As students prepare and take their midsemester exams, they are encouraged to consider stress management practices to support their health, Chief Campus Health Officer Dr. Sarah Van Orman said in a briefing Tuesday morning with the Daily Trojan and Annenberg Media.

“[It’s] very easy for sleep to suffer when you’re really busy, or you’re staying up late,” Van Orman said. “[Try] getting eight hours most nights, going to bed and waking up at a similar time, trying to avoid the pattern that many students get into — not sleeping for enough time, taking a long nap or using the weekends to catch up with really long sleep — that often can create stress, fatigue, anxiety.”

Van Orman encouraged students to practice self-care and healthy lifestyle habits by eating regular meals and being mindful of caffeine and alcohol consumption. High alcohol consumption, which is associated with reduced sleep quality and insomnia, can negatively impact health.

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For additional support with stress management, students are encouraged to practice healthy lifestyle habits, including regular exercise and meditation. All students can access campus recreational centers, including the Lyon Center and USC Village Fitness Center. 

“If you know you’re someone who tends to start to have a lot of stress as the semester ramps up, this is a good time to think about starting very simple practices to meditate or clear your mind,” Van Orman said. “There’s lots of research that suggests it’s very effective with reducing anxiety and just kind of helping people feel better.”

Mindfulness practices have been associated with improved cognition, reduced blood pressure and mental health benefits. Mindful USC, an app-based program the University offers, hosts mindfulness classes, affinity groups and guided meditation audios. Students can sign up for sessions on mindfulness practices hosted on campus, at Santa Monica Beach and via Zoom.

Student Health can support students seeking formal mental health care, with services available through Counseling and Mental Health. For students who want to check in on their health before seeking out campus resources, they can complete the My Mental Health Assessment, an interactive program that screens for mental health conditions.

The program provides a preliminary evaluation and can help connect students to the appropriate on-campus healthcare services for support.

“Based on your scores, we’ll actually send you resources or make a suggestion that maybe it would make sense for you to come in,” Van Orman said. “It’s a great way to confidentially screen yourself and be able to get some assessment of where you are.”

Student Health offers nonclinical interventions, ranging from Oasis Chat to “Let’s Talk” sessions, which are nonclinical drop-in sessions with a counselor, providing students support in identifying stressors, practicing coping strategies and navigating campus resources.

For urgent mental health care needs, a counselor is available 24/7 — including after clinic hours and on weekends — via the Student Health call center. To check in on a peer, students can submit a request for staff to provide support to another student through Trojans Care 4 Trojans, a campus well-being initiative through Campus Support and Intervention. 

Van Orman advises students to take breaks, reach out for campus support if needed, and spend time with friends, family and those who are important to them throughout the semester.

“As we get busier and busier, it’s very easy for those self-care habits to fall off,” Van Orman said. “We’re just in that point of the semester, right where all the normal stressors start to build for many students — academically, socially, with activities. We really encourage people to take advantage of all of those resources.”