• About
  • Editorial Board
    • Staff Writers
  • Advertise
  • Join Us
  • Archives
The Wellesley News -
  • News and Features
    • The Wellesley (COVID) 100
      The Wellesley (COVID) 100
    • In memory of Professor Rebecca Summerhays
      In memory of Professor Rebecca Summerhays
    • Trans flag controversy: College power washes staircase after trans flag is painted over Harry Potter spray paint
      Trans flag controversy: College power washes staircase after trans flag is painted over Harry Potter spray paint
    • News
      • News in Brief
      • Nation & World
      • President’s Corner
      • Senate Report
    • Features
      • Alumnae Spotlight
      • Eye on Science
      • Faculty Focus
      • LGBTQIA+ Column
  • Opinions
    • The News in Conversation: Wellesley Against Mass Incarceration
      The News in Conversation: Wellesley Against Mass Incarceration
    • Editorial Board calls for keeping up trans flag murals
      Editorial Board calls for keeping up trans flag murals
    • No, Elon Musk’s Twitter will not restore free speech
      No, Elon Musk’s Twitter will not restore free speech
    • Staff Editorial
    • Letters to the Editor
    • The Elephant in the Room
  • Arts
    • Be/longing Centers Connection and Care
      Be/longing Centers Connection and Care
    • No image
      Birds Falling Upwards: Wellesley College Theater’s The Moors is a Must-See
    • No image
      Sometimes you just need to read a YA “Groundhog Day” to feel something
    • Arts In The News
    • Reviews
    • Music Peek
    • Books Before Boys
  • Health and Wellness
    • February Student Athlete of the Month
      February Student Athlete of the Month
    • Athletics Update
      Athletics Update
    • Victoria Garrick Speaks on Mental Health
      Victoria Garrick Speaks on Mental Health
    • Athlete of the Week
    • Boston Sports Update
    • The Vegan Digest
    • The SHE Corner
  • The Wellesley Snooze
    • Wellesley News Leadership Changes Completely Peacefully Without Any Suspicious Disappearances At All
      Wellesley News Leadership Changes Completely Peacefully Without Any Suspicious Disappearances At All
    • Solve Your Connection Problems With Wellesley Insecure
      Solve Your Connection Problems With Wellesley Insecure
    • Mayhem strikes Wellesley as paper towels removed from campus
      Mayhem strikes Wellesley as paper towels removed from campus
  • Miscellanea
    • President’s Column: The Butterfly Effect
      President’s Column: The Butterfly Effect
    • Administrators shocked to learn that students dislike being left in dark
      Administrators shocked to learn that students dislike being left in dark
    • 50 Lies You Tell Yourself in Order to Survive Until Graduation
      50 Lies You Tell Yourself in Order to Survive Until Graduation
    • The Dose
    • The Olive Branch
    • Multimedia
      • Galleries
      • Infographics
      • Videos
By Anna Cahill Sports and WellnessFebruary 19, 2015

Active Minds hosts healthy relationships workshop

With the chaos that sometimes surrounds Valentine’s Day now behind us, it can be easy to forget some of the feelings and reflections that the day evokes. Whether Feb. 14 is a “Hallmark Holiday” or not, it prompts us to reflect on our relationships and acknowledge those who mean the most to us, romantically or otherwise.

Last Wednesday, Wellesley’s Active Minds organization held a workshop called “Healthy Minds, Happy Hearts” that encouraged students to do just that — think meaningfully about their past and current relationships in an effort to promote those that are healthy and happy. The workshop featured Psychologist Dr. Eleanor Fulton and Psychiatric Clinical Specialist Jane Ward, who both work at Wellesley’s Stone Center. Both women encouraged students to share their experiences in both healthy and unhealthy relationships and to explore the characteristics that differentiated the two.

“I believe that when a lot of people think about healthy relationships, it seems obvious, self explanatory; of course I want to be in a healthy relationship, of course these are the obvious traits, but then when you stop and think about your friendships and people you know, including yourself, so many people have qualities in relationships that are not healthy and that are just kind of unnoticed,” Aggie Rieger ’17 said. Rieger is a member of Active Minds and was the main planner of Wednesday’s workshop.

Although everyone may experience indicators of unhealthy relationships, whether they be poor communication, dishonesty, jealousy or criticism, these traits don’t necessarily reduce the entire relationship to being unhealthy. One topic that the workshop explored was where to draw the line between a relationship with unhealthy aspects that can realistically be worked out versus a “cut and run” unhealthy relationship that should be discontinued.

“It’s a lot messier than the black and white that we make it,” Active Minds member Steph Eby ’15 said. “Relationships can be a mix of healthy and unhealthy, so it’s hard to know: is this healthy? Is this unhealthy? It’s good to be able to reflect on it and be reminded of these tools that we can use.”

All cases are different, and Fulton and Ward encouraged students with concerns to talk about their particular circumstances at the Stone Center.

Although a major component of the workshop was to dissect the signs and consequences of unhealthy relationships, it also provided a helpful and encouraging reminder to reflect on and appreciate what makes our relationships work. Considering relationships in which we feel loved and respected can improve the support we give to our friends and partners.

“We can all gain from learning these tools because I think a lot of relationships do have unhealthy behaviors in them even if they’re overall healthy relationships,” Eby said.

Depending on expressed demand at Wellesley, Active Minds may continue with a series of healthy relationship workshops in the future.

Photo courtesy of Creative Commons

Share on

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Pinterest
  • Google +
  • LinkedIn
  • Email
Previous articleWellesley basketball triumphs at home
Next articleAthlete of the Week: Angela Sun ’17

You may also like

February Student Athlete of the Month

Athletics Update

Victoria Garrick Speaks on Mental Health

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Email Newsletter

Sign up to receive our weekly digest in your inbox

* indicates required

Top Articles

Sorry. No data so far.

Recent Tweets

Tweets by @Wellesley_News

The independent student newspaper of Wellesley College since 1901.

Sign up to receive our weekly digest in your inbox

* indicates required

  • About
  • Editorial Board
    • Staff Writers
  • Advertise
  • Join Us
  • Archives
COPYRIGHT © 2022 THE WELLESLEY NEWS
Back to top