In celebration of World Mental Health Day for 2020, we take a look back at the tips provided by Janet Lallysmith at our recent “Looking after your Mental Health” workshop – and how our students have benefited from the event.<\/p>\n
As part of our Welcome (back) programme of events, we were excited to offer a special “Looking after your Mental Health” workshop, delivered by Janet Lallysmith, a qualified mental health practitioner. The workshop aimed to increase awareness and knowledge about student mental health, including the additional challenges facing students who start this year. She also discussed self-care and helped students identify when and how to access additional support to help you have a positive student experience at Kent. You can view the event here<\/a>.<\/p>\n As part of the event, students were able to ask questions – here we share the responses from Janet, along with some mental health resources<\/a> and tips and feedback<\/a> from our students following the event to help you look after your Mental Health.<\/p>\n Finding it hard to \u2018switch off\u2019 is such a common problem in modern life.\u00a0 Establishing regular sleeping patterns of going to bed and getting up at about the same time each day seems to be important.\u00a0 Getting out in day light and exercise are also vital, especially as we head towards winter.\u00a0 It\u2019s pretty well known that the light from screens stimulates our brains into staying awake \u2013 doing something stimulating online like gaming or getting irate over social media makes it even harder to switch off! \u00a0\u00a0Try to get into the habit of turning devices off a couple of hours before you intend to go to sleep or, if you must use them, choose calming activities and consider wearing specially designed orange tinted glasses or adjusting your screen colour to filter out some of the blue light.<\/p>\n Some people find that using mindfulness apps like www.headspace.com<\/a> or https:\/\/pzizz.com\/<\/a> useful for clearing and calming their mind just before sleep (both free to access).<\/p>\n<\/details>\n If you\u2019re experiencing regular headaches, it\u2019s important to see your GP to check if there is an underlying cause that needs treatment.\u00a0 If you\u2019re certain that your headaches are purely stress induced, some of the suggestions above about prioritising sleep and reducing screen time might be of use.\u00a0 Eating well and staying hydrated are also important.\u00a0 Regular breaks from books and screens to move around and let out eyes change their focus also help.\u00a0 Yoga or stretching exercises can reduce tension in the neck and shoulders \u2013 worth a try to see if it helps?<\/p>\n The Stress Management Society<\/a> has lots of information and useful tips about managing stress.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n Depression is common and has unfortunately become more prevalent during the global pandemic.\u00a0 If you feel like you\u2019re not coping or that you\u2019re not safe, it\u2019s vital that you seek medical help from your GP, 111 or A&E.\u00a0 Anti-depressants are useful drugs for many people \u2013 they don\u2019t help everyone but sometimes they can help people feel a bit more able to cope with the everyday.\u00a0 Even if you don\u2019t feel like it, ensuring that you eat nutritious food, setting aside time for plentiful sleep, getting \u00a0outside, moving around and talking to people who make you feel good will make each day feel more manageable. \u00a0Counselling or therapy is beneficial to many people \u2013 your GP or student services will be able to point you in the direction of what\u2019s available.\u00a0 Talking to people around you about what\u2019s on your mind and what help you need is often useful \u2013 you might find yourself feeling less alone and more able to problem-solve.<\/p>\n Students Against Depression<\/a> set up and run by the Charlie Walker Memorial Trust has lots of information, support and advice for young people experiencing mental distress.<\/p>\n Men may want to consider contacting CALM<\/a>, the Campaign Against Living Miserably, if they\u2019re experiencing suicidal thoughts. Free help lines (all staffed 7 days a week 5pm \u2013 midnight) London – 0808 802 58 58; Nationwide – 0800 58 58; webchat and advice and guidance on website.<\/p>\n MOODZONE<\/a>\u00a0 Free, online NHS resource with information and practical tips<\/p>\n<\/details>\n I expect that this question is on a lot of students minds this year especially as housemates are spending more time with each other than they usually would.\u00a0 It\u2019s very difficult if you don\u2019t know people to spot if they\u2019re acting \u2018out of character\u2019 or are, for example, depressed.\u00a0 For lots of people, being included in things going on and having people taking an interest in them will often be enough them feel more connected to those around them.\u00a0 If you\u2019re concerned about someone and feel out of your depth in how to help them, you can always contact student services<\/a> for advice.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n Panic attacks are tough and scary, and you\u2019ve identified a great approach about learning to live with them rather than trying to stop them altogether which, of course, will make you feel more panicky as you can\u2019t just turn off how your body reacts to things.