Wellness Week
Apr. 29 – May 3, 2024
Wellness programs are good at helping people adopt and maintain healthy behaviors.
We hope to provide you with a myriad of skills, motivation, and social support, to remind you that sustaining healthy behaviors are beneficial and important as law school can be stressful, not only during exams, but through the year.
Check out several things - both on campus and on your own – that you can do to help maintain a healthy school/life balance. Remember, we are here for you and thinking of you - now and throughout your time with us!
On This Page:
Support is Always Here
Law school can be a very stressful period. So whether it's our Office of Student Affairs or UB's Counseling Services, there are services and people here to help you.
Visit Counseling Services at the Law School to discover services available to law students, such as UB Counseling Services (UBCS), Buffalo-area community services, and external resources.
(Click the "+" to expand or contract the calendar entries below.)
Daily Wellness Events
Be sure to stop by 312 O’Brian Hall and grab a cup of coffee, hot chocolate, or tea all week long while supplies last.
- Did you know that taking a big whiff of your morning coffee or tea before you drink it can be enough to help reduce your stress levels?
Please add words of affirmation and encouragement to the Warm and Fuzzy Board and read/enjoy your classmates' positive thoughts!
- Therapy-pups! Enjoy therapeutic time with the dogs of staff members!
Monday to Thursday, from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. in O’Brian Hall Lobby.
If you cannot visit our on-campus dogs, destress by watching animals:
Pets - especially dogs and cats - can reduce stress, anxiety, and depression, ease loneliness, encourage exercise and playfulness, and even improve your cardiovascular health. Don’t have a pet at home? Why not bring a smile to your face with animal cams? Check out these suggestions:
- Watch Baby Goat Cam, the National Zoo's Panda Cam, the Georgia Aquarium's Sea Otter Cam, or the San Diego Zoo's Hippo Cam.
- How about penguins or even an elephant cam!
- Have an animal at home, consider taking a short video and posting it to the Class Facebook/LinkedIn pages so we all can enjoy!
Monday, Apr. 29: - Live Well
Virtual Guided Meditation
Join Professor Chiesa for a virtually-guided meditation session.
12:30-1:10 p.m. on Zoom. [Join via Zoom]
Helping Others Eat
Did you know that UB offer’s Blue Table, a virtual food pantry service for UB students who do not have access to food.
To help stock Blue Table's pantry, all week long we are collecting healthy food items. Collection bins for food donations will be located in the Doran Student Lounge and Law Library Reference Desk.
Items to donate:
- Fruits & Vegetables: fruit (canned/cups), vegetables, (canned), soup/stew/chili
- Grains: pasta, rice or quinoa, rice noodles, cereal, granola bars, crackers
- Proteins: beans/lentils (canned/dry), nuts, peanut butter, chicken (canned/pouch), tuna (canned/pouch)
- Mixes/Instant Meals: macaroni and cheese, pasta/ravioli (canned), oatmeal
- Sauces: tomato sauce
Are you looking to eat better? Consider freezing meals and visit these websites to get some healthy meal ideas:
UB Counseling & Wellness Tabling
11:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m., O'Brian Lobby
Tuesday, Apr. 30: Destress & Exercise
- OSA is handing out stress relief give-a-ways in the O'Brian Hall Lobby from 11 a.m. until supplies run out!
- Join Associate Dean Hilburger for a Campus Walk - Rain or Shine from 12:15 p.m. - 12:45 p.m. Meet in the lobby of O’Brian Hall
- Inclement weather? No problem as we will show you the tunnels around campus!
- Add exercise to your weekly habits
Moving your body on a regular basis balances the nervous system and increases blood circulation, helping to flush out stress hormones. Even a daily 20-minute walk makes a difference. - Feeling competitive? Want to track your physical activity? Download these free GPS tracker apps: Map My Walk and Map My Run.
