Being a college student means always being on the lookout for new ways of self-care. What can I say? Being a college student can be very stressful. But recently, I found a new way to relax in the form of cooking.
I think the mere mention of being in the kitchen can put a lot of college students at unease. To buy groceries (expensive), follow a recipe (potentially confusing), and cook a meal (time-consuming) does not sound like a fun time to many. And I agree that sometimes it is so much easier to just buy a slice of pizza on campus and call it a day. But it’s not nearly as rewarding as it is to cook and enjoy your own food (that you made!).
I’ve found that cooking gives me the chance to take a break from all the thoughts and to-do lists I have running around in my mind. When I’m in the kitchen, I’m not thinking about the project I have due at the end of the week, or the extracurricular responsibilities I need to attend to. It’s a time for me to just exist in my own bubble.
Knowing that I’m in control of what I’m eating also makes cooking something I really enjoy. I can’t always rely on food offered at the dining hall to meet daily nutritional values, and the ones that do are almost always overpriced. I went to buy a container of mixed fruit after going a couple weeks without grocery shopping and forked up $3.49 just so I could eat something that wasn’t pasta or a granola bar.
Making a meal doesn’t always have to be an hours long affair. Sometimes it’s just making a sandwich and packing a banana to go with it to bring to campus. It’s as much a physical activity as it is a psychological one. The act of packing my own lunch makes me feel like I’m taking care of myself and helps promote the behavior further down the line.
As much as I love to get grab-n-go food from campus when I’m on a time crunch, I love cooking even more. Trying new recipes and figuring out ways to be financially savvy with meal prepping makes the act of cooking fun. But taking time for some self-care will always be what gets me in the kitchen.