{"id":8269,"date":"2026-03-10T14:13:31","date_gmt":"2026-03-10T18:13:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/pmc\/?p=8269"},"modified":"2026-03-10T14:13:32","modified_gmt":"2026-03-10T18:13:32","slug":"post-reading-week-balancing-act","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/pmc\/2026\/post-reading-week-balancing-act\/","title":{"rendered":"Post-Reading Week Balancing Act"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<section class=\"w-screen px-6 cu-section cu-section--white ml-offset-center md:px-8 lg:px-14\">\n    <div class=\"space-y-6 cu-max-w-child-5xl  md:space-y-10 cu-prose-first-last\">\n\n            <div class=\"cu-textmedia flex flex-col lg:flex-row mx-auto gap-6 md:gap-10 my-6 md:my-12 first:mt-0 max-w-5xl\">\n        <div class=\"justify-start cu-textmedia-content cu-prose-first-last\" style=\"flex: 0 0 100%;\">\n            <header class=\"font-light prose-xl cu-pageheader md:prose-2xl cu-component-updated cu-prose-first-last\">\n                                    <h1 class=\"cu-prose-first-last font-semibold !mt-2 mb-4 md:mb-6 relative after:absolute after:h-px after:bottom-0 after:bg-cu-red after:left-px text-3xl md:text-4xl lg:text-5xl lg:leading-[3.5rem] pb-5 after:w-10 text-cu-black-700 not-prose\">\n                        Post-Reading Week Balancing Act\n                    <\/h1>\n                \n                                \n                                    \n\n<p>Wellness tips for the second half of the term.<\/p>\n\n\n                            <\/header>\n\n                    <\/div>\n\n            <\/div>\n\n    <\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\n\n<p>As we approach the last month of the term before the final exam period, stress can build quickly. Balancing deadlines, exams, and daily life takes a toll on your mental well-being \u2014 and you don\u2019t have to handle it alone. Use these simple strategies to stay grounded and supported during this busy time.<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 id=\"break-work-into-small-manageable-steps\" class=\"wp-block-heading\">Break Work Into Small, Manageable Steps<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>When tasks feel big, motivation can drop, and anxiety can spike. We sometimes shut down, freeze or fall into a cycle of self-doubt. Try:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Breaking coursework into 20\u201330 minute <strong class=\"myprefix-text-bold\">study blocks<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Making a <strong class=\"myprefix-text-bold\">short daily to-d<\/strong>o list (3\u20135 items max).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong class=\"myprefix-text-bold\">Focusing on \u201cthe next step,\u201d<\/strong> not the whole task.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong class=\"myprefix-text-bold\">Small, steady progress<\/strong> helps reduce overwhelm and keeps you moving forward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 id=\"use-mental-health-and-academic-supports\" class=\"wp-block-heading\">Use Mental Health and Academic Supports<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Reaching out early can make stress much easier to manage.<br>Available supports include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/wellness.carleton.ca\/health\/\">Counselling Services<\/a><\/strong> for short-term mental health support<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/wellness.carleton.ca\/health\/\">Single-sessions counselling<\/a><\/strong> for urgent concerns<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/wellness.carleton.ca\/mental-health\/therapy-dogs\/\">Therapy dog program<\/a><\/strong> and <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/students.carleton.ca\/services\/the-wellness-centre\/\">student\u2011run wellness centre<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/academicadvising\/\">Academic Advising<\/a><\/strong> for course\u2011related concerns. The last day for academic withdrawal is March 15<sup>th<\/sup>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong class=\"myprefix-text-bold\">Asking for help is a sign of strength \u2014 not a setback.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 id=\"use-quick-grounding-techniques-during-stress\" class=\"wp-block-heading\">Use Quick Grounding Techniques During Stress<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>When anxiety rises or focus slips, grounding tools can help reset your nervous system. Try:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Box breathing<\/strong>: 4 seconds in \u2192 4 hold \u2192 4 out \u2192 4 hold.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>5\u20114\u20113\u20112\u20111 technique<\/strong>: Notice 5 things you see, 4 you feel, 3 you hear, 2 you smell, 1 you taste.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>A short, guided relaxation or stretch break.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Even 1\u20132 minutes can help you regain calm and clarity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 id=\"stay-connected-social-support-protects-mental-health\" class=\"wp-block-heading\">Stay Connected \u2014 Social Support Protects Mental Health<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>It\u2019s common to retreat during stressful times but staying connected helps reduce anxiety and prevents burnout.<br>Instead of pulling back into yourself, try:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong class=\"myprefix-text-bold\">Studying with a friend<\/strong> or virtual study buddy<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong class=\"myprefix-text-bold\">Sharing one meal a day<\/strong> with someone<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong class=\"myprefix-text-bold\">Checking in<\/strong> with a friend, teammate, or family member<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong class=\"myprefix-text-bold\">Joining a club activity or wellness event<\/strong> for a short break. Check out the <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/seo\/cab\/\">CAB activity calendar<\/a> <\/strong>for March events.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong class=\"myprefix-text-bold\">Connection keeps you grounded \u2014 you\u2019re not going through this alone.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>As we approach the last month of the term before the final exam period, stress can build quickly. Balancing deadlines, exams, and daily life takes a toll on your mental well-being \u2014 and you don\u2019t have to handle it alone. Use these simple strategies to stay grounded and supported during this busy time. Break Work [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":279,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[1,32],"tags":[59,75,85,74],"class_list":["post-8269","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-live-feed","category-newsletter","tag-mental-health","tag-resources","tag-tips","tag-wellness"],"acf":{"cu_post_thumbnail":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/pmc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8269","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/pmc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/pmc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/pmc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/279"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/pmc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8269"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/pmc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8269\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8270,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/pmc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8269\/revisions\/8270"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/pmc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8269"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/pmc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8269"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/pmc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8269"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}