‘Tis the Season for Pumpkin Spice Lattes and Mid-Semester Slumps

Ah, it’s my favorite time of year--autumn. It’s the time for pumpkin patches, apple picking, warm flannels, and much like the leaves, grades beginning to fall. Oh wait…maybe the grades dropping is just me? For many of us, midterms are either upon us or right around the corner.  As college students, we’re all in this together, or rather, all in this mid-semester slump together. How lovely.

When I hear the words, “mid-semester slump,” I can’t help but remember my first semester my freshman year of college. I had just pulled an all-nighter at the library and had somehow managed to drag myself to my eight AM honors history course just in time. I practically had to tape my eyes open to stay awake during the class, but I did happen to notice the concerned look my professor gave me about every ten or so minutes. I think we all know this look, the one Sarah McLachlan expresses while she talks about ASPCA, as "In the Arms of an Angel" softly plays in the background. That’s right, she was looking at me as if I was a neglected puppy that needed to be adopted ASAP. At the end of class, as I was packing up my bag, my professor actually came up to me, asked me how I was doing, and as I told her I was “just fine,” she patted my back and told me “It’ll all be okay…you just have to get through this mid-semester slump.” That might have been when I realized that:

1) I needed to invest in some better concealer for those bags under my eyes and

2) Cramming and pulling all-nighters is not an effective study method.

Now don’t get me wrong, I still occasionally have my late-night study sessions!  As I enter my junior year I think I am starting to get a better handle on this whole college thing--even dealing with the mid-semester slump. So here are some tips from me to you (and remember, we're all slumped in this together)

1) Plan -if you haven’t already, invest in a planner or at least an app on your phone where you can keep all of your tasks and assignments in order. I am a huge fan of to-do lists and practically live out of my planner. If you have it written down, you’re more likely to get it done. There’s nothing like the satisfying feeling of crossing something off your to-do list.

2) Keep on, Keepin on--You can do it! I know you would probably rather cancel your Netflix subscription than drag yourself back to the library, but I promise it will all be worth it.

3) Reward yourself--For every goal/task you complete, give yourself some social media time or maybe even get yourself some candy.  Treat Yo Self.... and then get back to studying.

4) And remember…this too shall pass. We’re halfway there! If you’ve made it this far, you can make it another half of a term!

Good luck and happy studying!