In the third part of our DIY relaxtion series, Lily Icangelo takes us to the Well Woman center. It’s not just for ladies!

Educational

Nestled on the first floor of Reid Hall in the Barnard Quad, (where the doors to the quad caution “Do Not Open: Alarms WILL Sound,”) is Barnard College’s Well Woman office. You may or may not have visited the office, or rather the basket outside of the office, to pick up some of the Well-Woman-provided free condoms (good for you if you did! Yay safe sex!). But have you ever actually gone inside? Bwog did, and you should too. It was magical.

If you have ever been on the Barnard Campus, even for just 10 minutes, you’ve undoubtedly seen at least one of the Well Woman posters that encourage students to “Eat Well”, “Sleep Well” and, if the conclusion wasn’t obvious, “Be Well.” Or maybe you’ve gone to one of their Cupcake events or Milk Tasting parties. Perhaps you have even read their blog! With the large number and variety of ways that Well Woman reaches out to students, it is pretty safe to say that they have quite the presence on the Barnard Campus.

Safe sex

Bwog visited the Well Woman office last week and sat down with the Coordinator of Health Promotion and Education Jessica Cannon, BC ’03. Not only was Jessica incredibly relatable and friendly (she offered us tea and cheese!) but the atmosphere of the office was equally welcoming; it felt like a place that you could just go hang out in and read a book for a couple of hours. And it sort of is.

The office is the perfect hang out spot to drink  free tea, eat free chocolate and flip through an impressive magazine collection. Staff member and peer educator are available to talk about stress management, meditation, sleep issues, and whatever else is on your mind. And there’s touching! Well Woman even has two massage chairs that you can sit in while learning about health advocacy and stocking up on free wellness supplies.

Well Woman is officially a Barnard office and because it is located in a dorm building, any non-Barnard student must be signed in in order to have access to the office. However, no one will be checking for a Barnard I.D. once you’re at the Well Woman door. Although the large “menstrual cycle” poster might initially scare a few people (both men and women) students of all genders are welcome into the office.

Finals are stressful. College is stressful. Life, lets face it, is stressful. But it is a relief to know that resources like Well Woman exist at Barnard and Columbia for us over-worked, over-stressed, over-everything-you-can-think-of students to turn to when we need a little break…from everything.

Well Woman is located at 119 Reid Hall. Its regular hours are Monday-Friday 1-4 PM (staff hours) and Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday 7-9 PM (peer educator drop-in hours). Because of finals and the end of the school year Well Woman will only be open for staff hours for these last few days.