UT University Health Services

SHARE Communities

SHARE Communities are weekly student-led groups where peers with similar struggles, interests, or goals connect on an authentic level, build interpersonal communication skills, and help each other work toward greater mental wellness using their combined knowledge, resources, and wisdom.

All SHARE Community topics are developed by the peer co-facilitators based around their shared interests, identities, or mental/social wellness goals. Peers are highly encouraged to attend meetings every week (or as often as possible) to get the most benefit from their Community, but attendance is never mandatory.

Any UT student may submit an interest form and attend any open SHARE Community meeting at any time of the semester. Submitting an interest form is not a commitment, just a way to get connected!

DISCLAIMER


Please note that all SHARE Communities are student-facilitated and non-clinical, and are therefore not a replacement for therapy. Conversations with SHARE Support Specialists are private except in specific circumstances. If participants ever need outside professional assistance, SHARE peers will make every effort to help them connect to resources and empower them with information and options.

Fall 2023 SHARE Communities

Adulting: Progress Not Perfection

  • Tuesdays, 9/19 - 11/14
  • 5 to 6 p.m.
  • Jester Hall (JES) A115A
  • Grant Grissom, Dona Ravandi & Elijah Woodson

With the jump from high school to college, many college students find ourselves struggling with how to tackle all the new responsibilities demanded of us from the adult world. With our SHARE Community “Adulting”, we seek to create a welcoming space for fellow young adults to process feelings around these new experiences, combine our knowledge and wisdom, and gain empowering new skills - whether that’s how to file taxes, apply for jobs, find an apartment, budget your finances, advocate for ourselves at work, set boundaries in a relationship.....etc. Topics will depend on the collective interests of the peers who participate, so come join us on this journey of growth!

Interest Form

AnxieTEA

  • Mondays, 9/18 - 11/13
  • 6 to 7 p.m.
  • Longhorn Wellness Center, SSB 1.106
  • Gabriella Bailey, Naomi Norton & Sydney Fuller

Life is full of events that can bring up anxious thoughts and feelings, so come spill the tea with us! Although our experiences vary from person to person and day to day, lots of us can relate to feeling overwhelmed, perplexed, or even ashamed of our anxiety at times. You’re not alone! Connect with a cozy, non-clinical peer community each week for a (literal) cup of hot tea, conversation, mutual validation, and coping strategies! No formal diagnosis necessary.

Interest Form

Bevo's Broken Hearts Club

  • Thursdays, 9/21 - 11/16
  • 6 to 7 p.m.
  • Longhorn Wellness Center, SSB 1.106
  • Lindley Ferguson, Shelly Veal-Upham & Tavia Wilson

Breakups – whether romantic or platonic – can be challenging and lonely. If you’re brokenhearted and feeling alone, we’re here to remind each other that we aren’t! In this peer-led community, we will create a safe space to vent about our broken hearts, encourage healing and self-reflection, and discover what healthy relationships can look like by building new ones together.

Interest Form

Connecting to Cultures

  • Thursdays, 9/21 - 11/16
  • 6 to 7 p.m.
  • Seay Building (SEA) 4.244
  • Shihe Chen, Khanh Lai, Maumita Sadhukhan & Donya Yazdi

Discover a community of peers from different cultural backgrounds (i.e., Middle Eastern, South Asian, & Asian) that combines reflective discussions around culture and belonging. Build relationships with others and yourself through crafting and mindfulness. By sharing our experiences and support each week, we hope to reconnect and take pride in our own cultures while building genuine friendships and mutual appreciation.

Interest Form

Graduate Student SHARE Community

  • Sundays, 10/8 - 11/26
  • 5:30 to 6:30 p.m.
  • Longhorn Wellness Center, SSB 1.106
  • Maya Fela, SHARE Graduate Assistant & Ayda Giacoman

Graduate school can be a challenging and stressful time. Join our peer-led support group to find community, identify and get validation around your emotions and needs, and exchange strategies to support each other as we navigate the competing pressures and roles of graduate student life.

Interest Form

Invisible Disabilities

  • Thursdays, 9/21 - 11/16
  • 5 to 6 p.m.
  • Main Building (MAI) 13
  • Amina Bajrovic, Shayla Beatty, Sarah Gonzalez & Hope Ricketts

When you have an invisible disability, it can sometimes be difficult to find other people that understand your experience - or even to be believed that what you experience is real and valid! In this judgment-free, non-clinical space, we can vent, share stories, explore our similarities and differences, discuss resources and strategies, process our feelings, and build friendships and community. Peers with all types of disabilities, diagnoses, and conditions are welcome!

Examples of invisible disabilities might include: autism or neurodivergence, ADHD, chronic pain, long-term medical or mental health conditions (depression, diabetes, etc.) brain injury, asthma, epilepsy/chronic fatigue, and much more – but no diagnosis is required to attend! Check us out if you’re interested by filling out the form below.

Interest Form

Life as “International Students”: Processing A New Identity

  • Wednesdays, 9/20 - 11/15
  • 5 to 6 p.m.
  • Longhorn Wellness Center, SSB 1.106
  • Shihe Chen & Nixin Pang

Life at UT can be both fun and challenging as international students enter a new environment with different language, culture, systems, etc. How can we cope with the highs and lows of living in an unfamiliar environment? Our community offers weekly meeting where we can connect with each other and share our own voices as international students. We discuss topics such as culture shock, longlines, sense of belonging, acculturation, imposter syndrome, academic stress, anxiety, mental health, career goals, and more. We want to create a community where we can talk about every aspect of our international life and offer support and resources to our folks.

