It’s the most wonderful time of the year! Just kidding, it’s finals season! With papers, exams, projects, etc. it is often a stressful time for everyone. Personally, I’ve never felt more stressed out in my life than I have the last couple of weeks, and the worst is yet to come.
Let me tell you something, this stress is not doing anything helpful. It’s natural to feel the pressure to get things done, but it is also extremely important to take breaks. I’m not saying go on a road trip to New York or anything, but step away from your book/computer/paper for a little bit and just breathe!
It is so very important for students to take breaks while studying because after a while, studying for x amount of hours straight is not effective. After a while, you just cannot retain any information, so while you are “studying” nothing is really going in your brain. But with breaks in between, your studying can become much more effective. It is even great to study take a break and quiz yourself on what you were working on, or to re-read your essay to see if it makes sense!
Here are my top break ideas, that don’t waste too much time but is enough to relieve some stress:
- Call a friend or family member, it’ll make them happy and in turn make you happy! These positive endorphins actually will help you study more effectively and make you less stressed!
- Take a dance break! Recently, I’ve had the urge to just dance (the new Bieber songs are completely danceable and so catchy.) and one of my friends loves doing Zumba in her room!
- Take a quick power nap. 30 minutes max! Anything longer will make you feel groggy and you will not want to go back to studying.
- Watch ONE funny youtube video. Again endorphins are good for you!
- Take a shower, maybe even sing or listen to the new Adele album!
As the exam season continues please remember to take take care of yourselves! Make sure you are eating (no, ramen and easy mac don’t count), drink plenty of water, and be sure you are getting sleep! Remember,it doesn’t matter how much you study if you are not at your best (aka hangry, dehydrated and sleep deprived), your final work will probably reflect that!
And never forget: DONE IS GOOD!