Past the Halfway Point of March — A Good Time to Pause and Reset
If you’ve made it past the halfway point of March, that’s worth acknowledging.
March is often the windstorm month of the semester — a stretch where deadlines, projects, exams, and group work all seem to converge at once. Simply navigating this far into the month takes persistence, focus, and a lot of adjustment along the way.
Take a moment to endorse that.
At the same time, this part of the month is often where stress levels begin to rise. The finish line for projects may be getting closer, group work can become more intense, and other course deadlines are still arriving. When everything feels like it needs attention at once, students sometimes respond by pushing harder and harder without stepping back.
Ironically, this is often the moment when stepping back briefly is exactly what helps most.
One useful exercise is to pause and evaluate where things stand. What deadlines are still ahead? What projects are close to completion? What still requires focused attention? A short reset can help clarify priorities and prevent unnecessary overwhelm.
Another strategy I often work on with students is building a self-care toolkit.
Over the years, many of my students have created simple lists they can return to when stress increases. The idea isn’t complicated. When you’re overwhelmed, your mind tends to focus only on the pressure in front of you. Having a toolkit written down gives you quick reminders of ways to reset both mentally and physically.
Some students organize their toolkit into a few simple categories:
Mental resets: journaling, playing guitar, spending a morning away from the phone, or talking things through with a trusted friend.
Physical resets: going for a walk around the neighbourhood, riding a bike, swimming, stretching, or heading to the gym.
Professional support: connecting with a counsellor, checking in with a trusted advisor, or speaking with someone who understands the academic pressures you’re facing.
The key is that these tools are already written down before the stress hits. In the moment, you don’t have to invent a solution — you simply return to the list and choose something that helps you reset.
March still has some wind left in it. But reaching this point is progress, and maintaining balance now can help you navigate the remainder of the semester more steadily.
Sometimes the most productive move isn’t pushing harder — it’s stepping back just enough to reset and move forward with clearer footing.
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The information in this blog cannot take the place of support from your own mental health professional or community health resources. Reach out to them. And IF YOU ARE IN CRISIS, PLEASE DIAL 911.