Junior government and politics major

With about a month left in this semester, each of us is feeling the pressure to finish the semester strong. Whether it’s the daunting test next Monday in a class in which we haven’t opened the book all semester or the essay due in a week whose prompt we haven’t even read, we’ve all got a lot to do in a short amount of time.

With so many courses heavily reliant on final exams and papers to determine a student’s final grade, there’s big reason to panic in the last month of the semester. Between studying and writing and reading, I think it’s safe to say that during the last month of school, most of us get wrapped up in what we have to do next. As soon as we finish one assignment, we have to start another, and it’s hard to see anything else. For many of us, this can be exhausting and frustrating, and I’m sure we’ve all had a friend or two absolutely lose his or her mind at this point in the school year.

Some people will tell you that in the last month of school, you just need to “focus in” and “buckle down” on your work and suck it up for a few more weeks. Sure, for some people, this approach is fine. They can handle the stress and workload, and it doesn’t bother them too much. In my experience, however, most people don’t need to be more consumed by their work; rather, they need to step away from it.

At this point of the year, I always take time to remind myself that school really isn’t the most important part of life. Thanksgiving is right around the corner, and the holiday season will be here before we know it. I’ll get to spend time with my family, watch some football games, play with my fat golden retriever and go hunting. I’ll take time to volunteer at a soup kitchen in my hometown. These activities are more than a distraction from schoolwork or an attempt to procrastinate from studying for my exams. They are part of who I am and what makes me happy, and most importantly, they put my problems in perspective.

There’s probably nothing more therapeutic this time of year than taking time for yourself and doing what it is that makes you happy. You can come back to your work feeling more energized, more confident in yourself and, most importantly, a little less stressed. Being reminded of what’s important in life puts the stress of the semester’s last month in perspective.

I would urge anybody who is feeling particularly stressed going into the end of this semester to step away from homework and studying, at least for a few hours. Watch your favorite movie, get outside with some friends or sit down and eat some real food (sorry, Dining Services). There’s nothing fun or rewarding about freaking out for the next four weeks. Remember, you’ve got a choice as to how you’ll handle the rest of this semester.

Sam Wallace is a junior government and politics major. He can be reached at swallacedbk@gmail.com.