Common Sense Advice

There's no worse feeling than showing up for a test and feeling that you're not adequately prepared for the task ahead of you. Pretest anxiety can be powerful enough to turn some people back from a career path that may be fulfilling. Common problems associated with pretest anxiety include upset stomach, headache, butterflies, a feeling of being either too hot or too cold, fatigue, an inability to concentrate, and even a sort of information amnesia wherein the test taker forgets everything he or she already knows. While it is rarely possible to eliminate all factors that can cause anxiety, it is possible to alleviate test anxiety using a variety of strategies.

The key to feeling good on test day is to establish a pattern of regularity in your daily life. That means regular sleep, regular eating, regular exercise, and most important of all-regular study.

Studying at the same time every day for a specified period of time is far better than studying "all at once" in a four or five-hour stretch. Long study stretches lead to fatigue and forgetfulness. Regular study periods lead to better mental conditioning and better retention of the material studied.

The concept of "cramming", so popular with many people, is a self-defeating activity that undermines your efforts and can leave you exhausted. Cramming for the exam entails staying up late and eating snack food rather than regular, nutritious meals. The tactics used by many people to stay awake, such as drinking large amounts of coffee, might work in the short term but will leave you with a bad case of nerves on test day and perhaps an upset stomach.

Here's what you should be doing in the weeks before your test:

Get on a regular sleep schedule and hold to it, even if you feel that you are not tired. Your body clock will eventually adapt to the schedule you set for it.

Eat regular, well-balanced meals. Your body will know what to expect and you won't feel drained of energy if you eat nutritious foods. Snacks that contain large amounts of sugar or salt can throw off your brain chemistry, leading to a tired feeling.

Exercise should be a regular part of your pretest routine. Regular exercise has a calming effect on your mind and body. It gets blood flowing to your brain. Exercises like Yoga can calm your nerves and help you control your anxiety with easy breathing techniques you can use even on test day.