Hurry! The first semester of the 2019 school year is coming to an end. Teachers are throwing projects and finals at helpless students and grades are beginning to plummet. No need to worry, though. There are some important things you can do to relieve your stress. 

We all know the feeling of studying for hours on end and eventually you hit a wall. Tiredness overwhelms you and you lost your motivation. Instead of just completely giving up, try doing some light exercise. That doesn’t mean going directly to the gym and pumping 120 pounds, but try out some simple warm-ups. This will help get blood-flowing and it will actually give you more energy, even if it seems contradictory. 

Once you’ve been studying for several days, the next time you sit down to work on something, you may automatically feel bored or uncomfortable. To prevent this, try studying in a new place. Our brains like small changes, so by changing the environment in which you do an exhausting task, it may actually enhance your skills. Some great places to go are parks, quiet coffee shops, at a friends house, or even in your backyard. 

If you end up visiting a coffee shop to jam in studying, stay away from caffeine. Caffeine may seem like a great idea to give you a boost of energy, but it can increase your anxiety. Stress and coffee lead to a bad outcome. Try an alternative such as decaf coffee or tea. If you are feeling exhausted and cannot stay away from caffeine, give black tea a try, as it only has a small amount of caffeine. 

The most important thing to do during finals week is to stop procrastinating. Procrastination is seen to be very frequent in high schoolers and it can make or break your grade. As simple as the idea to just get your work started is, it is never that easy. Plan out your studying or working schedule and hold yourself accountable. It will relieve anxiety in the process. 

“I stop procrastination by taking all my distractions, like my phone, and putting it in another room that way I can just focus on the work that I have to get done. And then as far as just getting the work done, I know the sooner I finish it, the sooner I can relax and destress,” said Senior Jessica Schemmp.