With finals quickly approaching, many people get caught up in all their school work and get so concerned with their grades. Even though many people say and post about how grades don’t determine your worth, a lot of college students still focus on their grades. I know a lot of my friends will stay up until 2 am working on homework, studying for exams, and then still not get the grade they wanted. I’ve felt this disappointment before as well, and it really discouraged me because I thought that there was no point in studying if I’m just going to get a bad grade anyway. It’s taken me a while to realize that my grades do not reflect who I am; I’m still struggling with this at times, but I’ve gotten better. I know a lot of my friends struggle with this as well, stressing over final grades and trying to figure out how their GPA will be affected by their semester grades.
Even though grades and GPA are important, they are not more important than your health. Grades are not more important than your health (had to say it twice because it’s TRUE!). Many people have talked and written about this, but I feel like it can’t be said enough. I know so many people (myself included) who have made themselves sleep-deprived to the point of making themselves sick. According to The Daily Texan, a newspaper for the University of Texas, interviewed for the university’s health center said that “the general culture and glorification of being busy, of this phenomenon called ‘competitive non-sleeping.’”1 The article continued to say how getting little to no sleep is something to be proud of, and it shows how hard they are working. It’s shown that getting better sleep can improve grades. A study done at Baylor University showed that “better sleep helped rather than harmed final exam performance, which is contrary to most college students’ perceptions…”2
Some students push themselves at school and work until they can’t go anymore. Even though it may seem that you are getting a lot of stuff done, you’re actually hurting yourself in the long run. If you’re pushing yourself to the max and get sick, then you’ll miss class or go to class sick and not learn as well. The culture around college students not sleeping or being stressed to the max pushes people to think they have to stay up all night and make them feel guilty if they don’t. According to the University of South Carolina, 27% of students at that university report that stress has affected their academic performance and that 45% of students report that their stress level in the past months has been higher than average. On top of that, stress can cause many health issues such as heart problems and in women, stress can lead to problems getting pregnant.4
This finals season, make sure to take care of yourself. Whether it be to take a study break every once in a while, to watch an episode on Netflix, hang out with your friends, or grab a sweet treat. Good luck with finals!
Sources
- http://www.dailytexanonline.com/2018/12/03/students-affected-by-sleep-deprivation-culture
- https://www.baylor.edu/mediacommunications/news.php?action=story&story=205058
- https://sc.edu/about/offices_and_divisions/student_health_services/wellness-prevention/stress-management/index.php
- https://www.womenshealth.gov/mental-health/good-mental-health/stress-and…
Images from:
http://maorisakai.tumblr.com/post/112020592855/rainy-daybooksand-coffee-…
http://days-e.tumblr.com/post/164577589361/if-youre-going-back-to-school…