Dealing with the pandemic, school work, and part-time jobs is a challenge for students enrolling in the Spring-Summer 2021 semester. So, to mark Mental Health Awareness Month, The Dialog has interviewed Dr. Lisa Bradford, a registered clinical and counselling psychologist who works with individual adults and couples. 

To destress during a busy Spring-Summer 2021 semester, Dr. Bradford suggested to follow the 10 tips listed below: 

1. Find some time every day to go on walks
   Since it may be isolating to stay confined in a room, Dr. Bradford suggested going on daily walks within the local neighbourhood to observe other residents. “I think now that the weather is nice it is important to make yourself go for a walk and be around other people, even if socially distanced since it produces feelings of connectedness with others,” said Dr. Bradford.
   Other than connecting and observing other people around the community, going on walks will help students feel connected to nature as well. “Something you can do is grounding, which is putting both of your feet to the soil,” says Dr. Bradford. “You are more connected to the earth, and it can help relieve a lot of stress.”

2. Take frequent breaks from studying to garden
   Always being confined to one place isn’t good for a student’s mental and physical health. By taking frequent breaks, students can engage themselves more with different hobbies, such as gardening. “Even if you don’t have access to a yard which a lot of people may not have, just even if you have a balcony, grow something,” says Dr. Bradford. “Gardening and growing something boosts and parallels personal growth.”

3. Crying does help
   Instead of bottling up difficult emotions, crying allows a person to release their stress and express how they feel. In fact, crying with another person definitely helps more. “I think crying, although students get a bit tense to not even cry, it does help when you cry by yourself,” said Dr. Bradford. “Crying is cathartic and an emotional release; it provides relief and prevents tension building up and overwhelming the person.”

4. Massages and stretches do help to relax and to release emotions, even when done at home
   If you’re feeling tense, you can also ask your partner to give you a massage at home. “If you have an electric blanket that can relax your muscles, that can pretty much bring relief in many ways and be cleansing in a lot of people too,” said Dr. Bradford. “A massage or electric blanket can relax muscles and make it easier to cry.”

5. Limit your intake of caffeine and wine
   Although taking a sip of wine may seem ideal after completing an assignment at first, the impacts are way more severe than expected. According to Dr. Bradford, wine can “disrupt your sleeping cycles and contribute to more stress.”
   “Even from one glass to two glasses in the evening, some people may think it’s not a big deal but it actually disrupts your sleep,” said Dr. Bradford. “It can be insidious; people are increasing it slowly and steadily. But you can actually feel down or a bit more stressed the next day, since alcohol can affect the central nervous system and the withdrawal comes with agitation and sadness.”
   On the other hand, drinking coffee can cause more harm when trying to concentrate on schoolwork. “Drinking a lot of caffeine increases your cortisol,which throws off all your hormones such as thyroid, estrogen and progesterone,” says Dr. Bradford.
   Dr. Bradford’s suggestion is to take caffeine breaks by not drinking on the weekends and trying to eliminate the chance of developing tolerance.

6. Strive for authenticity.
   Amid a world of social media and advertisements, it can be difficult for a student to self-reflect. However, Dr. Bradford emphasized the importance of authenticity in order to create a supportive environment. “It’s really important for the student body [during their young adult years] to check in with themselves,” says Dr. Bradford. “They should ask themselves: ‘Is it my way to say fine?’ ‘Am I really fine?’” In this case, the more students reflect on themselves, the more important it is important for their mental health.

7. De-stigmatization of mental health services can lead to less self-censorship among students
   One way to de-stigmatize mental health services is initiated when a student decides to access mental health services and spread the word through the school. “The more people [accessing mental health services], the more there will be a shift in the trend,” said Dr. Bradford.”Just continue to send the message out and de-stigmatize therapy, so that will be like the default rather than pretending.”

8. Focus more on the positive aspect.
   With tons of events going on, it’s easy to get distracted by the ‘negative.’ However, Dr. Bradford emphasizes the importance of focusing on the positive, especially when faced with a challenging course. “If you can find something positive about a course, that’s great, and you should focus on the positive aspect,” said Dr. Bradford. “Tell yourself, ‘like well I hate doing this now, this is important for the future and I need it to find a job that I love.’”

9. Try to trick your brain into doing work.
   When you are not in the mood to complete homework, Dr. Bradford says that you should remind yourself to work for at least 10 minutes. “It is a bit of self-trickery,” says Dr. Bradford. “The hardest part can be starting, but it will help you get going and there is a very good chance that you will end up doing a lot more than 10 minutes once you have momentum.”

10. Start on assignments early.
    Although this tip is commonly reiterated by teachers and parents, students should start their assignments early to prevent last-minute stress. However, according to Dr. Bradford, some students can develop a habit of finishing assignments at the last minute. “With all of the adrenaline pumping, you may not realize how much stress you are under and therefore might leave it to the last minute,” said Dr. Bradford. “It’s not very good for you as it can be very exhausting and damaging for your mental and physical health. So doing things in advance is very important and helpful in that way.”