I’ll admit, I have tons of test anxiety and make everything seem bigger than it actually is but this time around I’ve noticed that I’m not that nervous. It’s strange and so out of character for me! But then I realized it’s because I’ve changed my habits and thinking which resulted in not going through the horrible amounts of anxiety that I’ve had in the past. Hopefully this will help some of you!
#1.) Be Prepared – The more you study, the more you’re going to be prepared for finals which results in less anxiety since you know what you’re actually doing! You’ve taken a million tests before all throughout your school career and have aced them. What makes this so different? Just study enough and you got this!
#2.) Sleep Well – I always make sure to sleep well the night before a final in order to be alert and ready when it’s time to take the test. Not only will you retain information from studying the night before but you’ll feel less nervous since it’s one less thing to worry about!
#3.) Visualize Success – From my experience, negative thinking usually leads to negative results. Try to picture yourself being successful more often and you might just see a difference. If not, at least you’ll feel slightly better during the test!
#4.) Breathe – Take a few deep breaths before and during the final in order to relax. I find that focusing on my breathing for a few seconds helps me to ignore the anxious thoughts in my head.
#5.) Reward Yourself – Each semester, whenever I’m done with finals I like to reward myself with something that I usually don’t get everyday like some greasy junk food or some new shoes. It’s just a great way to celebrate the end of finals while giving you something positive to think about while feeling so stressed during that time.
#6.) Remember That It’s Not the End of the World – Our minds always seem to make a big deal out of the little things and although finals are important, it’s not the end of the world if you don’t do well. More importantly, failing a final is not a reflection of your intelligence. I’ve failed a final before and trust me, it sucks but I got over it and did amazing the second time around and I’m sure you will too!
Hope this helped in some way! Thanks for reading,
-Ruya
