About two weeks ago, I was invited on an impromptu trip to Brooklyn with a few friends. I originally was against going, but last minute decided that I needed an excuse to get away. Life was stressing me out more than usual, and I was looking for an escape. A two-hour train ride felt like the perfect answer for my stir-crazy self after just one week of school. All the expectations of the new school year fell just a little short and I needed an out.

I have found, especially in college, that it is critical to get away, even for a little bit. At home, it tends to be easier to get away for a little bit from certain situations. In high school, you could get away from school drama during the weekends and you had school to distract you from any drama at home. During the summer, it was easy to go to work or run errands, or go on long drives or spontaneous beach days with friends. At school, all of the stress that accumulates is centralized. It’s all contained to one place so it’s hard to get away from each individual stressor.

Eventually, all the stress from classes and homework, plus any stress with friends and relationships on top of being away from home, can take a toll on you. Always being surrounded by people who can sometimes be the cause of the stress in the first place just isn’t healthy. Not taking time for yourself is a big reason why, as college students, we’re so stressed out all the time. There is always something going on all the time and it’s hard to find the time to relax and get away from the stress.

I’ve found that nothing really beats a change of scenery. Whether it be getting off campus for a few hours to run errands or go to the mall, or taking a train to the city for the day, or going somewhere for the weekend, it’s important to get out. I like to get a fresh perspective on life by getting away from the things that are causing me to be stressed out.

So, two weeks ago I packed up a backpack and went on an impromptu overnight trip to Brooklyn. I got away from the stress that came with the first week of school. This weekend I’m headed to a lake house in New Jersey to get away from the last two weeks of stress and later in October I’m headed to Canada. While I realize this trend of casually traveling further and further away may seem like a terrible way to deal with stress, it’s been great. During the week I finish all of my homework and then on the weekend I have the freedom and stress-free time to go outside, travel, explore, and spend time with friends in a non-school environment. It’s important to get out and do these things when you have the opportunity to just get away.