Distanced

Unhealthy sleeping patterns. Skipping meals. Back pains. Headaches. Tears.

These are just few of the many things I am experiencing when classes started. When I entered college, I know that this would be a whole lot different from senior high school. I already have a glimpse of what it’s like studying in an online learning setup, but what I wasn’t expecting is the amount of things I have to have to sacrifice for the sake of keeping up with my studies.

I’ve sacrificed a good night’s sleep, my relationship with other people or my social life, time with my family or loved ones, and some important occasions that happened amid the semester. I’m not really good in managing time but I’m putting in mind my priorities because I have no one to talked to when things get rough or someone to accompany me in doing my school works. Ultimately, this remote learning setup cost me one thing and that is I’ve grown distanced from everything.

Honestly, I haven’t really adjusted with college life. What makes it even harder is the current setup. I’m barely surviving but at least, I am making it through the hardships despite the situation and everything around me isn’t really contributing to my studies. My environment is not even conducive to my learning. Instead of doing well in my studies, I am unstable.

Studying from home is the new normal but still, learning isn’t really effective, it’s more of “compliance” and “passing” if I may say. I thought when I’ll enter college, I’ll be able to live away from home, just like how I’ve always wanted. Everything’s not helping in all aspects but I will share with you a glimpse of how and what it’s like to study from home through these stories.

First is my study station. To be honest, I don’t really have a study station because I don’t have my own room but I asked my father to build us some tables which we can use for the meantime since I couldn’t afford to buy yet a study table. He asked someone to make us some wooden study table, both my brother and me. While, my mom bought some cover for the table. The table is spacious enough but the space allotted for my study area wasn’t really big so I have to fit myself in there. A monobloc chair works for me but along with it is the never ending complains for back pain. Also, I don’t have a study lamp.

A photo of me doing some school work in my study station.

Next is on my daily schedule. I don’t really write on planners anymore, I just go with the flow. I wake up around 7 or 8 a.m. to attend my first class. My body clock really works because no matter how late I sleep, I still wake up very early the next day. I only eat breakfast or lunch after my each of my classes. My classes usually start at 8:30 a.m then in the afternoon at 5:30 p.m. but I have a course that ends at 7 p.m. Synchronous sessions are really time-consuming. I can’t manage to do my tasks because I still have to prepare for the next class and of course, I have to study. Classes happen from Tuesday to Friday, but the whole week is really tiring. Rest is not really a thing in college.

(Click this link to watch my everyday online learning routine.)

Aside from taking most of your time, college really is draining or exhausting. Unless, you are good in time-management and you don’t have other priorities or things to work on. Simply, my tips on how to maintain one’s physiological and psychological health amid the setup is to take breaks, do not deprive yourself from enjoyment, do what you love or your hobbies, watch your favorite movies or listen to calming or relaxing songs, sing your heart out loud to worship songs, cry if you want, go on quick trips, bond with your family and friends even once in a while, communicate with others, and lastly, take care of yourself physically, mentally, and emotionally. School is important. Good grades are important, but remember, you are the most important.

P.S. You can listen to this song if you feel lost and unmotivated in life. https://youtu.be/82LMqudXE9k

For when anorexia strikes.

Sometimes God is doesn’t make the situation better because He is using that situation to make a better us.

Joena San Diego

It’s a new day! May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope. (Romans 15:13)

I watch people stumble, get angry, and be distracted all their day because they don’t take unhurried slow moments with the Lord first. One may think that this unrushed morning routine won’t matter but how you start your day greatly affects the way you will handle your battles every day.

My Morning Routine

This is my usual morning routine before doing any errands for the day. Let us all enjoy the sweet aroma of God’s presence in the morning.

My Study Station

This is my minimalist study station.

It is a place where all the bad and good days happen.

It is a place where on and off seasons take place.

It is a place where small and big wins came from.

It is a place where I feel victorious or defeated.

Daily Schedule

• 

• 

• 

• 

I am now using the “Almost There” journal for every day’s appointments and meetings, planning monthly timelines, and settling weekly schedules. I also write in this journal my small and big wins each day and the reward I deserve for each victory God and I made. It helps me in clarifying my purpose in the Lord, not just in this world. Whenever I get upset or when self-doubt strikes, this journal serves as a great reminder that I have a calling to do.

How to maintain physical and psychological health?

Let me share with you some simple personal ways I used to practice to conquer my battle for a long time now. I was diagnosed with anorexia, an eating disorder. It started when I was in junior high school. I was bullied because of my unwanted weight gain since elementary. And so, my response was to hate my body and not to eat anything that caused weight gain. I lost almost half of my weight but I am not happy with the result. This caused me to struggle with other sicknesses like ulcers and typhoid fever.
I thought I have overcome that battle when I start to undergo therapy but it always goes back. It’s not a type of problem that could’ve gone after long years of medication. It is an everyday battle I have to face, a dark and tough season.

