It’s Finals.

And its finals. You knew it was coming. Images of blue books and and scantrons have been creeping into your lovely dreams since Thanksgiving break. But seriously, did you expect them to be quite so….stressful? No matter how much coffee, soda, or candy you find yourself consuming, it feels like you just are never satisfied. It is a perpetual state of hunger, sleepiness, and restlessness.  Why can’t you just seem to concentrate? And no matter how much you prepare yourself, those few hours before an exam bring on a whole new meaning to anxiety. All you can think about it…what if I end up not knowing, ANYTHING?
 
However, after three years of college, I have come to learn a new methodology. The queen of anxiety, the notorious over-stresser, has adopted a new mind-set. I call it “Keep Calm and Study On.” Stress is a nasty little monster; one that catches you when your guard is down, tightly squeezing out all your hopes and dreams until you fight against its evil powers. This battle however doesn’t have to be a rough one. There are many outlets through which stress can be overcome, and although it may seem silly to do more to solve the problem of having too much to do, I can promise you, it is well worth your effort. You must, and I mean must, take some time out of your cramming to unwind the build up of thoughts. Take a class at the AFC, grab some dinner with a friend, watch a movie…everyone has their own way of clearing out their brains. Did I just waste four hours going to the gym, indulging in dinner, and painting my nails? Absolutely. Just remember, we are all human, and its only natural to need a little break from the unnatural environment-imposed 2 weeks of intense stress. So please ladies, don’t pull an old me and drop everything just because of one trivial test. I mean yes, it does matter. However, tests come and go; your body and mind is something that stays with you forever. If you take a second to just relax, I can guarantee all of your hard work will pay off even more than you would have expected.