Caring for Your Wellbeing

September 17, 2024

With the fall semester fully underway, it is vital to keep wellbeing at the forefront of your daily practices. Consider the following tips for taking care of yourself as you continue the school year. 

Care for your mental health. College can be overwhelming sometimes. Maybe you’re feeling stressed with classwork, having a difficult time being away from home, or finding it hard to connect with others amid the busyness — consider making an appointment with Baylor’s Counseling Center. You can schedule an initial assessment in the Health Portal by selecting “Counseling Appointment” after selecting “Appointments.” 

Look after your immune system. College life brings people from every part of the U.S. and around the world together in a relatively small area. Interaction in the residence hall or apartment and in the classroom can often lead to a bug or two if your immune system isn’t prepared. Thankfully, there are resources on campus that can help. Baylor’s Health Center is located on the second floor of the Student Life Center. It offers doctor visits, vaccines and more. Be sure to get your flu shot to combat flu season. Appointments can be scheduled online, and there is a pharmacy where you can purchase over-the-counter meds and fill or refill prescriptions. 

Prefer online care? Utilize Academic Live Care for 24/7 telehealth care. In addition to the robust medical and counseling services offered through the Health Center and Counseling Center on Baylor’s main campus, the University has partnered with Academic Live Care to expand the medical and counseling services available to students. All Baylor students have access to the following FREE services:

A 24/7/365 unlimited in-the-moment mental health clinical support line is available to all students, even when you are studying abroad. 

Unlimited Telehealth visits include:

  • Virtual Urgent Care (Physical Health)
  • Psychiatry
  • Nutritional Counseling
  • Women’s Specialized Care and Wellbeing
  • Mental Health Counseling
  • Telehealth Visits are available evenings, weekends  and when the University is closed

Academic Live Care offers flexibility in appointment times as well as access to providers based on preferences such as gender, cultural and ethnic background, language spoken, and specialties.

Get involved. We can help you find a home at Baylor University. We hope your unique experience will include joining an organization, attending a campus event, enjoying a Baylor tradition or simply visiting one of our historic buildings. Explore the opportunities to find your place at Baylor. If you need a little help finding the right place to connect, reach out to a Student Involvement Specialist. Start by emailing your interests and hopes for involvement to SIS@baylor.edu and they’ll reach out to you to set up a consultation. 

Connect with your resident chaplain. Residence halls on campus as well as some academic units have their own chaplains. These chaplains are Truett Seminary students who are passionate about pastoral care and meeting others wherever they are in their spiritual journey. Student chaplains are mentored and trained by a Spiritual Life supervisor and are here to foster an environment of spiritual wellbeing. Find a comprehensive list here

Meet individuals who are different from you. Intercultural engagement at Baylor means curating thoughtful and intentional opportunities and experiences to cultivate the development of intercultural maturity. Equipping each member of our community to listen and show respect to others and at the same time build interdependent relationships with different people from other backgrounds is an important component of a thriving, caring community.

Connect with your faculty. Baylor has a 15:1 student-to-faculty ratio for a reason. Each of our faculty members truly cares about the students they teach. If you need support, resources or a listening ear connect with your faculty so they can point you in the right direction. Office hours should be listed on your class syllabus. 

Be a part of creating a safer campus. You may have seen signs around campus talking about The Red Zone — the period between the beginning of the fall semester and Thanksgiving break when a majority of college campus sexual assaults occur. Thankfully, we can learn how to prevent sexual misconduct and sexual assault — consider gathering your student org, fraternity/sorority, Bible study group, etc., and request prevention training from the Equity, Civil Rights, & Title IX Office

If you still have questions, check out these resources if you’re a student and these resources if you’re faculty or staff.