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The opinions expressed in this article are the writer’s own and do not reflect the views of Her Campus.
This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at SBU chapter.

This time last year, I was severely depressed. I was about ready to transfer, and I couldn’t wait to go home and be away from everything making me miserable.

I expected that having a full month at home would be so nice. No work, no homework, no annoying people from school. I’d get to spend a bunch of time with friends and family. I thought it would be bliss.

And it was … for the first few weeks.

Then I got sick of sitting around and doing nothing. I spent too much time on my phone, too much time in my bed, too much time playing video games or watching TV.

I realized while school did make me miserable, the routine that classes, studying, clubs and internships gave me was good for me. It helped the days go by quickly and I felt like I had done something worthwhile every day.

During break, I woke up late and went to bed late and did almost nothing in between. This made me feel awful. By the time break was ending, I was ready to go back to school and get back into a routine that forced me out of bed and outside several times a day.

This year, I feel a little different about winter break this year.

I am excited to go home and spend time with my family and friends but this year, but I know I will miss the routine I had at school. I will also miss the friends I have this year during break.

Going into the month-long hiatus, I plan to set some structure for myself so I am getting out of bed and doing things on a daily basis as I would if I was at school.

Something I really want to do a lot during this break is read. I have a lot of books in my TBR list that have been sitting there forever. I’m hoping to finally finish a book I started in the summer and start a few new ones. Or I at least hope to reread some of my favorite books I haven’t read in a while.

I also want to start cooking more over break. Since my parents will still be in school for a lot of my break, I figure it is about time I start helping them out and learning to cook.

If I had one piece of advice for freshman going into their first winter break, it would be to do stuff. Don’t deny yourself time to relax and rest. But also don’t overdo it with that. Like me, you might start to go crazy and actually wish you were starting second semester a little bit earlier.

Delainey Muscato is a senior journalism major with philosophy and sociology minors. This year she is excited to be the brand deal coordinator and senior editor for the SBU chapter of Her Campus. In her weekly article for Her Campus, she usually writes about her personal experiences at college, as an intern, or just in life. Delainey is excited for her third and final year as a member of Her Campus and can’t wait to help new members be just as engaged in the club as her. Outside of Her Campus, Delainey is a very active journalist. She writes for a newspaper in Ellicottville, The Villager. These articles typically detail local events or highlight people in the area. She also write for Tap into Greater Olean. This news site covers stories directly rooted in the Olean and Allegany area. This summer, Delainey spent six weeks writing for the Lake Placid News and Adirondack Daily Enterprise in Saranac Lake, NY. In her free time, Delainey loves to spend time with her friends and family. She spends a lot of time reading on her porch at home. Delainey also loves to take her dog Nella on walks. Her favorite TV shows are The Office and Friends. Her favorite movie is Ferris Bueller’s Day Off. She also loves music and spends a lot of time discovering new music and perfecting her playlists.