The ultimate finals survival guide

It’s that time of year again. The time of year most prepared for and fretted over by millennials across the nation, aside possibly from national holidays. That’s right- it’s time for finals.

It appears that finals infects campuses across the nation with a contagious, disease-like stress:  lack of sleep is universally accepted, coffee counts as a meal, no-matter the number of therapy dogs in the library, and campus looks straight out of an episode of The Walking Dead.

But fear not! We here at The Tab care deeply about our readers and have spent hours working to find the cure to the finals-sickness. And thus, I present you with: The ULTIMATE Finals Survival Guide.

Coffee is your frenemy

I’ll be the first to admit that my coffee addiction is severe. If they had coffee rehab, I’d be a permanent resident. But, coffee is not a meal. And neither does it bode well to drink coffee on an empty stomach. Mind your caffeine intake, you don’t need it to survive.

Eat like your mom is watching

Just as coffee doesn’t count as a meal, neither does that stale bag of Doritos. During finals, it’s important to make sure you are well-fed and well-fuelled. Don’t bog yourself down eating only pizza all week, because if your body is healthy, your brain will be too.

Schedule the shit out of your day

Plan out exactly when you’ll be studying for what final. Add time to eat, exercise, and be with friends, and stick to it.  You’ll maximize your productivity and minimize your distractions.

Get your DJ on

Make a finals playlist. Start it with four songs that get you pumped. Fill the rest of the playlist with as much study music as possible (try something fancy- like Beethoven). When you study, put the playlist on shuffle and take surprise break whenever one of your pump-up song comes on.

Try a new exercise

If your school offers any type of group exercise classes, grab some friends and go. Nothing busts stress like giggling in the back of a zumba class while trying to keep up with the dancing. (Yoga can be great too).

Be adorable!

Color-code your notes. Write motivational reminders to yourself in the margins. Keep your mindset positive. Believe it or not, studying can be fun.

Give your butt a break

Don’t spend your entire day sitting down. When you choose to take a break, really  take one. Go outside, stretch your legs, do some jumping jacks. Study breaks aren’t meant just to check Snapchat.

Buy bubble wrap

When things seem too much to handle, line the floor of your dorm with bubble wrap. You’ll know what to do next.

Remember that you will be okay

The world isn’t ending; it’s only finals. Don’t let yourself get overwhelmed. You’re gonna survive (especially now that you’ve read this survival guide).