I’m still struggling with physical and mental illness, yet I know that I am working in progress. By God’s grace, we will see that we are moving forward. It is a story that the world needs to hear. If no one loved to listen, we always ended up arguing.

Peace is still possible if we become listeners. We must choose to listen rather than to give our different solutions. I speak healing to those people who are still struggling with anxiety. In today’s turmoil, let’s all choose to be safe in our homes even if we want to explore the world.

Here’s How I Cope with Online Learning

Surviving this remote class arrangement has not been easy. Everyone bears the burden of the government’s poor pandemic response, including school administrators, professors, and students.

The struggle is real.

A month has begun since we started our lives as a freshie. And in that one month, we already experience and learned a lot of things that we will bring and treasure for a lifetime. Yet, to survive that one month in UP, I gave a lot of pressure on myself. 

It’s our second year in this type of learning setup but, I’m not still used to it, and I’m sure a lot of us do. Since we just started a new journey, we’ve got a lot to do to adjust. Imagine that our batch didn’t get to welcome our college life in a good and traditional way. It’s unfair but we can do nothing about it. It’s the “normal” now. But, thanks to our welcoming and kind college department- dean, college secretary, and professors, and to the ates and kuyas of DevCom, for warmly welcoming us to the college. 

Illustration by AB Boyd, a cartoonist.

Heavy workload is a given when you are studying at UP. Backlogs are normal, and so are breakdowns. Coffee is your best friend, and so is your laptop. Furthermore, these tips can also be your best friend to survive and maintain your mental and physical health during your productive college journey.

• Manage your tasks. Now that I’m a college student, I learned to manage my tasks strategically and smartly. I list my to-dos and rank them from hardest to easiest. I also consider their deadlines-the task with the nearer deadline should be finished earlier. Using task management apps like Notion, also helped me to list, track, and manage the tasks that I’ll be doing in every course.

Here is a sneak peek of my own school hub at Notion. Click the link for the template! https://acoustic-thorn-218.notion.site/school-hub-beab590e014e438fae5142cb4aaef607

• Practice managing your time. Time management is a must for college students, or else you will find yourself procrastinating and cramming on the day of the deadline. Create a weekly schedule and set reminders for you to complete the tasks. Time-blocking can also help you to be accountable by allotting a certain amount of time for each task. 
• Do not overwork. Overworking is an overrated bad habit and it can cause people to make more mistakes. Yet, sometimes we can’t avoid it. So, make sure to strategically plan and manage your tasks. All people deserve to be happy by living their lives and spending time for themselves to be themselves. It’s okay to take a break if you need to. 
• Know yourself. Knowing yourself is the best thing to do. It can help you what things, activities, and habits can help you to do best on your tasks. If you are more productive and comfortable listening to music, go listen to music while doing your tasks. 
• Build relationships. Not the romantic one but it can be. Creating friendships helps you not to think that you are learning on your own. You can do study group meetings if there are exams and activities. You get to know more about each other and critique each other’s works for the better. Relationships are a resource. Asking for help is normal, for us to be able to grow.

Yet, we have different learning styles, schedules, and personalities. What works for me may not work for you. 

You are not alone. College is overwhelming, and resting is a must. Did you know that resting is also productive? So don’t be afraid to rest. 

This learning setup is draining, but I hope you can still take care of your mental and physical health. 

We can get through this. Babawi tayo! Laban, Isko’t Iska! ✊❤️

Buhay pa naman ako

A month in UP is a test of my physiological and psychological well-being. However, it is not like the hearsays on iron experiences, rather one that I can call promising.

Imagine a man trapped in a cave trying to survive in the suffocating darkness. On his way out is a great amount of debris obstructing the passage. Although the situation seems to be impossible, the man never stops digging out for he is hopeful that with persistence, someday, he’ll be out once again.

The outside is a dream, and the man is me. Picture me in the dark at late nights working on my homework in the dining room—suffocating as the works are piling. Yet, here I am, surviving; constantly copping up with my acads.

I survived the first four weeks with these habits, so, perhaps, these might help you as well.

1. Create a to-do list

When you’re a college student, especially in a prestigious university like UP, expect that workloads will come drastically. In such cases, we do not want to feel drowning thus a need for organization. One way is putting them down on a list. This method has helped me have an eagle eye on everything. It also allowed me to pace out the paramount activities in my busy schedule. Additionally, helped me stay focused on the things that I need to work on. Crossing out the list of your activities, I swear, is the best rewarding feeling you’ll ever get in your college life.  

2. It’s okay to take a nap

There is power in power naps. I mean, with our awful situation, we don’t have to push everything too hard. A teacher of mine in high school once told me, “When you’re tired, get rest. When you feel sleepy, then sleep. When you’re hungry, then eat.” There is no shame in taking good care of our well-being. It is okay to take a break from time to time. Our body needs conditioning as our brain requires charging. Besides, if we really want to produce laudable outputs, we have to keep our brains from working—that is best after a nap.

