Whenever the examination season approaches, students find themselves struggling to find enough time to revise and complete all their assignments, much less have enough time for proper rest or sleep. With the lack of sleep and increase in stress levels, they might just find themselves on the brink of burnout.
Burnout is a state of emotional, physical, and mental exhaustion caused by excessive and prolonged stress. It occurs when students feel overwhelmed, emotionally drained, and unable to meet the demands or expectations of school. With the pandemic fatigue thrown in the mix where Singaporeans are unable to travel for leisure or a decline in social interactions where feelings of stress are alleviated, students are at higher risk for burnout than pre-pandemic times.
Without proper ways to relieve stress during a pandemic, burnouts can leave long-lasting effects on the mental health of students in Singapore, which is why learning how to avoid burnout before it manifests is crucial. Here are three short tips:
Understand The Source of Your Stress
To identify the source of your stress accurately, it might be helpful if you start the habit of journaling or simply share your worries with a friend or family member whom you trust and they might just be able to help you.
If you think that you might be experiencing burnout, it is important that you find the source of stress in your life at this point, so you can eliminate it or improve the situation as soon as possible.
Break Down Your Problems
The most effective way to combat feelings of overwhelming exhaustion is to break down your problems into smaller, more manageable loads. As the age-old saying goes, slow and steady wins the race.
If you have an upcoming deadline for a big project or a long research paper that you have to write, try coming up with a plan or schedule for the weekend to complete your work in stages. Having a schedule done up can alleviate your stress as you can reassure yourself that you have allocated sufficient time for schoolwork during the weekend, allowing you to focus on other tasks or activities now.
Start working on it an hour a day, so you don’t have to face the stress of spending long hours or even burn the midnight oil to complete a big portion of it when you get closer to the deadline. A shorter amount of time allocated to schoolwork daily would also mean higher concentration levels and can yield higher productivity in the long run.
Keep An Active Lifestyle
Keeping an active lifestyle does not mean that you have to do high-intensity exercises daily or spend hours a day lifting weights at the gym. It can be as easy as leading a less sedentary lifestyle by standing instead of sitting while attending remote classes, going for a short jog in between classes, taking a walk to buy lunch instead of having your food delivered, or getting a good stretch in the morning with a yoga session.
With a moderate amount of physical activity a day, the brain releases endorphins, as well as dopamine and serotonin, which can relieve stress and put you in a better mood for the rest of the day. You might even feel more energised or motivated while doing work after exercising.
If you wish to have a healthy mind, you shouldn’t neglect your physical health as well. On top of having an active lifestyle, you can also consider having more nutritionally balanced meals instead of fast food or food that are high in sodium to keep yourself healthy and fit even when you feel stressed out.
Feeling overwhelmed or stressed out from schoolwork is normal and all too common for students in Singapore. Simply keep PSB Academy’s three tips in mind when examination season approaches, and you will be well on your way to combat burnout in future.
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