By Kylie McHugh
College is stressful. I’m sure everyone reading this can relate to that. My freshman year of college, I did not handle stress well, and it led me into a hole. Not very fun if you ask me. This year, I vowed to take control of my stress and find ways to let myself unwind and de-stress. Now, as an over-thinker, I do not believe that I will ever be fully not-stressed. However, I have achieved what I once thought was impossible and found ways to calm my brain.
1) The first way I found was to find movies that are on the shorter side that aren’t too depressing. Here’s how I see it. When I start a new show, I never wanna stop. When I rewatch a show, I know it’s amazing, and therefore, never want to stop. A good 90-minute movie seemed perfect. The story will begin and end with no cliff-hangers (as long as you pick correctly). For me personally, the go-to is romcoms, specifically of the 90s – early 2000s. These movies have the perfect amount of predictability that I don’t feel like I am thinking the whole time. They fill me with joy, and for 90 minutes I can breathe. Of course, this is only a good option for when you have little to medium work to do, so it doesn’t come between you and your grades. Some of my favorites from this past semester have been:
a) Lady Bird (2017) one of my favorite movies!
b) Leap Year (2010)
c) Away We Go (2009)
d) Música (2024)
e) Adventureland (2009)
f) Notting Hill (1999)
g) The entire Bridget Jones series
2) My next favorite way to destress is listening to an album. I am and will always be an avid music lover. My life would genuinely be so different without my soundtracks playing through each moment. Music is constantly coming out, and I find it hard to keep up with. What I started to do is when I get stressed, I find an album that I haven’t listened to and I play it from beginning to end. I believe there are many benefits to this. 1) It’s fun to listen to the album in the order the artist intended. 2) It helps take my mind off of everything that I am dealing with. Some of my favorite recent albums to listen to are:
a) The Crux by Djo (2025)
b) Kansas Anymore (The Longest Goodbye) by ROLE MODEL (2024)
c) Older (and Wiser) by Lizzy McAlpine (2024)
d) Sunburn by Dominic Fike (2023)
e) 19 by Adele (2008)
f) Folklore by Taylor Swift (2020)
g) When We Were Friends by The Backseat Lovers (2018)
3) My last favorite way to destress is coloring! This is a recent rediscovery for me. Most people probably hear coloring and think it’s such a childish thing, but to that I say don’t knock it till you try it. It is super relaxing and is a great way to be creative. My absolute favorite thing is to put on an album and just color! I have spent hours and hours coloring and listening to music, and losing track of time.
Stress is no fun—understatement of the year. However, there are ways to help yourself through it. Now that we are coming up on finals, it’s essential to make sure that you are keeping a healthy balance between school, work, and life.
