College is a stressful experience for so manly reasons -- whether it is your first year and you do not know what to expect, or you have been there long enough to get into your major and the classes are getting difficult. Hopefully, this article can help you to figure out how to deal with stress, or at least distract you enough so that you forget you were stressed in the first place. I am going to try not to sound hypocritical, but these things really help (even if I may not do them myself).
1. Get Sleep
This may seem very self explanatory, but so many college students run on a constant lack of sleep. Without the proper amount of sleep, neither your brain, nor your body can function properly -- that means that you will be more susceptible to stress (among other things). In other words, sleep equals a working mind.
2. Use Your Friends
I do not mean that you should literally use your friends, but they can help you to relieve stress. If I am feeling stressed, the first thing that I do is text one of my friends to vent. Your friends are there for you, and most times they want to help you in any way that they can -- they should act as a kind of support group. Find a good group that can give you advice, make you laugh and allow you to be your whole-self, without judging you.
3. Do Not Procrastinate
This is my number one cause of stress. Honestly, if you can convince yourself to do things when they are assigned rather than when they are due, then your life will be much less stressful (and you will have more time to sleep and hang out with your friends).
4. Get Organized
Organization is key to not procrastinating. Get yourself a planner, or put all of your due dates in your phone. This way you will not have to stop and think of when you have something important to do -- they will all be in one place! Keep your binders neat, with all of your papers in the right place so you will always know where to find your notes when you need to refer to them.
5. Find An Outlet
If you cannot get around being stressed, then find something to do that will help you relieve it. For some people this may be reading and writing, listening to music, working out, or even just watching television. Find something constructive that can take your mind off of it and help you relax. Personally, I like to play pool, and I have also used it to help me study; multi-tasking is not at real thing, but I try to do a bit of work between each of my turns.
The less stressed you are, the happier and healthier you will be, so make an attempt to follow these tips and maybe you will glide stress-free through your semesters.
