West Virginia University faculty and staff are invited to learn more about the Movement for Mental Health program for students. M4MH is designed to help students manage feelings of high stress, anxiety and depression through exercise. It aims to empower students with the necessary knowledge to choose appropriate types of exercise based on mood, schedule, intensity, etc., with the assistance of a personal coach.
"We know from research that regular physical activity can help decrease our feelings of stress, anxiety, and even depression through the release of chemicals in our brain,” said Jay Stewart, Sport and Exercise Psychology doctoral student. “Along these lines, exercise improves our overall mood and can help us get better sleep."
Faculty and staff are in a unique position to recognize when students are suffering from mental distress and when a program like M4MH might be helpful. Each student participant has the opportunity to design an exercise program with their coach based upon their needs, usually running for a period of 12 weeks. They typically meet with their coach between four and eight times throughout the program, depending on comfort level with exercise.
Movement for Mental Health is not a personal training program, rather, coaches are trained to create a collaborative conversation with students to determine what types of exercise are most enjoyable, how to set goals related to exercise for mood management and inform of resources on campus and in the community to meet the student’s exercise needs. Progress is discussed in terms of how the student feels, rather than traditional “targets” like weight loss. The goal of Movement for Mental Health is to instill a sense of choice and independence, with the hopes of shifting personal philosophies from “moving to look better” to “moving to feel better.”
"The focus is on finding ways to feel better by moving more,” said Spencer Ingels, Sport and Exercise Psychology doctoral student. “We work with our clients to build in more movement through activities they enjoy (e.g. walking, hiking, yoga, jogging, or biking), into their schedule, and then support them in making the activity a habit. Students we have worked with really enjoy the flexibility of the program to go beyond the idea of having to go to the gym to exercise."
To learn more about Movement for Mental Health, or to acquire referral cards for the program, please email M4MH@mail.wvu.edu or contact the Office of Wellness and Health Promotion at 304.293.5054.