My average day at Harvard is scheduled down to the minute. I wake up fairly early; if it’s a Monday, Wednesday, or weekend, I’ll go for a run before eating breakfast. I clean up in time for a two-hour shift at my part-time library job before class–on average, I’ll spend 20 hours per week shelving books and helping patrons here. Classes vary from 2-5 hours on a given day, with visits to office hours, “grabbing a meal” with a friend, and an occasional call home (yes, Mom, I’m sleeping) in between. By the end of the day, I’m beat–but I still squeeze in a few hours of my thesis and job applications, and sometimes evening meetings for extracurriculars, before bed. Lather, rinse, and repeat every day until the end of finals.
Most Harvard students figure out that college isn’t all fun and (drinking) games early on.The effort to maximize every minute at school has dictated my routine since my freshman year–and the same can be said for many of my friends. The only difference between our first year and our last has been the focus of our commitments from starting off strong to ending on a high note. Throughout these three years of “I can’t, I have this paper or that pset” conversations, one point has become clear: For students who know a ton about nuclear physics and Miltonian epic, we don’t know much about prioritizing our mental and physical health.
It wasn’t until recently that I heard anything of a concept, self-care, that could make my packed days more meaningful and much healthier. By definition, self-care is a series of practices taken up by an individual to improve their mind and body. Instead of making physical and mental health a box on a check list–for example, by scheduling a yearly checkup with a physician–a person practicing self-care will continually incorporate activities into their routine that prioritize their overall well-being. This isn’t limited to things like taking vitamins or exercising (although that’s definitely recommended)–it’s picking up habits that make you feel grounded, refreshed, and happy, like writing in a journal, and treating it with the same importance as an assignment for class. It’s saying “no” to extraneous activities or pressures that aren’t fulfilling; it’s saying “yes” to the exact opposite. Sometimes that looks like bingeing on Ben & Jerry’s and watching Netflix–and that’s 100% okay!
Don’t confuse this with “being selfish”: Practicing self-care is a necessary for balance in the midst of all the expectations and commitments Harvard students face. As the run-down of my usual day to start this conversation off may have suggested, I’m not exactly a pro on practicing self-care myself (but I’m working on it). As a goal this semester, I promised myself I’d take time at least once a week to do something just for myself–and making that change has vastly improved my weeks at Harvard.
For me, the key to self-care is writing it in my schedule. Just like I’ll commit to finishing a reading for class or meeting a friend for lunch, I write a specific time and date each week in my planner that I’ll do something just for me. Sometimes this is going to a free yoga class at the MAC; other times it’s going to Boston for dinner with my roommate. For days when even a two-hour excursion feels like too much, I’ll set aside 10-15 minute breaks for a stretch or walk down the block to get coffee. Writing it in my agenda holds me accountable for setting that time aside; by the time it rolls around, I’m excited for that break. There’s no guilt for spending time away from my studies, because I know that these tiny habits make a big difference in my overall health and happiness.
3-ish years into my Harvard experience, I can’t say that I definitively have answers on the best ways to make sure you’re taking care of yourself and your to-do list. Everyone is different, so there’s no “one size fits all” method to prescribe for effective self-care. Adding self-care practice into your routine, however that looks for you, only stands to improve it.