Creative study break allows FTC students to pop their stresses away
By Isabella Escobar
The Downbeat erupted with the lively sound of balloons popping as students released their worries on October 3rd. RA and Film& TV student Lauren Marino provided colorful balloons for students to write down their stresses before popping them with pins.
Marino, the event’s host, expressed the significance of the cathartic experience. “I wanted to host this because I know people have been feeling stressed lately because of school and other things in their lives. I was thinking that if they write something down on a balloon and then pop it, then it will take their stress off, maybe a little bit, because they just needed to get that out.”
The atmosphere was enhanced with candy, juice and stickers. While there was no limit to the number of balloons students could inflate and pop, all the participants were responsible for cleaning up the popped pieces afterward.
Theatre Arts major Lindsay Pacci shared how this event was new and unexpectedly valuable for her. “This event was definitely very freeing for me. I have a lot of stresses in my life especially starting college as a freshman, but it was really nice! I got to write down what I was stressed about, and it got me out of my comfort zone because I usually never pop balloons.”
As the event came to a close, the countless pops demonstrated the creative and innovative approach to letting go of stress in a simple yet enjoyable way. FTC students can also reach out to Randi Giebel, Licensed Mental Health Counselor, in the Counseling Center if they need more support.
To stay updated on campus activities, students are encouraged to monitor their FTC emails and follow the @FTC_EVENTS account on Instagram for more information on upcoming events.
