As we get into week two of quarantine, it’s undeniably hard to not feel like you are watching life pass you buy as those precious final weeks of high school roll by with not a single senior tradition in sight. 

While we all must accept the reality that this is what’s best for the time being, it’s easy to get lost in the despair of your lonely room and limited access to the outside world. 

For a few days, I found myself becoming increasingly hopeless. 

I felt like I had cooked everything there was to cook, baked my heart out, and became frustrated with my mediocre piano skills. I had repainted my room, gone to Ikea and Trader Joe’s more than enough times, and I really just started to miss my friends. 

It suddenly became too cold to go for a run or a bike ride. I was consistently sleeping in until 11 a.m., and I found myself with little motivation to do anything other than watch Netflix and wallow in my self-pity.

To put it bluntly, I felt like shit after my third day of lying in bed and sulking over quarantine. I had had enough of myself.

Realizing that this wasn’t going to be over any time soon, I started to turn it around. I facetimed friends that I hadn’t talked to in months. I discovered that group facetime calls are my new favorite thing, and that the gift of time was something that I had to take advantage of. 

Now, a group of friends and I lovingly call ourselves “yogang” and facetime every day to participate in a 75 minute live-streamed class of Corepower yoga and guided meditation.

I’ve listened to more music than ever before, and I allow myself time for self care. I cook myself breakfast every morning, and frequently bake enough for myself, my family, and my neighbors.

Since my brother has chosen to spend his quarantine at home rather than at his apartment in the city, I get to hear him play guitar again for hours upon hours each day. 

Though I’ve barely touched my piano since my days of elementary school piano lessons, I’ve forced myself to learn even the most simple songs.

In being quarantined, I’ve been able to rediscover things that I love and people that I love. Although I truly do miss school, sometimes it takes away from things I love to do simply because I don’t have time for them. 

Through being quarantined and through having what feels like all the time in the world, I have been able to care for myself in ways that I haven’t since forever ago. 

In no way am I thankful for Coronavirus.

I would love to have this part of my senior year back, and I would love to know that I’m going to get a senior prom and a graduation.

Unfortunately, at this point, I know that nothing is guaranteed. At this point, we can’t control much, but we can certainly control what to make of our newfound time and abundance of sleep. 

If I have learned anything from this quarantine, it’s that I have a new love for yoga, slightly improved skills on the piano, and a room that doesn’t look like it belongs to a 10-year-old anymore.

For all my showchoir friends out there, competitions can be hell. While competition season is undoubtedly one of my favorite times of the year, if not done right, it can turn your life into a mess.

Being crowned with the name of “packing list queen” due to my extensive and overly detailed packing list, I have some experience with the dos and do-nots of competitions. 

Now sitting on the bus to my last first competition in the thrilling fields of Omaha, I’m more prepared than ever, and ready to share some of my wisdom with those who may or may not need or want it.

1. Preparing

Competition week is chaotic. 

For this reason, it’s important to get on top of your homework, and do whatever you can in order to get as much sleep as you can leading up to Saturday. Communicating with teachers in order to let them know your schedule for the weekend is important in those classes that you cannot blow off for the weekend. 

As previously mentioned, my packing list, specifically dedicated to competitions is thorough and detailed. It’s categorized into each phase of the weekend and each bag that will be essential to take with you. These categories include “bus ride there,” “bus ride back,” “bag for competition day,” and “duffel bag.” Under each of these categories is everything that you could ever need with you, but not too much that you are lugging a huge bag from place to place. 

Once everything that I need is laid out on my floor and bed, my duffel bag is organized very strategically. My clothes for Saturday are in one specific spot, as well as all of my makeup, toiletries, etc. Everything that I may need or want for the bus ride, however, is placed on top for easy access. This includes a big comfy sweatshirt for sleeping, snacks, a charger, as well as chapstick, money, and my headphones. 

While this level of detail is not totally necessary, it does make my life a lot easier when it comes to 4, 5, or 6 hour bus rides with minimal extra room.

Like I said earlier, competitions can be hell if not done right, so one of the essential steps to ensuring that they are done right is making sure to prepare in every way possible to ease the exhaustiveness of the weekend. 

2. The Day of

When Saturday arrives, there are quite a few things to keep in mind as you head into the day. 

It’s likely that you’re running on minimal sleep after getting to the hotel late the previous night. This is why it’s important to recharge whenever you get the opportunity.

 It’s essential to drink plenty of water, not only to help yourself but it will also be useful when it comes to performing, whether you’re in Hot Brockets, Entourage, or High Heeled Harmony. 

I also always, always keep snacks on me. Usually the host high school has some decent food, but living off of a diet of Chick-Fil-A and walking tacos for the day is not strongly recommended. It’s nice to have your own options, without being confined to the options of the cafeteria. 

Most importantly, however, enjoy yourself. There’s a reason that so many tears are shed at the last competition every year. Yes, show choir is known to be a cult, but I like to call it more of a family. A crazy, semi-dysfunction, big, happy family. The bonds formed by spending long bus rides together and performing beside one another is unlike any other experience, and provides a rare opportunity that I am so grateful for.

Making music for with some of my best friends these past four years is an experience that has shaped who I am today and has given me TONS of amazing memories.

