self care
Graduate school can be a challenging time and self care is critical. Many students find themselves struggling to keep pace with various demands on their time while lacking sufficient emotional support. Unfortunately, difficulties with mental health are extremely common amongst graduate students. A 2018 study found that 41% of 2,279 surveyed graduate students self-reported experiencing moderate to severe anxiety while 39% of these students reported experiencing moderate to severe depression (Evans et al. 2018). Belonging, work-life balance, academic/research success, financial stability, and relationship with advisor all influenced the likelihood of graduate students suffering poor mental health.
What can be done to promote better mental health for graduate students? Evans and co-authors call for a cultural shift in academia to reduce stigma surrounding mental health issues and enhance work-life balance. Further, Evans et al. suggest that professors are trained to provide students with adequate support and mental health resources. In addition to these larger changes to academic culture and mental health support structures, there are more immediate tools that graduate students can use to focus on self-care and improve their mental health.
Equity-Based principle: Critical Engagement of Difference
By recognizing the challenges in your own learning and the value of self-care for you to be a better graduate student, you will be able to respect the diverse capacities of your learners and their self-care needs. Through examples like not checking your email after work hours or talking about how you had a relaxing weekend, you might even encourage students to follow your lead.