It's Finals Week at Elon University and everyone is starting to stress (or stressing about not being stressed yet, which is where I'm currently at). I'm sure some of you have exams coming up as well so I wanted to offer some tips for how to de-stress!
ONE: Give yourself little treats (like macaroons and Youtube videos!) when you've accomplished something. It makes studying much easier.
TWO: Studying somewhere you love, whether that's your room or the library, definitely makes it easier. For me, that's Argo, my favorite tea shop on campus.
THREE: Something that helps me is taking a relaxing shower when I'm getting too stressed to accomplish anything. There's no point in studying if your mind isn't in the right place, so take a warm shower to recenter yourself!
FOUR: Late at night when I think I can't possibly study anymore for the night, my friends and I will drive to Cookout to get milkshakes. It's nice to take a little while to spend time with your friends when you're typically locked away studying on your own.
FIVE: I'm sure that many of you are very familiar with making lists of what you have to do, but even those of you who aren't typically the list type should consider it! I like to make a list of everything that I have to accomplish (separated by class) and every event that I have to attend (exams, holiday parties, etc.). That way, I get to see how much I've accomplished by what's marked off and know exactly how much I have left to do.
SIX: Sometimes just making yourself a cup of hot tea, hot chocolate, or coffee can be a great stress reliever. Doing small physical tasks is wonderful when you've been cramming facts into your brain for too long and then you get a soothing warm drink.
SEVEN: I happen to be one of those people who can't study in silence, so I love to have chill background music to study too. Ed Sheeran and Sam Smith (whose album is on sale on iTunes!) are two of my favorite artists to listen to, but 8tracks has a bunch of great studying playlists as well, like this one. I also love to end my long night of studying by listening to one of my favorite songs before I go to sleep. I always pick something encouraging like "Defying Gravity" from the Wicked musical or Taylor Swift's new song, "Welcome to New York" (because it reminds me of why doing well in school matters...so I can get a job in NYC after graduation!).
I hope these tips help you out and that you have a great (and mentally stable) exam time!