Beginning on Tuesday Dec. 12 and continuing through Friday, Dec. 15, Niles West will continue its tradition of Stress Less Week, which is held the week before finals. During any free periods between three through seven, students will be able to go to the Student Commons to participate in a variety of fun, stress-relieving activities.

Niles West’s SADD club (Students Against Destructive Decisions) sponsors and organizes Stress Less Week, garnering support from other clubs that offer to sponsor an activity for the week. This time around, Stress Less Week will have activities like ping pong, chess, coloring, and DIY projects for making things like slime and stress balls.

As the end of the year approaches, so does the annual onslaught of finals projects, essays, and last-ditch efforts to raise grades, culminating in a week of final exams at the end of the semester. With the inevitable stress present this time of the year, SADD sponsor Jessica Madigan-Verceles believes it’s important for students to slow down and take a moment to relax.

“Stress can lead to headaches, sleepiness, agitation, and many other negative feelings and health risks. Eliminating stress helps you perform better and feel better,” she explained. “SADD Club wants students to be the best, healthiest versions of themselves, so we designed the Stress Less Week. We organized activities to de-stress and also passively programmed through quote posters around school to help inspire students to eliminate negative stress, prepare, and live a balanced life.”

Senior Vanessa Reis has been taking part in the Stress Less Week activities for the past several years, and she can attest to the benefits of having a relaxing space around this time.

“I think it’s really beneficial for students to have that sort of time away from school and all the studying that happens right before finals,” she said. “Most people use their lunch period to relax anyway, but adding extra activities can be fun.”  

Reis’s friend, senior Jesvin Sebastian, is grateful for the chance to enjoy himself with friends before finals. 

“Last year before finals we played ping pong together, and it was pretty fun,” he said. “She destroyed me.”

Be sure to take advantage of this opportunity to de-stress with friends before gearing up to finish this semester strong.

The schedule of events for Stress Less Week is as follows: