Productivity, self-care, and leisure
People often concentrate on the importance of being physically fit and take time to work on the outsides of their bodies, but it is extremely important to find balance all around. Being healthy from the inside-out is a task that takes some planning and dedication, but it is ultimately one of the most beneficial things one can do for themselves. Moving to university, or coming back after spending a summer back home, is an adjustment; it will take time to figure out what works and what doesn’t work to keep you healthy mentally, physically, and emotionally.
Finding a balance between productivity, self-care, and leisure is one of the greatest things one can do to better their lives in the moment and in the future. The Wellness Education Centre on campus provides some resources that would be beneficial for students to aid in properly managing their time. With so much going on for students, such as school, social gatherings, part time jobs, and extra-curricular activities, “… students can use time management techniques to make time for everything – to find balance. I highly recommend the time management workshops and tools offered through the Learning Commons in the Library,” recommended the staff of The Wellness Education Centre.
At times, it is hard to adapt to these rapid changes; everything seems as though it is moving so quickly that there is barely any time to stop and acknowledge what exactly is changing. Students go from living at home and having some structure (and often less responsibility, both financially and otherwise) to living alone with less restriction; things like eating healthy meals and getting enough sleep can fall to the wayside. These things may seem small now, but they are actually some of the foundational pieces of living well during the period of living independently for the first time. The staff at The Wellness Education Centre mentioned that “First year students especially struggle with finding balance – particularly when it comes to finding time to get enough sleep, eat well, and stay active.” They went on to say “finding balance is something that we all have to constantly work on. New commitments come up, some times of the year get busier than others, and so on. It’s like balancing on one leg on a large circus-sized ball with a plate spinning on a stick that is perched on your nose – something will always come along to perturb that and it’s up to you to regain the stability.”
The Wellness Education Centre staff made clear that they believe that gaining control of time management is the best way to create a balance. The staff stressed that it’s important that students are consciously acknowledging where time is going to ensure that they have an adequate amount of time for taking good physical care of themselves – which is considered self-care (eating well, exercising, sleeping enough) – while maintaining a structured school and work schedule – which is part of productivity, and being sure that they continue to set time aside to do things that they want to do (spending time with friends, doing a hobby, etc.).
The key to being healthy is linked to working towards finding an equal balance between these three extremely important aspects of each individual’s life. Once one begins along this route, it will be simpler to stay healthy – physically, emotionally, and mentally. When looking for help, The Wellness Education Centre is a great resource to make the transition to university life smoother and more enjoyable.