Stress, stress, and more stress. If college wasn’t overwhelming already, the word “midterms” may evoke a physical response for some: sweaty palms, increased heart rate, and wide-eyed terror. Okay, maybe that’s an exaggeration – but the stress isn’t. It’s those times when you feel like your academic to-do list is endless that it’s most important to emphasize self-care. Follow these tips so that you can relax, re-energize, get out there and conquer those exams.
1. Write out your stress
When your head feels like it’s about to burst with a myriad of stresses and worries, jotting down your thoughts can help you to sort through the internal mess. Take a few minutes to journal, writing anything that comes to mind. Not only will this help you to gain perspective on your current stressful situation – but the actual act of writing will create a much-needed pause in your day, slowing down your crazy pace and allowing you to focus only on the act of writing and not on the negative parts of your stress.
If you find yourself with absolutely no time to sit down and journal your worries away, grab a note card and simply write down your most stressful thoughts. Then put it away. The physical acts of getting your worries onto paper and then putting them out of sight will keep them out of your mind, making it easier to focus on your studying.
2. Keep up with nutrition
Healthy eating is always important – especially during midterms when you’re most likely putting yourself through periods of high stress and will need all the health you can get. Wake up a few minutes earlier to give yourself time to eat something in the morning. A quick breakfast is better than nothing! Whether it’s a piece of fruit, instant oatmeal, cereal, or a granola bar, eating breakfast will give you the energy you’re going to need to get through those tests.
And the dining hall fries may be delicious, but during these few stressful weeks, you’re going to need some good, solid nutrition to get you going. Opt for a wrap, a salad with protein, or some veggies and hummus to replace those irresistible yet unhealthy junk food cravings. With that being said, go ahead and treat yourself to some Ben and Jerry’s when you’ve studied yourself out.
3. Get enough sleep
This is much easier said than done. When it feels like there just aren’t enough hours in the day, it’s tempting to stay up long into the night to cram those last few chapters, to hang out with the friends you haven’t seen all day because you’ve been trapped in the library, or to just take some time for yourself to relax and unwind. While those are all perfectly valid excuses to compromise your valuable eight hours, none of them fly during midterms. Putting the books away and hitting the hay will help you better focus the next day, decreasing the risk of the silly mistakes you’d probably make if you were running on a mere four hours. I can’t promise that getting more sleep will make it easier to get up in the morning (because is it ever easy?) but it certainly will benefit you when you find yourself able to keep your chin off your hands during your next study sesh.
4. Self-talk the right way
Whether we like it or not, we all have relentless streams of mental dialogue running through our heads, from the time we wake up in the morning till the time we fall asleep, and they can affect us more than expected. Start to notice what your mind is telling you, and if you realize that it sounds a little something like “I’ll never get this done/I’m going to fail/This sucks/I’m way too tired for this,” adjust your approach. Even if you don’t believe them, more positive thoughts will change your outlook, making your stress more manageable.
5. Take a BREAK
Lastly and most importantly, give yourself time to rest! Treat yourself after a long day of studying and especially after a midterm. Kick back, watch a movie, grab dinner with your friends – plus, no matter what you choose, the aforementioned ice cream is always a good idea. If you feel like you’re starting to go crazy, prioritize and determine what can be left for tomorrow. Yes, it’s important to put your phone away and to be productive while studying, but breaks are essential, lest you want to go insane.
Congrats, you’re making it through your midterms! Focus on that light at the end of the tunnel – they’ll be over before you know it.