Programs and Events

Updated: Dec 7, 2020

Check out the list below for current regular programs and events sponsored by UHS Wellness and other partners on campus. Everything on this list is open to all students, postdoctoral fellows, house staff and clinical fellows. You can also check out these events on our calendar. Know of something missing? Email us at uhswellness@jhu.edu.

Ongoing Events

Mindfulness Sessions with Dr. Neda Gould

Mindfulness meditation can be an excellent resource to manage stress and anxiety during uncertain times. Dr. Neda Gould, faculty member in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences and Director of the Mindfulness Program, will be leading daily meditations. Sessions will be 30 minutes in length and will include a variety of mindfulness meditation practices in a virtual format. Mindfulness sessions will take place on Wednesdays at 12 PM. Use this Zoom link at the scheduled times to join. Meeting ID: 747 490 420. Open to all Hopkins affiliates.

Weekly Meditation Session with Vignesh Sadras

Medical student Vignesh Sadras is leading a 30-minute meditation session via Zoom on Wednesdays from 7:45-8:15 pm EST. Sessions consist of a 5-minute introduction to a meditation technique from one of the Dharmic religious traditions (Buddhism, Hinduism, Jainism, and Sikhism), 15-20 minutes of silent meditation, and a few minutes for discussion afterwards. If you're interested in receiving updates about the meditation sessions, please fill out this google form. Email vsadras1@jhmi.edu with any questions.

JHU COVID-19 Resource Center

COVID-19 is bringing a lot of changes to our lives, including stress and anxiety. Johns Hopkins has put together a wide variety of resources to help you cope during this challenging time, including webinars and other health and well-being information.

JHU Counseling Center Virtual Workshops and Discussion Spaces

The Homewood Student Affairs Counseling Center is offering free live workshops and virtual discussion spaces. Workshop topics include mindful living, stress management skills, and wellness workshops. Discussion group information can be found here. The discussions include groups for international students, graduate students and topics for coping with COVID-19. Open to all Hopkins affiliates. Dates and Times Vary; Visit the JHU Counseling Center to view the workshop schedule.

Motivational Interviewing Sessions on Marijuana Use Available to All Students and Trainees

If you are looking for support to change your marijuana use or learn more about its role in your life, we are here to help. You can set up a meeting with JHU's Alcohol and Other Drugs (AOD) Education Specialist to talk about your marijuana use. These motivational interviewing sessions are private. The conversations will center around your goals for use and other parts of your life. Sessions are nonjudgmental, goal focused, and educational. You should leave feeling empowered to make the choices you think best fit your lifestyle. All Johns Hopkins students and trainees are welcome to meet with the AOD Education Specialist, free of charge. Schedule an appointment here.

Monthly Wellness Break

The student health and well-being team hosts an in-person monthly wellness break in East Baltimore. The events are held at various locations on the East Baltimore campus. Wellness breaks can include seated chair massage, a free fitness class taught by instructors from the Cooley Fitness Center, a well-being information table, health education activities, and healthy snacks. Subscribe to our listserv calendar of events to receive notifications of Monthly Wellness Breaks.

Student Health and Well-Being Virtual Office Hours

We invite you to attend our zoom office hours during the week to ask questions, gather resources, and schedule additional appointments.

  • Mondays 4-5 PM
  • Tuesdays 6:30-7:30 PM
  • Wednesdays 9-10 AM
  • Thursdays 12-1 PM

Individual Health and Well-Being Consultations

The Student Health and Well-Being staff offers appointments for personalized health and well-being sessions with a Health Education Specialist. The sessions are designed to help you identify and reach your wellness goals, to guide you towards specific health and well-being resources, and to share successful habit formation and health behavior change information with you.

Schedule your appointment here, or email uhswellness@jhu.edu and we will contact you to schedule a time.

* Health and Well-Being consultations are not intended for clinical health services. If you are seeking medical or mental health treatment, you can contact University Health Services to make an appointment to see a primary care or mental health physician.

Health Education Program Requests

The Student Health and Well-being staff offers a variety of standard programs for student organizations, faculty, and university departments to request. Fill out this form to request a specific program and to learn more about our programs. Please allow at least two weeks’ notice for all programming.

Examples of health education topics and interactive discussions include Maintaining Healthy Habits, The Health Benefits of Sleep, Mental and Emotional Health, Stress Management, Growth Mindset, Time Management, Identifying and Using your Strengths, and many more.

