How to overcome exam anxiety

What is exam anxiety?

Exam anxiety is the pressure one cannot handle during the
period of competitive papers. Test anxiety is a combination of
physiological over-arousal, tension and somatic symptoms,
along with worry, dread and fear of failure that occurs before or
during test situations. Test anxiety can also be labelled as
anticipatory anxiety, situational anxiety or evaluation anxiety.

There are two types of anxiety:

 Low anxiety: students who experience low anxiety may feel a
little nervous about an upcoming exam but are still able to focus
their attention on their studies or the questions asked during the
assessment. Usually low-anxiety students are not stuck with
intrusive thoughts or feel debilitated by the exam.
 High anxiety: students who experience high anxiety show an
immediate anxiety reaction when exposed to the feared test
situation. They attempt to avoid the situation by not showing up
to the exam, or may endure it but with extreme fear. High
anxiety can tip some into a sense of panic: “I just really can’t do
this!”

Students with either high or low anxiety can respond to tests
in different ways. But research shows that managing anxiety
effectively can actually help with exam performance. The
challenge is to recognise when your anxiety has increased past
a certain level so that it starts to impact your ability to complete
the exam - this is a high level of anxiety.
Some physical responses of high anxiety include a speeding
heart, damp hands, shortness or rapid breath, and feeling
queasy.
The physical response is usually experienced due to high levels
of anxiety when the “fight or flight” response is triggered. This is
how our bodies respond to a perceived threat – and while
uncomfortable, it is not harmful.

So, how can I cool my exam nerves down?

If you identify high anxiety in yourself, you can learn ways to
manage it so that it doesn’t take over your exam performance.
The skills you find most helpful in managing your exam anxiety
will vary depending on what triggers may be contributing to
your high levels of anxiety.

If students experience high levels of anxiety before an exam,
they should engage in self-care strategies during this time by
keeping an eye on sleeping through the night, nutrition,
exercise, and implementing a few relaxation routines.
Students sometimes forget these minor steps as they can feel
consumed by the fear of the exam.

There are many other ways to overcome it, few of them are
mentioned below:

 Approach the exam with confidence-Use whatever strategies
you can to personalize success visualization, logic, talking to
yourself, practice, team work, journaling, etc.
View the exam as an opportunity to show how much you've
studied and to receive a reward for the studying you've done
Be confident while preparing for your paper, Make a time
table and follow it.
 Be prepared-Learn your material thoroughly and organize
what materials you will need for the test. Use a checklist.
 Choose a comfortable location for preparing for your paper
or while you sit for studying. The lighting conditions, space,
environment all these factors need to be taken into
consideration when you are preparing for an exam.
 Allow yourself plenty of time; especially to do things you
need to do before the test and still get there a little early.
 Avoid overthinking just before your paper.
 Strive for a relaxed state of concentration; Avoid speaking
with any fellow students who have not prepared, who
express negativity, who will distract your preparation.
 A program of exercise is said to sharpen the mind
 Get good sleep the night before the exam.
 Don't go to the exam with an empty stomach; fresh fruits and
vegetables are often recommended to reduce stress.
Stressful foods can include processed foods, artificial
sweeteners, carbonated soft drinks, chocolate, eggs, fried
foods, junk foods, pork, red meat, sugar, white flour
products, chips and similar snack foods, foods containing
preservatives or heavy spices.
 Take a small snack, or some other nourishment
to help take your mind off of your anxiety.
Avoid high sugar content which may aggravate your
condition.

During the test:

 Read the directions and questions carefully.
 Budget your test taking time.
 Change positions to help you relax.
 If you go blank, skip the question and go on.
 If you go blank on the whole test, pick a question and start
writing. It may trigger the answer in your mind.
 Dont panic; when students start handing in their papers.
There is no reward for finishing first.
 Don’t look around because there might be people who
might just give you looks you don’t expect.

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