Mental health

Mental health is something we all have, and a part of our health that refers to our cognitions, emotions, psychology, and relationships. It can refer to how we think, feel, behave, relate and communicate, handle stress, make choices, and grow. Mental health is connected, influenced, and impacts other parts of our health like physical health. Similarly to physical health, our mental health changes and shifts in response to internal and external circumstances and context; it is not static. Sometimes we get sick or experience periods of grief, and sometimes we experience more chronic struggles like a physical or mental health condition. Good mental health does not mean the absence of psychological suffering, nor does it mean we feel happiness all of the time. It is more reliably measured by us navigating the cognitive-emotional-social aspects of our lives with skills and practices of:

• emotional regulation
• fostering fulfilling social relationships
• strengthening our capacity to communicate effectively
• coping with challenges and adversities in life-affirming ways
• managing risk, impulse, and avoidance
• asking for help from others
• actively nurturing positive emotions and experiences

There are many ways we can strengthen our skills, knowledge, and habits to support our mental-emotional health. Putting intentional time, effort, and energy into strengthening our mental-emotional health is an investment in ourselves and our ability to create a meaningful life in the midst of life’s inherent challenges.

LiveWell educates and engages our UW community on mental health through the services, events, and resources below:

Services

Peer Wellness Coaching

Meet with a Peer Wellness Coach if you are looking to strengthen and enhance your personal well-being and connect 1-1 with a peer about your mental health.

Workshops

• Mental Health workshop
• Sleep Education
• Coping with the Clouds
• Difficult Conversations
• Social Connections & Preventing Isolation workshop
• Media Literacy

All our substance use education workshops, as well as our healthy relationships and sexual-gender-based-violence prevention workshops help promote positive mental health. We know from decades of research that chronic substance use and experiencing sex/gender based violence are correlated with negative mental health outcomes. We also know that forming healthy, meaningful relationships with other people is correlated with more positive mental health outcomes and an increased ability to cope with adversities and challenges in life.

Events

LiveWell periodically offers events throughout the year — connection builds community, and community keeps us going! We host events in recognition of Mental Health Awareness Month each May. Stay connected via our event calendar, email list, and LiveWell Instagram.

Resources

UW Counseling Center resources:

Our UW Counseling Center supports students who are looking for clinical counseling from licensed mental health professionals to support and improve their mental-emotional health. Check out their website for a full list of individual counseling, group counseling, and crisis intervention services!

Additional resources

LiveWell health education programming focuses on the following health and well-being topics that correlate highly with mental health:

Body image

Creating body satisfaction stems from the time, effort, and growth we put into the relationship we have with our body, including our body image.

Financial literacy

Learn to save, manage, and utilize your money, resources, and time in ways that support your larger goals, relational commitments, personal values, and financial literacy.

Sleep health

Learn strategies to help you improve your sleep health and about the correlations between sleep, mental, emotional, and physical health, and academic performance.

Suicide prevention

We all have a role to play in suicide prevention. Learn more about the LiveWell Suicide Intervention Program and support resources.