As the semester draws to a close, the inevitable onslaught of tests and papers become more and more tangible as they begin to loom dangerously overhead. Facing these daunting terrors can be soul crushing, but there are a few things you can remember to prepare yourself for the coming storm. Now I’m sure some of these will seem painfully obvious, you’d probably do some of these things anyway because of habit or it’s subconsciously ingrained. Regardless, they need to be said if you are ever to make it through finals with your sanity intact.
First off, remember to eat a good meal before heading into a test. You’re going to have enough to worry about without adding a hungry stomach to the list, so get that taken care of. Treat yourself. If your test is in the morning, make some French toast or pancakes. Get some fruit in your belly for that extra brainpower. Whatever it is you decide to eat, make it a good meal. Maybe that’s going to Perkins or just eating pop-tarts in bed with your partner. Make it something you can appreciate. The guys on death row get a good meal, so why shouldn’t you?
Next up is remembering to get plenty of rest before a test, at least eight hours of sleep. I know many of us usually operate around four to six hours of sleep, but that isn’t going to cut it. Like treating yourself to a good meal, treat yourself to a good sleep. Heading into a test tired is probably even worse than going into it hungry, so don’t be staying up half the night beforehand studying. All those hours won’t mean jack if you can’t keep your eyes open during the test. Get at least eight hours of rest. Find a reasonable cutoff point and perform a hard shutdown of all your electronics and distractions and just lay down. Some of that might be spent stress snoozing, but it’ll pass, especially if you have some extra melatonin to help you along.
Always remember that you are not alone. You are not an astronaut free-floating through the darkness of space, there are people around you going through the same stuff you are. You are not drowning alone because there are hundreds of others in the pool with you. So reach out for help if the walls start closing in. Not to mention there are a lot of resources around you to help with the load. There’s a handy-dandy writing center available to aid you on those papers. I heartily recommend you go there to get some help on those papers.
Perhaps the most important thing to remember is that you are a human being. It is in our nature to fail, and to fail spectacularly. If you don’t do so hot on these finals, life will go on. Don’t build them up to be some insurmountable deathtrap. The finals only have as much power as you give them. So relax, remember that failing is okay, and don’t give them an inch. Failing this winter may derail you, but it won’t mean life and death. Even if someone has flat-out told you that. They are wrong.
Finally, remember to breathe. Go find a place to sit down, take off the headphones, listen to the world, take a deep breath, and let it all out. Don’t wait until after finals to calm your mind, you’ll need that peace for the trials ahead. Good luck.
