This week at the Rose Cafe, mental health experts Sarah Rubenstein-Gillis and Andrea Gerding came to speak. I’ll gladly take advice on managing stress any day, especially during the last few weeks of the school year, and I’m grateful that I had the opportunity to learn a few more tricks to help myself deal with stressful situations. Since high school, I’ve struggled with anxiety, and it was almost comforting to know that others at Cornell (specifically those who were also attending the cafe series along with me) stressed the same way I do. In fact, the speakers started the discussion by asking, “What is stress?” Some of the responses that were given included: lock jaw, shallow breathing, insomnia, a racing mind, and appetite loss, all things that I’ve personally experienced during the height of prelim or finals season.

Asides from feeling put at ease that I wasn’t the only one going through stress that affects both my mind and my body, I also appreciated the destress strategies that the speakers gave. A few of them I was already used to, and even practicing during times of stress, such as using a planner and having a pre-homework routine. But the rest of them were strategies I’d never even considered, namely the Italian “Pomodoro” Technique of using a timer (any timer, not just a tomato timer, as the name implies) to take a short (20-25 minute) break from work. This break can include doing some jumping jacks, walking around, taking a shower, making a short phone call, etc. If one is to break up their work every so often using this technique, he or she is sure to find themselves more able to concentrate, according to the speakers.

Additionally, Ms. Rubenstein-Gillis and Ms. Gerding mentioned a study where it was shown that checking Facebook during work can actually bring down people’s moods and decrease their energy. Sure, I knew scrolling through my news feed every half-hour was probably a bad idea, but I had no clue that it could actually have negative effects on my concentration or energy. Knowing that has definitely allowed me to rethink how I study, how I spend my time, and how I structure my day. Like I said, getting advice on how best to succeed at Cornell always comes at just the right time.