Category: Community & Wellbeing

The tireless pursuit of a good night’s sleep

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By Grace Scolyer

If I could make one generalisation about the specific problems with self-care that medical students have, and why our physical and mental wellbeing is so much poorer than the general population, it would be that it all comes down to time.

We have 24 hours a day: depending on the day of the week and your year level, around eight to ten of which will be contact hours, one will be travelling, one will be getting ready, two will be breaks taken for food and coffee, two will be note-taking or preparing for the next day, two to four will be additional study. Leaving four to eight hours. To socialise, watch TV, exercise, meal prep, or scroll through Facebook. And, if we have time, sleep. It’s not always as simple as putting your phone on do not disturb or trying to avoid caffeine after 2pm – it can be ridiculously hard to get a decent night’s sleep.

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Surviving FOMOitis

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By Isobel Blackwood

So, you’ve just heard that your friend Jamie has found a consultant to do a ‘quick research project on haemorrhoids’ with on the side, and that Alisha has decided to fly to Sweden to attend the World Congress on Hand Hygiene. You also found out that May is giving up her holidays to volunteer at a medical clinic on a remarkably isolated island, and that Steve has been voted in as the president of no less than three student-run societies.

And then they ask you what you’re up to…

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Sunshine on a rainy day: On sunlight and wellbeing

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By Erin Stewart

In this author’s humble opinion, autumn and winter are the best seasons of the year! It’s cosy, scarfs become mainstream, the ski fields start to open and hot chocolates become essential. A whole range of brilliant things! However, as summer disappears, the days become shorter, the sun is covered more and more by cloud and inevitably, the sunshine becomes less frequent.

Sunshine is such an important element of our wellbeing and happiness. So how can we enjoy the coming cooler months but also make sure we keep up with the essential Vitamin D our body needs as well as that sunshine to brighten our mood?

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