Are you exhausted today? Do you feel like you've been on a roller coaster ride of emotions lately? We don't want to oversimplify things, but if you watch Pretty Little Liar's Season 2 Finale last night: you have! You have waited patiently to find out who was "A" and last night (spoiler alert) found out that "A" was Mona. Within those last 10 minutes of finding out that Mona was "A", we also saw a crazy car chase, and didn't know who was going to come out alive, saw Hanna almost kill Mona, saw Mona go off a cliff and didn't know if she was a live or dead, watched Spencer be angry with Toby when she realized that he really did love her and, after a few moments of anger that he tricked her, that also she loved him, were reunited with Dr. Sullivan, saw Emily's mom tell her that Maya is dead, saw Mona being put away, and realized that there might be a whole "Team A". What a roller coaster ride of emotions.
Do you know how exhausting and draining watching an action-packed show after a full day of school and after-school activities can be on you? And, on top of experiencing a tidal wave of emotions, you were likely tweeting about it. You already had a long day at school, maybe had quizzes or test, maybe had friend drama, probably had sports or after school activities, and you don't have much down-time or time for reflection. Your brain and body have so much to process in a short amount of time so you actually may have felt a little stressed when you watched so much drama in such a short period of time. Typically, 3 things happen when you experience short term stress: your heart rate goes up, your breathing gets faster and you have a burst of energy (this came in handy when you were a cave-woman and running away from a lion or bear!). (Source:? CDC). But, this also makes it harder for you to go to sleep, so your body may have take some time to relax before you were ready to fall asleep last night. Which means you may not have slept as well, and you may be more tired today.
It's not tv that makes you stressed, it's a long day with no breaks, plus all the drama, emotion and excitement you experience while watching an energetic show like PLL that activates your stress levels and creates energy in your mind and body, especially if you haven't had a chance to calm your body and mind during the day.? ? So, how do you get a good night's sleep after not having a chance to calm down during an action-packed day? Our suggestion, if you have a big test, or a lot of homework, is to save the electronics for later and focus on studying first. If it's a show that can't be missed, then use that short-term stress to your advantage and return to studying after the show to calm your mind and body. Use that newfound energy wisely by studying if you need to, and then focus on calming your mind and body so that you can get a good night's sleep.? Turn off electronics, read a calming book, drink warm tea, journal, or anything that calms your mind.? For more ideas, check this out.
And let's be thankful Pretty Little Liars doesn't return until after final exams (June 5), but wow, what a night of PLL, it didn't disappoint!