From Panic to Performance: Overcoming Test Anxiety in College

If you are a college student, taking exams is inevitable. It’s stressful for most students, but for some, it can be overwhelming. If that sounds like you, you may have test anxiety.

Brian was a 19-year college student who suffered from severe test anxiety. He did well in most other aspects of his life; he had friends and was close to his family. Yet one part of his life was unbearable. He froze when he took tests. He studied hard and knew the material, but he was failing two of his required courses. As soon as he encountered a challenging question on an exam, he became overwhelmed with anxiety. He simply froze. His mind became blank, and completing the test was excruciating or often impossible.

Test anxiety has nothing to do with your intelligence or ability to learn, comprehend, or apply the information you are being tested on. Test anxiety is a stress reaction that interferes with your ability to demonstrate the information and knowledge you have when you are in testing situations. The stress reaction affects your body, thinking, and feelings. You might also experience distressing physical sensations, such as nausea, jitteriness, lightheadedness, or a racing heart.

The thinking part of the stress reaction may make your mind go completely blank. Or the opposite might occur, and you might find your thoughts racing. Rather than thinking only about the test, fear-driven, self-doubting thoughts such as “I’m going to fail this test” or “I’m no good at taking tests at all” might occupy your mind.

Emotional responses may accompany the physical and cognitive discomfort. You may experience feelings of despair, defeat, panic, and frustration. You might begin to dread studying for tests, as even test preparation recalls the memory of previous text anxiety. You may think, “Why even bother studying—I’ll just get nervous on the test anyway and forget what I’ve studied.” Or maybe you do just the opposite, studying ten times harder, only to be overcome again by anxiety during the test itself.

Perhaps you feel driven to perfection. You think you must perform exceptionally; anything less would damage your self-worth. Unfortunately, perfectionism provides more fuel for your test anxiety. You’re not just taking a test—you feel you’re proving yourself and your worth each time you take a test. It’s understandable that, under these circumstances, your anxiety would mount. Unfortunately, this anxiety then gets in the way of demonstrating your true abilities.

Strange as it may seem, a moderate degree of stress in the testing situation is optimal. It ensures you are alert, ‘on your toes,’ and motivated to perform to the best of your abilities. Yet, when you experience test anxiety, your level of stress moves outside of this optimal range. Rather than enhancing your ability to focus and concentrate on the task at hand, anxiety overwhelms you, becoming the object of your focus and concentration.

It’s time for stress to become an asset rather than a roadblock and for your test performance to match your true abilities. So, whether you avoid studying or study a lot, are driven by perfectionist tendencies to perform exceptionally, or aim for a passing grade, you can learn to recalibrate your stress levels. There are proven tools you can use to ease your stress level back into that optimal range.

Brian’s college counselor suggested that he contact me for assistance. I recommended that he listen to an audio recording I created and join one of my online groups. These gave him the tools to manage his test anxiety. Before long, he excelled in all his courses, and two years later, Brian graduated with honors.

Like Brian, you can learn tools and techniques to manage your test anxiety. My program is significantly different from the skills taught in a typical test preparation course or at your university counseling center. The tools incorporate visualization, hypnosis, and cognitive approaches to modulate and enhance your emotional, mental, and physical functioning as you prepare for and take a test.

You deserve the opportunity to show who you are and what you can accomplish. You deserve the opportunity to de-stress your academic experiences and career preparation. Most of all, you deserve the opportunity to fully enjoy your college years. Here’s how to learn more about my evidenced-based approach to managing test anxiety: https://carolyndaitchphd.com/product/test-anxiety-solutions. I’m looking forward to working with you!

SEE ALSO: How to Deal With Academic Anxiety