These days, mental health has been the focus of attention. Many people however, are still confused about its definition and importance. The same situation also happens in Universitas Katolik Widya Mandala Surabaya (UKWMS) campuses. Hence, the Faculty of Psychology held a mental health seminar on Friday, 7 August 2024, for its academic community titled “Mind Matters: Mental Health is for Everyone”. The event was held in the Multi-Purpose Room at the Pakuwon City campus of UKWMS with two lecturers from the Faculty of Psychology as speakers, Mr. Happy Cahaya Mulya, M.Psi., Psikolog, and Mr. Michael Seno Rahardanto, M.A.

Mr. Happy presented a topic called Become Mentally Healthy through SPIRE. “There are many factors that influence someone’s mental health. One of the triggers could be as simple as the inability to manage stress. This also applies when someone can’t recover from an emotional burden, which then could lead into further mental illness,” said Mr. Happy. In addition, he mentioned that stress is not always a bad thing, since it could also become a driving force. However, people do not always manage their daily life stress well. There are actually some things that we can do in order to manage our stress, which consists of Spiritual, Physical, Intellectual, Relational, and Emotional well-being, or also known as SPIRE for short.

Mr. Rahardanto’s presentation focuses on two simple stress management techniques, Brain Gym and Laugh Therapy. “Through movements and techniques of Brain Gym and Laugh Therapy, we can actually focus on the here-and-now moment. That way, we can put aside the ruckus from work or assignments to feel more relaxed. These techniques can lessen our nervousness in order to make us feel happier. Specifically, these techniques could be done anywhere, anytime, and by anyone from any age, without having to spend any money,” Mr. Danto shared.

Additionally on this occasion, the Faculty of Psychology also announced the launching of a Counseling Service Unit in UKWMS. “The Counseling Service Unit is a new unit under the Psychological Service Center. This unit is to provide free counseling services for all members of UKWMS, particularly students,” said Ms. Agustina Engry, M.Psi, Psikolog, the Head of UKWMS Psychological Service Center. Those in need of help will only need to fill up a form to schedule a meeting with a counselor and the process of counseling can be conducted face to face or through Zoom online meeting. The Counseling Service Unit of UKWMS has officially begun operations in July 2024. 

The original article has been edited for the ASEACCU newsletter.

Source: UKWMS