It was a long four weeks after being out of school due to Hurricane Florence. At first I was thinking we might be out for a week but then once Florence got closer and closer I started to really take it more seriously. We see natural disasters happening on the news in various places but we never think they’d actually happen in our back yard. It has been a tough transition getting back into school mode, I would say for most of us, but with the help of this blog post I think it will ease the pain. I realize that we all have our own way of staying organized but these are just a few tips to take with you.
Start fresh
That’s right. It’s time to clear your mind of what we thought was our Fall semester’s due dates. Until Flo happened.
If you haven’t already threw out your planner, it might be best to get your beer pong arm ready and SINK IT in the trash can. I know, especially us ladies have spent at least $10 on our planners for the year but it is not worth keeping at this point. It will only stress you out even more considering you will have to scribble out what’s irrelevant at this point. For the men that never carry planners, that is okay. I realize that if you open a planner in class you might get starred down by a few of your classmates. A solution to this would be to use the Reminders App that comes on your IPhone. That way you can still maintain your manly imagine while staying up to date. Be sure to check your revised calendar’s and get planning!
Set deadlines
Now that you have fresh pages be sure to write down any due dates at least a couple weeks in advance. By having everything noted early it will limit your stress and you can get work done early since you are aware of what you have to do. Have plans to go to a NC State football game but have 1,000 things you have to do before the weekend? No problem. Your planner is already 3 weeks up to date and that just shaved off hours of figuring out what you have to do before you can leave for the game on Friday!
Take some time for yourself
Yes, you should put the books down if you have been studying for a couple hours and get some exercise. It can be something as simple as running. Even if you absolutely can’t stand running at least go for a walk to get the blood circulating. Or do some yoga. Anything that involves moving will pump up your endorphins. According to Mayo Clinic, “Regular exercise can increase self-confidence, it can relax you, and it can lower the symptoms associated with mild depression and anxiety”.
Utilize what UNCW has to offer
Don’t freak out it’s not too late!
UNCW offers a variety of learning tools that are there for us when we need them. The writing center is a great place on campus to get help with school work. It doesn’t matter if you are a freshman or a senior it is included in your tuition so you might as well get as much use out of it while you are still a Seahawk.
Communication is key
Lastly, as Communication Studies major’s we all know that communication is key when you are in college. As sad as it is to say, Wilmington went through a tragedy. Hurricane Florence was no joke and it is still taking some time for families to get back on their feet. If you are going through a hard time from Flo, email your professors. Set up a time to talk with them during their office hours and they will help you figure out a way for you to still get the education that you need.
-Katie Woodard
IMC Hawks Blog 
This blogpost could not have come at a more perfect time for me. I was so stressed out about coming back to school and I knew things would be hectic. Before I came back to Wilmington I got a new planner and wrote down all the new due dates and this made things a little better. When I am busy with school I forget to take time to relax and this sometimes makes things a lot worse. It is nice to be reminded to take time for my self and that I am not the only one who feels overwhelmed.
Hey Katie!
Great post! As a guy who (in his fourth year at UNCW) has finally switched over to using a planner for the first time, I found your first section about starting fresh and setting deadlines funny and relatable. I now have more motivation to get to the gym and exercise ( maybe this will be the push I need to finally go work out!), but I was left wishing that you would’ve gone more in-depth about what UNCW has to offer and provide us that might help us out… especially if they applied specifically to COM students.
– Jake Fenton COM 231
Hello! I first would like to say that these tips are very well thought out and could be very helpful to people. That being said, I think that the generalizations about men and women either carrying a planner or not based on their gender could turn off some readers (like myself). I also noticed a few grammatical errors. In the first entry under “start fresh” you stated “if you haven’t already threw out your planner…” and it should read if you haven’t already thrown out your planner. In addition, I appreciated some of the reminders like “Don’t freak out, its not too late!”, those are things many of us need to hear right now. Now back to grammar, multiple paragraphs began on the left side, while some began indented. I think the coherency of this article is a little hard to follow and could lead someone to question the credibility of the source writing it. I loved the content and thank you for the time you spent writing this. I hope these insights helped somewhat!
