Forums > Social Chat > Coping with your final year of school

Posted: 29th Jul 2004
School is hellish. I totally agree with you... but in 10 short weeks it will all be over for the rest of your life (think back to 10 weeks ago - I'm sure that time has flown by )

School was awful, but uni is great - you have your freedom, independence and if you choose the right course, not a great deal of work

The thing is, chances are you'll meet lots of like-minded people there, so you won't feel as alone as you do now (perhaps the reason you hate school so much?!)

Anyways, I know it sounds horrific, but it's a good idea to do the work now, so you can get to the uni you want to go to and start having fun.

Do the work, but take a break every 45 mins or so - and practise spinning for about 10 mins , then get back to it. This way you get little bits done, and the pre-exam panic won't build up so much.

Try not to let the pressure of work or exams get on top of you. Everytime you feel like it's getting to much, take a step back and see that it will pay off in the end...

Schoolwork is kinda like learning a new poi/staff move... it's consistent, hard work, and you feel like you're getting hit on the head fairly often, but in the end you're pleased with the work you've done and you have something to show for it.

You do have the strength to get through this. Do what you can, and in the way you need to it...

Best of luck xx

Getting to the other side

Posted: 29th Jul 2004
Try to view the bit of your life that is occupied by school as the tiniest tip of the iceberg of your life. Because it really is. In a matter of weeks it'll be done, behind you, and you can get on with forgetting everything they taught you and reeducating yourself as you see fit. For now just toe the line, chill just enough to maintain your sanity, and then go feckin nuts come the summer.

Without sounding corny, spinning things calms me down.

Hope you see some light on the horizon.

"I believe the cost of life is Death and we will all pay that in full. Everything else should be a gift. We paid the cover charge of life, we were born."

Bill Hicks, February 1988

Posted: 29th Jul 2004
megahugs for rouge!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!









i know you will get thru it rouge!!!



this sounds lame, but think positive!! none of this "a score i know i wont get" business missy!



like firepoise said - take breaks!! maybe not every 45 minutes...i guess it depends on your attention span. but try for a 20 minute break every 1 1/2 to 2 hours. on this break - go for a walk, spin, breathe, meditate, talk to people, come on hop! try to avoid thinking/talking about exams and how your studies are going! your mind and your body will need the breaks!!



avoid lots of sugar and caffeine in the 4 or so hours before you want to sleep - you'll need your rest! also - probably good to avoid all-night study sessions! it can be done!! i went to uni for over 5 years and i never did an all-nighter!!!



i believe in you rouge!! you can do it!! keep smiling beautiful!

do not meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you are crunchy and good to eat!



if at first you do succeed, try not to look too astonished!



smile! :grin: it confuses people!

Posted: 29th Jul 2004
ROUGE!

ditto the aboves, take breaks when you need them not when you want them. Walk away from it all for at least 15-20 minutes to let your braint return to sanity normalness.

Try not to bite at folks who annoy you cuz you're stressed, it's easier said than done I know but it makes a bad situation worse and adds to stress. Just try to remember that it isn't them that's actually annoying you, it's your brain under stress that's actually annoying you!

I hope you get through the next few weeks ok, all the best for success in your exams

Let's relight this forum

Posted: 29th Jul 2004
it'll be well worth the wait
allocate times when to socialise etc-stay off drink etc for a while, and eat healthy-it makes a difference to concerntration and general feeling
also sleep well-keep a routine with roughly 8 hours sleep, especially important when nearing the exams
best of luck, im sure it will all be ok

in state of metamorphosis

Posted: 29th Jul 2004
When it comes to your exams, type up salient notes as bullet points and stick them on the inside of the toilet door; you've got no choice but to look at them then.

And just remember that no matter what happens, the sun's going to rise tomorrow.

There is a slight possibility that I am not actually right all of the time.

