Self-care

Do you feel that you need more time? Could you be looking after yourself more?

Self-care is vital to managing your mental health and wellbeing. It is important to find strategies that work for you as what one person finds relaxing and fulfilling, another won’t, so it’s important to find what works for you. Anything that you enjoy, which help you to feel more relaxed and at the moment can be part of your self-care routine.

How to introduce good self-care into your life

Reflect on your self-care at present

It can be helpful to reflect on how well you are taking care of yourself at the moment and where improvements could be made: Take this quiz to see how well you are currently taking care of yourself. 

Adopt some self-care techniques

We are all different and so self-care will differ between individuals. However, there are some basics that you can build on such:

  • A good sleep routine – see our section on sleep for more info
  • Looking after your physical health e.g. balanced diet, cutting down alcohol, getting enough exercise.
  • Connecting with others
  • Being creative and doing things you find calming and enjoy
  • Setting time aside for relaxation – see our section on relaxation for more info

Practice self-compassion

Being kind to yourself is important. Don’t give yourself a hard time when things haven’t gone as planned, take regular breaks from study and try something new or relaxing; you could give listening to podcasts a go and some great examples include the Mental Health Foundation and Self compassion on YouTube.

Access support at LJMU

LJMU have a team of Wellbeing Advisors who can help and support you and recommend ways to positive self-care.

Enrol on the SAW Canvas course for workshops on a range of wellbeing topics.

Learn more

There are lots of sources of support out there for good self-care and below are some that you may find useful:

Hear about how other students manage their mental health and wellbeing:

For a full list of support available external to LJMU, go to our A-Z of support and Hub of Hope.

Please note:
If you need support specific to the current COVID-19 health crisis, please visit student support.