De-stressing Through TV Shows and Movies

October is HealthyU month at U of T, an entire month dedicated to celebrating physical and mental health! October 17-21 (starting today!) is Self-Care week, which promotes ways to take care of yourself physically and mentally as well as how to de-stress. Okay, I'll be the first to admit that when I initially thought about self-care, I wondered, "Why do I have to be concerned with how I'm doing?" Well, after some careful consideration, I realized that if I don't care for myself, I get burnt out...easily. I can't always be on the go, go, go (although I do enjoy that) because otherwise all aspects of my life: social, academic, and personal would suffer. My not-so-secret way (according my friends and family) to de-stress from the enormous amount of midterms I have coming up all in the same week (scary) is to watch some good TV shows and movies. But first, let me explain the source of my stress. I prefer to study in 2 to 3 hour blocks, even though concentrating for that long can sometimes be difficult. Finding time to study for that long can also be difficult, especially with my other commitments. Sometimes I feel stressed out because I feel like I haven't studied enough. However, at the end of my long studying sessions, I mostly feel like I've just come out of a deep slumber, blinking rapidly and looking around wondering "Where am I?" 
Picture of Robarts Library
Robarts in the Winter: a building that pulls me in for many hours of studying

What’s on my Study Abroad “To Do:” List?

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I'm getting there with my "To Do:" List making skills, but maybe this one is a little too ambitious!

When I first arrived in London I had a “To Do:” list with EVERYTHING on it: goal setting, student life, experiences, and travel ideas. I also made a pact with myself that during my semester abroad I would be different — I would stop procrastinating and get all my work done during the week so that I could be free to travel All of Europe on my days off. After two weeks of classes, I realized that my expectations were too big the reality and it was time to take a plan of action.