Upper School Observes Mental Health Awareness Month With Workshops and Guest Speakers

May 20, 2022

In honor of Mental Health Awareness Month, the Léman Counseling Office, spearheaded by Upper School Counselor Jillian Wolinsky, provided opportunities for Middle and High School students to participate in special advisory lessons and presentations from guest speakers. The goal of the month is to provide resources about how to overcome and manage mental health difficulties, support others going through crises, and encourage general wellness for all. 

Middle and High School students began the month with a lesson on practicing relaxation techniques. Students first participated in a mindfulness exercise, followed by some individual work. The goal of the individual work was to clear their mind by doing a labyrinth maze and then completing a worksheet on their positive attributes. Being able to access positive characteristics can be beneficial for teens when feeling overwhelmed or upset by an experience in their lives.

Linda Bonnar, a life coach and wellness consultant spoke to Middle Schoolers about the significance of mental health and wellness for teenagers. As an advocate for mental health, Linda works to break the stigma and silence that still surrounds this topic. Linda engaged the middle school students in an interactive talk that promoted the value of recognizing one's positive attributes and how to recognize good and poor mental health in oneself and others.

Jeffrey Cox, a licensed clinical social worker, spoke to 11th graders about mental health and the therapeutic process for teens. Jeffrey has worked in the field for over 25 years, and in private schools as a mental health consultant and diversity/equity educator.

This week, Emily Losey spoke to 9th and 10th graders about her crisis intervention and de-escalation work. Emily is the Manager of Clinical Quality and Improvement at Crisis Text Line, an organization that provides free, 24/7, high-quality text-based mental health support and crisis intervention by trained volunteers.