Mental health and wellbeing self-help resources

• Abdominal breath (seven minutes)
• Alternative nostril breathing (three minutes)
• Deep yogic breath lying (six minutes)
• Deep yogic breath sitting (nine minutes)
• Pendulating (14 minutes)
• Vitalising breath (five minutes)

• Body asleep, mind awake (38 minutes)
• Contemplation of joy (22 minutes)
• Trataka (six minutes)

• Disolving stress meditation (28 minutes)
• Energetic and emotional alignment practices
• Energy block release sequence
• Getting grounded meditation (29 minutes)
• Peaceful presence (21 minutes)
• The blue mist meditation (33 minutes)
• The mindfulness on breathing (24 minutes)
• The meditation on forgiveness (17 minutes)
• The meditation on loving kindness (30 minutes)
• The pore breath meditation (23 minutes)
• The sitting quietly meditation (18 minutes)

Visit our groups and workshops page for information on our weekly meditation group. You can also access meditation resources from the following sources:

• Headspace
• LUU Buddhist Meditation Society
• Wild Mind

• Deep relaxation – in memory of Gyatri (35 minutes)
• Deep relaxation – inner space (33 minutes)
• Deep relaxation – into the senses (14 minutes)
• Deep relaxation – towards the light (26 minutes)
• Deep relaxation – waves of peace (26 minutes)
• Dissolving the body (22 minutes)
• Eight minutes to calm (eight minutes)
• Energetic and emotional alignment practice (12 minutes)
• Energy block release 7 (39 minutes)
• Energy gathering relaxation (19 minutes)
• Makrasana (16 minutes)
• Pendulating (14 minutes)
• Relaxation (16 minutes)
• Relaxation into happiness (17 minutes)
• Soma relaxation (26 minutes)

• Yoga Nidra practice (48 minutes)

• Report and Support
• What ACEs/PCEs do you have?
• Domestic abuse: how to get help (GOV.UK)
• Domestic Abuse (West Yorkshire Police)
• Forced Marriage (West Yorkshire Police) 
• GALOP – the LGBT+ anti-abuse charity
• Hazlehurst Centre
• Help after rape and sexual assault (NHS)
• Karma Nirvana
• Leeds Domestic Violence Service
• Mankind Initiative
• Men’s Advice Line
• Muslim Youth Helpline
• Nahamu
• Northpoint
• Rape Crisis Network Europe
• Respect Phoneline
• Revenge Porn Helpline
• Safe Spaces Scheme
• SARSAS sel-help guide to support after rape and sexual abuse
• SARSAS self-help guide for men and boys
• Support After Rape & Sexual Violence Leeds
• Sharan
• Survivors UK or Survivors UK West Yorkshire
• Victim Support
• Women’s Aid
• Women's Therapy Leeds

Information and support for friends and family

• The Havens
• SARSAS guide to supporting the person you care about

Alcohol and drugs

• Adfam
• Alcoholics Anonymous
• Al-Anon UK
• Drugs and Me
• Drugscience
• Forward Leeds
• Narcotics Anonymous
• Psycom
• Smart Recovery

Deliberate self injury

• Calm Harm (app)
• LifeSIGNS
• Mind
• Self Injury Support

Gambling

• Gamblers Anonymous
• Gamcare
• Help for problem gambling (NHS)
• Money Information Centre

Sexual behaviours

• Safer Lives
• Sex Addicts Anonymous in the UK

Anxiety

• Anxiety (Centre for Clinical Interventions)
• Anxiety Leeds
• Anxiety Self Help
• Health Anxiety (Centre for Clinical Interventions)
• Student stress (NHS)

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder  

• OCD Action
• OCD-UK

Panic

• No Panic
• Panic (Centre for Clinical Interventions)

Social anxiety

• Social Anxiety (Centre for Clinical Interventions)
• SocialSelf

TED Talks

• How to make stress your friend
• What fear can teach us

Apps

• De-stress-ify
• Daylio
• E-couch
• Headspace
• Mindshift
• Moodgym
• Rational CBT/REBT
• SAM: Self-help for anxiety management
• SANVELLO
• Stop Panic and Anxiety

• Coping With Bereavement at University or College
• Cruse Bereavement Support
• Five Stages of Grief (Very Well Mind)
• Good Grief Trust
• Grief Support for Young Adults
• Hope Again
• How to Deal with Grief and Loss (Young Minds)
• Leeds Suicide Bereavement Service
• Student Grief Network
• Survivors of Bereavement by Suicide
• Support After Murder and Manslaughter
• Why ceremonies and rituals are still important today
• What's Your Grief?

