Managing Test Anxiety, NCLEX

On a crisp Fall day, we decided to take the train from Williams, AZ up to the Grand Canyon. The train ride was full of adventure! There was a Western Cowboy show before boarding the train, defining the good guys from the bad guys.

During the train ride  a great train robbery took place! Lots of Money by that I mean donations from passengers to support the steam engine, and bullets by that I mean cowboys handing bullets to children,were flying everywhere! 

 I watched my son closely as a "bandit" approached to give him a bullet. My sons anxiety was creeping up from the minute the cowboys stepped "boot" on the train. My son stood behind me as his tiny hand reached out for the shiny metal bullet from the smiling Cowboy. A crooked smile crept across my son's face and I watched his body relax.  For my son, it was a pretty real experience being on a train robbed by cowboys. His fear of the unknown increased until he was reassured he was going to be OK.

We all experience fear of the unknown.  Fear can freeze us or guide us to safety. When I think back to my experience of taking the NCLEX,  I was scared to death to take the test. I did everything I could to prepare for the test. Knowing that your nursing career does not start until the passing results are in your hand puts a strain on the right of passage into nursing. 

The experience of test taking for me is like my sons experience watching the train robbers. Test Anxiety, like any other fear can be managed to guide you safely through the NCLEX to your RN license.  Study preparation and practice questions for the NCLEX are a highly valuable part of the process, but the focus of this article is the identifying and protecting yourself from the ambush of the "bandit" Test Anxiety. 

Part II of this article:  5 Steps 2 Managing Test Anxiety during NCLEX.

Here are four things you can do to identify & manage Test Anxiety;