Dealing with stress on a regular basis is hard. Occasionally, it becomes so difficult that strangers dub you as “the girl who always looks a little bit crazy.” Me, this happened to me. Anyways, after years of trial and error and crying on public transportation, I have culminated a few tricks that have sofar helped stave me off the brink of insanity.
Do: Obtain and utilize a planner. I’m so serious about this. I know you think that you can “just remember everything,” or that you “never used an agenda in high school,” but college has the unique ability to transform a steel-trap mind into an overcooked pot of spaghetti. Eventually, the readings will pile up, due dates will begin to surprise you and, before you know it, you are underneath the bed, ugly-crying into a bowl of tuna salad. Planners let you visualize how those unremitting due dates will pan out over time, making them feel less daunting and allowing you to plan for particularly difficult days in advance.
Don’t: Eat Hot Cheetos for breakfast. I know that they taste amazing. I know that they taste even better when paired with the questionably old iced vanilla latte found in the fridge. I know this because I have spent countless mornings eating them on my bedroom floor, a panicked look in my eyes and 300 flashcards strewn across my lap. Desperate times, my friends, desperate times. It is tempting to gorge yourself on junk food when feeling stressed, but I promise it will feel so much better, and strangely more productive, if you just take a little extra time to make yourself a healthy breakfast. You will feel more energized and able to take on the day, and won’t have to add “intestines probably rotting” to your list of things to worry about. Also, drink water! It’s good for you or something.
Do: Make to-do lists. If you have a lot of things to accomplish in one day and the tiny robots controlling your spaghetti brain start to hit the panic button, simply turn those tasks into a list. Include small things that you do every day like “shower” and “consider flossing but ultimately decide that it is an excessive hygiene practice,” if only for the endorphin rush that comes with crossing things off. In addition to helping you become more organized and in control, watching the items on the list diminish throughout the day feels like a victory, even if you don’t get everything done.
Don’t: Party like it’s 1999. Look, I get it. It is literally 100% easier to not do things than it is to do them. Going to a party is 100% more fun than writing a critical analysis of Moby Dick. These are the only statistics that I know or care about. The point is, while it may be easier and more conducive to your “YOLO” brand to ditch homework for a party, all of the things that you are ignoring will still be there in the morning, only now with less time to accomplish them and an ever-present threat of vomit chunks landing on your laptop.
Do: Treat yourself. Whatever this means for you, do it. Maybe it means taking yourself to the bookstore. Maybe it means ordering Chinese food and watching TV in bed. Maybe it means drinking hot tea and reading a book of poetry from your lavender scented bathtub (I have a Tumblr, I know what’s cool). As long as you aren’t using this as a means to blow off actual responsibilities, you deserve it. Being a human is hard.
Don’t: Be mean to yourself. You are not dumb! You are not lazy! Actual dumb and lazy people are too busy being dumb and lazy to get stressed out, so you’re probably not one of them. Catch up on rest, eat regularly, and take a moment to check in with your body. If you notice that things are starting to become too much, go talk to somebody who can help. Whether it’s a counselor, professor, parent, or friend, it helps to vent and get advice from people who genuinely care about your wellbeing. You are not weak for seeking help, very few people can navigate this world completely alone, and those who can are probably robots anyway. Cut yourself some slack, go hang out at a dog park, and gently remind yourself that the stress you are currently feeling is only temporary.