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It’s the Final Stress!<br />
Story by Noah Howie and Rosie Powers, Health & Fitness Editor and Asst.<br />
Editor<br />
Some people would say that the biggest events<br />
at Berry are Pack the House, where students<br />
fill the stands to support friends as Berry takes home<br />
win after win. Though this time of year it seems like<br />
pack the library is the most popular. That’s right folks,<br />
finals week is approaching causing Berry College students<br />
to lose their sanity over the stress of tests. There<br />
are students hidden away in corners inhaling coffee<br />
and trying to memorize every word of their study<br />
guide. Others are hunched over laptops until two in<br />
the morning. And somehow every inch of whiteboard<br />
is sporting terms from several different subject areas.<br />
Not to mention just finding a seat in the library is like<br />
enduring the Hunger Games. Everyone wonders if it<br />
is at all possible to study through osmosis (wait what’s<br />
the definition of osmosis again?). Although cramming<br />
seems to be the popular trend, it raises stress levels<br />
to the breaking point. You can’t help but wonder how<br />
some people don’t seem to be stressed at all. So, what<br />
can be done to relieve stress and revert a sleep deprived,<br />
coffee consuming college student back to their previous<br />
state? Lucky for you, we’ve talked to some of your<br />
fellow classmates about their stress habits. They gave<br />
us the low down on what they do to lose that stress<br />
during the most stressful week of the semester. Why<br />
don’t you read a few of these ideas, try them out, and<br />
we’ll see you in the library!<br />
A word from our Editor in Chief:<br />
I usually start getting antsy about finals the week<br />
after spring break. The looming thundercloud of term<br />
papers, final projects and exams easily overwhelm any<br />
mental peace from the week before and, over the years,<br />
I have found a few ways to cope.<br />
Plan. Admittedly, I go a little overboard when it comes<br />
to planning for finals or any sort of large project. The<br />
first step is breaking apart study material (or certain<br />
milestones if you’re working on a final project<br />
or paper) into sections and doing one section a day.<br />
So, for example, if you have 7 units of chemistry, and<br />
each unit would take two days, plan ahead two weeks<br />
to begin studying and preparing for the exam. I keep<br />
track of where I need to be in each project or study<br />
guide in my planner so I can simply look down the list<br />
and see what I need to do by the end of the day.<br />
What I love about this system is that if you don’t make<br />
your study goal for that day, you still know where you<br />
need to be in your study materials by the end of the<br />
What do other students do?<br />
“To lower my stress during finals week, I like to set aside<br />
some time to make some tea and curl up in bed to watch<br />
netflix. It’s a nice way to destress and to get away from the<br />
craziness of everyone cramming for exams.”<br />
-Sophomore Bella Robins<br />
“Honestly to lower stress I like to watch Netflix. I never<br />
really get a chance to do that during the week because life is<br />
so busy, so it’s nice to just stop everything and just relax. It<br />
helps take my mind off of everything going on around me!”<br />
-Sophomore Aubrey McFayden<br />
“For finals week I usually find my self bogged down by all<br />
of the assignments so I actively choose to take breaks. I<br />
enjoy going on walks with my girlfriend just to get outside(if<br />
its nice). I also enjoy sitting down with a good book<br />
whether it’s “The Good Book” or some CS Lewis. I like to<br />
read with the windows open and a good cup of coffee or<br />
tea. Lastly I enjoy talking naps and cold showers to calm<br />
and cool myself after taking finals or studying for hours on<br />
end. Of course the obligatory cookout run every now and<br />
again doesn’t hurt”<br />
-Sophomore Andrew Myers<br />
next day. You can either study what you missed in<br />
its entirety that next day or disperse it more evenly<br />
amongst the following days.<br />
Making lists on printer paper also helps me to organize<br />
and prepare for the end of the year. It gives me<br />
the freedom to lay out my lists how I need to and it<br />
provides a space for me to write really large where I<br />
need emphasis or to draw and circle things without the<br />
lines on the normal loose leaf paper getting in the way.<br />
Work in spurts. When studying, it is most effective<br />
to work for 45-60 minutes uninterrupted and then<br />
take a 10-minute phone break as opposed to working<br />
distractedly. Keeping your mind on a single task will<br />
help you work faster and giving yourself breaks keeps<br />
your energy up and helps you to decompress. When I<br />
study I like to set timers for myself so I can structure<br />
my study time better. If I think something will only<br />
take thirty minutes to complete, I will set a 30-minute<br />
alarm. Having the timer in the back of my mind keeps<br />
me on track and helps me not to waste time.<br />
34 Health & Fitness<br />
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