Have an Escape

Graduate school is going to hit you with its fair share of work (who woulda thought?). At the end of some school weeks, it will feel like Monday was a month ago. We all know what we signed up for and that requires us putting in major time and major effort to accomplish our goal of acquiring a higher degree. Putting in hours and hours of time on school work daily is stressful. When you feel that you have put in enough time (for now), you need to have an escape. The purpose of having escape is so you don’t absolutely lose your mind.

An escape can be a reward for all the work you have done or an escape can be something that is physically needed for you to continue on with your work a couple hours later or the next day. Everybody has a different escape plan. Some people escape to the gym to work out frustrations and let the mind be free, while others go out for ice cream with some friends (treat yourself!). Other escapes can be watching a movie, going for a walk, or the ultimate escape, sleeping.

I have several escape plans myself. Whenever I feel my stress boiling over I know it’s time to put one of them into effect. One of my favorite stress relievers is singing. I usually call up my friend who plays guitar and we sit around for a few hours and sing whatever comes up. They say music is good for the soul and I think there’s no better way of describing it. When I have the time, another escape of mine is cooking. There’s nothing better than having a home cooked meal. Cooking a good healthy meal is rewarding and takes your mind off of everything else temporarily. When you eat good, you feel good.

Finally, my last escape is my internship. Every couple Sundays I take the trip up to East Rutherford, New Jersey where I intern for the New York Jets. Walking into Met Life Stadium absolutely clears my mind. I grew up a huge Jets fan, so it’s still surreal to me that I get the opportunity to work for them. Being within that atmosphere and witnessing the games is the ultimate escape for me (although this season hasn’t gone as planned). The perk about my final escape is that I also get to see my family when I go North for the games. When you think you have had enough, go to your escape, and then come back with a determined attitude ready to take on whatever is next.

 

No better escape than spending time with your dog!

                                                                                                                    - Matt