This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at BC chapter.

You did it! You survived midterms, studied all night, probably lost sleep, and lived on pure coffee for a week straight, but hey, you did it. It’s over with and it’s time to relax. Or is it? Maybe you’re like me and you had professors talking in the last lecture before Spring Break about how the next week off if a great time to put a dent in that 350-page book you have to be done with by the Wednesday after Spring Break. I mean what is that??? Come on people, we need a break!

There are plenty of reasons why we actually need to take this week to relax. Yes, you heard me say it, RELAX! That means hanging out with your family, or napping on the beach, or watching endless movies in bed, and not doing school work. While this may seem impossible, it really is important to give your body and brain a break from the constant “GO feeling” we all experience at BC.

The “BC Bubble” is definitely a real thing. I had always heard of people talking about it, but I always assumed they felt BC was a bubble because they were from far away. I, on the other hand, am from a suburb of the city and have lived in the Bay State my whole life. But even recently, I have discovered the BC Bubble effect.

It’s easy to feel trapped here. We are all on tight schedules: homework, papers, exams, clubs, meetings, working out, partying, drinking, and God forbid we actually want to spend a night in just hanging with our friends, all on top of 5 classes. We are always go, go, go and never get time just to let ourselves sit back and relax. Feeling like you live in a “BC World” is a definite reality and it most likely means it’s time for you to get out of the BC Bubble. How convenient that Spring Break is this week!

We’ve all heard that taking a day off is good for you, but relaxation actually has some other significant health effects. Did you know that being too stressed can actually increase your chances of getting sick? That’s right, when you’re stressed, you’re most likely not sleeping, which lowers your immune system’s ability to fight off germs. Seems pretty terrible actually. If you’re trying to get stuff done and you’re stressing out too much, you’re probably making it harder on yourself by increasing your chances of getting sick.

So take this week to catch up on sleep. According to studies cited in The Huffington Post, relaxation can improve memory, help you make better decisions, keep you in shape, and even ease acne. It is important to keep these wonderful health benefits of relaxation in mind, because we take most of them for granted!

Do it for yourself. Kick back and relax ladies. I am actually going to read a book for pleasure this week. That’s right, I’m reading because I want to and you all should do the same. Embrace this week to do the things you love to do because in the end we all work our butts off and we all deserve this Spring BREAK!

Sources

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/04/13/stress-awareness-day-relaxation-benefits_n_1424820.html#slide=869841

http://dreamingofstepford.blogspot.com/2012/10/taking-break.html

http://www.coolhunting.com/design/hastens-hammock.php

http://dickybirdsnest.blogspot.com/2013/08/motivation-monday-relax-its-ok.html

http://www.pickywallpapers.com/1920×1080/animals/cats/napping-in-a-couch…