3. Reward yourself

Whenever you accomplish something, great or small, reward yourself. It could be a food, a break for a game, time for Netflix, or even a walk. The point is you reward yourself with something you like. By continuously doing so, you are allowing your brain to have some positive emotions; in return, you become more driven and eager to do more the next time around. Make this a habit to improve your learning process.

The moment I chose UP I know for sure that my life will be on fire: a hellish one. Nevertheless, no matter how tiring a day could be, remember to always take care of yourself. Rest. Eat. Chill. Studying is supposed to be fun. Now, start a healthier habit.

The New Normal in learning

Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic, everyone is restricted to freely go outside. We avoid direct contact and crowded places to at least do our part on protecting ourselves and the people around us. This is why, us, students as well as teachers are now interacting through the remote class set up. Me, as a student have my ways on dealing with this New Normal. I will share to you my study station, daily schedule, and some tips on how to maintain your physiological and psychological health in good condition.

Study Stations

In my Senior High School days, I chose the Modular Distance Learning because I cannot attain to attend classes since I do not have a good quality phone that is enough to be utilize on classes and tasks. However, I realize the struggle on learning alone this is why I push through the Online Distance Learning on this Academic Year. During the first few weeks of my experience in Online Learning, I struggle a lot in adjusting on schedules and using the Google classroom and Canvas. Having a smartphone alone is indeed hard, I end up printing the lessons just to catch up since I cannot multitask that much on phone due to limited mobile data.

Months passed by and I am grateful that I was able to attain a laptop for studying. Even if it is not as fast and convenient as other types of laptops, it is still a huge help. Also, having your own study place and room is essential so that you will not struggle on focusing and having a privacy. Attaining all these stuffs even at the latter part of the semester is still crucial on dealing with backlogs.

Daily Schedule

My classes are from Tuesday to Friday, 7am to 5:30pm. It was more of a time management to adapt this kind of set up. Early in the morning, I quickly plan how my day will go knowing that my schedule is a bit tight. I usually focus on classes when I have, I do all the things I need to do during the afternoon to evening… mostly, until midnight. When I am in class, I make sure that I am not doing anything aside from listening and taking down notes. I set aside everything after class.  

Tips on maintaining Physiological and Psychological health

Tip no. 1: Stay hydrated

Dehydration could lessen our strength and weaken our stamina. Considering our current pandemic situation, it is necessary to stay healthy and dehydrated. Staying hydrated from time to time will help us do our daily task at least easier compared to moments that we are dehydrated. See to it that you drink 8 to 10 glasses of water a day or more!

Tip no. 2: Get enough sleep

Sleeping for about 7 to 9 hours a day is important in our daily lives. Being sleepless will make our mind inactive than it usually does. We need to get enough rest as we also need to get things done.

Tip no. 3: Bond with loved-ones

Do not forget your social life. Catch up with family and friends. Have time to bond with them as this will also serve as your sudden escape from academic responsibilities. Also, it will tighten your connection with them as we cannot go out frequently anymore.

Tip no. 4: Have a self-time

It is good to have fun with others but do not forget to have your own self-time. This could be in a way of meditation, watching movies, listening to music, playing games, or doing just anything you enjoy as long as it makes you happy. Do not forget to take a break.

Tip no. 5: Prioritize your health

If you think what you are currently doing is unhealthy, reconsider. Your health is more important than anything. You cannot do your works if you are sick and unhealthy. Have a balanced diet, do exercises, drink water frequently, get enough sleep, and also have fun!

BTS: Behind the Screen

This is my view.  

An iPad, a bluetooth keyboard, and a pair of earphones laid atop the table. Enter Zoom meeting, leave Zoom meeting. Eyes directly staring at the screen.  

What really is it like to study from home? What really goes behind the screen?  

Well, I would say that it’s quite an experience. A one-of-a-kind experience.  

During the vacation, I had a routine that was really different from what I have right now. Wake up, eat, play Valorant, workout, watch Netflix, sleep, repeat—that was all I did. Those days, my view was the computer where I spent most of my time playing Valorant and watching Netflix. Really just fun, carefree times.    

Then about half a year after, I suddenly found myself in college. Freshman year started and I really didn’t know what to expect. All I know back then was that I was taking up BS Development Communication, joining a lot of webinars and activities here and there. I had no idea of what awaited me.  

My routine changed. I wake up around 6 am—or at least I try—and attend my first class. It’s only after that that I eat my breakfast and drink my unmissable-and-life-changing cup of coffee that energizes me. Most of the time, I squeeze my tasks in between attending synchronous classes. The dark sky denotes my endorphin-releasing workout—an activity I have been consistently doing for almost 3 years now. But… there’s a big disclaimer.  

