Coping with last minute stress

Be easy

With board exams round the corner, students and their parents are reeling under last minute pressure.

And this stress builds further for those jittery about getting admission to a college and course of their choice. Metrolife figures out how this stress can be dealt with.

Senior psychiatrist Samir Parikh says parents can play the biggest role in keeping students away from any kind of anxiety or stress. “Parents should not nag their children regarding the ‘importance’ of board exams. What they can do is help them relax if they are overstressed,” he says.

“Also, there is no need to worry if a student has studied throughout the year. What is important is that students appear for exams with an open mind and without being stuck with anxiety,” advises Samir.

Abdul Mabood, director of Snehi that pioneered pre exam counselling for students in distress or doubt through helpline Disha, says majority of students are suffering from the fear of forgetting what they have studied. The helpline number 011-65978181 gets activated every year a few days before the exams.

“We are getting 30 to 40 calls every day. Some students are facing the problem of concentration and retention. Some are worried about getting admission into their favourite college. Even those who have been scoring good marks are anxious,” informs Abdul.

Std XII student Smriti Thareja scored well in pre boards, but she still has sleepless nights as the D-day nears. “I am confident about all subjects but don’t know what will happen to Maths and Economics papers. I am worried about English as well because the revision time is too less,” she complains.

Dr Sanjay Chugh, senior consultant psychiatrist, says a lot of importance is given to education in India and the level of anxiety naturally gets escalated. “Board examinations are always considered a huge milestone in an Indian child’s life, a bridge that links directly to his successful future, which is why such immense anxiety is generated,” he says.

“For many children, their own standard of performance and evaluation is too high, and inability to reach there might lead to a sense of shame and worthlessness. However, for others, it is the high expectations set by parents, teachers or relatives that places them under enormous pressure to perform and excel,” he adds.

Counsellors and doctors feel that students need to relax and be calm by sharing their feelings with somebody who they think would understand their pain and help them take out some time for leisure too.

“No human mind can work the same way continuously for more than 50 or 60 minutes. So it is important to take a break of at least 15 minutes in between study sessions. To overcome the feeling of forgetting everything, students should revise by writing the answers in pointers,” advises Abdul.