I truly appreciate the advice offered in this blog post! Keeping things written down in a planner is the easiest way to actually see everything that needs to be done and create time for it. Although it HURT to throw away my old planner, it was the easiest way to have a fresh start for the return from Florence. Leaving those open blocks of time for myself has also been so important for my mental health during this especially stressful semester. Great post!
I enjoyed your comedic and light-hearted voice at first, but the flagrant sexism of the “start fresh” section has left me appalled. It’s writing like this that perpetuates gender role stigmas. I know plenty of unorganized women and highly organized men. Just because it may be “true” in your small circle, does NOT mean it’s okay to project gender norms on the rest of society, ESPECIALLY if you’re trying to tell them how to do things right! Your direction does not benefit from the incorporation of your own prejudice.
I couldn’t agree more with the planner tips, I am pretty much 24/7 busy working 45 hours a week plus being in school full time, so my planner is my lifeline keeping me organized and on track with where I need to be when and what homework needs doing when. I had my whole planner filled out with due dates, exams, and projects but I had to scrap it and get a new one so that I wouldn’t be overwhelmed by all the mess. I also decided for at least this semester to start using a pencil in my planner as opposed to pens so that I can rearrange as assignments and calendars are still under construction in many of my classes.
This was a great post! I actually enjoyed and needed this read. I do believe it has been very hard to get back on track after Hurricane Florence I have completely lost my motivation and drive to stay on top of my school work. But this blog post really gave me some encouragement I did throw away my planner actually because of the stress of scribbling so many things out. I have to say it is always fun shopping for a new planner!
I was extremely stressed out about returning to UNCW after spending weeks away. The past few weeks haven’t been bad, but I know these amazing tips will help! Especially, throwing out the planner. I can’t wait till this semester is over, just so I can go back to the adorable one I had planned on using this semester.
After having a month out of school, I was extremely worried about getting back on track and back into the flow of things. It makes me feel relieved to know that a lot of other students are on the same page, so these insightful tips definitely help ease the stress of getting back to staying organized and focused. Starting fresh is great advice; before reading this blog post, I actually did go through my planner and cross out a bunch of stuff, but I think I will start fresh and get a new planner. Having things crossed out everywhere is quite stressful, I’m sure others will agree! Thanks for the post!
Thank you for these insightful tips. I was extremely worried about coming back to school after the hurricane and getting back on track and in the flow of things. This blog has definitely helped ease the stress of organizing all the revised schedules and new information from all my professors. Actually, before reading this post, my planner had everything crossed out and the tip about starting fresh is very helpful. I’m going to get a new planner because having things crossed out everywhere gives me anxiety, I’m sure others will agree! Thanks!
Hi Katie, I absolutely enjoyed reading your post! Florence all impacted us more than expected, among other things of course our semester. As you said, it is important not to freak out and set aside time for ourselves. I personally think that sport or a walk on the beach is the best way to free your mind. Furthermore, nobody has to go through this alone, people are here to help. In addition to that, I was not aware of the writing center, thanks for bringing that up!
Hey Katie!
I’m actually really glad to read this post because it has been super hectic starting back school. It’s good to know that I am not only one feeling this way. The title caught my attention at first and then I saw the Spongebob memes so I knew I had to read it. You brought up some good points and tips on how to readjust to school. The one about setting deadlines was probably the most relevant for me. I am one of those people who tends to wait until the week of to look at which assignments I have due. Knowing ahead of time definitely helps so you don’t get hit with a huge surprise assignment that you forgot about. I enjoyed reading your post and hearing your thoughts. Hope to read more of your posts in the future!
These are helpful tips! I used to do yoga every night, but since the workload that got dumped on us from Florence, I just haven’t had the time. But I should make the time. I need to tell myself that I can afford to lose even just twenty minutes of studying time to stretch out my muscles and take a deep breath.
Katie, this is a very well written blog post! I enjoyed the images/Gifs you used along with the writing. They related very well with the words and made the post more light-hearted. The flow of the post was excellent, and I found this to be entertaining as well as very helpful to myself, and I’m sure to other peers. You brought up some really great advice to consider and I especially enjoyed the statistic you put in about exercise lowering the symptoms of depression and anxiety. I plan on utilizing most of these tips you offered for the rest of the semester, especially investing in a new planner!
