Calm beats and waves of positive energy flooded room L-73 on Dec. 5, where the Social Sciences and Humanities Village-organized “Soulful Therapy Event” took place.
The event was open to all students, with eight in attendance, and featured Derrick Felton, psychology instructor and counselor at the De Anza Mental Health and Wellness Center, sharing his tips on how to cope with and deal with stress during finals week.
Technical difficulties posed an initial challenge for the event; however, Felton still greeted attendees with a smile and jumped right into the presentation while the issues were being resolved.
Felton said that he had his own acronym to help deal with stress.
“My acronym, H.A.L.T., stands for hunger, angry, lonely, and tired,” Felton said. “You need H.A.L.T. because if you start to feel irritable, stop and think: Did I eat? Did I drink any water? Am I angry? Am I lonely? Am I tired?”
Staff member Lucy Doan participated in the event and sat in the front row with her sister. The duo shared their own life experiences on the topic of stress and mindfulness with attendees.
Doan repeatedly said in her speech that she thinks it is important to routinely do activities that make an individual happy.
“You love yourself, and when some people make you unhappy, you go home and say, ‘So what?’ Find something that occupies you, and then during the day you forget those bad (remarks).”
Sabrina Singh, 19, psychology major, said that she enjoyed her time at the event and would love to use the tips shared with her to help with stress.
“I’m really trying to find time for myself by meditating and eating healthy,” Singh said.
In Felton’s speech, he went over the importance of alone time and a calm space to wind down such as take more baths, light some candles and put on some music, find time to rest, take more naps and eat comfort food.
Throughout the event, attendees were taught how to see stress from a different point of view than negative.
“We are always surrounded by stress and no one teaches us how to manage stress,” Felton said. “When we hear stress, people think it is a bad thing, but stress is actually a motivation; it’s a good thing. Just don’t let the stress overtake everything that you have planned for the day.”
Felton also mentioned that De Anza provides 10 free therapy sessions to students, both in-person and online. Students can search up the “Mental Health and Wellness Center” on De Anza’s website to sign up for personal counseling.
Felton left off with some final thoughts to resonate with throughout the day.
“Be good to yourself, love yourself and strive to be content,” Felton said.
