Give yourself some self-care
Kristen Howard is a second-year PharmD candidate at the University of Kentucky College of Pharmacy.
Before I started pharmacy school, I was constantly being reminded how “stressed” I was going to be during that time. I was being told just how tired I was going to be or how much caffeine I was going to consume (alarmingly, it was a lot). However, I was also offered advice on how to take care of myself for the next few years, and I want to share the best of that advice with you.
Diet and exercise
Taking care of your physical health is important for many reasons, especially for school. Making sure you eat the right food groups can help prevent you from getting sick and can even help your body work in the best way it can. Helpful resources such as the American Heart Association lay out how much of each food group you should be eating every day!
Maintaining physical health also includes exercise. Some people prefer going to a gym, but there are tons of other options to get your body moving in a way that you enjoy. Activities like cycling, dance classes, hiking, and yoga are different ways to promote exercise and doing something you love! Exercise can help improve your mood, alongside helping to reduce stress and anxiety.
Mental health
On the topic of stress, your mental well-being is just as important as your physical! Not only does it affect your overall performance in school, but stress also affects all our relationships as well. Being mentally present in both the classroom setting and our friendships helps the most out of the experiences during school.
Finding activities that allow you to unwind can improve your mental health and help you build a support system in your life. This can help with stress and anxiety that comes along with pharmacy school. Activities such as meditation and painting can be very therapeutic and relieve some tension from your life.
What I found
Finding an activity to engage in is a fantastic way to help improve many aspects of life. For example, reading was the perfect activity for me to take a step back from stressful days. When I read, I can immerse myself in other worlds and perspectives and still keep my mind engaged. It also opened a community for me to talk to, and it created strong relationships with other people due to our shared love of books. I love getting to spend time in used bookshops and libraries to support more sustainable reading as well.
Importance of self-care
Making sure you stay mentally and physically well enough to actively participate in assignments, exams, and organizations that you will experience is particularly important. This advice may sound cliche, but it will help so much in the long run to make sure you stay mentally and physically sound. If you do find yourself struggling, reach out to get support so you do not have to go through this alone.
Your future self will thank you so much for taking the time to give yourself some self-care because it allows you to grow as a person and live up to your full potential!