How do you cope with the stress of finals?
ChemLass
Posts: 18 Member
I started my fitness journey in January after packing on weight during the stressful fall semester that saw me taking a heavy course load, applying for internships,and studying for the MCAT. I've been doing pretty well since then, but now it's the end of the semester and I'm studying for finals, prepping to start an internship, and studying for the GRE (yep, I gave up on med school haha!).
I've been super stressed, pulling all-nighters and I find myself slipping into old habits. I ate Ramen for the first time in 6 months today (it gave me a massive headache)! What do you all do to cope with stress and stick to your routine?
I've been super stressed, pulling all-nighters and I find myself slipping into old habits. I ate Ramen for the first time in 6 months today (it gave me a massive headache)! What do you all do to cope with stress and stick to your routine?
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Rant-pray if that fits you. Talk to loved ones. Study with classmates if needed. Check with your Counseling Center, which is staffed with great folks to talk to about anything and may have a relaxation center.
Move-excercise off the stress.
Search-for organized stress relief efforts. My Christian school, for example, offers Chapels including a Relaxation Chapel where a professor with the ideal voice for such a job soothes us with great ideas to take to the future.0 -
Caffeine. I'm a bit different as my priority is work and then grad school is my second priority. My volunteer stuff comes in 3rd.
I'm also a bit different in that I'm an online student and take accellerated classes (8 weeks = 1 class), so it is only 1 class at a time for a FT course load, but it is faster paced than a similar class on a regular schedule. The busiest work/final week I've had since I've been working on this degree went like this:
Mon.
7:30a-1p - Work
1p-3p Drive to airport (I live in rural area, which explains the distance)
3p - 11p Get to airport, fly, connection, fly again, etc. (I finished up my final report while sitting at the airport and submitted... I had started it the prior week)
11p - 12a Get from airport to hotel, check in, etc. (these times are approximations and summary - in fact, I didn't check into hotel until about 12:30a)
Tues.
Morning was free, so I visited some historical sites and monuments and such. That meant walking around in the snow, which burned calories of course.
Afternoon and evening was meetings.
Wed.
Morning, I had an appointment which ended up taking all morning.
Early afternoon flight (direct flight). I had a plane with Wi-Fi, so I paid for the Wi-Fi and did my final exam for my online class during the flight. I got home around 5pm and just went to bed early.
Thurs.
6:45a - about 6pm Work
Fri.
4:30a - 10p Work (Inventory, and I'm the accountant who manages Inventory)
Sat.
6:45a - 6p Work (Inventory wrap-up)
Sun.
Work again...
So as you can see, I found little bits of time to do homework while traveling. So I was still able to find time to do a bit of fun exercise on Tues. morning, but still got my final project turned in and test completed. I consumed plenty of caffeine as well.0 -
Screw the calories. No, really. Finals are about survival. I take heavy courses and lots of them, if I want half a cup of heavy cream in a day Im having it. As for this semester-trying to stay a little more on track, but I'm so stressed I forget to eat.0
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^ What she said. As a more-than-full-time student, I'm on the same boat. Life has consisted of nothing but school, work, and more school since the start of this spring semester. My chub can wait till after I've secured a grade and gotten my money's worth out of the semester. Until then, I give my body (some of) what it wants toward finals week. Heck, IMO, anyone who has to suffer through a term paper deserves a big ol' mug brownie or a bathtub full of coffee! (Okay, maybe not QUITE that much, but you know what I mean.)0
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I decided to return to school for my MBA in Finance in January. Working full time and taking 3 classes online can be a tad hectic at times. Starting on April 1st I came back to MFP and also started working out regularly again. I definitely noticed a large gain in my ability to focus and also retain more information after this happened. Exercise is a great stress reliever and after a long day at work it's nice (for me anyway) to jump on the elliptical for half an hour and clear my head before making the switch over the school.0
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I have to disagree with the screw the calories during exams sentiment. When I know I'm going to have a busy schedule coming up (I'm work towards my masters, I work, and I'm working on learning a new language so it happens often) I make it a point to schedule in some healthy cooking time before the busy period. For example, if I know I have exams in a few weeks I actually write "cooking time" into my calendar the week before. Then I make a giant batch of healthy soup (but that's cause I love soup - make whatever works for you) and stick some of it in the freezer. When the exams come along I don't have to worry about cooking or even food prep! Just pop some soup in the microwave and go get your study on!
Just knowing I have one less thing to stress about during finals can take a bit of the weight on your shoulder. And eating all that healthy food you already made can give you some spare calories to splurge on those junk food snacks that help you get through studying (for me it's gummy worms)!0 -
I made sure to take walks when I could, just to clear my mind! It's nice to have a metal break from studying. I also hate the idea of all-nighters (when they're not really needed) - I always make sure to try and get my normal sleep quota because I'm useless without my sleep. I'm a bad tester, so that is really important to me that I show up to a test fully functioning and not 100% running on caffeine.
I also have to remind myself to eat. The dining hall can suck, but sometimes I get so caught up in being busy that I snack on some chips and call it a meal. When I actually go to the dining hall, even if I just eat some cereal and fruit, it's better than the empty calories I'd be stuffing my face with otherwise.0 -
Thanks so much for all the advice everyone! I really liked your advice @eatearth! Planning meals in advance seems to work best for me too.
I definitely followed the "screw the calories" mantra for a bit, @sweetteadrinker2 but it ended up making me feel really sluggish and bloated, which ended messing with my mental clarity.
What I did in the end was cut back on exercising because I just didn't have the time, but I tried my best to stick to my calorie goals. It worked out pretty well because I got straight As this semester!
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