[It's a new year (which I am having trouble remembering when I have to write the date on anything), meaning it's the perfect time to wipe that slate clean and start anew. And we're gonna help you out. Every Thursday in January we're bringing you advice from experts on ways to improve yourself and your life. From mental health to making the most of your workspace, we'll all work together to get our lives, health and GPAs back on track. First we feng shui-ed our rooms to make them happier, more productive places; now it's time to overhaul our inner selves with mind/body coach, Sarah Yost.]

Stressors in life are inevitable: deadlines, expectations, the lack of time to do it all. But you don’t have to be at the mercy of those things. The less you stress the better you’ll feel and the more you’ll accomplish. Think about your energy as if you have a finite amount of it every day. If you use a lot of it stressing out about things beyond your control, you’re left without the energy you need to actually do the things that matter to you.

So how does one simply not stress?

Try these six easy tips to calm down and preserve your energy so you can accomplish everything on your plate and all those other things you just want to have time for.

Attend to your breath.
You know how people are always telling you to “just breath”? Well, there’s a reason for it! Full diaphragmatic breaths aren’t going to cut a full fledged panic attack, but they will make a noticeable difference. Full breaths change you physiologically, bringing more oxygen to your blood, slowing the heart rate and soothing the nervous system.

Try this: Inhale through the nose to the count of four, exhale through your mouth to the count of four.  Do that four times. That simple exercise will make a huge difference, and it takes less than a minute and you can do it anywhere with your eyes open. No one needs to know what you’re up to and you don’t need to schedule any extra time in your busy day to find some inner peace. Read More »

Not only have you not started your holiday shopping, but you haven’t started that 20-page paper that’s due in 12 hours. Welcome to finals week! It’s the most stressful time of the year, where you get to play catch up on all the reading assignments you skipped for the past 4 months while you simultaneously study for 5 exams that happen within two days.

While some colleges like to add to your stress (thank you Bridgewater State for losing power while I was on page 16 of my un-saved 27-page paper), other colleges have started looking for creative ways to help students de-stress. Tufts University, for example, has begun bringing in cute, furry, slobbery pups for students to pet and play with as a way to mellow out during their mid-finals week meltdown. Cuddling up with a poodle sounds all well and grand, but I’m just not sure that’s enough to combat the stress ulcer forming in my belly.

So what can colleges do to really curb our ulcer-inducing stress? Here are 12 de-stressers I can get behind. Ommmm. Read More »

Stress has been my companion for as long as I can remember. I’m the kind of girl who likes having a million things to do because I love feeling productive. Unfortunately, I tend to take on more than I can handle. This leads to late nights, early mornings, constant worrying, tiredness, and, well…you know the routine.

So in an effort to stop overworking myself (you should really see my jam-packed planner) and to help my fellow busy bees (high five!) de-stress, here are a few reasons why we should take a breather and stop stressing out!

There are 50 Stress-Related Effects – none of which are attractive

The American Institute of Stress lists them here. Some of them are more common (headaches, impulse buying) while others are a bit extreme (ringing, buzzing or popping sounds). Wow, makes me want to call in sick…

Allow me to be more specific…

Ever look into a mirror during finals week and be shocked to see how unnaturally pale you are? Blame it on the stress! When you are stressed, your body responds by directing your blood flow to the heart, brain, and lungs since they are the most critical functions. Your skin does not get as much blood as when you are well rested, making you lose those rosy cheeks. Translation: you look like a zombie. Read More »

This time of year is so stressful. I’m so stressed out, I’m stressing about all of the TV shows I have to try and DVR every day. Job interviews are flooding my planner (yay), senior thesis papers are suffocating my existence, and trying to wiggle time to party with my closest friends before graduation is like trying to fit a fat man in a small jacket (nearly impossible).

It’s a crazy thing for some of us, college coming to an end. There was that part of me that thought college would stretch into my forties, and I would be shot gunning beers and rocking it out at concerts until my aging got the best of me. But, that’s not so much. Fortunately, for my future children.

While the stress is pumping up the volume, take a moment to skim over a week that was, and de-stress thosesenses!. Maybe it will make us feel better to ignore the future, if just for a small moment in time.

* Like I said before, college=load of stress. And graduating makes it worse. At least we’ve got that whole work outfit thing covered.

* As much as we’d like to believe bursting into the real world will present us gourmet dinners at the bistro, and tasty free lunches at work – we have discovered Lean Cuisines and Special K may continue to be a solid diet of choice.

* Ugh, some professors deserve to get the boot. Read More »

April is Stress Awareness Month, and I don’t know about you guys, but I am definitely aware of my stress. Research papers, projects, and exams are rolling in faster than ever before and it seems like I can’t finish one thing without getting behind on another. Not to mention the hours of sleep lost worrying about that summer internship or if that guy from last weekend is ever gonna call me back.

So what’s a girl to do? Meditate? Listen to Enya? Write in a journal? Does any of this bullsh*t actually work? Maybe it’s all the caffeine running through my system, but I can’t even sit still long enough to try (plus, Enya is just not my thing). Here are some surprising tips for stress relief better suited to our lifestyles… Read More »

Ugh. Finals. Is there anything worse? You sorta coast through the entire semester with nothing to do but some really boring reading and then – BAM – you have to take a giant test that determines your entire grade (and possibly future). Yeah, that’s not stressful or anything.

So now you are stuck in the library for days at a time trying to stuff 4 classes worth of info into your alcohol-tainted brain. And you need an effing break! What do you do? Here is what CollegeCandy’s writers do for their much needed study break:

Sues – University of New Hampshire: My whole day is pretty much a series of study breaks since I continuously get sucked into the Internet and realize that I’m online shopping, reading blogs, and basically doing everything but studying. If I step away from the computer, I go to the gym!

John – UConn: My study break is when I stop drinking coffee in order to drink beer.

Kari – FSU: My study break looks like Phish Food, a well earned back rub from my boyfriend, and a wonderfully distracting episode of The Office…30 minutes of Jim Halpert’s face will perk me up any day. Read More »