Red Bull before VR good idea?

[axp107]

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What do you think? Anyone tried it..? I know there's a caffeine crash.. but how long does it take for that to happen?

 

[RoadRunner17]

Try it. Your mileage will vary. But expect your BS score to take a hit unless you chug another RB before the BS section.

 

[RPedigo]

I think you'll have enough anxiety and nervousness on test day already-- exacerbating it by taking stimulants might end terribly.

 

[Hindiana_Jones]

I wouldn't do it.

 

[elektroshok]

i drink half of one before VR and the other half after

 

[EECStoMed]

I can definitely vouch for the effects of Red Bull, both good and bad. I remember it was my sophomore year when right before my bio final I pulled an all nighter with like 4 red bulls. With like 500+ others in the class I nailed that test and came in top 3. lol. That's the nice part.UGLY part, I felt extremely depressed for a whole week afterwards; antisocial, feeling of unworth, etc... So use redbull with discretion, it's no game when it comes to your health.

 

[161468]

Isn't caffeine a diuretic and will force you to have to urinate a whole lot? That's why I don't drink coffee before the MCAT.

 

[Bre]

Yeah Red Bull sounds like an awful idea. Caffeine is good for pulling an all nighter sure, but to help you read faster and answer questions faster? No way~

 

[ACD]

I made a huge latte before my test and drank a third of it before each section--excluding the writing sample--along with eating some nuts and berries. I didn't crash (bio was my high score) but I also followed the same coffee routine with all of my practice tests. If you are going to drink Red Bulls just make sure you drink them before all of your practice tests. Don't do anything out of the ordinary on test day.

P.S. Plan on using the rest room during each break.

 

[elektroshok]

I made a huge latte before my test and drank a third of it before each section--excluding the writing sample--along with eating some nuts and berries. I didn't crash (bio was my high score) but I also followed the same coffee routine with all of my practice tests. If you are going to drink Red Bulls just make sure you drink them before all of your practice tests. Don't do anything out of the ordinary on test day.

P.S. Plan on using the rest room during each break.

you beat me to it. i have like 3-4 cups coffee in the morning as well as another sometime before noon - so it would have messed me up MORE had i not had some caffeine during the administration.

 

[axp107]

I probably won't try it

I'm not really a coffee person.. I've only had it maybe 3 times in my life. Not a good time to start experimenting with 2 weeks to go lol

 

[Cataract]

I have to say I drank one can of Rockstar Sugar-Free energy drink throughout the exam and I felt great. I had a few sips between sections to keep me awake and it a little more before VR because the passages can be incredibly boring. It worked and I wasn't anxious or panicked. Yes, caffeine is a diuretic, but you can take care of that during breaks. The fact that it's sugar-free prevented a crash.

I don't know my scores so....grain of salt, eh?

 

[yuc]

are we allowed to take drinks with us to the testing room though?

i thought everything stays in a locker, except for yourself and an ID.

 

[drshapiro]

I tried it on an AAMC practice test, and really had to pee during VR. (Serioulsy, the washroom was all I could think about!)

Didn't touch it on test day, and scored a 38.

 

[whoisthedrizzle]

caffiene pills = cheaper, easier to dose

but to each his own

 

[boodthedog]

I probably won't try it

I'm not really a coffee person.. I've only had it maybe 3 times in my life. Not a good time to start experimenting with 2 weeks to go lol

You're absolutely right. I drank one before vr and one before bs and it helped me focus, those were my best sections. But I drink tons of coffee. I remember seeing a graphic in National Geographic a while ago with pictures of a normal brain, a brain of a coffee drinker without caffeine, and then the same brain with caffeine. The normal brain looked normal, the lacking caffeine one had reduced blood flow (slight), and with caffeine it picked back up to normal or slightly more. Moral, if you drink caffeine normally, do so testing. If you don't, I doubt it would help but could mess you up, or so it seems to me.

 

[evoviiigsr]

I chugged a red bull before the PS section. After getting raped in that section, I feel the red bull helped me concentrate real well for the rest of the test. The downside is that you will have to urinate a lot. I had to go pretty badly with like 5 mins left in my BS section. Since caffeine is an ADH blocker, I did drink a good bit of water during my breaks to stay hydrated, so this added to the urination.

 

[161468]

are we allowed to take drinks with us to the testing room though?

i thought everything stays in a locker, except for yourself and an ID.

No, of course not, and depending on your sensitivity to these energy drinks/coffee, you will likely feel some kind of sudden rush that will then be sustained. So it's best not to chug it right before an exam. Do you want to be jittery during the exam? If you know your information, there's plenty of time to finish the exam.

 

[mrmilad]

I drink half a redbull before verbal, and it really does give me an edge. After the writing sample I then eat a power bar of some sort and then the rest of the redbull. Make sure you force yourself to urinate between verbal and writing, although most of the times it is not really difficult to.

 

[yuc]

yea. the only thing i'm worried about is not being able to sleep the night before. one of my tpr instructors basically told us to just lie somewhere still and don't even expect to sleep because of nervousness.


how did you guys deal with that?

 

[Nikki2002]

bad idea. i was drinking starbucks double shots.....i was completely going insane from anxiety and shaking

 

[shepdogg2]

i drank half of one before the VR and half before the BS, scored well (12, 13). you have time to pee during the 10 minute breaks if you must, but i didnt find it to be a problem. personally i just feel like i can focus more aggressively with that little caffeine boost. good luck.

 

[Despina]

If your going to use caffeine work it into your practice test schedule. I actually got caffeine pills and played with the right dosage. I found the 8 ounces of liquid with coffee made me have to pee more than just taking a pill. The first time I tried the red bull approach had to run up to go pee in the middle of a section and lost a couple of minutes. Do it with and without and see if it actually helps you focus more. Just DON'T wait to try it on test day. Also the caffeine could make you a little anxious on test day.