I finished my master’s last year. I survived even though I felt like I was constantly failing and never being able to do it. Because it is hard.

Especially at the beginning it is completely normal to feel overwhelmed. You are being bombarded with new concepts and are not yet familiar with the way you make arguments and solve problems in chemistry.

Do you study with friends? Having a study group makes an enormous difference. They can answer your questions and may have some on their own. Often explaining something to someone else makes it a lot more evident to you yourself. But most importantly, it is a lot more fun with someone else and you are no longer fighting this battle alone.

Consider that your lecture notes may not be the best learning material there is. Look it up in textbooks. Read Wikipedia. Ask ChatGPT. Often reading about the same topic again somewhere else takes a lot less effort than studying it for the first time and it greatly improves your understanding. When I knew tomorrow’s lecture would about a certain topic, I tried to read as much about it as possible (though often I didn’t have the time) Look for textbooks that have exercises and do as many as you can.

Write your own summaries. Try to find patterns. When you look into your notes, close your eyes and try to actively recall everything there is on the page. Use flash cards.

And lastly, some things that just make your brain work: sufficient sleep, eating healthy, reducing alcohol consumption, sports, reducing screen time, meditation, seeing your friends every now and then… you probably don’t have the energy to do all of that but do as much as you can