This guide is designed to help you pause and reflect when you are feeling overwhelmed in your college life. A pen and paper will be helpful to write down your answers and help you make a plan to move forward.
There are many times in your college semester that are completely overwhelming. Nothing is quite like the end of a semester. Not only are you completely burned out already, but chances are, your to-do list is extremely long. You’ve got all the things you need to do to finish the semester well and all the exams on top of that to study for. Not to mention all the fun things that also happen this time of year (which you’d probably like to enjoy).
It’s easy to feel a bit paralyzed knowing where to start when you are overwhelmed like this. Here is a reflection guide for when you are feeling stressed at the end (or anywhere in the middle) of a semester. Feel free to grab a piece of paper and write down your answers. Take as much time as you need for each reflection question.
Take a moment to get settled where you are at. Get comfortable. Try to be present in the moment. If you have things that keep coming to mind, write them down so you can come back to them later. Pause to take some deep breaths. Enjoy that you have a few moments of silence to yourself. The hope in this practice is that you are able to reflect and make a plan to move forward but also that you spend some time slowing down. Pay attention to how it feels to slow down and reflect. Feel free to go over all of the questions or only the ones that are helpful. If your mind wanders somewhere else, be okay with that. There is no grade for this practice.
- Spend some time thinking about what you are thankful for. Write these things down. (Zooming out on all the good things happening around you can help give a little perspective when you are feeling overwhelmed.)
- Take some time to list all of the things that are stressing you out. What do you have on your to-do list over the next few weeks? Don’t hold back. Even if something seems small, it came to your mind for a reason. Write it all down.
- Look over your list. What can you prioritize? What are absolutely the most important items to make sure get done (maybe they feel the most stressful or overwhelming to think about)? Order these by number from most important to least important.
- Looking over your list, what on it is not actually that important? Make a mark by each of these. These are items that most likely still need to get done, but you don’t need to spend a lot of time and mental energy worrying about these. (Sometimes just being aware of these and their lack of importance can be very helpful when we are feeling overwhelmed. Until we do this, they are still taking up mental energy.)
- Take a minute to think about what is actually restful to you. What brings you joy and life? (Not necessarily scrolling social media or bingeing a new series on Netflix…) Write these things down. Some ideas might include: going for a walk or run on campus, getting tea with a friend, taking a nap, sitting outside in the sun, spending a few hours not being productive, walking to class in silence… Write some of these ideas down.
- How can you incorporate a few of these restful activities in your schedule over the next few weeks? (As we spend time taking care of ourselves and building in space in our schedule, we actually feel more rested and ready for the tasks on our to-do list even though it seems to take away time we should be “being productive”).
- Now look over your list.
- What are your top tasks that need your attention most? (I would suggest starting with these tasks first. As you tackle these first, the others will feel less overwhelming in comparison).
- What are the ways you will take care of yourself over the next weeks? Add these things into your calendar now.
- How can you make sure that these are all prioritized in your schedule?
- Is there anything in your calendar that you need to uncommit to over the next few weeks? Make those arrangements (send a text or email, etc) or commitments (deleting social media apps etc.) right away.
- Take a minute to go back and look over that first question. How can you take your thankfulness into the rest of your semester? How might this shape your perspective on your very long to-do list?
If this was helpful or if you’d like to chat more, feel free to reach out at hello@simplycollege.org. I’ll have some more guides up for reflecting soon!