As the semester flies by, these weeks in the middle of the semester are the most difficult, as professors have midterm exams, essays and other exams all at once. It can be a stressful time in the semester, but use these tips to stay healthy and reduce stress.
- Exercise, Exercise, Exercise!
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Everyone knows how difficult it can be to make time to exercise. Take advantage of the on-campus resources, and make a trip to the Strom or Blatt, or even just go for a nice walk on campus. Maintaining your physical health is just another step towards staying healthy when the stress gets to be a bit too much.
- Take a break
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Everyone struggles to stay on task when they’re studying for hours on end. It’s important to schedule breaks to spend time with friends, catch up on your social media feeds, or watch the latest episode of your favorite tv show. If you plan time to relax, you can make sure you stay on task for the time that you’re actually studying or writing that research paper.
- Say hi to Indy, the campus therapy dog
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There’s just something about dogs and other pets that allows you to escape the stress of school for a bit. We definitley miss our pets from home and it’s super helpful to be able to say hi to friends’ dogs, or even the dogs on campus to relax a bit!
- Try to focus on mindfulness
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There are tons of apps that can help you with this! Technology can sometimes add stress, but these apps help you to focus on centering yourself and other breathing techniques to help with anxiety and stress. Every now and then, take a break from school work, and use these resources to relax and let go of any extra stress.
- Try something new!
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Everyone has a special trick to help relieve stress. For some people it’s drawing or coloring while for others it might be listening or playing music. These simple activities help you to focus on something that you have complete control over.
- Sleep!
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This one may seem obvious, but sometimes studying gets the best of us. Remember to stick to your normal sleep schedule. Stress has the potential to make us sick after everything is complete because we’re so focused on completing the next assignment that we lose track of the simple things. Schedule your sleep to make sure you get 7-9 hours each night!
No matter what method you use, just be sure to take care of yourself during this midterms season!