Dealing with Stress

Ok, so, as one might imagine, writing novels and attending high school and applying to college all at the same time is not an easy thing to do all the time. This past week has been particularly stressful, for a few reasons that I won't go into here. Usually I'm pretty easygoing, pretty steady, but I've felt unusually high strung recently. Here are my tips to dealing with that sort of thing (which work pretty well when I actually listen to my own advice and use them) in case anyone is interested...


1. Drink tea (not caffeinated) or milk, or another soothing drink of choice. This sounds stereotypical and stupid, but honestly, it works. Get a big glass/mug of it and drink like your life depends on it.

2. Take a shower. Coming out of the shower feeling really clean and nice and shiny just makes everything better. It washes things away.

3. Sleep. Take a nap. Much of my stress, at least, comes from the fact that I'm tired. Naps do wonders. It doesn't even need to be a long one--sometimes, ten minutes can be the ticket.

4. Get out of the house and do something fun, if you have the time. Go see a movie. Go to the beach. Anything. Being shut in to a routine or a project just drives me up the wall sometimes--so I try to escape it. I don't mean that you should procrastinate, that just makes things worse later down the line. I mean escape, forget about things for a little while, if your time is well-balanced enough... that project/whatever else you're stressing about will still be there when you get back.

5. Discover new music. Find an album or artist that you haven't heard before and revel in its glory. For me, this week, that music was the Catch Me if You Can soundtrack. (which is FAB, by the way, in case anyone cares.)

6. Remember that life will, inevitably, go on. There will be brighter days, ones less filled with hysterics and hyperventilating. Things will be okay. Maybe not now, but eventually. Seriously, things will be OKAY.

6. Make lists to organize yourself. Like this one! Life is nice when it's organized.

7. Most importantly, remember that this happy little sloth wants you to be happy too.