Managing anxiety during HSC

With HSC exams beginning this week, our year 12s are likely to be experiencing some higher stress levels as they take on the papers that they have been working toward all year. It's super important to have strategies to manage this stress in order to prevent it from affecting student performance and make sure it doesn't build and express itself through a panic attack during the exam.

Some helpful strategies to manage anxiety, specifically when waiting for the exam to begin, during the exam or even the night before include breathing exercises, such as box breathing, which allows for the individual to centre and regulate themselves, restoring a sense of calm to their body. The '5 Things' method is also helpful, where you can name 5 things you can see, touch, hear, feel, etc. This sensory tool provides an element of distraction and therefore is very helpful to remove any stress and refocus the student before they complete their exam. Another helpful tool includes fidget toys such as a stress ball which can help get rid of any excess energy and fidgeting prior to walking into the exam room.

Some other factors that are helpful when alleviating anxiety are diet, sleep and exercise. It can be hard to balance all of this with studying during the exam block, however making sure you are fueling your body with healthy food, staying hydrated and exercising daily can help release important hormones and power your body and brain to perform their best on the day. Sleep is also very important for this, as without adequate hours of sleep, it is much more difficult for the brain to retain any of the information that has been studied prior. Therefore, there are many different tools and strategies that can help manage anxiety during exam periods, and it's important for students to find the methods that work best for them.