How to deal with stress
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Let me guess. You have been studying non-stop for your exams (IELTS/OET or PLAB1&2) and are feeling at the brink of a breakdown. Don’t worry, in this blogpost I’ll give you some tips on how to relief that stress and make your studies more effective.
1. Take breaks
Hey, there’s nothing wrong with giving yourself some occasional rest between study sessions. Go outside, breath some air, eat a snack, listen to music. Even 5 minutes of rest every 45min of studying will help clear your brain and recharge your batteries so you can keep going for longer.
2. Exercise
I know, exercising is hard. But it doesn’t have to be pulling weights at the gym. Going for a walk (or a jog if you’re feeling adventurous), doing yoga, stretching, doing a home workout. These are all ways you can get your blood pumping, release serotonin and endorphins which I’m sure you know are directly responsible for making you feel happy, motivated and relieving stress. If the exercise makes you concentrate and sweat, even better! It’ll take your mind off things and make you more focused when you start studying. When you do it doesn’t matter, it can be right in the morning, middle of the day or end of the day. The important thing is to make your blood pump and produce good hormones.
3. Do breathing exercises
Whenever you feel like you can’t keep going, you’re just too stressed and burned out, try a breathing exercise. Sitting down, you’ll inhale through your nose using you diaphragm in 4 seconds, hold your breath for 7 seconds and exhale through your mouth for 9 seconds. Repeat it at least 3x, or up to as much as it takes to make you feel better. Doing this exercise helps send oxygen to your brain which helps you to think clearly and relieve your stress. You’ll be able to go back to your studies feeling a bit less anxious and overwhelmed.
4. Work with rewards
It may seem silly, but it works. Stablish small achievable goals for yourself every day and give yourself a reward after you complete each of them. That’ll make you more motivated and determined to achieve it and will give you a sense of pleasure after it’s done. I promise it works!
