Managing Stress During Finals Week
Stressing about finals? You are not alone. Stress, while normal, can be difficult to manage. Luckily, the DelVal psychology department is here to help with tips for managing your stress, especially during finals week!
Tackle in Small Chunks
Break your final assignments and study time down into small chunks. Worrying and trying to mentally focus on everything at once can cause feelings of overwhelm and make it feel impossible to complete.
- Dr. Brianna Morgis
Tend to the Basics
When we have a lot to do, sometimes we forget to focus on the simple things like staying hydrated. During times of stress, keep a water bottle handy, eat every few hours to regulate blood sugar and take scheduled breaks.
- Dr. Audrey Ervin
Avoid All-Nighters
Make sure you get plenty of sleep. A regular lack of sleep is correlated with depressive-like symptoms such as irritability, a weakened immune system and impaired ability to retain information in our memory. This is why cramming for exams on little sleep rarely works!
- Dr. Brianna Morgis
Create a Nightly Ritual
Do something every night to help you relax before going to sleep. It can be as simple as lighting a candle or doing some breathing exercises for 10 minutes. We’re often busy trying to keep track of so many things, we can get overwhelmed. Our sleep may not feel restful because our minds are still actively trying to work through all the information. Creating a relaxing habit can help ensure good, restful sleep!
- Dr. Allison Buskirk-Cohen
Stay Active
Do something active every day, no matter how small. Even just getting outside and taking a short walk around campus can help you reset.
- Dr. Brianna Morgis
Set a timer for 10 minutes to stretch, go for a walk or change your scenery.
- Dr. Audrey Ervin
Eat and Drink Healthy
Set aside time to prep your meals and make sure you have access to nutritious drinks, snacks and food in general. The food and drinks that are most convenient usually don’t offer the best nutrition. We need to fuel our bodies properly so we have lasting energy and avoid spikes/crashes that can lead to exhaustion and illness.
- Dr. Allison Buskirk-Cohen
Limit Distractions
Turn off reminders (except for break reminders) on your phone and try the focus features that keep electronic communication to a minimum. Apps such as Freedom can help you set limits on digital distractions.
- Dr. Audrey Ervin
Practice Gratitude
It can be easy to hone in on how stressful life it in the moment or things in our lives that are going wrong. When this happens, stop and write down at least one thing that you are thankful for or one positive thing that has happened to you so far that day. Again, no matter how small, this can help with the runaway thinking that sometimes happens when we feel stressed and overwhelmed.
- Dr. Brianna Morgis
Practice Mindfulness, Even Outside of Stressful Periods
Many people believe that mindfulness is clearing your mind. That’s untrue. Mindfulness is the process of bringing your attention back to a repeated stimuli, such as the breath. Mindfulness can be formal or informal, but whichever works best for you, research shows that consistent practice can impact distress tolerance, lower emotional reactivity and increase psychological well-being.
If you would like to learn more about practicing mindfulness, check out the Mindfulness Meditation course led by Dr. Audrey Ervin. The course, open to all students, teaches the principles of practice, helps you develop your own meditation practice and apply skills to daily life. Visit Mindfulness Meditation’s Course Catalog description for more information.
- Dr. Audrey Ervin
Contributors:
Dr. Allison Buskirk-Cohen
Dr. Allison Buskirk-Cohen is a professor and the honors program director at Delaware Valley University. In her roles, she researches the influence of professor-student relationships on student success. She earned her master’s of developmental psychology from Columbia University and her Ph.D. in human development from University of Maryland.
Dr. Audrey Ervin
Dr. Audrey Ervin is the academic director of Delaware Valley University’s graduate counseling psychology program and is a practicing, licensed psychologist. She earned her Ph.D. in counseling psychology at the University of Memphis and completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Delaware.
Dr. Brianna Morgis
Dr. Brianna Morgis is an assistant professor of counseling psychology at Delaware Valley University and a marriage and family therapist. She earned her master’s degree in couple and family therapy from Thomas Jefferson University and her Ph.D. from Drexel University in couple and family therapy.