by Hannah Alvarez
At Augustana College, we have just completed half the semester, which means mid-terms. Now the thought of mid-terms themselves seems daunting, but what about after? Who else feels that after halfway through the semester, they are done? Do you want the semester to be over or anything close to this? If you are nodding or saying anything in the realm of yes, you are not the only one.
This slump is quite common and if you don’t experience it then you are one of the lucky few, but knowing there are ways to combat it should help you. First and foremost, what is a slump? Now there are many definitions, especially for the “Summer Slump” or the “Sophmore Slump”, but what every definition has in common is a period of decline or lack of motivation and I feel it is quite common halfway through the semester because everyone and I mean everyone is exhausted.
I started noticing this so-called “Mid-Term Slump” even before college, so I have had a couple of years to try and figure out what helps and what doesn’t and to be honest even today I have to change some things around. Either the tool never worked and I just now realized or the certain tool I have been using just doesn’t work anymore. In regards to college though I feel I have kept the tools to help me overcome it pretty consistently unless I have other issues going on at the moment which does happen.
In terms of tools, I have noticed that when the mid-term season hits the best thing for me is organization and staying organized. You may be asking how this helps, well when you start the semester with a good plan, by midterm you are a pro. Some tips might be writing in your planner, or calendar or some along these lines. Also staying in a routine in general. Believe it or not, going to bed and waking up around the same time can help you try and get out of the slump. Another tip would be prioritizing your work. Do what needs to be done first and not procrastinate. These are just some tools to help in the classroom, but you also have to take some breaks as well.
Taking breaks is also very important. Knowing when your body says stop is also important. One way for me is to designate a day during the week to do my laundry and just step away from class/homework or take a day to do my everything shower. Knowing I have tools out of work also helps me keep going.
Having these tools is a valid way to get you out of the mid-term slump and trust me if these tools worked for everyone then it would be a party, but at the end of the day, you are the only one who knows what works for you and what doesn’t.