For Students Only

(As published in Healthy Valley Magazine August 2012 issue)

It’s August. It’s back-to-school time. Supplies are on sale and it’s time to prepare for the long journey ahead.

If you were going on a week-long outdoor excursion, what would you do? Would you just pick up and go or would you first prepare? Most people who wanted to survive with relative comfort would choose to prepare, perhaps by gathering some things to help perform basic activities and prevent accidents, maybe even by preparing his/her body mentally and physically with nutrition and hydration. If nothing else, he/she would get a good night’s rest, eat a good meal and drink a tall glass of water before taking off.

Do you realize that you are the one going on that excursion? Okay, maybe it’s a bit more than a week long, and maybe it’s not exactly outdoors, but you are going and you need to prepare. You need to gather your tools and prepare your mind and body if you want to survive with minimal discomfort, problems and stress.

Having the right tools with you at all times is first priority. Although you may not have an official school supply list, you already know that you will need pencils, erasers, folders, lined paper and a calendar to note your assignments and other important dates. Once you have gathered your supplies, you can estimate the size of backpack or book bag that seems appropriate. Keep in mind that the larger the backpack or bag, the more stuff you’re going to put and keep in it, possibly making it heavier than is safe for your back and making it difficult to retrieve your supplies when needed. And when you’re trying to make it down a congested hallway or trying to stay focused on the lesson, those are not times to be slowed down by a too full and too heavy backpack.

Just as you would eat a good meal and drink water before your week’s excursion, you should prepare your body before the school year starts, and every day during it, by getting enough sleep, eating healthy meals and hydrating your body so you can function at your best. Just because you have been managing just fine all summer eating junk food, drinking soda, staying up late, not getting enough sleep and mistreating your body in general, doesn’t mean you can survive the school year doing all those things. In fact, you will “survive,” but it will come with suffering and unnecessary stress and frustration.

So, start your school year off right with the proper supplies, plenty of sleep and healthy food in order to make the most of your year-long excursion!

Signed,
Lora the Study Coach