Living a Balanced Life at AUW: Listen to Your Mental Health Needs

Paw Eh Doh

Being healthy is imperative for us AUW students. We will easily be burdened or overwhelmed by the situations that we face at AUW if we are not healthy. We should be both mentally and physically healthy while we are studying here. 

I think our mental health comes prior to our physical health. We can be physically healthy only if we are mentally healthy and vice versa. There will surely be obstacles throughout our study. There will be several burdens to hold us back if we are not well prepared mentally. Our academic assignments may be our prime burden since we invest most of our time in it hoping for our best result. We, particularly those who come from uneducated backgrounds like me, might find the lectures quite challenging and feel like we are playing catch up with our peers in class. In this case, we should seek ways to alleviate our problems instead of suffering alone. We may go to counselors, mentors, teachers and even friends if we are struggling. There are other common matters which may lead us to experience depression such as homesickness, room allocations, the lack of space on campus, and roommate issues. We will only see things negatively if we are not mentally prepared. We would, however, see things differently if we are mentally healthy. We would barely notice negative issues and instead would focus on studying and pursuing our dreams.

However, if we are mentally unhealthy, we would be more readily traumatized by unexpected conditions. Losing our family members, for example, is one of the most saddening situations we might face. We cannot overcome or try to accept what has happened to us easily in this case. Our physical well being could also be disrupted due to mental disturbances during these moments. This, therefore, may lead to an unhealthy lifestyle both physically and mentally, which also affects our social life. It may help to see a psychologist. Self-care is easier when there is someone to guide us. We will figure out our bodies’ basic needs, such as exercise, sleeping on time, drinking enough water and eating regularly. We then abide by these needs.

Let’s take care of our health, live positively in AUW, and grab the opportunities we are offered. Let’s surround ourselves with positive people and make the most of our time here. We will only be at AUW for a short period. I wish us all the best.