It’s finals week DePaul! Time to stress the f*** out! Of all my time in school and experiencing finals week in different waves, I’ve come to realize that there is so much stress around this one week of testing, cramming, and sometimes crying. Well, I feel you. That’s why I’m here to let you know that there’s nothing to stress about because life’s too short.
Within the ten weeks of school, work seems to constantly pile up with no room to breathe. You’ve got five weeks to figure your classes, take the midterm, it snows, and then you’re onto the long haul until finals arrives.
I think you’ve heard it all before: take care of yourself, take a break, prepare for your tests ahead of time, do some yoga, drink some tea, get good sleep. All are great things to be doing during this stress-inducing time. However, I don’t think people really touch on the fact that these tests are just tests. We stick to the same mentality—that whether or not we do well, these tests are going to define our ultimate capabilities and take over our career opportunities, goals, and dreams. There may be some truth to this, but we overthink it.
I remember in high school and my early college experiences with finals, I stressed myself so much to the point that I never really got to enjoy the free time that finals week allows for. Some of my friends would go out for coffee or lunch, and I was always taking that time to catch up on papers I should be writing. I was always getting things done, filling out study guides, reviewing notes, and writing papers, but I also found myself forcing the productivity to a point that I would burnout.
This is not okay. In all my time studying and dreading over tests, I felt like no matter how much I studied, the less present and exhausted I was toward the end of my semesters and then I was off on break for a few weeks only to come back to more work.
One of the best solutions for this is balance and mindfulness. Be mindful of the way you are managing your time this week, but also pace yourself and give yourself breaks—know when you need to take a step back and reboot. This quarter, I’ve felt like I was only doing work to get it done and not putting my full attention towards one specific thing at a time.
In all aspects of life, I think we are always trying to find ways to excel, and there’s not always a “right” way of doing things. Much like studying habits, we all have our own unique methods of processing material. In a similar way, we all have our own unique methods to cope with our stress levels. Talk it out with a friend and make it known that sometimes you just have to give yourself pause.
Take care, DePaul.