Stephanie Venedicto | Contributing Writer
Finals season is here and having an exam make or break our grade is a nightmare. The overwhelming pressure of these tests can cause our nerves to grow rampant, making it all that much worse.
As someone who is planning to go to medical school, I can’t help but feel I should have started studying for the MCAT since I could read. The MCAT is already stressful enough, but how can I not get overwhelmed when my career depends on passing?
Despite the endless nights of studying I did to prepare for final exams, the overwhelming feeling of having to pass makes me freeze. With those of us who have test anxiety, we can start studying the material as soon as we learn it, but this is like a band-aid on a bullet wound.
Studying weeks ahead of a test can give some peace of mind, but often it’s not enough. And when you’re stressed about a test and getting everything right, no amount of studying will quell the sinking feeling one gets before starting an important test.
However, not all hope is lost. There are ways to help calm our nerves.
For me, I use radical acceptance in test-taking. Accepting that I don’t need to get all the answers correct and spend 30 minutes trying to remember the answer to one question helps me feel less anxious.
It’s a tough pill to swallow, like accepting defeat.
But I have found that if I aim for a perfect score then I am burdening myself with an overwhelming amount of pressure that I don’t need.
Understandably, this is going to only work for some. There are other strategies like taking a moment to breathe, studying effectively and even a good night’s sleep can help us.
While these seem like solutions, anyone with test anxiety knows that with the anxiety comes perfectionism, and every wrong answer feels like a stab to the heart.
The fear of getting a question wrong makes studying a terror, cramming everything a professor has ever covered just in case it’s on the test. Refocusing ourselves during a test helps to clear the brain fog that comes with the anxiety, making it easier to recall the answers or formulas
The solution to test anxiety is not a “one size fits all”. What works for one person, might not work for another but finding what works for you will make tests less unbearable.
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The opinions presented on this page do not represent the views of the PantherNOW Editorial Board. These views are separate from editorials and reflect the perspectives of contributing writers and/or university community members.
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