Winter in Vermont is so beautiful. The mountains are covered in snow, and the trees bend beautifully with its heavy weight. It’s a season we look forward to. We break out the cozy sweaters, sip hot chocolate, and listen to Christmas music. But once the holidays are over, we feel winter will never end.

In most states, winter will last an average of three months. Then spring arrives, and everything is fresh and new again. However, here in Vermont, we tend to skip spring altogether and get bombarded with six months of winter. During these long and dark months, we tend to fall into a rut. Our grades being to slip, we put minimal effort into our appearance, all we want to do is sleep, and we fear we won’t make it to spring. As someone who has lived in Vermont for over ten years, I fully understand winter’s gloomy affects. So I have compiled a few tips and tricks that have helped me beat the winter blues and stay on top of my homework during the spring semester.

Exercise

Your health is your wealth, so take care of your body by moving a little every day. Whether that’s going for a walk, hiking, doing a mini workout in your dorm, or having a full-on sweat session at the gym, make sure to move your body for at least thirty minutes each day. If you can, do some of your workouts outside. I know it’s cold, but try going for a run. Anything involving fresh air and movement will help tremendously, and getting the blood flowing will help you de-stress, focus, and sleep better.

Sleep!

This is probably one of the most important tips out there, but making sure you get enough sleep every night will do wonders for your overall well-being. Now, I’m sure you’ve heard this a million times before, but getting enough sleep is so important for your physical and mental health. A study done by experts at Stanford University suggests that college students need at least 8 of sleep every night. I understand that this can be difficult when trying to balance school, sports, homework, work and a social life, but at least try to squeeze in an hour nap here and there. Your body, mind, and grades will thank you.

Take Your Vitamins

Also known as the sunshine vitamin, vitamin D is important to add to your daily routine. Vitamin D is produced by the body as a response to sun exposure; however, during these winter months, we don’t typically see much sun so adding in the vitamin D will definitely increase your mood. It is also known to help reduce the risk of the flu, which has been running rampant as of late. So to avoid getting sick and stressing your body, definitely throw this into your daily routine, and you will be ready to get that assignment done that has been staring at you for three weeks.

 Try Not to Procrastinate

I’m laughing as I type this because I am the Princess of Procrastination. I will put things off until the very last minute and then stress, get mad at myself, and then put it off some more. Moral of the story, don’t be like me. School can wear you out. I get wanting to come home, sit on the couch for 6 hours, and binge watch Grey’s Anatomy, but putting off your schoolwork is going to cut into that precious snooze time we all need. Set up a schedule for yourself, laying out everything you need to get done and the dates your assignments are due. This will help you stay on top of your work and also allow you time to sit around and watch Netflix in your PJs all day.

Do Something for Yourself and Make Time for Friends

Despite our busy schedules, it is so important to take the time to do something with your friends or even just by yourself. After a long week, I know all I want to do is sit on the couch and do nothing, which is totally okay! But make sure you make time for friends, too, because they will encourage you to have a little fun and forget about the stresses from the week before. Also, plan something fun for the week, whether it’s promising a lunch date to yourself, a trip to Target (because everyone loves Target), or a coffee with a friend. This will give you something to look forward to and will keep you going until that special day arrives.

The winter can be a drag, and unfortunately we can’t completely escape the winter blues. But adding any of these tips to your daily life should help. Let’s face it: there won’t be that “one thing” that solves all of our winter problems, but adding in some of these tips regularly should help make those cold, dark days a little better.

Jessica Penwarden graduated from Castleton University with a BA in Multidisciplinary Studies in 2019. 

Starting new things can be scary.

Even students who are excited to start college will likely report that some things scared them—and that’s when they start as a freshman in the Fall with everyone else.

Switching schools can offer a whole new set of frightening experiences. Starting new in the Spring means everything is new to you even when it isn’t to your classmates.

As someone who has made this transition, I know how overwhelming this can seem. But don’t fret! There’s no reason your transition has to go poorly.

Don’t Hide. If you’re anything like me, your first response to finding yourself in a strange new circumstance is to do as little as you can. It can be very tempting to move only from your lectures to the dining hall, and back to the inviting cave of your blankets, stuffed animals and laptop. This is a bad idea – and I speak from experience. Hiding in your room won’t help you feel more comfortable in your new school.

Try talking to people. Maybe sit in the library, or a public lounge, or the common room in your suite instead of your bed. Try leaving your door open. It’s okay if you don’t feel like going to supper every time your suitemates invite you, but you shouldn’t turn them down every time either. Chances are they’re really nice and want to help you settle in. Let them help you.

Get Involved. Okay, I get it, your Intro to Psych class may not be the best place to meet people with shared interests. But there are other ways to make friends. Castleton has many clubs; check out the list and see if any of them might be fun. If you’ve already found a couple of people who’d like to have a Quidditch team, but you want to find a whole bunch more, you can see about starting your own club. (If anyone wants to start a Quidditch team, let me know).

Getting active through community service can also be a great way to meet people and accomplish something good!

Go Home, But Also Don’t Go Home. If being closer to home was one of the reasons why you chose to come to Castleton, then you should take advantage of it! If it’s 2pm on a Friday, you’re done with class, and home is within a couple hours, go for it. Leaving school, especially in your own car, can make a world of difference in reminding you that you’re not actually trapped.
The flip side is that going home too much won’t help you. It’ll make school seem even more foreign, cut down on your chances to make friends, and probably only make you feel more homesick. If you find some way to cheat and go home three nights in one week, you’ll only find it more depressing the next week when you can’t swing it.

Don’t Sweat it. At first it may feel like you’ve come to an alien planet where no one is interested in anything that you like, and no one likes you. When you start to feel this way, do something to remind yourself that your entire life isn’t based on this place. Decide to stop worrying about it. Relax.

Once you stop worrying, you will find that suddenly you don’t feel like such an outsider. You probably won’t notice it happening, but before you know it you’ll have places you like to sit, an inspiring professor, and a great group of friends to study, commiserate, and hang out with.

-Amber Clark

Amber Clark is a former transfer student and a recent graduate of Castleton University.