January is usually the month of snow days or two hour delays, which means yay! But for students all over, January brings something that the extra hours of sleep just can’t seem to balance out: midterms. The dreaded word. Some say if you whisper it around high school students, they revert to their primal state of lying on the floor crying (I can confirm). But let’s be honest: it’s not the tests that makes the hallways slick with tears, it’s the stress. Fear not, children, for there is an answer to your prayers. Dry your tears and first try some of the following self-remedies to help eliminate stress.

   The first step I take when get overly stressed is to lie down. No, not sleep. Just lie down. Stare at the ceiling. When I stare at something plain, my mind begins to relax. It’s like reading but without the words. And the best part, as I’m lying there relaxing, I’m not working but my mind is. My mind is still sorting all the information I’ve been studying, but at a calm, leisurely pace. So after I’ve been lying down taking that break, when I head back to the textbooks, my mind is relaxed, and the information is locked in.

    If lying down doesn’t work, don’t panic (because that would be counterproductive) there’s many other options. Another thing that works great to soothe me is (surprising) cleaning. Messy desk? I’ll take a break and put those pens in rainbow order. Not only does the break do me good, organizing items systematically gives my brain the same feeling you get when you change out of dress clothes into those comfy sweatpants. And I get an aesthetically pleasing work space to make things even better.

    My final way to destress comes with a bonus. It makes not only me stress-free but also others feel better. If I’m feeling stressed, a great way to unwind is to do nice things for someone. It doesn’t even have to be someone I know. I’ll help the old lady carry her groceries to her car, pay for the person behind me in line, do little things to put a smile on someone’s face. There’s something in human nature that makes smiles contagious, so if I’ll feeling stressed, I’ll make someone else smile, and I’ll feel better for it too.

    These are just a couple examples of how to destress; there are so many others. Drawing, listening to or playing music, reading, watching a movie, making crafts, breathing exercises, yoga, relaxations videos on YouTube, but these couple here are some out of the box ways you can try to relax when all else fails. And don’t forget, karma doesn’t have to be all bad, so don’t hesitate to brighten someone’s day!