Striking a balance between responsibility to others and responsibility to yourself is important to managing your mental health.

Most students will find that medical school is one of the most mentally taxing experiences of their lives. Long-term attendance at university can lead to unfavourable outcomes, such as a mental health breakdown, family or financial difficulties, health problems, or friendship problems. All of them have the potential to make medical school considerably more difficult.

It’s critical to prioritise managing your mental health while enrolled in medical school. It’s simple to feel underachievement, alienation, and burnout while dealing with long hours, overachieving co-workers, and huge class sizes.

Want to feel better about managing your mental health at medical school? These self-help strategies and tips will help you boost mood, build resilience, and strengthen your mental health.

Value Your Friends

Having friends who are not in the medical field is crucial because they can serve as a constant reminder that life is more than just studying medicine, that amazing things happen outside of college or university, and that your identity is not limited to being a medical student.

Try A Sport

In addition to the physical activity, participating in a team sport allows medical professionals to form friendships and camaraderie that can help them with managing their mental health. Making time for your passions and physical activity is essential to preserving mental well-being and keeping your body and mind in shape.

Sport gives you the much-needed mental space to focus on what you’re doing and not what is going on in the hospital, whether you decide to run by yourself or play a team sport with your medic team.

Read More About Medical Students And The Unique Stressors They Face

Seeking Help Is Okay

It’s tempting to think that you can’t experience weakness as a medical student. It can be challenging to admit and acknowledge that you don’t feel as powerful when everyone around you seems to be juggling a tonne of extracurricular activities, doing amazing in class, and comprehending everything. What you see around you, however, is untrue; 33% of medical students will struggle with mental health issues while they are still in school, despite the fact that you would never know from their appearance.

Speak To Your Medical School About Managing Your Mental Health

Talking to your doctor, friends, and medical school are all crucial actions to take, regardless of how much or little you feel like you’re struggling with managing your mental health. Receiving assistance early on makes solving the issue simpler and allows you to enjoy your time in college for longer. Your medical school is accustomed to caring for pupils; make use of them and don’t give up. It’s possible that you won’t connect with a doctor or other staff member right away, but there will always be someone you can talk to, and doctors are accustomed to students exploring several options before settling on one they find comfortable.

Get Lots Of Rest And Eat Well

Managing your mental health, in a positive way, also requires maintaining good physical health. Planning is essential, whether it means ensuring you get enough rest in addition to having fun with your friends or setting aside some time to prepare a large quantity of healthful meals for the coming week.

It’s acceptable to recognise when you’re too exhausted or worn out to devote yourself to your regular activities; taking a break can help you recover and perform at your best when you do return to the game. Remember to behave appropriately because medical students, regrettably, have a lot more contact hours than their peers at other universities!

You may not be able to cram in as much Netflix and partying as they do, but you can make time for physical activity, wholesome eating, and socialising with friends. It’s crucial that you adhere to something if it makes you feel good.

If you don’t feel comfortable with how you are managing your mental health, there are plenty of spaces for you to work through anything that might be worrying you. Whether that’s talking to an anonymous service specifically for students like Nightline or Doctors’ Support Network, or looking up the blogs of medical students to see how they cope, there are plenty of choices for you to look after yourself.

If your time in medical school isn’t what it should be, know that you’re not alone and that you deserve support. After all, this may be one of the most thrilling and enjoyable periods of your life. It makes you strong to acknowledge your problem and seek assistance as soon as possible, not weak.