Congratulations If...

Congratulations If...

You got out of bed today.

You did your dishes or dirty laundry.

You finished some homework you’ve been putting off.

You cleaned up around your home/apartment/dorm etc.

You resisted temptation in any form.

You found a reason to smile.

Little victories are worth celebrating!!

life hack: do ur readings and go to class

Quick reminder

-Skipping meals is really unhealthy -There’s nothing bad in eating pizza or ice cream or donuts -Carbs are not evil -Exercise should never be a punishment -I don’t care if you have cellulite -You look fab in your bikini

Friendly reminder to check you’re not holding tension in your body. Let your shoulders drop, unclench your hands and jaw. Take a deep breath. Much better.

What to do when you really don’t want to study.

I think we’ve all been there - the class is important and you know you need to study but when you sit down you end up feeling grOSS AND YOU don’t want to. So here are some tips to overcoming that:

 Take a deep breath and reevaluate why you need to study. Try to stay positive.

When I’m not motivated I keep saying things like “what if I just don’t do it?” And then - surprise! - I end up not studying and suffer/regret it later. When coming up with reasons to study, try to keep it positive. Don’t say things like “if I don’t study I’ll fail the class.” Instead, say things like “if I study, I have a better chance at doing well on the exam. Future-me will be so proud of current-me.”

If you truly cannot find a single reason to study, set your studying aside for later and do another productive activity or take a long break.

Drill it into your mind that you really don’t need motivation to do well.

Even if you find the reason to study, that doesn’t necessarily mean you are very motivated. Sometimes we feel like no motivation = unable to study. This isn’t true.

Make a deal with yourself. Try studying for ten minutes. And actually try to study. If by the end of ten minutes you feel like you can continue studying, great! Keep going! If not, then you can take a break and do something else.

Choose a study scheduling method that works for you.

Some people feel great studying for hours on end once they get in “the zone.” Others feel the need to take quick breaks every half hour. Studying and scheduling methods are different for everybody! Play around with scheduling to find out what works for you.

In high-stress times, work (studying, assignments, etc.) can feel pretty overwhelming. To organize all the stuff you have to do, write it down! This takes some of the stress of remembering tasks off from your brain, so that your brain can focus on the more crucial things.

If you’re making a to-do list, keep the general list short. This way, you won’t feel overwhelmed by too many tasks. (You can keep sub-lists on separate paper/sticky notes to break down each task.)

If you’re making a time-table, keep your schedule loose. Give yourself buffer time to complete each task, just in case you overestimated your efficiency.

It’s totally okay to overestimate efficiency! - ifyou do, you learn more about yourself and how you study best.

Small (pomodoro) breaks

Pomodoro technique in a nutshell: 25 minute blocks of working with 5 minute breaks in between. Feel free to change the length of the blocks according to your preferences! During your breaks, you can

Get more water

Get snacks

Make tea/coffee

Stretch

Do a tiny bit of yoga

Walk around the room/building

Stretch

Five-minute meditation

Head massage

Try to avoid looking at a screen. When you look at a screen, you stimulate your brain and it won’t get its rest. Also, the internet might suck you in and your break could last longer than intended. (cough tumblr)

Long breaks

Sometimes I really really really really reALLY don’t want to study. Or do anything. And I feel kind of gross and am on the verge of a mental breakdown. If you feel this way, stop.

Take a hella deep breath. And another one. One more. Aaaaand one more just for good measure.

Get away from your desk. I associate desk with studying, so getting away from it helps me relax. Lie down on a bed, or move to a different room if you can. If you can get near a window, try looking into the distance to relax your brain and eyes.

Breathe for a couple of minutes, then evaluate how you feel. Again, try to stay positive. Instead of “I feel shitty and I don’t want to do anything,” try “I feel tired right now and resting can help me feel better.”

Based on this evaluation, estimate the amount of time you need to rest. If you have a lot of studying to do, try to keep it under an hour. Set a timer for the amount of time you have decided on. (remember to include buffer time!) Getting back to work on time can make you feel more productive, which conduct better productivity!

