Now, I’m finding healthier ways to practice self-care. I am learning that I can rely on friends and I can make “that midnight call” in the event I feel that I can’t handle my stress or need to talk to someone at that time. I’ll also go out for a drive and listen to music that I like or is relaxing. I’ve also used social media to my advantage, and maintain a Tumblr blog where I express any fears, thoughts, or anxieties I may have almost meditatively to let those thoughts and emotions go. I also use that blog to find calming or humorous ideas, images or videos as well as similar experiences others have had. The greatest amount of stress I had at once was in the Fall of 2013. At that time, 5 of my family members died within 18 months and my best friend decided to cut me off abruptly on top of normal school stress. I spent a great deal of time talking with my friends, all of who provided amazing support, and I spent a lot of time writing on my blog whatever thought came to mind. The relief these things brought me was not sufficient, and I admitted myself to a mental health facility to receive the help I needed. After 10 days in the hospital, I was determined to stay on track to graduate on time, so I decided to drop only one class and finished the rest of the …show more content…
However, I feel as if I could always improve on my time management skills. If admitted to this program, I will actually be a home compared to living in the dorms with too many distractions going on. Also, the Columbia area does not cater to my interests as well as the Aiken/Augusta area did while I lived there, therefore fewer activities will be competing with my time to complete my work in addition to less people as I no longer have access to the connections I made while in the Aiken/Augusta area. I’ve also taken advantage of the Calendar and reminder apps on my phone to set a schedule of when assignments are due, or to incrementally complete larger assignments across a period of time. Such apps also help to complete assignments outside of the classroom to set a reminder to go to certain locations required for class at specified times as well as storing the address of the location and any other pertinent notes. In the past, I have also kept a physical list of tasks necessary to complete larger assignments, and I’ve also utilized my friends and classmates to attend “study parties” that created an environment to study, encouraged all who were there to complete tasks, and celebrate small victories when those tasks were