Lately, I haven’t been able to do this routine. I became busier because of academics and organization. I unconsciously drifted apart from my routine. It’s become more of a freestyle that didn’t help my productivity.  

But I learned now.  

To be honest, I’m not really the type of person who is used to having a lot of things to do. Because of that, I tend to easily get overwhelmed—leading myself to not accomplishing tasks that burdened me even more. The fact that I have backlogs paralyzed me. It became a cycle that up until now, I’m still facing the consequences and working on.  

I learned that one of the most important things that I should’ve done was plan. Had I been organized from the start, I would have probably been more able of functioning and being efficient in doing my tasks. Had I only planned, I would have been more prepared and able to properly manage my time. I learned that I should’ve mentally prepared myself knowing that I’m really going to be busy and be loaded with a lot of tasks. It’s almost like “acceptance is key” but leaning on less bitterness—saving one from probable anxiety.  

But of course, work is not only the important thing in this matter. ‘Work and play’, as others say. One must also rest to avoid being burnt out. One must still allot time for doing things that make them happy. In my case, I usually play Valorant and workout to de-stress once in a while. I also spend time with my friends. Just remember that it’s the little, enjoyable things that keep us sane and remind us that life is beautiful despite the seemingly never-ending chaos.  

I must say, being in college has been the most eventful and packed I’ve ever been in my entire life. The last three months taught me a lot of things in ways that I never imagined. Time might’ve gone by in an instant, but I can still say that the things that occupied me then—and still do right now—were the reason why my freshman year’s still memorable and full of bliss despite it being a rollercoaster ride. 

To all students out there, I hope that you are not severely stressed because of the load you are carrying—whether it be academics or personal life-wise. I hope that the culture shock doesn’t discourage and faze you from the what you’ve been dreaming of. I hope that you see silver linings in struggles as you embark on this journey—know that it’s all going to be worth it. 

As early as now, I’m assuring you that this is a wonderful time for learning so have courage and make the most out of it.  

cope

Welcome to a glimpse of the life of Ten: Remote Learning Edition!

I start my day by sighing deeply washing my face with cold water because it is an effective way to wake my sleeping nerves. I wake up early but do not consider myself a morning person. Honestly, mornings are the most challenging part of the day for me; if people say that 3 am is the devil’s time, mine is around the time I wake up in the morning. I just feel extra disconcerted, agitated, and sluggish. Due to this, I usually do not eat breakfast (oh schnapp, is this one of the reasons as to why I dislike mornings…?).

I open the laptop at 7 am or 8 am, depending on what time my classes start. Until lunchtime, I just sit in front of it and listen to the lectures as attentively as I can. After eating lunch, I go back and do the same for every class until the last, do my remaining house chores, and have dinner at usually around 7 pm. Then, I study until I get unbearably drowsy, and my body is nagging me to go to bed already. I make sure to clean my workspace before going to bed though.

My remote learning routine is not too different from my pre-lockdown one, except that it involves sitting in front of the laptop almost 24/7. 

Routine

Workstation

At first, I thought remote learning was a bit better than traditional as I felt I had more control of my schedule. For instance, back when classes were held face-to-face, I had no choice but to wake up early and leave on or before 6:30 am because if I did not, I would be stuck in heavy traffic. Now that classes are held online, I do not have to worry about the traffic anymore and instead use that time however I like. I preferred that kind of setup until the second semester of 12th grade came; we were suddenly bombarded with academic work as we had to wrap up by the first week of April for our graduation, and to add fuel to the fire, my gadgets started to malfunction. Everything was going so fast—I was distraught, and it manifested in my body. I lost weight, had more “lutang” moments, was more ineffective in handling my emotions, and the list goes on. Fortunately, I managed, and now in college. WEW.

I still feel distraught, though. Totoo lang!

Of course, I knew I still would, so to minimize its effects I prepared myself and made a workaround. They have been effective thus far, heh.

For mental health

Aaaand there you have it. All the best, everyone! 

PODCAST EP 2: Desperate Dreams

Collaborative work of Andrei Apelo, Nicole Anacay, Jaslynne Giron, and Ynigo Panghulan as a course requirement for DEVC11 Weekly Writes.

Health in Check!

Surviving the current remote learning has never been easy for me, there are those moments that I cannot sleep at night after failing some exams and I cannot help but worry. Every day was filled with challenges that really tested me, most days I am a fighter that accepts these challenges and does a great job but some days really can make you feel that you are at rock bottom. What keeps me moving forward is my family and friends who continually show me that it is ok to have fun and not cage yourself from college life. You just need to find your own support system, it can be through anything that you love to do or it can be through doing something out of your comfort zone, anything that can make you feel that life is wonderful and lessons it teaches us really mold us to the better version of ourselves.

• 

• 

• 

•