Assignment due dates and midterms are right around the corner. And yet, it feels like classes just started yesterday. One challenge of having all your classes online is that you are constantly in the same place: seated at your table with your laptop in front of you. It’s hard to focus on anything else besides school.
Continuously trying to keep up with school work or any other additional responsibilities you have can take a toll on your mental health. To give yourself a break from the whirlwind of activities, use this Reading Week as a way to restore your well-being. Below are some tips you can try out to change things up.
- Try something different for breakfast.
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Most of us would probably just have a cup of coffee or some cereal and milk before getting to work. Since things are less hectic during Reading Week, why not start off the day with some delicious food? Try making pancakes, for example. There are so many different recipes online that you can try. Personally, I find that blending berries and adding them to the pancake batter is a great way to incorporate fruit into a recipe that you already love! You might also want to check out different recipes for oatmeal, which is very nutritious.
- Catch up with your friends.
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More free time means that you can easily call your friends and catch up with them. To be safe and to follow social distancing rules, you can talk to your friends on Zoom or you can engage in interactive games such as Among Us.
- Clean your room.
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“A clean room for a clean mind” is a self-made saying I always go by. When you get caught up in your daily activities, it is likely that you don’t really focus on keeping your room clean and tidy. You can use this one week to change that. Vacuuming your room or organizing your desk are two of many ways to tidy up your room. You will also feel refreshed in a cleaner room.
- Engage in physical activity.
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This could be something as simple as going on daily walks. You can also try out some yoga to strengthen your back, which would be helpful since we spend most of our time slouching in front of our laptops. Meditating would also help to make you feel less anxious.
- Engage in hobbies that you enjoy.
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Now is your time to carry out an activity that you like! You can read a book that you have heard a lot about while curling up into a cozy ball on the couch. Or, you can bake a cake and fuel your happiness through your stomach!
With all the effort that we have to exert during a regular week, the idea of taking care of ourselves slips quite easily from the mind. Not looking after yourself can lead to burnouts, so I think it’s important to use Reading Week to ensure that we get back all the energy that we have lost while working continuously throughout the first half of the semester. Then, we can go into the second half of the semester in full force!