TED Talks

• We don’t ‘move on’ from grief. We move forward with it

Podcasts

• Griefcast: Cariad Lloyd

• Appearance Concerns (Centre for Clinical Interventions)
• Beat
• Body Dysmorphia (Centre for Clinical Interventions)
• The Body Positive
• Disordered Eating (Centre for Clinical Interventions)
• FREED
• Recover Clinic
• SEED
• Talk ED
• Ugly Me: My Life with Body Dysmorphia
• Yorkshire Centre for Eating Disorders (NHS)

TED Talks

• Why thinking you’re ugly is bad for you

Apps

• Recovery Record
• Rise-Up

• 10 ways to deal with homesickness
• How to Cope with Student Life (Mind)
• Looking After Yourself At Uni (Young Minds)
• Resources for Young Adults Leaving Home for the First Time
• Starting University (Student Minds)
• Top Tips for Starting at University
• Transitions (Student Minds)
• UK Council for International Student Affairs

• Assertiveness(Centre for Clinical Interventions)
• Gratitude Journal
• Self Esteem (Centre for Clinical Interventions)

TED Talks

• Dare to disagree
• The power of introverts
• The power of vulnerability
• Your body language may shape who you are

Apps

• Personal Zen

It is important that you keep yourself safe. In the event of an emergency, please contact: 

• Your GP
• Call Leeds Student Medical Practice: +44(0)113 295 4488
• Call Crisis Team through SPA: 0300 300 1485
• Call Dial House: +44(0)113 260 9328 or text: 07922 249452
• Call Connect Helpline: 0800 800 12129 (6pm to 2am)
• Call Samaritans: Freephone 116 123
• Call Nightline: +44(0)113 380 1285 (8pm to 8am)

Crisis intervention online

• Befrienders
• SHOUT 85258
• Samaritans

Suicide prevention

• PAPYRUS
• Sane

Depression

• Depression (Centre for Clinical Interventions)
• Students Against Depression
• Student Minds

Seasonal Affective Disorder

• Seasonal Affective Disorder  (Mind)
• Seasonal Affective Disorder (NHS)
• Seasonal Affective Disorder (Royal College of Psychiatrists)

Apps

• Black Rainbow
• Catch it
• Mood Gym
• MoodMission
• Mood Panda
• Moodscope
• Pacifica
• What’s Up

• Exam Stress (Student Minds)
• Marinara Timer
• Perfectionism (Centre for Clinical Interventions)
• Procrastination (Centre for Clinical Interventions)
• The Pomodoro Technique

• Anger Self-Help Guide
• Compassion Self-Help
• The Growth Mindset
• How to cope with anger (Mind)
• Getting Your Anger Under Control
• Importance of Self-Care (Students Against Depression)
• Self-Compassion
• Self-Compassion (Centre for Clinical Interventions) 

TED Talks

• The gift and power of emotional courage
• Why we get mad – and why it’s healthy
• The power of belief – mindset and success

Apps

• Mood Meter

Age 

• AGE UK Advice Line

Disability

• Disabled Liberation (LUU)
• I’m not your inspiration, thank you very much – dealing with attitudes towards disability (TED Talk)

Racism

• Asian Liberation (LUU)
• Black Liberation (LUU) 
• Racism and Mental Health (Mind)
• Racism and Mental Health (Young Minds)

Sexuality

• Gendered Intelligence
• LGBTQ+ Liberation (LUU)
• LGBTQ+ (Student Minds)
• Switchboard LGBT+ Helpline
• Mermaids
• Sparkle
• Stonewall
• Trans Liberation (LUU)

• Henpicked
• Menopause (NHS)
• Menopause: diagnosis and management (NICE)
• Women’s Health Concern

• University Student Counselling and Wellbeing service
• Beating Bipolar
• Bipolar UK
• Centre for Clinical Interventions
• Every Mind Matters (NHS)
• Heads Together
• Mental Health
• Mental Health Matters
• Mind
• National Institute of Mental Health
• Rethink
• Sane
• Student Minds
• Time to Change
• Together
• Young Minds

TED Talks

• A tale of mental illness
• On being just crazy enough
• The voices in my head
• What’s so funny about mental illness?

