I guess there is something odd about April which brings an ambivalent, nervous sentiment to the fore. Even the weather seems uncertain: clear blue skies dotted with fluffy cotton-ball clouds unpredictably swap places with frosty mornings, grey skies and rain showers. Such incongruous juxtapositions are not simply anomalies of nature - they are the features of University life, in April.
Indeed, a palpable sense of tension pervades Grounds. Sullen students with glum looks on their faces scurry past each other - all seemingly heading for their favorite library. Faculty members are increasingly distracted by the growing pile of assignments waiting to be graded as the end of the term looms. Administrators, normally exuding blissful calm, are visibly nervous as they start preparing for the descent of hordes of families for the upcoming graduation ceremonies. In short, no one is immune to the stress epidemic outbreak which occurs like clockwork each April.
In both undergraduate and law school, I've seen the havoc which overwork and stress peaking in April can cause. When juggling half a dozen activities and assignments, it can be difficult to be anything other than short-tempered. Moreover, with all the things there are to be stressed about my productivity levels off. I am sure I'm not the first person who has on occasion taken more time to complain about a task than actually do it. Further, too much stress can be seriously deleterious to your health. While law school has left me woefully incapable of making medical diagnoses, studies abound about the adverse consequences which too much stress can have on the human body.
Worse, I hardly suspect that April is a month where students tend to take care of themselves; I know I all but bleed coffee during the final month of a semester. Of course, April does have its bright spots - all is not gloom and doom. Foxfield approaches as a memorable day on most of our calendars - even if the following day we need to be reminded of what we actually did. Thankfully for our collective health, the University administration and the various student organizations have also begun to put on an array of events with a single goal in mind - stress relief.
Truly, we are fortunate to attend a University which places a premium upon students surviving April and exams with their sanity intact. Yet somewhat ironically, while we all know that, in a week or so, stress relief events will be occurring everywhere on Grounds, sometimes the sheer number of options can prove overwhelming.
The Cavalier Daily can be of help in this regard. I would suggest the newspaper run a special column during the month of April - both print and online - on upcoming "stress-busting" events planned by various student organizations and administrative units. Likewise, the University website can highlight such April activities in the same way it publicized the recent GradDays. Such an approach would not only raise the profile of the University's stress relief efforts in general, but also would allow the organizers of these events to reach a broader population than their own publicity would otherwise allow.
And, indeed, there is no reason why these efforts to mitigate stress should be limited to students. If The Cavalier Daily and University would agree to such a publicity effort, I would hope that they would also dedicate space to host stress relief events where students, faculty and administrators can all mingle. Indeed, the Law School currently seeks to do just this, through a variety of wine and cheese events, as well as an annual Spring Picnic. All of these events, which are scattered through April, are widely publicized as opportunities to take time off from studying to relax. Obviously, I'm aware that not everyone uses stress relief events to let off steam during exams. Still, my basic advice to students remains the same: Make sure you take time for yourself. Little activities like taking the time to watch a movie or take a walk can do wonders for a mind reeling from academic rigor. And while I'm sure this sounds utterly intuitive, I can't count the number of students I have seen who have burnt themselves out well before they actually reached exams. If you ask me, it is far better to take an hour break now, rather than needing some personal time in the midst of actually testing.
As students we are usually resourceful and resilient. Somehow, though, we can't seem to cope with stress by the time April comes around. Strange as it may sound, we need to learn how to relax.
Sanjiv Tata's column normally appears Mondays in The Cavalier Daily. He can be reached at s.tata@cavalierdaily.com.
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