Photo by Gregory Pappas on Unsplash
Welcome back
Sign in to comment to your favorite stories, participate in your community and interact with your friends
or
LOG IN WITH FACEBOOKNo account? Create one
Health and Wellness
10 Ways To Indulge In Self Care During Finals
Always make time for you.
12 April 2019
642
With finals fast approaching, it's easy to forget about self-care. Take care of your mental health during this crazy time and don't throw your own well-being away for that A. Here are some ways you can indulge in self care during finals. Do at least one (or all) of these things to help!
2. Go meditate.
Try to clear your mind for at least 10 minutes away. Take that time to focus on your breath and not your stress.
3. Try some yoga
Do a quick 20 minute yoga session to relax between long study sessions.
4. Curl up for a nap.
Power naps are extremely energizing and can help you stay awake longer.
5. Eat junk food.
Sugar and junk help you focus and it tastes good too! You can eat healthy when you don't have a calculus exam tomorrow.
6. Take a walk.
It's April and the weather is nice! Flowers are in bloom! Dogs are outside! What more reason could you need?
7. Buy yourself something nice!
Order something online that will get here after you're done with finals. It's a nice little victory award to look forward to.
8. Drink lots of tea.
Tea is delicious and good for you. It also makes you feel smart and fancy.
9. Watch a show during breaks!
If studying is hard for you, do it in intervals were you can reward yourself with a quick 20 minute show in between sessions. Make sure it's something you've already seen before so you're not blowing off all of your work to find out what happens next. Watch The Office!
10. Don't pull an all-nighter.
While it may be tempting to push work back and stay up all night to catch up, don't do it! You'll end up tired for your exam and therefore less focused. Get a full 8 hours of rest and arrive on time for that A!
Keep Reading...Show less
Student Life
5 Small Things That Will Brighten Your Mood
It's the small things that count.
07 November 2018
137
Clariza Adao
It is easy for us to look at the negative aspects of a situation. We fail to recognize the positives that happen to us, however, we need to condition ourselves to look at the positives. Here are 5 small things that can lift up your spirits.
1. Productivity
Be proactive. Instead of spending 5 hours of laying on your bed scrolling through the Facebook timeline, occupy yourself with tasks. Go outside; that way, you can get fresh air and feel productive.
2. Mediation
Mediation takes patience. I used to think mediating was stupid but this is crucial for self-care. One of the ways I meditate is attending church and praying. Personally, it calms me down and helps me reflect on my week. I know not everyone is religious, and that's okay! Walking without listening to music is another way I meditate. Mediation doesn't have to involve spiritual practices-- the important take away is SELF-REFLECTION. Self-reflection leads to self-awareness.
3. Dress to impress
Dress up...for yourself! Not saying you need to go all out with a suit. Instead, dress yourself in outfits that make you feel good. If you think you look good on the outside, then it will positively influence your self-esteem. It might be out of your comfort zone but you'll get used to it (trust me, I'm speaking from personal experience)!
4. Learning something new
Brain stimulation is activated when you're learning, hence why everyone feels accomplished after learning something new. Learning is good for self-esteem!
5. Loved ones
I'm an empath so I absorb others' emotions. Being an empath is a blessing and a curse. Therefore, it is important for me to surround myself with people who give off GOOD VIBES. Moreover, they must unconditionally love and care for my well-being. Pick these people wisely: quality over quantity.
Being positive takes more effort, but it is honestly worth it. #selfcare
Keep Reading...Show less
Subscribe to Our Newsletter
Life Stages
30 Simple Habits To Start Today To Change Your Life For The Better
These simple habits can change your life and make you the happiest you have been in a while.
03 October 2018
353
Pixabay
The most simple actions can really change not only our lives but others. These 30 very simple things can leave an impact on someone else's life but on yours too. Before you know it these simple habits will be exactly that, habits, and they will begin to make a difference in your life and you will see yourself becoming happier and happier as time goes on. You will begin to fall in love with your life again and who knows maybe you will even gain a new perspective on life.
Be Kind
Be kind, to everyone, always.
Eat Well
What you put in your body will affect what you get out of it. Give yourself the right nutrients you need to take care of yourself.
Exercise
Exercise has multiple benefits for your mind, body, and mood. Just make sure you are taking care of yourself.
Meditate
Meditation can be a great way to elevate stress, take time to take care of yourself.
Be Honest
Honesty is the best policy.
Dream Big
Simple as that, dream big, the world is full of possibilities don't let you stand in your way.
Be Patient
Life can be frustrating and we may not always get what we want when we want, but be patient, you will get what you want at just the right time.
Judge Less
You will be so much happier and able to let go of so much negativity if you would stop worrying about and judging everyone else. Stop comparing yourself to everyone else, instead focus on loving yourself.
Smile Often
A simple smile can impact someone's day in the best way. It is a simple act of kindness that can make not just someone else feel better but you too.
Love Yourself
This is a tough one, I know. But the moment you start loving yourself flaws and all is the day you will be free and see the world through a whole new lens. You will be so much happier.
