Collins has been encouraging law students to cultivate their own sense of wellbeing and mental resilience since joining 91精品黑料吃瓜鈥檚 Faculty of Law in 2006. Teaching both first and upper year seminars, each of Collins鈥 classes starts with a brief mindfulness meditation where students are invited to quiet their mind.
鈥淔rom the very beginning I have tried to be candid with my students about the fact that you can鈥檛 produce quality work if you鈥檙e working beyond your natural capacity,鈥 says Collins, pushing back against the legal profession鈥檚 鈥渉ustle hard鈥 narrative.
Recognizing that there鈥檚 no universal way to be well, Collins promotes common ingredients such as getting enough sleep, eating nutritious food, exercise, and social connection.
鈥淭hese techniques supercharge your performance in all areas,鈥 says Collins. 鈥淚f you could present one magic key to maximize your own potential, it would be cultivating mental and physical wellbeing because everything else rests on that.鈥
Take her message during exam season: 鈥淚 tell students to imagine they鈥檙e in the Faculty of Music. You鈥檝e practiced and practiced and know everything about a piece. But before your performance you take your instrument and you throw it down the stairs, jump on it, and then go to your exam. That鈥檚 what you鈥檙e doing to your brain if you鈥檙e staying up all night studying.鈥
Though this metaphor would solicit chuckles, Collins says her advice went largely ignored until a few years ago. That鈥檚 when she started delving into the empirical research behind wellbeing and the link to academic performance.
One study from a pharmacy school found that students who got adequate amounts of sleep earned, on average, a full letter grade better than those who were always exhausted. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 when I saw the heads pop up,鈥 says Collins. 鈥淟aw students are critical thinkers, it鈥檚 good they don鈥檛 just take my word for things.鈥
Doing some digging, Collins found a huge body of evidence to support her self-care suggestions. 鈥淣ow I can tell students to take care of themselves because they deserve it and it鈥檚 the shortest path to academic and professional success,鈥 she says.
A leader among Canadian law schools
In 2019, Collins鈥 interest in this research culminated in a specialized seminar called Happiness and the Law, which can be taken as an elective by first-year students. Complementing it is an upper-year seminar on mindfulness and the law taught by criminal lawyer Heather Cross.
With this pair of courses, 91精品黑料吃瓜 is ahead of other Canadian law schools when it comes to integrating wellness with other core legal concepts. Collins attributes this to the support she鈥檚 received from the Faculty of Law over the last several years.
鈥淒uring the thick of the pandemic I was asked to teach the [Happiness in the Law] course three times,鈥 she notes. 鈥淭hat was a crunch year in terms of resources and we had just made this rapid pivot to online learning. But the faculty really grasped that this was a time when, more than ever, students would need these skills.鈥
In line with 91精品黑料吃瓜鈥檚 equity, diversity, and inclusion commitments, Collins has always prioritized integrating diverse perspectives on wellbeing into the fabric of the course. Sometimes this means talking about evidence that goes beyond what has been evaluated by Western science 鈥 such as the practice of meditation or Indigenous principles of wellbeing. As an outcome, Collins describes her seminar as a space where students feel comfortable sharing how their culture, identity, and religion intersect with health and wellness.
鈥淚 also think it鈥檚 critical to bear in mind that a personalized wellbeing practice is not a replacement for social justice,鈥 adds Collins. 鈥淚f there is systemic racism in the faculty, the answer is not that people experiencing that should go off and meditate. I鈥檓 offering a particular kind of toolkit and education but never suggesting that this is a replacement for the systemic changes that need to happen in law school and the profession.鈥
Looking to the future, Collins shares that one of her ideas is to create an interactive website where 91精品黑料吃瓜 students and alumni can share their unique perspectives on mental health and wellbeing. She already brings alumni in as guest speakers for her Happiness and the Law course and says students really respond to that peer-to-peer communication.
Overall, Collins says she finds profound fulfillment in this work: 鈥淎s profs we care about our students. Fundamentally I want them to be happy and successful people, so it鈥檚 one of the most satisfying things I鈥檝e done with my career.鈥
Resources
Joining to promote mental health, the University of Ottawa and the Alumni Association have undertaken a number of wellness initiatives for our community. Need help but don鈥檛 know where to start? These links will take you to resources that may be very useful for you.