By: Joseph Gorres, a Mason student majoring in Communication
“Spring adds new life and new joy to all that is.” – Jessica Harrelson
Are you feeling stressed? Stress is a common challenge for college students. Research from the American Institute of Stress shows that most college students – 80 percent – report feeling high levels of stress. A powerful way to manage stress effectively is to focus on your well-being. Spring into Well-Being, Mason’s annual well-being celebration, offers many ways to do so. This year’s Spring into Well-Being will take place from Monday, April 18 to Friday, April 22 on Mason’s Fairfax campus.
According to Psychology Today, well-being is “the experience of health, happiness, and prosperity. It includes having good mental health, high life satisfaction, a sense of meaning or purpose, and ability to manage stress.” Spring into Well-Being’s events can help you achieve well-being in a diverse variety of ways. Each day will feature a different well-being theme:
- Monday: Kindness
- Tuesday: Physical Health
- Wednesday: Resilience and Strengths
- Thursday: Mental Health
- Friday: Thriving Together (community well-being)
Spring into Well-Being events are free and open to Mason students, Mason employees, and local community members.
As a student who transferred to Mason last semester, I am elated to finally be able to participate in on-campus, in-person events, especially having to do with various aspects of well-being. Online classes and social isolation earlier in the pandemic were difficult to bear. During that time, there was not much social support available, and that can make stress more difficult to manage. All college students are vulnerable to become burned out from stress unless we intentionally pursue well-being. It is a blessing to have well-being resources at Mason to mitigate the effects of stress.
Spring into Well-Being presents the opportunity to learn more about mental and physical health, participate in relaxing and educational events, and enjoy activities as a community and student body. I plan on going to many different Spring into Well-Being events: Be Kind to Yourself, the Kindness Scavenger Hunt, Field Day, Using Strengths for Resilience, Mason Day, and the Spring Picnic. Also, I hope to attend one of the Spring into Well-Being focus groups. That will be a great way to offer feedback and direction for further well-being events planned to benefit Mason students.
For more information about Spring into Well-Being and its events, search SIWB22 in Mason 360 for event details and to register, or go to the Center for the Advancement of Well-Being’s events calendar. Don’t forget to share your experience on social media using the hashtag #SIWB22 in your posts.
Additional Resources
- Visit the Patriots Thriving Together website for quick summaries of Mason’s well-being resources, with links to learn more in-depth information on other Mason sites, such as the Center for the Advancement of Well-Being’s website. Discover which resources are most interesting and helpful for you!
- Visit the Mason Chooses Kindness website for more information related to Monday’s Spring into Well-Being theme of kindness.
- Visit the Mason Recreation website for more information related to Tuesday’s Spring into Well-Being theme of physical health.
- Visit the Resilience Badge webpage and the Strengths Academy website for more information related to Wednesday’s Spring into Well-Being theme of resilience and strengths.
- Visit the Counseling and Psychological Services’ website for more information related to Thursday’s Spring into Well-Being theme of mental health.
- Visit the Student Involvement website for more information related to Friday’s Spring into Well-Being theme of community.
Write one of these Thriving Together Series features! We’re looking for contributions on all topics related to well-being. Read other Thriving Together Series articles here and contact us at cwb@gmu.edu for guidelines. Thank you for helping our Mason community thrive together online!
