Test Anxiety?

[jarhslof]

Hi everyone, I'm entering med school in August, and I was wondering if anyone had any advice or experience for someone with mild test anxiety? For a handful of exams in undergrad (like 4 out of my four years?) I wasn't able to sleep the night before (even though I studied really hard and truly felt like I knew the material, I guess I was still a tad anxious). Is this something I should be worried about for step? I know it's a while from now, but I feel like my performance was adversely affected on those exams from a lack of sleep and I would hate that to be the case for step. So, my question is 1) does anyone have experience with this? And if so, has anything been able to help? And 2) should I see a psychologist over the summer to hopefully get rid of this?

I think it might just boil down to needing more self confidence and coming to terms with the "unknown" factor of exams (i.e. No matter how hard you study, yes, there still might be a question you don't know the answer to)? I'd love and appreciate any advice you all might have! Thanks in advance 🙂

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[DocConk]

You obviously did well enough on your MCAT (presumably your most stressful exam to date) to matriculate into medical school. That tells me that you succeeded with regards to that exam. There's a lot of time between now and Step 1. I'd say worry about your coursework before then and save your stress for the boards for a later time. Talking to a professional about test-related anxiety would probably be a good option if you were interested in that as well.

 

[Azete]

Mild test anxiety is healthy and will help you perform better. Anxiety that disrupts sleep or causes physiological symptoms (tachycardia, etc.) while you take your exam is not, and in my opinion is the number one reason bright students bomb step 1. In med school you can muscle through anxiety, even a full-blown panic attack, on an hour long exam and probably perform reasonably well. But there's no hiding from it when you're taking an 8 hour exam that will impact the rest of your life.

Do whatever you need to in order to get a handle on this now. A consistent yoga/meditation regimen worked for me (and many others), I'd start there and if you don't see improvement then seek professional help.

 

[jarhslof]

You obviously did well enough on your MCAT (presumably your most stressful exam to date) to matriculate into medical school. That tells me that you succeeded with regards to that exam. There's a lot of time between now and Step 1. I'd say worry about your coursework before then and save your stress for the boards for a later time. Talking to a professional about test-related anxiety would probably be a good option if you were interested in that as well.

Thanks for the advice! 🙂 I actually didn't take the MCAT 😉 (I'm in a combined BS/MD program)

 

[jarhslof]

Mild test anxiety is healthy and will help you perform better. Anxiety that disrupts sleep or causes physiological symptoms (tachycardia, etc.) while you take your exam is not, and in my opinion is the number one reason bright students bomb step 1. In med school you can muscle through anxiety, even a full-blown panic attack, on an hour long exam and probably perform reasonably well. But there's no hiding from it when you're taking an 8 hour exam that will impact the rest of your life.

Do whatever you need to in order to get a handle on this now. A consistent yoga/meditation regimen worked for me (and many others), I'd start there and if you don't see improvement then seek professional help.

Yes, it's def the latter. Even the times when I could sleep I would sometimes feel nauseous, tachycardia, etc. before the exam. Your point on it being the main reason why bright students perform less than he or she may actually be capable of performing otherwise is why I'm so worried about it! I began exercising daily this year and it definitely helped with stress (unsure about test anxiety though). I'm glad yoga worked for you; I'll definitely start yoga over the summer and continue it through med school—thanks so much for the advice. 🙂 How might you recommend getting into meditation? I have been wanting to try mindfulness techniques, but I'm unsure where I should start!

 

[Goro]

It's common, and seeing a therapist can help!

Hi everyone, I'm entering med school in August, and I was wondering if anyone had any advice or experience for someone with mild test anxiety? For a handful of exams in undergrad (like 4 out of my four years?) I wasn't able to sleep the night before (even though I studied really hard and truly felt like I knew the material, I guess I was still a tad anxious). Is this something I should be worried about for step? I know it's a while from now, but I feel like my performance was adversely affected on those exams from a lack of sleep and I would hate that to be the case for step. So, my question is 1) does anyone have experience with this? And if so, has anything been able to help? And 2) should I see a psychologist over the summer to hopefully get rid of this?

I think it might just boil down to needing more self confidence and coming to terms with the "unknown" factor of exams (i.e. No matter how hard you study, yes, there still might be a question you don't know the answer to)? I'd love and appreciate any advice you all might have! Thanks in advance 🙂

 

[Azete]

Yes, it's def the latter. Even the times when I could sleep I would sometimes feel nauseous, tachycardia, etc. before the exam. Your point on it being the main reason why bright students perform less than he or she may actually be capable of performing otherwise is why I'm so worried about it! I began exercising daily this year and it definitely helped with stress (unsure about test anxiety though). I'm glad yoga worked for you; I'll definitely start yoga over the summer and continue it through med school—thanks so much for the advice. 🙂 How might you recommend getting into meditation? I have been wanting to try mindfulness techniques, but I'm unsure where I should start!

