Tips to Remedy Exam Stress

As students, we are all aware that exam periods can be extremely stressful. To avoid being overwhelmed, it is important to maintain a positive outlook. This is why students should reflect on these key points:

1. Look at the bigger picture. Don’t just simply categorize success and failure; look at it in a dynamic aspect. This can help visualize current failure as something that could be used towards your future success.

2. Your stressed state may shape how you view your world. We all have the wisdom to see the bigger picture, but sometimes we might just need someone to point it out and help us see the world through a more positive outlook.

3. Don’t be afraid to be honest. This is absolutely crucial, as admitting you are stressed and need help is encouraged. You have the right to seek help and not be stigmatized for it.

4. Success and failure are relative to the person, and everyone has their own level of handling a situation. If the outcome of an exam has you feeling at unease, you simply have yet to uncover a deeper understanding for the situation. This can be remedied by becoming aware and being more positive.

5. Feeling the fear of being stigmatized can result in healthy or unhealthy outcomes. Ideally, this fear will drive you to want to improve and work towards your strength by seeking help. Unfortunately it has the capacity to hinder you, as this fear can also drive you to avoid taking action. This is a sign of a wrong outlook, which is why it is very important to keep an open mindset.

6. Mental health is equally as important as physical health. So just as how physical health problems are not stigmatized, mental health issues should not be either. This is why individuals facing a negative outlook should feel no need refrain themselves from seeking help.

7. Everyone has the wisdom to see all situations ideally. It just takes experience to strengthen your ability to use your positive outlook. As a result, each negative event can serve as an experience to increase your future wisdom like a ladder to help you achieve the next level.

8. Success achieved through minimum effort is simply luck; true victory comes from a great deal of hard work.

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Source:

• Serena Y. Kuang (2019) A broader outlook to reduce pre-exam stress, Medical Teacher, DOI: 10.1080/0142159X.2018.1563675