“Exams are serious. I should take all things seriously during exam times,” the overworked student thinks and continues working from dusk till dawn, stopping only to eat, and continues working through every waking second of the day. And tomorrow? Tomorrow he will do the exact same thing: Wake, work, eat, sleep, and so the cycle continues.
There is nothing wrong with realising the importance of exam season - exams should be taken seriously; passing exams are important.
There is, however, another side to this story: Humans are not machines and working yourself as though you were a machine can only result in exhaustion. And exhaustion can lead to brain fog, reduced mental capabilities, anxiety, and many other things - all of which will inevitably influence how well you perform while studying and writing exams.
Overworking yourself is counterproductive, so here are a few fun things that you can do between studying and writing exams to give yourself a small dose of dopamine:
1. Dancing in your room.
We all have a playlist with a collection of our favourite songs, so why not put it on and dance off the exam worries every once in a while?
Dancing shamelessly with friends or alone in your room is free and can be done whenever you want. Dancing can reduce stress and help get your body moving after long periods of sitting still to study.
2. Planning a date night with your favourite series.
Everyone has guilty pleasures, and most of us have a feel-good series that we love watching, even if we know deep down that the acting isn’t top notch and the plot is a bit flimsy at best.
For my best friend, there is nothing more relaxing than planning a date night with herself, How I Met Your Mother, and pizza.
So, choose one night this week and plan yourself a date with a comfort-series or feel-good movie. Go out of your way to make it fun for yourself: Get take-out, put on your favourite PJs, and get yourself some snacks.
3. Plan time off during the day.
In school we always looked forward to recess. As university students, we don’t really have a scheduled break to look forward to - and I don’t think we are better off because of this.
Sometimes, we are so tired and overworked that we have to take things day-by-day. Sometimes we can only motivate ourselves to get through the next task, but I have found that it helps immensely to have something to look forward to.
Schedule a break during the day, a time that you can work toward each day; a recess if you will. Take a break over lunch, watch a YouTube video, go for a walk in your neighbourhood, or take a nap.
In the monotony of exam season, it helps immensely to treat yourself decently, to plan things that you enjoy, and to take the time to let yourself rest. Because there is nothing more counterproductive than overworking yourself and then reaping the consequences in the form of marks that don’t reflect how much effort you put in, simply because you were exhausted while writing exams.
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