Student life isn’t always easy. For Mental Health and Wellbeing Week, campus-based support services – Student Health and OUSA Student Support – answer your questions with advice on everything from how to manage your workload through burnout or grief, to dealing with flatcest or hall food constipation.
Student Health
I’m so tired but struggle sleeping. Any tips?
There are a few things you can try to help you sleep better at night. Going to bed and getting up at the same time every day helps to set your body clock. Avoid stimulants such as caffeine, alcohol, exercise (do this during the day instead) or a large meal within two or three hours of hitting the hay. It’s also a good idea to avoid screens an hour or two before bed. Instead, try unwinding with reading a novel, listening to music, journaling or meditation. Limit naps during the day – no later than 2pm. Finally, if you’re struggling to sleep, get up and do something not screen-based until you feel tired again. Healthify has a great app to track or aid sleep, and advice on their website if you’d like more information.
How do I deal with hall food constipation?
Constipation is a common problem and usually lasts a short time. A change in diet from home may trigger constipation. Things you can do to help avoid constipation include regular exercise, drinking 1.5L of fluid a day (water, ideally), eating high fibre foods every meal (vegetables, fruits, wholegrain breads, cereals) and add in the occasional natural laxative where possible (green kiwifruit, bran, and fruits such as apples or raisins). Like the previous question, Healthify has some great advice on their website.
How to tackle assignments when you have ADHD
ADHD can add extra challenges for people in their study journey (though the many superpowers it provides should not be forgotten!). The Attention Deficit Disorder Association (ADDA) has a page on their website with tips on how to study efficiently with ADHD, including minimising distractions and useful study techniques like the Pomodoro.
OUSA Student Support
How do I manage my workload, stay motivated, and work through burnout?
We know what it is like to feel overwhelmed and burnt out as it gets closer to the end of the year. It is important to look after yourself and prioritise your health and wellbeing if you need to build your motivation and focus for study back up. To put it simply, self-care is crucial. It's also important to schedule breaks into your day alongside study – things like movement, connecting with others, sleeping, and eating. It may feel like you are wasting time, but breaks allow you to look after yourself and rest your brain between study blocks.
Try to make study work to your strengths and personal learning style. For example, flash cards (active recall), mind maps, group study, games, use of colour and illustrations. You could also try breaking your big tasks up into small, achievable chunks so that they feel more manageable. Student Support has study planners available on our website that are free to download, or the team can support you to create a study timetable according to your strengths. You could also book a free workshop with the University Student Academic Skills team for academic support, including essay writing and unpacking assignment questions.
How do I regain passion for my degree after a painfully boring and interest-killing paper?
The trick is finding the magic in the mundane. The really bad news is that the experience of an “interest-killing paper” is just the tip of the iceberg. But the good news is you’ll likely experience some life-altering lectures and papers that will rekindle your passion and zest for your studies, too. Remember, going through your academic life involves taking some boring papers – they’re stepping stones for your next endeavour, so trust in the process.
How to get motivation again after getting grades you weren’t happy with
It’s important to first acknowledge your emotions without judgment, seek feedback from your lecturers and tutors, and use that feedback to review and improve future assignments. To rebuild your motivation, connect with supportive friends and family, and engage with inspiring lecture content or papers. You can also establish a concrete plan for future work through organised time management, while taking breaks to practice self-care to manage potential stress or burnout. Always remind yourself of your passion for pursuing the degree – writing it down can help keep you focused on your purpose.
My mum just passed away and life carries on but I still feel stuck
We’re really sorry this has happened for you; grief is never easy to go through, especially when losing a parent. Time will be the big thing that helps you heal. Remember it’s okay to feel all the emotions you need to, it’s okay to be sad, angry, isolated and feel like no one else understands. Feeling everything you need to will help you get through the grief cycle. Remember everything good you and your mum had; those memories are forever. There are loads of resources through the internet or books around the cycle of grief. Always reach out to the Student Health, Mental Health and Wellbeing team if you need counselling support.
Is postgrad supposed to be so hard and overwhelming or am I just dumb.
The short answer is yes and no. Postgraduate programs are designed to be difficult and challenging for most of us. We would be more concerned if any programme that we enrolled in wasn’t challenging! Human behaviour is interesting - we can sometimes become complacent if we are not faced with a challenge. We encourage you to lean into the difficult, and you will find it both rewarding and enriching.
I’m a struggling with a lot honestly from family life at home to stress from uni work
It really sounds like you need a listening ear at the moment. Perhaps some help with breaking things down, providing some tips with managing stress and planning for the rest of the semester. You could reach out to a friend or family member to help you with this or chat to someone from a support service on campus. Finding balance between our home lives and studies is a constant practice and it is important to find the time to take care of ourselves, particularly in times when we are stressed. Remember, your student support advocates are always around to lend a listening ear.
How do you begin to approach a gay flatcest situationship?
This can be a tricky situation. Are you comfortable approaching your flat mates to talk about it? Are you worried about hurting someone's feelings? Is your flat dealing with some homophobia? It might be worth having a sit-down chat with your flat mates. Talk about what you’re uncomfortable with/worried about, encourage people to be who they are & be open to hearing their experience! If you need more support with it, come by Student Support and see our Queer Focused Advocate.
Making friends as an adult is hard, I’m feeling a bit depressed in my flat. Flatties are nice but I’m never invited to do anything with them
Making friends is hard, especially when coming to university in a new city, or if you have anxiety around this sort of thing. The key to making friends is practice. Think of places where you can meet others and challenge yourself to strike up a conversation with someone. You may not always hit it off with everyone, but it is a great way to work on being social.
Another way to get yourself out there is to join a club or group (and there is a variety at OUSA Clubs and Societies!), or through volunteering, such as Are You OK? or Social Impact Studio/Unicrew.
Being unhappy in your flat is a tough situation to be living in. Try to initiate an activity with some (or all) of your flatties. This could be something as simple as a bus ride out to the beach or take advantage of the student discount at Leap. Otherwise you could try to connect with others outside of your flat – like through the ways mentioned above.
I would like a checklist for everything to sort out before I graduate in November
Head to the OUSA website to check out our graduation checklist.
Disclaimer: These questions are answered by OUSA Student Support advocates; they provide general information and guidance only. While we aim to give helpful and supportive answers, we cannot guarantee that the information provided will be complete, accurate, or suitable for every situation.
If your question relates to or is affecting your health, safety, or urgent personal matters, please seek assistance from one of the following services below:
Where to get help:
- OUSA Student Support: 262 Leith Walk 0800 12 10 23
- Student Health: Cnr Walsh and Albany Streets 0800 479 821
- Need to Talk? Free call or text 1737 any time to speak to a trained counsellor, for any reason.
- Lifeline: 0800 543 354 or text HELP to 4357
- Suicide Crisis Helpline: 0508 828 865 / 0508 TAUTOKO (24/7). This is a service for people who may be thinking about suicide, or those who are concerned about family or friends.
- Depression Helpline: 0800 111 757 (24/7) or text 4202
- Youthline: 0800 376 633 (24/7) or free text 234 or email talk@youthline.co.nz
- Asian Family Services: 0800 862 342 Monday to Friday 9am to 8pm or text 832 Monday to Friday 9am - 5pm. Languages spoken: Mandarin, Cantonese, Korean, Vietnamese, Thai, Japanese, Hindi, Gujarati, Marathi and English.
- Healthline: 0800 611 116
- OUTLine: 0800 688 5463 (6pm-9pm)
If it is an emergency and you feel like you or someone else is at risk, call 111.