Personally I think yoga is the easiest way to start. Pure meditation/mindfulness was really difficult for me at first, but got easier as I practiced being "in the moment" with yoga. Any yoga routine is fine, there's plenty of smartphone apps to get you going. After a while you'll be able to sit in your chair before an exam and feel like you're on a beach in Hawaii. Having that much control over your body's sympathetic response is an amazingly invaluable tool in med school.

 

[McDreamy123]

I have a friend that is prescribed a low dose benzo to get to sleep in the event he can't. He says it works by stopping his racing thoughts / obsessing which is preventing him from sleeping. He is a current M3, and scored 255 on his step 1 so I would say it works for him. He takes it night before exams cause he has problems getting to sleep due to obsessing about them. He said unlike sleep meds he wakes up feeling refreshed and not groggy. Granted mention benzos and people freak out --- mostly because they can be addicting and you have people that like to walk around high on Xanax bars all day. They can be useful in certain situations though.

 

[OnePunchBiopsy]

Test anxiety is very common.

Your school may also have resources for you (test experts, counselors). Use every resource you can and best of luck to you!

 

[cdmguy]

Hi everyone, I'm entering med school in August, and I was wondering if anyone had any advice or experience for someone with mild test anxiety? For a handful of exams in undergrad (like 4 out of my four years?) I wasn't able to sleep the night before (even though I studied really hard and truly felt like I knew the material, I guess I was still a tad anxious). Is this something I should be worried about for step? I know it's a while from now, but I feel like my performance was adversely affected on those exams from a lack of sleep and I would hate that to be the case for step. So, my question is 1) does anyone have experience with this? And if so, has anything been able to help? And 2) should I see a psychologist over the summer to hopefully get rid of this?

I think it might just boil down to needing more self confidence and coming to terms with the "unknown" factor of exams (i.e. No matter how hard you study, yes, there still might be a question you don't know the answer to)? I'd love and appreciate any advice you all might have! Thanks in advance 🙂

A safe natural treatment is to buy a vial of organic lavender essential oil and stir 1-2 drops in 8 oz of water. Sip slowly and stop if the taste changes or you don't feel like continuing. Lavender is non-addicting and generally recognized as safe.

 

[OnePunchBiopsy]

A safe natural treatment is to buy a vial of organic lavender essential oil and stir 1-2 drops in 8 oz of water. Sip slowly and stop if the taste changes or you don't feel like continuing. Lavender is non-addicting and generally recognized as safe.

Is lavender oil gluten free?

 

[thedoctorwillseeyounow]

Test anxiety is very common.

Your school may also have resources for you (test experts, counselors). Use every resource you can and best of luck to you!

I definitely agree with talking with a professional/therapist and I would definitely connect with the student support services at your school on day 1. In one of my interviews (the school I'm matriculating at, actually), one of the professors talked about a student that she discovered had test anxiety. This person was very smart but their grades didn't reflect it and she noticed him in a cold sweat during an exam or something and she took him to the student support services and lo and behold, test anxiety. Once they knew that was the problem, they had a ton of resources to help him including a counselor and accommodating him during tests so that he could take exams in a private room because that helped keep him calm. This is at an average state school which makes me think that this kind of thing isn't rare and most med schools will go a long way to help you overcome it, they want (and need) us to succeed. I got off on a tangent but my point is, let someone know at your school, there are people who are trained to help with this situation and it can only help you in the long run. Good luck OP!


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[jarhslof]

A safe natural treatment is to buy a vial of organic lavender essential oil and stir 1-2 drops in 8 oz of water. Sip slowly and stop if the taste changes or you don't feel like continuing. Lavender is non-addicting and generally recognized as safe.

I just bought lavender and peppermint oil and here's hoping it helps! Thanks so much for the tip, I can't wait to try it!

 

[jarhslof]

I definitely agree with talking with a professional/therapist and I would definitely connect with the student support services at your school on day 1. In one of my interviews (the school I'm matriculating at, actually), one of the professors talked about a student that she discovered had test anxiety. This person was very smart but their grades didn't reflect it and she noticed him in a cold sweat during an exam or something and she took him to the student support services and lo and behold, test anxiety. Once they knew that was the problem, they had a ton of resources to help him including a counselor and accommodating him during tests so that he could take exams in a private room because that helped keep him calm. This is at an average state school which makes me think that this kind of thing isn't rare and most med schools will go a long way to help you overcome it, they want (and need) us to succeed. I got off on a tangent but my point is, let someone know at your school, there are people who are trained to help with this situation and it can only help you in the long run. Good luck OP!

Thanks so much for the advice and well wishes! 🙂 I think I'm going to try the essential oils on my last few undergrad exams, start yoga over the summer, and talk to someone at my school like you suggested on day 1. I'm glad the school you're matriculating at is supportive of students 🙂

 

[jarhslof]

I have a friend that is prescribed a low dose benzo to get to sleep in the event he can't. He says it works by stopping his racing thoughts / obsessing which is preventing him from sleeping. He is a current M3, and scored 255 on his step 1 so I would say it works for him. He takes it night before exams cause he has problems getting to sleep due to obsessing about them. He said unlike sleep meds he wakes up feeling refreshed and not groggy. Granted mention benzos and people freak out --- mostly because they can be addicting and you have people that like to walk around high on Xanax bars all day. They can be useful in certain situations though.

