VIDEO TRANSCRIPT: Journaling event helps students manage finals stress
Cam McGraw: Students like Michaela Cordova are helping Syracuse University’s Student Government Association run Mental Health Awareness Week, hosting events across campus, including inside the Schine Student Center, to help students relax and recharge before finals.
McGraw: Today’s event was a journaling and poetry slam at the Barner-McDuffie House. Organizers offered notebooks, snacks and a space for students to talk, write and share what’s on their minds.
Michaela Cordova: The idea is for everyone to decorate their journals, personalize it for themselves and write experiences, poems and share them with everyone.
McGraw: While the event is meant to be a fun way to meet people, the goal remains rooted in supporting student mental health.
Cordova: It’s important, mental health is very important and it should be prioritized, especially during a very stressful time of year.
McGraw: Students not only use the event to destress during the busy period of finals but also as a period to get their thoughts on paper, express emotion through journaling and poetry.
Alan Gardner: I mean, it’s a lot to take on and it can get really confusing, and if you don’t try to slow it down for yourself at times, I think it just gets too overwhelming.
McGraw: Gardner is a sophomore looking for ways to stay grounded during the semester. He says the return from break to full-speed academics can be jarring.
Gardner: I mean we just got off of break so its like zero to 100 with all the work, study all night and who knows what they’re kind of doing in between to keep them up. I think it’s good to help you keep pace so you don’t go crazy studying.
McGraw: Organizers say the event doesn’t just help individuals, but also strengthens the sense of community.
Cordova: Sharing your feelings, sharing your experiences with others can make you realize you’re not alone and there are other people who have similar experiences.
McGraw: From rushing answers in a blue book to releasing emotion in a journal, students are finding new ways to stay afloat during finals. Cam McGraw NCC News.
SYRACUSE, N.Y. (NCC News) — Students like Michaela Cordova are helping Syracuse University’s Student Government Association run Mental Health Awareness Week, hosting events across campus to help students relax and recharge before finals.
One of the events this week was a journaling and poetry slam at the Barner-McDuffie House, where organizers offered notebooks, snacks and a space for students to talk, write and share what’s on their minds.
“The idea is for everyone to decorate their journals, personalize it for themselves and write experiences, poems and share them with everyone,” Cordova said.
While the event is designed to be a fun way to meet people, the focus remains on encouraging students to care for their mental health.
“It’s important, mental health is very important and it should be prioritized, especially during a very stressful time of year,” Cordova said.
Students who attended say the timing of the event was especially helpful.
“I mean, it’s a lot to take on and it can get really confusing, and if you don’t try to slow it down for yourself at times, I think it just gets too overwhelming,” said sophomore Alan Gardner.
Gardner said the quick jump from break back into full-speed academics can be difficult.
“I mean we just got off of break so its like zero to 100 with all the work, study all night and who knows what they’re kind of doing in between to keep them up. I think it’s good to help you keep pace so you don’t go crazy studying.”
Organizers say the event doesn’t just help individuals but also builds community.
“Sharing your feelings, sharing your experiences with others can make you realize you’re not alone and there are other people who have similar experiences,” Cordova said.
As finals approach, students are using journaling, poetry and shared conversation as a way to stay grounded and take a breather from the pressure.