Midterm season has arrived, and it has probably come with a lot of emotional stress, a high caffeine intake, and possibly some sleep deprivation. Through the agonizing long hours of studying you may have neglected your friends, daily gym workout and your healthy eating streak.

Transitioning back into your normal routine is crucial to allow you to get back into the normality of everyday academic life.

Bruce Lynch, Elizabethtown College Psychologist and Director of Student Wellness, has suggested 3 tips to resume your normal routine:

1. Resume the foundation of self-care that was put on hold during midterms.
Self-care first begins with returning to your normal sleeping pattern. This includes eliminating those long naps you took midterm week due to the lack of sleep. Avoid taking naps during the day. This will help you be able to better fall asleep at night. Also, return to eating full meals three times a day instead of the countless granola bars you quickly grabbed from your room. Plan to eat meals with your friends to regain the lost time of seeing them while you were studying for midterms. In addition to healthy eating, return to exercising daily for a boost in energy.

2. Reward yourself for the effort that you put into preparing for your midterms.

Even though midterms are over, the work continues. Avoid the “burned out feeling” by studying gradually. Cramming for an exam will never be the most effective way to study. Reward yourself with breaks while studying and returning to your normal routine. Find personal incentives to keep you motivated to get through the next eight weeks of the semester.

Use midterms as a self-evaluation. Your midterm grade will reflect how well you have retained the knowledge you have learned thus far. You cannot change a test that you already took. If the grade is positive, reward yourself for the work you put into getting that grade. Use a bad grade as motivation to gradually study the material for finals.

3. Use the support services that the college offers as a resource.

Students can schedule an appointment or come in for urgent walk-in services by contacting Counseling Services by calling 717-361-1405 or in person in the Counseling Services office in BSC 216. If your midterm grade is not what you wanted, utilize learning services on campus. You may visit the Learning Zone in BSC 226 or call them at 717-361-1187 to schedule an appointment.

Student feedback has also been effective in recovering from midterms in the best way possible.

“Returning to my normal sleep schedule really helped me to feel well rested! Having to complete work for other classes while studying for midterms really took a toll on my sleep,” sophomore Lindsey Fasolo said.

Bouncing back from midterms is extremely important to ensure your success for finals. You may think that staying up until 3 a.m. is allowing you to pack more information into your brain, but sleep deprivation can negatively impact your test performance. According to the New York Times, adults who sleep seven to eight hours a night are the healthiest and perform higher in areas of concentration and test taking.

“Staying up all night studying for an exam has never helped me to retain the information. Studying gradually has always been my best studying technique,” sophomore Lauren Griffiths said. Therefore, returning to a healthy seven to eight hours of sleep per night is important to maintain a regular healthy sleeping schedule.

Relaxation after a crucial exam is always beneficial to allow you to have some down time. Utilize the free exercising class on campus such as Yoga, Pound, Zumba or Kickboxing to stay active.

The weekend of Oct. 20 and 21 is Homecoming weekend, so use time with your cherished family and friends to bounce back to your normal self. Etown is also offering Midnight Munchies Food Trucks at Brinser Field Saturday, Oct. 20. Use all that campus has to offer to catch a break from your long study hours!

Lastly, establishing a positive relationship with your professors is important so you feel as though you can ask questions for a clearer understanding of the topic. Use your midterm to your advantage!

If you feel as though you have done poorly on an exam/quiz, email your teacher immediately to go over the content. Utilize office hours now so that when the final comes you can be fully prepared. Midterms are finally past us, so don’t let a bad midterm grade deter you from working hard throughout the year!