De-Stressing

Happy Halloween! I know it’s a day after, but still it was fun. So, first of all, I hope most of you were safe during the Hurricane that hit and that your families are well and safe. I know there was a lot of damage, but thankfully there weren’t many people killed or injured from this storm. We were very lucky. I was actually supposed to be back before the storm, but my cat had an emergency and we had to take him to a Pet ER. Unfortunately, we were staying at my new house and we had no internet or cable, which explains my lack of blog posts this weekend. Thankfully, we had a radio that we kept on during the storm.

Now that we are passed the middle for this semester, many people are struggling with stress from classes. This is part of college, but there are ways in which people can de-stress that are really helpful. I know many people that have done these things to de-stress, including me.

Ways to De-Stress:

Exercise- This may just sounds like extra work and stress, but exercise is a really great way to release a lot of stress and work it off. It also helps to produce chemicals within your body that are great for providing energy. So, if you’re feeling lethargic and have no energy, it may help to walk to the gym and get a little workout. Exercise is often recommended when people feel a lack of energy and also for those who may have depression as well. It is definitely also helpful when you may feel angry or frustrated and I know many people, including myself, who use exercise in that way.

Drawing (or Artwork)- This may not be great for people who aren’t that artsy, but for those who are this may be helpful. I know some who say that they would not draw, just because they think they are not good at it, but if you just enjoy drawing for the fun of it, you don’t have to be good. It’s definitely a good way to distract yourself if your need distracting. Another variation of this could be coloring in a coloring book, which I know a lot of college students who do this and I just so happen to have a Spiderman coloring book for this reason. It does not matter if you are good at drawing or not, but it does matter if it makes you feel better and distract you from stressful thinking.

Writing- This is probably my personal favorite because I usually de-stress by writing poetry. Of course, it does not have to be poetry and nobody has to see it. Many people use journals for just this reason.  It’s definitely a good way to write out how exactly you’re feeling about situations in your life. The most important thing to remember is that whatever you do does not have to be perfect because whatever way you de-stress is for you and only you, even exercise. Sometimes I just let the words flow into my head and write them down.

Listening to Music- This is another of my favorites. If you feel angry, sad, stressed out, or happy, there is always a song for it. Although I would recommend listening to happy songs after the sad ones because the sad songs can just make those feelings worse. I usually listen to metal if I’m angry and it definitely helps me let it out during the song and then calm down when the song ends. You do not have to be able to create music or even sing, which I know I can’t sing, but I still do.

So, here are some ways to de-stress and if you did not find anything that fits you and then there are always other things that you can do as well. I hope this helps and thank you for reading!