Posted: 29th Jul 2004
JUST GET IT DONE THATS ALL YOU CAN DO.
it sounds crappy but all you can do is do it.
besides even though you think it sucks know you will actully miss it belive it or not

SLEEP WITH ANGELS muckieha

Posted: 29th Jul 2004
10 weeks to go! That's a bit unfortunate, over in England we finished 3 weeks ago; I would gloat over that but I know the pain you're going thru with your final exams (cos I've just finished my final year too) so instead I'll sympathise - poor you

But seriously, good luck, they won't be as bad as you think, just doo all your revision and you'll sail thru, good luck

AAARRRGGGHHH!!! My giant stick broke!!! In two!!! My stick broke in two!!!

Posted: 29th Jul 2004
10 weeks to go! That's a bit unfortunate, over in England we finished 3 weeks ago; I would gloat over that but I know the pain you're going thru with your final exams (cos I've just finished my final year too) so instead I'll sympathise - poor you

But seriously, good luck, they won't be as bad as you think, just do all your revision and you'll sail thru, good luck

AAARRRGGGHHH!!! My giant stick broke!!! In two!!! My stick broke in two!!!

Posted: 29th Jul 2004
every tip already offered is great. you need your rest, so don't push yourself too hard. you may think you need to stay up and get things done, but in reality, you're much more productive when well-rested. our own self-care is usually the first thing people abandon when faced with a lot of responsibilities, but it should be the last thing to go, not the first. and talk to your teachers as well, tell them you're having a hard time, but that you are working hard. ask if there's any sort of accomodations they can give you to help ease the stress. most teachers are very understanding when you are willing to talk to them. avoid the caffeine and sugar, it makes it harder to concentrate and work, as well as mess with your sleep cycle. eat healthy! and take a short break (5-10 mins) for every hour of study time. you need the refresher.

I was always scared with my mother's obsession with the good scissors. It made me wonder if there were evil scissors lurking in the house somewhere.

Do not meddle in the affairs of dragons for you are crunchy and good with ketchup.

**giggles**

Posted: 29th Jul 2004
Senioritis...

The only cure is graduation.

-Mike

Certified Mad Doctor and HoP High Priest of Nutella



A buckuht n a hooze! -Valura

Posted: 29th Jul 2004
Hey rouge - in addition to all the good stuff above, make sure you remember to eat good filling food (too much sugar or chips won't do your brain very good) - also, try to make a bit of time for exercise - maybe on one of your breaks - even a walk around outside will help you put things in perspective.

Your brain remembers things much better when you sleep. Study for an hour or two, take a 30 min. nap, then go at it again. You'll remember stuff better when you're more awake and rested...

It might have been einstein that recommended frequent naps, but I can't remember...

Sometimes, you just have to believe.

Posted: 29th Jul 2004
poor dragon , think of it this way, it is your LAST year of secondary school, im not one for being optamistic, but hey, your going to make it

if you think that our kiss was all in the lips, come on you got it all wrong man, and if you think that our dance was all in the hips then, oh well, do the twist -The White Stripes

Posted: 30th Jul 2004
i would say that you have to find the right mixture between not giving a damn and preparing urself. Stressing wont do much good. take all of the above advice and stay healthy. i kept myself sane through my final year by looking at everything from a humourous side, and having a laugh at the amounts of work i had to do. but thats me and i am full of crap as i was told yesterday by a female spanish police officer....

I hope your family situation does get a bit more chilled. But keep in mind that its only ten weeks of school left and next year u can loot and pillage through europe with me
mwahahahaha
hugs and squeezes

"is optimism in austria just a lack of information?"
-Alfred Dorfer

Posted: 30th Jul 2004
I think, in all seriousness, you need to take maybe a whole weekend off, and just go visit some other family or something, chill out, and forget about school, and exams, and work, and all that crap. also, remember that even with a crappy score, you can get into a low end uni course, and transfer across in your second year. well, that works in SA, anywho.

