USM Student Support and Wellbeing Resources

A special thank-you to the Spring 2022 Campus Health Community Partnership students and 2023 nursing majors who contributed many of these recommendations.

Have a resource to recommend? We’d love to hear from you! Please email Dr. Provost with your suggestions.

USM offers a variety of services to support students' physical and mental health, basic needs, sense of belonging, and recovery. These are a few resources that may be particularly helpful.

• • Oakhurst Campus Food Pantry:  Provides food and other basic-needs resources for USM students.

  • University Health & Counseling Services:  Health and counseling services available to support USM students' physical and mental well-being.

  • Recovery Oriented Campus Center (ROCC):  A campus resource supporting students in recovery and helping build a recovery-friendly community at USM.

  • Office of Student Engagement & Belonging:  Programs, activities, and resources designed to help students connect with others, become involved on campus, and build a sense of community and belonging.

These resources offer a variety of ways to explore mindfulness, meditation, grounding, self-compassion, and mindful eating. Some are quick practices you can try right away, while others provide opportunities for more in-depth learning.

Quick Practices

• • Grounding Exercises: Using Your Senses for Anxiety Relief:  A quick and easy grounding practice that uses the five senses to help manage anxiety.

  • Getting Started with Mindfulness:  A helpful introduction to mindfulness, with additional free articles, practices, and resources available throughout the site.

  • Guided Self-Compassion Exercises :  Free guided audio exercises focused on mindfulness and self-compassion.

Videos & Podcasts

• • TED Talk: All It Takes Is 10 Mindful Minutes:  A short, accessible introduction to mindfulness and meditation.

    • • “As someone who doesn't have a lot of experience in mindfulness training and meditation, I thought it was a good introduction to the concept. I like that he explains that it only needs to take 10 minutes a day.... Bonus: he uses juggling tricks to explain the concepts!” — Student testimonial

  • 10% Happier | Podcast:  Meditation and mindfulness resources geared in part toward people who may be skeptical about meditation. The site includes books, a podcast, and an app. Student access/discount information is also available.

    • • “Sometimes I find mindfulness a little hokey because it’s become very commercialized and Westernized from the original practice in Buddhism. However, when I was working on learning how to manage anxiety, I read Harris’s book and some of the things he pointed out did help. Some of his podcast episodes are pretty interesting, and it’s easy to pick and choose because he has a variety of speakers and topics.” — Student testimonial

Apps

• • Headspace:  Offers guided meditations and courses on topics such as managing stress, navigating change, gratitude, mindful eating, and dealing with difficult emotions. Some resources are free, with additional content available through a paid subscription and student plan.

    • • “This is a wonderful app with an abundance of guided meditations. You can choose courses on themes like creativity, dealing with regret, navigating change, managing stress, mindful eating, and cultivating gratitude. They also have an ‘SOS’ section with short meditations for moments of panic and overwhelm. This has been a tremendous benefit to me in nursing school.” — Student testimonial

Mindful Eating

• • 8 Steps to Mindful Eating:  An overview of mindful eating and some basic practices for getting started.

  • The Raisin Meditation:  A short exercise for practicing mindful eating and paying closer attention to the sensory experience of food.

    • • “A great quick exercise to try out mindful eating—and you could use chocolate or another food that might be more fun than a raisin.” — Student testimonial

Books

• • Eat with Intention: Recipes and Meditations for a Life that Lights You Up by Cassandra Bodzak:  Amazon | ThriftBooks, Combines nutrition, mindfulness, meditation, gratitude, and self-care practices.

    • • “It contains both nutritional and meditation tips for wellness, as well as helpful ideas about being grateful to your own body and taking time to care for yourself. Sometimes we focus on the little things that make us feel unhappy or stressed and forget about all the good things our bodies do for us.” — Student testimonial

Breathing exercises can be a simple way to pause, reset, and manage stress throughout the day. These resources offer background on the science of breathing as well as guided breathing practices.

• Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art by James Nestor Amazon:  An accessible, science-focused exploration of breathing and its relationship to health and well-being.

  • • “This book really helped me understand how little I breathe and how shallowly I breathe. It is science-driven but very accessible and entertaining. I've started using a breathing app throughout the day, and it has made a big difference in my stress levels and how I feel in my body.” — Dr. Provost

• Breathe: Relax & Focus — iOS App, A free app for guided breathing sessions. Also available for Apple Watch.

• iBreathe — iOS App, Guided breathing exercises with basic features available for free and additional customization available as a paid option. The app can also send reminders throughout the day to pause and breathe.

Our relationships with others, and the way we respond to ourselves, can play an important role in well-being. These resources explore empathy, connection, and the importance of relationships.

• • The Empathic Civilization — Video, 10 min., An animated introduction to the science of empathy and the role of human connection.

    • • “Highly recommended! I learned a lot from this short video, and it helped me understand why community and relationships are linked to well-being.” — Student testimonial

  • Brené Brown on Empathy vs. Sympathy — Video, 3 min.,  A short animated explanation of the difference between empathy and sympathy and how we can respond more meaningfully to others.

