How to Deal With the Pressure of Finals Week
A call for help
It’s the end of the semester again, and that means it’s time for finals week. That doesn’t even account for all the procrastinated assignments still waiting to be turned in. For some students, this is a week of cramming and all-nighters. For others, it’s a week of stress and anxiety. But for all students, it’s a week when self-care is more important than ever.
As a first-year student, I can confidently say these last couple of weeks have been the most stressful weeks, since being in college. You have to juggle studying for multiple exams, writing papers, and completing projects, all while trying to maintain your sanity. The break we are given for Thanksgiving doesn’t help either. During this time I was trying to spend time with family, but I constantly found myself in my room, isolated, trying to get everything turned in. I know I don’t have much experience with finals weeks, but I thought I could provide some input and motivation we all are in desperate need of during this stressful time.
The first step to surviving finals week is to make a plan. You need to know what exams you have and when they are, as well as when your papers are due. Once you have a plan, you can start to focus on each task one at a time.
One of the biggest challenges of finals week is finding time to study. With everything else going on, it can be difficult to fit in a few hours here and there to study. The key is to be efficient with your time. Make use of any spare moments you have, even if it’s just 10 minutes before your next class.
During finals week, students should take care of themselves both physically and mentally. It is easy to let your mental and physical health decline during finals week. You may be tempted to skip meals, stay up all night studying, or give up exercise in order to get good grades. However, it is important to maintain good mental and physical health during this time in order to stay balanced and perform your best.
Here are some tips on how you can maintain your physical and mental health……
For physical self-care, students should make sure to get enough sleep, eat healthy meals, and exercise regularly. It’s also important to take breaks from studying and to make time for relaxing activities like spending time with friends or watching a movie. A big thing a lot of college students will resort to during stressful times is drugs and alcohol. It’s vital to avoid alcohol and drugs, although it may be tempting to go out and have fun for the night. Remember the consequences that could arise from the situation, will only make you feel worse in the long run.
For mental self-care, students should try to stay positive and avoid comparing themselves to others. It’s normal to feel overwhelmed and stressed out during this time. Just remember to take some time for yourself and to relax. Take a break from studying to watch a movie, go for a walk, or just talk with friends.
Overall, finals week can be a challenging time for students. But by taking care of themselves, both physically and mentally, students can make it through the week and end the semester on a positive note.
Just remember in 2 weeks you’ll be saying “All the late nights studying and early mornings in the library finally paid off, I can finally take a breath.” For a whole week, you have been living and breathing your textbooks, but now it is all over. You can finally sleep in, go out with friends, and just relax. This is the time to treat yourself and enjoy your hard-earned break. So go out, have some fun, and relax — you deserve it!
