Mental Health Matters: A discussion on self-care during the fall semester

 

With no break from Labor Day through Thanks­giv­ing, it is seem­ing­ly inevitable that stu­dent men­tal health will suf­fer dur­ing the fall semester. 

Accord­ing to Kristi­na Stevens, Direc­tor of Men­tal Health at Stu­dent Health and Well­ness, this is to be expect­ed and there are ways to cope. 

One of the most sim­ple ways stu­dents can bet­ter their men­tal health dur­ing this time is to main­tain a con­sis­tent, healthy lifestyle. 

“A lot of self-care is about sleep, it’s about good eat­ing, It’s about stay­ing hydrat­ed. It’s about tak­ing time for your­self and being con­nect­ed, whether it’s vis­it­ing with your dog, vis­it­ing with fam­i­ly and friends, hav­ing a cup of cof­fee with a friend…there’s real val­ue in that,” said Stevens.

UConn also pro­vides numer­ous men­tal health resources to help stu­dents that are strug­gling. In addi­tion to group ther­a­pies, pet ther­a­py, and cri­sis hot­lines, the most sim­ple way a stu­dent can receive help is through ‘Let’s Talk’. This pro­gram is a drop-in ser­vice in which stu­dents can talk to a clin­i­cian, ask ques­tions, and dis­cuss prob­lems they are having. 

I sat down with Kristi­na Stevens to dis­cuss these resources and more on how UConn stu­dents can thrive dur­ing the fall semester.

 

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