Interest Form

New Roots: Cultivating African Mental Wellness

  • Wednesdays
  • 5 to 6 p.m.
  • African American Culture Room, Texas Union
  • Rebecca Oladejo & Sandra Isiguzo

Being open and vulnerable about our emotions and mental health can be daunting, especially coming from an African immigrant background where those talks are often considered taboo. This, coupled with being a college student, can lead to burnout, isolation, stress, and more. Join us if you're seeking a safe space where you can feel supported, empowered, and validated in your experiences and identity while gaining communication and self-care skills!

Interest Form

Pre-Health(y) Minds

  • Mondays, 9/18 - 11/14
  • 6 to 7 p.m.
  • Flawn Academic Center (FAC) 2.134
  • Khanh Lai, Maumita Sadhukhan & Deepa Sunkad

Pre-Health(y) minds is a group centered around starting conversations about taking care of ourselves while taking care of other as pre-health students. With a focus on fostering a safe environment for good mental health practices, we hope to break the cycle of burnout among pre-health students and professionals. Guest speakers come twice a month to share their own mental health journey throughout their studies and career, and we also facilitate activities and discussions that promote self-care.

Interest Form

Reading Minds, Healing Rhymes: SHARE Book Club

  • Tuesdays, 9/19 - 11/15
  • 5 to 6 p.m.
  • Main Building (MAI) 13
  • Shai Davis, Sunny Koganti & Julia Mahavier

Calling all literature lovers! This is a space where we can connect through the written word to help each other understand and express our inner worlds. Come to our meetings if you’d like to share poetry and literature excerpts that mean something to you and reflect on mental health, meaning, identity, and values. Works from your favorite authors or originals are welcome! Fill out an interest form to connect and receive weekly reading updates. :)

Interest Form

Self (Re)Image

  • Wednesdays, 9/20 - 11/15
  • 6 to 7 p.m.
  • Center for Students in Recovery, Bellmont Hall (BEL) 222A
  • Chandni Bhagtaney, Isha Dhingra & Catherine Liu

In today's competitive and image-obsessed world, learning to love oneself can be a pretty daunting task, especially when society ostracizes those who don't fit the "standard." Join our peer-led, non-clinical community to connect, share our wisdom, and explore our feelings and struggles around self-love, body image, confidence, social media, beauty culture, comparison, and more! ALL genders are welcome.

Interest Form

Shake it Off: Managing Stress with Movement

  • Wednesdays, 9/20 - 11/15
  • 4:30 to 5:30 p.m.
  • Center for Students in Recovery, BEL 222A
  • Shreya Dheenan, Harsha Ketavarapu & Erin Lamas

College life can be incredibly stressful, and finding unique ways to help yourself cope with that is crucial. Come join us for some artistic and movement-based outlets to manage our stress. We will explore yoga, dance, pet therapy, painting, scrapbooking, calligraphy, and more, depending on everyone’s interests and contributions! No experience is required.

Interest Form

Shy Longhorns Society

  • Wednesdays, 9/20 - 11/15
  • 5:30 to 6:30 p.m.
  • Longhorn Wellness Center, SSB 1.106
  • Snehaa Arya, Jocelyn Ayala & Gabriella Bailey

Are you shy, introverted, socially anxious? All of the above? No worries. At a campus as big as UT, it can be so so difficult to be shy and make meaningful connections/friendships. At the Shy Longhorns Society, we come together to create a community built upon support and validation for the struggles of being socially anxious/shy at UT. We remind each other that we are not alone and come up with ways to overcome our difficulties.

Interest Form

Snack and Chat

  • Tuesdays, 9/19 - 11/14
  • 6:30 to 7:30 p.m.
  • WCP 3.106 Balcony Room A
  • Maya Arredondo, Jennifer Solis, Riley Jorgenson

This peer support community focuses on individuals who a desire to develop healthier relationships with food, as well as those struggling with food insecurity and feelings/frustrations that may arise around that. We hope to create a safe space for peers to focus on our holistic well-being by discussing affordable meal planning and preparation, sharing cultural and personal relationships with food, and accessing various food-related resources on and off campus. Plus snacks!

Interest Form

Walkie Talkies

  • Thursdays, 9/21 - 11/16
  • 5 to 6:30 p.m.
  • UT Tower Lawn; alternative starting locations shared in GroupMe
  • Kaya Stiffel & Elyse Hopfe

If your goals include spending more time outside, prioritizing your mental wellness, and/or building quality friendships and community with others, we have the space for you! At the end of every week, our community will meet to take walks around different areas of campus – or even the occasional off-campus hike, depending on shared interest – to blow off steam or discuss different wellness topics. All you need is a water bottle and your body. Let’s heal and grow together while experiencing nature!

Interest Form

Don’t see a SHARE Community topic that interests you or meets your needs?
Check out the list of clinician-led CMHC Groups, classes, and workshops offered on their website.

Want to lead your own SHARE Community?
Spring 2024 SHARE Support Specialist recruitment will open October 2, 2023. See our Contact Us page for more information about this unique opportunity. Email longhornshareproject@utexas.edu if you’d like to be added to our email list, and follow @healthyhorns on social media for more updates!