TEST ANXIETY

Some students perform poorly on tests for reasons other than lack of preparation or poor study skills. This common problem is called test anxiety and it occurs when students are too nervous to recall learned material during an exam. If a student has not adequately studied for a test and feels very nervous, that does not qualify as true test anxiety. Test anxiety may be caused by a number of factors such as poor test performance in the past, lack of confidence, feelings of extreme pressure or fear of failure, nervousness about having to perform or a number of other problems. For many people, test anxiety is often a long term problem that began as far back as elementary school. For others, it starts in college. Whatever the origins of test anxiety, it is important to understand that a small amount of anxiety is both normal and beneficial. It helps improve motivation and often improves performance. Too much tension, however, hinders performance and becomes damaging. If you experience extreme nervousness, dread or fear before exams and have put forth your best effort to prepare in advance, you may be suffering from test anxiety. Simply put, test anxiety prevents you from doing your best on exams.

Symptoms of test anxiety can be separated into 2 categories: mental stress & physical stress.

• Mental Stress - includes your thoughts and worries about tests (before, during or after tests)
Examples: Negative thoughts - “I can’t pass this test.”
All or nothing thinking - “I always fail tests!”
Pressure - “I have to make an A on this test.”
Inability to concentrate
Personal myths - “I’m not the brains in the family.”
Irrational beliefs - “Everyone in class can tell I failed.”
Mind reading - “My teacher thinks I’m stupid because I made a mistake.”

• Physical Stress - includes physical feelings, sensations and tensions
Examples: Muscle tension, Nausea, Shortness of breath
Perspiration, Clammy hands and feet, Rapid heartbeat
Blurry or tunnel vision, Restlessness, Increased blood pressure
Heightened awareness of surroundings (especially behavior of people sitting nearby, watching the clock, awareness of when others finish their test, classroom noise, etc)
Mental blocks or a general inability to perform complex intellectual tasks

HOW IS TEST ANXIETY DIFFERENT FROM FEAR OR OTHER ANXIETIES?

- Fear is related to a specific object or event where there is real danger (i.e. a grizzly bear)
- Test anxiety is more intense than average nervousness before a test and is not subject
specific (i.e. only occurs during math tests)
- Not caused by lack of preparation or poor test testing skills (although, these
circumstances will likely cause someone with test anxiety more nervousness)
- The anxiety is basically limited to test taking scenarios (general anxiety will overlap into
other areas of life)

HOW CAN I OVERCOME TEST ANXIETY?

Step #1: Change the Way You Think

The following techniques may be very helpful in changing the way you think:

➀ Thought Stopping: Tell yourself to “STOP!” when you notice that your thoughts are racing and your mind is cluttered with worries or fears. You can say stop to yourself or out loud if appropriate.

➁ Challenge Absolute Thinking: When you notice yourself saying things like, “I always fail!”, challenge your logic. Do you absolutely always fail? Probably not! Perhaps you could try saying sometimes instead of always. Be careful of words like always, never, all or every. They don’t give you any room for improvement.

➂ Let Go of Irrational Personal Myths & Beliefs: Example: “I’m just not the smart person in the family.” What kind of sense does this make? Is there not one for more than one “smart person” in your family. Be cautious of those old sayings or dialogues from your past. If you had a hard time in 6th grade and your brother made all As, does that mean you have to believe yourself to be an incompetent student eternity? Our past failures do not have to stay with us forever. Watch out for old family scripts too. We may have been labelled as the “ditsy blond” of the family or the “all brawn no brains” jock. If we believe it, it will probably come true. LET IT GO!

➃ Be Positive & Praise Yourself: Avoid negative pressure such as, “I have to pass this test.” Instead say, “I would like to pass this test. I am prepared. I know I can do it.”

➄ Avoid Making the Situation Worse: Avoiding studying and preparation makes a tense situation worse. You can increase your confidence by preparing as much as possible. Go to class everyday, take notes and stay in touch with your teacher. Your instructor may be able to offer some good advice or suggest a tutor.

➅ Visualize Success: Mentally picture yourself successfully taking the test. Be specific - visualize the scene in great detail including the surroundings, the test itself, people around you, etc. Imagine yourself confidently answering all the questions correctly, feeling relaxed and later receiving an A.

➆ Get Ridiculous!: Imagine the very worst case scenario. Give in to your fears for a few minutes. Expand it and take it to the point of absurdity. When you do this, chances are that you will realize how unrealistic your fears are or, at least, you may see that the very worst probably couldn’t even happen. At this point, you may be laughing. Now, you can backtrack and see where your fears became unreasonable. Then, you can ask yourself: “Can I live with this?” The answer is probably yes.

➇ Concentrate: Focus all your attention on a specific object. Look at each little detail of something like your hand. Notice the shape and texture. Concentrate completely on the one object and don’t let your thoughts wander to anxiety-prone areas. Use this as practice to improve your concentration AND to help you meditate. This is similar to a mantra, which is a word or syllable repeated in meditation (i.e. peace, om, relax, success, etc.).

Step #2: Relax Your Body

Use the following techniques to help learn how to relax & use them regularly:

➀ Deep Breathing: You can relax your body by focusing your attention on your breathing. Find a comfortable sitting or reclined position. Concentrate on beginning to relax and exhale all air. Breathe in deeply through your nose and exhale slowly out of your mouth. Increasingly slow each breath and try breathing in and out to a count of 5. Couple this technique with visualization and/or concentration. Imagine all your anxiety flowing out with each exhale or silently repeat the word “r-e-l-a-x” as you exhale.

➁ Deep Relaxation: Tense and relax each major muscle group of your whole body. The key here is to notice the difference between the competing states of relaxation and tension. You can’t be both at the same time! Exaggerate the existing tension a bit and then concentrate on letting it go. You can start with your scalp or brow and move all the way down to your toes. This exercise is designed to help you become aware of your physical tension. Keep in touch with your body- it will tell you when you are tense.

➂ Guided Imagery: Relax completely and take a quick fantasy trip. You may want to begin by using deep breathing techniques to help you relax initially. Find a comfortable position, close your eyes and relax your body. Next, imagine yourself in a beautiful, peaceful scene. Create as much of the scene as possible. Be specific and use all of your senses. For example, some people enjoy a sunny beach or peaceful mountain scene.

➃ Aerobic Exercise: Do some kind of exercise that will get your heart beating at twice your normal rate and keep it beating at that rate for at least 15 to 20 minutes (check with your physician for guidance). Some examples include rapid walking, jogging, swimming, tennis, aerobic dance or basketball. Physical exercise is often very effective in relieving bodily tension.

***IMPORTANT TIP: Physical relaxation exercises need to used on a regular basis (often daily) so that when you need to relax, your body and mind will automatically be able to calm down. Turn relaxation exercises into a good habit. A habit takes about 4-6 weeks to become fully ingrained in your routine; so be patient. It takes a while to learn to be anxious during tests. So, it takes time to learn NOT to be anxious and feel mostly relaxed in testing situations. But, it can be done. If you need help learning these techniques, visit the Counseling Center. The counseling staff is trained to help you better manage test anxiety.

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