, September 20, students had their first on-campus Wellness Wednesday of the school year, giving them a break from classes to focus on their mental and physical health.
Students arrived at school in free dress at 8:30 a.m., but unlike the usual bell schedule, students were released at 12:00 p.m. There were two rotations of activities; the first rotation from 8:45 a.m. to 10:00 a.m., and the second rotation from 10:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.
In between their two activities, students were able to choose from various snack options, such as an acai bowl, matcha drink or a fruit cup.
This Wellness Wednesday was a great break from the school week and helped both students and staffulty recover from their busy schedules.
A week prior to the event, students filled out a Google Form and ranked their preference of activities from a selection of five stations so they could, hopefully, get to participate in the activity of their choice. The five activities consisted of a yoga class, a sound bath, a silent disco, spa and a petting zoo.
The yoga class was led by a professional instructor in the Small Gym. Not only students, but also staffulty were able to participate in the lesson.
Although many expected the class to be solely for relaxation, many were surprised by the workout that it can be. The instruction began with cardio movements to warm the body, then moved on to typical deep stretch poses. Meditation was also incorporated, whether it was while holding poses or practicing deep exhales and inhales. Any bodily tension was sure to have been released from this activity.
In the Innovation Lab, there was a spa that allowed for students to do self-care activities. Nail polish, face masks, foot masks and hand masks were all provided. The spa gave students time to focus on themselves as they painted their own nails or placed a face mask on. Such self-care had students feeling and looking good simultaneously.
Outside on the front lawn, there was a petting zoo with animals including a pig, goat, several bunnies and two ducks. Upon sight of the animals, students quickly filed into a line, trying to get a spot first. The rotations were two minutes long and girls were invited to pet the animals and, for a select few, pick them up.
The yoga, spa and petting zoo activities were among the most popular choices at first. But, once the day came, many students wanted to also participate in the silent disco and sound bath. The silent disco let students listen and dance to music using headphones in the Father Downey Garden. School Counselor Allan Gargaritano played the DJ and kept an upbeat playlist for all students to jam out to, with hits from Taylor Swift and Bruno Mars.
While students had the ability to dance their hearts out with silent disco, the sound bath was the complete opposite. Led by an instructor in the Moore Pavillion, students laid in a circle on the floor, allowing themselves to get the rest that they have been needing. Many students spent the hour and a half thinking, and some even fell asleep as the instructor simulated therapeutic sounds, such as ocean waves.
Planning for the event began last July, when Head of School Meredith Essalat and Director of Student Life and Leadership Alisia Bergholm decided to emphasize the importance of student mental health and taking time to relax. NDB has so many high achieving and hardworking students, and relaxation can sometimes be forgotten, especially in the beginning of the school year. This day served as a reminder that there are ways to take a break from academics and extracurriculars, whether it is doing yoga or listening to music.
“The goal was to have a well balanced day for students and staffulty, that included fun and relaxing stations, with some delicious healthy snacks and lunch options,” said Bergholm. “I hope that everyone was able to relax, reset and connect.”
NDB’s Associated Student Body (ASB) also helped to accomplish this day for students. Besides communicating all of the information about Wellness Wednesday to the student body, ASB also decided the menu, helped organize the various stations and went around during the day taking pictures and videos to post on social media.
“We all agreed that there needs to be more attention to mental health on campus, and this was the first step in getting there. Everyone seemed to really enjoy the day, I know I did,” said ASB Vice President Caitlin Degnan. “We want to be able to continue doing more activities like this throughout the year and bring more awareness and resources to students for relaxing and minimizing stress loads.”
After entering the fifth week of school and getting into the routine of classes and other responsibilities, a break was already much needed by the student body and the activities provided that break to students.
“There will be another Wellness Wednesday, so stay tuned. We are so excited that everyone had a blast and got to try out fun activities,” said ASB Communications Director Helena Morell.
