Going stir-crazy? I know I am. You hear that a lot about patients, or perhaps expectant/ new mothers. I’m not trying to say that I feel as frustrated or stir-crazy as a new mother is, but it’s a very similar feeling.

It seems impossible for someone who goes to college to get stir-crazy, or feel trapped and stuck, but it’s a lot easier than you think and if that’s you – I feel you. My sister is on tour with a Christian music group, my brother lives in Pittsburgh acting, and my friends are travelling all over the world. In an instance, when it all hit me, I felt so stuck. Stuck in a small town, waking up, going to class, doing homework, studying, eating, sleeping, and repeat. Not fun stuff.

Routine is good, but too much of it can make a person go insane. I was getting so unmotivated in school, getting some hard core ‘ennui’. Ennui being a feeling of listlessness and dissatisfaction from a lack of excitement. It was hiding me hard, and I was almost depressed by the end of a few weeks. I wanted to just be done with the extensive amount of time I’ve been in school and travel and do something. Ask my parents, it was not a fun few weeks.

I came up with a solution. Well, I came up with a few solutions. So, if you’re relating to my feeling of ennui, then try some of these fun trips.

1.Go see a show or a concert, but not right in town. Although that would suffice I’m sure, it’s much more fun to travel a little bit, even if it’s only an hour drive or two. The past weekend I did just that, I dragged my dad along and saw Waitress the musical in Cleveland. It was a day trip, we got home before 6:00PM, but I felt immensely better after that. It was just refreshing to get out and be in a new area. A concert works just as well. Get a few girlfriends or guy friends and just go.

2.Spa Day! You heard me, spa day. Guys too, I’m serious. Get over the stigma that pedicures and massages are a ‘female’ or ‘feminine’ thing, because they’re not and the second you get one, you’ll never be ashamed again. As a cosmetologist, I can tell you that there are many, many more men that get spa services than you’d think. Just the other day, I did a football coaches pedicure. He was so tall, he barely fit into the pedicure chair, but he loved it. He said he goes every few months with his wife. Now if that isn’t goals, what is? Spas are insanely relaxing. I try to get a massage as regularly as I can, this is especially beneficial if you’re an athlete too or exercise regularly. This could even be a small trip too, go for the whole day, buy a spa package, and drive to one you’ve never been to before.

3.Go shopping. Not just for buying clothes or shoes or something, but as another way to just get out of the house and out of your usual area. The Grove City outlets are pretty close to where I live and so driving out there is always fun. It takes a bit, and so it feels like a mini road trip ending in spending more money than you thought and eating pretzels and China Max.

4.Go spontaneous. If my friends went to school near me, I would definitely try out this tactic a lot more than I’m able to right now. Just get some coffee, gas up, and get in the car and drive. Who cares where you go, just blare the music and end up somewhere you’ve never been to before.

It doesn’t take much for me to go stir-crazy. I’m a traveler and if I were rich, that’s where my money would go. In lieu of that right now, thanks to college and the debt it loves to create, these couple ideas help a lot. There are a lot of other things you can do as well, even just going out to eat at a nice restaurant can sometimes lift your mood. Most of the time, after class and studying and projects and essays, it’s hard to even find the energy to get up and go somewhere to get rid of that feeling of ennui, but trust me. Once you push through that and just get up and go, your mood is going to lift. And if you have any special cures for going stir-crazy let me know, I need all the help I can get.