Sometimes overlooked, but certainly useful.
1.- Meditating
https://pixabay.com/photos/meditating-sunset-meditation-yoga-3478898/I know it sounds hippie-ish at first but meditating has proven time and time again to ameliorate people's daily life consistently. Personally, I find meditation very alleviating and comforting. Especially after having a long day working or even after I had a great day doing something I really enjoy. But in case you do not believe me, according to the Washington Post there was a study done on the effects of meditation in 23 combat veterans of Afghanistan and Iraq with PTSD. After testing, it was found that "the brain scans before and after 16 weeks of mindfulness-based group therapy revealed increased connectivity between a network in the brain that allows people to control their attention and other parts of the brain involved in rumination and spontaneous thought. The level of connectivity was significantly correlated with a reported improvement in PTSD symptoms, including emotional avoidance and hyperarousal." So if you can find 10 to 15 minutes of your day, maybe when you are about to fall a sleep or when you wake up, try meditating for a few days and see if it works well for you.
2.- Exercising/Walking
This may sound obvious but taking a bit of time of your day to exercise is not only good for your mind but also for your body. These exercises do not necessarily need to involve putting a lot of stress on your body. They can be as simple as going out for a jog, a walk or even casually playing a sport of your liking with a friend. The reason why doing these kind of activities are just as good for your mind as they are for your body is because they will help you clear your head and either forget about your stresses or reflect on your day, plus all these activities can be really fun, so why not give it a shot?
3.- Listening to a Podcast/ Reading a Book
Photo by Element5 Digital on UnsplashIf you are a person like me, and you simply do not find reading entertaining, try listening to a podcast. Since I began my college career I would always be told by peers and friends to pick up reading as a habit, but to me reading books has never ever seemed fun or entertaining to me. It could be interesting to read about topics you like from time to time but even then my lazy self would not do it, especially if those books were over 400 pages long... I mean, I already spend too much time reading at our university's library, so why would I want to keep on reading, right? Well, if you are not like me I encourage you to read because it probably is very good for you; but in the case you actually are like me, just go to iTunes, Spotify or wherever you listen to music and listen to a podcast that may interest you. There are tons of them to choose from and I am certain that once you find the right one for you, you will not be able to stop listening. Additionally, the beauty of podcasts is that you can listen to them while doing something else. You can listen to them in your mobile or in your car when you are on your way to work, you can listen to them while you are showering or while you go out for a walk. Podcasts are entertaining, easy to access and they will not take any extra time of your day. It's a win-win.
4.- Having a Game Night
https://www.933thedrive.com/game-night/If you are a busy person you may have a really tight schedule, trust me… I KNOW. But even the busiest person in the world has a couple of hours to spare to host a once-a-week game night. The reason why, at least at my place, we have game nights at least once a week is because it helps us relax and it helps us stay in touch with other friends. Every time we host a game night, we invite friends over, eat some food and we simply have a great time. It is a good way to keep somewhat of an active social life and it is always a good time.
5.- Preparing For The Next Day
This summer I have been pretty busy I work about 7-8 hours a week, I write for The Odyssey and on top of that I will start summer classes in July. No, I did not just tell you that to weirdly flex, I just wanted to give you a bit of context in order to better explain why a bit of planning for your next day can be immensely useful. Over the past few weeks I've found a variety of ways in which you guys can help yourselves the next day through doing a bit of prep. For example, pick your clothes for the next day, write down the things you have to do so you don't forget, check the weather, leave plates and eating utensils out at night so you can use them in the morning, all these little things are things you can do right before you go to bed that will massively help you ease the next day. Trust me, I did not really notice how helpful this was until I actually did it, and oh boy it feels really good to not feel rushed all the time. So if you are like that I highly recommend you to do a mental check up of your next day before your present day ends.
