Recently I have written and published my tips on how to make a success out of University life, touching on areas such as exercise, organisation and nutrition. An underlying theme of all these areas however is mental health. It is a somewhat controversial topic to discuss in an online magazine directed specifically at University students as it is interpreted in lots of different ways and effects people from a wide range of backgrounds. However, I wanted to draw your attention to a worthwhile initiative being drawn up by Laura Wilkinson our VP of Campaigns & Communications called the Grow Our Minds Campaign. 

I briefly mentioned this in my last article but want to raise awareness and promote it in order to help you, the students to get the most out of it! Here are some words written by Laura that communicate what the campaign is all about.

"Being a student can be great fun, but it also brings its pressures. Deadlines, money pressures, personal problems and other issues can create situations where we're not feeling like ourselves - but there are things we can do to look after ourselves and the people around us.

This campaign aims to help you to overcome your own mental health challenges as well as recognise signs of difficulty and offer support to your mates if they need it. This training will give you the basics on how to help if someone you know is experiencing difficulties."

Through a number of sessions dedicated to creating a comfortable environment where people can come to discuss their issues, the campaign will hopefully help to squash the stigma that society has placed against mental health and in turn help as many people as possible come forward and feel better! You can expect to see these sessions start to pop up after the end of the Michaelmas Term and at the beginning of Lent Term. In February the campaign wishes to highlight its involvement in Random Acts of Kindness Week (12^th-16^th). In addition to this there will be a ‘Mind Festival’ on the 27^th of February which the campaign shall be involved in and will provide information about in due course.

As for this term, there are a couple of Mental Health First Aid Training Sessions being put on for free by the Students Union on Monday the 27th of November (one week from today!) which will include training from authorised individuals on how to aid those who are in need of support regarding their mental health. There are an extremely limited number of spaces on these courses which will be held for 1 hour each and will be held from 10-11 & 11-12 respectively.

Please do sign up for these sessions if you are interested as they are a fantastic opportunity for anyone who wishes to engage in the support of those with mental health & considering it is FREE it really isn't something you'll want to pass up!

Thanks for reading, 

Sam Cooper - Bowland Magazine Editor