From stress to success: A how-to guide for thriving in OTA school

The journey through an Occupational Therapy Assistant (OTA) hybrid school program often begins the same way: surrounded by a mountain of anatomy charts, drowning in medical terminology, and convinced that anything less than perfection equals failure. I know because I lived it. In my first semester I achieved straight A’s. On paper, I was succeeding. In reality, I was completely burned out, running on fumes and perfectionism-induced panic. The turning point came when I realized that to survive this program mentally and emotionally, I had to shift my entire approach from a rigid perfectionism to intentional consistency. What followed was a complete transformation of my OTA school experience, from a source of relentless stress into a journey I could actually thrive in. Here’s how I did it, and how you can too.

Prioritize Consistency over Perfectionism

The most important shift you can make is recognizing that perfection isn't sustainable. When you strive for a perfect score on every quiz, test and assignment, you create a cycle of guilt and exhaustion that becomes harder to escape with each passing week. Instead, I learned to focus on the “why” behind my studies. I had to remind myself constantly that I loved this material and that I’m not just studying for a grade. I was learning tools that would help real people in real clinical settings. That perspective shift was everything. I also embraced what I call the “good enough rule.” Sometimes, a consistent B earned with peace of mind is more valuable than a stressed out A that leaves you too exhausted to actually retain the information. Your future clients won’t care whether you got a 100% or 88% on an exam. They’ll care that you’re present, knowledgeable, and capable of helping them achieve their goals.

Schedule Hard Stops and Practice Detachment

Organization isn’t just about when you work, it’s equally about when you don’t. This was a game-changer for me. I began scheduling specific days where I was completely detached from schoolwork. No reading, no reviewing notes, no “just checking” my course portal. These weren’t days I stumbled into;they were planned, protected and non-negotiable. Knowing I had a rest day coming up allowed me to work harder during my “on” days because I could see the light at the end of the tunnel. More importantly, when you have a structured schedule you trust, you can actually relax without guilt. You’ve allocated enough time to learn the material, so you don’t need to spend your downtime riddled with anxiety about falling behind.

Master the Focus Block Technique

Distraction is the enemy of free time, especially for online students. If you constantly feel like you’re studying all day but getting nothing done, you probably don’t have a time management problem, you have a boundary problem. I started applying two-hour focus blocks to my study routine. During these blocks, my phone goes on “Do not disturb”, I put on some relaxing background music, and commit fully to the task at hand. No social media scrolling, no text checking, no “quick breaks”, that turn into an hour-long YouTube rabbit holes. The efficiency gains were remarkable. By eliminating the scroll-and-study habit, I found I was finishing my work significantly faster. This inadvertently gave me more free time for my personal life, which made the whole experience more sustainable. When you’re fully present during study time, you earn the right to be fully present during rest time.

Use Failure as Your Lab

In OTA school, the classroom and lab environment are safe spaces designed for making mistakes. Yet so many of us treat every misstep like a personal catastrophe. I had to learn to embrace the messy learning journey. A missed question on a practice quiz or a fumbled practical demonstration isn’t a referendum on your future as a clinician, it’s data! When I finally allowed myself to fail without the shame spiral, I opened up mental space to actually analyze why the mistake happened. Some of my biggest clinical breakthroughs came from things I initially got wrong. That’s not a consolation prize. That’s how learning actually works. When you’re not paralyzed by fear or failure, you become curious about it instead. That curiosity transforms information into real understanding.

Build your Cohort Support System

Especially for online students, isolation can be a major stressor. It’s easy to feel like you’re the only one struggling while assuming everyone else is sailing through with ease. Spoiler alert: they’re not. One of the best things that happened is when my classmates and I created a venting space. A group text channel where we could be real with each other. This wasn’t just for academic collaboration, though we did plenty of that. It was, and still is, a space to exchange ideas, share frustrations, celebrate wins and cheer each other on without judgement. This simple act turned my lonely “void of the screen” experience into a genuine community of peers who held space for one another. Knowing that other people were also struggling with the same material, experiencing the same doubts, and still showing up every day made me feel less alone. It reminded me that struggling doesn’t mean failing, it means you're learning something challenging.

The Result: Thriving, Not Just Surviving

Making these small, intentional changes transformed my experience in ways I couldn't have predicted. I recently finished my didactical classes with all A’s and one B, and honestly, I’m incredibly proud of that B. I worked for it with self-compassion rather than self-criticism, and that made all the difference. As I move into my fieldwork rotation, I’m taking these tools with me. I know the challenges ahead will be different, clinical settings bring their own stressors and learning curves. But focusing on consistency over perfection, protecting my time intentionally, and leaning on my cohort for support, I’m not just prepared for OTA school, I’m prepared for practice.

I’m excited for the journey ahead. And if you’re reading this from the middle of your own OTA program struggle, know this: you don’t have to burn out to succeed. You can build a sustainable approach that honors both your education and your well-being. The choice between thriving and just surviving isn’t just about working harder it’s about working smarter and more compassionately toward yourself.

You’ve got this.

Bethsabee Reynoso-Cardoso holds a Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice and is currently pursuing her Occupational Therapy Assistant degree at St. Catherine University. As a certified yoga and meditation instructor, she is passionate about mindfulness and integrating self-observation and compassion into every area of her life. Bethsy is committed to becoming a practitioner who leads with both compassion and self-reflection. She believes that the best care providers are those who extend the same grace to themselves that they offer to their clients.