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Your Guide to Staying Sane While Applying for College

Student Life

December 09, 2024

Seniors and juniors alike are all too familiar with the weight of college applications looming over them. It can feel like a marathon with no finish line in sight. Where do you even start?

From crafting a list of dream colleges to writing essays and managing deadlines, it's a lot to juggle. And even after all that's done, there's still the torturous wait for decisions. To be completely honest, applying to college is terrifying! The pressure is real, but there are ways to keep the stress manageable. Here are practical ways to help you manage stress so that you can face application season with confidence.

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1. Sleep!

You've probably heard how important sleep is for you, and I'm telling you again! When you're well-rested, you're automatically a better problem solver and you have to more energy to fight off stress. Having a good night's sleep ensures you're well rested, which improves your concentration, something you definitely need in the face of college season.

Pulling all-nighters or sacrificing sleep to meet deadlines can feel productive, but it actually has the opposite effect, increasing stress and making it harder to focus on deadlines, essays, and whatnot. Prioritizing a regular sleep schedule, aiming for at least 7-8 hours a night, and establishing a calming bedtime routine can help improve your mood and make it easier to handle pressure.

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2. Keep a Journal

Writing, whether it's directly about how you feel, or anything, can help with anxiety. Writing down your thoughts allow you to clear your mind of the mental clutter that is often associated with stress. It helps you put down your thoughts in a tangible place, allowing you to understand your feelings and express them rather than keeping it all bottled up. By translating your stress and worries into words, it can feel like you're releasing some of that mental burden, making it easier to approach challenges with a clearer, more focused mind.

Maybe you don't want to write down your feelings, that's fine as well. The thing about keeping a journal, whether it's in a notebook or in your docs, is that you can write about anything! It could be about your thoughts, things that make you happy, achievements, or lists and clear goals.

You don't have to limit yourself to what you write. Believe me when I say journaling about anything can help with anxiety, stress, and overthinking.

3. Create a Schedule

One of the main causes of stress during this period is the feeling of everything being out of your control. You might feel like everything is too messy, like you don't know what to do next, or like your mind is just jumbled with to-do tasks. The best way to fix this? A schedule.

A schedule will help you be organized and do things step by step without procrastinating or deciding a random thing to pick up next. Start with writing down all the important application deadlines, which application you have to do on what day, and when you have to complete a specific essay. When you have specific goals in mind, doing tasks in your designated chronological order can be soothing, and the total opposite of the stress you've been feeling the entire college application season.

4. Self Care

The thing that pops in most of our minds when we think of self care is face masks and spa days, but it's so much more than that! It doesn't even have to include any of that. It's about indulging in activities that make you feel good or relaxed, and if that's the activities mentioned above? Then, so be it!

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Whether it's meditating, yoga, reading a book, baking, participating in rant sessions with your friends, it's important to find what helps you recharge and make that a priority during breaks. Anything can constitute as self care (as long as it's legal!). Depending on the activity, taking care of yourself helps with your mental, emotional, and physical health.

So don't ever think relaxing for half an hour is over-indulgent. Self-care isn't selfish, it's necessary! The college application process is tough, so you should be kind to yourself throughout it!

5. Take Mindful Breaks

When you're in the middle of the rush that is college applications, taking breaks might seem like a waste of time. But they're not! Breaks are times you step away from the dreadful screen and focus on yourself and not those applications.

The catch? It's all about taking these breaks mindfully. Mindlessly scrolling on Instagram is neither mindful nor productive nor helpful. Instead, step away from screens entirely.

Take a quick walk and breathe in your surroundings. It can help clear your mind. You can close your eyes for a few minutes and think about what you're doing all this for.

You can take a quick short nap to recharge all the brain cells you're using. Maybe even research about the college you're applying to, but for fun.

Conclusion

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There's no sugarcoating it: college applications are nerve-wrecking. There will be problems and challenges you'll face, and with them a truck load of stress. But that doesn't mean you have to accept this stress filled period. Practice some of the activities above to help manage this stress.

Alia Naeem
20k+ pageviews

Writer since Oct, 2024 · 7 published articles

Alia is a content writer and storyteller at heart. Instead of studying for her exams, she's busy reading absolutely anything (anything but non fiction) or playing her favorite pop songs on repeat. Embracing creativity in all its forms, Alia seeks opportunities to inspire others through her writing.

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