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Top 30 Ways to De-Stress

This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at UCF chapter.

With Finals just around the corner, we’re all secretly trying to figure out how to de-stress. It could be that our old habits just don’t seem to work anymore, or we’ve never actually found the best way to de-stress during such a crazy, hectic week.  For this reason, I’ve created a list of the top 30 ways to de-stress (especially during Finals’ Week).


  1. Go for a quick walk
  2. Do something you did all the time as a kid
  3. Dance in the rain
  4. Cook a delicious dinner with the items left in your fridge
  5. Read some fiction
  6. Stretch, meditate, pray
  7. Watch a funny video
  8. Make an herbal tea
  9. Get a discounted massage (at UCF RWC)
  10. Take slow, deep breaths
  11. Crank up the music and dance
  12. Massage your ears
  13. Strip down your living room
  14. Procrastinate
  15. Enjoy a staycation
  16. Volunteer your time or expertise
  17. Finger paint
  18. Take a long drive
  19. Hang out with your funniest friend
  20. Sleep
  21. Try laughing yoga
  22. Visit the shooting range
  23. Take a bath with candles and aromatherapy
  24. Punch a pillow
  25. Get your adrenaline pumping
  26. Make a to-do list and actively cross items off
  27. Be brutally honest
  28. Organize your living space
  29. Build a garden
  30. Go on a picnic

After trying at least 3 of these items you should definitely feel stress-free (at least temporarily). My favorite is combining breathing and praying with an aromatherapy bath and reading a fiction book. Let me know what your favorite way(s) to de-stress is/are.

Best of luck on all of your Finals!