How to not go completely insane during finals week

With finals approaching, it is extremely easy to succumb to the immense amounts of stress generated by tests that can make or break your grade in a class.  I am a very fragile little college student and am affected very adversely by stress, as I am sure most people are, and past finals weeks for me have involved a lot of tears, French fries, breaking out in hives, and hair loss.  

But, that is not the way things should be! Finals week should not create so much stress for students that we dissolve into exhausted puddles of tears that need to call our parents for support- so here are some tips and tricks you can try that will hopefully allow you to maintain some amount of sanity during the wonderful time that is finals week.  

Actual photo of me crying in the study lounge

Make sure you are getting enough to eat

During finals week, it is easy to get sucked into studying for hours on end and forget that our bodies need nourishment! Take a break and refresh with something substantial.  Eating healthy snacks will help to fuel your studies by providing the energy your body, and your brain, need for hours upon hours of studying.

Pizza breaks are always a must

Sleep!

Almost everyone I meet sacrifices sleep to their studies on a regular basis, and this trend only increases during finals week.  Sleep is extremely important though, your brain does not function as well when you are running on only a few hours of sleep, so get some rest! It’s important!

Paint your nails

This trick may seem odd, but it’s actually extremely helpful to take a break and focus on one thing, like painting your nails, for a couple minutes.  This is a tip I learned in some random beauty magazine when I was in the sixth grade and I have been using it ever since- it really helps! So take a break, relax, and let yourself focus on something other than school for a bit.

Make a study plan

When you have immense amounts of work to do, it becomes overwhelming to even try to begin studying.  One way to help make the process a bit less daunting is to plan out day by day, even hour by hour, what subjects you will study for and for how long you will study each subject.  I write out my schedule hour by hour in my planner and attempt to stick to the schedule, and it actually helps a lot! It makes everything feel a bit more manageable.  

Exercise

Working out is one of the best ways to relieve stress, and even though I hate working out more than almost anything else on the planet, I will admit that after a good workout I generally feel a lot happier and find it is easier to cope with the burdensome state of suffering that is life as a very tired college student.  So go check out the ARC! Working out for as little as thirty minutes can make a huge difference in both your physical and mental health- and if you hate the gym, you can go walk through the arboretum, or even just walk around on our beautiful campus!

Take a break and walk around our beautiful campus!

Remember it’s OK to take breaks

Believe it or not, taking breaks can actually increase your overall efficiency when studying, taking breaks will allow you to recover and then obtain more information when you return to your studies.  So take a few minutes off, watch an episode of Bob’s Burgers, sip some tea, and then go back to studying.  As long as your break does not turn into a full six hour Netflix binge it should help immensely with stress management!

Face masks: a good way to relax and soothe that wonderful stress acne

Use online resources as study tools

One of the most stressful parts of finals and studying for finals is having concepts that you feel like you just cannot grasp no matter how many times you reread your notes/textbooks.  When you stumble upon  a concept that you do not understand, and you do not have time to contact a TA or tutor, youtube is a fantastic resource! There are generally tons of youtube videos explaining almost any concept at all, and sometimes the person making the youtube video will explain it in a way that makes more sense to you than the way your professor taught it.  

Remember it’s OK to fail

Its is a hard concept to fully realize, but as much as failing feels like the end of the world, it isn’t.  Failing a final, even failing a class sucks, but it is not the end of the world.  How well you do on your finals does not affect how good of a person you are and it should not affect your self worth.  If you fail a final, or even an entire course, you are not stupid.  All you can do is the best you can do, and if you try your best on your exams you should feel proud of yourself for working hard- no matter what the outcome is.  During my first quarter at Davis I was on the edge of a D or a C in my math class and needed a B on the final to get a C, I was freaking out and called my mom crying, warning her that I was definitely going to fail the class.  I thought she would be mad but instead she just laughed and said “Madison, do you know how many classes I failed in college? Definitely more than one. You will be fine! You won’t remember failing math in five years, if you even fail, so just relax.” Her saying this calmed me down so much and it is something I try to keep in mind whenever I am worried about exams.  

Starbucks is life

I am predisposed to this opinion because I am a young white girl, but if you need an energy boost during finals week, heading to Starbucks and getting your favorite drink always helps.  It is also a nice way to reward yourself for all of your hard work.  You can also take your studies to Starbucks for a nice change of scenery and a relatively relaxing study space.  My go to order is a vanilla iced coffee, try it out!

Overall, the most important thing you can do to cope with the stress of finals and perform well on your tests is to simply treat your body with respect.  Getting sufficient amounts of rest, healthy foods, and exercise will all help you to maintain a healthy state of mind during this stressful time.  Remember, your grades do not define who you are as a person, your worth is not determined by what grade you get in a class, so take a deep breath, drink some iced coffee, and remember that everything will be okay, even if it does not feel like it will be.