Two insights I gained from these assessments are understanding my triggers and learning what makes me stressed and what makes me relaxed. Through the evaluation, I was able to determine what made me tick. By exploring the realities that I live in, I can learn to cope with myself. Discovering my triggers helped me realize my second point. When reaching for that itch, you can understand what makes it worse and what makes it better. You should know your pros and cons for an overall balanced life where wellness is crucial.

1. Two stress management goals I'd like to make are:

   • We are taking care of my hair and skin daily. While this may sound superficial, the key to taking care of our insides is to take care of our outsides. We all know the effects of stress on our physical selves.

   • I am reminding myself to exercise every day, even if it's just for a little bit. When the body is active, so is the mind.

2. I will check in weekly with a friend of mine. She, too, is into self-wellness, and I trust her to keep me in check.

I will practice mindful breathing for 5 minutes each day. I will sit comfortably, close my eyes, and focus on breathing. I'll notice the rhythm of my inhales and exhales, how the air feels as it moves in and out, and the sensations in my chest and abdomen.

I will find a quiet space where I can sit without interruptions and set a timer for 5 minutes to stay on track. After each session, I’ll journal how I feel, focusing on changes in stress and emotions. Some challenges might be if my brain wanders or finding time to do it. If my mind wanders, I'll gently refocus on my breath without judgment, understanding that it’s normal for thoughts to come and go. To make time for this practice, I’ll weave it into my daily routine, like during breaks or before bed, reminding myself of its benefits for self-care and stress relief.

I followed this plan pretty much to a T. This was a pretty simple plan for me to follow. Because I am Muslim, we are already required to pray five times a day. So after one of these prayers, I would sit and meditate for about 5 minutes. It was extremely challenging to focus my brain on simply just meditating. My brain kept thinking about everything from what I would eat to what I would wear. To help me combat this, I would try to satisfy every need before doing this so I could put my complete focus.

The relationship between perception and stress is that how we see something can either increase or decrease our stress levels. Through this exercise, if I thought of something during my meditation as stressful like an upcoming an exam, my stress levels would increase. If I thought of something like my winter break, my stress levels would decrease. If you effectively manage your stress, it will change the way you view it.

I am checking in with my buddy twice a week to aid each other in reminding to engage in our mindful practice.

This week, I plan to help out my grandparents every other day. My grandparents have always lived close to me and have been a massive part of my life. I will come every other day this week and help them with their garden. My grandpa has been complaining about his back. By aiding them, I can alleviate his back issues and help their garden grow.

My grandparents live about 15 minutes away, so the drive is not bad. I will come every other day, on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, to help them water their plants. They forever have green thumbs when it comes to keeping their garden alive. I hope that by helping them out, I, too, will inherit this gene. One challenge that may arise is keeping up with my schoolwork. I am known to be a huge procrastinator, but I must ensure that all my assignments are done the day before. This way, I will not have to worry. If it gets to a slippery slope, I will do it earlier in the morning before my day begins. Allowing myself a big gap between homework and helping my grandparents out will enable me to immerse myself and put in my best work. Another challenge that may arise would be making sure I get enough sleep throughout the week. These two challenges have a direct correlation. If I don't finish my work, I will sleep later, causing me to get less sleep. So, if I remain on top of my work, my sleep schedule should remain sturdy, making up for healthy stress levels.

I followed my plan pretty well. Because my grandparents don't live that far from me, I didn't go out of my way to accomplish what I set out to do. It was a bit hard trying to keep up with my schoolwork and make sure it was done before I helped my grandparents. It happened once when I had to stay up and sacrifice my sleep because I had not done my assignments before. But I mitigated this stress by ensuring I had time to sleep the next day.

Focusing back on our big question for this week, by managing my stressors (sleep schedule and schoolwork), I was able to limit the excess stress in my life while balancing an extra task. As you get older, I think this is such a valuable tool to acquire. I feel that managing stress lessens the burdens that life can put on a person.

I am checking in with my buddy two times a week, on Tuesdays and Thursdays, preferably in the evenings.

I decided to pick a technology time management tool and implement it in my daily life. I decided to limit my screen time to 30 minutes on TikTok. I have very bad habit of aimlessly scrolling through the app. I procrastinate heavily because of this. By limiting my usage, I hoped to gain more time to be resourceful and productive.

One barrier that might get in my way might be the fact that there is a "ignore time limit" button. By pressing that button, the time limit goes away and you can go back to scrolling. This button is extremely dangerous and is where one would really have to exhibit self control. Another barrier that I might come into contact with is stopping myself from going on another app other than Tiktok. Because I have the limit on that app, I might be encouraged to go to another app like Instagram. Overall, I must stay focused and ensure that I remain productive and distraction free.

I am going to be honest here on this pallet. It was extremely hard for me to follow through with this method. I would say for about half of the week I was able to complete this task. For the challenges that arose, it was tough for me not to press the "ignore time limit" button that I had explained in a previous assessment. It was also tough not to go on another app to distract myself. I tried to immerse myself in my work as much as possible. I also think it's not easy to be distracted by simple things like social media when you are busy and preoccupied with things.

This experience taught me how much more you can get done when you aren't distracted. This brings me back to our big question. By managing my time, I was definitely able to decrease my stress levels. By managing how I lived day to day, I could get more of my work done, which reduced my procrastination levels. Overall, this allowed me more free time without being stressed and gave me control over my body.

I check in with my buddy once a week.

This week, I will try to make my environment more relaxing and healing. I have wanted a diffuser, so I will buy one and use different essential oils, such as lavender, jasmine, eucalyptus, etc. The various scents provide different modes of relaxation. For example, lavender can make you sleepy, and orange and peppermint can help you focus. Placing this in my room will allow me to create a serene, relaxing place where I will want to spend my time.

One barrier may be the cost of the diffuser. I have a savings account that I could use to buy it. Another barrier could be choosing the right scents at the right time. I need to manage what scents to use for different circumstances.

Last week, I committed to making my environment more relaxing and serene. To do this, I finally took the initiative to buy a diffuser. I bought one that week, and it has been fantastic for me. It's allowed my room to smell so nice. Sometimes, I feel like my room smells like a room, if that makes sense. But now it can smell like a fresh jasmine field or a tree of oranges. I learned that you have to take initiative for what you want. Don't wait for good things to happen, pray and make them happen. Although this is not a significant accomplishment, the little things, the little things count.

This week, I will try to reduce my caffeine intake. As a college student, I have gotten sucked into caffeine culture and the sugary stickiness of it. I have in person classes from Monday through Thursday and have gotten into the habit of drinking coffee everyday. Whether it be iced or hot, I liked my coffee to a certain sweetness, which cannot be good for everyday use. I am going to try going back to my normal routine which was usually caffeine once a week. Although that will take some time, I am going first to try only doing caffeine on Mondays and Wednesdays to even it out.

One obstacle might be that I may feel sleepy throughout the day. I can combat this by ensuring I get a good night's rest. Another obstacle might be that I would want something to sip on throughout my morning. I can mitigate this issue by making sure I bring my water and start my day with a full meal to keep me satiated.