Life

Emotions Experienced 24 Hours Before Your Exams

OK, so I don't think anyone ever really copes well with exam stress, it's practically unheard of.

We all tend to go a little insane.

These are the 15 stages you'll most likely go through the day before your exam:

1) The "Necessary" Lie-In

F*ck, it's 7am and you know you really should be getting up. You have one day left to study your entire course and you haven't a breeze where to begin. Maybe you should just stay in bed for that little bit longer? Only for a few minutes. You can always pull an all-nighter - Grand.

2) Shock

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Now you've really done it. It's 11am and you haven't even looked at a book. You start to panic, nearly catapulting yourself out of the bed and rushing around the room trying to find a clean towel. You find one. It may not be clean but you just have to make do. Now, time to face that dauntingly cold walk from the bedroom to the shower. We salute you.

3) Clean Body Clean Mind

So you've managed to convince yourself that taking a shower will wake you up, you'll have more energy and be more alert. This is true in some cases but in most this brief stint of energetic enthusiasm lasts from the moment you begin singing 'Happy' to the point you attempt to reach that last high note. Everything after that is far from happy.

4) I Should Really Eat Something

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So you've just spent the last half hour in the shower singing along with your pal Pharrell, and now you're completely depressed. What to do now? Make breakfast of course. What to make? Pancakes, lots and lots of pancakes. Energy food - So important for all that study you're going to do.

5) What To Wear?

Sh*t, you've just wasted 2 hours of your day singing in the shower and stuffing your face full of Nutella covered pancakes. You're so bloated you feel like taking a nap but no, unfortunately you cannot return to that extraordinary place of comfort and dreams. It really is time to study. But low and behold something else has caused you to delay even further - You have absolutely nothing to wear. You feel like crap and all you want to do is throw on a hoody and a pair of trackies. F*ck it..

6) Smoke Break

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You deserve it. After all, you did come all the way into college to study. Now all you need to do is actually start studying. I'm going to need another smoke.

7) Denial

So you've finally sat down and opened a book. Ploughing through your seemingly endless supply of notes and switching to your powerpoint slides to see which is easier to tackle first. This doesn't seem so bad? What's everyone so stressed about? I'll start now, pull an all-nighter and ace the sh*t out of this exam. Simples.

8) Bargaining

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You've studied for an hour, you deserve a break. Now, time for a bit of casual Facebook creeping. Suddenly, what you think has been 10 minutes has actually been 2 hours. How is this possible? All you were doing was scrolling through your news feed. Oh wait, you did spend a while creeping on that girl's tagged photos, and then you managed to find a site where you can order a pizza cutter in the shape of an axe. Aaaand now you're hungry..

9) Boredom

If you’re female you’ll most likely end up painting your nails, dying your hair or giving yourself a full makeover. Even your notes think you’re a ride. Anything but study seems like the best idea right now. If you’re male, I don’t even have to explain this one..

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10) Guilt

You've just received a text from your mum, expecting her to grill you about study. Sadly not this time. She's just bought you tickets to fly to London to see your best friend after you finish your exams. Well don't you just feel great about yourself? You haven't done a tap for this exam, more than likely going to fail terribly, and your mum has just bought you a 'finished exams' present.. Dear Lord, please let me pass.

11) Anger

So it's 6 o'clock and you haven't done nearly enough to even accomplish a pass grade at this point. What the f*ck have you been doing with your life? Was it really that hard to sit down for a few hours every day and do some work? At the time, yes. You were in the middle of a Gossip Girl marathon, Blair and Chuck were going through some major relationship issues which you could totally relate to. It was a tough few days. Wait, I still have to study.

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12) Depression

The emotional rollercoaster that was Gossip Girl combined with the thoughts of having to pull an all-nighter are really setting in now. All hope is lost and people telling you that "you'll be fine, you've worked really hard" isn't easing the anxiety of life for you right now. You haven't even seen me study, how can you possibly say I'll be fine? Maybe I will. No, no I won't.

13) The All-Nighter Commences

This is it. You've come to the realization you are now utterly screwed for this exam. You've become so desperate that you've substituted the milk for your coffee with RedBull. You're buzzing. Faceboook hasn't been touched, your phone is off and you're flying through your notes. Look at me now, I knew I'd be grand. Then, the 5a.m slump hits you so hard you think you've just been bitch slapped in the face with your own textbook. Oh God, what have I done to myself..

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14) Acceptance

You're outside the exam hall waiting to be called in. You have one last flick through your notes. You remember nothing. You face facts and accept you're ultimate doom of failure city and know you'll be coming home early from your J1 to do this sh*t all over again. Unless..

No, you can't. F*ck. F*ck, f*ck, f*ck..

Step forward and accept your fate..

 

 

Sarah Finegan

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