As midterms loom, flu season rears its ugly head and some people begin to get the infamous Oswego Plague, it is important to remember the paramount importance of self-care.

Self-care can be anything. It can be visiting with a friend for an hour, reading a book that is not required for a class, drinking your coffee out of a real mug at the kitchen table, rather than a travel mug as you run to class, or binging your streaming service of choice.

These things may seem trivial, or even wasteful, as work piles up and deadlines loom, but without them, students would no doubt snap under the pressure. As the old adage goes, “All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.”

A quick search of the term “self-care for students” yields article after article about how important the practice truly is, yet it is so easy to be reminded of all the projects, assignments and test that lie just over the horizon. It seems so common to hear others talking about the all-nighters they just pulled last night or the 18-hour day they plan on pulling.

The problem with all this is the more time you spend working, the worse the quality of that work is going to be. Sometimes it is unavoidable and it seems like all of your professors are working off the same schedules, having assignments and tests due at the same time, but those situations can easily be avoided by using an academic planner.

For the absolute worst scenarios, when multiple assignments are due at the same time, and it is simply impossible to turn it all in on time, there is no shame in asking a professor for an extension. For the most part, professors understand that other classes also assign things, and at the end of the day, professors want quality work over quick work.

As the semester picks up, remember that health is more important than academic success. Success cannot come without concessions to personal well-being.