\u00a0 We all know that good sleep, eating well and exercising are really obvious, but they\u2019re not so obvious that we all do them every day\u2026\u00a0 they truly are the foundation of good mental and physical health though.\u00a0 If we\u2019re low on sleep, our body produces more adrenaline to keep us awake which leads to us feeling anxious and on edge.\u00a0 Exercise helps get rid of stress hormones like adrenalin and cortisone and so reduces the likelihood of panic attacks.\u00a0 Avoiding situations that you know make you panicky and being confident enough in your own judgement to remove yourself when you can feel your anxiety level rising also helps.\u00a0 As you probably know, breathing \u2013 getting oxygen to the brain \u2013 is the key thing that reduces panic.\u00a0 Mindfulness practices, singing or chanting can help do this.<\/p>\n If you\u2019re feeling panicky and in need of immediate support, the Samaritans<\/a> (Free phone line 24\/7 \u2013 116 123; E-mail support – jo@samaritans.org) and Giveusashout<\/a> (free, confidential text service to help people get from a \u2018hot\u2019 space to a \u2018cool\u2019 one. Text \u2018SHOUT\u2019 to 85258) are available 24\/7<\/p>\n<\/details>\n These are tough, tough times for so many students.\u00a0 Do ensure that you\u2019re registered with a local GP so that you can access support for any health problem promptly.\u00a0 Although there\u2019s nowhere to go to be checked, there is help and support available as outlined above.\u00a0 Mind<\/a> (Info line Mon-Fri 9am-6pm: 0300 123 3393) and the Mental Health Foundation<\/a> also have lots of information, advice and downloadable resources on their websites.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n It\u2019s so hard isn\u2019t it? Even if we\u2019ve built up good habits and ways of managing our time by the third year, everything\u2019s been thrown up in the air by managing covid.\u00a0 It\u2019s important to keep talking to the people around you about where you are with everything and what you need \u2013 do you need your friends and family to lean on you less for a while for example?\u00a0 Have a look at the Stress Management Society<\/a> website \u2013 some of their tried-and-tested, practical suggestions may help you put things in place to make daily life feel a bit less overwhelming.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n We\u2019d all like to know how to do this!\u00a0 We watched this Stress Bucket video<\/a> clip during the session on 23rd<\/sup> September (which is all still available to watch online if you\u2019re interested).\u00a0 It shows how \u2018quick fix\u2019 ways to cope with stress often end up causing us more stress in the long run.\u00a0 Actively making a decision to replace bad habits with less harmful ones takes time, but if you take it a day at a time, you might surprise yourself with what you do have the power to change.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n The easiest way to tell people something personal about ourselves is often what initially seems the hardest \u2013 which is to just simply and directly say it.\u00a0 Hints may not be picked up on, which can make us feeling even less heard.\u00a0 Giving specific examples can help the other person understand your perspective.\u00a0 It\u2019s not easy to change habits though \u2013 you might need to do a bit of practising with a trusted friend.\u00a0 It does seem that emotional or complex situations are rarely sorted out via text messages, email or social media \u2013 speaking either face-to-face or on the phone tends to be more effective (and involve less time waiting and checking, checking, checking for a response!).<\/p>\n<\/details>\n Following the event, we asked attendees to fill in a short survey<\/a>.<\/p>\n They told us that, thanks to the workshop they will try something to help improve their mental health – why not give their tips and ideas a go?<\/p>\n And remember, if you have any worries about your own – or others – mental health, please do reach out to us. You can contact the SPS Support team<\/a> for more help.<\/p>\nQ&A from the event<\/h4>\n
What do we do if we have trouble sleeping and clearing our mind?<\/strong><\/summary>\n
How can we deal with headaches from stress other than medicine?<\/strong><\/summary>\n
How do you manage depression?<\/strong><\/summary>\n
How can you best spot and aid mental health difficulties in housemates?<\/strong><\/summary>\n
How can I cope with living with panic attacks?<\/strong><\/summary>\n
If we are worried about our mental health where can we go to be checked? Especially if we aren’t from the local area?<\/strong><\/summary>\n
I am a third year student and have previously struggled with juggling with a long term relationship and commitments\/work load at uni what can I do to split my time, or feel less stressed?<\/strong><\/summary>\n
How could you stop doing bad habits just because the stress?<\/strong><\/summary>\n
Outside of just dropping hints, is there an easy way to tell people that you are more sensitive to things and may perceive situations differently?<\/strong><\/summary>\n
Mental Health Resources and Tips<\/h4>\n
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Feedback from our students<\/h4>\n
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