Dealing with exam anxiety

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Pre-and post-examination anxiety
Pre-exam anxiety
• Exams can be a very anxious time, especially for matriculants who are coming to the end of their school careers and know that this examination is crucial for employment or entry into a university or college. However, it can also be a difficult time for students who are trying to finish their university studies.
• Many learners lack confidence or feel that they may not be sufficiently prepared for the examination and this can also result in anxiety
• Others are concerned that they will not meet their parents of families expectations and this can also place pressure on them
• This anxiety may reveal itself in a number of ways:
 Nervous tension
 Increased irritability
 Sleeping problems
 Headaches and other physical symptoms (weakness, nausea, upset stomach)
 Negative feelings and thoughts
(In a few serious cases this could result in moods of depression and a professional may
need to be consulted)

The buildup to the examinations
• Students need to be mentally and physically well-prepared for the examinations.
 Studying should be properly planned and carried out many weeks before the examinations
 It is important to eat correctly, not to miss meals and get sufficient sleep
 Ask your chemist or health shop for a natural supplement to assist your studying (not tranquillisers or strong medication)

Methods of reducing anxiety
• Keep contact with your classmates and share information, thoughts and feelings about the examinations
• Do not let family pressure get to you ( You can only do your best)
• Take regular breaks to unwind
• Practice relaxation and breathing exercises to reduce anxiety
• Relaxation exercise
 Sit quietly and comfortably and begin to breathe regularly, close your eyes and imagine a wave of peace slowly moving up from your feet, though the muscles of your ankles and legs, into your hips, over your chest and up your back.
 At the same time, begin to empty your mind of all thoughts until it is completely quiet.
 Continue to focus on your breathing and the feeling as the wave passes through each muscle, limb or organ.
 Finally, allow the feeling to pass up your neck and out the top of your head
 Do this three times. At the end of the exercise, your mind should be quiet and peaceful and your body totally relaxed.
• Correct breathing
• Your anxiety level can also be controlled with good breathing exercises
 Close your eyes , relax and focus on your breathing
 Breathe in and out to a regular count of 4. In other words, breathe in and count 1,2,3, 4, hold your breath for a count of 1,2,3, 4, breathe out 1,2,3, 4, hold your breath again 1,2,3, 4, breathe in again in 1,2,3, 4, and so on.
• Imagery or visualization
• You can also use imagery or visualization to lower your anxiety level
 Once again, sit quietly and comfortably and begin to breathe regularly, close your eyes and create a picture in your mind of a beautiful natural scene
 For instance, see yourself in your garden, on a walk along a mountain path or on the beach
 In your mind, see the trees, plants and flowers or the waves, rocks and pebbles on the beach
 Try to relive the feelings of enjoyment, happiness and peace you experienced during those times that you were actually there
• This will take your mind off your studies for a while and give your mind time to re-charge

Post-exam anxiety
• Anxiety may once again present itself following the exams due to the students uncertainty over his or her results or how his/her family will respond to the results
• Once again this anxiety can reveal itself in a number of ways and the most troubling of these are self-defeating thoughts and beliefs and unhelpful emotions, especially if he /she has failed the examination
Self-defeating thoughts and beliefs
 For instance, he/she could be troubled by thoughts such as ‘I failed’
 His/her thinking could become even more negative such as ‘I am a failure’
 And it could end up as “ I will never amount to anything , I may as well end it all’
• This kind of thinking can seriously affect his or her self-image and self-esteem and he/she could become withdrawn, depressed and even suicidal
• These self-defeating thoughts and beliefs need to be immediately challenged before they get worse
Advice to students
Ask yourself the following questions:
 ‘Does failing an exam make me a bad person?’
 ‘Am I really a failure because I have failed one exam?’
 ‘Am I just not thinking this way because I am disappointed and upset?’
• In most cases, these thoughts or beliefs are as a result of the shock and disappointment, are not rational and are usually misguided, exaggerated, inaccurate or simply not true.
• Consciously affirm positive realities in your life to replace the self-defeating beliefs
For example:
 ‘I am not a failure. I have tried my best and done well up to now
 ‘I am not alone in this situation. I have the support of my family and friends.’
 ‘I have a lot going for me and will be a success one day’
 ‘The truth is that I can change to another course or re-do my exam elsewhere.
Unhelpful emotions
• The students emotions can also become negative and he/she could experience unhelpful feelings such as disappointment, self-blame, guilt or fear as to his /her future, especially if he/she has been unsuccessful in the exams
• This can also lead to anxiety and feeling depressed
.
Advice to students
• Look at the situation from other points of view
 Perhaps you did the best that you could
 It may be that you are not suited to that course
 Your low performance may be due to circumstances beyond your control
 Perhaps you just need to look at your priorities again (wake-up call?)
• Acknowledge what you are feeling, but do not hang on to these feelings for too long as this could be quite costly to you
 They could paralyze you and prevent you from trying again
 They could also make you moody and unpleasant which will affect your relationships with parents, friends and girlfriend/boyfriend
 The anxiety associated with these feelings could even lead to illness

Advice to parents
 Do not place unreasonable demands or pressure on students to perform
 Encourage them to talk and not to bottle up their concerns about the examination
 Provide them with unconditional love and acceptance even if they are not successful with the examinations
 Help them to deal with their self-defeating thoughts and unhelpful emotions
 Encourage them to try again and not to give up
 Provide them with information about the supplementary exams through the department of education and help them to prepare better
 Remember that not everyone is suited to being a doctor , lawyer or other professional
A number of colleges offer correspondence courses in the National Certificate
(matric) as well as full-time computer and other courses which do not require matric
 If you see that they remain anxious or depressed, seek professional help

References
Henderson, J.P (2007). Multi-Dimensional Thinking. Cape Town : Kima Global.
Jordaan et al ((1975). General psychology: A psychobiological approach. JHB: McGraw–Hill.
www.jimmyhendersonbooks.blogspot.com