Stress...Stress...stress

College is a stressful time for everyone. Some stress is good for you and can be used as a motivator to push you to study or achieve good grades. But sometimes stress can be unhealthy when it becomes overwhelming and can actually prevent you from functioning to your best ability. 

Here are some tips I found helpful for managing stress in college:

Exercise. All forms of exercise are proven to improve your mood. Try exercising out at the track for a difference in scenery, or try going on a run at the beach, or even for a bike ride! Exercising for 30 minutes a day, three days a week is also proven to significantly keep your energy levels up and allows you to work more efficiently.

Relax. Take time to yourself. Take a bath. Read a book for leisure. Look at a magazine. Go to the beach. Meditate.

Time Management is important. Focus on one task at a time. Keep a calendar or a planner that helps you keep your school work organized. Mark the tasks on your calendar by "most important/must get done" all the way down to "I can finish this tomorrow if need be."

Be realistic. Pulling yourself in different directions will only stress you out, so try not to over-commit yourself or do extracurricular activities when you’re super busy with school.

Don’t turn to drugs and alcohol for support. Some college students drink, do drugs, smoke or engage in other harmful behaviors to try and cope with stress. Now don't get me wrong, this is college and you are going to go out and party I realize this. However, using drugs and alcohol shouldn't be used as a coping mechanism.

Talk to your friends and family for support. If you’re stressed out, talk to your loved ones. Sometimes just talking to someone about your worries can help alleviate them.

"Next time you're stressed, take a step back, inhale and laugh. Remember who you are and why you're here. You're never given anything in this world that you can't handle. Be strong, be flexible, love yourself and love others. Always remember--Just keep moving forward." -Unknown

Positive Mental Attitude

Now that we are well into the spring semester, I'm sure most of you are starting to feel the pressures of homework, studying and midterms start to pile on. I know this is entirely true for me. Lately Ive been feeling like I am never going to have all of my homework done. Ive been really stressed out lately about all of the homework that has been accumulating, not to mention the fact that all of my classes decided to have midterms during the same week.

However, in my health class we have been talking a lot about positive self talk and goal setting.

Affirmations: Positive statements of description used repeatedly to create a positive self image.
Affirmations are used to help boost your self confidence and can also be used to calm the stresses that you may currently have on your mind. Using positive self talk, such as saying, "I am smart and will put my best effort into my school work" will actually help motivate you, making homework seem like much less of a burden. You can also use positive affirmations to help boost your self-esteem. If you are feeling down, try putting up sticky notes around your room, or on your mirror. Repeatedly reading  statements such as "I am healthy," "I am loved," "I am beautiful," "I am a good friend to others," "I am kind," "I am helpful," "I am reliable," "I am confident"... will help you focus on all your good qualities rather than the things you don't feel so great about, and soon the impact of the things you don't particularly feel great about will start to lose power.

Another tactic that might help take some of the stress away regarding schoolwork and studying would be visualization. If you have something on your mind that you keep worrying about, visualize every step, from beginning to end, that will take place in a successful completion of whatever it is that yyou are worrying about. Studies show that by practicing mentally, you can improve your success tremendously. So put time into mentally running through the steps of your up coming test: You walk into class calmly, sit down in the seat you always sit in, take out your pencil and take a deep breath calmly before the teacher hands you the test, look through the questions marking which ones should be easy for you and which ones may take a bit more time, go through once and do all of the problems you know right off the bat, next go through and try the harder problems, finally go through the exam again and check all of your work, breathe a sigh of relief that you completed the exam to the very best of your ability, turn your test in, gather your belongings and you're on with the rest of your day. Now that wasn't so bad was it?

I hope everyone is having a great spring semester so far. And don't stress too much about class work, you are smart, and you got this!

California Girl

Like I said in my last blog, through the college transition you do grow apart from certain friends; however, you also realize that some friendships are extremely valuable, a bond that, no matter how far the distance, cannot be broken.

