Summer—it’s the time of year where anything can happen. I could get a job, meet someone, learn a new sport, pick up a strange hobby, or just lay on my couch and watch Disney movies. For students specifically, summer is a blissful three months uninterrupted by pop quizzes, disappointing grades and AP testing.
Except now that summer is over, and to-do lists start to fill up once more, how can we cope with the dawning realization that this semblance of freedom, this time filled with trampolines and lakes and friends, is over?
Not only is summer over, but a new chapter of life is around the corner.
In my experience, change starts with an adjustment of routine. Waking up 15 minutes earlier, committing to healthy eating habits and cutting out part of a day to get moving, for example.
I know, I know, most people are probably saying something like this: ‘But Sienna, I need all my sleep, I never really liked carrots anyways, and that all sounds like too much work!’
But when you think about it… creating those small habits tends to save a lot more stress—and sleep—than it creates.
When your sleep schedule is already acclimated to rising early, you’ll be able to get up and go in the morning, instead of slogging around and taking an unnecessarily long time to brush your teeth. This helps your brain focus and prepare for the day.
When you think about it, the moment you wake up, you slowly begin to tire and fall asleep once more. That means that despite the “sleep inertia”—the cause of all that toiling around and taking too long to brush your teeth—you feel when you get up, this is the prime time to work and prepare your body and mind for the day ahead. Your hormones are optimized for physical and mental efficiency when you first wake up.
It’s these sorts of habits that bring students from the freedom that is summer and help them “lock in” for the school year.
But, if you’re anything like me, it’s a lot easier said than done. That’s why, as the school year finally springs into action, it’s important to surround ourselves with… people.
Relationships—yes, relationships—are what turn these habits from a thought to a reality. Someone to remind you to wake up, get going, not take forever to brush your teeth.
When you get a text in the morning asking how you’re doing, or maybe a quick call checking to make sure you haven’t gone insane, that feels good—more than good, actually. It feels like you’re cared for, like you aren’t alone, and that someone else in this big, big world sees you.
So, when you wake up for school on Monday morning, and the whole day is dawning ahead of you, don’t forget the little things. Don’t forget to get at least eight hours of sleep, don’t forget to text someone and see how they’re doing, and don’t forget to surround yourself with people that will do the same.
