World mental health day

College can be stressful time. Assignments overdue, exams looming, short on funds; as exciting as college life may be, it also brings with it a wealth of new stresses for students.

Simply being aware of this can help us get through difficult times.

We've all heard about having ‘five a day’, that is eating five portions of fruit and vegetables (chips don’t count!) to maintain a healthy diet and lifestyle.

However, our mental health is JUST as important and there are five easy steps we can follow that may have positive effects on our mental health and well being.

  

  

Source:  New Zealand Mental Health Agency

 

CONNECT...with yourself and with those around you.  Go for a coffee or eat lunch with others from your class. Join a club or society.  There's a list of them here at http://itbsu.ie/ . 

 Our friends and family offer us love and support, so don't be afraid to ask for advice, help, or even some time to just have a chat.

It is also important sometimes to DISCONNECT, to switch off our phones, tablets, devices and engage with the person in front of us. Sometimes we have too much information to hand and we can find it hard to connect with our friends and family.


GIVE...Doing good is good for us. Helping others makes us feel needed and valued; it can reinforce social connectedness and give us a sense of purpose – not to mention the benefits for those we help and the wider benefit to communities by contributing to a more compassionate society. 

You'll be surprised at how good you'll feel by helping your fellow students. 

College life is hectic and you may think you don't have time for help others. Sometimes all it takes sometimes is a simple thanks, a smile, a supportive shoulder to make a change to someone else's day...so give it a try!


TAKE NOTICE...of people, of yourself, what's going on in college, the world around you, of all the positives in your life.



KEEP LEARNING...college is, of course, a learning environment. That is you primary reason for coming to ITB.  

However, learning does not always have to involve lectures, books or traditional teaching methods. Doing new things is learning, be it starting a hobby, cooking  something different for the first time or jsut finding out new things about your class mates.  Such learning exposes us to new ideas and helps us to stay curious and engaged while giving us a sense of accomplishment and a boost our confidence.

What have you learnt or tried out for the first time recently?


BE ACTIVE...go for walk between classes to clear your mind.  Take up a class or join one of the many sports clubs listed here http://itbsu.ie/  

 Engaging in exercise gives us new opportunities to meet people, to give us a much-needed break from a stressful day and, above all, to make us feel good about ourselves.  The brand new, state of the art Sports Pavilions is located beside the LINC building and is free for students to use, so make the most of it! Click on the link for more information about this excellent facility.

http://www.itb.ie/CampusStudentLife/sports.html


Sources: '5 A Day for Mental Health ' Wellbeing project published in October 2008http://foresight.gov.uk  cited by TCD Student Welface and UNILINK service.