For starters, I am really going to miss New York and of course, Riley as well. I am so lucky to have two awesome best friends in my life who I know I can always turn too. Our New York 2015 trip was definitely one for the books!

New York City is so different from California-much more fast paced. Parris and

I could barely keep up with the constant hustle and bustle.. We were at least twenty steps behind Riley everywhere we went. Although New York was great, I think I will definitely be a California girl for life. I could never imagine myself anywhere but by the salty water and sunny skies. I think living in Santa Barbara is to blame for this. Waking up in February and being able to put on a swim suit and walk just blocks to the beach is such an incredible way of life. I love the leisure that comes with living in California. There is literally always something to do, especially in Santa Barbara-go on a hike, go to the beach, play volleyball, go on a bike ride along the beach, the list goes on. I feel like California is such an active place to live-there is so many opportunities to stay healthy and so many amazing and close cities to go visit for a weekend get away. And let me tell you the people are a heck of a lot nicer than the New Yorkers. I can’t tell you how many times I was shoved out of the way or hit on the shoulder walking around in the city. Oh and don’t even think about asking anyone for directions because they will gaze at you like you’re stupid! Over all, there isn’t much not to like about California, in my opinion!

 

I guess you could say…

Once a Californian, Always a Californian!

Friends; Some Gained, Some Lost, Some forever

You will only encounter a few people in your life that will remain your friends through thick and thin. One of the times you realize this will be during your transition from high school to college. Many of the people you thought were your friends during high school will prove that they were never ‘truly’ real friends when you both take your separate paths and go off to college. For me this was entirely true.

Now I don’t mean to write this blog to bag on failed friendships or to say that I was never the person who didn’t hold up my end of the bargain with a friendship, because that isn’t true. I am writing about this stepping-stone in life because I think it is an important part of growing up. It doesn’t mean that either you or the other person in the friendship, are bad people, or that you didn’t care about that person at one point. It means that you are mature enough to realize that people grow apart. Of course you are going to draw away from people in your life because as life goes on you start to figure out who you are and what your goals are in life. Everyone has different aspirations in life and sometimes when you begin to engage in creating a future for yourself you grow apart from friends soley because they are doing the same thing in there life.

I just think it’s very important to acknowledge that growing apart from people isn’t always a bad thing. You most likely learned something with that friendship or even relationship. It is part of growing up, an inevitable part of life—and you must encounter lost friendships to find the right ones, right?

Just some food for thought (:

New York City

Going to New York City with one of your best friends to visit your other best friend is probably one of the best trips you can go on in your lifetime.

Central Park!

On Thursday Parris and I headed to New York City to see our best friend Riley that goes to NYU. We basically almost missed our flight because the TSA at security decided that our carry on bags were too big...so we had to wait in line to check our bags. Parris went behind me and all of the sudden I look back and she has half of her clothes on the ground trying to get her bag to fit in the carryon box..nope, it still didn't fit. So we ended up paying $25 to check these tiny bags that could have definitely been considered a carry on bag. Had we known we would have brought a bigger suitcase so we would have been able to fit more clothes in it if we knew we were going to have to check our bags!



Anyways we finally made it to our plane. Once we got on and realized there was tv's on the back of all of the seats we were super excited. .....Until I try to use mine and it's broken-just my luck. The plane ride was five hours but it seemed to go by pretty fast!

Yesterday's Adventure:
Riley had class so Parris and I decided that we were going to try to take the subway to the Statue of Liberty. Well I bet you can imagine how that ended up. We got tired of waiting for the "R" line so we decided that it would be fine to take the "Q". That was until we realized that the "Q" was taking us an hour away to Coney Island. Once we realized we got off and got on the "N" train which was suppose to take us back towards Battery Park so we could catch the ferry to Ellis Island. We ended up getting off at China Town instead of the Battery Park stop. At this point we were getting a little nervous that we weren't going to make it back. We got back on the "N" line and the driver announces that the next stop would be the last stop. At this point I am also in tears and Parris is getting extremely mad. We got off at the stop and we here the subway next to us announce that the next stop is "14th and Union Square" (which is where Riley's dorm is). We ran as fast as we could and barely made it on before the doors closed. Basically, we spent $30 on subway passes to make it right back to Riley's dorm....

