A Guide to Stress Management for the Stressed Out

 Yes, life gets stressful at times. Especially in college. Between late night study-sessions, essays to be done, sports to be played, and life to be lived, it often times feels like we are in way over our heads. School is a stressful time on top of life in general and beginning to adult doesn't make it that much better. As someone who is constantly busy, it can feel like life is a demanding coach and we are the overworked athlete. Though, with lots of trial and error, I have found ways of coping with this crazy, and often times dubious thing we call life. By no means to I have my life perfectly figured out, but I do know my way around it quite a bit, and I would like to share some of my favorite ways to managing everyday stressors brought on by this beautifully stressful thing we call life.

One of the most old school (and fool-proof) methods to organizing your life is by writing things down. I have a yearly planner; it is my bible. I take it everywhere I go and write my plan for each day along with assignments and daily reminders and activities that I must complete. The most exciting thing for me is when I complete something because I cross it off with a brightly colored highlighter. This just makes me feel so accomplished and confident that I am on top of my goals! Having a planner or calendar is also a great way to plan out the upcoming weeks or months so you don't over commit. You have everyday of the year in front of you so this is a great way to avoid conflict.

Another way I stay organized and on task is by doing both the most important and most difficult parts to my day first. If I have a difficult assignment or have to go to the bank to figure out my non-existent money, then I do that first because they are the most difficult and boring. If I get these kinds of things out of the way, I have more time to do other things, and the thought of doing them no longer weighs me down. I have never been the type of person to fall victim of procrastination, but I do know the looming thought of having to. do some of these things destroys me mentally. That is why I tend to make these tasks a priority so they don't negatively impact my thoughts and in turn, my day.

Lastly, my favorite way to cope with stress is by rewarding myself after a long day or hard task that I was initially dreading. In psychology, rewarding good behavior is shown to lead you to want to continue doing such behavior because of the reward that follows. Good rewards lead to dopamine, and dopamine leads to happiness. The feeling of sitting back with ice cream and Netflix after a long day is a feeling like no other. After completing every hard task of the day is a really good feeling and I know for me, it makes me feel at ease knowing I am doing something right.

Me, busy at work writing this blogpost.