Stress in the Air

Photo credit: All credit to rightful owners. Image retrieved from tumblr.

My most favorite time of the year is finally here! Once December 1st hits, everything outside including people's houses, the malls, and just the atmosphere in general becomes all festive and bright. The malls are filled with Christmas decorations and merchandises. In fact, people are busy here and there trying to get gift shopping done and buy materials for their parties etc. It's all the fun stuff. However, behind all this happy and jolly atmosphere, I think a ton of stress builds up. Students in post secondary like me are bombarded with finals as the Fall semester comes to an end. In fact, with all the planning and buying, people tend to get overwhelmed and financially distressed. So, what can we do to cut ourselves some slack through this busy time of year? Here are some tips I'd like to share...

1. Turn off your phone! Yes, as a smartphone user, with all those apps and things we have saved within the phone such as emails and texts, it can be very tempting to have it on. However, reserve 15-30 minutes a day to just yourself! You may not notice, however, with our phones on 24/7 and having us constantly texting during the day/night, we really are not at rest alone. When an email or text arrives, we become alert and it decreases our chance to really relax our busy minds.
2. SLEEP! Oh yes, as a student, I love this term, yet my life lacks of this so much. When you have the opportunity to sleep early or maybe sleep in a day or two, do so! Psychologically and physically let our minds and bodies take a break. Seriously, you'd be surprise, even when we're asleep, our brains don't stop working. But at least, when we're asleep, we don't really stress about upcoming plans etc.
3. Exercise. Oh man I feel guilty saying this, since school started, I haven't really had the chance to squeeze in some exercise. Oh yeah, and xbox kinect games don't count. If possible, try to give 30 minutes a day (if not once a week) some exercise. Many studies have shown that if we exercise, our brains work a lot better. Hey it's a win win situation here, you exercise and become physically fit and well it helps fuel your brain too!
4.  Watch a movie. Gather some friends, take some time off and just go watch a movie. Trust me, meeting some friends and talking about the stress you're experiencing helps! Don't be surprise how your friends might be going through the same thing as you!
5. Just smile. Yes, with stress, we become weary and grumpy. However, if we keep a positive mood, we won't feel too beaten up after a long day's work. After all, smiling makes everyone look 100 times more beautiful. :)

Have a great day!
Little Stars