By Guest Blogger Solen Aref, Washington State University

Hi! Solen here, hopping in as a guest collegiate blogger for College Hill this week.

A little about me: I'm an intern for the WSU College of Medicine, a reporter for the Auburn Examiner and a broadcast news and political science student at Washington State University in Pullman. Go Cougs!

I know how gnarly finals week can be between endless hours of studying and overwhelming assignments. It’s more important now than ever to take care of your mental health, just like you tend to your physical health.

Here are 5 tips that help me stay mentally strong and healthy as both an intern and busy college student (during a pandemic, no less):

1  Set online time limits and boundaries

Create boundaries that normalize time off. You do not have to be available 24/7. I’ve made it a rule not to respond to emails after 8 p.m. unless it’s urgent, and that has made the biggest difference for me. Do what works for you!

2 Unload your day

Do this by talking to one person or writing one page in a journal each evening. This will help decompress your thoughts from the day to start over fresh the next morning. 

3 Take meaningful breaks

It’s easy to kill time scrolling on your phone. Instead, try something that recharges you more. Stretch, do yoga, get outside or do anything else that will give your eyes a break from staring at a screen all day.

4 Give yourself positive affirmations

Keep positive quotes and sayings around your study and work space to lift your spirits whenever you’re feeling down. Get creative: you can make collages for your walls, write on sticky notes to put on your work desk or change your phone's lock screen to a positive quote that inspires you.

5 Create "I did do" lists

If you’ve ever looked at your daily to-do list and felt like a failure for not accomplishing everything, try this instead: at the end of each day, write down a list of all the things you did accomplish, no matter how small. It makes you feel better remembering all you got done, and also helps you visualize your productivity for the day.

Do you have a favorite tip that has improved your mental health? Let us know by tweeting College Hill at @ch_threads!