VC Student Blog: Stress Awareness Week

Hi everyone,

I hope you are starting to settle into the new term and enjoying the buzz around campus now we are getting back again to fully face-to-face teaching. It has been great to see so many of you and feel a sense of your excitement on your university journey. I know that while it is great to be back on campus, there are still levels of Covid and other illnesses around in the community. I’d ask people to take responsible actions if they know they are positive and realise that we will have to continue to adjust and get used to low-levels of impact from such events in our everyday lives.

I know that being at university is a great opportunity to not only complete your degree but also find new hobbies, make new friends and explore lots of different opportunities. I realise, however, that sometimes these new experiences can be stressful. This can be unavoidable and sometimes may mean you need to reach out for support to better understand how to manage your new routine.   

Here at DMU we’re creating an environment that focuses on your health and wellbeing to help you live a healthy, happy and productive life. The Healthy DMU Hub is an online resource that has been developed as a one-stop shop for all things health and wellbeing. You can find helpful information about managing finances, volunteering, physical and mental health. This week is International Stress Awareness Week and the theme is working together to build resilience and reduce stress. At DMU, we are here to support you every step of the way. We have lots of fantastic support services available for you to access including masterclasses, mindfulness and free sporting activities. They include:

• DMUactive, our free sport and activity timetable, consisting of a variety of sessions for you to get involved in with no commitment. It features badminton, basketball, Zumba and much more. All sessions run throughout term-time and all you need is your student card.
• Healthy DMU runs a range of masterclasses for students to book onto. These focus on topics including resilience, performing under pressure and goal setting. They are all free and run regularly during term time. You can find a full list of them on the website.
• Free mindfulness workshops are a great way to take some downtime and focus through guided meditation and they can also help to improve your concentration. Again, there are a host of resources available on the website.
• De Montfort Students’ Union also runs events to help you de-stress, including a Wellbeing Wednesday session each week with fun activities. This week is free mug decorating. There are also weekly workshops with mental health charity Life Links and there is one is on Thursday focusing on relaxation techniques.

If you are feeling stressed, please do reach out to someone and ask for support, whether that be a friend, an academic or another member of staff. You never know, they may be feeling the same way too and you can support each other to de-stress.

I hope the tools I have mentioned above will be able to support during your time here at DMU and allow you to remain happy and healthy and truly flourish along your university journey.

Best wishes, 

Katie Normington,
Vice-Chancellor, De Montfort University