Semester Blues

Written By Chloe

What to do when you’re struggling with your mental health.

This isn’t mutually exclusive to students. Everyone struggles with their mental health, and this blog is for anyone who needs it.

Call your grandma. Or your brother, or your aunt, or your friend from high school.

Call someone who isn’t in your day-to-day life, because sometimes those people aren’t able to give you the advice you need to hear. Sometimes you need to hear an outside perspective, and that doesn’t mean your friends aren't an option, but you most likely already know what they’re going to say. Outside perspectives or topics can help you shift your headspace away from the place it’s been in, especially when you’re in the same environment for a long period of time.


Rest. Please.
I am soooo tired of trying to convince myself and other people that it’s okay to rest. I know there’s a perpetual guilt around resting; you have that itch to “be productive.” Resting is productive. Your body cannot be productive without rest. You will burn out and your body will force you to rest if you don’t let yourself have a day to lay in bed.


Don’t feel bad for shutting people down.
You don’t have to apologize for saying no to plans. Just because you have free time doesn’t mean you’re available. Cancelling plans doesn’t mean you don’t appreciate spending time with the people in your life, it just means you need to prioritize being alone for a bit. 


Be selfish. 
Stop trying to people please when you’re struggling. You’re allowed to do whatever you need to do to make yourself better. This goes back to my last point, but in addition to that if you need to spend time with a specific friend and not others, or if you don’t want to text people back, you’re allowed. Nobody else really knows what’s going on in your head besides you, meaning that only you know what’s best for yourself in this moment. Listen to that.


Cry.
If you’re on SSRI’s, you know this isn’t the easiest thing to accomplish. If you need to put on Grey’s Anatomy to cry, do it. I had a 20 minute mascara-streaming-down-my-face-heaving-and-coughing sobbing session over not being able to find files on my laptop. Holding in your tears for a while means that one small thing will trigger an avalanche of emotions, and you need to be able to let that out. 


Cook, dance, draw, craft, sew.
Do something non-committal. Something that nobody is grading you on or paying you for. Something that allows you to be creative and spend time without pressure, regardless of if you’re bad at it. 


Take an everything shower.
Put a shower bomb in, turn some music on, light a candle. Exfoliate your face and body, then shave whatever you choose to shave. Wash your face, wash your hair, wash your tears. Give yourself a head massage, do a hair mask. Exfoliate again. Come out of that shower feeling like you just washed away all of the negative outside energy from your body. 


Change your sheets.
I’m a big fan of cleaning when I’m not feeling well. It feels like a fresh start. I like to do all the laundry I have, change my sheets completely, and even wash things like blankets and rugs that don’t need washed too often. I’ll sweep and mop my floor, dust, wipe down counters, clean my bathrooms, and take the trash out. You don’t have to do all of this. If cleaning is something that drains you more mentally rather than recharges you, try doing one thing that will make your environment feel a bit more comforting. Instead of changing your sheets, change your pillowcase. Wipe down just your kitchen table, or just sweep your entryway. Do as much as you want to, and then light a candle, or an incense, or turn on a diffuser, and lay in bed and let yourself rest.


Journal, or write in your notes app.
I’m actually writing this blog post in my notes app at 1 a.m. right now. Among the grocery list, baby names, quotes, lists, astrology chart, and recipes, I’m writing a blog post about mental health, because it’s 1 a.m. and I’ve been struggling with my mental health and I wanted to lay in bed and type this on my phone instead of my laptop. I like journaling my brain dumps, too, because I think it helps me release a lot of emotion. I also doodle in my journal, and write down random lyrics or quotes. You can write literally anything you want, and it can be just for you.


Make a playlist.
Make a screaming-in-the-car or a laying-on-the-street-while-it-rains playlist. Whatever you’re feeling, put the songs that resonate with that into 1 or 5 or 20 playlists and pick the one you need and sit and wallow in the music. 


Drink water.
I don’t care if you need to lay in bed for 15 hours and you only get up to use the bathroom. I want you to eat something, maybe a granola bar or a sandwich or some fruit, and I want you to drink some damn water, because your body can’t rest and heal without water. This is my only aggressive love point of this post; please drink water. If you don’t want plain water, drink tea, or Gatorade, or make water with lemon and cucumbers and call it fancy cafe water. Even if you just drink 1 cup every time you get out of bed, that’s still something, and I promise your body will thank you.


People watch.
I love people watching. You can go on a walk and do it, or look out your window, or sit on a bench, but watching other people live their lives helps me realize that everyone else is doing this life for the first time too and we all need different things at different times. Watch the new mom rock her baby to sleep in its stroller, watch the man try to keep up with his wild puppy, watch the old couple lean on one another as they walk across the street. All of these people have or are struggling with their mental health, even if you can’t see it.

Invisible illnesses are just as valid as visible ones. You need to treat your mental health as you would your physical, and allow it to heal. Every single person you’ve ever met has dealt with something, and they all cope differently. There’s no right or wrong way to heal, and you shouldn’t feel guilty for navigating which way is best for you. With colder weather and shorter days, a lot of people are struggling with their mental health more than usual. If you’re interested, Mary Skinner has a great perspective on hibernation in the winter, which can help you see the cozier side of this season. I’ll link her Prologues podcast down below. Winter also brings the holidays, which can be a sensitive time for some, and if you’re seeing posts or stories that are making your mental health worse, it’s completely valid to mute or unfollow; you can also click “not interested” on certain holiday ads to try and get the algorithm to stop showing them to you, and you don’t have to feel bad for not celebrating holidays in the same way others do.

Mental health isn’t an illness that has an exact cure. Listen to your body and try a few different things to see what makes you feel better. If you need to, indulge in inaction for a little while, but please keep going. You aren’t alone. There are billions of people navigating their own personal struggles while feeling like they’re a burden for actually admitting that they’re struggling. There’s nothing wrong with having a mental illness, and if you’re feeling like you’re better off not putting that on other people, I’m here to tell you that you’re mistaken. Please tell someone, and please hear me when I say that you offer something so unique to this world that nobody else can, which is why you’re here. Thank you for being here.

Prologues by Mary Skinner

I’ve been a fan of Mary for years now, and she has a way of conversing about mental health which makes me feel safe and recognized.

Prologues on Spotify

You can also access the podcast on Apple Music & other podcast sites.

Spotify Episode Link


Mental Health Hotlines:

This website has an international list of helplines - helpguide.org

This website has hotlines for the Czech Republic - mymentalhealth.guide

Helplines in the United States-

Chloe
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