Every college student knows that feeling when the first round of midterms can be seen coming around the corner. There's a mix of dread, fear, anxiety and tear-producing stress. It's like when someone was forced into the Colosseum to fight a lion without any weapons or armor. You just know it's not going to end well for the poor guy. Well, if you want any chance of winning your war against those first midterms, here are 7 things not to do before you go into battle.
1. Ditch Tequila Tuesday and Thirsty Thursday
Advil and gatorade won't be enough to cure your hangover the day of an exam. Your brain should be 100% focused on the problems in front of you, not the four shots you took the night before. If you want to celebrate, wait for the weekend.
Trust me.
2. Don't tell yourself you've studied enough
No one's ever said "I regret studying too much." You'll reach that point where you just want to shut your textbook, throw it out the window, and go hide under a blanket. Your brain is filled to the max with stupid equations and theorems and you think you can't possibly cram anything else into it. It'll be one of the hardest things you'll do, but you just have to push past that point and keep going.
3. An all-nighter will just make things worse
You're human. You need sleep to function. Yeah, extra cramming sounds good on paper, but going too long without sleep will put you in zombie mode. Your mind will be more focused and ready to go if you catch some much-needed z's.
4. Don't psych yourself out
Confidence goes a long way when taking a midterm. It'll stop you from second-guessing yourself and keep the anxiety at bay. You've studied, memorized and practiced your heart out.
You got this.
5. Skipping meals is a no no
Passing out in the middle of an exam is probably not on your bucket list. I get that nerves can sometimes throw your stomach into jumbles, but even a few almonds will go a long way when it comes to brain food.
6. Don't forget to take breaks
I know I just told you that you can't study enough, but that won't mean much when your brain doesn't have some time to process all the information being shoved into it. Check facebook, send some snaps, do something mindless for a few minutes.
7. Don't avoid office hours and review sessions
The absolute last thing you're going to want to do is to visit your professor or go to one of their too-long review sessions. However, most teachers actually want to help you do well, and tend to give out some pretty major hints if you make the effort to go to their office hours. Their review sessions, while most of the time incredibly boring, can also give you a heads up as to what kind of problems you'll see on the exams.
