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Florida Atlantic | Wellness

Hobbies That Made Me Human Again

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Isabella Lopes Student Contributor, Florida Atlantic University
This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Florida Atlantic chapter and does not reflect the views of Her Campus.

Being hobby-less made me depressed. 

Maybe that’s a stretch, but it’s partially true. When I started college, I had never been more motivated in my life. Sure, classes were hard, but I was all go go go, I never put time aside for myself. Over time, I noticed that I started feeling burnt out, sad, and just plain old boring. Studying became harder, the light of passion for my future career got dimmer, and I wasn’t having fun. I was stuck in my academics. 

Beginning this year, I told myself I would find time for my hobbies in the chaos of my studies. I decided to share my list of hobbies that I’m making time for so I don’t turn into a robot again. 

Junk Journaling

This hobby is great and very low-maintenance. The only thing that you have to do is collect junk! It makes any dull day more eventful. Taking stickers off my coffee cups, getting a poster off a bulletin board, or even random notes I’ve taken in class–all of those will find their way into my junk journal. 

I started this in January, and since then I have made seven spreads: an intro page spread, Christmas spread, my dog’s tenth birthday spread, a Tony’s chocolonely spread, a Heated Rivalry spread (its not very cute but I’m too obsessed with the show), a Valentine’s Day spread, and a New York spread (my favorite). 

Junk journaling is also a very cheap hobby to get into; the only thing you really need to buy (if you don’t already have one) is a blank notebook, glue, and scissors. 

Listening To Audiobooks

I know, audiobooks are already pretty popular, but it is actually something I have just recently gotten into. I started my first audiobook last week, and I am already 70% done with the book. While I have listened to audiobooks previously, it was never something I was able to fully get into, because I am easily distracted. 

I am a commuter student, and what I have noticed in my time in college is that I don’t really want to, or have time to, sit down and read a book. Which is a bit crazy because I love to read a good book. To maximize my time and make my drive to and from school less dreadful, I listen to audiobooks. 

Reviewing Movies On Letterboxd

This is my most time-consuming hobby, watching movies. I will say, I haven’t been very good at keeping up with this one, simply because my schoolwork takes up all my time. However, getting to rate and talk about every movie I watch to my two friends on Letterboxd makes it easier to do. 

These are just my current hobbies; they might change, or I might continue them, who knows how long my hyperfixations on these things will last. All I know is that having hobbies has made me a person again; it has brought back color into my life. While school is hard, having hobbies has made the load of academic stress a little more bearable. Doing my hobbies allows me to decompress. School is draining, so do something fun, something that makes you feel like you! 

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Isabella Lopes

Florida Atlantic '27

Isabella is a Neuroscience major at FAU, with a passion for medicine and science. She is constantly studying, working, and looking up research articles. She is an undergraduate researcher in an Endometriosis lab.

Behind that curtain, she has a passion for pop culture, music, and journalism. When she is not busy writing, editing, or studying, she is junk journaling and thrifting. If seen around, she may be stealing napkins, posters off bulletin boards, or anything that she thinks will look cute in her junk journal.