Getting by with a little help from their friends

Students are learning to support each other as part of first in Canada peer wellness-coaching program

Kiran Ubi is well aware of the stresses of university life. A second-year science student who plans to study neurobiology and medicine, she admits that maintaining healthy habits during her first year was a challenge.

“Stress is kind of inevitable,” she remarks, in conversation at the UBC Centre for Student Involvement and Careers. “Making sure I got enough sleep or that I ate enough, it was really hard at times.”

Today, Ubi is looking forward to helping guide peers through similar challenges, as one of 15 peer wellness coaches trained to offer guidance and support to fellow students. In the first program of its kind in Canada, UBC students who are feeling overwhelmed or in need of some extra support can sign up through Student Services or online to be paired with a coach like Ubi.

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