TAKING CARE OF YOURSELF AT UNI “Don’t ever feel guilty about making use of a service - the support is designed with you in mind.”
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cross the board, there has been an increase in the number of university students disclosing issues around their mental health to their universities. The Institute for Public Policy Research disclosed in 2017 that the number of student suicides increased by 79 percent between 2007 and 2015. This statistic, revealed in the ‘Not By Degrees – Improving Student Mental Health In The UK’s Universities’ report, is distressing to discover, but doesn’t reflect a student-only issue. Further Universities UK research shows that between 2013 and 2016, ‘higher education students in England and Wales had a significantly lower suicide rate compared with the general population of similar ages.’
words Ben Thompson
While it’s troubling to see any increase, it could be argued that this is as a result of increased awareness about mental health and the increased resources available to those struggling.
challenges. The workload seems immense and daunting, especially when you get wind of those word counts. Student finance was exhausting – it wasn’t fun to receive an email telling me my tuition hadn’t been paid, in my second week. What advice would I impart? First of all, making sure you have a tutor you can speak to in confidence is crucial. I remember with fondness how my tutor was a source of reassurance when I was “having a wobble”. Admittedly, it is intimidating to open up to somebody, but as my tutor frequently said: “I’ve heard it all before, I guarantee what’s happening to you is happening to somebody else.” These words helped me feel less embarrassed and access support services that helped. Secondly, remember that the university is built to cater to your needs. I remember feeling like a pest, going into the Student Finance Office to enquire about my loan. But then my tutor reminded me that’s what they are there for. What is a university without its students? Don’t ever feel guilty about making use of a service – the support is designed with you in mind.
On the face of it, it’s understandable why coming to university is a challenging time for any new student. University students are often living away from their families for the first time, and with this jarring experience comes a whole new set of responsibilities. Students have to balance their studies with budgeting and maintenance for the first time. illustration Jordan Allan-Alberts Even for myself – somebody who lived at home – coming to university came with some 14
