1. Take a break from caffeine
You might need a boost of energy to get through your papers, but caffeine is a stimulant and will make you even more anxious and stressed out. Instead of drinking coffee, try drinking tea or just stick to water!
2. Make sure you eat
Sometimes students will skip meals because they want to prioritize studying over everything. Skipping meals might give you some extra time to study, but it definitely doesn’t help. You need all the energy you can get to get through midterm season, so make sure you eat healthily and regularly. Saving a few minutes might sound great, but if you skip meals your body will just be hungry and distracted.
3. Exercise for 30 mins
When midterm season hits the last thing you’d want to do is go to the gym, but studies have shown that physical exercise can actually make you feel a lot better. Focusing during workouts can help you clear your mind and distract you from the source of your stress. If you don’t want to do rigorous gym sessions, you can also do light cardio work, like jogging!
4. Create a to-do list
You’re probably stressed because you’re trying to balance a million things at once! Spend your Sunday writing down everything you need to get done for the week. Seeing everything you need to do might be really overwhelming, but scheduling and organizing your week is so important. When you map out your top priorities and critical deadlines, you can see what you need to get done first and also organize your schedule.
5. Take a little break
You might be stressed because you need to finish a million things by the end of the week, but take a step back and breathe! Take a 15-30 minute break here and there throughout your day. Read a magazine, listen to music, or just do something that makes you happy.
6. SLEEP
Stop doing all nighters and make sure you get a good night’s sleep! It might be easy to pull an all nighter, but sleep is so important. Not getting enough sleep (or proper sleep) can really affect your mood and your ability to think. If you feel like you didn’t get enough sleep, try taking an hour power nap during the day.
7. Talk to someone about how you feel
There might be a time when you have homework due, papers to write, midterms to study for, and a million other things on the side. We’ve all been in this situation. Life can feel pretty overwhelming, but the best thing to do is to talk to someone about it! Talking about what makes you stressed can really help you get a weight off your shoulders. Try talking to a friend or relative about how you’re feeling.