Mental Health and Wellness at Nobles: Wellness Strategies

If you or someone you know is in danger of self-harm, please call 911 or the Suicide Prevention Lifeline right away: 988. Anxious about Covid-19? Text HOME to the Crisis Text Line at 741741.

An insightful guide from the Trevor Project on how to keep yourself and your friends safe and happy on Instagram, from specific settings to best practices. While written for LGBTQ youth, these hacks and words of wisdom benefit all social media users.

• Remembering that however you are feeling right now, you won’t always feel this way! Things change and get better.
• Acknowledging that you’re feeling lousy, and telling yourself that it’s ok to feel lousy sometimes, can be really helpful.
• If you feel like isolating yourself, remember that connecting with another person will make you feel so much better.
• Trying to have self-compassion when you’re feeling bad is so important…sometimes we think that if we beat ourselves up, it will motivate us to do better… but that’s not the case! Being kind and forgiving to yourself helps you to do your best.
• Remember that it’s OK not to be OK!
• Use sticky notes to remember these.

1) From psychologist and Chatter author, Ethan Kross, here are his top tips on How to Control Negative Chatter In Your Head.

2) Set goals with WOOP, a science-based mental strategy that people can use to find and fulfill their wishes, set preferences, and change their habits.

3) Take the free, 10-minute VIA survey. Knowing your best character traits can help you to:

• Improve your relationships
• Enhance health and overall wellbeing
• Buffer against, manage and overcome problems

Strategies to reduce anxiety, by and for Nobles students 

• ​Reaching out to talk with a friend or family member, while hard, makes you feel less alone when you’re struggling. "I could have saved myself so much time and energy if I had just done one thing, and this is my single greatest regret in life—I should have reached out for help.”  - Desmond Herzfelder ’19

• Venting or getting whatever is bothering you off your chest can release pent up emotions and reduce anxiety. “Whatever I’m feeling is okay, and if I’m not okay, that’s okay.” - Angelina Gomes ’19

• Exercise raises endorphins and helps clear your mind.

• Writing in a journal helps to process how you’re feeling.

• Practicing mindfulness helps to tolerate difficult feelings and to calm down when you’re feeling anxious.

• Taking the time to savor something—eating a piece of chocolate, looking at something beautiful, etc. can help reconnect you to more positive emotions.

• Petting an animal can lower stress and make you feel calm and relaxed.

• Taking a long shower or bath can be really soothing when you’re feeling stressed or anxious.

• Listening to a podcast like “Kind World” can be really helpful in getting out of your own head.
• Watching a funny show or YouTube video (or anything that gets you laughing) can really shift your mood when you’re feeling low.
• Listening to music can be really soothing when you’re having a bad day.
• Getting engrossed in a creative project or playing an instrument can help take your mind off of things if you find yourself ruminating or worrying.
• Prioritizing your health—getting enough sleep, eating healthy meals, taking time to recharge—is sometimes the last thing you’re thinking about when your feeling bad, but it is often the best place to start.
• Sometimes when you are feeling bad, it can help a lot to do something kind for someone else.
• If you’re tired, decide early in the night to go to sleep and then do homework in the morning to save time with productivity.
• Sometimes printing out a coloring page and just coloring while listening to music can be incredibly relaxing and can help get your mind off of stressful things.

• Exercise helps to raise endorphins and clear your mind.
• Writing in a journal helps to process how you’re feeling.
• Don’t try to "one up" people with who got the least sleep.
• Keeping a gratitude journal changes your mindset over time to see the world in a more positive light.
• Talking with a counselor can feel scary at first, but it can be really helpful to have someone there who can listen and who won’t judge you.
• Putting sticky notes on walls and in binders can help you practice habits of positive thinking.
• If you’re tired, decide early in the night to go to sleep and then do homework in the morning to save time by being more productive.