During a long break, do an activity that makes you feel good and takes your mind off studying. You can

Take a long walk. If you live near a park or a trail, try strolling around in it.

Eat healthy food. Junky comfort food can make you feel groggy, especially foods that are fried. Instead, try eating some fruits or nuts.

Take a shower/bath

Talk with a friend

Make some art

Enjoy a long coffee break. (avoid caffeine if you feel anxious/panicky, though)

Play with a pet

Take a power nap

Longer meditation/yoga

Again, try to avoid looking at screens. Also, avoid thinking about studying. Let yourself have the luxury of NOT THINKING ABOUT STUDYING for a while, so you can return to it with a fresh mind.

Mental health days

Sometimes everything is just too much and you might feel the need to stop everything for a day. If so, take a mental health day!

Think of mental health days as physical health days. If your body isn’t feeling well, you are allowed to stay in bed and sleep/not do anything for a day. Similarly, if your mind isn’t feeling well, you are also allowed to stay in bed and sleep/not do anything for a day.

Let your parents and teachers know that you don’t feel well and can’t go to school. From my experience, most teachers are pretty understanding and will let you have the day off. (You might have some work to make up later, though.)

Do not study on mental health days. Don’t even think about studying on mental health days. Instead, just focus on getting better. You can

Sleep in

Clean your room

Take a super long bath, complete with bath bombs and candles

Watch a good movie

Read a good book

Sing your favorite songs really loudly

Literally anything that (IS HEALTHY and) makes you feel good about yourself.

Study groups can keep you going, even when you kind of don’t want to

Setting up a time (like a date!) can keep you on track

Study with someone you trust to keep you accountable. Don’t study with someone you know you’re going to gossip or watch cat videos with.

If you really feel the need to cancel a study date, it’s ok! Just like canceling any kind of date, it’s 100% okay to back out if you feel uncomfortable.

Stay safe, stay healthy, and happy studying!

                        My realistic back to school tips

I got this idea from hellostudykatie.tumblr.com so thanks to her for this idea.

I thought since it is back to school time I would share my back to school tips that aren’t that far fetched because a lot of the studyblr community assume most people are organised. I on the other hand am not. I need a planner but sometimes I forget to use it. Sometimes we need straight to the point tips so here I am for you!

Get a planner/bullet journal: Over the past few years in school I was very unorganised so I started a bullet journal last year. I use a cheap notebook as my bullet journal and I use a very simple layout so it doesn’t take up too much time because typically I don’t have time to do much other than my school work. I have found it to be super useful to help me and keep myself motivated through out the year.

Write out your timetable: I takes me forever to learn my timetable. In April of this I stood outside a class that I didn’t even have for about 10 minutes So I like to write out my timetable at least three times and stick one in my school planner, one beside my door in my room and then save one onto my laptop. It comes in handy during the year if I get lost.

Go through all your stationery: I normally have a lot of stationery from the year before so before I go back to school shopping I like to go through every bit of stationery I own and make a list of what I need. This way I only buy the essentials and it saves money as well! I often buy stuff I don’t use or need.

Cut out people that have a negative effect in my life: I think this is a super important thing to do. If you have a “friend” that everyone in your life thinks has a negative effect on you believe them and cut them out of your life. I have had to do this with a few friends over the past few years and I have finally found a group of friends that I am super happy with.

Look through your textbooks: I usually wouldn’t do this but I have been revising over the summer so I plan on just reading over my notes before class starts in September!

Treat yourself the night before: I find the day before I go back to school is stressful and I tend to get very anxious so I like to treat myself the night before school starts. So I might have a bath or shower, moisturise, watch a few episodes of my favourite show or listen to music.

Start a routine about a week before: I start to go to bed earlier and wake up earlier to get my sleep schedule back on track. It won’t be too drastic but I will aim for an hour earlier than what I have been which is about 3am so I will try go to bed at 2 or half one and wake up about 9 or 10am.

So these are my realistic tips because sometimes we need those simple tips to get through the start of school year. Hope they help at least one person. I would be happy for people to add their own tip if they wanted!