balancing life and uni is an important skill as you commence your
journey as a student
firstly there is the transition to uni
your expectations of uni may not match the realities of uni
what you can be certain of is that there will be
uncertainty, challenges, and change
uni is like any other big change or challenge though that you have dealt with in life
it takes time to adjust prepare for this and you'll be okay
some of the challenges you may experience include: getting used to the new
new people, new information, new routines
and your new role as a student finding what you need on campus and online
connecting to new technology knowing where to get help and seeking it out
understanding expectations managing your uni workload
and balancing uni with the rest of your life you may also be moving out of home
making your friends and building new networks staying well will be important
as will managing your emotions during all of this
it's very normal to have a range of feelings and emotions as you adjust to change
here is a model commonly used to show the
roller coaster of emotions you may experience
don't think "there's something wrong with me" or "Uni mustn't be for me" this is just the
normal way you transition and adjust to change
one thing we know for sure is that stress happens
stress is what motivates you to get out of bed in the morning and achieve your goals
how you manage stress is what's important
know your optimum level of stress how much stress allows you to operate at your best
know how you perform how much stress is the optimum level for you
what are the signs that you're becoming unproductive, what do you need to do to
adjust your stress levels so that you're performing at your optimum
know your stress tank
understand your stress response and monitor your stress levels
is there too much stress going into your tank and not enough being let out?
managing stress is what's important
know your symptoms of a full tank
what do you do or think differently? how do you feel within your body
when your stress tank is starting to get full
can you reduce the stress going in? can you reduce your workload
or problem-solve something that's bothering you
can you let more stress out have you been looking after your health and well-being
making time for yourself and using techniques that help you relax
focus on what you can control this quote from the book
"Seven Habits of Highly Effective People"
emphasizes focusing on what you can control or influence rather than on
the things you have little or no control over working on your internal stuff is
what you can control and this can then help you to better respond to the
external stuff that is out of your control
building resilience helps you to better respond
to the external world around you
the number one factor for building resilience is to connect with others
in a positive way
build your social, kin, cultural, and academic networks
schedule regular time to check in with others
check in, not out
look after your physical health, eat well, get enough sleep, exercise
take time to relax and moderate drug and alcohol use
use healthy coping tools
have a toolbox of healthy strategies that help you feel better and more in control
try to avoid unhealthy coping strategies
here are some examples of healthy coping strategies
be kind to yourself be self-compassionate when you are going
through a change and are stressed you are more likely to think badly of
yourself and others remind yourself that you are facing challenges and you're
doing okay focus on your strengths and
the positive things that are happening in your life
planning is important especially making sure you are planning
for your health and well-being as well as Uni plan each day for physical
health activities as well as your go-to coping strategy, break your uni study
into achievable shifts of time with plenty of breaks, plan to nurture your
resilience as well as achieve your goals at uni
JCU's student equity and well-being
has a number of free and confidential services that can be
helpful when balancing life and uni the JCU counselling service is there to help
you stay well as well as when there is a crisis or you have a specific issue
self-help info sheets are also available on the website
AccessAbility is a service that can provide options and support if you have a documented
disability illness health condition or mental health issue and the multi-faith
chaplaincy is a space to access spiritual and wellbeing activities
including talking to the on-site chaplain
to contact all three services call, email, or drop in to
student equity and well-being using the contact details on the screen
enjoy your experience as a student at JCU