EP 38: How to Beat Test Anxiety: Test Preparation Ritual
Even the most seasoned of exam takers gets test anxiety. Test anxiety will never completely go away, however there are tools to help you manage it. If you have the right tools in place you can actually use your anxiety to fuel your performance on an exam.
One of the ways you can beat test anxiety is to develop a pre-test ritual. On Episode 38 we discuss test anxiety and the pre-study strategies you can develop to manage it.
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TRANSCRIPT:
Cath Anne: [00:00:00] Hi guys and welcome back to our channel. My name is Cath Anne: and this is Episode 38 of The Homework Help Show by Homework Help Global.
Cath Anne: [00:00:16] You may have experienced test anxiety before. Maybe you get the pre-test jitters and it ends up affecting the outcome of your test. Perhaps you’re racking your brain about ways to figure out how to manage test anxiety. Well today that is what we hope to discuss testing anxiety is completely normal. You are human and you are always going to experience anxiety when you are faced with a stressful situation and tests are a stressful situation. They are based in the unknown which can stress the body out . Even most seasoned exam takers get test anxiety so don’t worry if this is something that you also experience. Test anxiety will never completely go away, however there are some strategies and tools that you can use and implement into your study routine that will help you to manage test anxiety. So let’s talk about how to effectively manage test anxiety for an upcoming test.
Cath Anne: [00:01:25] First: always make sure you are getting a lot of rest. Although you may have the urge to cram before your test or study as much as you can getting at least 8 hours of sleep before your test is essential. Sleep is an active process where the brain works to heal the body and it produces hormones which are beneficial to repair and growth. This is obviously a major component of learning and processing. This is also time for the brain to reconsolidate memories and things that we’ve learned or studied during the day. So particularly when you are studying for a test you’re going to want to make sure you are getting a good amount sleep so that your body can process everything that you’ve learned. Rapid eye movement sleep, or REM, which happens in the last part of the night appears to be associated with learning and memory. So making sure that you get at least that 8 hours of sleep is essential so that you do get to that REM stage of sleep. The night before the exam, turn off all electronics at least 30 minutes before you go to sleep because the blue light on electronics can affect your sleep and how deep you get into a sleep. Get 8 hours of sleep or more and avoid stimulants like coffee late in the afternoon or before bed because they will affect your ability to sleep.
Cath Anne: [00:02:55] Second: when you wake up in the morning from your really good sleep make sure you are having a healthy breakfast but nothing that is too heavy. You want something a bit lighter because when you are digesting a heavy breakfast this can actually take blood flow away from the brain and you’re going to need all the blood flowing to your brain so you are able to ace that test. Also if you are a coffee drinker try to avoid drinking caffeine right up until the exam time. This will give you the jitters before the test and you are also already full of jitters. So you don’t want to increase that in your body. It’s fine to have a cup of coffee but maybe limit it to half a cup and make sure you’re having it with your breakfast early in the morning and not right up until when your test is happening.
Cath Anne: [00:03:44] Number three: write down your anxieties and fears. Do a bit of a brain dumb. Research has shown that when you do this you can actually free up space in your brain and it will improve the grade that you get on your test writing things down will help you to understand your fears and manage them more effectively.
Cath Anne: [00:04:03] Number four: arrive at the test ahead of time. Give yourself lots of time to be there and be present for the test. You will want time to mentally prepare and rushing or running late to the exam will certainly increase anxiety because you won’t feel as prepared and your body won’t be settled and ready to take a test.
Cath Anne: [00:04:25] Number five: make sure all your materials are ready to go. For example make sure that your computer is working properly that your calculator has batteries and then it’s turning on. You want to make sure that all of your pencils are sharpened and that your pens are working well as it will ease your mind when you are entering into the task and it will free up space in your mind so that you can focus on just taking the test.
Cath Anne: [00:04:51] Number six: develop some pretest rituals. Consistent habits and behaviors can put you at ease in a stressful situation. So when your body is ready to be stressed out some of these habits that you’ve developed on the way can help to put your body at ease for example go for a short walk listen to some of your favorite music and visualize your success on a on an exam are all strategies that you can use to put your mind and your body at ease before you go into a test.
Cath Anne: [00:05:23] Number seven: do a short meditation. It doesn’t have to be anything long just close your eyes breathe deeply and relax your muscles. This might not be for everyone however it is an effective strategy. I’ve used it myself before going into an interview and I can tell you that it truly does work. Do this for about five minutes you can do it for up to ten minutes. Set a timer on your phone. Think back to a time when you did really well on a test. You aced the test and you scored well that was you in your zone free capture the feelings of what it felt like to be in your zone and experience that by recalling how you actually felt in that situation. Think about how you are calm your muscles were relaxed and your motivation to succeed was very high. By visualizing success and by putting your body into that state you were actually helping to manifest a better grip on your test and you’re putting your body into a state to be prepared for success.
Cath Anne: [00:06:24] Finally, avoid sitting or standing around anxious people. We’re all familiar with the group of people prior to an exam who are standing outside the gymnasium or the classroom and they are not prepared for the test so they are evidently swamped with stress. However standing around these people is not going to help you in the least. If you know the room is crowded and you know that people are particularly anxious don’t worry about being a loner find yourself a spot to go and just chill there. Think positive thoughts take deep breaths do your basic meditation and focus on your own preparation and your own future success in the exam.
Cath Anne: [00:07:08] Okay I hope that was a benefit. That is it for me for this week. Good luck on those exams and listen guys if you do have any comments I would love to hear what you guys do, what kinds of things you implement into your life to increase your success on exams. Do you have any pre study rituals that you use in your life and have they been successful. Have you done anything like meditation. Do you listen to a certain song to pump you up. I would love to hear a little bit more about what you guys do and maybe we can do a future episode on that. As always if you like this video please give it a thumbs up and subscribe to our channel so you don’t miss out on any of our content. If you have any questions pop them in the comment box below. We always love to hear from you as well. If you’re interested in checking out any more of our content all of our social media platforms are linked in the description box below. So certainly check those out. Have a great week guys. Take care and good luck on those exams.
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