Despite our subway mishap, we went to the natural history museum, central park, and Times Square!

Stay tuned for more on the adventures endured on the NYC 2015 trip.

The Luria Library

The most beneficial place on campus: The Library.

I have to admit my first semester of college I didn't utilize the library at all. In fact, I didn't even step foot in the library until this semester, and that was only because I had a two hour break in between my classes and I wasn't sure what to do with myself.. Well I have to tell you, I am so glad that I decided to start to utilize the library!

For those new to utilizing the library:
When you first walk into the library, there are round tables set up for studying. This is a great place to do group work or have a study session with friends. Right behind these tables are the computers. (Keep in mind that if they are all full, there is most likely a line that starts over by the printers. Yes I was the person who just jumped in and took over a computer with out standing in line because I had no idea that there was even a line...and got I yelled at by one of the workers haha.) Behind the computers is the cafe, which let me tell you, comes in handy especially when you've been at school for over five hours already. I love their lattes <---yes I know, typical white girl. Lattes are lifesavers. But the cafe also has a variety of other drinks and pastry type snacks.  Next to the cafe are the study stalls. This is where I usually go to take notes or finish my math homework. Although its a great place to finish up some homework, it's not the best place to go if you need to concentrate because it is kind of loud being that it's right next to the cafe. Now to my favorite part of the library: "The Quiet Zone." The quiet zone is down stairs. This is where I always go to read or study for an upcoming test.

The library is such a great place for a variety of reasons. The staff is willing to help you find anything you need. You can check out books, and also take out a text book for two hours that teachers put on reserve. You are free to use the computers for any type of homework, research or essays. There are printers available, although you do have to pay a small amount to print. And the most important thing, in my opinion, is the fact that everyone in there is studying and working on homework; it is definitely a great learning environment and has really motivated me to study and get my work done at school, so by the time I get home at night, I can take time to myself and relax!



Spring Semester Hours:

Monday- 7:30am-11:00pm
Tuesday- 7:30am-11:00pm
Wednesday- 7:30am-11:00pm
Thursday- 7:30am-11:00pm
Friday- 7:30am-4:30pm
Saturday- 12:00pm-5:00pm
Sunday- 11:00am-11:00pm

My Favorite Class

Well, this being only my second semester of college, I can't say I have too many classes under my belt to chose from... However, if I had to chose from the classes from my first semester and now my newly added classes, I would definitely say psychology is by far my favorite class that I have taken here at Santa Barbara City College. Dont get me wrong, I liked my other courses as well. All of my teachers have been absolutely awesome! But psychology is so different from any class I've taken so far. 

When I walked into class on the first day, I have to say I was a little intimidated because the classroom was set up like a small lecture hall. However, the professor ended up being sick and wasn't able to make it to class so we had a sub. A few days after the first class,  our professor Gina Bell sent out an email regarding her absence. In her email she also stated that this class wasn't going to be one that you can expect to zone out in. She really highlighted the fact that she expected the class to actively participate and this was something that made me in the slightest bit nervous-only because I am typically not the type of person who likes to speak up in class. 

During the next class, we all finally got to meet our professor and she proved herself to be my absolute favorite professor so far! Her teaching style really helps everyone to feel comfortable in class and I am never afraid to speak up. She is a very helpful teacher but she still leaves room for you to learn and expand your mind on the subject that is being taught.

My main reason for writing about my favorite class is to tell you that when you're picking out your courses for the semester-take chances! I had no desire to take a psychology class but I ended up adding it just because I wasn't sure what else to take...however, I've only been in the class for two weeks and I'm strongly considering changing my major to psychology!