SELF CARE
MHFA recognizes several stressors that college students face including financial burdens, academic pressure, homesickness, and other hardships. Nearly half of college students report psychological distress and about ¼ consider suicide. Practicing self care regularly can help ease psychological distress in college students. MHFA recommends seven tips including – setting a routine, getting enough sleep, exercise, eating nutritious meals, drinking plenty of water, practicing mindfulness, and living in a clean, decluttered environment. This page also has links to other related articles, such as how to set a self care routine and how to wind down at bedtime. They also offer contact information to crisis resources.
Offers links to many ways of practicing self care, such as exercise, goal setting, nutrition, sleep, and managing stress. Each link contains benefits, tips, and processes for how to be successful in each category. This page was adapted from the University of Michigan Depression Center.
This page explains the difference between self care and destressing. This page also contains 250 self care ideas tailored specifically for college students. They include self care for the mind, for the body, for the heart, for the soul, and for overall self care. There are 50 ideas in each section.
ANXIETY
Insight into signs and symptoms of anxiety, types of anxiety in college students, and how to know when to seek professional help for anxiety. They also offer ways to cope with anxiety and tips for how parents can help their children with anxiety.
25 different grounding techniques for those who struggle with anxiety, PTSD, and those who struggle with their fight or flight instincts. These are physical and mental actions that can help distract from oncoming anxiety. Some techniques listed are: the 5-4-3-2-1 technique, spelling something backwards, listening to music, clenching your fists and releasing, vigorous exercise, stretching, and taking a shower or bath.
A list of potential symptoms of anxiety disorders and eleven coping skills for anxiety disorders. The coping skills they listed are: keeping physically active, avoiding alcohol and recreational drugs, quitting smoking and limiting caffeine intake, using relaxation and stress management techniques, making sleep a priority, eating healthily, learning about the disorder, sticking to treatment plans, identifying triggers, keeping a journal, and socialization.
DEPRESSION
Ten strategies for coping with and managing depression, along with some additional self-help resources like the NAMI website and a couple of books. They also offer a list of apps that may help with mental health struggles.
Insight to how indecision and depression could be linked. On the left side of this page, there are many other links that discuss depression, treatment, coping, and self-care.
SUBSTANCE USE
Discusses consequences of drinking and offers education on binge drinking and how much an actual drink is. It also provides statistics on consequences of excessive drinking, particularly in college students. This page is made in a prevention effort.
Insight on potential reasons why some college students may use substances, such as family history and the college culture of the abundant availability of various drugs and alcohol. They also offer a list of potential signs to look out for and how to talk about treatment.
HEALTHY RELATIONSHIPS
Information about healthy romantic relationships and what abuse can look like. Other resources on this page include information on consent, power and control, boundaries, and cultural contexts within relationships.
Planned Parenthood offers information on what healthy relationships can look like, and questions you can ask yourself about your relationships to determine if they are healthy or unhealthy. There is also information on cheating and breakups, along with resources for seeking help.
Tips for making new friends in college, which is something that many college students struggle with. Some of us haven’t had to make new friends since we were in kindergarten, so it can be scary trying to do that all again at 18 years old. Their tips include choosing friends who are emotionally healthy, establishing healthy boundaries, finding diverse friends, learning how to ask good questions, and being mindful about how friendships affect you.
Discusses ways in which friendships can benefit your life. It also includes ideas you can use to meet new people, ways you can be a more nurturing friend, and ways to maintain friendships (because we all know that can be difficult).
ACADEMIC DISTRESS
Tips to Manage Academic Stress in College
Describes things that can make stress worse, such as overusing screens and alcohol and drug use, which are very common issues among college students. Their tips for managing stress include moving your body, journaling, mindful breathing or meditation, spending quality time with loved ones, group support or therapy, listening to music, going outside, and helping others.
Mental Health and Academic Pressure
Discusses ways to cope with academic anxiety. It also contains statistics on stress in college students, noting that 87% of college students report that their education is a significant source of stress.
Offers tips for time management in college. Their tips include identifying time wasters and setting goals, creating to-do lists, tackling small tasks to start, doing one thing at a time, establishing routines, taking breaks and time off, and learning to delegate tasks.
BOUNDARY SETTING
How to Set Boundaries – Emotional, Physical, Digital, etc.
Describes the importance of setting boundaries. They discuss emotional boundaries, digital boundaries, physical boundaries, and conflict resolution.
How to Set Boundaries – Sex, Work, Romance, Parents, Friends
Describes different ways to set boundaries in different contexts in your life. It also shows the difference between healthy boundaries and potentially unhealthy boundaries. There is information on work-life boundaries, romantic boundaries, physical and sexual boundaries, emotional boundaries, and boundaries with friends and parents.
DECISION MAKING
Many college students have a hard time knowing what the “right” decision is. This page discusses ways to make healthier decisions and life choices. There are also links to other pages that discuss decision making and other mental health disorders, such as depression, PTSD, and bipolar disorder.
Habits for Better Decision Making
Discusses habits that can help people improve their decision making skills. They discuss the role of emotions in decision making, self-reflection, and reframing problems in a different way. There is also a link to the Verywell Mind podcast, which could be a good resource for college students who enjoy consuming this kind of media.
MINDFULNESS
About Mindfulness and Some Exercises
Defines what mindfulness is and some benefits of it, such as improving symptoms of stress, anxiety, depression, insomnia, and even diabetes. They offer different methods of mindfulness, like things you can do everyday and more structured options.
Guided Progressive Muscle Relaxation
About a 15-minute long video that guides you through progressive muscle relaxation, a mindfulness technique.