As students returned from Spring Break, Leesville’s Student Services decided it was time to boost Leesville’s health – in more ways than one. The focus of Healthy Student Week wasn’t simply the physical aspect of student health but the mental, the emotional and the social.
Each day represented a different facet of health. Monday, April 14, a healthy mind. Students could learn about mental health awareness, and many participated in the Fears & Dreams Wall. Students wrote down one fear and one dream. The goal of this simple exercise: decide whether reaching their dream was worth overcoming their fear.
Tuesday was a more textbook definition of health, where students discussed fitness and healthy eating habits. Several bright flyers were decorated with different ways you could take care of your health. One included 105 simple everyday activities anyone can do to boost their physical state.
Wednesday and Thursday also centered around more social parts of student health, including healthy relationships and healthy decisions. One of the most successful days came with a pledge against Teen Dating Violence. Emphasis was placed on healthy teenage relationships, while a special visit from InterAct brought light to the very real, but often ignored, problem of domestic violence.
Another organization, SouthLight, came Thursday to examine substance use and how it can be prevented. Students were given the chance to participate in the Google Challenge and an opportunity to learn about gateway drugs and substance addiction beyond the average high school health classroom.
Throughout the week, however, a booth in the cafeteria stood as the main source of information for students, where they found a plethora of pamphlets and flyers highlighting important aspects of our health.
Dr. Huber, a counselor at Leesville said, “The goal of this year’s Health Week was to get students focused on both the health of mind and body.”
Hopefully, this week will become a tradition at Leesville, encouraging students to focus not only on their physical health, but also their mental. Mental health is extremely important in adolescents, especially high school students who are experiencing a plethora of emotions and changes. Through this event, Leesville has created a “spirit week for health”, and although it isn’t as popular as typical spirit weeks where students can don elaborate costumes or deck out in all green, it is just as important. Students can often become jaded about health in high school, but it’s something that must not be overlooked.
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