If you’re a college student, you’re stressed—there’s just no two ways about it; college = stress.

However, if you’re a college student and you’re stressed, you’re probably also looking for ways to be unstressed, and so meditation has probably crossed your mind or been recommended to you at some point or another—just a way to take some time for yourself to keep from going crazy. Sounds great, right?

Here’s the problem, the same people who encourage you to meditate also say this: “You only need five minutes a day to meditate!”

Guess what—college students don’t even have five minutes. Between running to classes, doing homework, being social, attending club meetings, practicing sports and/or musical instruments, and satisfying our basic needs—such as being hydrated, rested, and nourished—we don’t have five minutes: we’re in college; free time is a myth. And if we do have five minutes, we’ll spend them having an existential crisis.

If you’re like me, your inability to find five minutes to meditate can make you feel guilty, but you feel even worse when you fall behind on your to-do list by taking five minutes for yourself, and that just makes you more stressed!

What are we college students to do when five minutes of meditation actually adds stress to our lives? How are we supposed to take time for ourselves when we don’t have even have time for ourselves?

As this is a problem I have been struggling with for several semesters, and something I know fellow students also face, I decided it was time to come up with some practical meditation tips for college students. Essentially, finding a way to find time for yourself when you have no time for yourself. It’s actually easier than you think—and it’s much easier than five minutes.

The Bathroom Power-Up

My second semester of college one of my close friends and I both had classes at the same time in the same building (but not the same class) and we always ran into each other in the bathroom before class started. We capitalized on this routinely shared time and spent it checking in with each other about how we were doing.

Having a bathroom power-up by chatting for a minute or two with one of your friends while in the loo is a really easy way to incorporate a little mindfulness into your day, but you don’t need a friend with you in order to have a bathroom power-up. Whenever you run off for a bathroom break, take a minute to distance yourself from the rush of classes and the growing pile of homework looming on the horizon for just a few moments.

Wash your hands mindfully, recognize yourself in the mirror—you are alive again today, you are here, and that in itself is an accomplishment. Give yourself a smile and tell yourself you’re going to have/are having a great day even if you feel like you’re not: manifest that shit into reality.

The Rise and Shine Greeting

When you wake up in the morning after you’ve snoozed your alarm four times and are finally starting to gain consciousness, take half a minute just for yourself. No matter how busy you are, you’re sure to have 30 seconds to dedicate just to yourself.

Stay bundled up under your warm covers (but resist the urge to fall back asleep) and be grateful to wake up another day, to have another chance at life—you could make anything happen today!

The Bedtime Story

After you’ve finished your homework for the night and are ready to go to bed (at 2 in the morning) think about one thing that happened throughout the day that made you happy in some way.

Maybe it was the dining hall serving your favorite meal, getting a good grade on a quiz, catching up with a friend you haven’t seen in ages (they're probably a nursing major), or receiving a compliment from someone—whatever it is, hold that image in your mind for 15 to 20 seconds and bring yourself back to that happy feeling that you had. Life isn’t so scary when you remember to be grateful for the little things.

The Dinner Rush Devotional

Isn’t it funny how everybody seems to flock to the dining hall or the café at the same time, and we all end up waiting in line, impatiently spinning our lanyards around our fingers while our stomachs growl intently?

The next time you’re in line for a meal or a coffee, don’t waste that precious time worrying about things or making plans and to-do lists: decide what you’re going to order if you’re ordering something so you don’t hold up the line further, and then start giving yourself compliments.

If you can’t think of anything, look at the other people in line and silently—or audibly—give them compliments. If you choose to explicitly give people compliments you’ll be brightening their day, and you may even receive a compliment in return.

On the other hand, if you choose to silently give compliments you’ll slowly be bringing your awareness to the good things about people, noticing what makes them, and yourself, beautiful. Remember that you are amazing and wonderful and unique.

The Commuter Pick-Me-Up

As a commuter, my morning and afternoon/evening drive can get pretty dull. Sometimes I get aggravated from following people who are Sunday-driving on a Tuesday morning, other times weather or traffic throws a monkey wrench in my commute, and still other times I am just uninspired by my drive.

When I find myself in this place, I bring my awareness back into my body, inside of my car—while still paying attention to the road, obviously. I check to make sure the temperature is okay, adjust the vents if needed, and ensure that I am sitting in such a way that I won’t be sore later. Even something small like this, remembering to make adjustments for myself, helps me to be mindful and grateful.

And there you have it!

You don’t need five minutes a day to meditate, you just need one bathroom break to check in on yourself. Don’t let meditation become another stressful thing in your already crazy college life—let it help you find relaxation like it’s actually supposed to.