Lead with love this Stress Awareness Month

🧠 Stress Awareness Month 2025 Guide 

Stress Awareness Month has been held every April, since 1992 to increase public awareness about both the causes and cures for our modern stress epidemic.  This handy guide full of quick tips, resources and training, is designed to help employees keep on top of their wellbeing. Find more info on understanding your mental health and developing coping strategies in this Stress Awareness Month article.  

This year's theme is #LeadWithLove 

This April, take a moment to pause, reflect, and reset. 

When we Lead with Love—for ourselves, for others, and in our work—we create a culture of care, compassion, and calm. 

🌱 Key Messages 

💚 Lead with Love for Yourself 

• Take breaks without guilt. 

• Prioritise sleep, hydration, and movement. 

• Speak kindly to yourself—you’re doing your best. 

• Recognise your stress signals early and take small steps to reset. 

💙 Lead with Love for Others 

• Check in with teammates—listen more than you fix. 

• Offer encouragement, not criticism. 

• Celebrate small wins—yours and others'. 

• Be kind—everyone is fighting unseen battles. 

💼 Lead with Love at Work 

• Create space for open conversations about stress. 

• Encourage balance over burnout. 

• Say thank you—often and sincerely. 

• Support each other through empathy and compassion, not pressure. 

🛠️ Tools & Tips for Managing Stress 

✅ Practical Strategies 

• Mindfulness Minutes: Start the day with 2 minutes of quiet reflection. Try apps like Calm or Headspace. 

• Daily Decompress: Journal one stressful moment and one thing you’re grateful for. 

• Check-In Challenge: Say hello or offer a listening ear to one colleague each week. 

• Create a #LeadWithLove Playlist: Music boosts mood—build a team playlist of uplifting songs. 

 Inbox Peace: 

• Set aside certain times of day to deal with emails (e.g. morning, before lunch and late afternoon).  Respond when it suits you.   

• Set up “action folders” (e.g. “to be reviewed”, “for tomorrow”, “action within 72 hours” etc) within your email tray. 

• Delete what you don’t need rigorously.  Be strict about what you keep “just in case”.  Perform weekly clear-outs and inbox spring cleaning.  The delete button liberates! 

• Make sure others are aware when you are out of the office with an automatic message 

• More than 50% of emails are sent to people in the same office - Walk over to speak—real connection beats digital clutter. 

 🧘‍♂️ Helpful Resources 

• 3 Breathing Techniques to Try (PDF) 

• 🎥 TED Talk – How to Make Stress Your Friend 

• 🎥 Nicole Byers – How Stress Drains Your Brain 

• stress-talking-toolkit.pdf 

• Guidance-For-Managers---Dealing-with-Stress.pdf 

• Disappearing down the rabbit holes of burnout and breakdown in line with Stress Awareness Month - View Recording 

🏋️ Stay Active – Boost Your Mood 

Regular exercise improves mood, energy, focus, and resilience—and reduces stress! 

👉 Sign up for student Gym Membership: 
🌐 https://www.wlv.ac.uk/university-life/wlv-gym/student-memberships 

🧰 Need Support? You're Not Alone 

• WLV Student Life Connect (Carefirst) 
  📞 Confidential counselling & wellbeing  support, 24/7, 365 days a year: 0333 212 0672
  🔗 Student Life Connect
• Register for support from the Mental Health & Wellbeing Team and access support and resources at: wlv.ac.uk/mhw
• Your GP – Don’t hesitate to reach out to your doctor 
• Charities –Student Minds, MIND, Samaritans 
• Need help now? If you are in distress and in need of immiment help, visit the I need help now page to access a range of emergency and support services.