WELLNESS MELA

On account of Mental Health Month – Oct 2023, the Department of Clinical Psychology and Counselling & Career Development Centre (CCDC) in collaboration with Department of Psychology, Department of Fine Arts and Department of Home Science organized a Wellness Mela. There were different kind of stalls focusing on mental health and physical health put up in the IISU Lawns for students and staff members of the university.

• Nutrition Check: The Home Science Department placed stall promoting physical health by providing a Nutrition check to the visitors. It included their BMI check along with the nutrition levels. The volunteers of the stall also provided health tips and diet charts to the visitors who enquired about the same.

The trainees of Professional Diploma in Clinical Psychology (PDCP) placed stalls which exhibited understanding of Mental Health.

• Mental Health Check: There was a Mental Health Check Counter where the visitors answered a set of items based on a psychological tool which would assess their mental health. And if any student scored low on mental health, then a one on one counselling session was provided by the PDCP trainees and if any student wished to continue their sessions, then they were advised to visit the Counselling and Career Development Centre (CCDC) for appointments.
• Wellness Bingo: A Wellness Bingo was put up wherein the visitors would fill in a bingo which consisted of different physical and mental activities which catered to an individual’s well-being. The participant selected the activities which they practiced and if they get a Bingo they would be appreciated and also could get their picture clicked with their bingo sheets. The volunteers of the stall also oriented visitors about different physical and mental tasks and activities which would enhance their wellbeing and how these small acts could help in achieving good mental and physical health. 
•  Emotional Wheel- Another stall had an Emotional Wheel which contained different human emotions. The visitors were required to flick the anchor of the wheel and the particular emotion on which it stopped was explained in detailed by the PDCP trainee. The visitors were also oriented about the range and types of different emotions, how emotions affect day to day life, how to identify which emotion a person in experiencing and how these emotions play a major role in an individual’s mental and physical health.
• Appreciate yourself jar- A jar containing chits of paper was kept in which the visitors were asked to write something about themselves that they cherish about themselves. Further they were also requested to read that appreciation note and compliment themselves in front of a mirror that was provided at the stall. The activity helped in boosting self-esteem in individuals and by doing this task they achieved a positive self-reflection.                                     The visitors could also get a picture clicked with their appreciation note.
• What is Therapeutic for You- There was a board set up titled What is Therapeutic for You on which students and faculty members wrote acts, habits or any kind of activity that they practice at time of stress or as a buffer. The activity helped in providing insight that small activities like listening to music, going for a walk, cooking etc. can really help an individual at time of stress or to take a break. These therapeutic acts also aid in maintaining a good mental health.
• Food Stalls and Photo Booth – As food and nutrition are important part of both physical and mental health, the food stalls of Wellness Mela had different healthy snack items for students and faculty members. This depicted that sometime enjoying simple and healthy snacks can lead to a better mental health as well as a good physical health. The individuals who visited the stall enjoyed having tasty snacks. The Photo Booth contained positive quotes and cut outs of different movies where the students and faculty members could get their pictures clicked. This stall provided an insight that sometimes watching a good movie can help in maintaining a good mental health.

• Mandala Art, Free Hugs and Complimenting oneself – The Department of Psychology had put up a stall on Mandala Art. The students and faculty members were asked to fill in the mandala art sheets which helped them to process and release emotions, providing a safe and non-judgmental outlet for self-reflection. A Free Hugs counter was also put up wherein a student from dept. was standing there, the hugs were meant to be random acts of kindness, selfless acts performed just to make others feel better. This in turn helps in promoting a good mental health.

The main focus of the Wellness Mela 2023 was on creating awareness and understanding that achieving Mental Health is possible with small steps like understanding self (Self Awareness) and practicing small activities like coloring, eating healthy foods, being physically active etc.

Feedback report of the event:

The collaborative efforts and enthusiasm of various departments which came together for the “Mental Health day – Wellness Mela 2023” resulted in a huge success in promoting Mental health and how it can be achieved through taking care of physical health and engaging in recreational activities. The students and staff members who visited the stalls provided a positive feedback to the activities organized and participated in the activities with zest.