For some University of Memphis students, four weeks of intendedrest and relaxation during the winter break turned out to be theexact opposite.
U of M junior Heather Wilson began her job at Corky's BarbecueDec. 12, one day after the fall semester ended. With her job,workout regimen and her responsibilities at home, Wilson typicallyhas no more than two hours of rest during the day.
The psychology major said she did not have much of a choice inher scheduling.
"I needed the money to buy Christmas gifts and help (my parents)pay for school," she said.
Wilson will be able to work a maximum of only six hours a weekdue to the demands of classes, daily mandatory soccer practices andchurch activities.
There are ways for students to make up the rest they may havemissed during the winter break, said U of M psychology internDeadre Holmes.
"It doesn't have to be a huge break," Holmes said. "We scheduletime for class and time for work, so we need to schedule time torelax."
Holmes recommended that students take mini-breaks throughout theday or allot one day out of the week to completely devote torelaxation.
"You can spend time reading, watching television or enjoying abubble bath," Holmes said. "It's all about self-care.
"Doing nothing [over a break] might be exactly what you need.But if you know you're slow to start you might want to bring just alittle bit [of school work] home."
While Wilson acknowledges that her schedule is packed, doingabsolutely nothing is not what she has in mind.
"I might take an hour or two to relax, watch a movie or talk tofriends," Wilson said. "But if you rest all the time, you'll haveless appreciation for it when you do get rest."
