It’s only week 5 and it already feels like midterms week. With the stress of assignments, projects, tests, and extracurriculars building up, here are some tips on how to manage that stress in a healthy way.
1. Journaling
Writing down your thoughts and ideas has been proven to help manage stress. Journaling is a healthy outlet that helps you keep track of everything that’s going on, whether it’s school work or your extracurriculars. You can journal every day or choose one day and reflect on your week, it’s up to you.
2. Physical activity
Even though your workload may be stressing you out, set some time aside for some physical activity! Whether it’s going to the gym or signing up for a yoga class, working out is a healthy outlet for when you’re stressed. Here’s a list of classes the Rec Center offers: Group X Exercise classes.
3. Get organized
It’s easy to feel stressed when you have a lot of assignments to do and it feels like you don’t have enough time to do it all. Try planning out your week by writing down each day what assignments are due. Also, try breaking up big assignments. Don’t try to write a paper in one-go, space it out so you don’t feel too stressed.
4. Set aside some time to relax
Whether it’s taking a walk or hanging out with friends, you should always take a study break. Studies have shown study breaks have a positive effect on your studying routine. When taking a study break, it’s important to do something that will make it easy to transition back to your work. Try meditating for 5 minutes or take a coloring break. Here’s a full list of good study breaks and bad ones.
5. Eat healthy
It’s easy to grab a bag of chips over a piece of fruit when doing homework; make sure to eat something healthy that will provide you with the energy you need to finish your work. Here are some tips on how to avoid stress eating.
If your stress level continues to get worse or unmanageable, here is the link to the Psychological Services on campus. They are open Monday through Wednesday and Friday 8:00 a.m to 5:00 p.m., and Thursday 8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.