As I venture into the beginning of the end, I will definitely be taking my own advice to try and avoid the terror of competitions:)

As we get deeper into fall with the slow approach of November, the temperatures start to decline, school seems to have gone on forever, and we often become sluggish and tired. Many people light-heartedly complain about being tired or drowning in school work, but how does the lack of sunlight really affect our health?

Sunlight and Serotonin

We all know the feeling- you’re sitting in your kitchen eating dinner at 6:30 p.m. only to suddenly realize that it is completely dark outside. The hours of sunlight become limited, and the majority of those hours are spent inside cinder-block classrooms.

The lack of sunlight that we get during those shorter days can legitimately affect our mood even cause cases of serious mental health issues.

Sunlight triggers the release of a hormone called serotonin in our brains. Serotonin is associated with a better mood, calmness, and higher level of focus. When we lack serotonin, our mood can take a turn for the worse and fewer hours of sunlight can lead us to feel groggy, low-energy, and sad.

Avoiding the School Year Slug

Finding ways to counteract the (literal) darkness is essential to finishing the semester strong. Though they might not be as cheap, convenient, or easy as sunlight, there are many other ways to boost serotonin levels, therefore boosting your mood and giving you that needed boost of energy.

Diet, Exercise, and Sleep

As high school students, we all are constantly told how important it is to maintain a healthy lifestyle consisting of a healthy diet and sufficient amounts of sleep, but I’m here to tell you that this can help not only your body, but your brain too.

A good diet consisting of things such as good fats, zinc, magnesium, and iron, can help to replenish that serotonin in your brain, leading to a better mood and a higher level of satisfaction.

The same goes for sleep, as not enough or too much sleep can interfere with your body’s ability to produce serotonin, leaving you feeling sluggish and tired.

Make Time for You

Science aside, as we grow deeper and deeper into the school year, it’s hard to maintain that glow that summer seems to leave us with. Bags form, stress acne arises, and each night brings seems to bring false hope of a healthy amount of sleep. 

In addition to juggling school, extracurriculars, college applications, and personal relationships, one thing that people seem to leave out is self-care. We are guilty of pushing ourselves to boost our grades upon maintaining activities, but many people seem to forget that they are deserving of time that is only for themselves, free of homework and other responsibilities.

Some things that can help with a little self love can be speaking to a loved one or a therapist, pacing yourself, focusing on positive thoughts, and rewarding yourself for small accomplishments.

Even taking one night a week where you can practice some self care can improve productivity and boost your mental health. This may be as simple as taking a bubble bath, or settling down with a good movie and some ice cream after a long week. It may also be necessary to schedule an appointment with a therapist or spend time with family in order to relieve stress and get back to a healthy state of mind.

Lowering stress and improving your mental health can boost serotonin levels and help keep up a strong semester as the temperatures decline.

Be Aware

All in all, taking care of ourselves and taking steps to avoid a large drop in serotonin can help to keep us energized the days grow shorter and shorter. While the weekend may be enough for some of us to relax and refresh, some people may require more. Make sure to take inventory of your emotions, and take the time necessary to destress and improve levels of serotonin.

Winters are long, and the stress of school certainly doesn’t help, but with proper steps, a little self care can go a long way.

College is stressful. We spend hours upon hours filling out information about the lives that we have constructed for ourselves over 17 years. We pay $50 to ask an admissions officer to please look at my grades and test scores and writing and tell me whether or not I am good enough to attend the institution that you work for.

31 days from when many applications are due, college consumes our thoughts, our conversations, and our spare time. We are bombarded with questions of majors, schools, applications, and everything in between. SAT scores diminish our self-esteem. Single-digit acceptance rates quell our dreams.

In a time of immense stress and pressure on high school seniors, how do we know that we’ll make it out alright on the other side? How do we find the light through a blur of red Xs on a Naviance scatter-gram?

1. Remember What is Important

In choosing a college, it’s important to remember what really matters to you. The environment of your college should reflect your core values and cater to the things that make you happiest, such as school clubs, a city environment, sporting events, etc. Studies have found that the factors that have the biggest influence on the happiness of a college student are satisfaction with social relationships, resources and the educational environment, personal goal achieving and extracurricular activities. 

Notice that “level of prestige” is not included in this list. Yes, an acceptance letter from Yale would definitely provide a certain level of satisfaction, but when it comes to overall happiness, there is little cause for stress about admissions. All of these things can be found at any institution, and they all rely more upon the student’s individual choices and the opportunities that they take advantage of rather than what the institution provides to them. While some universities may cater to these “happiness factors” more than others, there is little cause for alarm at the sight of an average GPA that is higher than your own.

2. Use Your Resources

I’m guilty myself of a few panicked moments in which I thought my future was crumbling down before me, but perspective is important. Today, we have so many resources to help us pursue whatever we choose. In 2016, 85% of students enrolling in their first year of a four year post-secondary school received financial aid. There are so many opportunities for students to pursue what they feel will lead them to their best future, and lead them to extensive opportunities to discover what makes them happy.

3. Keep Perspective

In the end, it will all be okay. Our future will go on, and we will continue to venture on this path of self-discovery and exploration, no matter the decision that comes back from the admissions office of your dream school. While disappointment may ensue in the coming months, it is unlikely to last, and another future home will be waiting for you with open arms. No matter the campus, the pursuance of good relationships, opportunities, and personal goals will lead you to a better and happier future, one free of college stress.