That, and you need to be able to look yourself in the eye, and say 'yep, i can do this. i can pass'. confidence is one of the biggest stress contributing factors, i found. people would convince themselves that they werent going to pass, then overstressed about it, and the whole lot degenerated into a horrid downward spiral after that. If you can tell yourself that you are capable, then you will feel better about school, and study, and stuff, and you will do better than if you think you're hopeless, and worry.

cos what does worrying achieve? nothing.
so dont worry

"beg beg grovel beg grovel"
"master"
--FSA

"There was an arse there, i couldn't help myself"
--Rougie

Posted: 21st May 2008
Woo. Go me who couldn't handle her last year of highschool and now can't handle her final year of her bachelor/udergrad degree.

woo.

i would have changed ***** to phallus, and claire to petey Petey

Rougie: but that's what I'm doing here
Arnwyn: what letting me adjust myself in your room?..don't you dare quote that on HoP...

Posted: 21st May 2008
Senioritis?

Oh honey, I'm so burnt out. I've just finishing seven of the most hellish seven years you could ever hope to spend: medical school and residency.

And I have one of the hardest months that you can have as my last month, which means that it's a five-week month because it's my last.

The only cure for senioritis is graduation. Same as it was four years ago when I wrote my last response.

And I have senioritis just as badly as you do.

-Mike

Certified Mad Doctor and HoP High Priest of Nutella



A buckuht n a hooze! -Valura

Posted: 26th May 2008
Yea i found the final year of uni to be much worse than year 12. Mostly because it was ... Graduation does cure it sure but it takes a while for the stress levels to wind down.



Stupid hoops that u have to jump through to prove that ur worthwhile to society *grumbles*

Posted: 27th May 2008
I was the same way when I did year 12, at least for the first two weeks before I regressed into my usual slack-arse routine. I didn't take school very seriously at all, because I knew in the end that it would be bad for my health, both mental and physical, and in the end, what's more important, your health and happiness or academia? I'm not saying you should slack off, I'm saying that a happy mind is a healthy mind, and depression certainly isn't going to be helpful to you in getting good marks, so consider sitting back and relaxing a little "work" in its own right, because in my opinion it will certainly help you get a better score at the end. The moment you start thinking as taking breaks as mentally productive, then you can stop feeling guilty for taking them and actually completely relax, fulfilling the purpose of the break in the first place.

In the end, I actually did quite well, better than people who "worked" harder than I did but burnt themselves out come exam time, and now I'm doing a double degree in Law and Business.

And yes, uni is ridiculously easy compared to school, but all the same, I'm considering dropping out and trying something else, so this course that you really want to get into, may not be all you expect, don't see getting into that course as the be all and end all, because really, money isn't important, happiness is, and you're lucky to have poi, we all are, because it negates the necessity for money to be a prerequisite for happiness, at least that's what I've found.

You don't need much money to live, and you really only need a couple of bucks more for happiness.

Sorry, I've gone a bit off track, but the two are related, I used to stress at school because I had been conditioned by my parents, advertising and societal beliefs in general that having lots of money was an key component to happiness, however, now I'm a little older and wiser, I've found this is far from the case. Yes, a small amount of money is needed to live comfortably, but happiness comes from our relationships, our friends, families and lovers. Happiness comes from knowing ourselves, and of course, poi plays a large role in this aspect of happiness.

All in all, I wish you all the best, and I hope you don't let the rat race tire you out too much. If you ever need any help with any of your work, please just let me know, I may've done some of the same subjects as you.

Posted: 27th May 2008
Whoops, I just realised that this is a really old thread, lol. I was wondering why there was a graduation photo of you in your gallery. Man, I feel quite silly now. Oh well, hopefully what I said will still be of use to somebody.

Posted: 30th May 2008
You'll be right it's character building.

that shrewd and knavish sprite

Called Robin Good Fellow ; are you not he that is frighten of the maidens of the villagery - fairy

I am the merry wander of the night -puk