Bristol is a brilliant place to be a student, that goes without saying. However, there are huge changes and mental adjustments that need to be made because so many things are DIFFERENT.  Being at university this year has so many extra differences and all of this can play on your mind, cause stress, anxiety and low mood.

Nilaari is a mental health service that has been there for Black Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) for over 20 years.  Our counsellors have supported people for all that time, from all communities and all ages with very many issues and difficulties.

So if you are a student, either from overseas or from a BAME heritage, you can contact us for a conversation with one of our qualified and experienced diverse team or for a regular weekly session, to help you deal with whatever is going on in your life right now.

We know about the new anxieties about Covid 19 and we are also very aware of the negative impact on some BAME people of the Black Lives Matter movement, which has unsettled so many people in many ways.

We are aware of the difficulties that can arise from being ‘different’ or thought of as ‘other’ and the micro aggressions that you might be experiencing that affect your mood.

Nilaari is working with your university to offer this support. 

If you think we can help, send an email to: zara.b@nilaari.co.uk.

Just provide your name, your student number, and safe contact telephone number.  Title the email: ‘Nilaari BAME Student Offer’.

Your email will be acknowledged and you will be placed on the waiting list, to be contacted as soon as there is a space, by one of our lovely counsellors .

We put respect and dignity first. We will listen carefully and respond appropriately. We will focus on coping strategies to build your resilience and can signpost you on to other specialist support if you should need it. We will be there for you and with you on the end of the phone.

Please don’t suffer in silence, you will know by how you feel if this is something that you need.

Our services are free and totally confidential.

If you aren’t sure or would like to take action right away, take a look at this NHS website ‘Every Mind Matters’, which has practical self help ideas and strategies: https://www.nhs.uk/oneyou/every-mind-matters/

If you are feeling in a really bad way, get help now:

http://www.bristolmentalhealth.org/