It’s that time of year again where every day just feels the same and the stress gets a little overwhelming–we’ve all been there. With my workload, it sometimes feels like I’m drowning in my schoolwork. In the midst of all of this, it is important to take care of yourself and give yourself time to breathe. Though it’s easier said than done, here are some of the ways that I handle my mid-semester stress.
For starters, I try to stretch out my workload. Instead of making all of my assignments due on one specific day, I distribute them throughout my week. It definitely makes it a lot easier to handle everything, by taking it one step at a time.
Going off of that, I try to write down everything I have to do in a planner (and for a little extra, I color code my assignments by their importance). Seeing everything written out and breaking down my days definitely helps to ease the overwhelming feeling. Also, getting to cross things off one at a time is very rewarding.
Next, I make sure that I devote a part of my day to doing something that makes me happy. Whether this is watching an episode of a show, talking to my boyfriend, calling my mom, or just scrolling on Pinterest. Just giving myself time to decompress is really nice and it gives my brain a break from all the hard work it’s doing.
Something else that I like to do is spend the weekends to myself and reward myself. If you work nonstop for days on end, it’s going to lead to burnout…trust me. But taking at least one day to completely rot away in my room and doing nothing but be lazy is a nice reset. If I’m feeling extra fancy, I’ll get myself a little treat to recognize all of the hard work that I’ve been doing.
This last one might sound a little silly, but screaming into a pillow or having a good cry…it’s truly therapeutic. Sometimes, the best way to release is really just by letting it all out, especially if it’s at the end of a really long day. It feels so good to just scream or cry it out and just get everything off my chest.
Everyone deals with stress in their own way. It is important to acknowledge that you need time for yourself, even if it’s taking a 10-minute break in between assignments. I personally believe that there is nothing more important than your own well-being.