Look, we’ve all been there. It’s the end of term: exam dates and project deadlines loom, your calendar is a mess (if you haven’t given up on keeping a calendar), and you can’t remember the last time you had a full night’s sleep… or so much as looked at a vegetable. If you’re already struggling to make time in your schedule for classes, work, and study, self-care might seem like an extra, the purview of spoiled rich kids with good credit scores and middling GPAs. “I’ve got a four-hour shift, three papers and four exams to study for! Who has time to do a face mask?” In my experience, that face mask (or night out with friends, scoop of ice-cream, or walk in the park) might be the difference between ending strong, or collapsing a few feet from the finish line. Here are some pointers on how to take care of yourself in these last few weeks of school.
- : Write Everything Down
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If you feel like you have too much to do, write everything down. Don’t type it into a google calendar or (god-forbid) a language learning model, but get a pen (or pencil, or marker) and paper, and write all of your assignments down with their due-dates next to them. The scary part is that this makes your to-do list feel more real. The fun part is that this makes your to-do list feel more real AND gives you ownership of your responsibilities. Your final paper transforms from a vague, shadowy bogeyman to a manageable task with a date attached.
Pro-tip— This strategy applies to project outlines, too. Even if you hate writing from an outline, just writing down a general structure for your ideas, some potential topic sentences, or word-vomiting your thoughts can help conquer the horror of the Blank Page™ and help you get started.
- : Talk to Other People
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Humans are social animals. While cutting all personal interaction might seem like a good way to streamline your work schedule, it will slow you down in the long run. You’ll feel more lonely, more overwhelmed, and less motivated to do your best work. Even if you don’t have the time or energy to just “hang out” with your friends, the world is full of opportunities for micro-interaction. Don’t just wave hello to that old friend across the quad, go and say hello. Make small-talk with that friendly barista, or kind classmate. Pay someone a compliment. Call your mom, or grandpa, or auntie. These social moments might feel insignificant, but they add up to create a feeling of connectedness and well-being.
Pro-tip— The next time somebody asks “how are you?” be honest. Tell them one thing that’s on your mind, whether it be positive or negative. Nine times out of ten, they’ll express sympathy, or even share a struggle of their own. As the saying goes, everyone is fighting their own battle.
- : Go to Bed
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I know, I know — easier said than done. But it’s basically impossible to be productive if you don’t sleep enough, and it’s even more impossible to sleep if you don’t have good sleep hygiene. If you’re binging caffeine or alcohol, looking at screens, or eating junk food right before bed, you’ll have a hard time falling asleep. And even if you do manage to get a few hours in, you’ll wake up feeling like you didn’t sleep at all. My advice? Stop working an hour before bed, and take one hour to prepare for sleep. Set your alarms, plug in your devices, take any end-of-the-day meds, cross things off your calendar, make your evening toilette, and put your phone away. If you need something to relax your brain, try reading a book — bonus points if it’s long and boring — or journal about your day. Chances are you’ll sleep much better than if you’d spent that hour (or two, or three) scrolling on Ao3 or watching Call the Midwife clips on YouTube Shorts.
Pro-tip— There’s a superstition among actors that sleeping with your script under your pillow helps you learn your lines. While this is not literally true, studies show that there are benefits to reviewing material before you go to bed. Scientists at the University of Notre Dame found that subjects who learned new words before a full night’s sleep recalled more words than subjects who learned before a full day of “wakefulness” (Payne et. al., 2012). Give this trick a try next time you feel tempted to pull an all-nighter.
- : Do What You Love
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I can already hear you saying: “Are you kidding me?! I barely have time to do things I hate!” I used to think that, too. But nobody can work for hours on end without taking breaks. Even if you try to work through exhaustion, your brain will eventually tap out, leading to an endless cycle of overwork, “lost” time, and guilt, followed by more work. The only way to stop this cycle is to reframe your thoughts: the cumulative hours you spend staring out the window, at a blank word document, or at Instagram Reels isn’t time you could have spent working— it’s time you could have spent resting. The kindest thing you can do during finals season is give yourself time to be happy.
Pro-tip— Set aside one or two hours every day to do something you enjoy. Whether that’s going for a long walk, shooting free-throws with friends, playing Animal Crossing, reading a good book, cooking for yourself, or doing something completely different. As my singing teacher likes to say, work from rest, not for rest.
Maybe you’re still thinking: “This list doesn’t apply to me. I’m too busy for any of this.” If you are, congratulations! You’re my target audience. It’s true that there will be days when you won’t have the time. When it will be easier to care about work than about your mental health, your social life, or your most basic bodily needs. Let me be clear: it’s okay to work hard and feel tired sometimes. But it’s equally important to recognize exhaustion, and take steps to remedy it. Depending on your schedule, goals, and personal resources, self-care might look different for you. The most important thing is to figure out what makes you feel good.