I loved reading all of these posts! It is nice to see that I was not the only one who felt very off during this time. Starting fresh is probably the best advice I could ask for. My planner was a wreck coming back to school from almost a month of from Florence. Each page had crossed off dates and was a mess, throwing it out and starting fresh has helped me feel more organized in many ways. Also, the reminder to take time for myself during this stressful time was a great tip that was much needed!
I really enjoyed reading this post! I needed to hear these tips as everyone is still trying to get back into school mode after such a long and unexpected break. I like how you wrote about planners since I am an organizational freak, it was very relatable. It is good to know I was not the only one who was panicked about the dates being wrong and went out of my way to get a new one. I am definitely going to try all of your other tips as I think I will find them very useful in getting back into the swing of things. Thanks for writing this!
Thank you for not only a great post, but for your honest viewpoints of the situation we are all facing this Fall semester. I enjoyed the funny attributes to it as well. I did not know we had a writing center that helped out with school work, but I am glad you have mentioned it. I will most likely be taking advantage of it! I was very fortunate to not have any property damage from Florence. I have been having a hard time staying focused and keeping the motivation this semester, however, I believe you just gave me a little bit more than I had. Great post, and good luck with the rest of your semester.
Keeping a planner, staying organized, and staying on top of your work really is key to getting through the compressed semester schedule. Florence really stepped up the pace of learning everything, and its easy to lose track of what is due when, but taking breaks now and then really is crucial to everyone’s mental health!
Also great Spongebob references!
Katie this post is everything I needed to hear! I, like most UNCW students, have felt so incredibly overwhelmed since being back after Hurricane Florence. I think the best point you made is communicating with professors. Our schedule is in shambles, and lots of assignments have been either altered or cancelled. Because of this, I believe it is essential to keep in contact with our professors with any questions or concerns in order to have a successful semester. Great post!
Great tips, Katie! I like the part of throwing out the planner hahaha. It is so helpful to plan out two or three weeks. It definitely helps to visually see assignments on paper, relieving stress about what is left of the semester and helping to declutter the brain. My professors have been very gracious and helpful with getting work done post-hurricane. Best of luck!
Hey Katie, really appreciate the input you gave on communication being critically important in this hurricane recovery. I’ve had to meet with a couple of professors to work out deadlines and accommodations with classes, and I found out I was one of many, and that it wasn’t as much of a burden on them as I had originally thought when I was hesitating reaching out to them. They are all people too, and they all also went through the hurricane, most more head-on than we did, so reaching out and seeing how they’re faring (and coming with a fresh new Calendar app!) has allowed me to get, for the most part, back into the swing of things. Good tips!
Hi Katie!
I found the section about “throwing away your planner” hilarious. I actually did throw away my planner after I spent an hour making sure it was perfectly out. However, I gave up on buying a new one. I just use my phone now. This blog post came at a perfect time. Everyone, including myself, was incredibly stressed about returning from the hurricane. It is important to remember to take time to just breathe. All in all, I enjoyed your post a lot. It was funny, entertaining, and informative.
Great post! I love how you broke down returning into main points. After returning to UNCW a month later after watching this devastating storm roll over our city, I was very stressed and anxious for school to start back. Not knowing how all of my classes were going to pan out, I immediatley went though all of my old syllabus to see material that I had missed over our absence. I feel that going through that material has helped me tremendously in being prepared since we have returned. Even when one of my classes cancelled a good amount of the assessments we had while we were evacuated, still being familiar with the content was very helpful in my case. Starting fresh and setting deadlines has been one of the most helpful things that I can think of since I’ve returned back on campus. Every schedule is different and every student is having to accompany those differences. Not only is it taxing but also very short noticed. We can have a five page paper due on a Monday and have four tests and three quizzes all the rest of the week the way things are crammed this semester. Staying attentive and prepared are two huge factors that will play a large role in the way the rest of fall semester pans out.
This blog was definitely something I was stressing about with coming back to school after so much time off. I am a transfer student and honestly through my first two years of college I was the most studious cause I was mainly concerned and involved with sports but when I got to UNCW I wanted to make the change and become more studious and I was excited and ready to go when the school year started the after the hurricane my mind just blanked but this post gave me many ideas and helpful tools to try and right the ship so i can still be studious and succeed for my first term, and hopefully many others, at UNCW!