As the autumn leaves begin their last week before they’re officially gone for the winter season, we all approach a similar situation. With the end of the semester and the entire Christmas season just around the corner, life is starting to feel hectic for numerous people. Final exams, EOCs, and just everyday life builds up to be a lot of pressure, which is why it is important, now more than ever, that everyone knows the effectiveness of understanding when to stop and take time for yourself.
All of our lives, we’ve been taught to never give up and never stop going until you’ve reached your end goal, and while there is definitely something to be said for the validity of those statements, that’s not always the case. It differs for everyone, but the general consensus is that there is real value in slowing your pace and taking a break when school, work, or just life in general begins to get a little too heavy. Peyton Medchill (11) explains how she feels when she forgets to take time for herself.
“Things just start to feel really heavy and I feel like I’m drowning in my workload. It makes me want to procrastinate more and then I put off the things that are most important and then I’ve dug myself deeper into the hole that I’m already in,” Medchill said.
Taking time for yourself is not just an academic strategy because stress and anxiety are not just academic issues. For a lot of people, stress and anxiety is a never-ending cycle. It is apparent in all aspects of life, whether that is school, work, or social. Everyone experiences stress; the feeling is not exclusive, similar to the way that everyone has specific tactics that they use whenever they need to center themselves. Kylie Seay (11) details her strategies to recharge when she feels overwhelmed.
“I like to just take time to myself by reading; I’ve fallen in love with that again, so whenever reading helps me to calm myself and cleanse my mind. Also, working on choir music helps me. It helps me to put things in perspective whenever I get overwhelmed,” Seay said.
Medchill also relaxes her mind through distraction, purging her mind of unwanted thoughts just long enough to put things into perspective.
“I just drive around to clear my head. Most of the time, I don’t even have a set destination in mind. I just like to drive because it distracts my mind and focuses me on something more important than whatever stress I’m feeling,” Medchill said.
Whether it’s by distracting your mind or by clearing it, no matter how you choose to relax and recharge, give yourself permission to slow down and be present in the moment. Too many people get laser-focused on constantly moving from one objective to the next with no rest time in between. The goal is not just to know how to get through your problems, but also how to survive during them. When you slow down long enough to reset, the benefits can ripple through every part of your life, something Seay knows firsthand.
“It feels like a restart in that period of my life. I feel refreshed. I’m able to do more and take on activities that typically feel unachievable,” Seay said.
