Self Care at ‘SC

Ellice Ellis ‘20

Between midterms, jobs, internships, homework, and relationships taking time for yourself can be the last thing on a student’s mind. Taking on too many tasks, overbooking yourself, and never slowing down can put a student in a diminished physical, emotional, and mental state.

That’s where self-care comes in. Self-care is what helps us manage day-to-day stress to prevent it from piling up. Acts of self-care are mostly voluntary and they aid in allowing you to maintain your physical, mental, or emotional health. These activities can help us feel healthy, relaxed, and ready to take on work and responsibilities.

Self-care is extremely important but there is a notion that the practice is selfish or inconsiderate. Despite these claims, taking time for yourself makes you a more effective and energetic individual.

As a freshman, I initially did not know how to manage my stress. I was swamped with exams, essays, making new friends, and trying to balance the new activities I was involved in. I felt this pressure to live a typical college student's’ life. Whether it was going out, studying with friends, or going to events, I thought taking time for myself would take away from my freshman experience.

Later, after learning how to practice self-care I realized it is an important way to maintain a healthy relationship with myself and others. Unhealthy relationships come about when you don’t take time for your needs. I found that the best way to fully enjoy my experience at USC was to to build meaningful bonds with fewer people and activities rather than overloading myself.  

Photo by USC Office of Religious Life

Asking yourself “what have you done for you lately?” is one of the most important things you can do to start thinking about self-care. Beyond that one can catch up on a novel, binge-watch Netflix, or even complete a cool puzzle to practice self-care. Here are some ways on campus students can practice self-care:

• Every Monday from 12pm to 1pm at the Student Counseling Center at Engemann Student Health Center there is a mindful meditation practice group. Meditation releases endorphins that help elevate mood and have a positive effect on the whole body. Additionally research from the journal Health Psychology tells us that that mindful meditation helps us feel less stressed and is linked with decreased levels of the stress hormone cortisol.
• Additionally Wednesdays from 12-12:40 pm there is a mindful meditation practice group at the University Religious Center in room 202.

• Get inspired and take a trip to the USC Fisher Museum of Art. It’s quiet, the art is beautiful and when you return to your dorm take some time to draw or journal about what you saw.
  

All in all, practicing self-care is a great way to start living your best and healthiest life. As Karl Lagerfeld says “don’t sacrifice yourself too much, because if you sacrifice too much there’s nothing else you can give and nobody will care for you.”

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