Wellness University: The Benefits of Holistic Health & Wellness for College Students

Imagine this: you’re in college—hundreds, maybe thousands of miles away from home. Everything is brand new; having to feed and take care of yourself while living with a stranger. You’re young—feeling the pressure to have everything figured out already. On top of this, you can’t forget what you came here for; school. With all the stress you’re facing during this transition, your academics are the cherry on top.

“I constantly feel like I’m fighting for my life,” says second-year LIM College student Abigail Hoeman.

Transitioning to college is the source of added levels of stress for many students. Some of this stress is predictable according to The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill including “studying for exams, competing for admissions or internships, and trying to master large amounts of content in small amounts of time.” However, there are also many sudden changes, challenges, or events that can occur that college students have no control over. It becomes easy to get lost in the stress with no hope of finding a way out.

Small amounts of stress are healthy; however, when our bodies are constantly in this state, it can negatively impact one’s life in several ways. Chronic stress for college students can interfere with attendance, attention, and concentration, as well as contribute to depression and anxiety.

Knowing how to properly and healthily manage stress is a crucial tool for college students. Using effective stress management techniques can help you moderate and calm yourself during stressful times and help your academic, social, and emotional experiences in college be more positive and successful.

One thing is for sure: there is no way to eliminate stress completely. However, there is no need for college students to feel lost any longer when the answer to how to cope is quite simple. As society shifts away from traditional medicine and holistic healthcare gains popularity, I am here to add to the conversation by saying that holistic health & wellness practices can aid in both reducing and managing college-related stress.

Although “wellness” may seem like a modern term, its practices can be traced back to thousands of years ago. Wellness focuses on the harmony of the mind, body, and spirit, and can help college students decrease burnout, and improve mental focus, and academic performance.

Fortunately enough, some colleges offer their students the tools and resources they need to be able to partake in wellness practices on campus. Sorrell Johnson, a counseling extern at LIM College had a lot to say on the subject, and what LIM has to offer.

“We offer yoga classes and every once and a while the dog therapy events to find some relaxation,” she said. She then adds, “We put out some resources like our newsletter from last month that were specifically stress-related. We also put on a workshop that went over some strategies for coping with stress.”

Yoga is more often than not the first thing that comes to mind when people think of wellness practices. Over time, when participating in yoga, one can see many improved cognitive benefits such as the strengthening of certain parts of the brain that play a key role in memory, attention, and awareness—all of which will allow a student to be successful in higher education. Being physically active is key, so if you’re a college student, try a yoga class or head to your campus gym.

Through wellness, connection to self is always emphasized. However, community is a major aspect of wellness that is often overlooked. Through the many workshops that LIM offers, their students can connect with others like themselves and not feel so alone.

Now let’s talk about food, as I’m sure you’ve all seen this coming. I can confidently say we are all quite familiar with the typical college diet: ramen noodles, pizza, frozen meals, takeout (when they can afford it), however many snacks they can fit into a small cabinet, and we can’t forget the alcohol. Optimal nutrition is what will improve students' cognition, concentration, and energy levels. However, the average college student's diet consists of high sodium, and high trans and saturated fats which provide the opposite effect.

Holistic nutritionist & mindfulness practitioner Courtney Capazzi believes that several components relate to nutrition.

“I think that nutrition is a really complex topic. Because there is an emotional component to it as well, and there's a physical component, and there's an energetic component, so the food that we eat impacts us on a cellular level,” she said.

She then goes on to add, “A lot of the foods that we eat can be addictive in many ways, and can also impact our immune system, impact our mood, impact our energy.”

Nutrition is a huge road that you can go down, but when referencing a college student, Capazzi thinks it is important that a conscious decision is made when selecting what types of foods one will put in their body.

“I think that really attempting to feed your body with whole nourishing foods when possible [is important], so just choosing like an apple or a banana instead of a bag of chips, and like, choosing to reach towards more minimally processed food,” she said.

“Frozen rice is a great option. You can buy frozen rice and bone broth at the store and make like a really great, warming, protein-rich soup, and maybe throw a bag of spinach in there for some greens,” she explains.

According to Capazzi, it is crucial to merely know what your options are and that it's all about “just learning how to choose not necessarily the best choice, but the better choice.” If you happen to live in a big city like New York, she recommends taking advantage of the resources available to you like farmer’s super affordable markets.

Capazzi spoke about one last, very important aspect of nutrition.

“Eating with your friends. Putting your phone away during a meal and sitting down and enjoying the meal, and just like, enjoying the whole process of eating, and making it fun, and making a family meal out of it instead of just like; eating a donut on your walk to class,” she said. Just take your time and be in the moment!

As I have said before, many colleges provide their students with wellness tools and resources they need to manage and reduce stress, but not all students are this lucky—not all students can make it to their school events, or afford to go to wellness centers off campus. There are; however, other options.

“Breathwork is free,” Capazzi said. Many great YouTube videos are completely free, and learning how to just utilize simple breathwork techniques like the 4-4-4 can be super useful and also can help to regulate your nervous system, and also are super accessible to everyone. That’s why I always start with the breath. The breath is our; like the center of our body.”

Capazzi continues explaining how YouTube is overall an excellent resource. Not only can a college student have access to free breathwork, but yoga and meditation as well. She also highlights the importance of patting yourself on the back when you integrate small practices into your daily routine because “rewarding yourself or being grateful for yourself–for showing up is also an extremely important aspect.”

“Success is holistic,” according to Oregon State University. “Your health and wellness contribute to and impact your academic success. By establishing healthy habits in nutrition, exercise, and other wellness areas, you can set yourself up to be more successful in your academics.”

If you’re a student reading this, you’re probably thinking, “Well this all sounds good but I don’t have time for any of this between classes, clubs, and assignments.” If this is the case, I would recommend scheduling wellness and self-care. If you know you have time on a given day, even if just for a few minutes, maximize it. Throw on a sleep meditation, or simply focus on your breath for a few minutes out of the day. You will not regret it!

Maintaining a healthy well-being is so much more than not getting sick. It is about creating balance—what college students so desperately wish to achieve. Whether it's maintaining good grades, securing an internship, getting enough sleep, or finally being able to concentrate, wellness will help you get there.

Coming from someone who has experienced the benefits firsthand, investing in self-care reaps many rewards, and allows for success both personally, and academically. Your college experience can significantly become less stressful, and a whole lot richer.

Will you be trying out any of these wellness tips? Leave a comment below!