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Emotional wellness means feeling most of the time that we can pursue fulfilling experiences, respond to challenges, connect with others, and experience internal acceptance of ourselves. We are wired to feel a range of emotions, such as sadness, anger, elation, and uncertainty.

Emotional wellness means being able to acknowledge all these feelings, as they seek to inform us about what we might need to look after ourselves. When we are emotionally well, we feel empowered to acknowledge the full range of our emotions, take care of our emotional needs in the moment, and continue relating to others and pursuing our goals.

Tips to Maintain Your Emotional Wellness

• Ensure you sleep 7-8 hours every night. Adequate sleep lets us cope better with stress, difficult emotions, and solving problems. Too much sleep can make us groggy and worsen problems if we avoid them.

• Eat 3 meals throughout the day and maintain a balanced diet. Stay hydrated. Our physiology and emotions are closely intertwined: If you are shaky because of hunger or low blood sugar, our brain can interpret that as anxiety or powerlessness.

• Set aside time to “be with your emotions.” You can try journaling, taking a reflective walk, listening to music matching your feelings, talking to a friend, making art (it does not have to be good), or hitting the gym. 

• Be honest with yourself about any emotions that might be present – We do not get to choose our emotions, only how we respond to them. By "bottling up” painful feelings we miss the opportunity to learn what we need to care for ourselves in the moment.

• Connect with others and talk about your feelings. Yes, opening up can feel vulnerable and scary. It also creates opportunities for feeling understood, supported, less isolated, and builds emotional intimacy. Sometimes we do not need to talk at all, and it just feels good to be around someone. Being independent and maintaining emotional wellness does not mean doing everything on your own. It means having the ability to recognize when you need to care of yourself by seeking support from others.

• Make time for fulfilling activities outside of school. If school is all you have going on, and it becomes stressful, 100% of your life is stressful. But if you have other activities in your life, they can balance the stress of school and give your brain a much-needed break to consolidate information.

• Ensuring emotional wellness consists of a lot of preventative maintenance. You do not have to wait for “rock bottom” to reach out for guidance. Consider seeking input from someone you trust, mentor, or mental health provider if you feel it might be helpful to get additional input in sorting through your emotions. 

Need help now? Call or text 988 — the National Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. You can also chat online at . You'll be connected with a trained counselor and are available 24/7 for people in crisis and those who support people in crisis.