Local student Niamh Shields has four fun and healthy ways to beat summer boredom.

Photo by Sai Kiran Anagani on Unsplash.

Sunshine, beach days, summer jobs, a packed Letterkenny dance floor and the return of Love Island means one thing, Summer Time!

Summer can be a fun time especially for us students. Exam free, catch up with friends and most importantly relaxation! It’s bliss. However, it is important over the course of summer to look after ourselves.

Here are a few tips to some Summer Loving Self Care:

  • Achieve those Goals:

Three months means plenty of time to get those summer goals done. Goal planning can be challenging when you are in college as time can be against us with assignment deadlines, exams and so on, however summer is the perfect time to complete whatever goals you wish.

Whether it be travelling to a sunny country, socialising more, picking up a new skill, or simply getting that dreaded theory test completed. No matter how big or small it may be, now is the time to do it!

  • Attend a new class or places:

Cabin fever can hit hugely in summer as we tend to just work our days away and spent the rest catching up on Netflix, we are all guilty of this. Well get out of bed or work and experience our beautiful county.

I am a coffee addict, so I’m determined to discover new cafes that I yet to try. I have also discovered there is a new yoga workshop in Dunfanaghy – I am dying to go and try this out.

Get out of your comfort zone and into your learning zone gals and gents, get discovering!

Photo by Bruce Mars on Unsplash

  • Disconnect for a while:

Being a media student, I have a love/hate relationship with social media. Social media outlets are great for connecting with friends, but it also can be somewhat time consuming and damaging to people’s mental health.

Viewing people having fun at the beach, travelling, can make people feel as though they aren’t experiencing or fulfilling ‘the ideal’ summer life.

Ignore it, we post only the good, never the real. Disconnect for a while and ditch the phone and connect to the real world.

Photo by Arthur Poulin on Unsplash

  • Check in with Friends:

The downside to summer is that is can be ever so hectic with summer holidays, being on a J1, summer jobs, it can be almost impossible to see your friends.

I like to set a half an hour of my day, if I can, and just text the girlies, to check in, whether it be a snap of me looking wrecked from work, or cheeky Instagram comment or a message on WhatsApp, I want my friends to know I’m there for them as summer for some people can be particularly lonely.

Also, create plans, being the exciting twenty-year olds, we are, myself and the girls created a book club, yep you read that correctly, a book club! We set on reading the book this month and in a few weeks, we are having a pre-drinks/book discussion. We cannot wait!

Whatever you decide to do whether it be from the above or not, make sure you are happy and having fun. It’s your summer so make the most of it!