Is it possible to overcome test anxiety?

Identifying Test Anxiety

While people have the skills and knowledge to do very well in these situations, their excessive anxiety impairs their performance. The severity of test anxiety can vary considerably from one person to another. Some people might feel like they have "butterflies" in their stomachs, while others might find it difficult to concentrate on the exam. This can also manifest in the following ways:

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  A businessman freezes up and forgets the information he was going to present to his co-workers and manager during a work presentation.
  
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  A high school basketball player becomes very anxious before a big game. During the game, she is so overwhelmed by this stress that she starts missing even easy shots.
  
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  A violin student becomes extremely nervous before a recital. During the performance, she messes up on several key passages and flubs her solo. 
  

A little bit of nervousness can actually be helpful, making you feel mentally alert and ready to tackle the challenges presented in an exam. The Yerkes-Dodson law suggests that there is a link between arousal levels and performance. Essentially, increased arousal levels can help you do better on exams, but only up to a certain point.⁴
Once these stress levels cross that line, the excessive anxiety you might be experiencing can actually interfere with test performance.
Excessive fear can make it difficult to concentrate and you might struggle to recall things that you have studied. You might feel like all the information you spent some much time reviewing suddenly seems inaccessible in your mind.
You blank out the answers to questions to which you know you know the answers. This inability to concentrate and recall information then contributes to even more anxiety and stress, which only makes it that much harder to focus your attention on the test. 

Symptoms of Test Anxiety

The symptoms of test anxiety can vary considerably and range from mild to severe. Some students experience only mild symptoms of test anxiety and are still able to do fairly well on exams. Other students are nearly incapacitated by their anxiety, performing dismally on tests or experiencing panic attacks before or during exams.​
According to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America, symptoms of test anxiety can be physical, behavioral, cognitive, and emotional.⁵

Physical Symptoms

Physical symptoms of test anxiety include sweating, shaking, rapid heartbeat, dry mouth, fainting, and nausea. Sometimes these symptoms might feel like a case of "butterflies" in the stomach, but they can also be more serious symptoms of physical illness such as nausea, diarrhea, or vomiting.⁵

Cognitive and Behavioral Symptoms

Cognitive and behavioral symptoms can include avoiding situations that involve testing. This can involve skipping class or even dropping out of school. In other cases, people might use drugs or alcohol to cope with symptoms of anxiety.
Other cognitive symptoms include memory problems, difficulty concentrating, and negative self-talk.⁵

Emotional Symptoms

Emotional symptoms of test anxiety can include depression, low self-esteem, anger, and a feeling of hopelessness.⁵ Fortunately, there are steps that students can take to alleviate these unpleasant and oftentimes harmful symptoms. By learning more about the possible causes of their test anxiety, students can begin to look for helpful solutions.