Thomas Birch gives you some valuable advice on how to get back into the swing of semester.

A collective sigh of despair can be heard emerging from the mouths of hundreds, thousands, millions, billions (okay, maybe not billions) of students across the country.

It’s the beginning of semester.

Yes, the summer holidays have come to an end, no ifs, ands, or buts about it. No more Netflix marathons, no more staying up until ungodly hours checking your social media accounts, no more midnight PlayStation and Xbox adventures, no more freedom.

The end of uni woes, has, well…ended. (See what I did there?)

Depressing, right?

Fear not! What if I told you that it doesn’t have to be depressing? What if I told you that you can beat those post-holiday blues once and for all? (I can hear the shouts of protest already; you think I’m crazy.)

You see, it comes down to one thing…perspective, and taking action (okay, two things).

You may not have an abundance of time to do all the things that you love like you do when you’re on holidays, but that is exactly what makes those things so much more special!

The appeal, the allure, the attractiveness of your favourite holiday pastimes is about to skyrocket.Value the free time you do have, don’t waste a second of it. Use your time wisely, especially the day before the onslaught of note-taking, lectures, and tutorials begins.

It’s time to get back into the swing of semester!

Wake up early. (All right, this may sound silly, in fact it may sound downright absurd. Abandon valuable sleep-in time?! Bear with me.)

Waking up at a reasonable hour (keyword – reasonable) gives you the chance to get all the boring stuff out of the way and leaves you with more time to do what you enjoy.

Do everything you need to do in preparation for uni the next day as soon as you can. Get the not-so-interesting tasks out of the way so you can spend the rest of the day relaxing and really enjoying those final treasured hours with more pleasurable pursuits.

Engage in something that interests you; don’t just sit around and watch the clock tick by. Go for a walk, a bike ride (physical activity is a plus as it releases feel-good endorphins – natural chemicals which can help reduce stress), read a new book, hang out with friends.

Anything that actively engages you is going to be much more rewarding than, well, doing nothing.

Remind yourself that not all is lost; the weekend pops in for a visit every week, that’s a fact! Likewise, keep in mind that the uni holidays will rear their glorious head once again in due course.

Stress less. Stressing doesn’t really solve anything, does it? (Unless you’re one of those students that uses stress as a motivator to get things done at the last minute, however this is not advised.) If you’ve followed the advice thus far, you should be well on your way to eliminating unnecessary stress. Take a deep breath and keep on swimming (thank you Dory).

Finally, when all else fails and you don’t have much leisure time to play with or you’re struggling to see the light at the end of those post-holiday blues, appreciate the good things that uni has to offer (as hard as it can be sometimes…essays…ugh), such as socialising, exercise, lunchtime, an education, catching up on the latest buzz courtesy of the uni media team!

Get excited! You’re about to embark on another week, another semester, another year of filling your mind with knowledge.

As Nelson Mandela so aptly put it, “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.”

What is more exciting than that?

Need more assistance getting back on track? Check out our student survival guide!