Being home for Christmas is a time for relaxing, spending time with family and friends and, of course, pigging out on lots of wonderful food.

However, it is also the time during which final exam grades get posted and you find out whether you passed or failed your class. This can cause major stress, which I know is the case for me. The worry stays in the back of your mind and makes your whole body tense up as you hold your breath waiting for your email to load.

We're all familiar with the feeling of your heart sinking in your chest because you didn't do as well as you'd hoped, but there also the much better, yet much less talked about, feeling of relief that comes when you do well.

All too often, when we accomplish something, it's easy to let it get lost in the business of everyday life. We feel as though there's not a moment to lose and we have to move on immediately to the next thing. I do this all the time, especially since I started college.

Once that one project or paper or test is done, I force myself to immediately get started on the next one without a moment's break. I have recently realized that this, at least for me, is not healthy.

This past semester has been the busiest time of my college career thus far. Granted, it's only my sophomore year and things are only going to get crazier, but I just want to point this out because I managed to make some major changes to my thinking over these past few months.

Instead of going directly from one thing to the next, giving my brain zero time to rest, I have started to find little times to let myself be proud of the task I have just accomplished. As I said, I was very busy, which means these periods of reflection did not last very long, but it only takes a little.

This semester consisted of my turning in one paper after another, sometimes more than one per week. I'd feel drained after having been writing for was felt like days straight, so, Instead of researching for my next paper while I ate dinner, I'd just put on a chill show on Netflix.

This allowed my mind to take a break and me to be proud of what I had accomplished. The next morning, I'd wake up ready to take on college and not feeling like I want to live in my bed the entire day. My mind, as well as my body, felt healthier and more awake. This is why it's important to take time to rest in between tasks, as well as to reward yourself for what you've done.