Student Health and Well-Being Sponsored 28-Day Health Challenges

Have you and your colleagues been thinking about establishing or re-setting some healthy habits? Perhaps you would even like to eliminate a behavior. If you and your department, cohort, or student/trainee group would like to create a health challenge to cultivate a specific healthy behavior, a member of the student health and well-being team will be happy to help you design a tailored, 28-day healthy habit challenge to help meet your health and well-being goals. Contact uhswellness@jhu.edu if you are interested in designing a sponsored challenge.

Examples of health challenges you could choose (but feel free to pick any theme that would be beneficial):

  • Steps/Walking Challenge
  • Meditation Challenge (using the Calm app or another source)
  • Water Challenge (Increase water intake/reduce caffeine, etc.)
  • Nutrition Challenge (i.e. Increase/track fruit and vegetable in-take, meal prepping competition)
  • Eliminate alcohol/other vices
  • Gratitude Challenge (Journaling)
  • Reading Challenge (For pleasure)
  • Outdoor Challenge (Getting outdoors, taking photos, exploring, etc.)
  • Sleep Challenge (Track sleep hours, sleep hygiene)
  • Fitness Challenge (Log all exercise)
  • Healthy Habit Challenge (Choose any healthy habit and track habits)

How to get started:

  • Contact UHS Wellness to design your challenge
  • Promote the challenge information and registration/sign up to your group
  • Choose incentive prize winners (raffles, participation prizes, etc.)
  • Distribute a post-program survey

How SHWB will support your health challenge

  • Discuss your challenge goals, theme, and timeline.
  • Brainstorm options for tracking habits (i.e. fitness app, habit tracking app, step tracking app).
  • Provide a registration/sign-up and pre/post program surveys
  • Provide incentive prizes
  • “Kick-off” your health challenge (virtually or in-person) where we will share information about health behavior change, habit forming tips, accountability, incentive prizes, and how the challenge will work.
  • Arrange for health education to support the theme of the chosen health challenge

Recordings/On-Demand

Healthy Cooking Classes

Cooking Across Cultures is a program to celebrate the cultural diversity within our Hopkins community through cooking classes led by fellow peers from different backgrounds. Students and trainees gather together (virtually) to learn how to cook delicious and nutritious dishes from different cuisines.

Healthy Sleep Habits: Sleep Rounds with Dr. Rachel Salas

A sleep discussion and Q & A session with Dr. Rachel Salas, Associate Professor of Neurology and Nursing at Johns Hopkins Medicine. The session includes the topic of sleep hygiene and sleep tips to assist with the challenges associated with COVID-19. Many people experience disrupted sleep due added stress, intertwined home and workspaces, and changes in lifestyles while sheltering in place. The session is moderated by a few of the JH GME Health Systems Science (HSS) Distinction Track Scholars: Dr. Carlos Romo, Dr. Mandar Jadhav and Dr. Alexandra Barany.

Mental Health Primer for International Students and Postdoctoral Fellows

Academia and research can make for stressful environments, and maintaining good mental health practices is integral to a productive and happy career. Regretfully, mental health is too often a taboo subject in many cultures. This webinar seeks to explore the definition of mental health, common mental health problems native to the academic/research community, strategies for coping with these issues, and resources at JHU, and is now available to view. This webinar includes presentations from the Johns Hopkins Student Assistance Program, University Health Services, and the School of Medicine Benefits office. Thank you to the Johns Hopkins Postdoctoral Association, the Graduate Student Association, and the JHSPH Student Assembly Quality of Life Committee for their help putting this session together.

Primer on Parenting and Caregiving Benefits for Hopkins Graduate Students and Trainees

Designed specifically for Hopkins graduate students and trainees, this webinar (recorded October, 2020) includes a synopsis of caregiving benefits followed by a Q & A session with Family Programs Specialist, Jessica Lohmeyer. A pdf of the power point presentation is available here. You can also read the JHU Wellness blog Know Your Benefits that highlights parenting and caregiving benefits, and other parent support resources for graduate students and trainees.

Creativity in a Busy World

Listen to a Johns Hopkins Q&A with Digital Anthropologist and New York Times Best Selling Author of Hustle & Float, Rahaf Harfoush, which discusses ways to reclaim our creativity and thrive in a world obsessed with work.