A simple guide to getting into the swing of things

With Christmas firmly behind us and the new year finally in full effect, countless students have returned to the classroom, and if you’re anything like me, it’s been a rough adjustment period. All of it can feel a bit overwhelming, and the stress of knowing it’s all coming out of your wallet can make it hard to look at things objectively. However, there are ways to help make your return or arrival on campus easier on your psyche, most of which are easier than you would think.

One of the best ways to help make classwork feel less overwhelming is to set deadlines for yourself. It’s a very common thing in my experience for people to wait until the very last moment before something is due before they really get started, or for them to try to cram for something the day before. It’s something most of us are guilty of, or know someone who is guilty of it. A very simple solution is to set deadlines for yourself and hold yourself to them. My own personal rule is to make sure I have all of my work done by Friday, but yours can be anything that puts pressure on you to do something, but still feels attainable.

Another suggestion is to make a clear separation from school and work. To help you avoid getting overwhelmed, you need to block out periods of the day when you are working and when you’re just enjoying yourself. This doesn’t have to be some schedule you plan down to the minute, but just making sure you’re not mixing the two. Maybe you decide to stay at campus until you finish all your work, or finish everything you need to do the moment you get home and then relax. As a rule of thumb, though, try not to do work after you relax, as it tends to put you in a bad mood.

Of course, a great way to help with stress in school is to try and talk with other people about it. Just finding someone around you and venting about how overwhelming everything is can do wonders at getting something out of your system, but you don’t need to just talk to someone if you don’t want to. You could also do a hobby as well, something you can do daily and easily incorporate, would work best. Things like cooking or going on walks can be great for your psyche, and you don’t need to be a three-star Michelin chef or spend hours walking around town for it to be helpful.

Of course, this is just general advice; every person reacts to stress differently and has different coping mechanisms. However in general, just applying these tips can be extremely helpful with making the sometimes overwhelming task of going back to school feel a bit more manageable.