Not So Bookish | Grad. School & Self-Care

We Went Back to School!

What a whirlwind the past few months have been. Let me catch you up. Upon returning from our time abroad, I readily knew that I wanted to go back to school. Originally, it was for counseling, but I decided to focus on social work. I was accepted to 3 of the 4 schools I applied to and finally settled on one. I thought I wouldn’t start until summer 2026, but I realized spring 2026 would be the start. I literally registered for classes the day after classes started and jumped right in. All my reading and reviewing, journaling went down the drain as soon as I started school.

The toughest part was figuring out how to juggle everything, especially making time for myself. I am a stay-at-home parent of three, and my schedule revolves around my kids. The first month was me getting used to an online school system, which I liked more than I thought I would. My school uses an asynchronous system for their online program, andall of our assignments were laid out for the entire semester. This made planning very easy, especially when I had various commitments throughout the week that kept me away from home.

My program involves a lot of reading, so by the halfway mark, reading for leisure wasn’t high on my list. I knew I needed some kind of self-care and I started gaming again. Right now I’m circulating between a few games, but it has been so great to just step into other worlds after my studies.

What games am I playing?

1. Stardew Valley
2. inKONBINI
3. Where Winds Meet

Stardew and inKONBINI are the games that I have been playing the most. I restarted my farm just before school started, so I’m trying to get all the achievements. inKONBINI is my newest game and really just highlights how much I miss Japan. In the game, you work in a konbini, navigating working as a clerk and interacting with the same few characters that come in the store. The story has been great so far and well, I just love it. Where Winds Meet is an open-world action-adventure game that’s set in China. I’ve only played for a couple of hours, but I really like it. Stardew and inKONBINI have been my most relaxing games to play and probably why I immediately pick those up when I have some downtime. It will be interesting to see which games I pick up as I get further along into my graduate program.

How do you juggle everything?

The system that worked for me was leaning into my other hobbies besides reading. Every week, especially on days when I was heavily focused on assignments, I took breaks and either played my game or did something else. I leaned heavily into gaming because it became the perfect little escape from my studies.

I had assignments due Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursdays with papers due on Sundays. I aimed to have assignments turned in a day or two before the actual due date. This kept the stress extremely low and I had time marked out for myself whenever I needed it.

It has been a busy spring with getting my kids from point A to point B, my studies, after-school activities, the normal household stuff, it was a learning curve. But how managed everything worked out well without being overwhelmed.

Has there been any challenges with going back to school?

Honestly, no! But it has been a relearning experience for me since I haven’t been in school for just about 15 years. Everything from APA format and citing resources, what used to be second-nature, I had to remind myself of everything. I was easily missing points because I simply forgot to do one little thing. I thought an online format would be the most challenging, but it has been great for me. We don’t have virtual classes, so it is easy for me to schedule when I want to get my reading and assignments done. There is a lot of flexibility here, which has worked out well for me and family life.

Tips to make time for self-care with a busy schedule

I try to avoid feeling overwhelmed or stressed by everything I have to manage. I always want to make time for myself and do something unrelated to my studies. I opted to keep a digital planner for my studies to have a monthly overview of what my month looks like in terms of assignments and papers. I am usually glancing a week ahead to see what is coming up and what may need more of my attention.

Here is what has helped me:

• checking in weekly and planning ahead
• make time for myself
• reminding myself that a little bit at a time is ok.

I know this isn’t a huge revelation or the most insightful, but I just have the need to make space for myself and to stay in tune with my well-being. I am aiming to complete my program within 3 to 4 years, so I am being very intentional with my time.

I am hoping to share more of my adventures or mishaps with school and juggling day-to-day life. I will still be reading and reviewing, but it will now be at a much lower capacity. If you made it to the end of this post, thank you!

Feel free to leave a little comment below!