Christmas is almost here, but for many students it is hard to peacefully think about the most wonderful time of the year at the moment. The reason. Those bloody exams, right? Essays, presentation, sit-down exams, whatever it is the struggle is real and December isn't that lovely anymore. As all of you, I struggle. Harder to get up in the morning, harder to drag myself to the library, harder to focus, harder to feel good, university is popping all of my energy. As you might have noticed by now I love to give tips and tricks about university and how to deal with it. I wanted to write an article about the end of the semester for some days, but since I didn't know myself how to deal with it, I've waited a little before starting my article. All of the tips I'm about to list here are actually a combination of experiences, tips given by the teachers, conversation with friends and advices from my wise boyfriend. I hope this will help you to go through the end of the semester with grace and to be ready to relax properly on Christmas time!
As always, the first tip is the same: get bloody organized. This is the first step to take in order to feel better, less stressed, but also to do well with your assignment. Make a list of all the things you need to get done, check the deadlines, and write down a schedule of all that you have to do, for every day. Keep the deadlines in mind while doing this in order to don't have any bad surprise at the end of the week, establish your priorities the right way. But also, don't try to do too much. Stay realistic and don't push yourself too much, this will just lead to unproductive work.
In order to make the most of your day, wake up early. I know this is not that easy at this time of the year, when it is cold when you leave your blanket and dark outside, but go to sleep early and get yourself 8 hours of sleep every night. An early wake up will make you feel good about yourself but also allow you to find time to do something else than working. Because yes, you still have a life during exams/essays period. So take some time for yourself, go out, see your friends, go shopping, have a lazy afternoon watching The Holiday, take a nap. Anything that would make you feel more chill, more calm, better in your body and in your head. Because when stress takes over, productivity and efficient go away.
Food also have a lot to do with the quality of your work. Avoid all those sugary treats and candies, try to stay healthy, carrots and humous for a snack are perfect for instance. Set your meals of the day, try to eat at regular moments and enough! Stupidly, stress sometimes make us forget to take care of ourselves, so don't forget to have all of your meals. And of course, drink a lot of water! This way you'll avoid the headache and feel more awake! Coffee is good, but find a balance.
Finally, guys, it is December the 15th. Allow yourself to be Christmassy and chill, allow yourself to go crazy on Christmas candies for one afternoon, treat yourself with a pretty present, because well, as a student, you clearly deserve it. Good luck!
xo
Amy
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