I'm glad the medication worked so well for him! I'm kinda anti-meds (ironic for someone in medicine I know) so I'll try all the natural methods first to get over this, and hopefully something works—but thanks very much for the advice! 🙂

 

[doctorskywalker]

Is lavender oil gluten free?

If your lavender oil isn't labeled "non-GMO," just throw it in the trash right now.

😉

 

[cdmguy]

I just bought lavender and peppermint oil and here's hoping it helps! Thanks so much for the tip, I can't wait to try it!

You're welcome. Only drink the lavender oil dilution. I have no idea what would happen if you drink peppermint oil and don't recommend it. Lavender supplement is researched.

I use peppermint for aromatherapy when taking a bath.

 

[MindfulTestTaking]

Hi everyone, I'm entering med school in August, and I was wondering if anyone had any advice or experience for someone with mild test anxiety? For a handful of exams in undergrad (like 4 out of my four years?) I wasn't able to sleep the night before (even though I studied really hard and truly felt like I knew the material, I guess I was still a tad anxious). Is this something I should be worried about for step? I know it's a while from now, but I feel like my performance was adversely affected on those exams from a lack of sleep and I would hate that to be the case for step. So, my question is 1) does anyone have experience with this? And if so, has anything been able to help? And 2) should I see a psychologist over the summer to hopefully get rid of this?

I think it might just boil down to needing more self confidence and coming to terms with the "unknown" factor of exams (i.e. No matter how hard you study, yes, there still might be a question you don't know the answer to)? I'd love and appreciate any advice you all might have! Thanks in advance 🙂

Hi jarhslof,

When you get nervous & stressed during a test, you are physically tensing up your body and unable to control it. Mindfulness practices, such as meditation, are a great way to release tension & performance anxiety.

“Mindful Test Taking” combines mindfulness with visualization to clear out stress-based patterns that inhibit circulation & blood flow. We teach our students how to progressively relax, so they can show up on test day feeling calm & focused.

www.MindfulTestTaking.com offers individual mindfulness coaching & group classes over videoconference & in-person to students who feel nervous about taking tests.

 

[MindfulTestTaking]

Hi everyone, I'm entering med school in August, and I was wondering if anyone had any advice or experience for someone with mild test anxiety? For a handful of exams in undergrad (like 4 out of my four years?) I wasn't able to sleep the night before (even though I studied really hard and truly felt like I knew the material, I guess I was still a tad anxious). Is this something I should be worried about for step? I know it's a while from now, but I feel like my performance was adversely affected on those exams from a lack of sleep and I would hate that to be the case for step. So, my question is 1) does anyone have experience with this? And if so, has anything been able to help? And 2) should I see a psychologist over the summer to hopefully get rid of this?

I think it might just boil down to needing more self confidence and coming to terms with the "unknown" factor of exams (i.e. No matter how hard you study, yes, there still might be a question you don't know the answer to)? I'd love and appreciate any advice you all might have! Thanks in advance 🙂

When you get nervous & stressed during a test, you are physically tensing up your body and unable to control it. Mindfulness practices, such as meditation, are a great way to release tension & performance anxiety.

“Mindful Test Taking” combines mindfulness with visualization to clear out stress-based patterns that inhibit circulation & blood flow. We teach our students how to progressively relax, so they can show up on test day feeling calm & focused.

www.MindfulTestTaking.com offers individual mindfulness coaching & group classes over videoconference & in-person to students who feel nervous about taking tests.

 

[backside_attack]

I have a friend that is prescribed a low dose benzo to get to sleep in the event he can't. He says it works by stopping his racing thoughts / obsessing which is preventing him from sleeping. He is a current M3, and scored 255 on his step 1 so I would say it works for him. He takes it night before exams cause he has problems getting to sleep due to obsessing about them. He said unlike sleep meds he wakes up feeling refreshed and not groggy. Granted mention benzos and people freak out --- mostly because they can be addicting and you have people that like to walk around high on Xanax bars all day. They can be useful in certain situations though.

I do this the night before an exam, and then was prescribed a low dose beta-blocker to take an hour before exams. It literally turned my performance around and got me to a much better place in school.

 

[futuremdforme]

I do this the night before an exam, and then was prescribed a low dose beta-blocker to take an hour before exams. It literally turned my performance around and got me to a much better place in school.

I've heard of this. Glad it worked for you.

 

[njtrimed]

I'll just add that if your med school is like mine (and I think like most), you'll likely get over test anxiety pretty quickly, at least relative to how you feel now. When you have exams that are as comprehensive as most college midterms biweekly, it just becomes routine, and you don't have time to overthink it. I remember feeling shocked when I realized our first exam was less than 3 weeks after our white coat ceremony, and so anxious, but then I was so focused on the sheer volume of material and trying to manage it in an organized manner that I didn't have time to worry.