EIU Counseling Clinic

Mental Health Tips for Students

College can be exciting, but also stressful. From academics and relationships to life changes and mental health concerns, students face many pressures. EIU Health and Counseling is here to help you navigate it all with support, tools, and resources to protect your emotional well-being.

Tips for Maintaining Your Mental Health 

• Stay Connected: Maintain relationships with friends, family, or mentors.

• Get Enough Sleep: Aim for 7–9 hours of sleep each night.

• Move Your Body: Regular movement improves mood and reduces anxiety.

• Eat Regularly: Fuel your body with balanced, nourishing meals.

• Set Realistic Goals: Break larger goals into smaller, manageable steps.

• Know Your Limits: Say no when you're overwhelmed and set boundaries.

• Take Breaks: Step away when you're feeling drained. It's okay to rest.

• Ask for Help: Struggling doesn’t mean you're failing. It means you’re human.

Coping Skills: What They Are & How to Use Them

Coping skills are techniques that help you manage stress, emotions, and challenges. The more strategies you build, the more confident and resilient you become.

Pleasurable Activities 

• Exercise
• Go for a hike
• Play a video game
• Cook your favorite food
• Listen to music
• Go to a social or sporting event
• Do a puzzle 
• Engage in a hobby

Self Expression/Processing

• Write a song/poem
• Journal
• Talk to a friend
• Call a warm line
• Color/draw/paint

Grounding

• Hold ice
• Play the game of categories in your head
• Describe what is around you
• Count

Shift Your Mindset

• Think something positive/practice positive affirmations
• Reframe negative thoughts
• Identify the facts of the situation
• Think about something you look forward to 

Self Sooth

• Listen to an audiobook
• Wear scented oils
• Listen to a white noise machine
• Take a warm shower
• Smell the grass/flowers

Relaxation Skills 

• Imagine your safe place
• Take deep breaths (in through your nose and out through your mouth)
• Progressive muscle relaxation