• Dyslexia Association
• Help Guide (ADHD)
• Leeds Autism AIM
• Leeds Autism Services
• Living Autism
• Making Sense: A Guide to Living with Adult ADHD
• Specialist Autism Services
• Tourettes Action
• Tourettes Hero

TED Talks

• How autism freed me to be myself
• How I learned to communicate my inner life with Asperger's
• The world needs all kinds of minds

Physical health

• Action for M.E.
• Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (NHS)
• Diabetes (NHS)
• Epilepsy Society
• Learning to live well with Chronic Illness/Conditions
• Leeds Pain Service
• The ME Association
• Multiple Sclerosis Trust

Sexual health 

• British Pregnancy and Advisory Service
• Leeds Centre for Sexual Health
• Leeds Sexual Health
• Leeds Student Medical Practice – Contraception and Sexual Health
• The Market Place
• MESMAC
• MSI Choices Leeds Abortion & Vasectomy Clinic

• Centre for Nonviolent Communication
• Help Guide
• Love is Respect
• Marriage Care
• Loneliness (Mind)
• Relate
• What Is Attachment Theory?

TED Talks

• A better way to talk about love
• The difference between healthy and unhealthy love
• The science of attraction
• The secret to living longer may be your social life

• LUU International Hub
• LUU culture clubs and societies
• Six support agencies that help international students (UCAS)
• UK Council for International Student Affairs

Culture shock

• Facing culture shock (UKCISA)
• The W adaptation curve – a predictable pattern of stages experienced during culture shock (YouTube)
• Studying abroad: culture shock (YouTube)

Mental health information translations

• 5 Ways to Wellbeing (available in Arabic, Chinese Simplified, Chinese Traditional, Hungarian, Lithuanian, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovak, Somalian and Tetum)
• Health Information Translations (available in Arabic, Chinese Simplified, Chinese Traditional, English, French, Hindi, Japanese, Korean, Nepali, Portuguese, Russian, Somali, Spanish, Vietnamese)
• Royal College of Psychiatrists
• Transcultural Mental Health Centre

Imposter syndrome

• Coping with imposter syndrome in academia and research
• PGR Experience: Battling Imposter Syndrome

Perfectionism

• Are you a perfectionist? (University of Glasgow)
• Perfectionism (Centre for Clinical Interventions)
• The dangerous downsides of perfectionism (BBC)

Procrastination

• Procrastination (Centre for Clinical Interventions)
• Overcoming procrastination

TED Talks

• Inside the mind of a master procrastinator
• The power of believing that you can improve
• What is imposter syndrome and how can you combat it?

Wellbeing and mental health

• ADAPT to Thrive
• The Growth Mindset
• 15 Ways to Build a Growth Mindset
• PGR Catalyst Project
• PhD Life
• The Thesis Whisperer
• The Wellbeing Thesis
• Wellbeing When Writing (University of Westminster)
• How to balance your PhD and your social life
• Work and PhD: Finding the balance

• Help Guide
• Trauma (Mind)
• Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) (Mind)
• Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) (NHS)
• PTSD UK

TED Talks

• Art can heal PTSD’s invisible wounds
• The psychology of post-traumatic stress disorder

• 40 tips for Uni students to optimise their sleep
• Five steps to mental wellbeing (NHS)
• Five ways to wellbeing (Mind)
• Food and mood (Mind)
• Food and Mood (British Dietetics Association)
• How to cope with sleep problems (Mind)
• How to look after your mental health using exercise
• National Sleep Foundation
• Sleep (Centre for Clinical Interventions)
• Sleep and tiredness (NHS)
• The Sleep Council
• Sleep Hygiene

TED Talks

• How much sleep do you really need?
• How sleep affects your emotions
• Six tips for better sleep
• Sleep is your superpower

YouTube

• Spaceship You

Podcasts

• Sleep with me – the podcast that puts you to sleep

Apps

• Align
• Headspace
• Movement for Modern Life
• My Possible Self
• Sleepio