October 12, 2015

Wellbeing festival promotes mental health resilience

Campus comes alive with flash mobs, live music and a vibrant gratitude wall for Mental Health Week. 

From breakfast yoga and silent disco campus tours to drumming and boomerang painting workshops, UOW celebrated Mental Health Week with a vibrant festival from 7-9 October. 

The first ever UOW WOW (Wheel of Wellbeing) Festival was a three day event for staff and students. 

The brainchild of Masters of Engineering student and Kooloobong Village senior resident leader Ninan Mathew (pictured above), who overcame many obstacles to get to where he is today after leaving home at just 14, the event is based around the positive psychology principles of the ‘Wheel of Wellbeing’ implemented at UOW’s Kooloobong Village. 

This promotes overall wellness in the student population, including focusing on mind, spirit, connecting with people and place and caring for the planet as well as physical health. 

UOW’s Student Life Programs senior manager Fran Walder said the first WOW Festival was a great success, with a lot of engagement and interest from staff and students. 

UOW’s Wellbeing Centre, which opened in 2012, also offers a range of free events and services for student year-round, including workshops on yoga, meditation, building resilience and focus as well as how to overcome perfectionism. The centre also offers a free massage chair and sleep pod to help students relax.