Re-introducing Healthy Heels

A Healthy Heel is a member of the UNC-Chapel Hill community who strives to make decisions to move closer to health and wellness. That’s every single one of us because we all make decisions that impact our own wellness and the health of the Carolina community.

Healthy Heels is also a collaboration between the staff at Campus Health, Student Wellness, Counseling & Psychological Services, and Campus Recreation.

Together, we work to create a healthier campus.

The Healthy Heels Philosophy

We believe that:

• Health and wellness are journeys that individuals and communities take in an effort reach their potential, be well and thrive. We often face choices that affect our own and our community’s health and wellness, and choosing to live a healthier life takes effort. That effort is worth it.
• Everyone has the right to health - to reach their fullest potential, be well and thrive. People hold diverse identities, abilities, experiences, finances, circumstances, cultures and philosophies that influence their choices. We aim to provide spaces for raising awareness and creating dialogue around issues of health and wellness.
• Health goals vary by individual. We support the ways you already maintain wellness, and we offer ideas for new habits that you can consider. We focus on a range of wellness topics so you can find information and activities to meet your goals while at UNC-Chapel Hill and beyond. What works for one person might not work for another.
• Wellness and health are influenced immensely by our community and environment. That’s why we consider all levels of the socio-ecological model (Check out the link to learn more about the model and what it means to take an “environmental approach to health”). We don’t just ask people to change their individual behavior; we also try to make it easier for individuals to make healthy choices by changing the environment where we live, play and study.
• Wellness is holistic and intersecting. By that we mean, for example, that we can’t talk about alcohol without also talking about stress and relationships.
• Health is related to your academic goals. We work for a university, meaning we are focusing on the health of students and post-doctoral fellows. Research has found that healthy students are more successful inside and outside of the classroom.
• Research can help us be healthier. We will connect you with relevant scientific literature that can help you reach your health goals. While we focus on many topics, the following approaches are research-informed strategies to improve community health:
  • Health comes in every size. We are all on our journey toward wellness. All bodies have the capacity for health no matter their size. If you don't believe us - just watch the Olympics. 
  • Sexuality is a normal and healthy part of life. We want students to make informed decisions about their sexual health, which is why we provide accurate, honest and easy-to-understand sexual health information and services.
  • Violence takes many forms and can be hard to recognize. We help Tar Heels understand the contexts and factors that allow violence to occur. We focus on the ways all of us can influence changes in the culture around us, including systems of power and oppression that contribute to violence.
• Health and wellness can be amplified with good services. You can find a wide range of health care, mental health, recreation and wellness promotion services to support you while you’re at UNC-Chapel Hill. Many of the services have already been paid for in your Campus Health Fee. Never delay a visit if you’re in need. We want to see you succeed!

We need your help.

You are a critical part of the health and wellness landscape at UNC-Chapel Hill. We encourage you to...

• Get involved with health and wellness initiatives on campus.
• Connect with us on one of our many social media platforms, like @UNCHealthyHeels and @UNCCampusRec.
• Share your ideas and feedback with us and throughout campus. Share thoughts with Healthy Heels  like health topics, events to promote, or any other feedback you have about how we can support health and wellbeing here at Carolina.