I have always dreaded finals week.
As someone who has had anxiety since I was eight, it has always been the biggest thorn in my side during the whole school year. In a lot of my classes, finals could make or break my grade. As a pubescent teenager, that’s a lot of stress in one week. The stress negatively impacted not only my anxiety, but also my body as a whole. As someone with a few chronic illnesses, my chronic illnesses tend to flare up when I am stressed. Whether you are as healthy as a horse, confident in your grades, or hoping to level up your grade this upcoming finals week, here are some helpful tips to manage stress during finals week.
- Get Some Fresh Air
Now, I am well aware that this answer seems basic, but it honestly helps. When I get too stressed, I find it helpful to walk around outside for a little bit, even if it’s only for ten minutes. Trust me, it helps. I am also aware that this may be difficult if you live in a place that’s absolutely freezing this time of year, and you hate the cold. However, I have found that simple things like cracking a window open while studying helps me calm down and put things in perspective.
- Practice Positive Self Talk
I used to feel silly when I did this. I used to wonder if it was actually helpful for me. Despite the initial doubts, after years of doing this, I can confidently say positive self talk can positively alter your perspective on life. Whenever I do not immediately understand something, I tend to talk down to myself. Ever since I started countering my negative thoughts with positive ones, I have felt much better during stressful times. For example, if you don’t understand something, instead of thinking “I’m dumb,” remind yourself of the positive things you have accomplished this year. You are not stupid just because you don’t understand organic chemistry. You are trying your best to learn. At the end of the day, that’s all you can do! Whatever you may be struggling with, all you can do is your best!
- Sleep
I don’t mean this in an unhealthy way, (because oversleeping is not always the right answer). What I mean is staying up until one a.m and getting up at 7 a.m may not be the most beneficial way for you to get a good grade. Being well rested has been proven to benefit both mental and physical health. Therefore, if you need a nap, take that nap. Similarly, if you need to go to bed earlier than usual, you should do that. At the end of the day, no one knows your body more than the person living in it! Take care of yourself.
- Communicate Your Feelings to Other People
Anyone who knows me can figure out that I like to talk, but I used to only share the positive aspects of my life to others. I did this until the internalized pressure and stress eventually broke me. All I could do was cry. Humans are social creatures, and we are made to coexist with one another. There’s no law that says you can only share the happy moments in your life with others. Sometimes, having someone to listen to me vent about my feelings is helpful! At the end of the day, friends and family are there to not only share the happy times, but also the more stressful ones! You aren’t alone, and I guarantee that you are not the only human in history to feel stressed and overwhelmed! COMMUNICATE!
- Go Love On Some Fuzzy Friends
When I am stressed out, just having my cat on my lap helps! Even if you aren’t allowed to have a fuzzy friend for some reason, there are a few different places, such as cat cafes or pet stores, that let you spend time with cats or dogs! If you are in the East Lansing area, I highly recommend the Constellation Cat Cafe! They always have the cutest cats that are guaranteed to make you smile!
- Take Breaks Every Once and Awhile
Take regular breaks from my schoolwork! Trust me when I say your work is not going anywhere anytime soon! If you wanna get it done faster, try taking a fifteen-minute break doing anything but work.Then, move on to your next assignment!
- Stick To Your Routine
I always find comfort in my daily rituals! Make sure you leave time for that! For example, I like to do my skincare routine after I wake up and before I go to bed! Keeping a sense of normalcy helps me stay calm in high stress environments!
- Keep Things in Perspective
Your performance on your upcoming group presentation does not determine if you are a good person. Rather, your treatment of others and overall actions define your character. To sum it up, don’t be a jerk. I guarantee that people are going to judge you more for that than a grade you got on your final. In fifty years, are you going to care what grade you got on your IAH final exam?
- Treat Yourself
It’s no secret – college is expensive! It’s perfectly understandable if a face mask or seven dollar coffee is not in the cards for you right now! If you can afford to treat yourself in that way, go for it! If not, there are plenty of cheap things that you can do to treat yourself during these stressful times! One example is a scalp massage! Whenever I’m stressed, if I have the chance, I like to grab my favorite essential oil, scalp oil, or shampoo to show my scalp some love! Similarly, you could carry this on to a face or body massage! It’s pretty easy to google some chakra points that are good for relieving tension and stress! By incorporating these simple techniques, I have been able to manage my anxiety episodes and calm myself down.
- Any Kind of Breathing Technique
I like to utilize breathing techniques to alleviate stress. My favorite method is box breathing, but other techniques, like 4-7-8 breathing, have also proven helpful to me! It may take a few tries to find which technique works best for you, but once you find one that works, it is such a useful tool! By simply Googling breathing techniques, you can find numerous examples to choose from!
All of these preventative or reactive techniques have been extremely helpful to me in coping with the stress of finals week! Hopefully, some of these strategies can help you, as well! Don’t forget that you are not alone in your stress, and you deserve to cut yourself some slack! This is a stressful time for everyone, but good luck!