Recognizing Mindfulness and Our Feelings: A Dive Into Wellness Week at IC Ain Aar and Beirut

At IC, mental well-being and welfare is a priority. IC has dedicated the week of March 13-17th as Wellness Week across both Ras Beirut and Ain Aar campuses. With a range of interactive activities and important talks, IC made recognizing wellness and mental health a priority for students and faculty alike.

Words from the Head of Counseling: Dana Taher Mirza

“The counseling department is a vital resource for the school community providing academic, personal, and social guidance that can help students reach their full potential and develop the skills and confidence needed to succeed both in and outside of the classroom. It is an essential component of any school, providing crisis intervention and emotional support during difficult times. In addition, counselors have the ability to help students navigate the challenges of growing up, and to provide them with the tools and resources they need to thrive.

Planning a wellbeing week at school is crucial for the overall health and wellbeing of students, faculty and staff. By dedicating a week to wellbeing, schools can encourage students to prioritize their mental, physical and emotional health and help them develop lifelong habits that support a healthy lifestyle.

At IC, during the week of March 13th to March 17th, the counselors planned the following events to improve academic performance, reduce stress and anxiety:

-Wellbeing activities for students.

-Presentations by professionals in the field tackling important subjects raising awareness about different aspects of health such as ‘the importance of sleep’, ‘eating habits’, ‘resilience’, ‘emotional regulation’, ‘concentration” and many more...

-Workshops for teachers including yoga and mindfulness.

-Physical wellbeing day with competitions.

Finally, planning a wellbeing week is an investment in the health and wellbeing of the school community that can yield lasting benefits and can foster a sense of community and support in the school, promoting a positive learning environment.”

The Dialogue on Counseling and Mental Health

Why do initiatives like Wellness Week matter? In a discussion with a few IC and Ain Aar counselors and deans of students, we got a chance to delve into the much needed discussion on mental health and the role school resources play on overall wellbeing and student success in the long run.

Given the times that Lebanon has been in the last several years, mental health issues have risen, and younger people and adults alike are affected by this too. While the taboo of discussing mental health has always existed in many spaces, IC’s counseling department has worked on overcoming this stigma, and prides itself on being a safe space for students and teachers alike during these times. At both campuses, there are counselors for each school level; from preschool, elementary, middle school, and secondary. Some of our counselors share their words of wisdom and thoughts on what wellness means to them, and why their work matters in the overall climate of the campus.

IC Ain Aar

From Ain Aar Middle School, Dean of Students Rony Asmar shares that the Wellness Week initiative was a positive success. All levels of schools at Ain Aar had guest speakers discussing relevant topics for the appropriate age levels. Alongside the talks, there were also a myriad of ongoing activities that were done with collaboration of many other teachers. Music teachers selected calming, relaxing playlists to be played in the morning. They also sang songs in the auditorium. Drama and art teachers got involved too with creating interactive activities related to mindfulness and relaxation. On Friday of the week was called “White Friday”, where students and faculty all dressed up in white outfits to show support for wellness. “Everybody was on board”, Asmar says. At Ain Aar, Wellness Week also catered to particular activities relevant to their classrooms. In particular, Grade 6 students had a talk and activity on friendship. “We are addressing friendship because the students have had this issue arise more than once with another”, Asmar says. Her goal was to make sure while participating in activities for wellness, that social issues are also addressed with a viable solution and a restorative method. The students put together a friendship soup activity, where they listed the “recipe” on sticky notes for what makes a good and healthy friendship, and how to resolve conflict.

Middle school counselor Anne-Marie Moarbes comments on the need and importance for having wellness week and such initiatives at IC.

“It can help prevent stress, create a positive working environment where our students can thrive. Wellbeing can be a core enabler of student engagement and high performance. And you matter, so wellbeing is important to each one. So that’s why self care is important. Well being is a part of that. We are supplying resources to help students to help them support their own mental health.”

At Ain Aar, the counseling space has always been a welcoming environment for students and teachers alike. Having this department as a part of the school is essential for working through difficult times as well, but also for the long term development and success of students. “it’s a positive space where they feel comfortable, safe and happy. If they don’t feel that, they can’t succeed in the long run”, Asmar says. It’s an office to address issues, patterns, and mental health and wellbeing, but it’s also a space for applying strategies to conquer difficulties and share what’s on your mind.

“Anne-Marie shows a lot of empathy. A listening ear with a person who empathizes with them, not judges them. They have someone who shows them empathy and how to deal with certain problems. She gives them strategies and decisions”, Asmar states.

Moarbes also agrees that the space is doing its job, and the students are benefitting. “They come willingly to the office. My office has an open door. Everyone feels safe and secure”.

