As we approach finals, many students spend their days and nights preparing, studying, staying up late and cramming information. Despite all the academic pressure built into this week, a big question arises: Why are mental health days not built into this week?

The stress that comes alongside finals week is often overwhelming and can affect students’ mental health. This can lead to over-stressing, mental health issues, stress and anxiety, and many other health issues besides mental health. This can negatively affect how students do on their final exams overall. 

“I think creating space for students to rest mentally would enhance their performance on their final exams,” said Mr. Hilliard. “The positives of having a mental health day to rest outweigh the negatives of taking time off from classes to prepare for finals.”

Students should use a mental health day to their advantage to rest their minds and take a break from studying. 

A mental health day is provided as a break from school and finals, and should not be used as a study day to study more for finals and bring more stress to the students.

“I think a built-in mental health day during finals week would benefit me. I would get a lot of rest rather than having to stay up to study. Staying up late and studying will be more likely to have a negative impact on your finals day. It makes it harder to focus and remember things because you are so tired,” says Peyton Lee. “I would also limit my time on my phone and other distracting factors. I would try to go on walks, play a sport, and do other things to reduce my stress and keep myself calm. Rather than spending all my time studying, I would use the day to do things that help me destress to prevent burnout before my finals.”

A mental health day built into finals week would allow students to score higher overall. Their brains would have a clean slate, allowing them to intake and understand more information for their finals.