Fear and anxiety about what is happening in various places in the world can be overwhelming and emotionally challenging. For support on your mental wellbeing during these difficult times, we have a dedicated special access to a 24/7 multi-lingual support advisors from our collaborators of Spectrum Life. Just use WhatsApp and text 'Hi' to the number +447418 360 780 and mention you’re an international Middlesex Student. They’re there to listen! You can even request to speak to a counsellor that speaks your first language, if you feel more comfortable to do so. Please find more information and all resources, including academic support and more, as well as Online and Charity Helplines listed alphabetically for most countries that you can contact and trust to ask for emotional support in our dedicated page: https://unihub.mdx.ac.uk/support/overseas-students.
A Triage appointment allows you to speak confidentially with one of our team who will briefly assess the issues or situations that are concerning you.
Refer yourself using our online form
Please carefully read the instructions on the form before you submit.
The Triage appointment takes place on the phone and is usually around 30-35 minutes.
Please know that in order to access our individual services you must be an active enrolled student living in the UK and registered with GP/Doctor.
You can find resources available to you overseas on the Support and Wellbeing if you're living abroad page, and more information on registering with a GP on the Register with a GP page.
After your scheduled Triage, the staff member will contact you within 2 business days with your next-steps plan and recommendations for on going support listed on this page.
All the information and plans that you’ll receive might be overwhelming: Don’t worry, it’s natural to feel like that! If you have any doubts, please get in touch with the team member who conducted your Triage appointment. You can also submit a OneOff request to speak with one of the team about your individual case. If you have a general query about the service, please email our inbox.
OneOff appointments are one-off individual consultations with a member of the team to help you address and manage a specific situation, emotional crisis, overwhelming problem-solving, and similar issues.
Slots are open daily at different times during working hours, and the sessions can be online or in-person on campus, according to your preference and availability of the staff. You must be registered to a UK GP in order to refer yourself.
A OneOff could be a good option if you:
Counselling is a good option if you need to work through various emotional difficulties like relationship difficulties, adaptation struggles, homesickness, depression, anxiety, lack of motivation, identity questioning or discovering, vocational struggles, as well as emotional support to your academic struggles or other university formal procedures. Short-term Counselling is not fit for crisis management, severe mental health issues, long-term care, and it does not replace specialised care from providers like the NHS.
If this is the right option for you, you can have short-term counselling through CMH and other partner services. You will have a first introductory session with your assigned counsellor, followed by cycle of 6 sessions of psychotherapy that, will focus on the main concerns.
Sessions are held weekly at the same time and can be online or in-person on campus, according to what suits your availability and location best.
Please note, at peak times there may be a waiting list of us to 8 weeks.
Counselling resources for students overseas
Please call the free number 0800 028 3766, and ask to speak with a counsellor, and that you are a student living in an Optivo Student Hall. You will get your call back to speak to a counsellor right away for first assessment.
A Mental Health Advisor is a qualified Mental Health Professional that can help you to coordinate the best support available. They can connect you with a range of services such as your GP, NHS Mental Health Teams, and charitable/community organisations to build a plan and a network of support around you. Furthermore, they can help guide you to better understand your ongoing situation, building self-care strategies and coping techniques, and developing external referrals for specialised and long-term care.
These sessions might be just what you need to get back on track if you're feeling lost or stuck.
It’s a one-off 90 minute session with a counsellor (with an optional follow-up appointment) to help you see a specific issue with more clarity and develop a plan of action.
These sessions are most helpful if you're having:
It’s also a great option if you're coming to the end of your course and want to address the fears and anxieties of transitioning out of university.
To enquire about solution focused sessions please complete our Online Referral Form to book in for a triage appointment to discuss the right support available for you
Join us for a free activity programme, you can take part in a wide range of physical activity sessions, some of which are supervised, and are encouraged and supported to create a routine, that will hopefully enable you to build more physical activity into your life. We believe that by undertaking some regular physical activity at the University, you’ll get to meet some other people and enhance your feelings of mood, positivity and confidence – some known side effects of being regularly active.
The Self-Regulation group is for students who report significant difficulties regulating emotions
This group will help you focus on building a personalised sensory toolkit to support you when experiencing difficulty in emotional dysregulation. It will allow you to explore sensory preferences and develop understanding around use of sensory strategies to promote emotional regulation and manage any distress.
In a world that demands extremes, it's easy to get caught in the waves of thinking things must either be perfect or that they’re not good at all. This can be seen as ‘black and white’ thinking or all-or -nothing mindset where middle grounds don’t exist.
The “Beyond Black and White” group aims to explore and find space between good/bad, right/wrong, black and white. Integration of the two can bring balance, resilience and it can even nurture creativity and deeper connection with others. Finding and appreciating the middle ground also allows one to embrace the journey of personal development rather than fixating on a particular outcome that’s self-limiting in itself. Through shared experiences and reflective conversations, students can start to make room for imperfections and ordinary limitations, in order to find balance and embrace the shades that make them who they are.
To enquire about the Beyond Black and White group, please complete our Online Referral Form to book a triage appointment to discuss the right support available for you.
Mind Body Boost is a 6 week programme with interactive wellbeing workshops followed by a physical activity helping you feel connected to one another whilst learning skills to maintain your wellbeing. The programme is in partnership with MDX Sports and the Counselling and Mental Health service to deliver a multi faced programme helping you to improve/maintain your physical and mental wellbeing.
You can self-refer for group via the Mind Body Boost referral form
The Rainbow Group is a safe and inclusive therapeutic group, tailored specifically for LGBTQ+ students. This group provides an opportunity for students to explore a range of important topics unique to their experience. Through supportive discussions and interactive activities, the group with delve into areas such as; coming out, navigating relationships, understanding sex and consent within the LGBTQ+ community, coming with family dynamics and maintaining good mental health.
Students can self-refer to group via the Rainbow Group referral form.
