Everybody has dealt with countless stressful situations in their lives. Similar to how one person may find a situation easy and another may find it stressful, ways to destress are also completely different depending on the person. When I get stressed, I typically like to deal with my unease through retail therapy. Now, I don’t recommend this all the time because sometimes it isn’t feasible but here are some other suggestions that might suffice.
Coauthored by: Colleen Whitman, Abby Virgin, Rachel Lebaron, Gia Brockman, Mia Wynn, and Caidyn Lavoie
- Nap
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There’s nothing to be stressed about when you’re unconscious.Â
- Journal Entry
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Journaling your feelings is a tried and true method of stress relief. It can be a private place to express your true feelings when you don’t want to deal with people and share your personal business.
- Clean my roomÂ
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Reorganizing your room can be a nice way to relax and give yourself the fresh start you need after a week of stress.Â
- Listen to musicÂ
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A good playlist of your favorite artists can help you get motivated to do anything.Â
- Work on my Christmas list!
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Its the season of holidays and sometimes the most entertaining and relaxing thing you can do is to scroll through Christmas list suggestion ideas to add to your own list. Bonus points if you are playing Christmas music at the same time!
- Watch a movie or show
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Whether you’re watching a reality show or a 90s rom com, tv is a great way to distract yourself from the worries of life and put yourself into a different world. I love watching shows like Love is Blind or Gilmore Girls while doing homework or just laying in bed.Â
- Talk with your roommate or friends
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Sometimes a good yap session with your pals makes everything better. A good debrief of the day or some gossip overheard earlier in the day can heal the soul and make you feel more productive than completing all of your assignments!
- Try arts & craft
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See if there’s an art building with supplies open to all students, or just order some cheap paints and paper from Amazon. Doing art is a great outlet and a creative way to express pent-up emotions.
- Pick up a new hobby (crocheting, beading, embroidery, etc.)
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Exploring a new activity that you have been interested in pursuing makes everything much better! Even if you are only into the activity for a week or three months at least you learned something new!
- Take a walk
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Exercise has a lot of physical and mental health benefits, and walking is an easy and non-strenuous way to get your body moving. Download a podcast, a new book, or your favorite songs, and go for a nice stroll.
- go outside
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Sometimes taking a trip outside to touch some grass, literally, is a good way to destress. Walking around and basking in the sun–or snow–can be very relaxing. It can also be very relaxing to sit on one of the many hammocks on campus and nap or people-watch!
- Go to the beach
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We are so grateful to live near the beach, so sometimes it’s nice to go to Mingo during sunset to take some pictures and just enjoy how lucky we are to live here! If it’s not too cold out, you can even go to the beach during the day and do some homework by the water to make the work seem less stressful.
- Baking
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Baking at college can be difficult because most of the dorms don’t have full kitchens (though I am excited to try to make a mug cake one of these days), but when you get a chance to go home it can be a great stress reliever. Plus you end up with a sweet treat as a reward for all your hard work!
- Adding to our pinterest board
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Retail therapy is all fun and games, except when you’re a college student who lacks the necessary funds. A solution to this is adding to your Pinterest board. It’s kind of like window shopping.
- Go to the gym
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To some, the gym may, in fact, be the stressor. However, for me, I find it to be relatively calming. I love having a gym on campus, so it’s easily accessible. It gives me a good opportunity to blast music in my headphones and run on the treadmill.