Burnout Management

WittyNameHere

Well, it's official. I'm burnout in my final week.

Over the last 3.5 months, I've written an average of 4-6 PTs a week, with that number having increased towards the 6 figure over the past month. My PT average over the last 2 months has been ~175, but the last few weeks have been a real kick in the confidence. My last 7 PTs have been a 168/170/175/174/176/173/173. Eliminating the 168 outlier, they're objectively not that far off, but subjectively, they've been the worst exams I'm written in 2+ months. I'm having trouble focusing (both cognitively, but also in terms of vision) and I'm running out of time on sections that I was comfortably completing in 32-33 minutes a month ago. In past, my distribution of incorrect answers by section was relatively even, but recently it seems to manifest in a blowup on one section (-5/-6 + on one section).

The stress has been getting to me and I'm consistently waking up after ~2 hours of sleep and rarely able to get back to sleep after. All things considered, I'd say I've been averaging ~3 hours of sleep a night, and not for a lack of trying. I'm always waking up with dreams of logic games or a tough RC passage. The lack of sleep is definitely impacting my ability to "cope" with tough sections/questions and my nerves are shot.

I'm trying to determine the best way to get back on track. Priority # 1 is to get some sleep. Lots of sleep. And then some more sleep. There's a large part of me that's inclined to sit back and take the next four days off. Alternatively, I've considered 2 days off, a final PT on Thursday and then1 day off.

For those that have been burned out in past, how significantly did it impact your ability to focus? What kind of drop did you see in PTs? How did you manage it?

OlamHafuch

How about the entire week off? You clearly know your stuff well, and I think that at this point, any more practice would be counterproductive. If you are scared of becoming rusty, just do a game or two a day, 5-7 LR questions, and an RC passage, and call it a day. You gotta relax.

WittyNameHere

Thanks for the response. That's the direction I'm leaning at this point. I haven't taken more than 2 days off PTing since August, but it seems like it might be the best option.

My biggest concern with that approach is that I'm going into the exam with my confidence at a low point as compared to where I've been in past. That said, continuing to struggle is going to exasperate that, so I may be better off cutting my losses.

OlamHafuch

No reason for you to have low confidence. You have a very good PT resume. The most important attitude to have going in, though, is that there is always another opportunity to do better, even if that means pushing off a year. It's a lot of pressure going in with a "Do or die attitude."

TheMikey

take the week off. 4-6 PTs a week in CRAZY, idk how you're not dead haha (exaggeration obviously! kind of. not really? )

jennybbbbb

I took 2 days off when I was scoring lower than I previously was. I wasn't completing 4-6 PT's a week but I also felt the burnout since I have been studying 40+ hours a week. Today, I did a LG and a LR section and my score reflected what I had been scoring previously. My scores definitely increased. I would honestly take the week off and if you really feel like you can't stay away or you won't feel as confident going in to the exam... you can always write on PT maybe on Thursday and see how it goes? I would say take Monday-Wednesday off along with Friday.

You clearly know your stuff so I think you just need to take a break. It honestly helped me out a lot.

Good luck!

kshutes13

I agree with others that you sound like you know your stuff and you need to take a break. However, at the end of the day, the amount of time you need for a break is up to you. Feel it out. If you take 2 days off and feel refreshed, maybe try and get back into it; see how you feel. However, if you sit back down to do work 2 days later and everything is gibberish, it's a sign that you need a longer break. Then, just take the full four days (or a week) off and just relax! That's just my two cents.

If you feel like you are getting a poor sleep, do you have a nighttime routine or do you just study until you go to bed? Something I find that helps me sleep (I am an anxious sleeper as well) is to stop studying 1-2 hours before I plan on going to bed. I set up a little routine; I put away all my LSAT stuff, get tea/hot chocolate, chill and read a good book or watch a few episodes of Parks and Rec. It helps relax my mind so that I'm not falling asleep thinking of LSAT stuff. I also try to do a hard workout sometime before dinner so that by the time bed rolls around, I'm pretty tired and ready to sleep.

Good luck and congratulations on all your incredible scores so far!!

Stothentothek

I'm taking 6 classes while prepping for the LSAT and a couple of weeks ago I found the same problem. Just a complete inability to focus on anything. I usually allow myself to finish all the questions on a PT even if I run out of time, and then grade my actual score (assuming any missed ones were guessed wrong) vs my score with actual questions I was able to correctly answer. I was going over time like 20 min in every section AND my score was worse when I factored in all questions! This happened on 2 PTs and I can't afford a break whatsoever due to the load so I was freaking out slightly. Luckily I have a biochemist supplement expert friend who recommended an occasional use/fast acting nootropic to take whenever my brain is lagging like that. I've also been making sure to eat regular nutritious foods, get some exercise every day and get enough sleep, which I wasn't being so meticulous about before. I've only had to take the nootropic twice in the past couple of weeks, but it's been a lifesaver (brainsaver?) when it comes to completing my coursework plus prepping for the lsat. I should add, I think it's highly preferable to just take a break if you can manage it. And try not to stress! Depending on where you're aiming to get in, even your lower scores are still pretty good!

Leah M B

I second @uhinberg. I'd say probably take 2-3 days off, and then for a day or two some light review, and then maybe even take Friday off again. Keep it a little fresh but I would certainly not recommend doing any full PT. You know what you're capable of, your brain just needs to recharge.

Seeking Perfection

That's tough. Confidence is important as is rest and not burning out. I would take individual sessions until you get a good score in each section. Then just rest/review those good sections riding the artificial momentum into the test.

WittyNameHere

Thanks for all the responses. Collectively, you're telling me what I think I needed to hear.

I'm going to take at least 2 days off and let me mind rest up. I'll most likely do a few repeat game sections on Thursday and maybe an RC passage or two. Beyond that, I'll finalize my "warm-up" material for Saturday and focus on getting as much sleep as I can.

Paul Caint

Don't PT on Thursday. Just sleep!