Student Wellbeing

Your Healthy Habit Era

You have probably heard this over and over again, but having a solid routine is super important in supporting so many aspects of your health and general wellbeing. Routine can help in feeling emotionally regulated and secure, being socially fulfilled and maintaining relationships with those around you, along with physically being in the right place at the right time – and so much more. Putting routines and healthy habits in place can help bring calm and peace into your day as you step into your busy lives as students, friends, family members and employees (to name a few).

So what are some healthy habits you can implement in your routine today?

Sleep Hygiene

Regular sleep: This starts with making sure that you are going to bed at a time that allows you to get around 8-10 hours of sleep every night. It’s never too late to start working towards this habit, if you can’t one night, try again tomorrow.

Limit phone use: I know this one is hard, but try to limit your phone use before going to bed. It’s a good idea to turn off your phone around an hour before you go to sleep. Working to reduce engaging with negative social media content is additionally important in improving your sleep hygiene.

Exercise

Daily excercise: Still connected to the habit of sleep, exercising every day can be super supportive in aiding with falling asleep. Whether that is taking the dog for a walk, playing sport or hitting the gym, every bit counts.

De-stress: Exercise is also important as a way to work out stress, take out frustrations and to get some fresh air.

Self-care

Do what you enjoy: Make sure that you’re doing things that bring you joy, whether that’s going for a walk, watching a TV show or movie or simply spending time with family or friends.

Make time: Taking time for self-care helps you to manage stress and in making sure you don’t burn out. High school can be stressful and you have a lot going on. So taking time for self-care is important in helping you to later be able to better manage your stress and all the things you have to do.

Prioritise self-care: This might look different for all of you, so have a think and identify the things that you can do to support and look out for yourself.

Study & Screen Balance

Routine is important: Having a regular homework routine can reduce last-minute stress and improve focus. At the same time, healthy boundaries around screen time help protect sleep and mental wellbeing.

Helpful strategies for screen balance include:

Setting a consistent study time
Breaking tasks into manageable chunks
Taking short movement or stretch breaks
Creating tech-free times during the day
Turning off the screen before bed

If you’re wanting to start a new routine, or create a better one, start by implementing one of these habits at a time into your routine and see what works for you.

Every little positive thing you add into your day adds up and that’s where the change happens.