Taking Care of Yourself

We had the chance to talk to 1B Chemical Engineer Tiffany Chang about mental health. In our chat, she goes over the importance of mental health, and caring for yourself.

So, to start things off, why don’t you tell me a bit about yourself?

I’ve felt like I’ve changed a lot since high school, and I sometimes question if that’s good or bad. I was a pretty quiet kid growing up. I wasn’t much of a talker and I preferred listening to people. Part of it is who I am, part of it is the way I was brought up. I’m the youngest of my generation, so I’ve gotten used to not having much say in family decisions.

Now I’m pretty outgoing and I love volunteering at and attending events. But sometimes, I revert back to my introversion because I still need my quiet time and a part of me doesn’t want to let that part of my identity fade away.

I also have a hyper sensitive personality; it has its pros and cons. Empathizing with others can certainly be a double-edged sword. On one hand, it makes me a better listener, but on the other, it’s not always great to hear and feel what others are going through, especially if they’re going through hard times at home or at school.

Why’d you reach out to us?

Mental health is important, and I think it’s really great that all of us have access to this blog to hear people’s experiences. So many things we experience on a daily basis are the same; yet, without talking to each other, we never realize this, and we may assume that there’s “something wrong” with us for feeling a certain way.

Speaking of the bigger picture, it’s eye-opening to see how far mental health and simply talking about it have come. Both of my parents studied in Taiwan, and according to their experiences, their workload in high school was basically equivalent to what we have now in university, for instance tests in every subject every day, tutoring or extra classes after class, and getting home very late. I honestly have no idea how Taiwanese students used to and continue to power through that without losing their marbles.

Mental health truly is as important as physical health. In fact, stress alone can be a factor that contributes to worsened physical health. I know that when I’m stressed and have a lot to do, I sometimes put aside eating to get work done and I treat food as a reward for finishing tasks — highly do not recommend.

Food is energy, so feed yourself when you’re hungry. Think about it this way: Why spend a whole hour trying to finish something when you’re hungry when you could take a break and eat, then finish within half an hour.

I’m also the type of person who needs a good 7 hours of sleep per night. Just last Friday, I missed my entire calculus lecture because I had slept in due to going to bed way too late the night before.

Skipping meals or cutting down on sleep may seem like a solution in the short-term to get more stuff done, but believe me, it will come back and bite you. You may see it in your skin in the form of acne, or even your immune system going down. That’s something I learned the hard way over my first co-op when I didn’t eat any fruit for over a week.

It’s pretty common to skip or delay meals in favour of doing work, especially as deadlines approach — what do you usually do to cope with the stress of school?

I love reading; one of my favourite books is “The Penguin Book of 20th-Century Speeches.” It’s historical, and it helps me review concepts of AP English Language and Composition that I learned. That was probably my favourite subject from high school.

I also love writing, hence why I write regularly for The Iron Warrior. Writing allows me to exercise the part of my brain that isn’t used in studying any mathematics and science related topics. Critically thinking about how to approach a particular topic is also therapeutic, a bit like sewing or soldering, in that I’m only focusing on that one particular task.

Music is also one of my sources of inner peace. I’m a huge fan of musicals because I love following the rich plots that are in the greats. My boss from my first co-op got me hooked on “Hamilton.” It has a great beat, kick-butt lyrics, and it’s amazing how the protagonist overcame his unfortunate beginnings through hard work.

I try to schedule a non-academic event, like volunteering, during weekends. It gives me something to look forward to after a busy week of assignments and classes, and it’s a good way to interact with people while helping them in some form.

So you mentioned earlier that being empathetic can be a double edged sword — can you elaborate on this?

In the simplest terms, being empathetic is being able to put yourself in another person’s shoes. Empathy is good for us because it lets us connect with the people around us. It reminds us to be non-judgemental towards others’ differences from ourselves, and it’s what makes us stop and think about what somebody may be going through that could causing them to be behaving out of their norm before telling them off.

However, empathy can backfire because everyone has, I suppose, a different level of it. In a group setting, I won’t say that I’m never selfish, but I avoid putting my own needs before the gain of a group, “We before me” you could say. This philosophy gives me and people with the similar outlook the short end of the stick when other people in the group aren’t willing to take one for the team, which usually winds up with us taking on more responsibility.

Part of it is cultural. In Eastern cultures, there is more of a focus on families and social groups, whereas Western cultural norms promote a focus on the self. For example, at a restaurant in an Eastern culture, people will take on multiple roles as customer demand requires, whereas here, employees have clearly defined roles and responsibilities that don’t overlap. Both have their pros and cons, but personally, I believe that the latter style is only better if everyone in a group actually winds up carrying out the full extent of their responsibility.

Personally, I prefer everyone going back to think about the project, then sharing their ideas afterwards.

Do you have any specific stories or moments you want to share?

Speaking from my first co-op experience, it’s interesting to see people’s different styles of work and attitudes towards work.

Some people give it their all for the group and go above and beyond their fair share of work.

Some people do enough to get by, and no matter how much everyone tries to convince them to do stuff, it doesn’t do much to change that.

Especially in this age, smartphones and social media can be a huge distraction and decrease productivity. Again, there are a couple types of people: The ones who set work aside to check Facebook or whatever, the ones who are used to checking social media but make a conscious effort to set aside to actually do work, and the ones who work and only check social media during breaks or lunches.

Any general tips?

Treat yourself well. In fact, treat yourself as you would a friend. We can all be a little harsh on ourselves, so encourage yourself like you would a friend.

Ask yourself how you’re feeling a couple times a day. If you’re feeling stressed, what’s causing the stress? If it’s school-related, ask for help from a classmate, reach out to your TA or prof, or if you’re a first year, pay a visit to the WEEF TA office. If it’s nothing to do with school, find someone you trust and talk it out with them. They may not be able to solve your problem for you, but sometimes, all you need is to get something off your chest.

Make time for your hobbies and your passions.

I once read that regular, small doses of things that bring you joy is better for mental well-being than a large dose of joy every once in a while. One of these things for me is cute animals, so I make a point of doing that for myself.

Accept that you can’t always be happy. Life is a rollercoaster with its ups and down, so don’t worry if you’re not always happy even though people around you might always seem to be happy.

What makes you happy now, and what are you looking forwards to the most?

The university experience makes me happy. I feel like I’m constantly changing, but at the very least, I feel like I’m growing up and causing my parents less worry as time goes on.

I don’t know who and what I’ll be by the end of undergrad, but that’s also the exciting part of this entire experience, on top of seeing my friends’ and classmates’ development.

After undergrad, I’m hoping to incorporate my love for helping people and writing with my interest in science, engineering, and technology to make a meaningful career for myself. As important as money is to reality, these items matter more to me personally. I also hope to be able to travel the world, meet people from all over, and be able to pick up another language or two in the process.