Monthly Archives: November 2016

Sadness, Anxiety, and Depression can help you!

Sadness, anxiety, and depression…guess what? These feelings may actually help you.

Many of us try to avoid these negative feelings and do anything we can to get rid of them– but what if we changed the way we viewed these feelings? What if we saw these feelings as examples of our courage and our resourcefulness in getting through the difficult times? What if we saw…

depression as a chance to slow down

sadness as an opportunity to find out what really matters

anger as a source of energy

anxiety as a sign that we need to check in with ourselves

and, shutting down as a way to keep ourselves safe.

What if we saw these feelings that we most despise as our body’s best and most creative way of managing a difficult situation or a negative experience in our past? Would that change the way we think and feel about our experiences of sadness, anxiety, and depression?

No one wants to feel sad, anxious, or depressed, but when we can observe and even honour the feelings as our body doing its best to manage something difficult, or our body’s way of saying “Hey, listen to me! Something’s going on and I need you to make a change,” our relationship with these feelings also begin to change. We begin to welcome the information we are provided and can use it as a way to stay on track with our values, goals and important relationships. We no longer see sadness, anxiety, and depression as terrible symptoms, but instead as a source of information that can guide us toward a more fulfilling life.

So, how do we welcome these intolerable feelings? It starts with a breath. Take a big one now. Let out a big sigh and just notice what feelings are there. Don’t push the feelings away, but instead welcome them with gentle curiosity…”I wonder what that is? Hmm, I wonder what that feeling needs.” It’s important not to judge what comes up here, just notice it, and take another breath.

When we don’t push our feelings away but instead gently welcome their messages, we create space between the feelings and our reactions. When we sit with the feelings and just observe them, our behaviours such as avoiding, lashing out or engaging in unhealthy ways of coping become less reactive and allow us to shift our behaviours from automatic reactions to conscious choices. The depression, sadness and anxiety become new sources of information about what we need in our lives, and the changes we need to make.

So the next time you start to push away the unwanted feelings, take a moment, and a breath, and see what you can discover.

Treat Yo’Self!

Stressed. Panicking. Tired. Worried. Did I mention stressed? If you talk to any UBCO student during finals season and ask them how they are feeling, you are more than likely to hear a few of these adjectives (and others that may not be appropriate to say). Finals week is always one of the most stressful period during the university school year, dreaded by every student.

With finals coming up, students may sacrifice their well-being in hopes of getting better grades. Ideally, students try to prevent an end-of-semester avalanche by planning ahead, but sometimes work piles up for even the most organized student. It is not unusual that some students will feel overwhelmed with final exams, projects, and final papers. You may stop sleeping, your social life may seem more in shambles and you probably don’t shower as much, right? Yes, I know no one wants to admit to the shower thing but you know it’s true! So, what if I told you there is hope? Are you intrigued now?

How exactly can you make it to the end of the tunnel after finals week? To quote Parks and Recreation I say “Treat Yo’self”. I know it doesn’t sound like an easy thing to do during finals. We live in a world where productivity and efficiency are constantly pushed, especially as a student. I know many of you probably feel the same way I do, but even though I might be a stranger trust me, self care is one of the best ways to prevent you from crashing and burning. Self care is one of the best ways to reduce the crippling anxiety and stress that you may be experiencing during finals. Throughout the past five years at UBCO I’ve come to realize the importance of self care during finals so I thought I would share some of my tips with you all:

puppy

Snuggle a puppy
Take some time out to cuddle an adorable puppy from B.A.R.K. Who can resist the adorable face and the beautiful personality of the puppies. B.A.R.K. has a room full of adorable puppies every Friday from 4:30 to 6 PM in EME 1123 and they will always put a smile on your face.

 

 

Get in some zzz
I cannot emphasize this one enough! Multiple studies have shown that sleep deprivation actually make a student do worse during exams. I always thought that if I stayed up and studied more I would do well on my exams and have just a little bit more time to study. I was wrong and it took me four years to realize it. Learn from my mistakes! Being tired while studying does not help retain any of the information you are trying to learn and decreases your performance during exam time.

psnTake advantage of the resources you have on campus
Remember you are not alone! Many students are going through the same struggles that you will be going through during finals season. Make sure you take your time out to go talk to someone if you are stressed out. Come talk to one of your fellow students at the Peer Support Network on campus. We are a resource centre completely run by students for the students and are always here to listen. We are not trained professionals but rather provide a listen and refer service for students. If you are intrigued feel free to email us at psn@ubcsuo.ca. Don’t forget we also have the wonderful counsellors at the Health and Wellness!

Take breaks
Know your limits, play within it. Your brain can only handle so much information at one time. Don’t torture yourself by studying for hours on in; take a break! No one will benefit from you being locked up in your room all day. One strategy that has always worked for me is 25 minutes of intense studying and a 5-minute break to look at my phone. This is often very effective, but make sure you put your phone away after the break, turn off that show on Netflix and get off Facebook or Instagram or any form of social media you may be using.

breatheJust Breathe
I know you hear this time and time again, but it helps! When you are feeling overwhelmed just breathe in and breathe out. If that doesn’t help, find other healthy ways to relax. Take a bubble bath or go to the gym.


Remember Your Basic Needs

At the end of the day we are all humans and your body needs some attention as well. A human needs food, water, and sleep. Don’t forget to eat healthy and shower. Some times people just need a reminder so use those colourful sticky notes and write a reminder to yourself!

-Naaz Grewal
B.Sc Student | PSN External Coordinator| QPR Instructor