Let’s take a guess; your school work is really starting to pile up, isn’t it? You have this presentation due on Tuesday, but you already pulled an all-nighter to finish an essay, and you have two classes back-to-back followed by a meeting with your professor about why your last lab report looked like it was written by a drunk isomniac, soccer practice and, great, you still have to hang out with your friends. Look at yourself in the mirror: it’s getting to point where even spending time with friends is a burden because those are precious, precious hours you could be working on that research paper you still haven’t gotten a single source for.

Sounds like finals season is lurking right around the corner!

Finals. It sounds so daunting. It has such a… finality about it. But hey, your pals on The Guilfordian editorial board are here to help. Never let it be said that we aren’t a paper for the students, by the students.

The most typical advice you’re going to find online for dealing with finals-induced stress are exercising, eating healthy and staying hydrated. And don’t get us wrong, those are important rules to live by. They also sound like they were spoken by someone who’s never experienced the sheer chaos of a semester-end crunch. Go to the gym? I need to write an essay about ancient Assyrian currency! Eat healthy? The only food I own is a bag of tortillas and eggs that expired in November.

So let’s stay calm here. Take a deep breath. No, seriously, breathe. When your stress level starts to climb, you may experience shortness of breath. Take a deep breath for four counts, then exhale for four counts. Okay? Good.

Be mindful of your thoughts. Are you working yourself to the bone to get an A when it’s unattainable? Check your expectations, and set reasonable goals.

How is your study space? Please don’t say it’s your dirty dorm room where your roommate is always watching anime at full blast. A quiet, peaceful environment will greatly help your concentration. Select a nice spot by a window at Hege Library, or maybe head downtown and spend a few hours at a coffee shop.

Remember that these next two weeks are just that: a mere two weeks of the rest of your life. No matter what grade you end up earning or how painful working on your finals may be, this is a transient period that will pass. Get some sleep, Guilfordian readers. Perhaps try out that “stay hydrated” thing.

Reflecting Guilford College’s core Quaker values, the topics and content of staff editorials are chosen through consensus of all editors and one faculty adviser of The Guilfordian’s Editorial Board.