Specialist Mentors (SM:MH) provide one-to-one support to help students address any barriers to learning due to mental health difficulties. They help students to identify and overcome these barriers by teaching them coping strategies, goal setting, time management, and other skills to help them succeed in their studies and create a healthy work-life balance.
Students with an ASC/ADHD diagnosis are assigned SM:ASC mentors who have received additional training in how to support neurodiverse learners.
The support provided can address different areas, such as:
Coping with anxiety and stressful situations: I can teach you strategies for managing stress and anxiety, and help you find ways to relax and calm your mind.
Concentration difficulties: I can help you identify the causes of your concentration difficulties, and teach you techniques to improve your focus.
Time management: I can teach you how to organise your time and set goals, and help you prioritise your workload.
Goal setting: I can work with you to set realistic and achievable goals, and help you develop a plan to achieve them.
Timetabling: I can help you create a personalised schedule and teach you how to stick to it.
Prioritising workload: I can help you identify the most important tasks, and teach you how to manage your time effectively.
Creating a suitable work-life balance: I can teach you how to balance your academic & personal responsibilities, creating a healthy balance between work & leisure time.
It’s important to note that the support provided by mentors is not the same as counselling.
Mentoring helps you understand & recognise the barriers to learning you’re facing & support you in developing strategies to overcome them.
Mentors can work with a range of mental health difficulties including:
Depression
Anxiety
Eating disorders
Bipolar disorder
Psychotic illnesses such as schizophrenia
Obsessive compulsive disorder, among others.
The support provided will be tailored to the specific needs of the student, and for some students, this support will need to be on-going, while for others it might be gradually phased out or only be required at certain points of their course.
Visit this Student Finance England information page to see if you're eligible for DSA support
If you are not eligible for DSA support and would still like private mentoring then I offer this service at a competitive rate. Email me for details.