Whether you are a student studying an access course, an undergraduate degree, or a postgraduate masters or PhD research, we must all remember that when studying in a remote environment, whether internationally or locally, we are bound to find challenges and stresses in life that will throw us off course.
Recently, as an experiment, I decided to test out Artificial Intelligence (AI) to create a story about a postgraduate research student who was studying alone, working endlessly through journal articles, dealing with data analysis, and producing progress reports which were required to be submitted to a research supervisor. It covered a lot about the challenges and difficulties when dealing with work without taking meaningful breaks or taking care of one’s own wellbeing. However, it also highlighted some of the key issues about how one should change their habits and have a better engagement in approaching their studies.
Recognising the stress is only one part of the puzzle, and changing the mindset from the overwhelming objective of one’s studies to looking at small victories enables one to move forward one step at a time.
Despite that being the case, as a member of the Student Leadership Team, I have found that working alone and not maintaining good relationships has been a clear struggle as I personally miss not having a personal, physical and dynamic engagement with the rest of the team, compared to the virtual and asynchronous relationship with both our team members and staff at Open SU. This is not a criticism but rather it is an important element of reminding ourselves that we are all human, and we face our challenges and stresses in various ways.
Regardless of this being a challenge, it is also a challenge in terms of studying. As a parent to two amazing and beautiful girls, and going through some medical problems, it feels at times one is alone trying to establish one’s self and identity, not knowing whether the actions and/or decisions can help change the outcome of the student cohort, or enable future students to succeed at the University.
One of my responsibilities is the focus on the wellbeing-themed weeks, such as International Stress Awareness Week, taking place from 3–7 November. As the week begins, Charon, Faculty Representative for WELS, and I, together with Sue Spurr, will be holding a Yoga session on Monday 3rd November where you can learn to destress yourself through movement, whether in a chair or standing, and I hope that this will be beneficial for you.
There will be other activities during the week related to managing your stress, and Jessica Hannington, our VP Student Welfare, has written a piece on International Stress Awareness Week where you can find a host of relevant links and resources available.
Please, whilst you are studying with us at The Open University, take good care with your wellbeing, and remember that there are support groups, such as the Disabled Students Group, who are there to support you and signpost you to the respective areas you could benefit from.
Also, if you haven’t already, please search via the Apple Store or Google Play for the OU Wellbeing app.
Written by Andrew Wilson, Deputy President of Open SU
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