It’s finally time to put midterm season behind us. Even though reading break is here, it can often be hard to just snap out of school-mode. Stress can follow you around, and as students, we often don’t prioritize down time. Midterms are such an intense and stressful period, that it’s important to remember to help yourself recover and de-stress. As much as we might like to, this kind of relaxing can’t always involve jetting off to somewhere tropical or booking relaxing spa treatments. So, here are a few more realistic and low-key ways to give yourself a rest and clear your mind over reading break to recuperate from your busy schedule.
Yoga & Meditation
After a crazy week of midterms, I find that stress can really linger and start to take a heavy toll on me physically. I’m not only exhausted, but my body gets really tense, making it feel almost sore at times. I really like to run on the treadmill when I’ve got built up energy, but after so many late nights cramming, I’m pretty drained. Yoga is a great option for times like these. It’s the perfect way to get your body moving and force yourself to slow down at the same time. Yoga can help you stretch out of the usual posture you’re in when you’re studying at your desk, and get you back in touch with your breathing. From hot yoga to flow and power, there are so many different kinds of classes available that are sure to help relieve any leftover tension and pressure on your body from midterms. If you’ve got even more time to kill during your reading break, another thing you could do is give meditation a try. This could be a great activity to take up to both help you combat any school related anxieties while also getting you ready for the last stretch of the semester. There’s this great app called Headspace that offers guided meditation and mindfulness for beginners. Headspace provides series of exercises and lessons for countless kinds of meditation—walking, focus, sport, anxiety, anger, stress, sleep meditation, and even more. You can do a free trial before you might chose to get a subscription!
Freshen up your apartment or bedroom
During midterms, keeping my apartment clean isn’t my top priority. By the time exams are over, my apartment’s cleanliness has definitely been neglected since I do most of my studying in cafes or at the library. I haven’t been home much, and as a result I haven’t had the time to clean and keep my place tidy. Personally, a messy space stresses me out more than anything. If I don’t have a clean, calming place to come home to after a big day at school, it clutters my mind and makes me feel disorganized and unprepared for my schoolwork or anything else. If I’m in town for reading break—or before heading out of town—I love taking this time and break from school to restore any order in my apartment that might’ve been thrown out the window during the semester. Cleaning is a great thing to put your mind to when you’re stressed out, and giving your home some love can be really satisfying and productive post midterm madness. Whether it’s cleaning and ridding your apartment of clutter Marie Kondo style, buying some new plants to liven up your room or plugging in a diffuser to freshen up the air, there are tons of different ways to clear your mind and space. Putting some time and care into your everyday environment can help you recover from the craziness of the semester, while putting you on the right track for when classes start up again.