The Peer Success team in C4 had an emotional wellness workshop in where we discussed what it means to care for oneself and their mental health, a wellness toolbox and all the tools that can help a person ground themselves, be kinder to themselves and proceed in a healthier way when facing adversity.
The workshop had its own set of challenges. Normally, on a Saturday morning, it’s quieter and we can sit in the dayroom and discuss things for our workshops without it getting too loud. This Saturday, though, in addition to having more attendees than normal, there were also a greater number of people up and milling about so it was much louder. The extra distractions made it hard to talk about sensitive things in a calm manner.
Fortunately, one of the mentors that had attended the “coffee hour” meeting a week prior made everyone laugh when they brought up that travesty of a group meeting. As we had all finally arrived to the table with our cups of coffee and people shared their cookies, just as we were about to begin talking about Peer Success and what we do in the units and on the compound, the officer came in to tell us we had to go stand by our doors for an extra census count.
A census count on a Saturday is highly irregular and took up at least 20 mins. However, we’d been standing around for at least 20 before the officer ever came to our unit to do the count. The “coffee hour” had slipped away while we stood by to be counted. Once the mentor reminded us of the events from the week before, we all laughed and the high emotions dissipated. It was a nice conclusion to the meeting and everyone left feeling good.
Our emotional wellness workshop was also an opportunity for the Peer Success Team in C4 to welcome in several new mentors. They are still in the approval process, but I think that is merely a formality and they will continue on to bring a lot of positivity to the unit and our events. Plus, this was the best time to bring their skills to the fore as we try to re-introduce Peer Success in C4. Our efforts had fallen on deaf ears for so long and in conjunction with the constant lockdowns, the group had grown lax in their labors. But this workshop brought new members, new ideas and new opportunities to the unit. Overall it was a very promising event.
