Relaxation Methods for Your Academic Career

[Clever-Name]

I'm sure everyone at some point in their academic career has come to a point where they just can't study anymore and feel like they're going insane. What are your methods to relaxation? Are there any suggestions you can give to new students who might be encountering similar situations that you have in the past such that you might be able to provide some suggestions?

I haven't come across a thread like this in my time here on these forums but I think this would be an important one to make known. Having a good relaxation method could do wonders for making your academic life enjoyable.

I'm currently dealing with grad school applications, scholarship applications, presidency of my student association, thesis, conference talks, and my full time course schedule... I am nearing my breaking point.

My relaxation includes:

Isolating myself from work. Either lie down on my bed and listen to relaxing music or go sit on the couch and play some video games. Whatever makes me focus on something else other than my textbooks on the bookshelf. I have started reading some non-science books to occupy my mind with something else. I am currently on the 3rd Game of Thrones books and I highly recommend it as a series to read.

 

[chill_factor]

here's some articles on relaxation methods that might be useful.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15808232

 

[chiro]

Some people get solace from doing activities where you don't really have to think at all like very simple repetitive tasks like gardening, running/walking, playing certain mindless video games (the ones where you can just immerse yourself without thinking too much about it), and the other things like music, movies, TV, and so on.

All these have a common theme where the activity has a reduced level of thinking that can calm people down at some level mentally.

Meditation takes this to a more extreme level and for the right people with the right techniques, it can be extremely effective.

Also if you like to play music, playing music or doing improv where you just let your fingers (or other extremities) do what they want can be effective.

You might want to think about an activity of reduced thinking that you like in the context of the above responses (or ones that haven't been considered at all).

 

[Clever-Name]

here's some articles on relaxation methods that might be useful.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15808232

Thanks for reading my post first.

@chiro

I like what you have said; I am not a meditation type of person but I do acknowledge the practice, I think it would be very helpful for those in stressful situations. I hope people will read this.

 

[MathematicalPhysicist]

I am going to the park near the beach, I look for a shaded place and just relaxing looking at the sky.

I find it quite annoying to stay at home and play video games etc, I need to refresh my brain from the indoors. I do it quite a lot...

Today I felt as if I am in Hawaii or some exotic resort...

 

[throwWiffle]

Thank god I'm not the only one, haha. I'm in exactly the same boat, except my thesis and conferences are next semester - this semester I'm starting on a paper (:/ and :D at the same time).

Well the simplest thing I suppose that I do if I'm feeling stressed, is cut down on caffeine (it really helps), get enough sleep, and make sure I take Friday and Saturday night off & hang out with friends without drinking - in that order. Beyond that, I read online comics, and listen to some music when I want a break. Also, just talking to people btwn classes, and coming up with cheesy physics jokes / good stories / projects that would be cool if any of us had the time to do them. (humor does wonders)

 

[ThatTallGirl]

Something that's helped me is Lindy Hop and Blues. Dancing is both relaxing and physical activity.

 

[lisab]

I took martial arts all through upper division classes. Helped tremendously.