Illustration by Shannon Connelly.
By Kamila Morell.
As midterms become a distant memory, these few weeks in between are a great time to think about healthy habits. Whether they need to be restored after the crazy midterm week or you are looking for ways to finally start being healthier, remember that it is never too late. Finding yourself already past week five in the quarter is actually a good thing. By now you understand your schedule better and know how to realistically handle it. Here are some tips to help you stay sane from here until SCAD’s ultimate boss challenge: finals.
Small progress is good progress
Do you have extra time during your MARTA commute, in between classes or on a lazy weekend afternoon? Consider taking advantage of these small moments for getting ahead in your classes or projects. These opportunities are great chances for reviewing class notes, practicing a presentation, brainstorming for a project, etc. As the weeks progress, you’ll be grateful to have these steps already accomplished.
Rethink your schedule
Although you can’t change your class schedule, chances are you’ve already gotten into the flow of how it works and transpires over the day and over the week. Reassess not just class work but how other aspects of your life fit in. Maybe those ambitious visions you had at the beginning of the quarter like waking up extra early to exercise everyday have not survived, but there is space to work out in the evenings after class. Or maybe you realized that to be able to function on proper sleep, exercising can only be a weekend thing. That’s okay too. Rather than forcing the pieces to fit into your life, create the best space for them.
Remember sleep
The first thing to get out of balance during stressful and busy times is our sleep schedule. It’s fine if this is how you survived midterm week or major deadlines but don’t let them become habits. Better to recharge batteries now as much as possible because finals are almost a guaranteed drain.
Simplify exercise and healthy eating
If working out and eating healthy meals has become an additional burden, it might feel tempting to nix them all together, but think of ways to simplify them into your life. Try walking instead of taking the bus, taking the stairs whenever possible, or using breaks in between and during class to move and stretch.
Enjoy it while it lasts
Remember all those fun expectations you had at the beginning of the quarter before classes got really intense? Maybe it was a special trip, date or volunteer opportunity you wanted to take but the timing hasn’t been great. Now is the time to schedule those in before it’s time to go home at the end of the quarter. Having some time to do personal things is good for perspective and remembering to enjoy the present moment.