Feeling stressed out is, unfortunately, pretty much a given for most college students—especially towards the end of the quarter, when all those final projects, final exams, and due dates start piling up. However, stress can negatively affect your learning, so it’s important to find ways to decompress and relax even when you’re freaking out about how much material you’re supposed to memorize. Taking time for yourself and practicing self care can also help you prevent burnout (or the sophomore slump, for those of you in your second year at UW) by giving your life a little balance. While self care looks different for everyone, here are four easy ways to take a little better care of yourself during exam prep—and hopefully get a better grade while you’re at it.
1. Sleep.
While college culture has certainly normalized pulling all-nighter cram sessions to prepare for tests, they don’t actually help you all that much. Instead of staying at Ode until the wee hours of the morning and feeling exhausted the next day, aim for at least 6 hours of sleep a night. Don’t underestimate the power of naps, either! Just make sure you set a timer so you don’t mess up your (hopefully improved) sleep schedule. Your brain actually encodes what you’ve studied into memory storage while you sleep, so you know that it’s not time wasted.
2. Loosen up.
Literally.
Many of us carry stress physically and don’t even realize it—or don’t realize it until you stand up from your desk and feel like you’ve aged fifty years. In fact, you could even end up with tension headaches, which obviously is less than ideal when you’re trying to review 50 pages of your Econ textbook before Thursday. Don’t forget to take a deep breath, stretch, or even walk around for a minute every once in a while—you’ll eel so much better when you relax those shoulder muscles that have been tensed up during your entire 3 hour study session at the library.
3. Read.
When’s the last time you read anything besides your $200 textbook? Unfortunately, reading for enjoyment is often the first thing to drop off your to-do list when college life gets hectic. Sometimes your brain just needs a break from all your classes, clubs, and responsibilities, and a book is the perfect escape. Take advantage of your local library, Suzzallo or Odegaard, or even ask your friends if they have a book they recommend and want to loan you. If you just can’t stop multitasking, try listening to an audiobook while you run errands, walk to class, or clean your room. You’ll come back refreshed & ready to study again.
4. Eat healthier.
I know, I know: when you’re stressed out and overwhelmed, comfort food is your go-to. However, those meals (grilled cheese, pizza, cookie dough) can actually make you feel worse. Bloating or blood sugar crashs are NOT going to help you focus. Try to scale back on coffee, energy drinks, or sugary Starbucks concoctions too, since they can actually make you even more jittery and anxious. Try to make sure you’re eating protein, fruits, and vegetables!
In the end, it’s simple: You study best (and test best) when you feel your best. Take our advice, and any tips & tricks of your own you’ve picked up over the years, and try not to let stress derail finals week. You’ve got this!