2020 was hard on everybody. We’ve been spending a lot of time in our homes, physically isolated from our friends. Now that your professor asked you to write an essay about mental health, you start wondering: how did the home studying period affect your own mental state? You managed to write the paper. You went through the news and medicine journals, you located good resources, and you used them to support your arguments.
There’s a problem: you’re not done yet! The realization that you have to go through a lengthy editing process makes you less motivated than ever. But you know what? You found the strength to go through the hardest part. The editing stage is challenging, but you have to commit to it.
Tips: How to Edit an Essay on Mental Health
Accept the Situation
Do you know why most students skip the editing stage? By that point, the burnout got them. Even professional writers have to collaborate with editors. They’ve done the writing part, but they know that editing requires a different set of skills.
Well, you’re just a student and you’ll have to accept the situation. You’re required to go through all the stages alone. You should approach the process with a positive mindset. Take some time away from the assignment, and go back to it with a healthy dose of optimism. Don’t let the fact that you’ve spent a lot of time alone at home disturb you. This task requires some focus and solitude, so you’ll benefit from the peace.
Make Sure It’s Not Offensive
Start the editing process by reading the essay. If you wrote about a mental illness that you’ve never experienced, there’s a risk: you may have used offensive language without being aware of it. There are a few things you should stay away from:
- Presenting people with mental illness as bad persons
- Portraying suicide in detail
- Using derogatory language
If you notice any of these issues in the paper, correct them. Don’t be too attached to the content. You might have to get rid of some sections and add new ones. By the end of the editing process, you should end up with a clean, non-offensive, and informative essay.
Learn Something through the Process
During the editing stage, ask yourself: what have you learned from this assignment? Maybe you found some great online tips for good mental health, which you can implement. Writing about mental health can help you work on your own attitude towards the things that surround you. You’ve been spending a lot of time isolated from your friends. Did this assignment help you learn some techniques to cope with solitude?
The editing process itself is important. It teaches you about the importance of an undisturbed logical flow in your expression. It makes you attentive to details, and it improves your skills to discuss an idea. You should reflect on the stage after completing it, and pay attention to all the details. Even if editing was overwhelming this time, you’ll handle the process with more self-confidence in the future.
You Can Do It!
Students are rarely confident in their writing skills, especially if they have to complete a personal essay that tackles mental health. When they get to the editing stage, which is supposed to improve the overall content, they feel like everything they’ve done so far is worthless. It’s hard to see the paper without being attached to its contents.
You know what? If you don’t know how to do something, you can always learn. That’s called a growth mindset, and it will help you achieve brilliant results!
Article edited and fact checked by our editorial team
Author’s Bio:
As a Head of Support Team at EduBirdie, Julius Sim is focused on improving papers for students. He offers tips on how to make an essay better. Through blogging, Julius tries to convince everyone that they are good at writing; they just have to try.