Women’s Services and Resources is offering free nutrition and wellness consultations to BYU students.
Students can sign up for a consultation online or in the WSR office, located in Room 3326 of the Wilkinson Student Center.
A consultation can run from 30 to 60 minutes depending on what questions an individual has. Most sessions last about 30 minutes.
Rachel Lasley, the Women’s Services and Resources wellness specialist, runs the consultations. She is a senior majoring in dietetics.
Lasley said the consultations are individual and private, focusing on people’s questions and concerns. Topics can range from meal planning to eating healthy on a college budget to sleep habits.
“Part of our mission is to educate and empower women on campus,” Lasley said. “That is a reason why Women’s Services offers these consultations.”
Tiffany Turley, the Women’s Services and Resources director, said she has learned that wellness is a major concern among many BYU students. This is a service students should take advantage of, she said, because there is great value in personal wellness.
Students can talk about any wellness-related concern. When signing up online, students have an option to prepare questions ahead of time. However, if a student does not know exactly what they want to talk about, Lasley has some prepared questions to discuss.
“Rachel does a really great job with the consultations,” Turley said.
In 2012 the USC American College Health Association did a national college health assessment report and learned that 20 percent of undergraduate students felt that a cold, flu or sore throat had affected their academic performance. Additionally, 22 percent had sleep difficulties and almost 36 percent had problems with stress.
Madison Fullmer, the Women’s Services and Resources campaign specialist, said she agrees it can be difficult to balance everything as a college student, and that stress often leads to the issues above. She said students can feel like there just isn’t enough time in the day to get everything done.
Fullmer said poor eating habits, which many college students struggle with because of busy schedules and poor body image, can strongly affect someone’s overall wellness.
“During consultations students can talk about how to be more consistent with their eating habits, how to plan better and any body image issues they might have,” Fullmer said.
Turley said the consultations are an excellent resource for students, so they should definitely take the opportunity to schedule one.
“And they’re free,” Turley said. “We have had so much great feedback from people who have participated.”
