Workshops and Groups
Professional staff in the Student Wellness Centre offer psychoeducational workshops and groups to provide additional support to student and offer practical tips to increase resilience, manage stress and develop stronger coping skills.
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Ride the Wave
About Ride the Wave
Ride the Waves of student life with our skill-building workshops designed to offer useful tips for increasing resilience, managing stress, and developing skills to cope with the turbulence of life. On the Waterloo campus, workshops are held in the Wellness Education Centre and delivered by Student Wellness Centre counselling staff. On the Brantford campus, workshops are held in the first floor boardroom of the Student Wellness Centre.
Ride the Wave workshops are free for all registered students, and registration is not required, with two exceptions: to attend Mediation with Muse or Exam and Performance Anxiety, you must register ahead of time by emailing Nathan Reeve. All other workshops can be attended on a drop-in basis, but you are welcome to pre-register for any workshop.
For more information, or to give us feedback, email wellness@wlu.ca.
Workshops
Ride the Wave workshops run on Tuesdays at 2:30 p.m. and Wednesday at 11 a.m. on the Waterloo campus.
* Indicates sessions that require pre-registration.
September 17/18: Power of Connections
This workshop addresses the importance of building systems of support, especially when transitioning to university life. It will also discuss how to identify and refer a friend in distress.
September 24/25: Roommate Communication and Conflict Resolution
This workshop addresses some of the common disputes and communication issues that can arise between roommates. Students will learn ways to communicate efficiently, and develop skills for handling conflict effectively. Students will learn practical communication techniques that can be applied to roommate relationships, as well as other relationships in their lives.
Oct. 1/2: Social Media and Mental Health
In this workshop, we will discuss how social media can impact mental health, ways to set boundaries on social media use, and healthier ways of thinking about the role of social media in our lives.
Oct. 8/9: Coping with Difficulty for Thrive Week
Everyone experiences times when challenges build up and overwhelm. This workshop offers simple but effective strategies to help you develop distress tolerance skills in order to cope when times get tough.
Oct. 22/23: Food and Your Mood
The food we eat impacts our physical health and our mental wellness. Learn tips for eating well, managing emotional eating, and preventing yourself from becoming “hangry.”
Oct. 29/30: Consent and Healthy Relationships
Healthy relationships are essential to wellness. Join us to talk about respectful relationships, how to maintain wellness within them, and how to cope if they end. We will also discuss having positive conversations about consent and the importance of personal boundaries.
Nov. 5/6: Meditation Made Easy with Muse*
Muse meditation involves the use of headbands that use electroencephalography (EEG) to detect electrical activity in your brain and guide your meditation session through auditory feedback. Muse headbands will be provided for use during the session, and pre-registration for this workshop is required. Bring your mobile device and headphones.
Nov. 12/13: Emotional Regulation
Join us to talk about strategies to increase resilience, awareness, and emotional control.
Nov. 19/20: Immunization Awareness
There’s no workshop this week, but drop by anyway and get your flu shot!
Nov. 26/27: Exam and Performance Anxiety*
Learn ways to handle performance anxiety, improve your mental game, and find inner calm during midterms and exams.
The Anxiety Group
On the Waterloo campus, we are offering drop-in, skill-building modules free for all registered students. The four topics will rotate weekly, and registration is not required. You can attend any or all of the modules in any order you want:
Anxiety: What is It, and How Does it Affect You?
Do you ever think you have more anxiety than other people? Find out why and learn skills to fight anxiety over the long-term.
Calming and Coping Skills
As if it’s that easy to just relax! Learn what to do and when to try relaxation strategies to help make you feel less stress and tension in your daily life.
Facing Your Anxiety Fears
Learn to avoid avoidance: how our behaviours can make anxiety worse and the surprising way to get it to leave you alone
Managing Your Anxious Thoughts
Our thoughts matter! Learn ways your thoughts can change how you feel and influence what you do. Turn thought into your ally instead of your enemy.
Workshops
Anxiety modules run on Mondays at 2:30 p.m. and Tuesdays at 10:30 a.m. on the Waterloo campus.
September 16/17: Anxiety: What Is It, and How Does It Affect You?
September 23/24: Calming and Coping Skills
September 30 / Octpber 1: Facing Your Anxiety Fears
October 7/8: Managing Your Anxious Thoughts
October 21/22: Anxiety: What Is It, and How Does It Affect You?
October 28/29: Calming and Coping Skills
November 4/5: Facing Your Anxiety Fears
November 11/12: Managing Your Anxious Thoughts
November 18/19: Anxiety: What Is It, and How Does It Affect You?
November 25/26: Calming and Coping Skills
December 2/3: Facing our Anxiety Fears