Monday 11 Jan - Friday 15 Jan
Welcome to Week 1 of De-stress. Below you will find activities for you to take part in whilst at home. We understand that it is a challenging time for our students, particuarly with the added pressure of exams and revision. Please use these resources as and when you see fit- feel free to incorporate these into your daily routine and use them beyond the exam period.
* We've have got meditation and crafting activities planned. We'll be adding more details in January! *
Monday 11 January
Daily De-stress Challenges
Send us your de-stress challenges (focusing on changing habits to improve wellbeing) via instagram DM and try to complete them along with Karli and the Residential Life team.
Keep an eye out on @leicswellbeing. & @uolreslife
Revision and study tips
We understand that if you have upcoming exams, it is going to be even more stressful with the current climate. We will be pulling together revision resources to help you each week. Please find the resources we've chosen for this week below:
Create a revision timetable 
It might be helpful for you to create a revision plan or timetable, to help you manage your time effectively. Also, if you're struggling to structure your days, this may also help you to split up your day. How you choose to create your timetable is completely up to you - this can be online or you could do it by hand. Here are some tips for creating a revision plan. You might find that your first revision timeable doesn't quite work for you - this is completely normal, so feel free to mix this up and try different styles. We also have our own weekly planner which you could adapt.
Focus on getting those Zzz
Without a good nights sleep you will struggle to focus and concentrate on your tasks. This will have a big impact on your ability to revise and study effectively and productively. Not only that but a lack of good quality sleep may leave you feeling more anxious and restles. Try establishing a consistent sleep routine with the help of these apps:
Sleepio - a six week sleep improvement program, based on the latest Cognitive and Behavioural Therapy (CBT) techniques. It is clinically proven to help you fall asleep faster, stay asleep through the night and feel better during the day.
Pzizz - helps you to slip gently into sleep using a combination of music, words, sound effects and binaural beats to help you de-stress and re-energize.
Tuesday 12 January
Give Journaling a go
Journaling is a powerful tool for examining and shifting thoughts from anxious and ruminative to empowered and action-oriented. You can journal for as long as you like, but if you are new to it then we suggest 5-15 minutes. It is completely up to you whether you decide to do this hand-written or using a computer - whatever works best for you.
Please visit here for how to start a journal if you've never done one before.
If you would like to purchase one rather than making your own visit this link - there are plenty to choose from!
Karli's De-Stress Crafting
Get your canvas from your games pack, a kitchen sponge and paint ready to produce some colourful, modern art with Karli and Bella on Microsoft Teams at 18:30.
To join, please follow this link
Wednesday 13 January
Practice meditation - Conscious breathing
We will be focusing on conscious breathing today. You may think that conscious breathing is simply just breathing, but actually it is bringing awareness to the timing and location of your breath. Conscious breathing is practiced by a variety of relgigions such as Buddhism, Islam and Taoism. Conscious breathing is controlled by the cerebral cortex, which is the part of the brain that controls speech and decision making. Through using conscious breath, you are engaging your brain more actively and changing your emotional state. The benefits of conscious breathing include:
1. Lowers stress and anxiety levels - slowing down the breath activates the parasympathetic nervous system which helps us to relax.
2. Higher energy levels - By taking longer, deeper breaths daily, you may feel more revitalized
3. More awareness and mental clarity - focusing on the present moment
If you fancy having a go at this practice, please use this guide we've put together.
Test your stress levels 
We all experience stress and during this time your stress levels are likely to be even higher. This test can help you to understand what is causing personal stress and learn what steps you can take to reduce it.
Wellbeing Wednesday - Live
Join our Wellbeing Officer - Karli, to discuss Lockdown and De-stress tips from 8pm on Instagram Live.
Thursday 14 January
Practice #selfcare
You may already have a self-care routine but if you don't you may want to have a look at these self-care activities. You can either print these off or you could be creative and create your own! During exams it is more important than ever to look after yourself. What your self care routine looks like may be completely different someone else's - everyone is unique and that is perfectly okay. Find what suits you and remember to take time out from revision and studying - you cannot possibly work around the clock all day every day.
Revision and Study tips
We understand that if you have upcoming exams, it is going to be even more stressful with the current climate. We will be pulling together revision resources to help you each week. Please find the resources we've chosen for this week below:
Student minds exam stress tips
Book Club launch with UoL Book Club, @uol_bookclub
Our very own UoL Book club will be launching an online book club as part of De-stress. They'll be picking a handful of books for you to read over the month. Reading can be a great way to escape so grab your cup of tea and come and join us!
Get colouring
Colouring is a great way to de-stress - stick on some relaxing music and spend an hour or so just colouring. There is pressure to be productive all the time, but this is not realistic and it is important that you give your brain a rest. Try out some of these which you can print at home. For those who don’t have access to printer, here is a free app for colouring.
Try cooking something new! 
Fancy cooking something new? Cooking doesn't not need to be complicated and it can be a great way to relax and unwind. You could even try cooking one new meal a week, giving you the opportunity to use new ingredients you've not cooked with before. Have a look at our SU Cookbook to get ideas - many of these recipes use basic and healthy ingredients. Why not challenge you and your friends to a 20 minute cooking challenge like we did with our Officers?
Friday 15 January
Tune into a podcast
We have a series of podcasts available for you to listen to which explore a variety of topics tio support you during this time. We have covered managing anxiety and adjusting to working from home. You may find these useful and may pick up some tips to help you study. They feature a variety of SU staff members and our Elected Officers. You can listen to these here.
Have a self-care evening 
It's Friday and you've had a long week - treat yourself to an evening of just relaxing. Have a well earned break from revision and studying, by doing things you enjoy. Self-care looks different for everyone, but here are some ideas below to get you started:
- Order a takeaway
- Read a book
- Do a facemask
- Watch one of your favourite films
- Facetime a loved one
You may also get some ideas from this blog!