Hello my lovelies! I hope you're all doing okay. We have sprang into a new Spring month, the weather is hotting up and everything is looking bright. However, I know for some of you exam season is just around the corner, be it GCSEs, A-Levels, finals or even just an unrelated thing like a driving test or interview.
We all get stressed and anxious about these things, even if we pretend to ourselves that we're deathly calm about the whole situation. It's hard and it can seem like an exhausting struggle that is never going to end. That's why I felt like it was appropriate to share some helpful tips for revision and how to deal with the stress of exams or any pressure that's getting you down!

1. Organise yourself

The most common issue I struggle with is actually finding the motivation to start studying and revising, and one thing I've found that helps me is to get organised and productive by doing other small things. Typically when I need to start revision I'll do other essential things first, simple things, such as having a shower, getting dressed and even cleaning my room. I find that by starting off with simple tasks like this, my productive juices start to get flowing and I can begin to think about all the revision I need to do.


2. Establish a routine

Making a timetable / study guide for your revision can really help you to stay on track. Think about what you need to do, for how long and when, bearing in mind the date of your exam. Depending on your subject, there will be lots of individual modules, topics or themes to cover and it's important that you find the time to cover them all.
Establishing a time schedule with adequate breaks is vital. What works for me is studying a subject for 45 minutes at least, or until I've finished, and then taking a 10-15 minute break. During your break make sure you do something that helps you unwind for a bit, maybe watch a video, draw a little doodle or go and talk to someone in your family. Just anything that's going to help you chill out until you're ready to start again. But not something that's going to cause too much distraction from what you need to be doing.
However, once you've done what you need to do for the day don't push yourself any further! Make sure you have plenty of time in the evenings to unwind and relax. This is the time where you can spend as much time doing whatever you please. Remember, sitting up until the late hours studying does no favour to yourself! You need to ensure that you will retain what you've learned and pushing your brain past its limits will only be detrimental to you.


3. Sleep and diet
Now, I'm not a doctor, but like I said above, staying up late fretting over what you know or don't know, cramming in as much as you can is a waste. That's why a healthy amount of sleep is essential for learning and reinforcing everything you've learnt.
And I know that especially the night before a exam is the worst for anxiety and nerves, but I think the key is relaxation. Distract yourself and allow yourself to calm down before you go to sleep. For me, I take a bath, do some drawing, watch something, like some of the things I've mentioned above!
And as for food, I know we all feel the temptation to reach for the Ben and Jerry's to get through the mountain of notes and that's totally fine! I'm not going to lecture any of you about poor diet choices or healthy options, because we all need a little encouragement now and then. What works for me is regular meal times no matter what, to ensure that I don't compensate my own physical health. I also snack on whatever in between finishing a point. So say if I was writing about characterisation in a text, once that's finished, tiny snack reward! It helps me stay focused and full.


4. Study buddies can be a big help

This seems so basic and I know some of you really don't like working in teams or in a group. But even at university level we're still being encouraged to work together to reinforce our studying. So even working with your close friends can be a great help to all of you. Discuss questions and how you would approach them, help each other out with learning quotes, key words or formula. I learned a lot of things from my history study group and it really help consolidate everything I had learned. 
It can also really help to calm you down, and even right before an exam, some of the points discussed can stick with you! It's definitely a good suggestion for people who feel like if they spend too much time shut up in their room they'll get cabin fever.


5. It's okay to focus on yourself!

You don't have to lose yourself for your studies, and you also don't have to sacrifice the things you love doing. It's so so important to take a day off and treat yourself to make sure your brain doesn't overload with information. If you have a hobby you enjoy doing like painting, or a sport related activity, even going to the gym, it's absolutely okay to take some time to do it! It will help keep your brain active but it won't feel the pressure to be constantly digesting information and retaining it.
Even if all you do is go to your friends house for an evening and watch some movies, or do something with your family, it can still help to take the pressure off and keep you social!




These are just some of my tips, but here are some from others, I hope these can also help you out and make you feel a bit more reassured.

Exams are tough and sometimes it can feel like the world around you will stop if you don't succeed. But they aren't the end of the world, remember to remain focused not only on them but on yourself too!

Good luck to all of you and do your best
Rachel x