Forgive Easily
Holding onto anger and resentment towards someone else can keep up from moving forward. Be willing to forgive easily. Everyone makes mistakes, even you, so why are you holding someone else's mistakes against them.
Show Gratitude
Just be thankful for everything you have in life because it can be taken from you at any moment.
Think Positively
Thinking positively can change your outlook on the day and help make your day better.
Drink Lots of Water
Drink half your body weight in ounces in water, your skin and body will thank you tremendously.
Believe in Yourself
You are the only one who can stop you from doing anything, if you think you can conquer the world, you can.
Keep An Open- Mind
An open-mind changes everything, it also shows you have a great deal of maturity.
Put Your Needs First Sometimes
There will be times when you have to take time for yourself because you can't pour from an empty cup. Take the time to take care of yourself.
Don't Make Excuses
Speak Well Of Others
You wouldn't want someone else speaking negatively of you so don't do it to others.
Listen to Understand
Simply taking the time to listen to someone until they are finished will help you gain so much understanding.
Choose Faith Over Fear
God is greater than any fear you may have. If you do not try you will never know what you could be missing out of.
Make The Most Of Now
Tomorrow is never promised so make the most of the time you have now.
Exercise Self- Discipline
Look On The Bright Side
Don't be so negative all the time, focus on the positive of every situation even when it seems impossible.
Avoid Social Comparison
You are uniquely you and no one is better than you. You are good enough.
See Failure As Opportunity
Everything we go through, even failure can be a learning experience. Wether you learn something about yourself or an event you will learn something.
Don't Take Opinions To Heart
Not everyone is going to like you, don't worry about the opinions of those who aren't relevant to your life.
Select Friends That Life You Up
Who you surround yourself with is so important. Make sure you're choosing wisely.
Let Go Of What Can't Be Changed
You can't control everything so don't worry about everything. It is done and over with, don't linger on it, there's nothing you can do about it now, make it a learning opportunity,
Have A Healthy Sleeping Pattern
Your body needs rest, it also can help your skin, and affect how you function. Make sure you are getting plenty of rest so you can be the best version of yourself.
Try to implement one of these a day and see how much of a difference your lifestyle will be.
Keep Reading...Show less
Health and Wellness
Give Yourself A Piece Of Peace
College creates chaos and doesn't allow much time for students to have a focused moment on themselves.
25 September 2018
35
For college students, I believe a lot of what we choose to do is based on what we believe is expected by us from our loved ones, our friends, our teachers, and from society as a whole.
When was the last time you choose to do something solely because you wanted to do it?
Or even when was the last time you decided to do something on your own?
Or when was the last time you did something that was going to benefit only you?
It may sound cheesy sure, but when was the last time you felt you had a certain level of peace with yourself and in your life?
This semester I am doing service learning with an organization, Little Friends for Peace (LFFP) which does peace education with various groups including school-aged children, incarcerated men and women, and people experiencing homelessness. All with the perspective of non-violent and peaceful solutions can be found for our society's problems.
At the core of LFFP's curriculum is the wellness wheel which is built up by six elements: Feelings, Mind, People, Work, Body and Spirit. These six things have other smaller pieces that fall beneath them that serve as pieces of our own wellness wheels.
In the training I have gone to with LFFP this is a visual way for me to think of how all of these six elements can feed my peace and everyday wellness. I also think that these six things are elements many college students can relate to and are in play in our everyday lives.
When we got into small groups we took a moment to share what the strongest points of our wellness wheels were at the moment and what the weakest points were.
For me, my strong point was people because I feel like the people I have currently in my life feed into the wellness of the other five elements. The people I have in my life make me feel loved and appreciated, there are those people who help me grow spiritually, the people I work with are amazing and are becoming friends, I have friends who motivate me to work out or eat well to take care of my body.
The weak point for me was my body. At the time of the training I was in the midst of the classic beginning of school cold, and over the past week, my schedule had been such that it gave me limited time to cook for myself which is something I love to take time to do.
College can feel like a swarm of chaos where nothing is constant or feeling permanent for very long. Our friendships can ebb and flow and vanish, our work can drive us insane sometimes, immune systems are weakened by living in a dorm with hundreds of other kids, our feelings can become overwhelmed and our mind is a constant, running to-do list that doesn't seem to end.
But if we take time to think about it for long enough to concentrate on just ourselves instead of everyone around us, we can find pockets of peace. Things can come into balance for us and give us some firm footing beneath our feet. We just do not take enough time to think about this and find what is giving us joy.
Our society is one that has a tendency to focus on the negative and what's wrong, only leaving small slivers of time to celebrate the good. That outbalance of bad over good is negative and not good for anyone's mental sanity.
But we should challenge this societal standard of obsessing over the bad to look for what is giving us peace, or what may contain moments of peace if we give those opportunities a chance.
So I challenge you to think about your wellness wheel. Either think out or write down what each of those six elements contains for you individually and where the strong point is and what is a bit weaker. Finding a moment to be completely by yourself in college is hard but it is a worthwhile challenge that can help you center yourself amidst the chaos.
Keep Reading...Show less
