We’re definitely heading into the home stretch of the Spring 2013 semester. That means it’s high time for me to slowly start losing my mind, and collapse under the imminent stress that mid-terms and finals never fail to provide. I’m not the best at dealing with stress.

It’s been a point of contention for me throughout school — as it turns out, I’m plenty capable of a lot of things in my life except keeping a level head. I let myself get overwhelmed way too easily and a downward spiral of anxiety, panic and a crushing sense of dread follow soon after. I am the queen of making a mountain out of a molehill. There’s no problem too small, my brain seems to say, “let me just exaggerate it times a billion.”

Why I spend weeks and weeks stressing about classes that I’ve been in for more than half of a semester is beyond me but that doesn’t change the fact that it happens, without fail, every time. The spring semester is always the worst. Coming back from holiday break knowing that, in a few months, school will be out for the summer overwhelms me and I can just never quite get into the groove of school. The routine isn’t that much trouble for me in the fall. But in the spring? Forget about it. I’m setting myself up for a loss from the first drowsy days of January.

I don’t understand how I can be so perpetually neurotic and still lazy at the same time. It’s starting to annoy me, really. I’m a good student but I’d like to be a good student who can get her work done without feeling like the end of every semester is going to bring about a mental breakdown, a trip to the hospital, and a 42-hour lock up and thorazine drip.

I’m trying to turn over a new leaf this spring. My plan entails not going crazy while trying to finish the semester out. I’m zen. I’m calm. I’m restrained and level-headed, and I’m not freaking out about the fact that there’s a mid-term paper I haven’t started and a test in a week and I still don’t understand the FOIL method and … Well, you know. The important part is that I’m not freaking out. I’m not. (Part of my plan is to repeat this to myself until I convince myself of as much.)

Regardless of the level of my coherency or how much sanity I have left, the end of the semester is inevitable and I do know well enough that I can keep it together. After all, I’m sure that I’m not alone in the struggle; you all are probably more than likely to understand.

Any ideas for relieving stress? How do you keep your cool through the end of the semester? Solidarity, fellow students! Let’s show one another some support when we all need it most.