By Kunj Yadav
Aah! it’s that time of the year again. And the very unwelcomed neighbour “stress” is storming into people’s houses and this time his latest subject of cribbing is an exam? The hoopla of exams never failed to take a toll on one’s mind and body soaking the best out of them. Irrespective of age, exam pressure brings fear and anxiety to everyone in its vicinity. As it is rightfully said, “Stress and exam are directly proportional to each other.”
As, CBSE, ICSE, State Board and College exams are going to be held soon, the next few months weigh heavily on students’ fragile minds majorly engulfed by bookish bombardment, parents’ restrictions, and war zones. They constantly experience pressure, constant sermons, comparisons with other students, negative influences, sarcasm, unrest, and tiredness.
The parents are stressed because the child is stressed. The child is stressed because the parents are stressed. This is a vicious loop and exams are playing the role of the lifeline of this loop. But, one needs to remember that tension for exams is only a part of life and everyone has to go through it at some point in time. While success and failure are two sides of the same coin, even though scoring well is of great importance, scoring less is not the end of the world.
Exams may not be tough but the information and energies surrounding the students become so stressful and negative that exams become a demon for all, especially with the increasing competition and the desire to be better than the rest. However, in reality, the worst part is that this fear, stress, and anxiety are not helping them in mastering the syllabus and then they become more stressed and overwhelmed with the outcome. This again goes on in a loop.
So, here to your rescue are five tips to help you through the stressful yet very significant phase of life:
Analysis the common reasons of tension:
How they I perform in the examination
I have no time left to study or prepare properly
The urge to know the answer to all the questions
The other stress factors combining together with the examination stress
Feeling the pressure of the family to see them get success and live up to their expectations.
The urge to secure spectacular grades so they can apply for courses or careers later in life
Meditation:
One might have been bored hearing this again and again, but meditation is actually the most potent tool to handle exam stress. Meditation for mindfulness allows a person to gear up and face the various emotional quotients in life by staying calm and analyzing the situations. Over the year it has been successfully proven to work like magic to overcome exam stress. Here’s the method one could try:
Seek a comfortable position either on a chair or any place and sit with your eyes closed.
Ensure to have the mind blank without thinking or focusing on anything.
Take deep breaths and inhale through the nose. While exhaling through the mouth gently.
Focus on the body muscles and take care of breathing correctly.
Please pay attention to the body. Realise how the various parts of the body touch the different portions of the objects around them.
Concentrate on the various noises in the room.
Keep focusing on breathing and then by counting from one to ten, keep going further.
Take some more deep breaths and feel the body one more time.
Create a stress-free zone:
With the constant hustle going on find yourself a relaxation space to relieve stress. This place can be anywhere- a room, garage, terrace, rooftop, or even one’s car. Spend a few minutes doing anything but studying. One can indulge themselves in soothing activities like listening to music, painting, soft reading, or just relaxing by taking a power nap. For some, this stress-free zone might include cleaning their room or personal belongings.
Eat Healthy:
Engage yourself in eating or drinking something you relish most including chocolates which have proven to help in reducing stress hormones and increase brain functionality. Eat some protein-rich food including eggs, fish, lentils, dairy products, soy products, nuts, and seeds, etc. As protein helps create brain chemicals that improve one’s mood.
Rejuvenate:
Spending a few minutes of your day to de-stress yourself might help you feel relaxed and clear your mind to focus on the syllabus later. Try to engage in some blood-pumping adrenaline rush activities like power yoga, some sports, jog as these activities help relieve your stress level. Might want to watch a nice podcast or a comedy movie considering a hearty laugh increase circulation and helps muscular relaxation.
(Kunj Yadav is Chairperson, Yadu Public Schools Noida and Director & Chief Marketing Officer of Yadu Corporation)