Finals are just around the corner, and you know what that means? Late night cramming sessions, countless cups of caffeine, and the occasional desire to throw old quizzes and assignments into the air with a growl. It’s a stressful time, but here are some useful things to remember:
Breathe.
Sometimes, when you’re in the middle of memorizing six chapters from a textbook, or adding a couple of paragraphs to a research paper, just stop what you’re doing and take a deep breath. If it helps, close your eyes. Feel your lungs expand with fresh oxygen as the weight of finals fall from your shoulders, even if it’s just for a moment. With every soothing breath you will lower your heart rate and your anxiety. So just breathe.
Step away from electronics and wifi.
I’ve caught myself playing games on my smartphone when I should be reading through the last book for my mystery novel class, and a couple friends of mine prefer watching Netflix over reviewing key chapter terms. It’s hard, trust me, but you will feel less stressed when you take your finals if you peel your eyes off the screen for ten minutes to review those chemistry notes. Every once in a while it’s okay to check if you got any emails from home or work, or if you want to check up on your friend who’s getting over a break-up; otherwise, keep your eyes off the screen and your nose in the textbook.
Eat and drink often.
While you’re busy studying, it’s easy to forget to get a bite for dinner or to drink water to keep you from getting dehydrated. Set a time for yourself every day to put down the notes and old quizzes to get yourself some food and water. And by food, I mean something more substantial than what you can get out of a vending machine. Some cheap and easy meals are soup, stew, sandwiches, a bowl of fruit with yogurt on the side, and frozen dinners.
Make sure you keep a glass of water by you so every now and then you can rehydrate. If you run out of water, refill the glass. It only takes a few seconds, and you can let your brain finish absorbing and retaining the statistics equations you worked so hard to memorize. While it contains no fiber and a lot of sugar, a little bit of fruit juice can also give you a boost of Vitamin C.
Stay healthy.
You don’t have to go to the gym for an hour every day, and you don’t need to restrict yourself to an all-veggie diet. But you do need to make sure you’re getting enough sleep and Vitamin C. This is the time when you’re so busy studying and finishing last-minute assignments that you choose staying up over getting a good night’s rest and Peet’s Coffee over water . If you do start to feel under the weather:
-Take more naps and/or go to bed earlier.
-Take Emergen-C. Even if you don’t really have a cold, it will give you some peace of mind.
-Keep dry and warm, especially in this rainy weather we’re having.
-Have a box or two of tissues nearby and a trash can or bag to throw the used ones in.
I’m emphasizing this: take breaks often.
Yes, you should preferably stay off Facebook and Twitter, lest you be distracted for hours on end. However, if you’ve been studying for three hours straight and your only breaks have been to eat or go to the bathroom, I think you deserve some free time. If you’re worried you’ll become distracted by Netflix or video games, try reading a fun book , showering affection on your pet, bonding with your roommate, or even working on your holiday shopping. Or, you can even make the gifts yourself. Less money, less time spent in stores, and more time for studying. Whatever you do, let it be something not related to school. Give your mind and eyes a break.
Focus on the finals happening sooner.
Though you might have a super big final next Thursday and a smaller one on Monday, study for the Monday final first. You will have plenty of time to study for the Thursday final, but not as much for the Monday one. Once you finish studying for Monday, then you can completely focus on your Thursday final, saving yourself some time and sleep.
Talk to your professors if you need extra help.
There is no shame in admitting you don’t understand something. It’s perfectly okay if you don’t want to ask a question during class, but you should talk to the professor after class or in his or her office hours. Even if it’s about something small, ask them anyways. You can also send an email if you can’t make it to office hours. Your professors should be more than willing to help you out, since it’s their job to teach you the material and to make sure that you understand it.
Lastly, finals are not the most important thing in the world.
Right now, it might seem like if you don’t study at least 8 hours a day, you won’t do so well on the exams. I can tell you that this isn’t true. There is such a thing as overstudying, and plenty of people suffer from it. You don’t need to focus all your time and energy on preparing for final exams. Instead, study for a few hours every day (a little longer if there’s more info to cover for the exam). Spending less time studying not only makes you focus harder on what you need to know for exams, but it also gives you more time to spend doing other things that matter in your life, such as hanging out with friends before they go home for the holidays, or spending a night downtown with your S.O. You’ve worked hard, you’ve studied all you can, and there’s no need to fry your brain going over the same mathematical formulae for a hundredth time.