WELCOME BACK GWU STUDENTS AND WELCOME CLASS OF 2013.
Between exams, papers and maintaining an active social life, many college students find it hard to keep up on their personal health and wellness. Your college life will be more rewarding if you learn to work in healthy habits into your routine. Here are some basic student health tips to help you feel your best.
• Eat breakfast. Start your day off right with a good meal when you get up. Whether you're rolling out of bed at noon or up at the crack of dawn for class, make sure you start your day with a balanced, healthy meal.
• Drink water. Drinking enough water can help boost your concentration as well as keep you from overeating. Make sure to keep hydrated as you go through your day by bringing water with you.
• Get a full night's rest whenever possible. While the amount of sleep each person needs varies, most people need 7-9 hours to feel fully rested. While this may not be possible every night, try to sleep a full night whenever you get the chance.
• Avoid all nighters. While you may feel like you need to study all night to do well you might be doing yourself a disservice. Not getting enough sleep can impair your ability to do well, regardless of how much you've studied, so make sure you get at least a little sleep before your big test.
• Get tested. Get tested for STDs including HIV/AIDS, Gonorrhea and Chlamydia. It is recommended that you get tested once a year. The GW Student Health Service offers these tests for free or at a low cost.
• Always use protection. Always make sure to use protection to prevent the risk of contracting a disease.
• Get a flu shot. Check out the HOPEs calendar for the GWU Fall 2009 Flu Clinic schedule.
• Create a routine. If you get yourself in the habit of studying, working out, and sleeping at certain hours, it will be easier to fit in all the things you need to do in a day without feeling too stressed out.
• Understand you can't do everything. While you might want to go to class, work, play a sport, and participate in clubs and social activities, the reality is that sooner or later you're going to get run down by trying to do so much. Focus on doing the things you truly love and forget about the rest.
• Get help. If you're feeling overwhelmed, reach out and ask for help from professors and friends. They may be able to give you more time or help you to complete projects and studying more quickly.
What are HOPEs?
The Health Outreach Peer Education program is a project of the GWU Student Health Service. It is a student-run health outreach group.
Our mission is to prepare students to take part in health promotion and educational activities directed to their peers. Peer Educators help other students evaluate the risk of health-related behaviors, supply accurate information and lend support for healthy lifestyle choice
Presentations address areas like HIV and other STIs, Safer Sex, Smoking Cessation, Nutrition, and Disordered Eating. They also participate in health fairs, staff information tables, sponsor free HIV testing on-campus and publish newsletters among other activities.
Our website's main purpose is to provide information resource on health education for students at GW; this site is not meant to diagnose or treat any conditions.
If you need to see a clinician please contact GW's Student Health Service at 202-994-6827.
Interested in becoming a member of HOPEs?
No previous peer education experience is necessary!
Anyone with an interest in educating other students about making healthy life choices can be a peer educator!
If you are interested in becoming a member of HOPEs, please contact Susan Haney at (202) 496-8319 or AdeOla Fadumiye / Erin Kearns at (202) 994-8892. You can also email us at reachout@gwu.edu.
HOPEs Annual Training is held at the beginning of each Fall semester and is a two-day session that teaches up-to-date health information, effective communication skills, and utilizes interactive educational tools.
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