Resources for positive mental wellbeing

University interactive tools and practical guides

• Care first lifestyle website houses extensive articles on a wide range of mental health issues including staying mentally active, getting quality sleep, stress management, self-esteem, and work/life balance.

• Care first Zest app provided by My Possible Self, offers guided series and a toolkit of interactive techniques and exercises to help you make sense of problems, identify habits you want to change, and learn techniques to live happier and healthier.

• Looking after your mind outlines tips and tools to support good mental health habits and methods to identify and effectively deal with the causes of distress. Practical support is given to recognise symptoms of poor mental health in yourself and others, and specialist advice on the steps to take if you know someone exhibiting self-harm or suicidal behaviours.

• Managing stress and wellbeing positively is a practical guide that introduces key considerations in relation to managing the normal stresses that come from adapting to change.

• Stress at work introduces the University’s stress policy and provides tailored guidance and self-assessment tools relating to the identification and management of workplace stress. These resources outline the responsibilities of managers and staff, respectively, in preventing and reducing workplace stress.

• The Centre for Mindfulness Research and Practice offer free mindfulness meditations. If you prefer practicing mindfulness live and with other people, you can also join a range of free online ‘live’ zoom meditation sessions hosted by their associated charity The Mindfulness Network, these sessions are guided by a mindfulness teacher and are held at least weekly

Local centres that support wellbeing

Canolfan Abbey Road supports better mental health to people over 18 years of age in Gwynedd, Conwy and Anglesey. The centre offers activities such as reading groups, creative writing, art, craft, gardening as well as projects with animals depending on availability.  You can access counselling, complimentary therapies, support for dependency and a variety of therapeutic approaches. 

North Wales Women Centre, located in Denbighshire, provides a wide variety of courses, events, social activities, and volunteering. The centre provides a safe, non-judgemental, and professional environment, which is female only between the hours of 9am and 4.30pm, Monday to Friday. If you want to learn more about the centre, find out what’s on offer please call 01745 339331 or say hello on Facebook and Twitter .

Podcasts and presentations

• BBC Sounds - Health and Wellbeing explore the BBC's rich archive spanning diverse topics on health and wellbeing.

• Give Me Strength with Alice Liveing what makes a strong person to you? Bestselling author and personal trainer Alice Liveing interviews extraordinary women about the importance of building mental and physical resilience and how this can empower us to live happier, stronger lives.

• How To Fail With Elizabeth Day celebrates the things that haven’t gone right. Every week, a new interviewee explores what their failures taught them about how to succeed better.

• Live Happy  here you will find dozens of interviews with positive psychology and wellbeing thought leaders who bring you ideas and research on how to live a happier and more meaningful life.

• Mental Health Foundation discover the range of wellbeing podcasts, interviews and videos, including topics on mental health in children, young people, families, in later life, and prevention resources and tools, and much more.

• Talks for when you feel totally burned out worn out? exhausted? bleary-eyed? If you need a little something to ease your frustration and get you back in the spirit, this collection of talks should help.

• Past Imperfect can early events shape future success? Times’ columnists, Rachel Sylvester and Alice Thomson talk to outstanding people about how moments in their early lives informed their identities, their careers and their drive to succeed.

• The Happiness Lab Yale professor Dr Laurie Santos will take you through the latest scientific research and share some surprising and inspiring stories that will alter the way you think about happiness.

• The Naked Professors life coach and writer Ben Bidwell brings you open and relatable conversations about mental health, mindset and personal growth. The Naked Professors represent the new breed of masculinity by stripping things back to have deep and vulnerable discussions about what's most important in life and how we actually feel.
  

Bangor University staff and students have created a series talks to improve understanding and ways to effectively support mental and emotional wellbeing.

• Getting a better understanding of our emotions Professor Swales, an international expert in treatments specialising in emotions, from the School of Psychology, describes how to get a better understanding of our emotions. She covers the main emotion ‘families’ and why we experience them before then moving on to describe when to act on our emotions and when and how to reduce emotions that are too intense.

• Top Tips for Good Mental Health Bangor students, past and present, from the School of Psychology offer their advice, and reflect on the personal strategies they use to support their mental wellbeing.
  

Seven Ways to Wellbeing

Evidence suggests there are simple steps we can all take to improve our mental wellbeing. The Five Ways to Wellbeing was developed by the New Economics Foundation in 2008 with the aim of prompting people into thinking about those things in life which are important to their wellbeing and perhaps should be prioritised in their day-to-day routines.

We have added two new ways, Self-Care, and Care for the Planet, as we think that practicing self-care is fundamental to a meaningful and balanced life, and caring for the planet is intricately connected to the wellbeing of future generations and survival of species and habitats.

Give them a try - you may feel more positive and content, able to get more from life, and make a genuine difference to the lives of others.

Connect

Connect with the people around you, friends, family, colleagues, neighbours, at home, work, school or in your local community. Try not to rely on technology or social media alone to build relationships. Invest time, show consideration and respect to nurture new or strengthen existing connections.

Be active

Discover a physical activity that you enjoy. Try activities that bring your focus to the mind-body connection. Step outside and be amongst nature. Discover your local environments through walking, cycling, running, and swimming.

Take notice

Be inquisitive and curious. Question. Remark on the unusual and rare. Savour the present moment. Observe the changing seasons. Be aware of the world around you. Acknowledge the impermanence of life and the passing of your thoughts and feelings.

Keep learning

Try something new. Rediscover an old interest. Set a challenge you will enjoy achieving. Learn something useful that will strengthen your mind or body, a new practical skill or instrument. Learning new things can reinforce a sense of purpose and build self-esteem, as well as being fun.

Give

Do something kind for a friend or stranger without expecting anything in return. Offer to help. Smile. Volunteer your time. Thank someone. Actively listen to others. See yourself, and your happiness, linked to the wider community.

Self-care

Be kind to yourself. Have patience. Do not be afraid to fail. Learn from regrets. Treat yourself and give yourself the same advice, as you would a loved one or friend. Most people are as happy as they make up their minds to be.

Care for the planet

Make small changes to your life that will reduce your energy use. Recycle. Reuse. Choose non-toxic chemicals in the home and office. Buy ethically and responsibly. Choose sustainable. Educate yourself and help others understand the importance and value of our natural resources.

Self-help and information resources to support mental wellbeing

Action for Happiness everyone's path to happiness is different. Action for Happiness have identified 10 keys to Happier Living that consistently tend to make life happier and more fulfilling.

Can you tell if someone is struggling? If a friend was feeling anxious, would you notice and know what to do? See how you could support them.

Every Mind Matters here you will find expert advice and practical tips to help you look after your mental health and wellbeing.

Mental Health UK It's easy for work to get on top of us, and the stress can eventually lead to further mental health problems. Learn new ways and ideas to help you manage your mental health and wellbeing so you can be your best at work

Mind UK provides information on types of mental health problems, drugs and treatments, helping others, legal rights, and many other topics.  

NHS Mood Zone browse the guides, tools, tips and activities that can improve your mental wellbeing, including 'stress busting' advice, ways to raise low self-esteem, and breathing exercise for stress

Stress Busting brings you everything you need to know about the symptoms, causes and treatments for stress