    • • “This was so impactful! It really made me think about how I can better express empathy to others in a positive way, and it made me think about how I could be more empathetic to myself, too.” — Student testimonial

  • “What the Longest Study on Human Happiness Found Is the Key to a Good Life” — Article,  Robert Waldinger & Marc Schulz, 2023.  Read the article

    • • An accessible look at findings from the long-running Harvard Study of Adult Development and what researchers have learned about the relationship between social connection and a fulfilling life.

Movement doesn't have to mean a long or intense workout. Even brief periods of walking, stretching, yoga, or other enjoyable movement can provide an opportunity to reset during a busy day.

• • The Power and Benefits of a 5-Minute Walk — Article/Audio, An exploration of how taking short, regular walking breaks can benefit physical and mental well-being.

  • The Joy Workout — The New York Times, A short movement practice based on physical actions associated with joy across cultures, such as reaching, swaying, bouncing, and moving freely.

    • • “These physical actions don’t just express a feeling of joy — research shows they can also elicit it.” — Kelly McGonigal, 2022, The New York Times

  • Yoga With Adriene — Free YouTube Series,  A large collection of free, beginner-friendly yoga practices ranging from a few minutes to full-length sessions. Videos include practices for relaxation, sleep, stress relief, stretching, and general movement.

    • • “Her YouTube channel offers tons of free yoga videos for all levels and of various lengths. I especially love her bedtime yoga sequences when I am trying to switch gears after a long day of classes or clinicals and prepare for a good night's sleep.” — Student testimonial

      • Suggested Practices

        • Take 5 Yoga Break — 5-minute movement break

        • Wind Down Yoga — Calming practice

        • Office Break Yoga — 14-minute practice

        • Yoga to Feel Your Best — General yoga practice

Sometimes you just need a few minutes to step away, reset, and give your brain a break. These resources offer simple, low-effort ways to take a brief mental pause.

• • Explore.org Live Animal Cams — Website , Take a five-minute break with live animal and nature cameras from around the world. Watch kittens or pandas play, check in on wildlife, or choose a relaxing underwater view.

  • This Is Sand — Interactive Website & App, Create colorful virtual sandscapes by layering and arranging digital sand. A simple, creative activity when you want a few minutes away from schoolwork or other demands

Staying focused can be difficult when you're balancing classes, clinicals, work, and life. These resources offer practical approaches to managing time, getting started on tasks, improving focus, and approaching learning with a productive mindset.

• • The Pomodoro Technique breaks focused work into manageable periods separated by short breaks. It can be particularly helpful when you're having trouble getting started, feeling overwhelmed, or becoming easily distracted.

    • • How the Pomodoro Technique Works — Article

        • • “This was really useful for me when I had a hard time initiating work or was getting overwhelmed with what needed to be done. It also helps break down large chunks of work into smaller, more manageable amounts.” — Student testimonial

      • Bear Focus Timer — App, A Pomodoro-style focus timer with Apple Watch support.

        • • “I used this technique through much of grad school to study, and now I use it almost every day to help me focus on projects at work. You also get super-cute compliment cards whenever you finish a session.” — Dr. Provost

      • There are many other free and paid options available by searching “Pomodoro” in your device's app store.

  • Growth Mindset & Learning:  A growth mindset emphasizes that skills and abilities can develop through learning, effort, feedback, and practice. These resources introduce the concept and its application to learning.

    • • Growth Mindset vs. Fixed Mindset — Article

      • Carol Dweck: The Power of Believing That You Can Improve — TED Talk

      • Growth Mindset vs. Fixed Mindset — Short Animated Video

  • Straight A Nursing — Podcast, Episodes cover nursing content as well as studying, organization, stress management, and navigating nursing school.

    • • “I really enjoy it, especially when I need to get refocused and head back in the right direction. I tend to listen to it after vacation heading into a new semester to try to start in the right mindset.” — Student testimonial

  • Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World by Cal Newport — Book, Explores strategies for protecting periods of focused, distraction-free work and distinguishing that work from smaller routine tasks.

    • • “This book changed how I work. Newport's concepts of deep versus shallow work and his time-management strategies have been incredibly useful. I highly recommend this and his book A World Without Email.” — Dr. Provost

  • NatuSamba — Focus/Study Music — Amazon Music Unlimited,  search for NatuSamba within Amazon Music if you use the service.

    • • “I like this because it is essentially the same music for three hours. It doesn't keep changing tempo, instrument, or volume, so I don't get distracted by the music itself. I've learned that this works much better for me when I need to focus.” — Student testimonial

      • Have a favorite study playlist or artist? We'd love recommendations from different music services so we can add more student favorites to this list.

Gratitude practices offer simple ways to intentionally notice and reflect on positive experiences, relationships, and other meaningful parts of daily life. There are many ways to practice, so you can experiment to find an approach that works for you.

• • How to Practice Gratitude — Website,  An introduction to gratitude, including information about the science behind gratitude and ideas for beginning a regular gratitude practice.

  • Different Types of Gratitude Practices — Website, A collection of approaches to practicing gratitude, including journaling, gratitude jars or boxes, reflection exercises, writing prompts, and meditation practices.