IC Beirut

From IC Beirut, many of the activities overlapped with the initiatives also done at Ain Aar, and it was a great success. Elementary school counselors Tatiana Mobarak and Josette Menhem share their experiences with planning Wellness Week and how from the lens of counselors, the importance of these activities and initiatives.

“Everything was to promote wellbeing with a purpose”, says Mobarak. “You break the pattern. At some point pattern and routine becomes draining. You need something to feel positive vibes”.

“We came up with new ideas. The pajamas, the brunch, the balloons. Everyone liked the activities”, Menhem states. Throughout the week, each day had a specific theme in order to get teachers and students excited and engaged with wellness and mental well being. “On Thursday they enjoyed the yoga laughter session. It was the best session. They had the chance to learn and laugh. Even we laughed!”, Menhem says.

Just like with Ain Aar, teachers got on board to make sure things went smoothly and also support the effort. “The impact was positive. I started to think we should do it more frequently! Teachers came and told me they were really happy!” Menhem adds.

In the process of organizing and working on activities for the Wellness Week initiative, the question of the reason behind the idea was brought up.

“Why wellness matters? Everything starts with mental health. If you’re not feeling good about your life, you won’t have good experiences. As long as you’re healthy inside, you can face any challenges and hardships”, Mobarak says.

In the last several years, Lebanon has gone through so much and in the process of loss and instability, mental health is also impacted. While circumstances are not in anyone’s control, the way of navigating through a long term crisis starts with addressing mindfulness.

“We will always be facing difficulties in this country. If you change the way you think and the way you see things, and we take care of ourselves with self care, eating healthy, practicing sports, mindfulness, yoga, meditation, it will help us overcome the difficulties. We can’t control them, but we can control our thoughts”, says Menhem.

Additionally, the way our world is moving today, it can be so easy to get caught up in a busy schedule and many responsibilities. And it’s exactly for this reason that mindfulness and wellbeing initiatives exist: to remind us to slow down and take care of ourselves.

“Wellbeing is important nowadays because we are in a rush mindset. There is not enough time to breathe or relax. If we are not working we are on social media. It creates some kind of unhealthiness at some point. It’s the time where your health matters, where you are being seen as a priority and it’s time to have fun. Our activities were related to stressrelief”, says Mobarak.

When it comes to having the counseling department at IC, this space and professional system exists in conjunction with the high standards and quality of student life and success that the school aims for in its mission and vision.

“I think it’s one of the very few schools in Lebanon where counselors are fully present and connected to the learning space; in and out of the classroom. Here we really support the whole learning process and wellbeing of the child at school. The fact that it’s a department means we have rules, limits and credibility. This makes the department a strong point at IC”, Mobarak says.

With everything going in Lebanon, such as the recent earthquakes, ongoing economic crisis, and instability, children have been exposed to a lot of difficulties at an earlier age. As they spend a lot of time in school, to know that there is a space for them to truly be safe and also have their emotional needs met is something that makes IC stand out.

“It’s a privilege to have counselors and educators who are all aware of the importance of wellbeing and mental health. It’s a privilege to have people tend to your emotional needs.

I would say it should be mandatory. Given everything going on, children are exposed to trauma. When they’re this young in elementary school, it’s more effective. You have to find creative ways”, Mobarak states.

At an earlier age, talking about mental wellbeing is something that will have a long term impact on children and their success and ability to navigate life better, and the professional counseling resources are key. Not all issues can be solved alone or at home– sometimes the professional counseling intermediary is necessary to ease a situation, assist parents, and create long terms solutions and skills.

“It’s important to have counselors in every school. Sometimes teachers and parents can’t give counsel to their children. We have studied for 5-7 years, and we have been prepared with seminars. We have scientific advice for how to deal with issues at hand. We have to accommodate teachers because each child is unique and has his own personality. Even for teachers. How can someone be focused on their work when they’re not feeling good?”, Menhem adds.

“We say love yourself first. Each individual has to be the most important person to themselves”, Mobarak adds. Initiatives for mental health aim to help people accept themselves and to love themselves, and in an effort to do so, focusing on taking oneself is necessary. Having this department to help do so will truly teach students to learn how to be comfortable with themselves and be confident, while also making sure they keep their mental health in check.

Conclusion

The space of counseling and having wellness initiatives is key for healthier and happier students and staff. Having counselors on campus with practical skills who are qualified and supportive truly makes a difference in the learning environment of all age groups. IC’s Wellbeing Week will keep on being a significant effort to continue the discussion on mental health and solutions, while reminding teachers, students, and staff that our school is always here, and supporting them.