Participating in an on-site or off-site stress management, meditation, or other relaxation program (multi-week program, attending at least 85% of sessions over a minimum of 8 weeks) is necessary to be eligible for this incentive. You must complete an attestation form in HCM by Nov. 30 to earn the incentive.
Why is this important?
Stress is experienced by many people on a daily basis. The American Psychological Association and the National Institute of Mental Health describe numerous effects of stress on health, including physical health issues such as cardiovascular disease. While all stress is not bad, chronic stress may affect overall health negatively. Learning how to manage the stressors that one experiences is important for good health.
Mental Health Matters
Mental Health Matters is a 9-session series focusing on various topics surrounding mental health, from managing personal challenges to helping your team thrive. This series is presented in partnership with Impact Solutions and Courage to Caregivers.
Thursdays, April 6 - June 1, 2023, 12-1 pm via Zoom. Session topics and presenters include:
4/6 - Beyond Fear - Sandra Bishop
4/13 - Managing Change Effectively - Ria Dark
4/20 - Understanding Mental Illness - Steve Davis
4/27 - Breaking the Anger Habit - Steve Davis
5/4 - Helping Troubled Employees - Holly Brown
5/11 - Preventing & Managing Burnout - Holly Brown
5/18 - Mindful Leadership: De-Stressing Ourselves and Our Workplace - Andrea Peck
5/25 - Help? I Can’t Stop Thinking - Daron Larson
6/1 - Creating a Courage Tool Kit - Kristi Horner & Jenny Woodworth
Register for Mental Health Matters
Introduction to Mindfulness
Mindfulness is a way of paying attention in the present moment, on purpose and without judgment. Through the use of formal and informal practices we can train our minds and this kind of awareness. Join Suzanne Rusnak, MEd, MSSA, LSW in this practice-based program.
During this 8-week class, along with your weekly practice you may notice:
- Reduced blood pressure
- Decreased anxiety
- Increased ability to pay attention
- Increased feelings of well-being
- Increased ability to regulate emotion
Tuesdays, April 18 - June 6 - 12:30-1:30 pm via Zoom
Building Connection and Communication
Wouldn't it be great to be able to better manage stress in your relationships at work and at home? Learn new and transformative ways to improve response versus reaction, diplomacy and respect, verbal and non-verbal communication, and more. Join Heidi Weiker as she helps you to practice these tools for better success in your relationships.
Wednesdays, March 8, 15, 29, April 5, 12, 19, May 3, 10, 2023 - 12-1 pm via Zoom
Monthly Mindfulness Meditation Meetups
These are monthly gatherings that provide an opportunity to meditate together with others. It is time you can take for yourself to increase your sense of calm and centeredness, as well as increasing a sense of community and connection. It can support an existing mindfulness meditation practice, or help you start one. These meditations will last a maximum of 30 minutes, which includes time for brief discussion of a topic within mindfulness/daily life, and a guided meditation. They will be drop-in sessions that require registration only two hours before each session so that participants may receive login information. We hope you can join us!
April 6 from 1-1:30 pm - Registration is now open
Introduction to Meditation
If you’re new to meditation or want to refresh your practice, join us for this 4-week class in the fundamentals of meditation. In this short course you will learn about different styles of meditation and their benefits. You will get a chance to practice several styles in class, and gain resources for supporting you in creating a regular practice of your own.
Tuesdays, January 31 - February 21, 2023, 12-1 pm via Zoom
Seasons of Self-Care
This new program offers an invitation to explore the year through a delightful set of seasonal signals focused on self-care. Engage in the most powerful antidote to burn-out, compassion fatigue, and mounting distress. Experience practices and methods that are timeless, yet contemporary. Be guided by your natural connection to the purpose, wisdom, and rhythms of nature, as you create your own set of seasonal reflections and practices.
Seasons of Self-Care - Part 1: Winter
Engage in this season of reconnection and restoration with Heidi Weiker, our program facilitator. Discover your body and brain's natural need to experience a stillness inside that builds deeper resilience. As we move inside during the cold, move inside of yourself by placing your attention onto your own 'winter' of well-being. Give yourself permission to align with the natural purpose of winter: rest, repair, and ready yourself for the Spring of the year.
Tuesdays, January 17 - February 7, 2023, 12:30-1:30 pm via Zoom
Release, Relax and Reach
Join Heidi Weiker for Release, Relax and Reach TM a program designed to help you do just that. Participants will discover a brighter and healthier sense of self and well-being.
Each week the class will cover a method/practice for Releasing, Relaxing and Reaching. You will play with re-booting and regenerating, rewiring and remembering, and renewing and reconnecting with what matters. You will share stories, ideas and brainstorm solutions. And you will have the opportunity to create your own authentic and very personalized best practices for the stress and struggles in your life.
Move beyond surviving to thriving with this 8-week class.
Mondays, January 9 - March 6, 2023, 12:30-1:30 pm via Zoom
Positively Powerful
We each have the power to create our best lives through positive intentions. Join this 8-week series, packed with powerful tools and strategies, to enhance your daily life. Each week, faculty and staff will learn about a new technique and perspective on optimism and positivity. Please see below for weekly topics and click here to see expanded descriptions of each session.
Look for this program again in 2023.
The Work Happiness MethodTM
Join Positive Psychology expert, Stella Grizont, for this 8-week series to learn how to be happier and more satisfied at work. Stella's evidence-based, energetic and supportive approach has helped many individuals identify a clear vision for their professional path and make a plan to move forward. This program will include weekly live training sessions, pre and post series assessments, weekly worksheets, access to class recordings and gentle email and text reminders to help participants stay on track.
Learn more about this program via this brief video
Look for this program again in 2023.
E.A.S.E. Into Peace of Mind
Being in the present is easy when it feels good - when it soothes our souls and delights our hearts. Unsettling times such as these, times of heightened struggle, angst, sorrow... make being in the present a lot more difficult. And, yet, being here - moment by moment - is more important and useful than ever. Join Heidi Weiker for a practice-based, methods-centric series of sessions on E.A.S.E-ing your body, mind and heart into the present. Each session includes: Engaging in quick, yet powerful movements to release tension and de-stress; Activating deep breathing with guided practices designed to cultivate peace and comfort in our present day; Savoring our moments at hand to free our minds from the past and the future; and Elevating our hearts and spirits with proven uplifting methods for restoration and renewal.
E.A.S.E Into Peace of Mind
Be on the lookout for another series in 2023.
Avidon Health (previously SelfHelpWorks) Stress and Resilience Training
ON-LINE Stress Management
SelfHelpWorks LivingEasy program is a multi-session class which will change the way you think, feel and react to stressful situations.
Read more: LivingEasy Stress & Resiliency Program
To register, follow the prompts on the SelfHelpWorks page of this website.
Individual Counseling through Impact Solutions
All benefits eligible faculty and staff and their families can receive up to five free counseling sessions per occurrence for a variety of issues including:
- Anxiety
- Work/life balance
- Marital stress
- Depression
- Substance abuse
- and more
Contact Impact Solutions at 1-800-227-6007 to request your first session.
Please note that this service covers benefits eligible CWRU faculty and staff, spouses/partners, household members, dependents living in and away from home, even parents and parents-in-law.