Looking for Tips on Handling Stress and Anxiety During Exam Preparation

Former Member

Hello Everyone ,

I'm going through a really trying phase currently because I'm getting ready for my final examinations. I'm starting to feel a lot of strain, and every day I feel more and more anxious. My subconscious continues to be filled with ideas of defeat and the implications of doing poorly, so this makes it difficult for me to concentrate on my studies.

I've tried numerous other things, like working out, taking frequent breaks, and even contemplating but nothing did anything to assist with the anxiety. It's developing a vicious circle of stress and inefficiency, and I'm starting to fear that my stress may impact the way that I perform on the tests.

I'm contacting members of this community in the hopes of receiving some guidance and assistance.

How can you control your tension and anxiety when you're taking exams? Are there any particular methods or practices that you find particularly effective?

In addition, I sometimes encounter problems managing my motivation and optimistic outlook.

How can you stay motivated and have a positive attitude under such severe pressure?

Any advice on striking a balance between study time and leisure would also be much valued. I worry that I may be studying too much ccsp, but I also feel that I may be studying too much. While striking that balance seems important, I'm having a lot of trouble doing it.

Thank you in advance.

lunarcat522

Hi @Jesica firstly good luck for your exams!

I think if you've tried out a lot of different methods and are still struggling I'd definitely speak with someone at you university that might be able to support you, particularly if you're suspecting it's impacting your performance. I would definitely keep taking frequent breaks as it's really important and there's no point or benefit for working yourself to exhaustion.

In my case if I'm honest my anxiety helps fuel my motivation for revision which can be useful but like you've said it can also be a detriment where your brain goes into a state of overload ruminating about what could happen.

I find it useful offloading onto others (in healthy amounts) just to verbalise my state of stress and reach out to others. I find it particularly useful talking to classmates about feeling stressed as most are in the same position, worried about how they will do. I feel like it's tricky with classmates though as you have to watch you don't get "sucked in" to a spiral of dread. For some people it helps to consolidate knowledge and revise with classmates but I prefer revising alone and asking questions to classmates or lecturers when needed.

I also struggle with positive attitude towards things such as exams. In terms of motivation I try to stay in the moment and make the most of the time I have, I also try to plan something "big" after my exams are done as motivation and something to look forward to such as a meal out with friends or a takeaway.

For balance between study and leisure I don't really have much advice as it's something I struggle with - putting education first, which can be good in moderation but for me it definitely causes issues. I do keep in touch with friends during exam season but it will usually be texting, I sometimes arrange for something short like meeting at lunch or for a walk or maybe after a day where my brain can't take much more revising.

I hope this helps, you're not alone in this I'm sure others can relate too!