The Health Peers got students to write down something that they loved about themselves on post-it notes which were displayed for other students to see. With the post-its, the Health Peers noticed that students had to stop and reflect on what they loved and appreciated most about themselves. This process matched with writing it down seemed to have a powerful impact on the students who participated. There were some great responses from students. Some students focused on their personality traits and wrote down phrases such as, “I love my creativity” and “I love my work ethic”. Other students thought about the question on a deeper level and came up with phrases such as, “I love that I have stayed true to myself despite how people have judged me in the past” and “I love that I can overcome challenges and feel great at the end of the day”.
The students were also asked to sign a “Love Yourself” pledge. There were two pledges available and the students were more than welcome to sign whichever one they felt was most applicable to them. With the pledge, the Health Peers tried to reinforce the notion of self-love. By signing the pledge and taking it home, the students will constantly be reminded of the promise that they have made to themselves about loving and accepting their body, personality and abilities.
Towards the end of the event, the Health Peers decided to walk around the halls and hand out “Love Yourself” bracelets while telling the students “You are enough” and to “Remember to love yourself”. This was a huge success. Many of the students left with smiles on their faces. Some students told the Health Peers that they really needed to hear a positive phrase as they approach final exam time. Moving forward, in the future, the Health Peers hope to continue on with this outreach annually to help raise awareness about self-worth, self-love and accepting that we (the students) are enough.
About the Peer Health Educators:
The Peer Health Educators work within SFU Health and Counselling Services and under the supervision of SFU Health Promotion. The purpose of the Peer Health Educators is to promote well-being amongst SFU students through numerous outreaches that are held on campus. The organized outreaches focus on various dimensions of health and well-being such as sexual health, de-stressing, active living, social connectedness, nutritious eating and responsible partying.
To find out more about the peer health educators, visit: http://www.sfu.ca/students/health/volunteer/health-peers.html
