Bouncing back can be hard after break

By Ryan Taylor

Melissa Ghidoni said that she plans on taking more notes in order to prevent stress for studying, as well as to prevent her from falling behind in her courses. RYAN TAYLOR / THE PROJECTOR

It’s been nearly a month since studies resumed at Red River College, yet some students are still having trouble adjusting to student life since the holiday break.

“This term has a lot more homework and studying, so it’s trying to find balance between work, school, sleep, and other fundamentals,” said Melissa Ghidoni, a first-year business administration student. “It’s been pretty stressful.”

Ghidoni said that the biggest struggle is keeping a proper sleep schedule — between work, homework, and other daily activities, getting shuteye tends to lose out.

“Life doesn’t revolve just around school or work,” Ghidoni said. “It’s a constant cycle of a lack of sleep.”

Sleep deficiency is one of the many problems Laureen Janzen, the manager of Counselling and Accessibility Services at Red River College, sees in students around this time of year.

“Sleep is underestimated. It’s often hard to balance with lots of deadlines and expectations at college,” said Janzen. “If you’re getting the amount of rest you need, you’ll function way better during your waking hours.”

Janzen said some students struggle returning to school after the intense course load just before the holidays.

“Students have gone through this intense fall term, and they can hardly wait until the break,” said Janzen. “They come back, and it’s having to start all over again with another intense semester.”

This something Ghidoni also saw in a lot of students returning earlier this month.

“Students got used to a routine of not having to be here all the time or studying in that time we were off,” she said. “By coming back to school, it’s having to reverse that schedule again.”

Janzen said that students should seek assistance as soon as they recognize a problem as opposed to waiting until it gets worse.

Janzen encourages students to use the free services offered by the college, like the confidential counselling services, the Academic Success Centre, or the Red River Relief Line.

“We’re hoping that students will work hard to maintain that level of functioning rather than letting it slide, which makes it overwhelming or insurmountable,” Janzen said.