With it being the middle of March, and April quickly approaching, many people are beginning to have to deal with midterms and are starting to think about what stress finals may hold for them. In times like these, it is very important to have different outlets to put your stress into so that you are not overwhelmed.
Probably my biggest outlet when I’m stressed out is going to the gym. I usually go with a friend or two and this gives me time to not only talk about the stresses in my life, but also to put my stress into something productive.
Using the gym in this way has made it become one of my favorite things because when I’m doing a stressful assignment or in a class I’m not the most interested in, I have going to the gym to look forward to.
Another big outlet that I have is writing my opinion pieces. Writing these pieces creates a very special environment for me where I can just talk about many of the things going on in my life while also being able to work on my section.
It also gives me a forum to talk about myself as opposed to writing for other sections where I’m telling somebody else’s story. The thing I like the most is that I typically write in a journal when I’m overwhelmed but now I can put it into a place where others can relate and hopefully feel uplifted.
Music also helps me a lot when I feel stressed. This is because music covers all moods in a very quick amount of time. Instead of me having to read a long book for hours on end or watching a movie and waiting an hour or two to truly get the message, music usually gets this message across within two to five minutes.
Whether I’m happy about getting through a tough assignment, worrying about getting a test back or working through a million things at once, music captures how I’m feeling. In my opinion, music is also one of the easiest outlets to get into.
Outlets are huge for maintaining stress levels, but there are also steps that you can take to make sure those stress levels aren’t so high. One way is instead of putting off assignments and studying until the night before, you can slowly work towards getting them done day by day.
Recently, I had a big test coming up and while I normally just study the night before, I decided to make around five to ten terms in a quizlet every night until two days before the test. Then once I was done making the quizlet, I just went over that for the remaining two days and I ended up receiving an A on the test. This is all to say that proper time management is key to making sure you aren’t overwhelmed by school.
In the end, no matter what field of endeavor you are in you will get some stress no matter what. Instead of letting this stress consume you, you can take power over it and deal with it in positive, healthy ways. This will not only help you maintain your grades but it will also allow you to maintain your mental health.
DISCLAIMER: This article is the sole opinion of Cristian Valentin
Cristian Valentin can be contacted at cvalentin@kscequinox.com
