Its at the point in the semester where it’s safe to say that everyone is stressed. Between deciding what classes to take next semester, recovering from Halloweekend and realizing you have three assignments due later this week that you haven’t started yet (oops!) it can get to be a bit much. Okay so maybe “a bit” is an understatement. It’s easy to get wrapped up in running around campus and typing or reading endlessly for days on end, that’s why it’s so important to engage in some major self care.
Self care comes in many different forms, ultimately at the end of the day its about taking care of yourself. Sometimes, you need to look yourself in the mirror and say “treat yo’ self” because you totally deserve a $20 shirt for all the hard work you’ve done this week. No matter what it is, as long as it makes you feel better when you’re stressed out that’s the important part. Here are some of my favorite self care tips and tricks!
My go-to self care technique is to take a long, warm bath. For me, it’s enough to relax any tension in my body which helps me to relax my mind as well. Plus, if the water is warm enough you might break a sweat which can honestly feel nice, as long as you imagine that you’re sweating out all of your stress and negativity. A way to elevate your bath time is to use a bath bomb. Another great addition to your bath are epsom salts which can help your muscles to relax. Lastly, adding essential oils is a nice way of making your bath smell nice, I personally like to use lavender as it’s known to reduce anxiety.
A great way to relieve physical tension while also improving your well-being is to do some light yoga. There are so many different yoga routines that you can do, some are even meant to be done in bed. Yoga helps to stretch out the muscles and can be very soothing, especially on an anxious mind. Plus, if you do a very light routine it may only take up to five minutes!
This may sound far too simple, but drinking a big glass of water is enough to make you feel like you’ve actually got your life together. If I drink some cold water it brings me back to the moment and it also makes me feel like I’m taking care of my body which is a perk when all you ever eat are inexpensive microwave meals.
Lighting candles or turning on your wax warmers- so long as they’re permitting in your dorm or apartment- can be a nice way to relax and come back to the moment. Aromatherapy is very real and can be very powerful in easing your stresses. Try lighting candles while taking a bath if that’s your sort of thing- I promise it makes the whole experience even more relaxing.
Eating some dark chocolate is a great way to treat yourself to something delicious while also doing your body a favor! Dark chocolate is full of antioxidants and studies have shown that it can decrease your risk of heart disease and increase brain function. A bit of dark chocolate may be exactly what you need while you’re working on your never-ending homework assignments.
It’s been proven that colors can impact our mood, so try painting your toenails a bright color. It will make you feel great every time you look down at your toes and see a happy color decorating your feet. You may feel that it adds to your beautiful appearance or it may just be something to give you a break from the monotonous reading/writing you’ve been doing.
This may sound like more of a drag than a stress decreasing activity but hear me out! Cleaning your room will help you to feel more refreshed. Make your bed, tidy up your desk, and maybe even fluff those pillows. I’m not saying to deep clean every part of your room but just making everything a little more organized will make it easier to focus on getting things done. It also provides as a momentary distraction and a way to move around if you’ve been sitting down for a period of time.
If you’re a fan of drinking tea, make yourself a cup of your favorite hot tea. It’s pretty hard to be freaking out when you’re warm from drinking tea and hopefully cozy under a blanket or two. Even if you stop for five minutes to enjoy your tea, it will be just the break that you need to focus again on the task at hand.
Watching a funny tv show or movie, especially when you’re stressed to no end, can be a really great mood improver. Laughing to the point of tears at something funny in a movie can actually lower stress hormones!
There are so many more ways to take care of yourself in these last few weeks as we approach Thanksgiving break. Make sure that you’re taking time to make yourself happy, especially if you have a ton of assignments to do in a short amount of time. Just know that your GPA and your grades may be important, but your mental health is vital to having a healthy and happy life. Take care of yourselves!