It’s April and along with the perfect temperatures, sunshine, and birds chirping, the end of your spring semester is looming. Summer is so close you can taste it, but before you can get to beach and rum bucket season (just me?), you’ll have to survive college’s version of waterboarding: Finals.
If I’m honest, I don’t cope very well with this kind of pressure. I’m a worrier to begin with, but add a cumulative ACS chemistry final with a tendency to procrastinate and you’ve got a recipe for disaster. So to avoid ending up crazy delirious from 48 hours of no sleep, surviving off of days-old pizza that wasn’t even good when it was fresh, and listening to the sound of my heart ready to explode after my third large iced coffee in an hour, I’ve come up with 10 quick de-stressors that keep me sane during hell week.
1. Stretching
“Get your blood flowing” isn’t a saying for nothing. Sitting for hours on end can really mess with your head. Fatigue sets in and before you know it, you literally can’t answer one question about a paragraph you’ve literally read and re-read three or more times. There’s a simple solution to this one: Stretch. Stand up and do a couple stretches. Do this often, and you’ll see that your energy and focus levels will last so much longer.
2. Dihydrogen Monoxide (Take that ACS Chemistry final)
3. Pamper Yourself
I realize that this may just pertain to girls, but what girl isn’t self-conscious when her toenails are covered in chipped paint, especially in Florida where sandals reign supreme? And who doesn’t like the way their face feels after a nice face mask? I’m by no means saying to go out and get a professional treatment, but these are little things that can be done at home in little time that make you feel put-together and ready to succeed. You might not be getting much sleep, but you don’t have to feel even worse by looking like it. And whatever the guy equivalent is, do it. Everyone feels better when they look nice.
4. Shower
5. Smoothie
6. Vitamin D
6. Vitamin D
7. Mini-workouts
7. Mini-workouts
8. Pet a Pet
8. Pet a Pet
9. Eye of the Tiger
10. Lake, River, Fountain, Ocean, Pool: Study There
10. Lake, River, Fountain, Ocean, Pool: Study ThereBonus Tip: Background Music
So there are my tips for staying sane during finals…and life in general. I’d love to see some comments on what everyone else does too! You literally can never have enough life hacks to deal with hell, I mean finals week. Good luck, everyone!
