Second term, with the tough job of immediately following the festive season during which your biggest concern was eating too many mince pies, can be a stressful time. Essays, deadlines, and other sources of work-related worry can easily trip you up if you start to fall behind or get bogged down with anxious thoughts, but equally the few weeks between Christmas and Easter can be a time of great enjoyment as well as productivity.
Having made a New Year’s resolution for the first time in ages and pledging not to get unnecessarily stressed about anything that I don’t need to be stressed about (which is everything), I’ve already grown to realise how easy it is to avoid worrying if you only have the right mind-set. Reminding yourself to stay calm and think positively will quickly become a habit as you get used to dismissing any potential anxiety and replacing it with determination and confidence. Talking about how stressed you are or how much work you have to do is only unhelpful and just leads to greater stress and a greater workload, whereas tackling the problem and thinking of the end result is motivating and uplifting.
The end result itself is usually well worth the effort as well. The satisfaction that follows a period of progress and productivity is incredibly rewarding and there’s nothing stressful about feeling like you’ve earned break. Ending a successful day or week with relaxing in front of your favourite TV show is a good way to switch off and temporarily forget about studying, my particular favourite being Call the Midwife with its graphic scenes of painful childbirth (more often than not with added complications) which quickly put all of your own worries into perspective.
It’s important not to lose sight of the bigger picture. It’s extremely easy to grow stressed when you’re placing so much importance upon university work which, at the end of the day, is tough but such a small proportion of your life. While your degree is temporarily a great priority, chances are it won’t have that much influence in the grand scheme of things and the difference between a 2:1 and a first may not even be important to your future employer. Instead, it’s far more valuable to leave university with a degree that you’ve earned while gaining happy memories and important experiences which will ultimately matter more in life. Most people you meet will be far more interested in your personality and impressed by your character and various interests rather than your university studies. That isn’t to say that your degree isn’t important or that you shouldn’t reach your maximum potential since wishing you’d worked harder would be just as frustrating as regretting not having enjoyed yourself more. It is merely important to get the right balance, and engaging in a variety of activities will most likely make your work more enjoyable if it’s not the sole focus of your time.
Furthermore, although controlling your thoughts and feelings is easier said than done, stress is ultimately just a creation of the mind and, therefore, its creation can be prevented. If you refuse to submit to it and simply don’t allow it to develop, it can’t beat you.