Does stress help you "get going" and motivate you to study for finals? Or does the stress of exams overwhelm you?

If it overwhelms you, you're not alone. Many students experience attitudes and stress symptoms that are disabling and counterproductive to doing well academically. Two of the most common stress-related "exam" problems are viewing exams as a "life or death" phenomenon and falling into patterns of avoidance and procrastination.

Some people experience both of these and feel they are on a roller coaster of anxiety, alternating with numbing avoidance.

"Life and Death Thinking" involves viewing exams as a "life or death" phenomenon. It can cause a fight/flight panic state. In a panic state, you feel "adrenalized," experience racing thoughts, muscle tension, shakiness and beliefs that the world will end if you don't do well on your exams. High levels of anxiety can also cause problems with appetite, sleep, mood and concentration.

It's hard to settle down and study if you are in the middle of a panic. If you panic, it's important to develop a more moderate approach to exams. While you want to do well on exams, it's important to accept the grades that you get with a reasonable amount of work. Paradoxically, you will actually do better if you don't care "too" much. Remind yourself of likely outcomes if you tend to catastrophize and worry about the worst.

Falling into a pattern of avoidance and procrastination can, in contrast to panic, make students feel so demoralized that they give up (maybe even before they have started to study), because they feel so overwhelmed by all of the work facing them. Getting started can be difficult if you fear failure or want to avoid the discomfort of breaking through initial inertia.

If you are procrastinating, it's important to get started even if it's for a small amount of time, like fifteen minutes. Figuring out how to break down tasks into small "bite-size" chunks of work helps make the work feel less overwhelming. Giving yourself credit for any work completed can also provide a sense of accomplishment.

In addition, try to manage your stress through basic self-care strategies. Some examples include:

-- maintaining regular eating and sleeping patterns.

-- engaging in realistically positive self-talk.

-- exercising.

-- developing a time management plan.

-- remembering to take small breaks every hour or so to clear your brain.

-- learning and practicing a relaxation technique, such as diaphragmatic breathing.

-- establishing rewards for studying.