As winter break draws to a sad close, it is time to think about spring semester. All the stressful things such as cultivating the perfect schedule, finagling an ideal work schedule, and lining up some opportunities for the semester such as internships, conferences for your major, and presenting research have been taken care of weeks ago. The whole break has been about catching up on some sleep, hanging out with old friends, and eating home cooked meals. Now we're being thrown back into the jungle, ready to tackle what the semester brings as quickly and successfully as possible. As students, we focus on our academics and our jobs, they'll make us better later on, right? Yes, but we don't really focus on ourselves during the semester. We're so focused on the long-term goals that will help us, we don't think about our present selves. I neglected so much of my self-care during the fall semester, that I was so run down and unhealthy by the time winter break finally graced me with its presence. Without further adieu, here are 3 self-care tips to take with you into the spring semester:

1. Eat Healthy and Exercise

I know, I know, it sounds so redundant at this point, but it is a very good tip. I compared what I was like at the beginning semester with the end and the differences were shocking. During the first few weeks of the semester, I was working out 5-6 times a week and eating fruits and vegetables while also eating the things I loved in moderation. By the end of the semester, I was scarfing down Subway or cheese quesadillas between classes and work shifts and I worked out whenever I had the energy (which wasn't very often). Safe to say, I felt like crap when finals came. Even though the beginning of the semester is significantly less stressful than the middle and end, when I did workout and ate healthy during the most stressful times, I felt really good. I wasn't so tired and rundown, I didn't feel as stressed out. Moral of the story: Eating healthy and exercising regularly can really alleviate stress.

2. Pick one day per week to treat yo'self

The quote I live by is "A Sunday well spent, brings a week of content." I really invest in myself on Sundays. I do all the things I love. I read my favorite books, I put on a sheet mask, and I drink herbal tea while watching my favorite shows on my laptop. It's a day where I can regroup so I'm not crawling to the next vacation. I try and do my homework on Fridays and Saturdays (I know I'm lame) so that I don't start the week already stressed out with all the work I haven't done. With being energized and recharged, I'm ready for whatever the week will throw at me.

3. Listen to yourself

Listening to what your mind and body is trying to tell you is essential. If you take anything away from this article, this is the one. Take a few moments out of the day and really understand what's going on within you. Are you feeling tired? Are you feeling rundown? Are you stressed out? Ask yourself questions and figure out the root of your problems. Are you eating pizza every other day? Do you and your roommate lack communication? I would've saved myself a lot of problems if I had listened to what my mind and body was trying to express to me. For example, I was feeling so exhausted by the middle of the semester. My assignments weren't stressing me out because I was prepared for class and I was getting to bed before 11:00 every night. So what gives? I was eating like crap. Despite what any college student is trying to sell you, cheese quesadillas and breakfast potatoes, although delicious, was the worst thing I could be consuming. Did I stop? No, because by the time I got the good sense to realize the issue, the semester was over and I was at home eating celery sticks with red pepper hummus. Bottom line: SHUT UP AND LISTEN.

There are a lot of self-care tips on the internet, but these are the ones I found the most effective. Many of the tips I researched said something like overthinking (as a college student, yeah right). These are realistic for an average (which means too busy to even breathe) college student. I will be following these tips for my extremely busy spring semester.