How to Prioritize Self-Care This Spring Break 2025

To whoever invented spring break, THANK YOU.

The upcoming week-long break is one of the few things that keeps any student from getting wiped out by college burnout (not @ you thinking ‘When is spring break?' as soon as the new term started).

Now that it’s finally here, suddenly you’re short on spring break ideas.

It’s cool though, we knew this would happen. Who’s got time to plan stuff to do on spring break when the college semester feels like a giant, neverending to-do list?

Here’s how to make the break worthwhile with some much-needed self-care:

1. Catch Up on Sleep

How many hours do you sleep when you don’t have to get up for anything? That’s the key question Dr. Edward Pace-Schott from Harvard Medical School suggests you consider when figuring out your sleep needs. FYI: for young adults aged 18-25, the ideal range is seven to nine hours. We all know there have been plenty of nights when college students barely scraped by with less!

While you might feel stuck in your terrible sleeping habits all year (thanks, academic pressure), it’s still possible to build better ones that stick. Consider going to bed early or taking afternoon naps to catch up on all that lost sleep during your break—you’ve earned it!

As your break wraps up, consider how to maintain the same amount of sleep during the new semester. Set a regular bedtime and wake-up time to help get your sleep cycle on track. Cutting back on screen time an hour before bed can help you wind down too. If you’ve got long breaks between classes, take advantage of that time by sneaking in a quick nap. 

2. Explore That New Hobby You’ve Always Wanted to Pursue

Have you ever found yourself stuck in an awkward conversation where someone asks what you do in your free time, and you suddenly realize, ‘Omg, I've just been… studying and handling school responsibilities lately.’

Good news: You’re not alone in ignoring your hobbies because college stress takes up so much of your time and energy. The not-so-great news? You really need to carve out some time for those hobbies because they can help recharge your mind, lower your heart rate, and improve your overall mood.

Here’s the fun part: you’ve got the whole spring break to figure out what hobby you want to dive into, or maybe revisit that old hobby you used to love but didn’t have time for. Romanticize the hobbies that light you up, fall in love with your craft all over again, and you’ll be surprised at how easily you can bring them into the new semester.

3. Do a Social Media Detox

Trust us, you don’t need to see how everyone else is spending their break—this time is all about you. It’s toxic red flag energy to be envious of how others spend their vacation yk.

Taking a break from social media can improve your mental health, focus, sleep, and even your connections irl. Suddenly, you’ll have all this extra time to watch your favorite shows, read that book you’ve been meaning to pick up, and even try out those new hobbies (nailing two out of five tips yay). 

If a full social media detox isn’t your thing, you can still tidy up your feed by muting or unfollowing accounts that don’t give good vibes. Decluttering your social media feed can help you cut out the unnecessary noise and it helps train your algorithm to show stuff you care about. Since the digital world is only getting bigger and creeping into every part of our lives, it’s important that you learn how to keep your social media space comfortable and focused on what actually matters to you.

4. Run That Errand You've Been Putting Off

Procrastinating on your to-do list is probably just piling on the stress. Instead of tackling it, you were probably buried in midterm prep, thinking, “Man, why is school so stressful?” Errand paralysis is a real struggle, and we all fall victim to it when we look at our to-do list and see all the other priorities that need our attention.

During your break, you’ll have the time to tackle those errands, while you’re likely at home, with everything you need to get them done. Go for an oil change, visit the dentist, get those pants altered, schedule that campus office visit, or renew your passport. Spending time on chores that will make things easier for you in the long haul is a form of self-care, especially if completing them can progress your other errands.

These four tips will help you give yourself some much-needed TLC during your week-long break.

Remember, you won’t always have the luxury of this downtime once school starts, so make spring break 2025 yours!