Cart-tharsis: The use of a sensory cart to combat university student stress

University students often experience stress caused by the transition from adolescence into adulthood combined with the demands of university academics. This can lead to anxiety, depression, and burnout (Hill et al., 2018; Hubbard & Blyler, 2016). Sensory-based tools have been associated with improved resilience, decreased stress, and improved cognition and working memory (Hubbard & Blyler, 2016; Marais et al., 2016). To provide the most effective support, it is important to offer not only tools, but also guidance to support each person’s insight into their own sensory needs (Kinnealey et al., 2011). To provide students with the opportunity to hand pick sensory-based tools in a readily available way, we created the Ram Relax Cart.