Doing nothing isn't lazy – not taking care of our mental health is.Rebecca Siegel

There are dark, ominous, Week Five Blues shaped clouds on the horizon, and I think that we are all still a little unprepared for the incoming storm they will inevitably bring. But, in all actuality, it’s not just Week Five Blues that we have to worry about. What about Week One Blues? Or Week Seven Blues? Or even vacation blues?

The truth is feelings of sadness and lethargy can happen at any time, and anywhere: it is impossible to predict how one may feel in a month, or in a week, or in a day. And when these feelings do occur, it is even more impossible still to predict the best way for us to cope with them.

But though life is so incredibly difficult sometimes, it is not impossibly difficult. Though there may be occasions when it feels as if nothing could ever possibly alleviate the aching pressure in your mind, there are definitely methods of improving one’s feelings. Choosing to try something new in order to take better care of yourself is so much better than simply trying to ride out the tsunami of your mind alone.

“Sometimes you can keep on keeping on by staying in bed and watching Netflix. That’s completely okay.”

For me, when I am feeling down, it is an escape to the past that most often recharges my spirits. I smother myself in the comforting chords of 1930s European music; there is something so heartbreakingly restoring about the aching laments of subtle klezmer twinged with languages I cannot fully understand. And even though this sometimes does not fully refresh my mind, even the smallest nudge in the right direction is enough for me.

But maybe you haven’t discovered a coping strategy that works for you yet, maybe you’re still searching for the thing that makes everything seem slightly better. And that’s okay. There are so many other methods of self-care: from napping to eating some fruit to trying something new. And though it is ultimately trial and error as to whether something is fully beneficial for you, a simple distraction can be enough revitalisation to enable you to cope with the world again.

It cannot be presumed you have everything under control all the time, and that you continue to breeze through life in a totally contented state – no matter how much you might believe this to be the expected norm in Cambridge. So take a day off. In fact, take five, if you need it. Will this matter in the long run? Probably not. It is drilled into us from childhood that we must constantly be doing something, or we are classed as lazy. But I think it’s lazy to fail to take into consideration the requirements of your mental health. And while it is so very important to always keep on keeping on, this need not be physical. Sometimes you can keep on keeping on by staying in bed and watching Netflix. That’s completely okay.

So yes, we have to work hard. But working hard and taking care of yourself are not mutually exclusive tasks. And just to show you how much this is the case, here is a list of little things you can do to make yourself smile today:

  • Call someone you haven’t spoken to in a while
  • Visit the Cambridge Botanical Garden
  • Have a peruse of the shops on Mill Road (they’re fabulous!)
  • Make yourself a hot drink
  • Put some of your favourite music on
  • Have a wander around the Fitzwilliam Museum
  • Do one small chore, and then reward yourself for it
  • Go for a leisurely stroll along the Backs
  • Spend time with a friend

If you’re feeling up to it, one of those activities may be just the thing you need to rejuvenate yourself. But, if you think you would be happier doing something else, then by all means follow what your body tells you. There is no right and wrong in terms of self-care, but there is one important thing to bear in mind: you’ve survived 100 per cent of your worst days so far, so you can survive this one – and you might be able to survive it in a better way by focusing on your own needs, and putting yourself first. Although you may believe nothing will make you feel better, surely the chance that something might is worth fighting for