It’s your last exam of the semester. You’ve been up most of the night reading and re-reading your notes, flipping index cards, and mumbling answers to a poster of a grumpy looking pug dog that you bought in first year. You can relate to that grumpy pug. Stress has been following you around the last few weeks and has you clenching your jaw and frowning far more than you’d like
There is the shuffle of papers. Exams opening and closing. Your brain is tired, and you feel like a study zombie, eyes puffy from lack of sleep. Any decision you have to make feels like too much. The proctor signals that time is up; three hours has passed by in a flurry of multiple choice and so many short essays your hand has developed a cramp. You pass in your exam and the excitement slowly begins to take over. You’re done for the holidays. You can hardly believe it. Your brain is simultaneously bursting with happiness and utter exhaustion. As you leave the exam room, a question floats up into your mind alongside all the other things you have to do now that exams are finally over; is it possible to recharge over the winter break?
This question threads itself throughout our new podcast episode of in[Tuition]. With exams drawing to a close this week, we want to know how to combat decision fatigue and make the most of our winter break. Kenny and Selina delve into the science behind stress in relationship to exams, winter break, and decision fatigue. Our hosts are joined by the brilliant Patty Hambler, Director of Health Promotion & Education at UBC, who shares her insights on reframing our language and attitudes around stress. For example, did you know the stress response is normal human experience and is our bodies way of telling us to act?
In this episode, find out more about the effects of stress on the body and consider how stress impacts our ability to make decisions. How can we help prevent decision fatigue? Does stress recovery exist and what are the best techniques to have a productive, relaxing winter break post exam?
What do you think? Let us know what you think by commenting below, or tweeting us @UBCLearn.
If you are curious learn more or looking for resources to help you understand and cope with stress, check out these three great resources recommended by our podcast guest, Patty Hambler!
- Stress: Understanding and managing the stress response
- Coping Strategies resource
- An elective course is being offered at UBC all about stress management called Nursing 180: Stress & Strategies to Promote Wellbeing
Also be sure to check out all the incredible resources available at the UBC Wellness Centre.
Here at the CLC, we wish everyone a safe, relaxing, and productive winter break! See you in 2019!
