¶ … Care of Myself

I find taking extra care of myself important especially now that I am on my own. Living at college is much different than at home with Mom and Dad. I realize now more than before just how important living a healthy lifestyle is because I see so many young people partying too much. I believe the body is like a temple and therefore, I must make sure it stays in the best condition in order to live a long life.

At first I thought being on my own would be fun. For the first time I would feel a sense of freedom; no parents, brothers, sisters or pets to ruin my fun. I thought that everyday would be just like before, the average everyday stuff of going to school and work, hanging out with friends. Little did I know that taking care of yourself requires so much responsibility and forethought, not to mention time. There have been days I haven't been able to get to everything and that has left me frustrated not to mention made my roommate crazy. Thankfully, there are a lot people in the dorm in the same boat and think the same way I do.

I found everyone has a different way of doing it. For me personally, I like to get up earlier and go for a run along the campus trail. At first this was difficult to do because I was staying up so late to study but I've been able to manage my time better. It seems there are maybe five steps to my whole day that lead to my well being. (1) Wake up and exercise, (2) Eat and go to work at the campus mail room, (3) go to class and do homework, (4) eat so more and (5) shower and back to sleep. It is an endless process that never seems to stop except for maybe weekends. Overtime, I have developed better coping skills and I have noticed I feel healthier as the routine has fallen into place. Still it remains a challenge to keep up the pace. I have decided that I need to give myself more options. Maybe instead of running, I'll take up weight training or instead of carbo loading, I'll try a high protein diet. I think the key to taking care of myself is embracing variety and keeping the routine open to new adventures.