Looking after your mental health as a student
ICS Learn have put together some key mental health information and resources for students. They share a few small but significant ways you can look after your mental health as a student:
- Talk to someone – This could be your GP, your college or university’s support staff or a mental health charity. There are also a number of helplines that you can ring anonymously
- Let your tutors know – they are there to help you, so if you’re struggling to keep on top of your work, you should tell them.
- Spend time with friends and family – While you may worry that your friends and family won’t understand the issues that you’re facing, it’s possible they have gone trough similar issues and can sympathise with what you are going through. Even if you’re not ready to open up about how you’re feeling, spending some quality time with the people you care about can lift your spirits and make you feel less alone.
- Review your course and situation – Take some time to consider if the course and/or university or college are working for you. You might want to ask yourself: Is the coursework overloading you?; Are you happy with the style of learning and support offered?; Do you see yourself working in this field after you graduate? It’s fine if you’re not sure about the answers to these questions. Give yourself some time to think it over.
- Set aside some time for you – If you’re feeling overwhelmed or under pressure, you might be thinking that you can’t afford to take time out to relax. However, it’ll be far more beneficial to your health and your studies in the long run if you regularly take some time off for yourself.
- Try saying ‘no’ – If a growing list of looming obligations is contributing to stressing you out, it’s okay to make yourself the priority for a while and start saying ‘no’ when you need to.
- Create a schedule that gives you balance – Try making yourself a physical timetable that covers not just your academic work but your ‘me time’ and social activities too. Why not download our free study planner to get you started?
- No more self blame – Self-blame and mental health issues go hand in hand, and we know it can be so easy to punish yourself for feeling this way. People suffering from anxiety and depression often see themselves as weak or somehow lesser than other people because they’re struggling but this is simply not true!
