What does self-help mean to you? Rows and rows of books on a shelf in a bookshop proclaiming to make you happy? A leaflet telling you to eat more fruit and vegetables and take regular exercise? The responsibility of educating yourself fully about something you are experiencing, without help from others? Or the answer to a problem you’ve battled with for years?

Do you take a cynical view of self-help materials, or do you find them to be empowering and uplifting, a practical and straightforward way of making positive changes? Do you like self-help because it means avoiding the awkwardness of talking to another human being about your feelings and problems?

Self-help can mean different things to different people. In Student Services at SHU we always want to help students to help themselves. This doesn’t mean turning you away with a leaflet in your hand and no further support! We don’t want to stop students from talking about the issues affecting them but we understand that people deal with situations in a variety of ways. Some people are more comfortable dealing with a situation or a problem or simply improving their quality of life if they retain control of their own decisions and the pace at which they access support. Here’s a few ways in which SHU Student Services can support you to help yourself:

• Go to a Student Advice drop-in. The Advisers are impartial and are trained to give you information and to help you reflect on your own thoughts about your situation. If you’ve got a difficult decision to make, the Advisers won’t tell you what to do, but they will help you to understand the implications of your different options and give you a space to think about what to do next, answering any questions you may have.

• Attend a Student Wellbeing workshop. You don’t have to have a problem to attend one of the workshops on Mindfulness, Stress Management or Maximising Feedback. We want to encourage students to take a positive approach to life and to your studies and see if you can benefit from some practical advice about wellbeing. If you feel as though you’d like to talk to someone about any issues you may be experiencing, you are also welcome to speak to a Wellbeing Adviser one-to-one in a drop-in appointment.

• Get support with self-help resources. Some self-help resources are better than others and our trained counsellors have selected the most reputable and helpful of all the resources out there, for use by students and staff at SHU. You can be guided through the resources by one of the Wellbeing Advisers, who will help you find the tools that will work best for you. Some of the resources are accessed online, so you don’t even need to take any leaflets or books away with you if you’d rather not!

By coming to University you have already taken a huge step towards the lifestyle you want for now and for the future. You can take even more control by harnessing the support available and helping yourself by making the most of any opportunities we offer. Staff at SHU want to see you succeed and want to help you every step of the way to get the most from your University experience. This will be different for each and every student, so sometimes you will need to reach out for the support you need from us, to help you help yourself!

If you would like to find out more about any of the support available at SHU, take a look at shuspace or telephone the Student Advice and Information Team on 0114 225 3813.