The transition from high school to college is difficult. It is hard to keep up with your assignments, take care of yourself, keep up with friends, and more. But don’t worry, it is possible and I promise you don’t have to be miserable the whole time. Here are some tips to help you take care of yourself, and not the expensive self-care bullshit but the “I washed my hair today and went to office hours and am going to hang out with my friends and not cry for five hours” type of self-care.
1. Ask for help
It’s scary and you might feel embarrassed. But trust me, it’s not embarrassing. You have a lot of resources that are made specifically to help you. Your most important contact is your class Dean. This is the person who is going to advocate for you when there are issues with professors or other conflicts. So please, if you are having trouble with school, you’ve fallen behind and need an extension, or you just need more support in the classroom, email them and ask for help. I did, and all the help I asked for, I received.
2. Clean your room
I know, it’s low on the priority list, and I know doing things by yourself is hard. So, enlist a friend to come and help you out. Or just make them sit on your bed and watch you. It’ll make you feel a lot better. And on top of that, do your laundry. I didn’t realize that the main reason I didn’t want to go to class, go out, or do literally anything was because I felt gross. Washing your clothes makes you feel new.
3. Take a shower
When you are washing yourself, imagine the water running over you is cleansing you.
4. You need to eat
Coffee does not count as breakfast, and when you are too stressed or too busy to study, it’s time to get together with your friends and schedule some exciting places to eat. You can go down the street, on campus, it doesn’t matter. Just do it.
5. don’t suffer alone
This one is definitely a tough one because it is hard to share how you are feeling and let people help you. But I promise sharing your struggles and not being alone in your sadness is a lot better and a lot healthier.
6. don’t be afraid to quit
Whenever I couldn’t perform well and contribute to the things I agreed to, it would make me feel worse. Communicate with your club supervisors or the extracurriculars you are involved in that you need to take a break for a while so you can spend more time taking care of yourself.
7. take naps
You didn’t get enough sleep the night before? That’s okay. Force yourself into a power nap. It will make you feel rejuvenated.
Honestly, these tips were recommended by a friend and they helped with everything. Did my problems disappear? No. Did this week suddenly become stress-less? No. But once I asked for help, I procrastinated less because I was less overwhelmed. This morning, with four hours of sleep, I felt like shit but now I feel brand new. My hair is washed, my sheets are cleaned, I have clean clothes to wear… I might have the lowest GPA I’ve ever had, but I asked my teachers for help and I got it. And you can get help, too. It will get better. Do yourself a favor and if you’re going to be sad, at least do it in clean clothes, with a full belly and washed hair. Friends really do go a long way and I can’t thank them enough for everything they’ve done for me.