So, I’ve been struggling lately. Have you?

I hope that you’re doing okay. How have you been coping?

Oh, me? I’ve been coping the same way I always do.

The choreography I’m performing in that gif is from Just Dance 3‘s cover of Boogie Wonderland by the way. Good song. High energy. There’s even four different parts to it in case you get bored.

It would be nice if I were joking, but unfortunately, I am not.

College is REWARDING but DIFFICULT.

My fellow Stan Student blogger Aliyah made a post just before Thanksgiving encouraging all of us to take time out over the break to focus on rejuvenation and mental wellness. I read her post and enthusiastically agreed to it, thinking it a good and proper thing to do.

I then spent a good portion of Thanksgiving week working anyways. Partly because I needed to, let’s be honest, but also partly because I can be a foolish lad who thinks himself incapable of burnout due to my insatiable hubris.

NaNoWriMo (which went splendidly! I ended November with 52k words written!) in addition to regular assignments, Thanksgiving meal prep, quarantining for family’s sake, preparing for life post-graduation, midterms, final papers, and research assignments all ended up being a lot!

College is intended to be rigorous. It’s supposed to be a succession of years where you put your nose to the grindstone and learn, better yourself, and prepare for a launch into the rest of your life. Those are all good and worthy things, but they’re also a lot! And any student, college or high schooler, can tell you about the end-of-the-semester pileup of assignments.

In the week of this posting, I will be working on four separate papers in addition to an exam.

So you know what I’m doing?

I’m DANCING.

I mean, I’m studying too, but hear me out.

While studying abroad in Costa Rica, I discovered that the most important class I took wasn’t actually any of my Spanish grammar or conversation classes, it was “Dances of Latin America” where we learned how to bachata, merengue, chachacha, salsa and cumbia. It wasn’t the most important in an academic sense, but it was a pallet cleanser from the rigorous Spanish tracks.

Each Wednesday evening we’d go out to our dance class in the park, learn some new spinning and topsy-turvy move involving incredibly flexible hips and elbows, and then on Thursdays we’d go out dancing after class to practice our newly acquired moves. It was fantastic, fun, and freeing, and I found myself better able to handle my assignments the next day because of it.

According to a medically reviewed Healthline article by Sara Lindberg, the benefits of dancing include challenging your brain, boosting cognitive performance, and boosting your mood. When I’m feeling swamped with life and schoolwork, those are three things I desperately need.

And while I’m no scientist, my experience with my classes in Costa Rica really seemed to imply that dancing really was just as healthy as Lindberg’s article describes.

Today clubs are closed, but honestly? Dancing is just as fun when you’re alone in your room, or with your cat. If you can’t tell, I’ve been drinking deeply from the fount of Just Dance. But I’ve also sometimes just thrown on Spotify, turned the lights off, and felt the vibes. Even if dancing isn’t your thing (which I totally understand if it isn’t!) just listening to some of your favorite music and nodding to the beat can help.

Will dancing write my papers for me? No. Will it make me into someone that’s capable of writing the papers? Yes.