{How to: Avoid Burnout}

Do you feel mentally exhausted? Are you struggling to even physically begin to study for your finals? You're not alone. During this time of the year, most students experience some form of burnout. Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines burnout as a physical or mental collapse cause by overwork or stress. To help you overcome burnout during these last few weeks of this semester, we've put together a few tips!

1. Get plenty of sleep. In most cases, staying up until 2:00 am to finish that paper hurts your stress level more than it helps.

2. Exercise. Working out or moving around wakes up your body to help you feel more energized. This can be something as simple as taking a longer route to class!

3. Stay positive. Negative thoughts can make you more stressed out, so try to frame your thoughts in a positive way.

4. Take deep breaths. Sometimes all you need to do is take a minute to take a deep breath to refocus you on your work.

5. Eat healthy. Don't skip meals to study or do homework. Keep healthy snacks on hand so when you feel tempted to snack, you can let yourself indulge and not have to stress more about your unhealthy habits.

6. Talk about your concerns. Share your thoughts with a close friend or family member to get your thoughts out of your head. If you feel extremely stressed and helpless, contact the UNI Health Center to set up a meeting with a counselor for additional help, (319) 273-2676. Try to avoid venting over social media, if possible!




Sources:
http://blog.cengage.com/?top_blog=tips-for-students-managing-and-avoiding-stress-in-college&channel=Eloqua&elq_mid=7233&elq_cid=1970129

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/burnout