I think I'm burnt out.... Help needed!

2RARE2CARE

Trying to make this as short as possible:
In July I probably did about 40~ish hours of LSAT work in total.
In August, I did easily over 100+ hours.
In September, I easily did over 110+ hours again.
October, I was doing 30+ hours a week for the first two weeks or so. Usually, that's no problem for me. (5/6 hours a day Mon-Sat) Then I did two weeks of 4 days, about 6-7 hours each day because I needed three days rest. (I was only breaking on Sundays, prior.) I ended up still feeling hella burnt out with 3 days rest I think, and so I breaked from Last Friday to this current Wednesday (about 5 days, longest break I ever took)

I did a PT today and by the time I was on my third section, I felt disconnected from the test, mentally exhausted, etc. Is my studying too excessive and should I take a break (and if so, how long?) I'm tryna do whats best for the long haul. Usually I wake up and have no problem heading to the library and studying all day, now I DREAD IT!!

harrismegan

Totally burn out. Are you writing in December? Take a longer break I would suggest. Stop thinking about the LSAT, don't creep the forums, just take a solid break.

J.H. Song

I'm not sure if you're burnt out or not, only you truly know that. What I can say from my experience is that the LSAT is different from most other tests in that merely the amount of "work put in" does not necessarily equate to an "increase in scores". I see that you are definitely putting in a lot of hours, but more important than the hours is what you're doing in those hours. I don't think those hours are necessarily too long, but a good chunk of them should be light, timed sections, or fundamental checks on specific questions, with 2 or 3 prep tests and intensive blind reviews per week.

Once again, you may very well be burnt out and just need some time off based on what you're saying. I would slowly walk back into the process. You don't have to wake up with a huge boost and go to hit the prep materials for 6-7 hours. Try a timed LG or RC. Heck, try it untimed. If you hate it after one section, give it a break, then review that one section. I'd suggest slowly getting back to it that way.

2RARE2CARE

@harrismegan i was planning on December but it looks like February now. I'm just tryna go to Fordham and my GPA is 3.77 w URM so I don't think it'll be too late. How long you think I should take off?

deleted account

@2RARE2CARE

OMG that's a buttload of study. Slow down. 3 hours a day is too much. I'd say aim for continuing with a weaker schedule. It sounds to me like you're doing more than a full test a day. Aim to do an average of 2 sections a day. Maybe 3 full tests a week and on your off days you do only one section -- and make it LG more often than LR more often than RC -- they have increasing mental load in that order.

Also, I have to ask if you are studying with a goal. I can't see what you could be studying that would require so much time. You might want to revise your plan. Feel free to PM me if you have a preptest history and need help creating a goal.

Finally, what is your current and goal score? I assume that you are aiming for Dec? If so, you might want to possibly revise that goal if it is unrealistic.

GSU Hopeful

@2RARE2CARE said:
I did a PT today and by the time I was on my third section, I felt disconnected from the test, mentally exhausted, etc.

@2RARE2CARE said:
now I DREAD IT!!

Both are classic signs of burnout. Slow down. Stop for a few days. Do something that gets you off this road and allows you a little rest.

nicole.hopkins

@2RARE2CARE said:
I DREAD IT!!

This alone is, IMO, sufficient to diagnose burn out.

Go have some fun!!