- As with any exercise program, any physical exercise may pose some potential risks. Overexertion and dehydration may cause injury. It is the participant’s responsibility to check with a medical provider before engaging in any physical activity.
- Join Ashley Abbott for Restorative Yoga from 4 p.m. - 5p.m. in the 6th Floor Wellness Room (new space behind bookshelves in 6th floor of Law Library)
- This class will be much more restorative than the bi-weekly vinyasa classes
- Benefits of Yoga:
- Reduced Stress
- Increased Relaxation
- Increased Flexibility
- Increased Strength Training
- Reduced Anxiety
- Increased Balance
- Increased Cardio Health
- Increased Energy
UB Counseling & Wellness Tabling
12 noon - 1:00 p.m., O'Brian Lobby
Wednesday, May 1: Mindfulness
In collaboration with the Office of Student Affairs' Wellness Initiatives, Student Life Coordinator, Ashley Abbott will host biweekly yoga classes.
All levels are welcome on Wednesday, May 1st 3:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m. in the Wellness Room (6th Floor Law Library - new space behind the bookshelves)
Benefits of Yoga:
- Reduced Stress
- Increased Relaxation
- Increased Flexibility
- Increased Strength Training
- Reduced Anxiety
- Increased Balance
- Increased Cardio Health
- Increased Energy
If you cannot attend our on-campus yoga, check out Yoga with Adriene or download the Daily Yoga app.
Wellness Tips
Get plenty of sleep
Your body doesn’t tolerate stress as well as it could if you get less than seven to eight hours of sleep. If stress keeps you up at night, address the cause and consider adding meditation into your day to make up for the lost z’s.
Check out the Sleep Diary app with journals and reminders.
Stay #UBHealthy
Good nutrition is critical to your health. By eating regular and healthy meals, you are giving your body the fuel it needs to work properly – most especially when studying for exams.
Alcohol, nicotine, and caffeine may temporarily relieve stress but have negative health impacts and can make stress worse in the long run. Well-nourished bodies cope better, so start with a good breakfast, add more organic fruits and vegetables, avoid processed foods and sugar, and drink more water.
Meditation can produce a deep state of relaxation and a tranquil mind. During meditation, you focus your attention and eliminate the stream of jumbled thoughts that may be crowding your mind and causing stress. This process may result in enhanced physical and emotional well-being.
Here are some helpful resources to help ease your mind:
- "Mindfulness: How to Do It" gives you the basics on how to sit for mindfulness meditation.
- Watch this video by Daily Calm on "10 Minute Mindfulness Meditation."
Take a mental break!
A relaxing break can help to facilitate mental and memory recovery. A relaxing or fun break can help reset your mood, thereby promoting positive well-being and reducing stress.
Listen to music
Whether it’s rock, blues, pop, country, jazz, or classical, studies show that listening to music can benefit overall well-being, help regulate emotions, and create happiness and relaxation in everyday life.
Complete a brainteaser
Visit Mind Games to solve a puzzle, crossword, or Sudoku. The focus you devote to these brain-teasing activities can take your mind off your worries and give your brain a problem that has a clearer solution.
Create something
Draw, paint, knit, write, cook – do any activity that helps you express your creative flair. Try “Happy ColorTM” a free color-by-number app in the Apple or Google Play store.
Salute the sun
The sun is a great source of Vitamin D (careful of UVB rays). Vitamin D is a unique vitamin that most people don’t get enough of. Find a sunny spot, close your eyes, and lift your face towards the sun. Take slow deep breaths. Sit calmly for 10 to 15 minutes.
Be grateful
Try and write down the things in life that you’re grateful for. You can even do it each day. It can help keep your mind focused on being positive and when you face a difficult situation you can reevaluate those things in your life you are truly grateful for.. You can also do this with a collection of photos that bring you joy.
Connect with supportive people
Talking face-to-face – even virtually - with another person releases hormones that reduce stress. Lean on those good listeners in your life.