Mental Health and Stress Towards the End of the Semester

We're well into November now. It's hard to believe that we're almost at the end of the semester. Time went by so quickly, and it's honestly overwhelming. It's getting dark earlier and assignments are piling up. Overall, not great. Personally, my stress levels and work load have not been terrible this semester (I'm super grateful for that!), but now that we're approaching Thanksgiving break and the end of the semester, everything is piling up and I can't help but feel kind of awful and anxious. Whether it's stuff for clubs, assignments with rolling deadlines that I left to the last minute, or final exams and papers, I've caught myself making a giant list of everything I'm going to do over Thanksgiving break: no sleep, get up early, live off of coffee, and just churn out assignment after assignment. A lot of my friends are thinking the same thing. This won't work out well for anyone. I'm trying to gain more control over my life while things are super crazy, but seeing this long list just makes me more anxious. We all need breaks, so I thought I'd share something about managing stress and final assignments but also making sure to take care of yourself at this time of year.

I'm definitely guilty of succumbing to the mindset of thinking I have to "earn" a break or some self-care. That's not true! We're all deserving of some time for ourselves at any given moment. We're human beings and chances are we won't be as productive and be able complete the tasks we want to do unless we break it up and acknowledge that our bodies and minds need time away from school and work all the time, even if it's for a short period of time. I know, it's definitely easier said than done. But maybe a good place to start is by allowing yourself 5-10 minutes in a day to take a break to do something you enjoy (reading, knitting, yoga, listening to music, taking a walk, meditation). Personally, taking this time for myself not only helps my productivity, but definitely helps me keep my mental health in a good state. I love doing 15-minute yoga videos during the day or a 10-minute meditation session on Headspace - these are particularly helpful for my anxiety.

Besides these mini self-care moments I try to take during the day, I've also been getting better at recognizing when I need to stop working for the day or when I need to take it easy and be kinder to myself, my mind, and my body. I'm definitely guilty of thinking, "Okay, I've done all the work I need to do for tomorrow, but I could get a head start on other stuff." A lot of the time, I feel bad because I "could always be doing more." Personally, being able to recognize that this isn't always a healthy mindset is a huge step in the right direction. Yes, I could always be doing more, but taking time for myself is a necessity, and I always end up thanking myself for it later. In times like this, I stop and instead decide to shift to a movie with friends, reading a book, baking or even going to sleep early. Doing things that I enjoy, especially at this time of the year when things can drag on, can make all the difference.