Emotional Wellness

Emotional Wellness is being kind to yourself as you recognize and experience a wide range of emotions.

It’s a common myth that being emotionally well means always feeling happy.
Emotional wellness comes from noticing, accepting, and moving through your full range of emotions using healthy coping and regulation skills. You don't need to always feel happy to be emotionally well.

Circle in blue with the words Emotional Wellness and icon of hands holding a heart.

Signs of Emotional Wellness

You understand how your mood influences your choices, relationships, and ability to focus and meet responsibilities.
Your recognize that moods are like the weather—constantly shifting based on what is happening in your life.
You understand that stress isn’t an emotion—it’s a full‑body response that occurs when your brain senses that something important is at risk and to keep you safe, your nervous system’s stress response is activated.
You expand your emotional vocabulary so that you can accurately name your mood. You can use The Mood Meter.
You no longer place value your moods by labeling them as "good" or "bad." You understand that all moods, pleasant and unpleasant, are showing up for a reason.
You recognize that you are experiencing an emotions but you aren't that emotion. Detachment from emotional states allows you to recognize all the ways you can and do feel.
You know that emotions aren't just in your head, they are a whole body experience. You notice how your moods create bodily sensations and influence your energy levels—for example, when you feel calm, your energy tends to be lower, whereas when you feel frustrated, your energy is often higher. This awareness strengthens your mind–body connection.
You take action to care for your emotional wellness by continually asking, “what would be helpful?"
You ask for help when you need it.

5 choices you can make to enhance your emotional wellness

Tune in to your thoughts and feelings
Use your strengths of curiosity and courage to notice how you’re feeling and what’s happening in your life that may be affecting your mood. Once you recognize it, you can choose coping strategies that support you.
Take care of the basics
Support your energy by eating nourishing foods, staying hydrated, getting consistent sleep, moving your body in ways you enjoy, and limiting substance use.
Focus on what matters to you
Reconnect with your values. Values are like a compass, guiding you towards your your goals, strengthening your well-being, and helping you create a meaningful life
Reach out and connect
Don’t go through things alone. Talk to people you trust for support. You are not a burden—you deserve connection.
Give yourself compassion
Offer yourself the same care and understanding you would give to a close friend. Talk to yourself gently, listen to your needs, give yourself time and space to feel your emotions, and offer yourself gestures of tenderness.

Check-in on your emotional wellness

What choices have I been making that support my emotional well-being?
Take a moment to reflect on what’s been helping you feel more balanced, supported, or energized.
Am I bottling up, over-identifying, or avoiding my emotions?
If so, what is one small way I can begin to turn toward my feelings—such as naming them, talking to someone, or writing them down?
What has helped me care for myself in the past?
Have I been engaging in those practices lately? If not, what is one thing I can start (or restart) today?

Mental Health, Mental Illness, Stress, & Burnout

We often use the mental health and mental illness interchangeably, but they are different.

Mental Health

Everyone has mental health, just like everyone has physical health.
Mental health refers to your psychological and emotional state, which can fluctuate throughout daily life. There will be times when your mental health is challenged, such as during major transitions like starting college or high-stress periods like finals.

Just as you would notice symptoms when you are physically unwell, it is important to recognize the signs that your mental health may need attention.

With this perspective, it becomes clear that it is normal to experience times when you feel emotionally well and other times when your emotional wellness feels strained. To support your mental health, continue checking in with yourself and taking intentional steps to care for your needs, find relief, and strengthen your overall well-being.

Mental Illness

Mental illness occurs when mental health concerns lead to ongoing distress and begin to interfere with daily functioning, such as attending classes, meeting responsibilities, maintaining social connections, caring for your basic needs of sleep, movement, food, and hygiene.

The most common mental health conditions among college students are anxiety and depression. Mental illnesses can impact your mood, cognition, behavior, and how your relate to others. Mental illnesses often fall on a spectrum from mild to moderate to severe.

Being diagnosed with a mental illness does not mean you will always experience it in the same way or intensity. With support, treatment, and self-care, many people improve over time. It’s also possible to live with a mental illness and still experience periods of strong mental health by making daily choices to care for your overall emotional wellness.

Knowing When to Seek Help

As a general guideline, if you are using coping skills and your mild to moderate mental health symptoms last for two weeks without improvement, it's time to reach out for professional help. Of course, you can reach out for help at any time with our medical services or at Psychological & Counseling Services (PACS).

Seek immediate help if you are having thoughts of harming yourself, substance use has increased, you're unable to care for your basic needs such as eating, sleeping, personal hygiene, and/or your are disassociating from reality or hearing voices.

Stress

Stress is a full-body response that occurs when your brain senses danger, sends a signal to your nervous system, and activates your stress response. Stress is not an emotion.

Stress is a natural part of working toward your goals and building a meaningful life. We tend to feel stressed about the things we care about. When something important to us feels uncertain or at risk, our stress response is activated. This is why many college students experience stress related to relationships, academics, family, and health. Thinking about stress from this perspective helps us recognize that experiencing stress isn't a sign of failure, it's sign that something matters to you and deserves your care and attention.

Stress can show up in your body, mind, emotions, and behavior. Common signs of stress include muscle tension, digestive issues, headaches, difficulty concentrating, poor memory, mood changes, and shifts in behaviors such as over- or under-eating, sleeping, exercising, socializing, or spending time on social media.

Moving through your stress starts with awareness and action. First, recognize your personal signs of stress. Then, remind yourself that stress often means something you care about feels at risk. From there, take intentional steps to support yourself, find relief, and reduce stress.

Learn about stress by visiting our stress website.

Burnout

Burnout is the result of chronic stress, often in academic or work settings, that can significantly impact mental health.

Common signs of burnout include emotional and mental exhaustion, a reduced sense of accomplishment, and decreased confidence.

Burnout cannot be resolved through self-care alone. Burnout often develops within systems or environments that are not adequately supporting your well-being. If you are feeling exhausted, it is not a personal failure—it may be a sign that your environment is not meeting your needs.

Supporting yourself through burnout may include reconnecting with your values so you can focus your energy on what matters most, taking intentional breaks, coping with stress, seeking support, and advocating for yourself. You can also make use of available policies, resources, or accommodations designed to support your well-being.