The stress of exams effects the students in many ways. It is important to manage this stress and find ways of eliminating it. The more the stress is taken, more are the chances of burnout and exhaustion. It not only effects the way of thinking but is also not good for physical and mental health of the students too. The situation can vary from one student to another as for some students, it is a time of recognition and performance. Those students just revise the syllabus to a little extent and ace the exam with securing excellent grades. While there is another type of students whose heart beats increase and they sweat for hours while studying. For these students, revision is like climbing a mountain range. Nevertheless, the world is not lost for these students and they are still capable of making a strong comeback by following certain strategies of overcoming stress.
Firstly, students need to take regular breaks and schedule fun things in between the routine of study. This can be practiced by taking 15 to 20 minutes’ small breaks after regular intervals of every 2 to 3 hours. Even the most intense exam of this world allows you to relax for a short while, hence, one needs to relax as per their schedule. Moreover, the fun things can be scheduled like going out with family for a dinner, spending some time with friends, watching an episode of a series or season on Netflix etc. Things like these will ease the stress of students.

Moreover, the exercise relaxes the individuals and it diverts the attention from one aspect to the other. The examination season begins in the month of March and April, which is a transformation period of cold to hot weather. The weather is not very hot, therefore, the students need to start their day early in the morning so they can initiate the day with a morning walk, running the track, attending gym or even swim. This can be done in any other weather conditions too because it will keep one healthy, fit and active for the study material to absorb. This will help in normalizing the mood of the students too.

Comparison is the thief of joy, hence, don’t always listen to others. It is important to discuss the preparation with your friends and other class fellows but sometimes it can lead towards comparison of preparation. This can creep in stress as one starts to wonder that if he/she is moving in the right direction or not. If one’s preparation is well ahead of other, it can push one into a false paradise and can distract. On the other end, if the preparation is far behind, it gives stress and hence, the preparation plan breaks up. We advise the students to discuss with others but don’t always make it as the basis of preparation.

Furthermore, the level of stress can also be reduced by speaking up to someone. If a student feels that the situation is out of control and stress has got big, try and speak to someone about it. May it be one’s friend, family member, tutor, mentor or any other individual as deemed appropriate by the student. Once the situation is discussed, they either lose their stress by discussing or realize that it is not only they who have stress but all the individuals have different kinds and types of stress. This will help the students in developing a coping mechanism of their own. This can also lead to ending of stress as discussion with someone often gives a level of ease.

Let us further discuss that what can be done best in order to eliminate the stress of exams. One shall take the help of technology. This help can be facilitated by watching a film or any of the TV show which gives you a feeling of getting relaxed. It can be different for various individuals as some like to watch a movie, while others prefer watching documentary, TV show, a funny video, a podcast of a comedian, cricket match or reading books. In addition to that, students can drink any herbal tea or hot chocolate. It is commonly known fact that all the hot drinks are famous for soothing the soul. Although, caffeine shall be avoided.

Sometimes, the stress is also due to long hours of study and students feel hungry. The stress and anxiety caused by exams eliminates the realization of hunger, therefore, students can have an eating break. The mind can’t be feed well if the body is not fed well. On contrary to that, female students can eliminate their stress by baking or cooking something of choice that can bring joy to them. On some occasions, a shower or bath can also be used to relieve the stress level. As important is eating, equally critical is sleeping. Stress often exhausts the students and rather than having a deep sleep, they need small breaks of sleep.

Once the preparations are completed, the stress level can still exist during and after the exams. The post-mortem of the exams shall be avoided as no one can go back to the exams and improve their answers. The errors can be reviewed and same mistakes shall not be repeated again but the process shall stop rather than getting stressed due to those mistakes. The levels of stress can be heightened as the exams are to be scheduled any time soon. The entire country faced a suspension for an indefinite period owing to certain unavoidable circumstances but we encourage the students to thoroughly practice the above mentioned strategies which can help them in eliminating stress levels due to exams.

By;
Daniyal Ahmad

The blogger hails from Lahore and has been writing content for various leading platforms since 2015. Education, Current Affairs, Sports and Social Issues are the expertise of blogger. The blogger can be contacted using his email address daniyal.ahmad71@gmail.com