With midterms coming up, there's so much stress around campus and that can mean many things! Personally, I know for a fact that I have let the stress take over my life but here are some tips to overcome stress and study well.
Prioritize
A social life is important in college and around these times we tend to let studying slide a bit to go out with friends. Socializing is a wonderful break, but remember that you'll feel more confident about your exam the more time you spend preparing for it! You can hang out with your friends the next weekend, but you'll thank yourself for the extra review time.
Take a Break
Studying is important, but you also need some time to breathe. Go out to lunch with a friend for a bit, let your mind drift to something else other than equations or anatomy. Just remember that it's easy for a break to turn into procrastination, so time your breaks to an hour or so before you get back at it. Relax, watch an episode or two of Parks and Rec or take a quick nap, just shut off your brain for a while so that it reboots. That and going nonstop makes you retain less information!
Do NOT Pull All-Nighters
If you really need to study for a class, do NOT wait until the night before to study until three in the morning. Instead, study in smaller periods a few days before the exam so that if you have any questions you have time to get them answered! Plus, no matter how many Red Bulls or cups of coffee you drink it's really hard to retain information that late into the night. Do yourself a favor and schedule times to study for your exams days in advance. You'll love yourself for it.
Get Some Sleep
You need rest! Just another reason you shouldn't pull an all nighter, you need actual sleep before your exams. Tests in college are known for destroying your sleep cycle with a combination of stress and lack of time but make sure you can get to bed at a reasonable time. It won't be worth studying all night for if you cannot comprehend a majority of your test questions. Sleep to maintain your sanity.
Ask for Help
Whether it be help with studying or to keep a grip on reality, sometimes we all need to just ask for help. Ask around for people you know who have previously taken the class or know the material well enough to see if you can just have an hour of their time. Other times, you just need the help of family and friends to calm yourself down.
College exams are stressful but know at the end of the day they won't break you! You are worth so much more than a letter grade and talking to a counselor or someone you trust about it will make you feel so much better. Just plan it out and try as hard as you can to understand the information. But remember to take care of yourself. You got this.
