Mental health of students in higher education

Appendix 6to the volunteer and then students from the service were offered the optionof working with the volunteer as a way of support with their exercise plans,following their initial assessments with the sports centre. This system hasworked effectively and several students have benefited from the extrasupport during the initial stages of their exercise plans. They commentedthat without the ‘buddy’ they probably would not have had enoughmotivation to get going with their exercise regime. These students havesubsequently been able to continue with exercise independently and havereported improvements in their self-esteem and overall mood levels. Indeed,one person commented that she had been able to reduce her medication asa result of engaging regularly in exercise.Royal College of Psychiatrists89