Entering university, many students find that while the combination of an increased, more challenging workload and the anxieties associated with living away from home for the first time culminates in an especially vulnerable mental state, they have less free time and fewer resources at their disposal to practice self-care than perhaps they did in their pre-college days. We lose our lifelong support systems when we leave home, and excelling in university-level courses requires a much greater degree of self-sufficiency than was ever necessary in high school. At the same time, the popular notion that you should be relishing every moment of “the best years of your life” can easily prove isolating, since you may feel unable to speak up if your personal college experience falls short of this idealized standard. Because mental health and physical health are so deeply interconnected—and academic success is hard to come by if you are not mentally and physically well—we’ve compiled a list of ways you can feasibly devote time to taking care of yourself while in college, recognizing the various constraints on your time and resources.
Incorporate dedicated, clearly defined study breaks into your work routine. A prolonged study session seems much less daunting when you break it up with regular intervals of something you find relaxing, be it an episode of a TV show, a snack excursion, or just some time spent outdoors.
Create a list of shows, movies, and/or songs that you can count on to cheer you up whenever you’re feeling down in the future. You will inevitably experience bad days, and when you do feel overcome with sadness, fear, or anxiety, it’s best to have already-enumerated sources of happiness you can turn to.
Start each morning with a mantra—something that motivates you to be the best possible version of yourself, and, most importantly, reminds you of your incredible self-worth and infinite potential. One of my favorite mantras is, “And now that you don’t have to be perfect, you can be good,” from John Steinbeck’s East of Eden.
Surround yourself with people who support and uplift you. Life is too short to settle for anything less.
Go for a walk around campus, or make an effort to work/study outside more often. A plethora of studies have found that sunlight promotes happiness, and even on cloudy days, it can be beneficial to escape the isolation of your dorm room and venture somewhere a bit more populated.
Finally, seek professional help if you feel at all like you need it. Don’t convince yourself that your problems are too small or insignificant to warrant visiting a mental health professional. The Rice Counseling Center is a great place to start if you’re looking for someone to talk to.
Katy Perry gets it—there’s no shame in recognizing that you need to take care of yourself before you can take care of others.