It. Is. Midterm. Season.
Taking your midterms is inevitable and so is the stress that comes along with preparing for them. However, there are ways to deal and lessen the stress during this time of the quarter or semester. Below are my top 5 tips to de-stress yourself during this midterm season.
1. Change Up Your Studying Habits
Often times we stick to our same old studying routine, which may include going to the library and drowning ourselves in our textbooks. My suggestion to you is to change it up. I learned from experience that I work well by studying in 1-2 hour increments and taking a 5-10 minute break in between. Apart from this, I work well by speaking to myself and teaching myself the concept out loud. It may seem odd, but everyone works differently! If you find the correct method of studying that is suitable for your style of learning, your stress should lessen.
2. Be Organized
This leads me to my second point. Be organized. Many times I find myself trying to figure out what I need to do and end up focusing so much on what should be done, that nothing really gets done in a timely manner. If you are organized, this issue will be eliminated and you can actually get to studying. I do this by taking a blank sheet of paper. I then think about all the things I have to do. I take the most pressing items from my over-all to do list, and choose the things I can do in the amount of hours I have and write them on my blank sheet of paper. I can easily write everything down on that sheet of paper and check it off as I go. However, this will only clutter my mind and therefore stress me even more. Writing down three things to do, for example, and completing them all will give me a sense of accomplishment for the day and motivate me to continue working or finish up the rest the next day, rather than making me dwell over all the work I did not do over the work I did do. Find your balance to declutter your mind.
3. Take a Cleaning Break
I mentioned above that I like to take a 5-10 minute break in between my studying. While I do do this, it is also important to take longer breaks for your own sanity. I like to do this through shower breaks or by watching an episode of my favorite show. I also loveee taking my breaks by cleaning. While it may not be common, this is the time when I can relieve some stress while also being productive. Cleaning is therapeutic, but it is also very necessary. You can take a longer break and get other, equally important, things done. I don’t know about you, but once when I finish cleaning, I end up feeling great and accomplished! Plus, it is good to have a clean study space.
4. Break a Sweat!
We know that exercise is important both for the mind and the body. It is such a great way to relieve your stress and anxiety because it is a time for you. Put your headphones in and go for a jog. It doesn’t have to be difficult or out of your way. It should fit your needs and time! If you can’t make it to the gym, no worries. Move your books off the floor and search for a 30 minute Youtube workout video. You don’t have to worry about the time wasted getting to and from the gym when you can easily do it from home. The worse thing you can do for yourself is disregard your own health. Of course, there will be times where you don’t have the time for a full session, but even 15 minutes of stretching or a HIIT workout, can make all the difference. Always make sure to consult your doctor for any recommendations and remember to maintain yourself as a top priority.
5. Sleep
We’ve heard it before. We need sleep. Our minds and bodies are active for long periods of time for a given day. As difficult as it is to sleep when we have so many things to do, we still need to be mindful of this. We work better when we are well-rested rather than when we wake up from our 3 hour nap. What use is it to stay up all night if we can’t manage to be awake the next day or retain the information studied? If we are organized and have effective studying habits, then sleep should not be sacrificed entirely.
It may be difficult to try and do everything in one day without feeling extremely overwhelmed, but remember everything will be okay in the end. Good luck this midterm season!
Photo Courtesy of UCLA Her Campus and Gloria Villalobos